Vet Blog
11/18/09
 As I was perusing the North American Veterinary Conference Clinician’s Brief the other day, a blurb about lead in canine tennis balls caught my eye. A quick Google search brought up the article mentioned in the Brief.
Healthystuff.org has been independently testing various consumer products for toxins over the last few years. Here is a bit of what the site had to say about pet toys.
HealthyStuff.org tested over 400 pet products, including beds, chew toys, stuffed toys, collars, leashes, and tennis balls. Since there are no government standards for hazardous chemicals in pet products, it is not surprising that toxic chemicals were found.
45% of pet products tested had detectable levels of one or more hazardous chemical, including:
One-quarter of all pet products had detectable levels of lead.
7% of all pet products have lead levels greater than 300 ppm — the current CPSC lead standard for lead in children’s products.
Nearly half of pet collars had detectable levels of lead; with 27% exceeding 300 ppm — the CPSC limit for lead in children’s products.
One half (48%) of tennis balls tested had detectable levels of lead. Tennis balls intended for pets were much more likely to contain lead. Sports tennis balls contained no lead.
Lead poisoning affects many systems in the body. Learning and cognitive difficulties are a common feature of lead poisoning. This means that my pal Buster, who loves playing fetch and no doubt has consumed ample lead from various balls, may have to give up on his dream of a Nobel Prize in economics.
Photo: I hope that’s a sport tennis ball. By Bruce.
Editor’s Note: Here is a list of toys, beds, collars and more Healthy Stuff has found with high levels of lead. Also see their list of pet products of medium concern.
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10/02/09
 Like most vets who practice in northern California, I treat stoned dogs on a regular basis.
Dogs most often suffer marijuana toxicity after consuming cookies or brownies made with marijuana. However, some dogs consume baggies of the dried plant or even entire plants growing in the ground.
The term marijuana toxicity somewhat overstates the effect of the drug on dogs (and, rarely, cats). Death from exposure to marijuana is almost unheard of.
However, pets that are exposed to marijuana commonly experience non-life-threatening adverse reactions. In short, they are prone to bad trips. Although I doubt stoned pets worry that their friends secretly make fun of them or that the police can read their minds, stoned pets frequently suffer from extreme agitation, disorientation, and an inability to walk. They may urinate or defecate on themselves. Conversely, they may refuse or be unable to void their bladder or bowels. They may suffer from severe tremors that can resemble seizures. And, they frequently vomit (which places them at risk of inhaling stomach matter–a dangerous situation).
Pets that have been exposed to marijuana should see a vet. And that is where the fun begins for me.
There are two types of people who bring stoned dogs to me: those who are forthright about what has happened, and those who deny it.
When a client tells me that his pet is suffering from marijuana intoxication, I generally am able to address the matter with ease. I usually recommend hospitalization for observation. Fluids and sedatives and may be administered. If the pet ingested marijuana recently, I may induce vomiting to remove the remaining drug from its stomach. Then, the clients and I joke about how we’ll put the dog in a cozy cage with a lava lamp and play Dark Side of the Moon until the effects of the drug wear off.
However, many owners of stoned dogs deny that their dog has had access to marijuana. In some cases, they did not know that their teenage child had pot in the house. In others, they worry (wrongly) that my staff will contact the police if they confess to possession of an illegal substance.
Whatever the reason, when this happens, it makes the dog’s visit much more intense and costly. Marijuana toxicity can clinically resemble many other more serious problems. Ingestion of snail bait, pesticides, and many household chemicals can lead to symptoms that are initially indistinguishable from the ingestion of marijuana. These toxins are much more deadly, so I must perform significant testing and aggressive medical management to address the worst case scenario.
The moral of the story is simple. If you know that your pet is suffering from marijuana ingestion, your best bet generally is to tell the vet what’s happening.
If you are not comfortable discussing what has happened with your vet, try the following line. I have heard it dozens of times. Say, “I think my roommate may have some marijuana in the house, and the dog might have gotten into it.”
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12/17/08
 Dr. Barchas,
Happy Holidays! But it won’t be a very
“Merry Christmas” for our family. How do you
keep your cat away from the tree?! We’ve tried
EVERYTHING! He likes getting squirted with a
squirt gun, and the “Stay away Cat Spray”
doesn’t work with our five-month-old kitten! We
can’t put up the tree, because it’s always down
by the morning! DARE we even put ornaments on it?
Double sided sticky tape around the tree? He hops
over it. An electric train, TACKLES it. An
electric collar……inhumane. Aluminum foil, HE
PLAYS WITH IT!!! Help me with my holiday crisis,
that many others are having!
Sincerely,
A Cat Climber’s Owner.
Lauren
Covington, KY
There is only one solution I can see. Place the tree in a room with a door and keep the door closed. Do not allow the cat into the room.
Cats that play with Christmas trees can injure themselves when they knock trees over. They may damage property. If lights are plugged into the tree, the cat may electrocute itself or start a fire.
And, although the vast majority of cats make it through the holidays without incident, people with feline friends should be aware of a couple of other holiday hazards.
Ribbons on presents are tempting playthings for cats. However, a swallowed ribbon may cause the intestines to bunch together. The condition can be fatal without surgery. Ribbons and other so-called linear foreign bodies were discussed in a previous post on feline hazards.
