From chocolate to raisins, here’s what not to feed Fido — even if he begs

It feels good to treat your pet to human food every once in a while. Those puppy-dog eyes are hard to resist as they watch you eat and try to convince you that they are starving! It makes you want to give them a taste of everything you eat. But beware: Giving in to those eyes and giving dogs human foods can actually harm them.

In 2007, the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center received more than 130,000 calls. Most cases of animal poisoning were caused by common human foods and household items.

Many foods we enjoy can be dangerous to animals. It’s best to stick to pet food and a diet recommended by your vet. Here are a few of the most toxic foods that can harm your pet:

Bad news foods
Avocados
They contain a toxic component called persin, which can damage heart, lung and other tissue in many animals. This fruit is very toxic to dogs, cats and most animals.

Beer
Alcoholic beverages can cause the same damage to an animal’s liver and brain as they cause in humans. But the effects can be deadly on animals since they are much smaller than us. The smaller the animal, the more deadly the effects can be. Even a small amount of alcohol may cause vomiting and damage the liver and brain.

Nuts
Walnuts and macadamia nuts are especially toxic. Effects can be anything from vomiting to paralysis to death. Within 12 hours of eating the nuts, pets start to develop symptoms such as an inability to stand or walk, vomiting, hyperthermia (elevated body temperature), weakness, and an elevated heart rate. These symptoms can be even worse if your dog eats some chocolate with the nuts. The effect can cause kidney failure, often leading to death.

Chocolate
Chocolate contains theobromine, which can kill your pet if eaten in large quantities. Dark and unsweetened baking chocolates are especially dangerous. Giving your pup a piece of chocolate cake or even letting him lick the chocolate icing on the cake could cause him to become ill. Theobromine can also cause a dog or cat’s heart to beat very rapidly or irregularly, which could result in death if the pet is exercising or overly active.

Candy
Candy or anything containing Xylitol (a common sweetener found in some diet products) can cause a sudden drop in an animal’s blood sugar, loss of coordination and seizures. If left untreated, the animal could die.

Caffeine
Coffee, tea or any product that contains caffeine stimulates an animal’s central nervous and cardiac systems. This can lead to restlessness, heart palpitations and death, depending on how much the animal consumes.

Grapes and raisins
Grapes and raisins can lead to kidney failure in dogs. As little as a single serving of raisins can kill them. And the effects are cumulative, which means that even if a dog eats just one or two grapes or raisins regularly, the toxin that builds in his system will eventually kill him.

Onions
Onions are another common food that can be highly toxic to pets. They can destroy an animal’s red blood cells and lead to anemia, weakness and breathing difficulties. Their effects are also cumulative over time.
Click on msnbc.com to read more of this article.

ATLANTA — Often when pets are in pain their owners suffer and don’t know what to do.

Acupuncture technique involves using stainless steel needles inserted into specific points based on specific individual problems.

Dr. Steve Winkour practices veterinary acupuncture, which he began after mainstream methods did not work for some patients.

“I can understand how people need to see the hard core science behind it, but when you see the response and improvement, it’s hard not to believe,” Winkour said.

One pet owner, Jennie Medeiros, said she took her dog in for pet acupuncture after her dog, Buffet, stopped being active and stopped eating. Buffet was diagnosed with arthritis, but Medeiros turned to veterinary acupuncture.
To read more of this article on canine acupuncture click on www.cbs46.com

Give your dog the world! This Orbee-Tuff ball by Planet Dog has been voted the “world’s best dog ball”. Not only is this ball adorable but it is made of all non-toxic ingredients and is 100% recyclable.

Other eco-friendly products by Planet Dog include natural hemp collars and harnesses, dog beds and more.

Ask for Planet Dog toys and products at your local pet supply shop or visit their website.
www.planetdog.com

Halloween can be a spooky time for pets. Strange noises, unfamiliar trick or treaters and dangerous candy. Here are a few ideas to keep your pets safe during Halloween.

Halloween candy, especially chocolate, can be harmful or even deadly for your pets. To help keep your pets out of the candy bowl, try to have a few extra pet treats around the house for your furry friends. After all, it’s a Trick or Treat night for them, too, and it’s only polite to have treats for your pet.

Candy wrappers, tin foil and small toys can get stuck in your pets digestive tract and may require an quick and expensive trip to the vet. Some dogs will eat anything that’s laying around the house, so be sure to keep an eye on what falls to the floor.

Thinking of Trick or Treat with your pet? In many places, Halloween night is not a safe night for any of your animals to be out. Here in Salem, Massachusetts, Halloween night means thousands of noisy and costumed visitors filling the streets: quite a confusing spectacle, and far too loud for a dog’s or cat’s sensitive ears. Try keeping your pets indoors for the evening and reward them with a special treat.

If your pets are sensitive to noise, loud rapping on the door and noisy children may rattle them. Add some Rescue Remedy to their water for the evening, and play soothing music for them. You may want to set them up in a room that is away from the commotion for the evening.

Finally, remember to keep your pets (and their tails) away from burning candles and jack-o-lanterns. There is nothing spookier for your or your animal than a tail on fire.

With these safeguards, your night of ghosts, goblins and costumed children can be safe and fun for everyone.
Happy Halloween!

Please note that the Dogswell & Catswell jerky treats are made in China. (Happy Hips, Mellow Mutt, etc)

I have not heard yet if they are a part of this, however I recommend NOT using them as a precaution until more information is known.

