Puppies are playful and fluffy and goofy — and a whole lot of work. How do you even begin thinking about training your new dog on a leash, much less teaching them how they can tell you (without words) when they need to go to the bathroom? It can feel like an overwhelming prospect, of course, which is why sometimes it’s easy to let the stuff like food — how much is too much and how much is too little — get away from you.
But establishing some good food habits with your puppy and knowing how much they need to eat in order to grow into a beautiful, full-grown dog, is important. Your puppy is a bundle of energy, which means that it burns through a lot of energy (calories) in a day. But it can be hard for you to judge how that translates, which is why the best, first thing you can do is establish a schedule. What else do you need to know? This graphic explains it.
Hill’s Pet Nutrition is facing a slew of consumer lawsuits linked to their January 2019 excess Vitamin D recalls.
Filed on February 26, 2019 in the Central District of California, pet owners versus Hill’s Pet Nutrition; a class action lawsuit. The lawsuit states they bring this suit against Hill’s for (bold added):
“their negligent, reckless, and/or intentional practice of misrepresenting, failing to test for, and failing to fully disclose the presence of toxic levels of Vitamin D in their Contaminated Dog Foods (defined below) and for selling Contaminated Dog Foods that are adulterated and do not conform to the labels, packaging, advertising, and statements throughout the United States.”
This particular lawsuit asks that Hill’s Pet Nutrition be required to test “all ingredients and final products for such substances” (such as excess Vitamin D) and asks for pet owner financial relief in the same amount Hill’s offered veterinariansin a previous announcement; “offer Plaintiff and the proposed class $500 vouchers for each can of Contaminated Food as they have offered veterinarians and (iv) restoring monies to the members of the proposed Class.”
This lawsuit quotes several claims from the Hill’s website including these two (that the recall proved are not accurate claims):
(g) “We conduct final safety checks daily on every Hill’s pet food
product to help ensure the safety of your pet’s food.”
(h) “Additionally, all finished products are physically inspected and
tested for key nutrients prior to release to help ensure your pet gets a consistent product bag to bag.”
The lawsuit also includes a quote from the FDA alert on the many excess Vitamin D recalls; (bold added for emphasis) “Vitamin D, when consumed at very high levels, can lead to serious health issues in dogs including renal dysfunction.”
Represented (among others) in this lawsuit is the owner of “Taki, a chihuahua mix” who consumed the toxic Hill’s dog food starting in November of 2018. Taki died of renal failure in February 2019.
In another of the seven lawsuits filed against Hill’s – Stella, a dachshund rescue from Florida – consumed just six cans of Hill’s i/d dog food. On January 26, 2019 she was in total kidney failure and had to be euthanized.
Another lawsuit appears to say that Hill’s had a Vitamin D problem much earlier and in their dry dog foods (similar to the excess Vitamin D recalls of other brands previous to Hill’s recall); (bold added) “As a result of online consumer complaints, Hill’s thus knew or should have known of the elevated vitamin D levels in the Specialty Dog Foods by at least February of 2018.”
In the lawsuit quoted above, Duncan – a seizure alert trained service dog – died on January 12, 2019. Taco died on January 24, 2019. Lily died on November 27, 2019.
All of the above heart breaking pet deaths are just a tiny glimpse into the destruction this toxic pet food caused.
To read other lawsuits filed against Hill’s Pet Nutrition (regarding the excess Vitamin D):
The price a pet food manufacturer pays for NOT properly testing ingredients: 7 class action lawsuits.
The price a pet owner pays for a reckless manufacturer that doesn’t properly test ingredients: painful illness and death of their pet.
Nothing has changed since the 2007 pet food recall. In 2007, Hill’s issued 3 recalls for melamine contaminated pet food. No pet food manufacturer in 2007 bothered to test or validate the quality of vegetable protein ingredients (such as wheat gluten) in advance of using those ingredients in their pet foods. Those ingredients were later found to be contaminated with melamine – responsible for killing thousands of dogs and cats. Fast forward 12 years, AGAIN – Hill’s did not test ingredients or validate ingredient quality.
How many pet’s have to die until each and every pet food manufacturer tests and validates the quality of ingredients?
Become a member of our pet food consumer Association.Association for Truth in Pet Food is a a stakeholder organization representing the voice of pet food consumers at AAFCO and with FDA. Your membership helps representatives attend meetings and voice consumer concerns with regulatory authorities. Click Here to learn more.
What’s in Your Pet’s Food?
