Prelesnik Animal Hospital

P&G Expands Voluntary Limited Recall of Specialized Dry Pet Foods
Due to Possible Health Risk

         July 30, 2010 - The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is voluntarily expanding its recall to include veterinary and some specialized dry pet food as a precautionary measure because it has the potential to be contaminated with salmonella. No salmonella-related illnesses have been reported.

The affected products are sold in veterinary clinics and specialty pet retailers throughout the United States and Canada.  No canned food, biscuits/treats or     supplements are affected by this announcement. 

         Consumers who have purchased the specific dry pet foods listed should discard them.  People handling dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with surfaces exposed to this product.  Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

        Pets with Salmonella infections may have decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain.  If left untreated, pets may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting.  Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

         For further information or a product refund call P&G toll-free at 877-340-8823

(Monday - Friday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM EST).

A full listing of UPC codes can be found at

http://www.iams.com/iams/en_US/data_root/html/recall_message.html 

Natural Balance Pet Foods announced Friday a voluntary recall 

of the 5# and 28# bags of its Sweet Potato & Chicken dry dog food, with an expiration date of June 17, 2011. The recall came after a sample of the product tested positive for salmonella in a routine test by the Food and Drug Administration. No illnesses linked to the recall have been reported.

http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/letter_from_president.html

            H1N1 Influenza and Your Pet

H1N1 influenza has been confirmed in ferrets, a cat, swine and in poultry. At this time there have been no confirmed cases of H1N1 virus in a pet dog or pet bird. Right now all cases of H1N1 influenza in pets have been transmitted from the pet owners to the pets. This news is causing concern for pet owners and veterinarians. There is of yet, no vaccine for H1N1 in pets and it would be unsafe to administer them the human vaccine. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell how serious this disease might become in pets because there are few reported cases.

While there are no confirmed cases of H1N1 in DOGS, they can become infected by a different influenza virus called canine influenza virus (H3N8). There IS a vaccine to prevent dogs from getting this virus.

There is still much about the human-to-animal transmission of the H1N1 virus that is unknown. Follow these steps to help protect your family and your pets.

Recognize the symptoms of H1N1 in your pet

The animals that have had confirmed cases of this virus have all recovered. H1N1 is highly treatable. However

it is important to spot symptoms early and seek immediate veterinary care. The cat and ferrets with

confirmed cases all showed similar signs. It is assumed that dogs would likely also have similar symptoms. They include:

Lethargy Loss of appetite Fever

Runny nose and/or eyes Coughing and sneezing Difficulty breathing

What you can do to keep your family and pets safe

 The most important thing is stay calm.

 Follow standard precautions for humans including washing your hands often and covering your mouth and nose when you cough and sneeze.

 Avoid close contact with your pet if you have flu-like symptoms.

 Avoid allowing your pets to interact with other pets of any species.

 Keep pets inside the house or on a leash.

 If your pet shows any of the symptoms listed above, seek immediate veterinary care.

 If one of your pets shows symptoms, keep any other pets separated.

 Do not allow a pet showing symptoms to share food, water or toys with other pets.

We want to help you keep your pet safe!

Health Department Notified of

Death Due To Rabies

District Health Department #10 has received notification of a death due to rabies. Health Department officials are working closely with the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) and local hospitals to investigate the exposure and the need for preventive vaccine in susceptible contacts. The last death due to rabies in Michigan was in 1983.

“We want to express our sincere sympathy to the family,” said Dr. James Wilson, Medical Director for the Health Department. “We will do whatever we can to help ease their minds concerning this infection.”

Rabies is an infectious disease caused by a virus that attacks the nervous system of mammals, including humans. It occurs mainly in wild animals, primarily raccoons, skunks, foxes, coyotes, and bats. According to MDCH, the most frequently found rabid animal in Michigan is the bat.

However, not all bats carry rabies – less than 1% of them are rabid.

Rabies is spread by saliva through the bite of an infected animal. Non-bite infection is very rare, but may occur when wet saliva comes in contact with the eyes or mouth, or contaminates fresh open wounds. Rabies is not spread through touching, petting, or contact with blood, urine, feces, or dried saliva.

“We want to stress that there is no danger to the public, nor to persons who have had casual contact with this individual,” said Dr. Wilson. “We do want to emphasize that proper precautions should be taken after exposure to any wild or domestic animal potentially infected with rabies.

Rabies is absolutely preventable when post-exposure immunoglobulin and vaccine is administered.”

Human rabies is rare in the United States, with only 55 cases diagnosed since 1990. Worldwide there are more than 30,000 deaths annually from rabies, mostly in countries without canine rabies vaccination programs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reports that wild animals accounted for 93% of rabies in the U.S. in 2008. Of these, nearly 35% were raccoons, 26% bats, and 23% skunks. The distribution among species varies by geographic region; only Hawaii is rabies-free.

Rabies is almost always fatal once the virus reaches the brain and symptoms begin. It is not possible to tell for sure if an animal has rabies just by looking. Rabies can be positively diagnosed only by laboratory testing of nervous tissue. Following infection the virus moves via the nerves to the spinal cord and brain, where it multiplies rapidly and then passes into the salivary glands.

District Health Department #10

Serving the counties of: Crawford, Kalkaska, Lake, Manistee, Mason, Mecosta, Missaukee, Newaygo, Oceana, and Wexford Counties

www.dhd10.org

Suspicious signs of rabies in animals include agitation, aggressiveness, excessive drooling, loss of fear of humans, and eventually paralysis and death. Symptoms in infected people may not appear for several weeks or even months after exposure to the virus. Symptoms in people include general malaise, fatigue, headache, and fever, followed by anxiety, confusion, agitation, delirium, seizures, and paralysis.

Rabies is easily prevented in animals by vaccination. All domestic pets and other animals that have frequent contact with people should be vaccinated. Human (and pet) rabies may be prevented by avoiding contact with unvaccinated, unfamiliar, and wild animals. Wild animals should be enjoyed from a distance, even if they appear friendly.

Human vaccine can prevent rabies when given after exposure to an animal with rabies. If you have been bitten by any animal, take these steps to prevent infection:

• Immediately wash the wound with lots of soap and water.

• Seek medical attention at once after washing the wound.

• Antibiotics and a tetanus vaccine may be needed to prevent other wound infections.

• If possible, have someone carefully and safely capture and confine the animal.

• If it is a pet, get the owner’s name and contact information.

• Check with the owner for a current rabies vaccination.

• Make sure the bite is reported to your local health department and animal control office.

• Follow instructions for dealing with the animal.

• Possible instructions may include confining and observing the animal for signs of any

illness for 10 days.

• It may be necessary to euthanize and submit the undamaged animal head for testing. If

this is the case, take extreme care to prevent further exposure, and to properly preserve

the head and brain for testing.

“It is very important that people be aware of what to do and when to do it, in order to prevent rabies,” said Dr. Wilson. “It is especially imperative to seek prompt medical advice after any bat exposure. Any time a sleeping person awakens to find a bat in the room, or when a bat is found in a room with an unattended child, disabled person, or intoxicated person, the bat should always be submitted for testing.”

Recent CDC data suggests that transmission of rabies virus from bats can occur after seemingly unimportant or unrecognized contacts. Vaccination should be considered unless the exposed person can be absolutely certain that a bite, scratch, or mucous membrane exposure did not occur.