BEWARE OF DR. FRANK’S JOINT PAIN RELIEF’ FOR DOGS & CATS

False Claims for Homeopathic Pet Remedy

August 2008: The National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business
A bureau has recommended that Dr. Franks, which manufactures a wide range of homeopathic remedies, modify or discontinue certain advertising claims for “Dr. Frank’s Joint Pain Relief for Dogs and Cats.”

NAD, the advertising industry’s self-regulatory forum, examined the claims and recommended discontinuing them.

NAD reviewed a wide range of advertising claims for the product, including claims made in broadcast and Internet advertising. Claims at issue in the broadcast advertising included:

• “You spray, your pet drinks, and the pain stops everywhere – it’s that simple.”
• “Never before have these nine homeopathic ingredients been combined to stop inflammation,
pain and stiffness.”
• “Now with Dr. Frank’s spray, you can stop their suffering … stop your pet’s pain.”
• “I’m Dr. Ken Frank and I guarantee that if you spray this natural and safe formula in your
pet’s water bowl daily – it will stop the pain.”
• “You spray, your pet drinks, and they live pain free.”
• “… spray away your pet’s pain in days … put an end to your pet’s pain.”

Website claims included:

• “Dr. Frank’s Joint Pain Relief for Dogs & Cats is specially formulated to stop joint pain.”
• “Relieves mild to [severe] chronic joint and muscle pain.”
• “Works for all joint pain – no matter what the cause.”
• “stops the pain of your dog or cat …watch them run up the stairs, run on the beach and stop
limping.”

In reaching its decision, NAD considered the advertiser’s position that the claims at issue identify the product as a homeopathic remedy and specify that the claims are based on homeopathic research, thereby creating an expectation in consumers that the type of research and evidence supporting the product is homeopathic in nature.

NAD determined, however, that the claims at issue do not adequately inform consumers that the product is a homeopathic remedy or provide consumers with information about the meaning of “homeopathic.”

NAD noted that the record did not include evidence that would demonstrate consumers distinguish between homeopathic and allopathic research and remedies.
NAD has consistently held that the nature and extent of claims made by an advertiser should mirror the precision and specificity of the data relied on as substantiation. In this case, NAD determined that the evidence in the record did not support the advertiser’ specific performance and efficacy claims, and recommended the claims at issue be discontinued.

NAD recommended that the advertiser discontinue the testimonials containing product performance claims, as they appear on its Website.

NAD further concluded that, under the circumstances of this case, “an historical or traditional use” claim would not be appropriate for the advertised homeopathic product and the specific performance and efficacy claims presented.

Finally, NAD noted its appreciation for the advertiser’s voluntary and permanent discontinuation of the claim “Doctor Recommended,” a change reflected on the product packaging depicted at the advertiser’s Website. However, NAD observed that the product packaging has not been replaced on all pages of the site and recommended that the advertiser continue its efforts to ensure that this modification is made consistently throughout the site.

In its advertiser’s statement, the company noted that while it “intends to work to modify its
advertising to comport with NAD’s recommendations, it strenuously disagrees with the decision.”

Bookmark www.carolonpets.com for up to date pet health information, news and tips to keep your dogs and cats healthy, safe and well.

Sharing this note about a Non-Healing Leg Wound in a Dog
My Golden Retriever was hit by a car on June 20; had to have one back leg amputated.

The remaining back leg had a degloving injury on lower paw. He later developed a bad ulcer at the inner aspect of that joint from the bandage and from apparently chewing on it even though he had an E collar on 99% of the time. The latter wound is worse now than the degloving injury.

He is 7 weeks post op from the amputation and repair of paw. Surgeon said to come in for dressing changes in 5 days (after the dressing change 2 days ago) even though the wound is not healing well; it is not infected at this point though. It gets better, then he develops another bandage related ulcer and we go backward again.

He continues on Cephalexin; now is on tranquilizers to keep him sedated and keep off of it. Continues w/ E collar.

I just changed the dressing (they gave me enough for one dressing change, I am an RN with 30 years of OR experience, but not as a dog nurse!) There is another ulcerated area over the paw now.

They are putting Telfa w/ Silvadene on it against the open wounds (joint wound is about the 4 cm long and 2 cm wide) on the inner aspect of the first joint up from the paw)

My questions are these;

Q: How often is ideal to do these dressing changes? I feel they are not being done often enough.