Is your dog or cat eating risk ingredients? Chinese imports? Petsumer Report tells the ‘rest of the story’ on over 5,000 cat foods, dog foods, and pet treats. 30 Day Satisfaction Guarantee. Click Here to preview Petsumer Report. www.PetsumerReport.com
The 2019 List
Susan’s List of trusted pet foods. Click Here to learn more.
Americans are increasingly treating their pets as members of the family, feeding them gourmet food, paying for day care and throwing them birthday parties. Family sleepwear sets sold on PajamaGram.com even include matching jammies for the dog.
So it’s not surprising that an increasing number of “pet parents,” as they are known in the pet care industry, are seeking sophisticated medical treatments for their animals.
Enter pet health insurance, marketed as a way to help defray rising veterinary expenses and avoid “economic euthanasia” — the necessity of putting a pet down because the owner can’t afford treatment. More than two million pets in the United States and Canada (most of them in the United States) were insured at the end of 2017, up about 17 percent from the year before, according to the North American Pet Health Insurance Association.
But consumer advocates say that pet owners should make sure they understand how the policies work before buying them.
More than two-thirds of households in the United States own a pet, according to the American Pet Products Association. Americans spent about $70 billion on pets in 2017, including purchases of animals, food, veterinary care, medicines and other services.
“People are much more inclined to think of their animals like children, and treat them accordingly,” said James Serpell, a professor of ethics and animal welfare at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine.
J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance with the Consumer Federation of America, said pet owners should bring a healthy skepticism when shopping for pet insurance. Purchase of the product is “often motivated by a combination of love and fear,” he said. “So the buyer may be particularly vulnerable.”
Details vary by insurer and policy, but premiums for pet insurance typically depend on factors like the cost of veterinary care where you live and the age and breed of the pet. The average annual premium for “accident and illness” coverage was $516 per pet in 2017, while the average claim paid was $278, according to the pet health insurance association.
Jeff Blyskal, a senior writer with Consumers’ Checkbook, a nonprofit group that rates services in major urban markets, said pet owners should compare policies with a critical eye. When years of payments are taken into account, he said, buying insurance could end up being more expensive for some pet owners than going without it, if their animal doesn’t require much care.
Pet policies typically don’t cover pre-existing conditions, Mr. Blyskal said, so premiums are generally lower when your pet is young and healthy. Even if you start early, though, you may end up paying more over time, he said, because some policies raise premiums as pets get older. This can increase costs substantially, he said, and cause owners to drop their policies as the animals get older — just when they are more likely to need the coverage. Industrywide, the average pet policy is maintained for three years or less, according to an insurer regulatory filing in 2016 in Washington State.
The expenses tied to pet health coverage usually include not only a regular premium but also other out-of-pocket costs, like a deductible — an amount that you must pay before insurance begins paying. Insurance may cover less than 100 percent of costs after the deductible, so you’ll still have to pay for part of the treatment. Some policies may cap payments, so ask if there’s a limit.
Rob Jackson, chief executive of Healthy Paws Pet Insurance, said insurance could protect against budget-busting events costing thousands of dollars. (Healthy Paws said a pet’s age affects premiums at initial enrollment, and also as the pet ages.) The Healthy Paws website cites examples like Fridgey the Bengal cat, who had a $4,600 hip replacement, and Lupa the German shepherd, who needed $52,000 in treatment for tetanus exposure.
One way to pay lower premiums, and possibly get broader coverage, is to buy pet insurance through your employer. Eleven percent of employers in the United States offer pet health insurance benefits, according to a 2018 survey by the Society for Human Resource Management, up from 6 percent in 2014. Typically, companies offer pet insurance as a “voluntary” benefit. It’s uncommon for employers to contribute to the cost of premiums, as they do with human health insurance. But insurers may give employees a break on premiums, or offer better coverage, because their marketing costs are lower.
Employees at Ollie, a specialty dog food company, receive a 15 percent discount on premiums from the insurer Healthy Paws, said Gabby Slome, a co-founder of Ollie. (Ollie also offers workers benefits like “pawternity” leave when they take a new dog home.)
“We had a strong belief that pets are a part of one’s family,” she said.
Scott Liles, president and chief pet insurance officer with Nationwide, said half of Fortune 500 companies offer their employees pet insurance from his company. Nationwide’s employer-based plans now underwrite by species — canines vs. felines — but not by age or breed, Mr. Liles said. That means, he said, you won’t pay a higher premium if your pet is older, or if its breed is prone to certain illnesses, unlike policies sold in the open market.
Here are some questions and answers about pet health insurance:
Do some animals cost more to insure than others?
Cats are generally less expensive to insure than dogs. The average accident and illness premium in 2017 was about $45 a month for dogs and $28 a month for cats, according to the pet health insurance association. Because some purebred animals are prone to certain health problems, some insurers may charge higher premiums for them.
