FDA Warning: Toxic Treats From China = Russian Roulette With Your Pet’s Life

We’re interrupting our usual Crazy Daisy silliness because of a new FDA warning about the dangers of pet treats imported from China. We don’t want any fellow pets or pet lovers to suffer the devastating effects of these potentially toxic “treats”.

It’s more important than ever to check the small print on that bag of treats or pet food you’re buying to make sure it wasn’t made in China. Apparently, giving your pet treats made in China is like playing Russian roulette with your pet’s life.

It doesn’t get any scarier than that, my fellow animal-lovers.

The 12/03/2011 Natural News article (you can read it in its entirety by clicking on that link) said there’s been an “uptick in adverse event reports” regarding pet treats made in China. “MSNBC reports that at least 70 dogs so far this year have been sickened or killed by chicken jerky products imported from China“. 

And those 70 are only the ones vets reported – how many more illnesses and deaths went unreported or unattributed to poisonous imported edibles?

Seriously, we have to stop this madness. Imported glass roasting pans have exploded when taken out of the oven (it happened to a friend of my mother’s), toxic toothpastes and makeup items sicken and kill people, cheap ceramic  glazes (or lack thereof) leak toxins into our drinks, and so, so much more. And now our pets are becoming victims too. But as long as we keep feeding these manufacturers’ wallets, they’ll keep mass producing toxic waste for our ingestion. Or should I say indigestion?

My friend’s dog was horribly sick for a month because one of these slipped past her in a sample packet. She was just lucky her little cutie survived, but he suffered horribly with constant vomiting and diarrhea. And, of course, his human family suffered right along with him.

I’m usually a pretty easy-going sort of person who believes in the “live and let live” motto, but when manufacturers have a total disregard for the health and safety of others, it makes my blood boil and I have to take a stand. So here it is.

Don’t – buy – cheap – Chinese – imports. Your life and your pet’s life may be at risk.

I’m certainly not saying that China is the only country producing dangerous things, but they’re the ones producing an overwhelming majority of it. We have to start discouraging this wanton disregard for life and safety somewhere.

Since we can’t be sure which Chinese manufacturers use dangerous toxins in their products, we can’t take chances with any of them. Sure, there are recalls from even the most trusted manufacturers, but they’re usually unintentional and few and far between. What I’m talking about is a constant stream of deliberately cheap and dangerous goods.

Personally, I’d rather buy one item that’s more expensive if it comes from a manufacturer I have good reason to believe is safe than buy ten questionable items from any country we know exports toxins. How many more warnings do we need before we take action and protect ourselves?

And while we’re on the subject, the Natural News article also advised that we avoid any pet foods/treats with the irradiation symbol, which looks frighteningly innocent and has an earth-friendly appearance:

Radura Symbol

Natural News reports that radiation is used to blast “pathogens and viruses” out of pet foods (how and why did they get in there in the first place?!), but instead it can render pet food toxic. Several pets in Australia died from ingesting irradiated pet food; there’s a link in the article where you can read about such cases. Unfortunately, some US manufacturers use this process too, so look for the Radura Symbol and steer clear of any pet products that have it. Better safe than sorry.

My goal in writing this is NOT to point the finger of blame, but rather to help keep our beloved pets safe. If we know there’s a risk with anything, we need to pass that information along to help others so we can all make informed buying decisions. And that’s all I’m hoping to do.

Daisy’s “Garbagitis” – A Scary Weekend Story

WARNING: Don’t read this if you gross out easily!

We had a fun-packed weekend planned. Friday night was a a great start to the weekend UNTIL…

“Mom, Daisy has diarrhea!”

DD discovered Daisy’s “Hershey squirts” that evening, but we figured it was just one of those “Havachon things”. Soft stools occasionally come with our pup’s sensitive tummy.

But then it happened again.

And again.

And again.

And it became much worse than just “soft stools”.

To the internet I flew for information. “Diarrhea in dogs” is what I googled. All the medical sites were the same: “every dog gets it, stop feeding the dog for 24 hours, it usually passes in two days’ time. Call the vet immediately if you see blood.”

