News, Advice and Resources for Thoughtful Pet People
Drs. Foster & Smith is recalling two products due to rice protein concentrate purchased from Wilbur-Ellis. (scroll down for lot numbers) They are:
So is this the fifth company Wilbur-Ellis sold to?
You can find out much more on the recall on my Pet Food Recall Archive Page.
The FDA has released the name of the fourth company that bought tainted rice protein concentrate from Wilbur-Ellis. SmartPak is recalling one production run of their LiveSmart Weight Management Chicken and Brown Rice Dog Food. There is still one more company that has gone unnamed. (via PetConnection)
You can find out much more on the recall on my Pet Food Recall Archive Page.
(Updated with corrected information on which Animal-Assisted Crisis Response teams are at Virginia Tech. Thank you, Amy, from HOPE AACR.)
The Red Cross sent therapy dogs to Virginia Tech to help students and staff and CNN reported on how therapy dogs can make a difference. (direct link to a Windows Media video)
Members of the HOPE Animal-Assisted Crisis Response sent eight volunteer teams from Erie, PA, Quantico, VA, Williamsburg, VA, and Atlanta GA, to help. They’ll be there at least through April 29th. HOPE AACR provides animal-assisted emotional support to survivors and responders affected by disaster or crisis. You can find out what goes into becoming a member.
Virginia Tech students from the Animal Welfare Foster Program are participating too with some of their newly rescued foster dogs. The Animal Welfare Foster Program is made up of volunteer veterinary students in Blacksburg, VA. These are the cats and dogs they currently have up for adoption.
See previous post on therapy dogs at Virginia Tech.
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Victoria Hampshire worked for the FDA analyzing side-effects from Wyeth’s heartworm preventative, Proheart 6, (also known as Moxidectin) and she started seeing a pattern—death—almost 500, in fact. The drug company, Wyeth, fought, but Proheart 6 was recalled in the US in 2004. It’s still sold in Canada, Europe, and in other countries, and Wyeth is making a play to sell it in the US again. But, what might be the most important part of the story is how the FDA handled the case and how poorly they treated their own employee who was doing her job.
I was glad to see dogs from the Animal Welfare Foster Program and from St. Marys, PA, were on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, VA, serving as therapy dogs to comfort members of the campus traumatized by the murders on Monday, April 16th. It’s such a good idea–dogs will never say the wrong thing, they’ll offer unconditional love, they’ll lick your tears, they won’t ask questions, and they’ll smile when you can’t.
Check out the follow-up post on therapy dogs at Virginia Tech.