Pet food retailer Chewy (CHWY) -) has put major work into branding itself as a company that cares about its customers' pets, sending everything from custom paintings of customer pets to encouraging people to donate food they no longer need (such as when a pet passes away) to their local shelters.
But a recent new claim from the FDA may make some feel uneasy about the retailer's squeaky-clean reputation. According to a press release from Dec. 14, Chewy is one of nine companies that received a warning letter for distributing "unapproved and misbranded antimicrobial animal drugs."
Related: Chewy CEO: Retail Pet Trends Are Jumping
The release goes on to say that the agency is concerned because the products "contain antimicrobials that are important in human medicine and using them without medical oversight contributes to the development of antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial resistance happens when microorganisms like bacteria become resistant to the antimicrobials that are designed to kill them."
It also goes on to explain that the drugs in question have not been verified for safety or effectiveness via the FDA's animal drug review process.
The drugs in question are prescription-only and "contain antimicrobials that are important in human medicine, such as amoxicillin, penicillin, tetracycline, and erythromycin, and are being illegally marketed over the counter," the release also states.
In addition to Chewy, the other eight companies are American Aquarium Products , Aquanest Biotic, Aquarium Pharmacy LLC, California Veterinary Supply, Kraft Drug, Midland Veterinary Services LLC, Silver Lease LLC, and Valley Veterinary Clinic LTD.
The FDA says that all companies are required to dispose of the medications and to reply to the warning letters within 15 days to explain how they will address the violations. If the companies do not respond within the time frame, the FDA could seize the products from the retailers and distributors.
TheStreet has reached out to Chewy for comment.
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