Whew, we collectively sighed. No blood. Nothing major to worry about.

Until 11:30 that night, that is, when Daisy began whining urgently and I discovered bloody diarrhea in her crate.

I picked her up; she was trembling. Which made me start trembling. “Blood!” I called out, sounding the medical emergency alarm.

This was not our happy little girl.

I brought Daisy into the family room and covered the entire floor with multiple layers of old sheets we save for painting. We had wee-wee pads out too, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I wanted all the bases covered, so to speak.

Thank goodness for foresight. Poor little Daisy tried to limit herself to the wee-wee pads, but she just couldn’t make it there every time. I stayed up all night with her, cleaning up her explosions and cleaning blood off her little pink bottom after every bout she had.

By 2:oo AM splatters of wet blood had replaced diarrhea, for the most part. Why do these things ALWAYS have to happen in the middle of the night???

It was happening about every 1-1/2 hours. In between bouts, Daisy napped on and off, but I couldn’t. I kept the “Mother’s Vigil” going, making sure she was breathing and not showing any other signs of distress. I really wanted her to be treated by our own vet because after that terrible experience with Bad Vet who almost killed her when she was only 2 months old, I didn’t want to take her to the 24-hour emergency hospital unless it was absolutely necessary. I decided the tipping point would be if blood ran from her backside or if she started going more frequently.

Fortunately, neither of those happened. All night I tried to think of what she could have ingested that could be tearing up her intestines.

I called the vet the minute they opened at 9:00 Saturday morning. They squeezed us in at 10:45, which felt like an eternity, but I certainly appreciated getting the appointment on his busiest day of the week. After a thorough examination and loads of questions, our wonderful vet diagnosed her with “Garbagitis”, a term vets apparently use when a dog has ingested bacteria that causes diarrhea. He said it could come from anything she may have licked, inside or outside. And apparently some small dogs’  insides bleed easily, and that’s all it was – nothing was tearing her up, it was just a reaction to the bacterial irritant.

He gave her a shot to calm her intestines, which also had a calming effect on her. Two prescriptions later, and we were headed home with hope in our hearts.

Daisy slept all of Saturday and all of Saturday night, except for a few more bouts of bloody diarrhea, which the vet said to expect. They came much, much farther apart, though.

On Sunday, Daisy started taking an interest in her toys again and wanted to play like her old self! It was like someone flipped a switch and brought our Daisy back to us. We were thrilled!

I’m happy to report that as of this morning (Monday), Daisy has been “garbagitis-free” for an entire day (or, as DD says, she’s a “poopless puppy” LOL). No problems Sunday and none as of this morning. She couldn’t be given any food until Sunday night (48 hours without a bite, but she didn’t care), only a little water. Now she’s on a diet of 1/2 jar of beef baby food and 1/2 jar of rice. We slowly start adding a tablespoon of her dog food to that mixture tomorrow and keep giving her the pills. By the end of this week, she should be back to her normal diet and finished with the pills.

I'm all better now! Let's play!!

Needless to say, our fun-filled weekend didn’t quite go the way we had expected. But that doesn’t matter as long as our little one is back to her normal, silly little self!

Daisy the Finicky Gourmet Havachon

When it comes to food, Daisy gets bored easily. Makes things a bit difficult, since new dog foods need to be introduced slowly so we can’t just switch her to something different when the winds of change hit her.

::yawn:: I'm just so darned bored with the same ol' food day and night....

Leave it to Daisy. Our previous dog ate whatever was put in front of her, but Daisy’s got quite the sophisticated palate.

Daisy was enjoying a beef-based dry dog food for months, when she suddenly started turning her nose up at it. Turned out she’d decided it was too dry for her. I found this out on a whim, when I added water just to see what would happen.

She scarfed it down as if it were a fresh roast.

Now that another few months have gone by, Daisy’s Finicky Gourmet Palate has struck again. We’d put her food down and she’d just sit there, staring at us as if to say, “That again? You expect me to eat that?”

