Never once have I had a cat that did not enjoy the company of other pets.

On the other hand, reading about the breeder who died and lost 100 Harriers this morning definitely shows that Atlanta got lucky.

My name is Rebecca Rodriguez – I am the inventor of the Evacsak and have recently taken back over the manufacturing and distribution from ACES. I have updated the design and am making sure that more of the profits go back to the animals. I am writing to request that you make the correction on your website indicating that the Evacsak is no longer available through Animal Care Equipment and Services. It is only available through the following website. www.evacsak.net

Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

Rebecca A. Rodriguez
Know Your Spots
PO Box 643
La Center, WA 98629
971.285.3121
knowyourspots@earthlink.net

I still hope he will make his way down to Atlanta and teach us all his good stuff!

ANIMAL PEOPLE NEWS: Serial & rampage dog attack data

Posted By: AAS
Date: Tuesday, 1 March 2005, at 12:51 p.m.

In Response To: Ban insurance companies from DISCRIMINATING BASED ON BREED OF DOG (AAS)

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, January/February 2002:

Serial & rampage dog attack data

Pit bull terriers and Rottweilers together appear to commit about two-thirds of the reported serial attacks on humans (65%), and more than three-fourths of the rampage attacks (79%), ANIMAL PEOPLE has learned, in a review of files on approximately 1,500 dog attacks in cases in which a person was killed or maimed, or police shot the dog.

Serial attacks are defined as instances of a dog injuring someone after having injured a person or an animal on a previous occasion. ANIMAL PEOPLE found that about 5% of the dogs involved in life-threatening or fatal attacks on humans, or shot by police while attacking, had attacked a person or killed a pet on an earlier occasion.

Among the 59 dogs who flunked a second chance after biting a person or killing a pet were 28 pit bulls (48%), 10 Rottweilers (17%), and 21 dogs of 10 other breeds. The lopsided risk associated with giving pit bulls a second or third chance would be even greater if pit bull advocates are correct in asserting that pit bulls are more likely than other breeds to be killed after their first violent incident–which would mean that relatively few pit bulls get further chances, and that those who do are among the dogs considered least likely to be genuinely dangerous.

However, the rates of flunking second and third chances among pit bulls, Rottweilers, and other breeds were all closely comparable to their overall rates of involvement in life threatening incidents, fatalities, and police shootings of dogs. This suggests that neither pit bulls nor Rottweilers are subject to statistically quantifiable discrimination in deciding which dogs get extra chances.

Rampage attacks are defined as instances of a dog attacking multiple people or animals during a single incident. About 10% of
the dog attack cases in the ANIMAL PEOPLE files involve rampages in which a person is killed or maimed, and/or the dog is shot by
police.

Of the 153 dogs who rampaged,
89 (58%) were pit bulls;
32 (21%) were Rottweilers;
32 (21%) were representatives of 14 other large breeds.

No dog smaller than a boxer was involved in a rampage attack, possibly because small dogs are more easily restrained after attacking their first victim.

The serial and rampage attack case accounts were extracted from the ANIMAL PEOPLE archives by volunteer Chrissy Deliyandis, of
Freeland, Washington. ANIMAL PEOPLE editor Merritt Clifton did the data analysis.
ANIMAL PEOPLE was asked for data on serial and rampage dog attacks at the 2001 No-Kill Conference in Hartford, Connecticut,
after presenting an abstract of information from a breed-specific log of life-threatening and fatal dog attacks committed since September
1982 within the U.S. and Canada by dogs who were kept as pets. Attacks by guard dogs, fighting dogs, and police dogs are excluded from that log, but attacks by eight trained Rottweiler guard dogs were included in the analysis of rampage attacks because six of the dogs were specifically trained to guard family homes, in which they were also household pets, and two were trained to work at places of business in constant contact with the public.

Log totals

Through January 20, 2002, the log of life-threatening and fatal attacks showed that
pit bulls had committed 592 (45%) of the
1,301 total attacks qualifying for inclusion, including 280 (21%) of the attacks on children, 222 (60%) of the attacks on adults, 51
(34%) of the fatal attacks, and 321 (45%) of the maimings and disfigurements.

Rottweilers had committed 291 (22%) of the attacks, including 24% of the attacks on children, 63 (17%) of the attacks on
adults, 36 (24%) of the fatalities, and 159 (22%) of the maimings and disfigurements.

Combined, pit bulls and Rottweilers had committed 72% of all the attacks, 45% of the attacks on children, 77% of the attacks on
adults, 58% of the fatalities, and 67% of the maimings and disfigurements.

