Area pet owners are "freaked out" about the safety of their pet's lives after news of a nationwide pet food recall continues to make headlines, a local veterinarian assistant said.

Already, at least two local dogs — one of which died — have fallen sick from eating wheat gluten contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine, said Darlene Lannon, a veterinarian at Lannon's Animal Hospital in Elizabeth City.

"Freaked out," is how one of Lannon's assistants described the reaction of pet owners following the announcement of the recall March 16. "People are just calling up. They're very worried. They have no idea what to feed their animals. Some have taken them completely off food."

While many pet owners are turning to veterinarians for help in treating their pets, a number of other owners are taking their pets to the animal shelter to get rid of them, said Candy Bufford, manager of SPCA of Northeastern North Carolina, on Wilson Street, Elizabeth City.

"Ever since the recall came out, we've gotten an awful lot of owner turn-ins," Bufford said. "Rather than face the music, they take them to us."

While the shelter usually carries about a couple dozen cats and dogs that are either stray, found or dropped off by the owner, the shelter quickly filled after the initial recall, she said.

On Saturday, there were 30 dogs, three puppies, 32 cats and six kittens awaiting adoption at the shelter.

Most of them were dropped off by owners whose pets ate recalled food and appeared to be sick. But Bufford said none have gotten gravely ill.

Bufford said she suspects many were just using the food recall as an excuse to get rid of their dogs and cats.

"It's scary, because I have my own animals," Bufford said. "I just lost of one mine recently, and I'm not sure it was due to the age."

Much of the food at the shelter is donated by local residents. All of it is safe, except for 20 cans of dog food listed for recall were thrown out, she said.

Lannon said the day after the initial recall "telephones were ringing off the hook" at her office on Hull Drive. "People were panicky."

Even now, her office gets a half-dozen calls a day from concerned pet owners.

Many have brought them in for blood tests after exhibiting lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting and other symptoms. Even pets with no symptoms have been brought in for testing, she said.

So far, only two of dozens tested showed kidney failure after eating pet food brands that were recalled, Lannon said.

One, a dog that ate dry biscuits that were recalled, went into acute renal kidney failure and had to be put to sleep, she said.

While she can't say for certain that's what caused it, she suspects it was probably from eating the tainted pet food.

A sick or dying dog or cat can be devastating to pet owners, she said.

"People's pets become like family members to them," Lannon said. "It's just heart-breaking for anyone to lose a pet they love so much."

Since the recall, several other companies have voluntarily pulled pet food products, including several brands of dog biscuits and "cuts and gravy."

The FDA has received more than 12,000 reports of food-related illnesses in the past three weeks from consumers and veterinarians.

Meanwhile, not everyone is panicking about the pet food scare.

Keith Overstreet, an Elizabeth City resident, said he feeds his one-year-old mutt Joey dog chow that is not among the brands recalled.

While he is mindful of the scare, he says he doesn't give it any thought when he takes Joey out each day for a walk.

"It doesn't seem to affect us," he said. "I'm not going to worry about it.

Lannon urges pet owners to check out the FDA's Web site. The site is www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html. And if they're still concerned, contact their veterinarian, she said.

"Early detection is the key," she said. "A lot of times, we can reverse the effects."