Vets always seem to say that if a dog gets finicky and refuses to eat her food, you should just leave it there for 20 minutes to half an hour and then remove it. They’ll eat their next meal because they’ll be hungry.

Not Daisy. When she goes on a hunger strike, she won’t budge. She’d rather starve to death than give in. You should see the theatrics!

So we made a trip to our local dog store to see what we could find. Wow, were we ever happy to see that they had an abundance of trial-size dog foods that they were giving away for free! The owner was very knowledgeable and helped us sort through the dozens of brands and flavors – she ended up filling a shopping bag with everything from lamb, beef, venison, pork, and bison-based foods to vegan varieties. All organic, and all quite different from each other.

Now that's MUCH better! Smells more like "people food"!

We still have 16 pounds left of a very large bag of dog food we’d purchased on sale, stupidly thinking Daisy would always like it. Hah! No way were we going to toss that much expensive food out, so I rifled through the samples we’d brought home and found one organic brand that was dehydrated – you just add water, wait 3-5 minutes, and voila! Instant dog food.

What we didn’t like was that there was no chewing necessary. Except for a few veggie slices, the stuff was like oatmeal and could be eaten easily by a toothless granpup. Daisy doesn’t do well with moist dog foods in the “aftermath” – I’m sure I don’t need to explain! BUT – it was very flavorful.  We could tell just from sniffing it that it was well seasoned – the garlic aroma was evident.

So I got the idea to mix a small bit of reconstituted food into Daisy’s regular food just until we finish the rest of this big bag. Success! She gobbled it up like it was Thanksgiving dinner!

And since we’re just putting a little bit into her food, these trial-sized bags of dehydrated food will last a long time. Now, instead of Daisy refusing to eat, she practically watches the clock – around 5:00, she starts pacing around, then comes in and stares holes in me.

So now we have a happy puppy again. One very small drawback for us, though – she actually does end up with tiny garlic breath….

Lesson learned, though – we’ll never invest in 30 pounds of dog food with this picky eater again!

Dog Days of Summer = Doggy Sunscreen!

Daisy has both gray and white hair – the skin under her gray hair is black, while the skin under her white hair and underside is a very light pink.

What's this about sunburn? I have lots of pink skin - I need sunscreen!

So I got to thinking – with the dog days of summer upon us early this year, can Daisy get sunburn? Is there any risk of canine skin cancer?

Yep, on both counts. Unfortunately.

Apparently, skin cancer is the number one type of cancer dogs can get. And pink skin burns faster than darker skin; short hair or thin hair allows more of the sun’s rays to reach your dog’s skin.

Did you know that dogs with severe sunburn may have to be hospitalized, bandaged, and given IVs? I sure didn’t.

Sometimes in the summer, dogs can stay outside in fenced-in yards for hours. The dogs love it – until their exposure results in a sunburn. An article on Pet Wellbeing says that much like humans, dogs with sunburn have red skin and may be sick, lethargic, or lose their appetites. And, like humans, they won’t want to be touched.

Unlike humans, it takes more to burn a dog’s skin, which means the exposure is more severe.

The areas most vulnerable to sunburn are those that have little or no hair cover, like tummies, inner thighs, and the inside of ears (for dogs with ears that stand up).  Obviously, the hairless breeds are highly at risk. The article says that a vet visit is important for sunburned pups so the depth of the burn can be assessed. The vet can also recommend a salve to help heal it.

Prevention

All my pinkness needs protection from the sun! I mean, what if I fall asleep like this outside?!

Preventive measures are always best – if your dog spends a lot of time outdoors, ask your vet to suggest a special sunscreen to protect your pooch’s exposed skin. This way, you’re eliminating a lot of pain and suffering for your dog and lessening the chance of canine skin cancer.

Some articles also recommend that dogs with thin or short hair or those with bald spots wear light-weight summer clothing to protect their skin. I’ve seen some really cute summer outfits out there – what better excuse to buy one? LOL!

Have a happy and sun-safe summer!