Most, but not all, insurers limit coverage to common household pets. Nationwide, Mr. Liles said, offers coverage for birds, hamsters and more exotic pets, including tarantulas and even hedgehogs.
What if I can’t afford pet insurance?
Local animal shelters may offer basic services, like rabies vaccinations or spaying and neutering operations, at a discounted rate. The Humane Society of the United States lists groups that can help owners who can’t afford medical care for their pets.
Another option is to put money away each month — perhaps the amount of the premium you would pay — into a dedicated savings account so you will have some funds available for pet care if you need it.
What if I’m unhappy with my pet insurance policy?
Insurance products are generally regulated by state governments, so you may want to contact your state insurance commissioner about your concern. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners offers information about pet insurance and links to regulatorsin each state.
Correction:
An earlier version of this article, using information supplied by Healthy Paws Pet Insurance, misstated how a pet’s age affects premiums for the company’s policies. The pet’s age affects the premium at the time of enrollment and as the pet gets older, not just at enrollment.
Hospice care for dogs is a relatively new concept. Sadly, the word hospice often carries a negative stigma. It reminds us of lonely, sterile rooms and the fear of impending death. In reality, hospice care can be a wonderful gift for terminally ill people and pets. Rather than focusing on invasive medical procedures, hospice provides physical and emotional comfort to end-of-life patients and their families.
What is hospice care for dogs?
Hospice care is based on the philosophy that people and pets deserve to die with dignity. When a dog is suffering from a serious illness and a cure is not possible, hospice care provides a temporary alternative to euthanasia. The goal is to make their remaining days comfortable with pain medications, dietary strategies and human interaction.
Dr. Alice Villalobos is a world-renowned veterinary oncologist. She coined the term “pawspice,” which she describes as supportive care in evaluating and managing quality of life in the time leading up to a pet’s death.
“In-home ‘pawspice’ care is a wonderful next step,” Dr. Villalobos says. “It should be introduced as an interval between the thought and the final act of euthanasia, if the owner really feels that their pet still has a quality of life.”
Hospice care for dogs also allows families to come to terms with the impending loss of a beloved friend. In keeping a terminal pet comfortable, the human family members have time to come to terms with the situation. Hospice allows them to plan special moments with their dog, take family photos, and seek emotional and spiritual support.
If you have a bloat-prone breed, consider a gastropexy, a surgical procedure that can prevent stomach torsion.
By Denise Flaim
[Updated December 26, 2018]
It was a beautiful fall day, and I was at a dog show. In the ring was a gorgeous veteran Greyhound – strutting his stuff in one of those peacock moments that transport gray-faced show dogs back to their youthful selves, with nothing but time and promise before them. A short time later, I heard a commotion from the parking area, and then the awful news: The handsome old dog was bloating.
Thankfully, this was a group of highly experienced dog people, and the dog’s handler immediately ran to her van to procure the bloat kit that she always traveled with. As several people helped hold the dog, she inserted a tube down his esophagus to help expel the trapped gas that was causing his ribs to expand like barrel hoops, taped the tube in place, and sped off to the nearest emergency vet. I heard through the grapevine later that the dog had, mercifully, survived.
There’s good reason why veterinarians call bloat “the mother of all emergencies.” It can come on suddenly and, if left untreated for only a handful of hours, can spell a death sentence for a dog.
Symptoms of bloat, which is incredibly painful for the dog, include pacing and restlessness; a distended abdomen; turning to look at or bite at the flank area; rapid, shallow breathing; retching without actually vomiting up any food, and excessive drooling.
Bloat is a two-part disorder, telegraphed by its formal name: gastric dilatation and volvulus. The first part, gastric dilatation, refers to an expansion of the stomach due to the presence of gas and/or food. The second part, volvulus, is the fatal blow: The distended stomach begins to twist, cutting off the blood supply and causing its tissue to die off. As if that wasn’t trouble enough, the enlarged stomach may press on the blood vessels that transport blood back to the heart, slowing circulation, creating cardiac arrhythmia, and sending the dog into shock.
Once the stomach has torsioned, emergency surgery is required to restore it to its normal position, and to evaluate whether so much tissue has died off that the dog has any hope of surviving.
This was precisely the scenario that the quick-thinking Greyhound handler had sought to avoid: By inserting the bloat tube down the esophagus and into the stomach, she not only created an avenue of escape for the trapped stomach gases, but also ensured that the stomach could not twist while the tube was inserted. As you can imagine, this is not something that most dogs entertain willingly, and, indeed, on the ride to the veterinarian, the dog struggled and the tube was dislodged. Still, it bought enough time for his survival.