A: Every 3-5 days

Q: They are using Telfa w/ Silvadene, Soft roll-like wrap, Kling, the Vet Wrap (all 4″.) in that order.

A: That’s fine

Q: Would you recommend wiping/ minimal irrigating the wound w/Hibilclens mixture before changing it each time? Two weeks ago I had to take him in on Saturday (d/t no surgeon on call) and that vet did that vet used some powder in the wound rather than Silvadene. The surgeon said he finds the powder has more incidences of infections.

A: Flush it with lactated ringers or .9% NACL solution and avoid powder

Q: Any special food or supplements that could promote healing? He weighs 75#.

A: An organic or homemade diet and PAAWS vitamin supplement ill boost internal immunity and promote healing

I hope you are able to see this and provide some help.

We had Barkley in again today for another dressing change; some improvement in wounds.
It is interesting, just as amongst people surgeons, there are various opinions and ways of doing things. The Vet today said weekly bandage changes are better than even every other day, as long as Barkley is not favoring that leg and seems comfortable, due to giving more time for granulation tissue to develop. He said removing the bandage peels off that layer if done too often.

Do you concur with that?

He also said no dog food is better than another including grocery store brands and would not recommend any supplements.

Again, thank you so much for your response.

Hi Barb,

I agree that weekly bandage changes are fine. The diet answer is incorrect. You are what you eat and so is your dog! Nutrition is vital to health and critical to healing. The supplement answer is also incorrect. As a veterinarian for 20+years I can tell you that diet and supplements make a huge difference in both overall health and the body’s ability to heal itself. The vast majority of veterinarians unfortunately are not trained in either nutrition or supplements.

A good organic or home-made diet along with a natural vitamin supplement like PAAWS will boost internal immunity, enhance overall wellness and promote healing and recovery of your dog’s wound.
I am glad to talk to you and am available toll free at 1-866-372-2765

Thank you,
Dr Carol.

Hi Everyone:
I am passing this on to be on the safe side:
ProMeris is a new product designed to be a more effective product than other flea/tick treatments that was just released this year. It is available thru a vet and it is not currently on-line. I got ProMeris this week for my 7 dogs (6 Huskies & 1 Golden-Airedale), and the results were debilitating for nearly all of them-including me. Since my incident this week, my vet has pulled it from distribution and alerted the manufacturer, Fort Dodge.

Here are my results: Within less than 2 hours after applying, 4 of my dogs had vomited from 2-4 times, 3 were disoriented and stumbling, 1was dragging his back leg, 1 was salivating. I had very similar symptoms like an allergic reaction-my lips were swollen, eyes very red, mucous membranes such as eyes, nose, and mouth were stinging. I was very disoriented - dizzy equilibrium and not able to drive. To make this a short story-all 7 of my dogs were admitted to the hospital for
veterinarian care, and 3 of them remained for care, IV fluids and observation for 24 hours. I was in the emergency room.
I’m home now and so are the dogs. We’re all feeling much better. Vet bills were over $2,500 and Fort Dodge is paying for these. Not only can the product cause this reaction, it has a highly noxious odor that permeated the house and is just starting to dissipate after 3 days.

Your dogs/cats might not have the same reaction, but given my
experience-I wanted to help you all become well-educated about the product.
Jackie B.
Florida

Campaign against canine cancers expects eradication of disease within 10 to 20 years!

Chagrin Falls, Ohio- june5, 2008- More than half of the dog-owning households in North America will experience the pain and distress of learning their beloved pet has cancer.  But now, thanks to the efforts of the Morris Animal Foundation (MAF) and their Canine Cancer Campaign, our pets may have an opportunity to beat this disease.   Even better news is that this campaign may end up helping people in their own battle against cancer!

The Morris Animal Foundation has spent 60 years promoting and protecting animals through their funding of humane animal health studies and, more importantly, sharing the information from those crucial initiatives.  Their current Canine Cancer Campaign hopes to raise $30 million in five years in order to cure and eliminate this canine killer.

Cancer is the number one cause of death in dogs over the age of two.  In fact, one dog out of every four will die from this dreaded disease.  Owners of purebred dogs face even greater risk - estimates from the Golden Retriever Foundation show that about 60% of Golden Retrievers die from cancer.

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