Hills Science Diet History
This pet food brands history is intertwined with the career of the first Seeing Eye dog, Buddy.
Buddy, guide dog to Morris Frank, a young blind man, developed kidney failure in the 1930s. Frank suspected that the dogs health condition was the result of poor nutrition. So, he corresponded with lauded veterinarian .
Dr. Morris and his wife set to work on a kidney diet recipe for dogs. They worked up the formula in their own kitchen.
The first consignment of renal dog food was shipped to Frank in glass jars. However, glass tends to break during transit, so Frank sent the Morrises a canning machine as well as a commission for thousands of orders. After a while, Buddys health improved.
And thats how the worlds first veterinary diet for dogs was born.
It was called Raritan Ration B, and it was the dog food that would become the basis for Hills Prescription Diet k/d Canine.
The Hill Name Is Added
With demand for his dog food growing, Dr. Morris was finding this to be a much bigger operation than a single canning machine and a husband-and-wife team could handle.
So in 1948, Dr. Morris took his Raritan Ration B dog food to the Hill Packing Company in Kansas for a dog food canning collaboration.
Founded in 1907 by a man named Burton Hill, Hill Packing Company had begun manufacturing dog food, as well as horse meat for human consumption, in 1930. Before that, the packing company was known as Hill Rendering Works.
Corporate Changes And the Launch of Science Diet
About Hill’s Pet Nutrition
My dogs love it!
My dogs love this food, I was feeding them a different brand before and my older dog is very picky so she would pick at the old food before. First day feeding this she scarfed it down and never picks at it slowly! The other brand I was using was out of stock everywhere so I switched them to this instead because I know its a great dog food . Will definitely keep feeding to my dogs!
The Right Dog Food Does Make A Difference.
After our last dog passed away we were not getting another dog. 🙂 We now have two new rescue dogs. We started with another puppy dog food when we got the first one and had serious problems. We switched to Hill’s Science Diet. She is now on the adult food and continues to do very well. The other one came to us with sever anxiety, underweight and a skin condition. After a couple of weeks on Hill’s Science Diet dog food, she filled out, her coat was in great shape and the skin condition was gone.
How Long Will It Take For My Order To Arrive
Petbarn online orders will take from 2 – 10 business days to arrive, depending on destination and shipping method. Metro orders are usually received within five working days and up to ten days for regional and rural areas. Delivery times may be subject to stock availability and Public Holidays, as such receipt of orders may be extended by up to 21 days.
Petbarn will notify you when your order has been dispatched.
What happens if my order does not arrive in the estimated time frame?
Read Also: Jennifer Aniston Diet And Exercise
List Of Hills Science Diet Recalls
Cause: Elevated levels of Vitamin D. Announcement: FDA report dated Jan. 31, 2019 company webpage updated May 15, 2019 . What was recalled: In the United States, the following Hills Science Diet canned dog foods were recalled:
Hills Science Diet :
Note that Hills Prescription Diet canned dog food was also recalled. See our Prescription Diet page for details.
Of special note to anyone outside the United States:
Impacted products outside of the United States will be subject to separate notices on the country-specific website. If you are outside of the United States, please check your own countrys Hills website for more information.
Cause: Unknown minor issue, but possibly labeling issues. Announcement: Notice posted in select PetSmart stores, Nov. 28, 2015 . What was recalled: This was technically a withdrawal rather than a recall. According to the FDA, a market withdrawal takes place when a product has a minor violation that would not be subject to FDA legal action. The firm removes the product from the market or corrects the violation.
All date codes of the following canned dog foods were withdrawn:
In addition, all date codes of one canned cat food were withdrawn:
- Hills Ideal Balance Slim & Healthy Chicken, 2.9 oz., SKU #5209202, #UPC #5274230780
If you have not done so already, we urge you to sign up now for Petfuls FREE recall alerts by email. Our free alerts are saving pets lives.
Was Your Pet Food Recalled
That year marked another important milestone, the launch of the first Science Diet recipe: Hills Science Diet Adult Maintenance Dog Food.
Originally, Science Diet was developed as optimal nutrition for research animals. Science Diet was great for periods of stress in this unique animal population, according to a magazine ad from 1973, which announced that the dog food was being released to the general public on a limited basis.
Here is that ad:
Animal Cavalcade
Hills Science Diet has long been positioned as a science-based, clinically proven, vet-recommended diet. Jen Wrye, PhD, a sociologist with expertise in food studies and animalhuman relations, described the marketing strategy this way in her 2012 doctoral thesis:
The prominence of science in the name and the sterile-looking bags conjure up images of white-coated scientists working in laboratories to unlock secrets of animal nutrition.
Colgate-Palmolive Acquisition
In 1976, Colgate-Palmolive purchased Riviana Foods, which included its highly profitable Hills Pet Nutrition subsidiary, in a deal valued at about $180 million.
The new parent corporation set about expanding Hills product reach into 86 countries. By 1999, Hills Pet Nutrition had cleared over $1 billion in sales.
It was, for decades, an excellent investment for Colgate-Palmolive. Although that corporation is better known for dish soap and toothpaste, one-seventh of the companys profits came from the sale of pet food.
Read Also: Water Diet For Weight Loss
How Much Does Shipping Cost
Delivery charges vary depending on the size and weight of your order and your chosen delivery address. We offer a flat rate shipping charge of $6.95 to the major metro areas of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Canberra. Outside these major metro areas, the shipping cost you pay will be dependent on your location and the size of your order.For an accurate delivery quote: place the items you wish to order in your shopping cart, proceed to the checkout or Shopping Cart overview page. There is a Calculate Shipping calculator under your selected products.Simply enter the postcode or suburb of your shipping address and select the relevant location from the dropdown list that appears and click the Go button. The shipping cost calculator will display the total cost for delivery to your selected postcode or suburb. Your final shipping charges will be displayed in your checkout page before you proceed to payment so that you know exactly how much shipping will be. All prices are in Australian Dollars and freight costs are payable in addition to the product price.
Please note that we are unable to deliver to PO boxes or Parcel Lockers.
Has Hills Science Diet Ever Been Recalled
Yes. Hills Science Diet has been recalled a number of times in recent years.
Most recently, in , Hills Pet Nutrition issued a massive, worldwide recall of 33 different varieties of its canned dog foods 22 million cans recalled in all because of toxic levels of Vitamin D, which Hills blamed on a supplier error.
The recall included both the Hills Science Diet and Hills Prescription Diet brand lines. However, no dry foods, cat foods or pet treats were included in the recall.
Reportedly hundreds of dogs died after eating the affected dog food. Families who spoke with Petful told us their dogs had been in good health, but then, within a matter of days, their pets well-being took a severe downturn, ending in kidney problems, kidney failure and, in some cases, death.
We believe that hundreds, if not thousands, of pets have died or become seriously ill as a result of eating Hills foods with toxic levels of Vitamin D, attorney Nyran Rose Rasche told CBS News.
Following an investigation into that recall, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published a warning letter stating that Hills had failed to follow its own procedures. A systematic failure of your food safety plan occurred that resulted in the recall of canned dog food, the FDA said.
The FDA ordered Hills to take corrective actions and put the company on notice of future inspections.
Other Science Diet Recalls
Taurine Troubles
Below, we list the full details of every single Hills Science Diet recall.
Don’t Miss: Diet To Boost Immune System
