The Food and Drug Administration has issued a recall for dog food manufactured by Blue Ridge Beef over concerns of it being contaminated with salmonella.

Almost 6,000 pounds of Blue Ridge Beef's "2 lb. log Natural Mix" has been recalled across eight states "due to a contamination of salmonella," FDA said in an alert Friday. Samples of the product collected on by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture on Jan. 8 tested positive for salmonella by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture Food and Drug Protection Laboratory.

What states was the dog food sold in?

The product, packaged in clear plastic, was sold between Jan. 3 and Jan. 24 primarily in retail stores located in the following states:

• Virginia
• Maryland
• Pennsylvania
• Connecticut
• Massachusetts
• New York State
• Tennessee
• Rhode Island

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Impacted products are marked with lot number #N25/12/31 or UPC number 854298001054.

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What is salmonella?

Salmonella is a bacteria that can enter the food production chain when the process isn't sanitary and when workers handling food do not wash their hands, the FDA says. Salmonella can be spread via contaminated water errantly used to irrigate crops, according to the CDC.

Symptoms of salmonella

Salmonella can affect both the animals eating the products and humans who are handling the contaminated pet products, "especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products," the FDA says.

Symptoms of salmonella in humans usually occur between six hours and six days after exposure and can include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping, and fever, according to the FDA.

Severe infections may include aches, headaches, elevated fever, lethargy, rashes, and blood in the urine or stool. Some salmonella infections may become fatal. Salmonella causes about 1.35 million illnesses, 26,500 hospitalizations, and 420 deaths in the U.S. annually, according to the CDC.

On the other hand, pets with salmonella infections may exhibit lethargy or have symptoms such as diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting.

"Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever, and abdominal pain," the FDA said, adding "infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans."

The FDA recommends pet owners to immediately contact their vet if they believe their pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms.

Blue Ridge Beef, meanwhile, did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for an update on the recall.

Last month, the family-owned and operated pet food manufacturer recalled more than 1,000 pounds of cat food due over salmonella contamination and earlier, in December, the company recalled 9,600 pounds of Puppy Mix sold in seven U.S. states after a customer in Virginia reported their litter of puppies had fallen sick. Testing confirmed the product was contaminated with salmonella, the FDA said.

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What do I do if I have contaminated pet food?

Customers who have bought the contaminated products should return them or destroy them so children, pets, and wildlife cannot access them. 

The FDA also said to:

• Wash and sanitize pet food bowls, cups and storage containers.
• Wash and sanitize your hands after handling recalled food.
• Wash and sanitize utensils that come in contact with recalled food. 

Customers can also contact Blue Ridge Beef at [email protected] or (704) 873-2072 for more information.

Contributing: Saleen Martin, Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.