It is always wonderful to wake up and find deer grazing in the backyard or other wildlife roaming freely in your backyard. However as construction continues to encroach into formerly “wild” areas, are we putting ourselves and our pets at risk?

Wildlife is usually pleasurable to watch. Whether it’s the sight of a fox along the roadside or a raccoon ambling across a yard, people often stop in amazement, enthralled by these encounters with nature.

On the other hand, as we build in areas that were once reserved for wildlife, and the naturally wooded areas become scarce we find wild animals coming closer and closer to our front doors.

Fascination aside… what about the risks? Along with deer come blood-thirsty ticks and a variety of bacterial diseases. Raccoons and skunks bring the terror of rabies to our backyard and even the humble mouse has the potential for spreading deadly Hantavirus. Yet there must be a way for us all to co-exist harmoniously alongside wildlife.

Once we are aware of potential risks then we can take steps to avoid problems and keep the whole family, both two and four footed, safe.

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Wysong announced that batched of their dry dog food manufactured during June and July of 2009 have been recalled due to mold. The announcement was made well after the costly, tainted pet food had been sitting on retail pet shelves and already sold to loving dog owners.

Three months after the fact, Wysong tells pet owners not to feed their dogs pet food from the tainted batches. Unfortunately they made virtually no attempt to help pet owners deal with the dogs that had already eaten their moldy food, needless to say, what owners should do to about the potential health consequences their pets may experience as a result of ingesting the tainted food.

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We are in the midst of a Swine Flu, level 5 Pandemic. Today the Center for Disease Control (CDC), confirmed 90 confirmed cases in the US, spread over 11 states with 2 reported fatalities. I have prepared some useful tips and information based on published research, that should be helpful to protect us from this deadly virus.

Alternative Therapies including natural foods and herbal remedies can effectively help prevent and treat the Flu. There are some natural nutrients and herbs that are effective against the Swine Flu virus and a few that should be avoided.

The current H1N1 strain of the influenza “Swine Flu” virus evolved through a combination of three mutated strains of the human bird and swine strains of the influenza viruses. These natural remedies and herbs are cost effective, readily available and may be used to help prevent infection in healthy individuals. For those already infected with Swine Flu, they may be life saving!

Certain nutrients such as Spirulina and Echinacea should be avoided with the flu because they can make the condition worse. This is because of the fact that the Swine Flu virus itself is immune to two different “cytokines” that the body of people and pets naturally produce. Specifically the two cytokines are referred to asTNF-a and IL-6.

Cytokines are compounds naturally produced by the immune system of people and pets that attack and remove foreign bodies, which generally protect us from disease and infection. The problem is that when a foreign particle is immune to a certain cytokine, your body thinks that its immune response is not working properly and therefore tries even harder to remove the foreign particle. This response often leads to what is termed a “cytokine storm.”
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A National Health Emergency has officially been officially declared for Swine Flu in the US!

April 28, 2009, Chagrin Falls, Ohio: The world is on the brink of the first influenza pandemic in more than 40 years. This escalated last Sunday as France, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Spain reported potential new cases in which people had been infected with swine flu. According to the World Health Organization, there are 66 confirmed human cases of Swine Flu in the U.S. and two people have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported as of today.

The threat of a worldwide pandemic is real! President Obama spoke to a group of scientists and said that his administration’s Department of Health and Human Services “has declared a public health emergency as a precautionary tool to ensure that we have the resources we need at our disposal to respond quickly and effectively.” The alert level has been raised from three to four now that the virus is being spread directly from person to person.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced that Americans should be prepared for this problem to become more severe, and that for some, it may become fatal.

Over 150 people in Mexico have died and spread of the virus appears to be gaining momentum. Two thousand people in Mexico are currently under observation for Swine Flu.
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Hartz Mountain Corp. has recalled two lots of Hartz Vitamin Care for Cats because of concerns about potential Salmonella contamination of bottles within the lots.

UFAC (USA) Inc. of Baconton, Georgia manufactured both lots for Hartz in 2007. Testing by Hartz and UFAC has not revealed the presence of Salmonella in any Hartz products, but recent sampling by the Food and Drug Administration did detect the bacteria.

The first lot of tainted pet vitamins that Hartz recalled was 3,600 bottles of Hartz Vitamin Care for Cats, lot code SZ-16371. The second lot was 739 bottles, lot code SZ-22771. The bar code on bottles from both lots is 32700-97701.

Hartz has not received reports of pets or people becoming ill as a result of coming into contact with the product. Customers can contact Hartz at (800) 275-1414 with any questions and to obtain
reimbursement for cat vitamins that are tainted.

Bookmark www.carolonpets.com for the latest pet health news and longevity updates for your dog and cat. Veterinarian and author, Dr. Carol Osborne, DVM is available for personal pet health consultations and pet health questions for dogs and cats. Call Dr. Carol toll free at 1-866-372-2765.

More than 1100 pet products have been recalled, including several dozen pet treats. The recall issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is due to contamination with a highly contagious and potentially fatal bacteria called Salmonella, that originated at the Peanut Corporation of America in Georgia. Recently the peanut butter factory in Texas is also under investigation.

Recalled Pet treats just listed include those from American Nutrition, Inc and the Scotts Company. For a complete listing of all recalled pet foods, pet treats and tainted pet products please check the FDA list and their associated links below. The FDA is available by phone at 1-888-SAFEFOOD.

Pet owners can also contact the Center for Disease Control or may call them directly toll free at 1-800-232-4636 for more information.