Daisy Eats The Wall

Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration. What I should have said was that Daisy ate a few chunks of the wall.

I was a baaaaad puppy....

DH is extremely handy around the house, and right now he’s replacing the shower walls in the master bath. He’s stripping the shower walls right down to the beams and even replacing the sheetrock with cement board, which is supposed to be better for bathrooms as it’s more resistant to mildew. (He’s not one to do things in half measures!)

Of course, Daisy has been ultra interested in all the unusual things being carted in and out of the house, plus the sounds of drilling, sawing, and hammering. Some sounds have her watching like a hawk, others have her running for the hills (especially the loud electric saw).

The first day of work, DH got pretty far. He stripped everything and replaced the sheetrock with the cement board. It was a very humid day and he got pretty tired from all those hours of work in such humidity. So, once the cement board was in place and he’d spackled all the joints, he decided to leave the cleanup for another day. All the bits and pieces were out of the way, so we could use the rest of the bathroom normally.

Daisy's Motto: Chew first, ask questions later!

I had a bad feeling about this.

I was working at the other end of the house when I realized things were too quiet. No Daisy. No eyes boring into me, no sleeping puppy at my feet, no sounds of Nylabone destruction.

Alarm set in.

I called to her. No response. Did DH remember to close the bathroom door when he finished working in there?

I raced to the other end of the house, and there was Daisy, standing in the middle of the bathroom, tongue flicking. O-M-G.

I don’t know how much debris was on the floor of the shower, but I know that one large, thick chunk of sheetrock was gone. It was about the size of a large Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. And there was that tongue, flicking with satisfaction.

I panicked. I pictured waking up the next morning and seeing Daisy’s limp body with froth covering her mouth. Or watching her get more and more lethargic over the course of the evening. Or vomiting up a storm. Should I just call the emergency animal hospital and see if she should get her stomach pumped as a precaution?

I'll just give Mom my Sweet Face and she'll forgive me anything!

Instead I consulted Ol’ Reliable – the internet. I looked up “dog eating sheetrock”, and shockingly, there it was – plenty of references. What I found out is that some dogs actually chew walls – intact walls – because of a lack of calcium in their diets. Imagine that!

There are also dogs who do it for attention or because they don’t have adequate chew toys.

So why did Daisy do it? Because it was there. It was small, on the floor, and therefore hers. She doesn’t normally chew intact walls (thank goodness!), but anything on the floor is fair game to her.

So from now on DH has to either clean up after himself when he’s doing a project or shut the door behind him. And I’ll try to panic less when he inevitably forgets to do either.

UPDATE: Daisy was fine after her sheetrock snack. No after-effects at all. In fact, this silly puppy keeps running up to the bathroom door (which I now keep closed tight!) and sniffing hard underneath it, clearly wanting to return to the scene of the crime. What a nut!

Bug Season is Back…Are Stink Bugs Poisonous to Dogs?

I’m not a fan of bugs, especially spiders. YUCK. The very word makes my stomach turn.

Image via Wikipedia

And that’s the one thing I dislike most about spring and summer – the bugs emerge, bigger and more resistant to pesticides every year. They get into the house who-knows-how and I swear they laugh as they terrorize me. Why on earth are spiders getting so darned BIG??! I heard last year that because summers here in the northeast are hotter and more humid than ever, bugs are growing bigger, more like tropical bugs.

I need to move to Alaska.

We’ve already gotten four stink bugs in the house, far more than typically come into the house in an entire spring/summer season. Stink bugs are the skunks of the insect world. Then I heard an expert say that our tri-state area is seeing unprecedented numbers of stink bugs already, and they’re trying to figure out what’s causing such a dramatic increase in their population. At least now I know why I’m seeing so many of them.

I’m not going to like the next 4 months, I just know it.

What just buzzed me? Let me at it!

DD doesn’t mind stink bugs; she thinks they’re cute (!), so when we find one in the house, she gently coaxes it onto her hand, then she takes it outside and lets it go. She’s my hero.

