Please tell every dog or cat owner you know. Even if you don't have a pet, please pass this to those who do. Over the weekend the doting owner of two young lab mixes purchased Cocoa Mulch from Target to use in their garden. They loved the way it smelled and it was advertised to keep cats away from their garden. Their dog Calypso decided that the mulch smelled good enough to eat and devoured a large helping. She vomited a few times which was typical when she eats something new but wasn't acting lethargic in any way. The next day, Mom woke up and took Calypso out for her morning walk .. Half way through the walk, she had a seizure and died instantly. Although the mulch had NO warnings printed on the label, upon further investigation on the company's website, this product is HIGHLY toxic to dogs and cats. Cocoa Mulch is manufactured by Hershey's, and they claim that 'It is true that
studies have shown that 50% of the dogs that eat Cocoa Mulch can suffer physical harm to a variety of degrees (depending on each individual dog). However, 98% of all dogs won't eat it. The Snopes site gives the following information:
<http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp>
Cocoa Mulch, which is sold by Home Depot, Foreman's Garden Supply and other Garden supply stores , contains a lethal ingredient called ' Theobromine'. It is lethal to dogs and cats. It smells like
chocolate and it really attracts dogs. They will ingest this stuff and die. Several deaths already occurred in the last 2-3 weeks. Theobromine is in all chocolate, especially dark or baker's chocolate which is toxic to dogs. Cocoa bean shells contain potentially toxic quantities of the theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. A dog that ingested a lethal quantity of garden mulch made from cacao bean shells developed severe convulsions and died 17 hours later. Analysis of the stomach contents and the ingest ed cacao bean shells revealed the presence of lethal amounts of theobromine.
PLEASE GIVE THIS THE WIDEST DISTRIBUTION!!!!!!!!!!!
This just came in from a member of the Saluki Friends List...
Just in time for the holidays, when everyone wants the house to smell nice and christmassy, here is something you all need to know about! Please make sure to read this information, as it just happened to a breeder friend of mine.
"We have suffered a terrible, terrible tragedy last Wed. Two beloved Cavaliers of mine ate potpourri from a decorative basket in my living room . Within hours, they were vomiting, convulsing and going into total body rigidity and shock. We took them to the after hours clinic, they had no idea what it could be and wouldn't listen to me about them vomiting potpourri at home and how I had such concerns about the toxic effects of it. They treated symptoms.
We transferred them to our day vet. He also wouldn't listen to me about the potpourri theory. He said they had "strychnine" poisoning symptoms. I kept telling him that the potpourri was Made In India, sold by a company in California and sold at my local Wal-Mart. My heart told me that it was the culprit of their condition. They declined rapidly throughout the day and we transferred them back to the after hours clinic for a second night. At midnight, I made the agonizing decision to put them to sleep. Haley was in constant seizures that wouldn't stop, fluid was filling up in her lungs, body temp was dropping on both of them, Zoe was lying almost lifeless on the table, struggling with every breath she took. Every muscle was completely rigid, you couldn't even move her.
I have devoted the last couple of days (now that I can get out of bed and function) to researching my concerns with the potpourri and have since found out I was right......there is a lab in England that has case studies on toxic potpourri from India!! The toxin....strychnine , which in it's commercial source, comes from a certain tree grown in India. I am completely heart broken over this. Please be aware of the potential toxins in any and all stuff like this in our homes. I would've never guessed this could happen but when I saw them both "playing" in the potpourri and then after about two hours saw the symptoms of a poisoning, I just put two and two together.
Halloween Message from the ASPCA
No Boo! Hoos: Treat Your Pets to a Safe Halloween
(taken from the ASPCA newsletter for October 24, 2008)
That
parade of kids, adults—and yes, even pets—in funny outfits is due to
arrive at your door next week, bringing all the sweet and scary joys of
Halloween! But pet parents, as you carve the jack-o-lanterns and fill
those bowls of candy, please be aware that your furry friends may
stumble upon dangers you hadn’t thought of.
Warns Dr. Steven Hansen, Senior Vice President, ASPCA Animal Health
Services, which includes the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center in
Urbana, IL, “Many of our favorite Halloween traditions could pose a
potential threat to our companion animals. As pet parents start to make
plans for trick-or-treating or costumes, they should be aware of
Halloween-related products and activities that can be potentially
dangerous to pets.”
The following are just a few precautions you should take:
No Chocolate: Even if your pet has a sweet tooth,
ingesting chocolate—especially baker’s and dark chocolate—can be
dangerous for dogs and cats, possibly causing vomiting, diarrhea,
hyperactivity and even seizures.
No Sweets for the Sweet: Candies containing the
artificial sweetener xylitol can be poisonous to dogs. Even small
amounts can cause a sudden drop in blood sugar, which leads to
depression, lack of coordination and seizures.
