After
pentobarbital—a
barbiturate used for euthanasia of dogs, cats and horses—caused the death of a dog on New Year's Eve of 2016, a wide range of pet food brands were tested by
WJLA-TV of
Washington, D.C., partnered with Ellipse Analytics. The brand that most consistently was found to contain pentobarbital was Big Heart Pet Brands' Gravy Train dog food. Out of 15 cans of the company's Gravy Train dog food that were tested, 60% tested positive for pentobarbital. The source was identified as likely to be that animals that had been
euthanized with pentobarbital had been used for making the dog food. While the levels detected were not considered lethal, the drug is not legally permitted at any concentration in pet food. After declining an on-camera interview, the
FDA stated that it would "investigate the matter and take appropriate enforcement action". ==References==