Many owners, however, don’t have the inclination or the fortitude to stick a tube down their dog’s throat, even if he is bloating. And for those who have breeds that are at a higher risk for bloat, the constant stress of worrying “Will she bloat?” after each meal is enough to prompt them to consider gastropexy, a preventive surgical procedure where the stomach is sutured to the body wall. While gastropexy won’t prevent a dog from dilating, it does greatly reduce the likelihood that the stomach will flip – which is the life-threatening “volvulus” part of gastric dilatation and volvulus.
Dog Bloat Risk Factors
Owners who are determined to prevent bloat nonetheless want to understand its causes before submitting their dogs to an elective surgery like gastropexy. The problem is, veterinary science is still unclear about precisely what triggers an episode, and instead can only offer a long and varied list of risk factors.
The mother of all bloat studies was done two decades ago by Dr. Lawrence T. Glickman and his colleagues at the Purdue University Research Group, and is still being discussed and quoted today. The 1996 study and its follow-up research found that many food-management practices that were initially believed to help reduce the risk of bloat – like feeding from a raised food bowl, moistening dry food before serving, and restricting water access before and after meals – actually increased the odds of a dog bloating.
Other risk factors include eating only one meal a day; having a close family member with a history of bloat; having a nervous or aggressive temperament; eating quickly; being thin or underweight; eating a dry-food diet with animal fat listed in the first four ingredients, and/or eating a moistened dog food, particularly with citric acid as a preservative.
Not surprisingly, certain breeds were found to be at high risk for bloat, particularly large or giant breeds. Topping the list were Great Danes, followed by St. Bernards and Weimaraners. The study found that breeds with deep and narrow chests – like the Greyhound that started this story – are also at higher risk for bloating, as are males and older dogs.
Also according to the Purdue study, the risk of bloat was more than twice as high in dogs seven to 10 years old compared to dogs two to four years old, and more than three times as high in dogs age 10 and older.
Reducing the Risk of Bloat
While not a guarantee that your dog will avoid experiencing an episode of bloat, these steps can help lower the risk.
1. Feed several smaller meals per day.
Feeding a large, once-a-day meal can extend the stomach and stretch the hepatogastric ligament, which keeps the stomach positioned in the abdominal cavity. Dogs that have bloated have been found to have longer ligaments, perhaps due to overstretching.
2. Slow down fast eaters.
Some theories suggest that air gulping can trigger bloat. To keep your dog from gobbling down his meals, invest in a slow-feeder bowl, which has compartments or grooves to require dogs to pace themselves; there are several brands available. For a low-tech version, try placing a large rock in the middle of your dog’s food bowl, which will force him to eat around it. (Of course, make sure the rock is large enough so it can’t be swallowed.)
3. If you feed kibble, add some variety.
Dogs that are fed canned food or table scraps have a lower incidence of bloat. If you feed kibble, try to avoid food with smaller-sized pieces, and opt for brands that have larger-sized pieces. While some raw feeders maintain that feeding a raw diet prevents bloat, there are no studies to support this, and raw-fed dogs are not immune to bloating.
4. Don’t go for lean and mean.
Studies show that thinner dogs are at greater risk for bloat; in fatter dogs, the extra fat takes up space in the abdomen and doesn’t give the stomach much room to move. While no one is advocating that you make your dog obese, keeping a bloat-prone dog on the slightly chunkier side might have some merit.
5. Reduce your dog’s stress.
Easier said than done, of course. But if at all possible, opt for a house sitter instead of taking your dog to a kennel. If you have multiple dogs, feed your bloat-prone dog separately, to avoid the stress (and resultant gulping) from worrying that his meal might be snagged by a housemate.
6. Don’t eat and run.
Veterinary experts recommend that you avoid giving your dog hard exercise one hour before and two hours after he eats. Many give the green light to walking, however, as it does not jostle the full stomach and in fact can help stimulate digestion.
Assembling a Bloat Kit
Because bloat strikes when you least expect it – often at night, when most veterinary practices are closed, and the nearest emergency vet might be a distance away – a bloat kit can be a literal lifesaver.
Some dog-care sites sell pre-assembled bloat kits. (One option is available from A Better Way Pet Care.) Most include clear vinyl tubing (the kind sold by aquarium stores); a wooden mouth block, to keep the mouth open while the tube is being inserted (a piece of PVC pipe can work in a pinch), and water-soluble lubricant.
Ask your vet to show you how to measure the tubing so that it is the correct length, how to insert it, and how to tell if you are passing the tube down the trachea rather than the esophagus.