Because the recall involves Scotts Pet products, Scotts lawn fertilizers and Scotts bird foods, pet owners need to first restrict their pets from having access to backyard areas with bird feeders. Be sure to thoroughly remove fallen bird seeds and check lot numbers to find out if the bird food and or other Scott lawn products they have purchased are listed in the recall. Dogs love eating bird food and in addition to potential Salmonella contamination, bird feces which are often mixed in with bird food often contain spores of Aspergillosis. Aspergillosis is a serious fungal disease, contagious to people and pets. Transmission occurs by inhaling these spores which aerosolize in the wind and are inhaled into the lungs.
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As summer time and warmer weather approaches, Ticks often become an issue for many pets and their people. Ticks can infect your dog with Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and other tick-borne diseases. Learning to identify ticks is also wise; the brightly colored tick on the left carries Lyme Disease.

If your pet loves the great outdoors — particularly for those that enjoy roaming the woods and trails — be sure to check your pet’s skin and hair coat thoroughly especially the area around their ears and neck. If you spot the pesky, little blood suckers, try to remove them as soon as possible!

Ticks that has burrow into your dog’s skin can be tricky to remove. Dr. Carol offers a few tips to safely remove ticks, such as the harmful tick, pictured to the right that transmits Lyme Disease.

1. First put on a pair of rubber gloves to avoid direct contact with the tick.

2. Use tweezers to grasp the tick by its head at the point where it’s attached to your pet’s body.

3. Gently pull the tick away from the skin, but do not twist. Make sure you remove the entire tick, because leaving tick body parts behind, under your pets skin can cause an infection.

4. Clean the bite area with an antiseptic, such as alcohol and wipe your tweezers well with rubbing alcohol. Place the tick in a glass jar with a couple inches of rubbing alcohol and close the lid.

Be sure to ask your vet identify the tick so you know whether or not you and/or your pet are at risk or if it’s harmless, like the wood tick in this photo.

Contact your vet if the skin around the tick bite remains irritated. To protect your pet during tick season (usually April through September), use a tick-preventive product and consider vaccinating your pets for Lyme disease. There is also a Lyme Disease Vaccine available for people, which is a valid consideration for those living in and/or traveling through endemic areas of the country.

Bookmark www.carolonpets.com for the latest pet health news and longevity updates for your dog and cat. Veterinarian and author, Dr. Carol Osborne, DVM is available for personal pet health consultations for dogs and cats toll free at 1-866-372-2765.

Although pets have yet to be been reported ill, several people have become ill and the numbers are rising. To date, 485 people were sickened and six have died after eating the tainted peanut butter products.

As the FDA continues its investigation of tainted peanut butter and paste made products at the Blakely, Georgia facility of Peanut Corporation of American, seven lines of pet food products have been added to the recall list. These products are to be avoided as they may be contaminated with Salmonella bacteria, which are highly contagious and transmissible between owners, tainted pet food, pet treats and pets.

In addition, recalls have been issued by several companies that received peanut butter or peanut paste from the Georgia facility. A searchable database of all pet food products involved in this recall can be found at the FDA link at the end of this article.

PetSmart says it has voluntarily removed the Grreat Choice Dog Biscuits because of the potential risks. PetSmart officials are in contact with all the company’s vendors to see if any other pet products they carry contain the affected peanut paste. The Grreat Choice Dog Biscuits affected by the voluntary recall were made after Aug. 21, 2008.

The FDA will continue to update the list of recalled products as quickly as new information becomes available. Pet owners should practice good hygiene and carefully wash their hands with hot water and soap before and after handling pet foods and treats. It is also wise to wash your pet’s food and water bowls daily.

Salmonella bacterial infections in pets usually cause lethargy, diarrhea with or without blood, fever and vomiting. Some pets may lost their appetite and experience a fever along with abdominal pain. If your pet shows any of these signs or has ingested any recalled product, contact your veterinarian. Pets can also be “healthy” carriers and show no signs themselves but transmit the disease to other pets and people.

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January 27, 2009: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have confirmed the sources of tainted pet peanut butter products containing Salmonella bacteria. The source is peanut butter and peanut paste produced by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) at its Blakely, Georgia processing plant.

PCA sells peanut butter in bulk containers ranging in size from five (5) to 1,700 pounds. The peanut paste is sold in sizes ranging from 35-pound containers to product sold by the tanker container. Neither of these products is sold directly to consumers.

The FDA has determined that PCA distributed potentially contaminated product to more than 70 consignee firms, for use as an ingredient in hundreds of different products, such as cookies, crackers, cereal, candy and ice cream. Human and pet food products are both involved. Companies all over the country that received product from PCA have issued voluntary recalls of their products. FDA has created a searchable database for these products, which can be found at http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/peanutbutterrecall/index.cfm, Identification of products subject to recall is continuing and this list is updated frequently.

Product recalls now include some pet food products that contain peanut paste that were made by PCA. While the risk of pets contracting Salmonellosis is minimal, there is risk to owners from handling these products. It is important for people to wash their hands–and make sure children wash their hands–before and, especially, after feeding treats to pets. The pet food products are listed in this article and are also included in the searchable data base of FDA
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The center for Disease Control (CDC), on May 16, 2008 reported a multistate outbreak of infection with a contagoius bacteria called Salmonella that was associated with dry dog food.

At that time, 70 cases had been reported from 19 states, with the last case identified on October 1, 2007. After that, another case was identified December 29, 2007. Investigators have suggested the source of the outbreak was dry pet food produced by Mars Petcare US. In 2008, eight more cases were reported, bringing the total number of cases in the outbreak to 79.

On September 12, 2008, Mars announced a nationwide voluntary recall of all dry dog and cat food products produced during a 5-month period at one Pennsylvania plant. Dry pet food has a 1-year shelf life. Contaminated products identified in recalls may still be in the homes of purchasers and retail shelves and could cause illness. People who have these products should not feed it to their pets but should discard them or return them to the store.

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