A recall of pet food tainted with melamine, a chemical used to make plastic products, has been widened to include 22 types of dog biscuits, the Food and Drug Administration said yesterday.

The biscuits, made by Sunshine Mills Inc., contain wheat gluten imported from China that contained melamine, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the Center for Veterinary Medicine at the F.D.A.

Sunshine Mills, of Red Bay, Ala., manufactures branded and private label dry pet food and biscuits. The recalled biscuits include Nurture Chicken and Rice Biscuit, Ol’ Roy Peanut Butter Biscuit and Pet Life Large Biscuit.

Conrad Pitts, a lawyer for Sunshine Mills, said 80 percent of the tainted biscuits were sold by Wal-Mart, under the Ol’ Roy brand. Mr. Pitts said that the company had produced about 24 truckloads of biscuits with the contaminated gluten, and that the majority of the product was large biscuits. He said wheat gluten accounted for less than 1 percent of the total weight of the biscuits.

Until last week, when moist cat treats, dog jerky and a type of dry cat food were added to the recall, it had been limited to wet pet food sold under a variety of brand names.

Menu Foods, which last month recalled more than 90 brands of its “cuts and gravy” pet food, said yesterday that it had extended the period of time covered by its recall to include food made after Nov. 8, 2006. The company, based in Ontario, initially recalled only food made from Dec. 3, 2006, to March 6, 2007.

The company also added 20 additional varieties of those brands to the recall list yesterday. Information about the recalled pet food can be found at www.fda.gov/oc/opacom

Menu Foods said it acted after a supplier, ChemNutra of Las Vegas, recalled all wheat gluten it had imported from the Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Company of Wangdien, China. ChemNutra said Wednesday that the F.D.A. had found melamine in the gluten. The agency said it was now testing all wheat gluten from China.

The Chinese government said yesterday that no wheat gluten had been exported to the United States or Canada. Xuzhou Anying denied it had ever shipped wheat gluten to either country.

“We are a trading company and don’t manufacture the product,” added Mao Lijun, the company’s general manager. Michael Rogers, director of the Division of Field Investigations for the F.D.A., said records showed that the tainted gluten came from China.

“We fully expect the Chinese government’s cooperation and assistance in our further investigation,” Mr. Rogers said.

Mr. Rogers and Dr. Sundlof said the gluten did not enter the human food supply. The agency said that it was still investigating how the melamine got into the gluten, and that it had notified all companies that had received it.

Though melamine has been found in the food and in the urine and kidneys of pets that have eaten the food, officials and scientists are not sure whether the chemical actually caused pets to get sick.

Melamine, which is also used as a slow-release fertilizer, is generally not known to be toxic. Some theories are that it might act as a marker for another unknown toxin that causes renal failure in pets, Dr. Sundlof said, or that cats and dogs are extremely sensitive to melamine.

“We still have a lot of work to do to understand why melamine is involved, as it is a relatively nontoxic substance,” Dr. Sundlof said. “We are relatively certain that there is a connection here someplace.”

The F.D.A. said it had received more than 12,000 complaints about pet food since the recall, as many as it usually gets in a two-year period on all topics combined. It has confirmed 16 deaths.

“We have no good information what that final number might be,” Dr. Sundlof said. “It will take a while for us to get there.”

The College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University is investigating 43 suspected cases of pets that died from eating tainted food; the deaths of 18 are consistent with ingestion of a toxin, said Patrick Halbur, executive director of the Veterinary Diagnostic Lab at Iowa State.

Dr. Halbur and Grant Maxie of the University of Guelph in Ontario, which is also investigating the cause of the illnesses and deaths, said it would probably take months to determine what made the pets sick.

In Chicago, Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, called for a hearing to question F.D.A. officials. He also called for standardized federal regulations and inspection requirements for pet food.

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Jeanie is also treating dogs with acupuncture at the DoggieDay Play Center in Boston.Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A major recall of pet food in North America has expanded to two more companies and now includes dry food for the first time, U.S. federal health authorities and the companies said.

The Food and Drug Administration said late on Friday it notified Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc. that tests had detected byproducts of a suspect chemical in the wheat gluten it used to make Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food.