Remember that a gastric tube is not a treatment for bloat; it is a first-aid measure. If you are unsure of how to use the kit, or if you are alone and don’t have someone to transport you while you work on the dog, make getting to the vet your first priority.
Deciding on Surgery
If your dog bloats and her stomach has torsioned, surgery is the only recourse if you want her to survive. And if you get to the vet in time, the odds are with you: In a retrospective study of 166 cases between 1992 and 2003, researchers found that short-term mortality resulting from bloat surgery was a relatively low 16.2 percent.
Risk factors for a fatal outcome included having clinical signs more than six hours before surgery (i.e., the longer you wait, the worse your dog’s prognosis), hypotension during any time of the hospitalization, peritonitis, sepsis, and administration of blood or plasma transfusions. Dogs whose tissue damage was so advanced that they required part of their stomach or their spleen removed (partial gastrectomy or spleenectomy, respectively) also had worse prognoses.
But the decisions regarding a gastropexy – essentially, “tacking” the stomach so it cannot torsion – are not as clear-cut. If your dog has never bloated, you’ll need to weigh the risk factors: Is your dog’s breed prone to bloat? (Great Danes, for example, have a whopping 42.4 percent chance of bloating in their lifetime.) Do you know of any siblings, parents, or other close relatives who have bloated? Is your dog nervous, aggressive, or a super-fast eater?
And, most important, has your dog bloated before? Studies indicate that such dogs have a recurrence rate of more than 70 percent, and mortality rates of 80 percent.
Types of Tacks
There are several kinds of gastropexy surgery. Securing the bottom of the stomach to the right side of the body so it cannot rotate during an episode of bloat is the common goal of each type of surgery, but slightly different methods are used to accomplish this. There are no studies that compare the efficacy of the various types of gastropexy, but the general consensus is that there is not a huge difference between them. Most veterinarians will choose one over the others based on their own preference and amount of experience.
Incisional gastropexy is a straightforward procedure in which the bottom of the stomach (the antrum) is sutured to the body wall. It relies on only a few sutures until an adhesion forms.
Belt-loop gastropexy involves weaving a stomach flap through the abdominal wall. Though a relatively quick procedure, it requires more skill than an incisional gastropexy.
In a circumcostal gastropexy, a flap from the stomach is wrapped around the last rib on the right side and then secured to the stomach wall. Proponents of this approach note that the rib is a stronger and more secure anchor for the stomach. This type of gastropexy requires more time and skill to perform; risks include potential rib fracture and pneumothorax, in which air leaks into the space between the lung and chest wall.
Gastropexy is now being performed with minimally invasive approaches such as laparoscopy and endoscopy, which shorten surgery and anesthesia times, as well as the time needed for recovery. Though both use remote cameras to visualize the surgery area, the laparoscopic-assisted approach requires an extra incision through the navel, which allows the surgeon to directly visualize the position of the stomach and make any modifications necessary.
A 1996 study of eight male dogs compared those that had laparoscopic gastropexy with those that had belt-loop gastropexy, and concluded that the laparoscopic approach should be considered as a minimally invasive alternative to traditional open-surgery gastropexy.
Complications from gastropexy are relatively minor, especially for young, healthy dogs who are undergoing the surgery electively, before any incidence of bloat. As always, be sure that your dog has a complete pre-surgical work-up to ensure there are no chronic or underlying conditions that might compromise her ability to successful recover from surgery. And again, while gastropexy isn’t foolproof, Dr. Glickman has been quoted as saying that the risk of bloat and torsion after the procedure is less than five percent – not bad odds at all.
If you do elect to have a gastropexy performed on your dog, many veterinarians do the procedure at the same time as spaying or neutering. That way, the dog doesn’t have to go under anesthesia again, or, in the case of conventional surgery, be “opened up” another time.
In the end, the question of whether or not to have a gastropexy done is arguably tougher for those whose dogs who are not at very high risk: The owner of a Great Dane has a greater incentive for getting a gastropexy than, say, the owner of a Shih Tzu, whose bloat rates are not as comparably high.
A 2003 study that looked at the benefits of prophylactic gastropexy for at-risk dogs used a financial metric to assess the benefits of surgery: Working under the assumption that elective gastropexy surgeries cost about $400 and emergency bloat surgeries cost at least $1,500 – or as much as four times that – the study concluded that the procedure was cost effective when the lifetime risk of bloat with torsion was greater than or equal to 34 percent.
As with any complex decision, assess your dog’s risk factors, as well as your individual circumstances, and then make the choice that seems right for the both of you.
Denise Flaim raises 12-year-old triplets and Rhodesian Ridgebacks, on Long Island, NY.