In theory, more closely regulating pit bulls and Rottweilers could markedly reduce dog attacks. In practice, breed-specific
legislation has rarely succeeded. In Reading, Pennsylvania, however, the city council in early January 2002 renewed an ordinance
which requires a special permit to keep any breed of dog which accounted for 40% or more of the dog attacks in the city during the previous year. Pit bulls accounted for 48% of the attacks in 1998, the year the ordinance was first adopted, and accounted for 41% in 2001–but the total number of attacks has fallen from 113 to 56, and the number of pit bull attacks has declined from 54 to 23.

Merritt Clifton
Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE
P.O. Box 960
Clinton, WA 98236

Telephone: 360-579-2505
Fax: 360-579-2575
E-mail: anmlpepl@whidbey.com
Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org

[ANIMAL PEOPLE is the leading independent newspaper providing
original investigative coverage of animal protection worldwide,
founded in 1992. Our readership of 30,000-plus includes the
decision-makers at more than 9,500 animal protection organizations.
We have no alignment or affiliation with any other entity.]

WASHINGTON Apr 5, 2007 (AP)— The recall of pet foods and treats contaminated with an industrial chemical expanded Thursday to include dog biscuits made by an Alabama company and sold by Wal-Mart under the Ol’Roy brand.

The Food and Drug Administration said the manufacturer, Sunshine Mills Inc., is recalling dog biscuits made with imported Chinese wheat gluten. Testing has revealed the wheat gluten, a protein source, was contaminated with melamine, used to make plastics and other industrial products.

Also Thursday, Menu Foods, a major manufacturer of brand- and private-label wet pet foods expanded its original recall to include a broader range of dates and varieties. Menu Foods was the first of at least six companies to recall the now more than 100 brands of pet foods and treats made with the contaminated ingredient.

The recall now covers “cuts and gravy”-style products made between Nov. 8 and March 6, Menu Foods said. Previously, it only applied to products made beginning Dec. 3. In addition, Menu Foods said it was expanding the recall to include more varieties, but no new brands.

The FDA knows of no other pet product companies planning recalls, agency officials told reporters.

“Other than that, I think, you know, the public should feel secure in purchasing pet foods that are not subject to the recall,” Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine, told reporters.

Sunshine, of Red Bay, Ala., sells pet foods and treats under its own brands as well as private labels sold by grocery, mass merchant and dollar stores, according to its Web site. The recall included some of the products made for sale under five private labels, including Ol’Roy biscuits, sold by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., and Stater Bros. large biscuits, sold by Stater Bros. Markets. It also covered a portion of Sunshine’s own Nurture, Lassie and Pet Life dog biscuit brands.

Previously, Menu Foods had recalled some wet-style dog foods it made for sale under the Stater Bros. and Ol’Roy brands as well.

Sunshine said there have been no reports of dog illnesses or deaths in connection with the recalled dog biscuits, which contain one percent or less wheat gluten by weight.

The FDA continues to focus on melamine as the suspected contaminant of the pet products, though Sundlof said it could be a marker for the presence of another, yet-unknown substance. Melamine previously was not believed to be toxic.

The recall is one of the largest pet food recalls in history, Sundlof said. The FDA has received more than 12,000 complaints but has confirmed only about 15 pet deaths. Anecdotal reports suggest the tally is in the hundreds or low thousands.

Sunshine Mills said it would post a complete list of the recalled dog biscuits on its Web site, http://www.sunshinemills.com/.

The FDA last week blocked wheat gluten imports from the Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. in the eastern city of Xuzhou, saying they contained melamine. A Las Vegas importer, ChemNutra Inc., recalled this week all wheat gluten it had purchased from the supplier and in turn distributed to pet food manufacturers.

Xuzhou Anying has said it is investigating the claims.

On the Net:

Sunshine Mills Inc.: http://www.sunshinemills.com/

FDA pet food recall: http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html

The Food and Drug Administration took action against wheat gluten from Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. in Wangdien, China, after the U.S. recall of nearly 100 brands of pet food made with the chemically contaminated ingredient. The pet food, tainted with the chemical melamine, apparently has resulted in kidney failure in an unknown number of animals across the country.

Click here for a list of foods subject to recall.

Wheat gluten from China has been suspected in the outbreak since the first of multiple recalls was announced in mid-March. Even more pet food could be recalled in the next few days, though there probably has been no contamination of human food, FDA officials said Monday.

The FDA reported last week that it had found melamine in samples of the vegetable protein source used in the recalled wet and dry pet foods and treats, as well as in cats that died after eating contaminated food.