Finally, if your cat likes to chew on plants don’t buy mistletoe, poinsettias, or lilies. All are toxic.
About the photo: Sassy seems to be looking for trouble!
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11/28/08
 Dr. Barchas, I am very concerned about the peanut
butter that I have been giving my three dogs for at
least a year. It is organic p.b. but I have done
some research and have learned that the organic
may have a higher level of aflatoxin than the
normal crappy p.b. So, what I want to know is,
has the aflatoxin already injured my dogs livers?
I am totally guilt-ridden and worried. I am pretty sure
that I am not the only one that shares his
breakfast with his friends, sad thing is, some
people that do this are unaware of the dangers of
mold.
Sincerely, and Respectfully, The Cohen
family, including the furry ones
Tucson, Az.
Aflatoxins are produced by molds that grow on grains or legumes. They are extremely toxic and carcinogenic.
Aflatoxins occasionally make their way into the food supplies of humans and pets. In late 2005 and early 2006 aflatoxins in dog food were linked to the deaths of at least 23 pets.
Some scientists have speculated that preservative-free organic foods may be more likely to contain aflatoxins because mold is more likely to thrive in the absence of preservatives. I have not seen proof of this, and I wonder whether the scientists who make these claims work for companies that produce heavily processed foods.
In dogs, the most common effect of aflatoxin ingestion is sudden liver failure. Dogs with liver failure typically lose their appetites and become lethargic. They may suffer from vomiting or diarrhea, and their eyes, gums, and skin may take on a yellow color (a condition called jaundice or icterus).
Mr. Cohen, if your dogs are not ill I sincerely doubt that they have been exposed to significant amounts of aflatoxin. Also, when aflatoxin-contaminated food is discovered, the manufacturer inevitably recalls the product among a storm of media attention. If your peanut butter has not been in the news, it probably isn’t dangerous.
Photo credit: Piccolo Namek.
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11/18/08
 I have a friend whose Kerry Blue (four years old) just
died from some unnamed ailment. Clio had a
“quiver” that would run across her body. It got
worse and worse and then she started panting.
After taking her to the emergency clinic she was
pronounced as very dehydrated and was put on IV
fluids. Tests revealed nothing although she seemd
to have a tender abdomen. She finally could not
stand up and was unresponsive . . . all this after
numerous tests and two days in the hospital. Any
ideas what could have caused this? Thanks for any help
unraveling this mystery.
K.T.
Albuquerque
Wow. What a terrible story. I am very sorry for your friend’s loss.
It is shocking when a healthy young pet suddenly falls ill and passes away. And it is incredibly sad and frustrating for all of the people involved when nobody can determine what happened.
If the vets who worked on Clio were not able to tell you what happened, then you should not take anything I say as a proven fact. However, based upon your description I am suspicious that Clio may have consumed something toxic.
There are millions of potential toxins in the world. Some, such as pesticides and household chemicals, are manmade. Others, such as certain mushrooms and molds, are natural.
Blood tests sometimes indicate that poisoning has occurred. For instance, pets poisoned by melamine during the massive pet food recall that occurred in 2007 tested positive for kidney failure. Pets that consume certain types of mushrooms may test positive for liver failure.
However, many toxins do not cause any changes in blood values. Many of these same toxins can cause vague and progressive symptoms that ultimately may be fatal.
There are, of course, other possible causes for Clio’s sudden illness. But I feel that toxin ingestion is a very likely culprit.
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06/29/08
 I would like to thank Amanda of Environmental Working Group for alerting me to a report that her organization recently released. An excerpt from the report is below.
High Levels of Toxic Industrial Chemicals Contaminate Cats And Dogs
. . . In the first study of its kind, Environmental Working Group found that American pets are polluted with even higher levels of many of the same synthetic industrial chemicals that researchers have recently found in people, including newborns.
The results show that America’s pets are serving as involuntary sentinels of the widespread chemical contamination that scientists increasingly link to a growing array of health problems across a wide range of animals—wild, domesticated and human.
I recommend that you read the report. The findings are disturbing. For instance, consider the following.
Dogs and cats were contaminated with 48 of 70 industrial chemicals tested, including 43 chemicals at levels higher than those typically found in people, according to our study of plastics and food packaging chemicals, heavy metals, fire retardants, and stain-proofing chemicals in pooled samples of blood and urine from 20 dogs and 37 cats collected at a Virginia veterinary clinic.
Diseases such as cancer and hyperthyroidism are becoming more prevalent in pets. Part of the increase in prevalence can be explained by the longer life expectancies that pets currently enjoy. Cancer, in particular, is more likely to strike when animals are older.
However, the bodily effects of many chemicals listed in the study are not fully understood. In my mind, it is very likely that chemical body burden is playing a role in these disease processes.
Environmental Working Group has launched a campaign to raise awareness about this issue. You can view the campaign’s website by clicking here. The campaign’s spokesdog, Eddie, has a good blog. He also has a profile on Dogster.
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As I was perusing the North American Veterinary Conference Clinician’s Brief the other day, a blurb about lead in canine tennis balls caught my eye. A quick Google search brought up the article mentioned in the Brief.
You have questions. 