I hate the things. I know they don’t bite or sting, but they just freak me out. So when I was home alone and one boldly buzzed by my head, I got out the vacuum. Since I can’t crush them or put the fear of God into them by chasing them because they’ll stink the place up in retaliation, I thought I’d just vacuum it up.

Mistake.

Apparently even dead stink bugs release their noxious fumes. Because a couple of days later, I noticed a most objectionable smell in the house. Naturally I suspected Daisy, but it wasn’t her this time. It took us hours of thinking and nose-pinching before I said, “I vacuumed a stink bug the other day, could that be it?”

It was. I’ll never do that again.

If I eat a stink bug, I might make an even sillier face than this!

So the other night, when another stink bug buzzed us, I immediately grabbed Daisy and held her so she wouldn’t try to eat the thing. It’s small and moves, which makes it a perfect playmate for Daisy that she can also turn into a snack when it no longer gives her something to chase.  DD did her magic and got the stinkin’ creature out of here. But I started wondering – are stink bugs poisonous to dogs if they do eat them?

Apparently not. Thank goodness! BUT – the stink bug’s stench comes right out through the dog. YUCK! Dogs who eat stink bugs throw up several times and get a weird look on their face, probably because of the awful taste. At least this is what I’ve read in a bunch of online forums.

There’s a great article on this in The Anipal Times, which confirms that these yucky bugs are nothing more than irritants to cats and dogs and can cause not only vomiting but also foaming at the mouth.

I really hope we get through the summer without Daisy eating one and turning into a frothy, vomiting stinker!

Dogs and Wheat Allergies

We became acutely aware of wheat and gluten allergies about 10 years ago, when we discovered that DD is wheat intolerant. Back then, there weren’t many choices for the wheat-free diner, either at restaurants or at the supermarket.

Gluten-free breads were tough and crumbly and didn’t taste like real bread at all. Gluten-free pastas had terrible flavor and texture. And forget about gluten-free desserts and snacks, they were just horrible. For several years, DD actually preferred living without those things and only ate foods that were naturally gluten-free.

Now that more and more people are being diagnosed with gluten allergies, wheat allergies, or celiac disease, companies of all sizes have perfected their products, all purpose wheat-free flours, and mixes that are almost identical to their wheat-filled counterparts. Even restaurants many times offer gluten-free menus. DD is one happy diner again.

Enter Daisy.

During the first couple weeks we had her, she developed a nasty rash on her tummy that spread and became raw. Our vet said it could be an allergic reaction to something indoors, outdoors, or in her food. Well, that covered everything in Daisy’s world. His plan was to clear up the rash and then start her on an elimination program so we could figure out what it was she was reacting to. But he couldn’t do anything until he cured her of her respiratory infection, which took a while.

Keep that chicken away from me! Fowl is foul!

We couldn’t wait that long. We put on our Allergy Detective hats once again and figured out that it was chicken she was reacting to. Any time she ate chicken, she had nasty gas. I mean, n-a-s-t-y.  (Sorry for being so graphic, but this was  practically a “leave the house” situation!) And what was her puppy food primarily made from? Chicken.

Elimination program, here we come.

We switched her from a chicken blend to a beef blend and it made all the difference. Her rash cleared up on its own. And there were no more “hold-your-nose” moments.

But it got me thinking – can dogs be wheat intolerant too?

The answer is a resounding YES. And apparently the symptoms show, if you know what to look for – dull coats and/or red, flaky, itchy skin, constant head rubbing, diarrhea, vomiting, ear shaking, etc.. Fortunately, there are now wheat-free dog foods as well as wheat free recipes for dogs with this problem.

As for Daisy, we’re sticking with the poultry-free diet. But we’ll always be on the lookout for any new symptoms that might develop as she ages. Because just like people, dogs can develop new allergies later in life.

Daisy’s Weekend Injury

It scared me nearly out of my skin. Daisy’s first injury.

Well that certainly didn't feel too good....

I know, I know, I sound like a new mom who freaks out over every little boo-boo her baby gets. Well, maybe I am. But this was scary.