The FDA concluded earlier on Friday that melamine, a chemical used in fertilizers in Asia and forbidden in pet food, had been found in some wheat gluten used by a Canadian company at the center of the recall two weeks ago.

Ontario-based Menu Foods makes pet food sold under several popular labels. The FDA and Menu said the suspect wheat gluten came from a Chinese supplier, which was not identified.

Menu recalled certain batches of wet pet food in mid-March after the products were blamed for the deaths of at least 14 animals — mostly cats.

The FDA, which is continuing its investigation, found that wheat gluten from the same company that supplied Menu Foods was used to make the Hill’s product, the first time a dry food had been implicated.

Hill’s, a unit of Colgate-Palmolive Co. based in Topeka, Kansas, has voluntarily recalled the product sold through veterinarians. The company confirmed the recall in a statement.

Separately, Nestle Purina PetCare Co. announced in a statement it was voluntarily recalling all sizes and varieties of its ALPO Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food with specific date codes. To read more click on www.reuters.com

Dogs Saves Owner By Performing “Heimlich”

March 27, 2007 7:03 p.m. EST

Calvert, MD (AHN) - A Calvert woman credits her two-year-old golden retriever with saving her life. According to Debbie Parkhurst, 45, the dog apparently performed a canine version of the Heimlich maneuver that helped to dislodge a piece of apple stuck in her windpipe.

Recalling the Friday afternoon’s incident to Cecil Whig, Parkhurst said she was eating an apple at her home when a piece lodged in her trachea. She attempted to perform the Heimlich maneuver on herself but it didn’t help, so she began beating on her chest.

According to Parkhurst, the act attracted the canine’s attention who then pushed her to ground and began jumping up and down on her chest.

The dog’s jumping apparently managed to dislodge the choked piece from Parkhurst’s windpipe.

“Of all the dogs in the world, I never would have expected this goofy one here to know the Heimlich,” Parkhurst said of the dog she and her husband rescued from a dumpster.

Click here to read another article and see the video of this amazing dog! www.msn.com

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Jeanie is also treating dogs with acupuncture at the DoggieDay Play Center in Boston.Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

Protecting Your Pet News Segment
Channel 7 Boston

Protecting Your Pet, a weekly news show produced by WHDH Channel 7 will be featuring Jeanie Marie giving an acupuncture treatment to her patient Chula, a 12 year old Shepherd/Lab mix. Chula suffers from arthritis. Her owner David will also be interviewed about Chula’s progress and his experiences with acupuncture.

The show is scheduled to air on Monday, March 26, 2006 on Channel 7 at 5:am and perhaps at 5:30pm along with the news. It will also show that night on the news at 10:00 pm on Channel 56. This schedule may change. For more info visit the WHDH Channel 7 website at www.whdh.com On the WHDH site you must scroll down and click on the Protecting Your Pet link.

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Jeanie is also treating dogs with acupuncture at the DoggieDay Play Center in Boston.Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

Recalled Dog Product Information

1. Americas Choice, Preferred Pets
2. Authority
3. Award
4. Best Choice
5. Big Bet
6. Big Red
7. Bloom
8. Cadillac
9. Companion
10. Demoulas Market Basket
11. Eukanuba
12. Food Lion
13. Giant Companion
14. Great Choice
15. Hannaford
16. Hill Country Fare
17. Hy-Vee
18. Iams
19. Laura Lynn
20. Loving Meals
21. Meijers Main Choice
22. Mighty Dog Pouch
23. Mixables
24. Nutriplan
25. Nutro Max
26. Nutro Natural Choice
27. Nutro Ultra
28. Nutro
29. Ol’Roy Canada
30. Ol’Roy US
31. Paws
32. Pet Essentials
33. Pet Pride - Good n Meaty
34. Presidents Choice
35. Price Chopper
36. Priority Canada
37. Priority US
38. Publix
39. Roche Brothers
40. Save-A-Lot Choice Morsels
41. Schnucks
42. Shep Dog
43. Springsfield Prize
44. Sprout
45. Stater Brothers
46. Stop & Shop Companion
47. Tops Companion
48. Wegmans Bruiser
49. Weis Total Pet
50. Western Family US
51. White Rose
52. Winn Dixie
53. Your Pet

Another reason to either cook for your dog or buy high quality, organic dog food!

