It’s strange that a pet food recall isn’t because of bacteria or contamination from a supplier mistake, but because of an ingredient that the company added to its recipes only a few months ago and even wrote a blog post to defend. That’s pretty much what dog owners in the UK are going through right now, since the fresh pet food brand Years has taken almost all of its meals off the market because more and more dogs are getting serious eye problems.
It’s called keratoconjunctivitis sicca, but most vets just call it dry eye, or KCS. It’s when a dog’s eyes stop making enough tears, making them red, painful, and open to long-term damage. It is called bilateral when it affects both eyes at the same time, which is what this case is. If you don’t treat it or catch it too late, it can get worse and cause permanent scarring on the cornea. Some people with pets are already there. In a statement, Years itself said that some dogs are “not responding to treatment” and are even losing their sight.
As of early Wednesday morning, 192 of the company’s 40,000 customers had reported “possible, but unverified, eye problems.” That’s up from 57 possible cases just a few days ago, on August 16. It’s still not clear if that spike means things are really getting worse or if it’s just more owners becoming aware and coming forward. Either choice is possible, and the business hasn’t made up its mind yet.
Buckwheat is thought to be to blame. The grain was added to Years’ meals a few months ago, and the amount wasn’t small—recipes had anywhere from 6.3% to 7.2% buckwheat, depending on the dish. In a blog post from February that has since been taken down, the company happily said that buckwheat was safe for dogs “in sensible portions” and that Years had carefully figured out the right amount. As things have gone on since then, it’s hard not to feel uneasy when I read that post.
Years has been careful not to prove a direct link between the two events. The company is still doing tests in the lab and with toxicologists. They have raised the possibility that some of their buckwheat may have been tainted instead of the buckwheat itself being the problem. That is a meaningful difference, but there isn’t any proof yet. In early August, an outside veterinary nutritionist told the company that a link to food didn’t seem likely, but that was before the number of cases reached its current high point.
A human story is being told on social media that is not part of the clinical picture. It only took a few days for the Facebook group “Years Dry Eye Cases and Info” to get over 2,100 members. Another group is already talking about their legal options. Dog owners are sharing photos of their pets, talking about when their symptoms started, and comparing notes on how they treated their dogs. As of eight months on the new food formula, one owner of a three-year-old shiba inu said their dog hadn’t shown any signs yet, but the anxiety is real. “I’m genuinely worried about whether eye problems are coming,” they replied.
Years has stopped customer subscriptions for six weeks while it changes its recipes to use quinoa instead of buckwheat. It says it will pick up meals that haven’t been eaten yet to test them and include a thank-you gift with the next delivery. People trusted the brand enough to sign up for a subscription service that would deliver fresh, personalized food right to their door. These doubts are really hurting trust right now, no matter what the lab results say in the end.
The mechanism is still something that is really unclear. Dogs can get dry eyes for a lot of different reasons, such as immune responses, medications, genetic conditions, and infections. The reported cases don’t prove that there is a link to food. However, it is hard to ignore the timing, the amount, and the shared ingredient. Years is said to have talked to veterinary ophthalmologists who are seeing a mixed picture. Some dogs are getting better with treatment, while others are not.
People who are affected feel like they are not getting answers quickly enough. That might not be fair; testing in the lab takes time, and good science doesn’t jump to conclusions quickly. But the timeline doesn’t seem like schoolwork to a dog owner who sees their dog squint and scratch at sore, painful eyes.