Dangerous Décor: Keep wires and cords from electric
lights and other decorations out of reach. If chewed, your pet could
experience damage to his mouth from shards of glass or plastic, or
receive a possibly life-threatening electrical shock.
Don’t Play with Fire: Keep your pets away from
jack-o-lanterns with lit candles inside—knocking the pumpkin over can
easily cause a fire. And curious kittens can get burned or singed by
candle flames.
Costume Caution: Please don't put your pet in a
costume unless you know that he or she loves it. Costumes can cause
skin irritations, obstruct a pet’s vision or impede his breathing.
For more information on having a safe Halloween with your pets, please visit our complete list of Halloween Safety Tips. And if your pet accidentally ingests potentially harmful products, immediately consult your veterinarian or the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435.
Warning to all dog owners - pass this on to everyone you can. Last Friday evening, I arrived home from work, fed Chloe, our 24 lb. dachshund, just as I normally do. Ten minutes later I walked into the den just in time to see her head inside the pocket of Katie's friend's purse. She had a guilty look on her face, so I looked closer and saw a small package of sugar-free gum. It contained xylitol. I remembered that I had recently read that sugar-free gum can be deadly for dogs so I jumped on line and looked to see if xylitol was the ingredient. I found the first website below and it was the one. Next, I called our vet. She said to bring her in immediately.
Unfortunately, it was still rush hour and it took me almost 1/2 hour to get there. Meanwhile, since this was her first case, our vet found another website to figure out the treatment. She took Chloe and said they would induce her to vomit, give her a charcoal drink to absorb the toxin (even though they don't think it works) then they would start an iv with dextrose. The xylitol causes dogs to secrete insulin so their blood sugar drops very quickly. The second thing that happens is liver failure. If that happens, even with aggressive treatment, it can be difficult to save them. She told us she would call us. Almost two hours later, the vet called and said that contents of her stomach contained 2-3 gum wrappers and that her blood sugar had dropped from 90 to 59 in 30 minutes. She wanted us to take Chloe to another hospital that has a critical care unit operating around the clock. We pick ed her up and took her there. They had us call the ASPCA poison control for a case number and for a donation, their doctors would direct Chloe's doctor on treatment. They would continue the iv, monitor her blood every other hour and then in 2 days test her liver function. She ended up with a central line in her jugular vein since the one in her leg collapsed, just as our regular vet had feared. Chloe spent almost the entire weekend in the critical care hospital. After her blood sugar was stabilized, she came home yesterday. They ran all the tests again before they released her and so far, no sign of liver damage. Had I not seen her head in the purse, she probably would have died and we wouldn't even had known why.
Three vets told me this weekend, that they were amazed that I even knew about it since they are first learning about it too. Please tell everyone you know about xylitol and dogs. It may save another life.
Is Chocolate Poisonous to Dogs?
You may have heard people say that chocolate will kill dogs? Does that make sense? If I can eat chocolate, why can't my dog?
Dogs and people are different in lots of ways. For example, dogs can run around in the snow all day in their bare feet and it doesn't cause them any problems. People can run around barefooted in the snow for 30 seconds or so before it hurts. There are lots of differences like that between dogs and people.
It turns out that, for dogs, a chemical in chocolate called theobromine is the source of the problem. Theobromine is similar to caffeine. According to this page, theobromine is toxic to a dog when it ingests between 100 and 150 milligrams per kilogram of body weight.
Different types of chocolate contain different amounts of theobromine: It would take 20 ounces of milk chocolate to kill a 20-pound dog, but only 2 ounces of baker's chocolate or 6 ounces of semisweet chocolate. It is not that hard for a dog to get into something like an Easter basket full of chocolate eggs and bunnies and gobble up a pound or two of chocolate. If the dog is small, that could be deadly.
It turns out that chocolate poisoning is actually not as unusual as it sounds. For a human being, caffeine is toxic at levels of 150 milligrams per kilogram of body weight (see this page). That's the same as for dogs! Humans generally weigh a lot more than dogs, but small children can get into trouble with caffeine or chocolate if they consume too much of it. Infants are especially vulnerable because they don't eliminate caffeine from the bloodstream nearly as quickly as adults.
(taken from http://www.howstuffworks.com/question348.htm)
On
Sunday, June 22, 2008 my 10-year old lab mix, Chai, sustained a severe
injury from a product that the company Four Paws Inc, produces. The toy
I'm referencing is the pimple ball with bell. (Item #20227-001, UPC
Code 0 4566320227 9)
While chewing on the toy, a vacuum was
created and it effectively sucked his tongue into the hole in the ball.