From The South End News
Boston MA

Freeing Fido’s chi
Chris Orchard

It may be Year of the Pig, but here in the South End, 2007 has become a year for the dogs. Dogs will soon have a new outdoor play space at Peters Park, the first officially-sanctioned dog run in Boston, approved last month. An aquatics program for dogs recently opened in the suburbs, and may move to the South End within the next year. The newest addition to the neighborhood’s canine service economy is doggie acupuncture, which came to the South End earlier this month.

Now, once a week, neighborhood dog owners can take their beloved pooches to the DoggieDay Playcenter at 400 Tremont St. for acupuncture and nutrition advice.

Jeanie Marie Kraft, a licensed acupuncturist for both humans and dogs, runs her business, Four Paws Acupuncture, out of Salem, where she lives, but decided it was time to expand into Boston.

It’s no surprise she ended up in the South End, one of the most dog-loving neighborhoods in the city. Starting March 1, Kraft has set up shop at DoggieDay every Thursday. Now that spring is here (if only technically) owners taking their dogs out for long walks may discover their dogs limping or struggling to move around. This is where doggie acupuncture might help out.

Kraft got into the canine acupuncture business while she was in graduate school in California learning about acupuncture for humans. “I had a German shepherd named Merlin, and he was in pretty bad shape,” she said. Merlin was 13 years old and had hip problems. One day, Kraft introduced Merlin to her acupuncture teacher “who showed me how to work on him,” she said.

Merlin, an old dog by then, didn’t suddenly become a young sprite, but with treatment he was able to do things he previously couldn’t, such as go for walks along the beach. “He just perked up,” said Kraft, and he lived to be 15, which is old for a German shepherd.

After seeing what happened to Merlin, “I just started working on every dog I could,” said Kraft. She’s been working on dogs for a decade now, treating them with acupuncture and herbs, but also teaching about nutrition. In addition to running Four Paws Acupuncture, she sometimes teaches canine nutrition at Salem State College.

To read the rest of this article visit The South End News Website and scroll down!
www.southendnews.com

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Jeanie is also treating dogs with acupuncture at the DoggieDay Play Center in Boston.Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A major manufacturer of dog and cat food sold under Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and other store brands recalled 60 million containers of wet pet food Friday after reports of kidney failure and deaths.

An unknown number of cats and dogs suffered kidney failure and about 10 died after eating the affected pet food, Menu Foods said in announcing the North American recall. Product testing has not revealed a link explaining the reported cases of illness and death, the company said.

“At this juncture, we’re not 100 percent sure what’s happened,” said Paul Henderson, the company’s president and chief executive officer. However, the recalled products were made using wheat gluten purchased from a new supplier, since dropped for another source, spokeswoman Sarah Tuite said. Wheat gluten is a source of protein.

‘Cuts and gravy’ food sold in cans, pouches recalled

The recall covers the company’s “cuts and gravy” style food, which consists of chunks of meat in gravy, sold in cans and small foil pouches between December 3 and March 6 throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The pet food was sold by stores operated by the Kroger Co., Safeway Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and PetSmart Inc., among others, Henderson said.

Menu Foods said it makes pet foods for 17 of the top 20 North American retailers. It is also a contract manufacturer for the top branded pet food companies, including Procter & Gamble Co.

Proctor & Gamble announced Friday the recall of specific 3 oz., 5.5 oz., 6 oz. and 13.2 oz. canned and 3 oz. and 5.3 oz. foil pouch cat and dog wet food products made by Menu Foods but sold under the Iams and Eukanuba brands. The recalled products bear the code dates of 6339 through 7073 followed by the plant code 4197, P&G said.

Menu Foods’ three U.S. and one Canadian factory produce more than 1 billion containers of wet pet food a year. The recall covers pet food made at company plants in Emporia, Kansas, and Pennsauken, New Jersey, Henderson said.