Sept. 14, 2007, 10:37PM
Warning issued on dog treats
FDA looks into reports of tainted jerky from China

By DIANE C. LADE
Mcclatchy-tribune

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. — Federal regulators said Friday they are investigating potential contaminants in dog treats made in China, as the nation’s leading veterinarian association posted a warning to pet owners that the products might be making animals sick.

The American Veterinary Medical Association, which represents 75,000 vets, issued the statement prompted by members’ reports of numerous unusual cases of dogs suffering from a rare kidney ailment after consuming the treats. Most were chicken flavored.

To read the rest of this article click on www.chron.com

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Center in FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated.
Mahatma Gandi

Jeanie Marie Kraft, L.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

This is Nikki, a 7 year-old schnauzer and one of my favorite patients. Her owner was kind enough to share this fun picture of Nikki wearing her niece’s crocs while on vacation.

Nikki is very fortunate to have an owner who feeds her home-cooked meals. Feeding your dog a healthy diet can add years to his/her life and save money in the long run. How? A healthier dog spends less time at the vet!

Nikki’s Favorite Dinner Recipe
Boil two cups water, add one cup rolled oats,remove from heat, cover and passively cook for 45 minutes. Boil ground turkey or ground chicken about two cups drain and cool. Steam either green beans or baby carrots with a couple cloves of fresh garlic so they are soft, let cool.

To read more about Nikki and how a home cooked diet, acupuncture and lots of love helped her to heal visit www.fourpawsacupuncture.com /happydogs

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Center in FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

St Roche also known as St Roch, St Rocco, St Roque was born in France around 1295. Legend has it that he was born into a wealthy family and had great empathy for the sick and the poor . He denounced his nobility and made a pilgrimage to Rome to care for the victims of the plague.

He contracted the disease and hid in the forest so he would not burden anyone with his suffering. He was befriended by a dog who brought him food and licked his wounds until he recovered.

It is said that by the time he returned home, his family had all passed away and no one had recognized him. He was put in prison for spying and false impersonation. His dog remained with him in jail for five years until he died.

He is the patron saint of dogs and all those who love them, as well as surgeons, bachelors and those who are falsely accused.

In parts of South America and Italy his feast day August 16th, is called the “birthday of all dogs”, in which the dogs around town can be seen with colorful ribbons tied to them.

Jeanie Marie Kraft, L.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Center in FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

CAROL MCALICE CURRIE
Statesman Journal

June 29, 2007

Dogs and cats can’t say “gesundheit,” but many suffer the miserable effects of allergy season alongside their human companions this time of year.

Dogs especially don’t usually sneeze or have stuffy noses, but the symptoms they do have can be aggravating to owners, and uncomfortable for the pet.

According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, about one out of every five dogs nationwide suffers from some form of a noticeable allergy.

Allergies, the immune system’s abnormal reaction to common substances, manifest in pets in different ways.

Some pets have skin irritations, while others experience hair loss, eye discharge or inflamed ears and ear infections. In many cases, it’s a chronic condition, stretching from spring to fall, or worse, year round.

Pets will respond by scratching for prolonged periods, licking their front feet and scratching at the dry skin on their backs.

Many people, said Keizer Veterinary Clinic vet Dr. Kim Girouard, mistake scratching and licking for flea infestation, which is a separate problem.

Some dogs are allergic to flea bites, Girouard said, but more are allergic to what’s in the air. Just like their pet parents, many dogs, more than cats, react negatively to tree pollen and grass, mold, mildew and dust mites.

“We’ve seen a big-time spike here the last three weeks,” Girouard said. “It’s seasonal, but this year, we’ve seen quite a few cases.”

Girouard said inhalant (breathed in) allergies tend to be responsible for a significant number of animal ear infections.

Pet owners, he said, tend to think of an ear infection as an isolated event, like a cold. Girouard said he’ll treat it as such initially, but if it doesn’t clear, he starts looking for underlying causes. Other types of allergies in animals include: contact, food and bacterial.

“With a persistent ear infection, you have to prove to me that it isn’t an allergy,” Girouard said.

He starts with food to rule it out, and typically discovers it’s an inhalant allergy. Food allergies generally produce vomiting and diarrhea. Girouard said antihistamines work occasionally for airborne allergies, but they’re not as effective in small animals as they are in humans.

“Sometimes we need to use something a little stronger, as in an anti-inflammatory — a steroid — but we treat with as little medicine as we can.”

Elaine Legget of Eureka, Calif., visiting Minto Brown Island Park en route to Seattle with her 4-year-old French bulldog Baby, said she thinks her dog must be bothered by pollen or grass.

“Every year around this time of year, she starts getting eye goop and shaking her head,” Legget said. “I take her to the vet and she’s usually got an infection.”

Girouard said steroid-side effects are less likely in animals than in humans, but he prefers to start with as low a dose as is effective.

Dr. Donald Howard, a Salem, Oregon veterinarian who specializes in pet acupuncture and chiropractic medicine, said he has noticed the annual uptick in dog and cat allergy cases.

He said pet owners often will turn to him when Western medicines fail their animals.

“If their pet has been, or is becoming, cortisone (a steroid) resistant after being on it for a long time, they often can be helped by acupuncture,” Howard said. “Animals can really go nuts this time of year with all the allergens in the air. A few sessions and then a couple of maintenance treatments are sometimes all that is required.”

Although summer allergies aren’t life threatening to pets, Girouard said it’s still a good idea to watch for symptoms.

“You don’t want to leave it untreated; it’ll only lead to more problems,” Girouard said.