“The wheat gluten that is positive for melamine all has come from this manufacturer,” Neal Bataller, director of the division of compliance with the FDA’s veterinary medicine office, told reporters. Melamine is used in plastics, countertops, glue, fire retardants and other products. Its toxicity to dogs and cats is unknown, but it is not allowed in food in any quantity.

Geng Xiujuan, Xuzhou Anying’s sales manager, said the company was aware of the FDA’s import alert and was looking into it. However, Geng said the company, based in the eastern province of Jiangsu, had not manufactured the wheat gluten but had instead bought it from companies in neighboring provinces. She said Xuzhou Anying sold it onward to another Jiangsu company, Suzhou Textile Import and Export Co.

“There are many other exporters and I don’t see why they would just blame us,” said Geng, adding that the company was undertaking an inspection but that it was too early to announce results.

The FDA still doesn’t know where all the contaminated imported wheat gluten ended up, though it appears unlikely any made it into human food.

“At this time, we can say that there is no evidence to suggest that any of the imported, suspect wheat gluten formed positive lots that made it into the human food supply,” said Michael Rogers, who oversees field investigations for the FDA’s office of regulatory affairs.

The imported product was only minimally labeled but apparently went only to pet food producers. The FDA considers the contamination an aberration since wheat gluten generally is not considered a product at risk for contamination.

“This should not be viewed as suddenly our food supply is unsafe, because I don’t believe that to be the case. In fact, the opposite is true,” agency chief Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach said.

FDA officials said its nationwide investigation could turn up more pet food manufacturers that used the tainted ingredient, prompting even more products to be recalled.

“It is impossible for us to say at this time that there won’t be additional recalls. We’re continuing to follow the trail,” said David Elder, who oversees enforcement in the FDA’s office of regulatory affairs. Menu Foods, a major manufacturer of nearly 100 store- and major-brand pet foods, announced the first recall March 16. Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc., Del Monte Pet Products and Nestle Purina PetCare Co. all have since recalled some of their products as well.

The FDA’s import alert, disclosed Monday but posted on its Web site Friday, notifies its field offices to detain any wheat gluten offered for import from the Chinese company.

The order also recommends inspectors screen all wheat gluten from China as well as from the Netherlands, a country through which transshipping of Chinese products can occur.

The FDA could not immediately say how much wheat gluten was exported to the U.S. by Xuzhou Anying. The FDA also was working to determine whether it shipped any other food products to the U.S., said Ellen Morrison, director of FDA’s office of crisis management.

The FDA has received in recent weeks more than 9,400 pet food-related complaints from consumers — nearly twice what the agency receives in a full year for all the products it regulates, von Eschenbach said.

“The sheer volume of this is extraordinary,” he added.

The number of confirmed pet deaths remains at roughly 15, though anecdotal reports suggest hundreds of pets may have died. Cats appear to have been especially susceptible to the contamination.

Also Monday, Eight In One Inc., a division of United Pet Group Inc., announced the unrelated recall of all Dingo brand Chick’n Jerky treats for dogs, cats and ferrets. The treats are being recalled because they may be contaminated with salmonella, the company said. They were sold at Target, PetSmart and other stores.

WASHINGTON — The recall of wet and dry pet foods contaminated with a chemical found in plastics and pesticides expanded Saturday to include a new brand even as investigators were puzzled why the substance would kill dogs and cats.

Nestle Purina PetCare Co. said it was recalling all sizes and varieties of its Alpo Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food with specific date codes. Purina said a limited amount of the food contained a contaminated wheat gluten from China.

Click Here For a List of Pet Food Brand Names Subject to Recall.

The same U.S. supplier also provided wheat gluten, a protein source, to a Canadian company, Menu Foods, which this month recalled 60 million containers of wet dog and cat food it produces for sale under nearly 100 brand labels.

Menu Foods and the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates the pet food industry, have refused to identify the company that supplied the contaminated wheat gluten.

Hill’s Pet Nutrition said late Friday that its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food included the tainted wheat gluten. The FDA said the source was the same unidentified company. Hill’s, a division of Colgate-Palmolive Co., is so far the only company to recall any dry pet food.

Federal testing of some recalled pet foods and the wheat gluten used in their production turned up the chemical melamine. Melamine is used to make kitchenware and other plastics. It is both a contaminant and byproduct of several pesticides, including cyromazine, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Melamine is toxic only in very high doses and has been shown in rats to produce bladder tumors, according to the EPA.

The federal pet food testing failed to confirm the presence of aminopterin, a cancer drug also used as rat poison, the FDA said. Cornell University scientists also found melamine in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating some of the recalled food.