Daisy is a very happy, exuberant puppy. And she likes to release all that exuberance by jumping up in the air, with all four paws off the ground, sometimes spinning in mid-air. We’re trying to break her of that; no one likes to visit a house where a dog is jumping all over you. Especially if you’re wearing a skirt and stockings.

Even worse, we could see the physical risk her jump-and-spin routine poses to her body. She could break bones, dislocate something, or pull or tear tendons or muscles if she landed wrong.

Up in the air she jumps, all four paws far off the floor and then a quick spin in midair, landing (mostly) on her paws again.

But not this time.

....but I'll probably be silly enough to do it again....

Something happened when our backs were turned. She was all excited when DH came home, jumping all over the place like a silly little lunatic. DH isn’t the best with discipline, he tends to be slipshod at best and even when he does give a command, many times it’s the wrong word or phrase. Not a big help in that department.

Anyway, up she jumped as if her legs were made of springs, around she flipped —– and down she came at an angle, with her back legs buckled under in some weird, twisted way.

I only saw this from the corner of my eye, but when I turned to her, I saw that she had gotten up feebly and was hopping pathetically on three legs. She had her back left leg pulled up off the ground, her ears were down just like when she was in pain after she was spayed, and she was trying to hobble closer to DH for comfort.

....because learning from my mistakes is just no fun!

I freaked. Big time.

I thought she’d broken her leg. On a Sunday. No vet. We’d have to take our chances with an unknown animal hospital.

In the two seconds it took me to scream (and I mean scream) “Daisy’s hurt!“, my mind had already realigned our day, processed who we had to call to cancel our planned activities, and imagined which veterinary hospital we’d be sent to and how long it could take us to get there. No place seems close in a crisis.

DD came flying in from the next room and raced to her puppy’s side, embracing her and giving her the comfort she sought. DH just stood there and said, “What?” (typical guy).

The weird thing that struck me was that Daisy didn’t cry out at all. No whimper, no yipe. That gave me hope. But that pitiful look on her face, those drooping ears, that little body trying to move on three legs absolutely crushed my heart.

Over the next few minutes – which felt like hours – Daisy slowly lowered her leg to the ground and put some weight on it. DD and DH both touched it gently in different areas, making sure nothing was broken or pulled.

Thankfully, she was fine after a short while. But it put a good scare into us all. Now we’re adamant about issuing the “no jump” command, and when DH forgets, we say it for him.

Daisy, on the other hand, clearly has no intention of learning from her mistakes.

::sigh:: I think I’ll need some Miss Clairol much sooner than expected…..

FDA Pet Food/Treats Recall Site

An email recently reminded me that there are almost as many pet food recalls as there are human food recalls. That jolted me a bit because unless it’s something hugely newsworthy (like the major Blue Buffalo recall), we don’t generally hear about it.

Treats are just as vulnerable as food, which is something I didn’t realize. I found the FDA website with all the latest pet food/treat recalls, so I thought I’d share that with you here. I’ve bookmarked the site so I can check it every couple of weeks to make sure nothing in our pantry is on the list.

It also tells you what ingredients are banned (I’ve heard  you can occasionally find an old bag of food being sold somewhere with a banned ingredient), why a food was recalled, and more.

Better safe than sorry!

Daisy Samples PureBites Treats and LOVES Them!

Gus – now that Daisy’s seen your picture, I think she may have a little crush on you! LOL

Thank you According To Gus!

We were among the lucky 10 who received 4 packages of PureBites dog treats from According to Gus’s pet nickname drawing, and what perfect timing they had – the treats arrived on Valentine’s Day! Along with a wonderful personalized greeting from Gus, it was like Daisy received her own little Valentine!

We couldn’t wait to try one out, so we gave her a Cheddar Cheese treat first. She absolutely LOVED it! We’ll try a different treat every day, but I’m sure she’s going to gobble them all up with equal enthusiasm.

Many thanks to According to Gus for introducing us to a wonderful new treat!

YUM YUM YUM!

 

 

 

 

 

Don't bother me now, these are fabulous!