Henderson said the company received an undisclosed number of owner complaints of vomiting and kidney failure in dogs and cats after they had been fed its products. It has tested its products but not found a cause for the sickness.

“To date, the tests have not indicated any problems with the product,” Henderson said.

FDA also working to target brands

The company alerted the Food and Drug Administration, which already has inspectors in one of the two plants, Henderson said. The FDA was working to nail down brand names covered by the recall, agency spokesman Mike Herndon said.

Menu Foods is majority-owned by the Menu Foods Income Fund, based in Ontario, Canada.

Henderson said the recall would cost the company the Canadian equivalent of $26 million to $34 million.

Below are lists of specific brands recalled by Menu Foods, in addition to Proctor & Gamble’s recall of certain Iams and Eukanuba products. Menu Brands lists the brands on its Web site, www.menufoods.com, and advises consumers to call 1-866-895-2708 for more information.

Recalled cat foods

Americas Choice, Preferred Pets; Authority; Best Choice; Companion; Compliments; Demoulas Market Basket; Fine Feline Cat, Shep Dog; Food Lion; Foodtown; Giant Companion; Good n Meaty; Hannaford; Hill Country Fare; Hy-Vee; Key Food; Laura Lynn; Li’l Red; Loving Meals; Main Choice; Nutriplan; Nutro Max Gourmet Classics; Nutro Natural Choice; Paws; Presidents Choice; Price Chopper; Priority; Save-A-Lot; Schnucks; Sophistacat; Special Kitty; Springfield Pride; Sprout; Total Pet; My True Friend; Wegmans; Western Family; White Rose; and Winn Dixie.

Recalled dog foods

America’s Choice; Preferred Pets; Authority; Award; Best Choice; Big Bet; Big Red; Bloom; Bruiser; Cadillac; Companion; Demoulas Market Basket; Fine Feline Cat; Shep Dog; Food Lion; Giant Companion; Great Choice; Hannaford; Hill Country Fare; Hy-Vee; Key Food; Laura Lynn; Loving Meals; Main Choice; Mixables; Nutriplan; Nutro Max; Nutro Natural Choice; Nutro; Ol’Roy; Paws; Pet Essentials; Pet Pride; President’s Choice; Price Chopper; Priority; Publix; Roche Bros; Save-A-Lot; Schnucks; Springsfield Pride; Sprout; Stater Bros; Total Pet; My True Friend; Western Family; White Rose; Winn Dixie and Your Pet.

Warmer weather is on its way, and we all
want our dogs to get the most out of it. It’s the time of year for
long walks, swimming and ball chasing. Unfortunately, not all dogs
start the warmer weather in good health, and may miss out on some or
all of the family fun. Just like humans, most dogs could benefit from
a healthier lifestyle. Have you wondered how acupuncture or herbs might help? Have you wondered what you can do to help your dog?

To help Boston dogs get a healthy start on summer, Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. of Four Paws Acupuncture is now accepting new clients in Boston’s South End at the DoggieDay Playcenter at 400 Tremont St.

Starting March 1st, she will provide acupuncture, massage, and herbal and nutritional consultations to canine clients every Thursday. “Acupuncture, herbs and nutrition aren’t magic,” Jeanie Marie said recently, “but they help bring out that puppy again.”

“With loud noise and close living, city dogs are more stressed,” she continued, “and stress is a major factor in the physical and mental health and well-being of dogs.”

DoggieDay Playcenter is located at 400 Tremont Street, Boston, MA, in the heart of Boston’s South End. Call 978-729-9593 for an appointment.

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

The Nature of Animal Healing
by Martin Goldstein D.V.M.

This book was so good that I read it in one day. It has wonderful information about proper nutrition, vaccines, alternative medicine and remedies to keep your dog healthy. Do your dog a big favor by owning this book.

Jeanie Marie Kraft, Lic.Ac. is keeping tails wagging on the North Shore of MA with K9 acupuncture house-calls. Jeanie is also treating dogs with acupuncture at the DoggieDay Play Center in Boston.Visit FourPawsAcupuncture.com for more information.