From speaking with my vet, this likely occurred because there is not a
second hole in the ball preventing the vacuum effect from happening. I
became aware of this when Chai approached a friend at my home
whimpering with the ball in his mouth. She tried unsuccessfully to
remove the ball but the tongue had swollen and could not be released. (photo taken of ball after vet cut away portions in order to dislodge chai's tongue)
Chai
was taken to the Animal Medical Center (an emergency care facility in
New York City) and was treated by Dr. Nicole Spurlock to have the ball
removed. Because the size of the opening on the ball was so small, all
circulation to his tongue was cut off. The doctors had to sedate him in
order to remove it. Once the ball was removed, his tongue swelled to
the point that he could no longer put it in his mouth. Chai was sent
home with care instructions and to be observed overnight for any
changes.
By the following morning Chai’s tongue had swollen even more. He
was taken to his regular vet, Dr. Timnah Lee, for treatment. He was
admitted and kept sedated for a period of three days during which time
they were treating his wounds and waiting to determine how much of his
tongue could be saved. On June 26, 2008 Chai had his tongue amputated.
He
was kept in after-care for an additional three days. On Sunday June
29th I brought Chai home from the vet with a barrage of home care
instructions, to last for an additional 7 days. His next visit was to
have his mouth re-examined and have the feeding tube in his neck
removed.
(This
is video of Chai showing the pain level that he had for the first three
days despite being on heavy doses of pain medication)
On the way
home from the vet we stopped at Petland Discount where I purchased
their product to speak to the manager on duty. Upon meeting Chai and
seeing his condition, he removed all of the balls in question from the
shelves. He also gave me the customer service number to their corporate
headquarters to request that they refuse to continue purchasing all
Four Paws products, but I have not called them as of yet.
Additionally,
I shared my story with friends who have a French Bulldog named Petunia.
Upon hearing my story their eyes widened. They explained that the same
thing happened twice in one night with a smaller version of the same
ball to their dog. Fortunately, they were able to pull it off before
the tongue swelled, but not without tremendous effort and pain to the
dog. They recalled how horrific it was to hear their dog screaming
while they had to pry the ball from her tongue.
To date, my
veterinary bills total over $5000.00 and I will have regular follow up
appointments for some time. Additionally, Chai now requires a much more
expensive form of food because of this injury, averaging approximately
$200 per month.
Also - I am Chai’s sole caretaker and the
regime required to care for him following his surgery has forced me to
lose a great deal of business. I am a hair stylist and my salon is in
my home. Given that Chai needs constant attention, and given that he
has been wailing in pain, I have not been able to see clients.
Additionally,
I now have to re-teach my dog to eat, drink and adjust to life without
his tongue. Just walking him requires about 30min twice a day and we
only make it three blocks. Feeding him takes me about 90 minutes twice
a day and for at least this first week he is not to be unattended for
more than 20 minutes at time.
The following is a link to an animal treatment clinic that has also documented the same injury to a Shepard mix.
I sent this information along with the reference to Petunia the french
bulldog to Four Paws Inc, and it is their position that there just
aren't enough instances to do anything about this. I told their
Insurance company's case manager that was not a good enough excuse, It
was inferred that my dogs value wasn't much and that his pain and
suffering don't count as he is just a piece of property.
This should never happen to another animal again! I'M
CALLING FOR AN INTERNATIONAL BOYCOTT OF ALL FOUR PAWS PRODUCTS UNTIL
THIS PRODUCT IS RECALLED. We need your help, please take the time to
make your voice heard.
Please copy/paste the
following into the body of your email in support of this boycott and
send it to the address below to let Allen Simon the CEO of four paws
know your stand;
Mr. Allen Simon,
I am in support of a boycott of your company until you recall the product pimple ball with bell, as it is designed is such a way that irreparable damage can be caused by its use.
customerservice@fourpaws.com
Warning: New Pet Foods Recalled
The
ASPCA is advising pet parents to discontinue the use of certain dog and
cat foods manufactured by Mars Petcare US. On September 12, the company
issued a nationwide recall of certain foods due to potential
contamination with a Salmonella serotype called
Schwarzengrund. The recall includes several widely distributed brands
of dry pet food, including Pedigree, Special Kitty, Paws & Claws,
Natural Dog Food, Red Flannel, Country Acres, Buju & Ziggie,
Member's Mark, Natural Cat Food, Retriever, Bruiser, Doggy Bag, PMI
Nutrition and Pet Pride.
"Pet parents should wash their hands after handling any potentially
contaminated pet food," says Dr. Steven Hansen, the ASPCA's Senior Vice
President of Animal Health Services, "and immediately consult with a
veterinarian if any signs or symptoms are noticed in their pets."
For more information on the recall and affected brands, please visit our website (http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=press_091308).
If you suspect your pet has eaten contaminated food, please call the
ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center's 24-hour hotline at (888) 426-4435.