Earlier, the New York State Food Laboratory identified aminopterin as the likely culprit in the pet food. But the FDA said it could not confirm that finding, nor have researchers at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey when they looked at tissue samples taken from dead cats.

Experts at the University of Guelph in Canada detected aminopterin in some samples of the recalled pet food, but only in very small percentages.

“Biologically, that means nothing. It wouldn’t do anything,” said Grant Maxie, a veterinary pathologist at the university. “This is a puzzle.”

The FDA was working to rule out the possibility that the contaminated wheat gluten could have made it into any human food.

Menu Foods announced the recall this month after animals died of kidney failure after eating the company’s products.

An FDA official allowed that it was not immediately clear whether the melamine was the culprit. The agency’s investigation continues, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine.

Menu Foods said the only certainty was that imported wheat gluten was the likely source of the deadly contamination, even if the actual contaminant remained in doubt.

“The important point today is that the source of the adulteration has been identified and removed from our system,” said Paul Henderson, Menu Foods chief executive officer and president. Henderson suggested his company would pursue legal action against the supplier.

About 70 percent of the wheat gluten used in the United States for human and pet food is imported from the European Union and Asia, according to the Pet Food Institute, an industry group.

One veterinarian suggested the international sourcing of ingredients would force the U.S. “to come to grips with a reality we had not appreciated.”

“When you change from getting an ingredient from the supplier down the road to a supplier from around the globe, maybe the methods and practices that were effective in one situation need to be changed,” said Tony Buffington, a professor of veterinary clinical sciences at Ohio State University.

Sundlof said the agency may change how it regulates the pet food industry.

“In this case, we’re going to have to look at this after the dust settles and determine if there is something from a regulatory standpoint that we could have done differently to prevent this incident from occurring,” he said.

WASHINGTON — Government testing found a chemical used to make plastics in recalled pet food linked to the deaths of dogs and cats, officials said Friday.

The Food and Drug Administration said it found melamine in samples of the Menu Foods pet food, as well as in wheat gluten used as an ingredient. Cornell University scientists also have found the chemical, also used as a fertilizer, in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating the company’s wet food.

Menu Foods recalled 60 million containers of cat and dog food earlier this month after animals died of kidney failure after eating the Canadian company’s products. It is not clear how many pets may have been poisoned by the apparently contaminated food, although anecdotal reports suggest hundreds if not thousands have died. The FDA alone has received more than 8,000 complaints.

The new finding comes a week after scientists at the New York State Food Laboratory identified a rat poison and cancer drug called aminopterin as the likely culprit. They’ve since detected melamine as well, though it’s not clear how that chemical would have poisoned pets.

The recall involved nearly 100 brands of ”cuts and gravy” style dog and cat food made by Menu Foods. The recall covered products carrying names of major brand-name and private-label products sold throughout North America.

Animal rights advocates are calling on federal food safety regulators and pet food companies to expand a nationwide recall of dog and cat food to include dry varieties, claiming they make pets sick.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it had no plans to suggest a wider recall to pet food companies, and veterinarians said they have not seen a trend of animals becoming ill after eating dry pet food.

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals plans to make the appeal Friday in Washington after it said it received complaints from pet owners who claim their animals suffered kidney failure after eating dry pet food.

Norfolk, Virginia-based PETA wants the FDA and the companies to extend the recall to foods that have received complaints, chemically test it and perform necropsies on the animals involved. It also wants companies prosecuted if the FDA’s probe turns up wrongdoing.

FDA spokeswoman Julie Zawisza said she did not know how many of the more than 7,000 complaints the agency has received have concerned dry pet food. The FDA plans to release preliminary results from its investigation into the recall Friday.

Officials at Ontario, Canada-based Menu Foods, which made the recalled pet food, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Nearly 100 brands of pet food were recalled after animals suffered kidney failure. The recall involved “cuts and gravy” style dog and cat food. The recall covered products carrying names of major brands including Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba.

New York state’s food laboratory last week identified aminopterin as the likely culprit in the recall. Aminopterin is a derivative of folic acid that was once used to induce abortions and is now banned as a rodent poison in the United States. It can cause kidney damage in dogs and cats.

Veterinarians aren’t seeing a trend of pets getting sick off dry food, said Paul Pion, founder of the Veterinarian Information Network. He said since so many people use dry food, you would expect to see many more ill pets if the food was tainted.

“I wouldn’t put much credence in it, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility,” Pion said.

The Veterinary Information Network reported Tuesday that at least 471 cases of pet kidney failure have been reported since the recall, and more than 100 pets have died. Menu Foods has confirmed 16 pet deaths.