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Volume
III, Issue III April 2007 IN THIS ISSUE •
Pet Food Recall –
Dry Foods Now Suspect • Equine Herpes Virus – Quarantines in VA Lifted •
Saddle Up for |
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Upcoming Events |
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FREE
Flea & Tick Clinic for Dogs & Cats Tuesday, April 10, 9AM-6PM ·
Free Flea Tests ·
Free Frontline
Samples While Supplies Last ·
Coupons and Rebates for Future Supplies Call for an appointment: (276) 236-5103 |
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FREE Deworming
Clinic May 8, 2007, 9AM to 6PM Free fecal exam to detect worms 10% Discount on Drontal® Plus dewormer Call to schedule a FREE appointment: (276) 236-5103 |
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Yard Sale Fundraiser for HELP fund. Donate and shop! Healing Springs HELP fund will hold its
Second Annual HELP Fund Yard Sale Fund Raiser on Saturday, June 16,
2007. Items may be donated at Coordinated by Jen Roberts Work Phone (Healing
Springs): (276) 236-5103 Home Phone: (276) 236-0904 |
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Pet Food Recall – Dry Foods Now Suspect On March 31, the FDA and
Menu Foods announced that a contaminant other than aminopterin
might be responsible for the illness and deaths related to pet food
consumption. They now suspect melamine
is causing the problems. Melamine was found in recalled wheat gluten lots. Shortly after that announcement, Hill’s Pet
Nutrition voluntarily recalled its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food. Some lots of that cat food contain suspect
wheat gluten. The vast majority of Hill’s
products do not contain wheat gluten. Pet owners should read the ingredients list on their pet food. Wheat gluten will be
listed if it is in the food. Pet
owners may want to discontinue use of foods containing wheat
gluten until they can receive adequate reassurance that the
problem is fully understood and resolved. In March, Menu foods
voluntarily recalled nearly 100 brands of foods after animals died from
routine taste tests. There have now
been sixteen confirmed deaths related to pet food and hundreds of anecdotal
reports. At first, aminopterin was reported to be
the contaminant. Now, Menu Foods
believes that the problems came from a shipment of wheat gluten that was contaminated with melamine. Melamine is a chemical that is used in cleaning products, fertilizers, and
pesticides. Melamine is typically
considered to have a very low toxicity, and wheat gluten is not
typically screened for this contaminant.
The investigation has traced the contaminated wheat gluten to a
specific U.S. Supplier. Menu Foods, Nestle Purina PetCare Co.,
and Hill’s
Pet Nutrition have purchased wheat gluten from this supplier, but none of
them use this supplier exclusively.
Therefore, the pet food recalls only apply to foods that were produced on certain dates. The wheat gluten in question was imported from Press releases from Menu
Foods now attempt to assure pet owners that the problem is
understood and that people can begin buying the brands in question
again. However, the ASPCA is urging
that more research be done. Melamine has not
traditionally been considered very toxic to pets. Research on melamine outside of that
conducted on rodents is scant. Experts
hypothesize that cats may be particularly susceptible to melamine toxicity because
of their unique kidney functioning. Further
testing to confirm that melamine is indeed the culprit is
warranted. The pets involved
have died of kidney failure. We do not
currently have direct proof that melamine causes kidney failure in pets. What
pet owners should do: 1. Check the ingredient
lists on your pet food for wheat gluten.
The ASPCA recommends that you stop using “possibly-contaminated”
foods. 2. Check the lists of
recalled foods for the brands you use: Menu Foods, Hill’s
Pet Nutrition 3. If your pet demonstrates
signs of kidney problems such as increased urination, get it to Healing
Springs right away. In cases of
melamine toxicity, aggressive fluid therapy may prove helpful. 4. Do not use human food
to substitute for pet food. Human
foods fed regularly can create problems in pets such as pancreatitis. For most people, it will be safer to use a
pet food that does not contain the wheat gluten in question. 5. Stay abreast of the
breaking news until the problem is fully understood and
resolved. Healing Springs will help with responsible, informative reporting
by means of Springboard. Make Springboard
your homepage (the page that pops up when you open Internet Explorer) so
you can see the latest animal news when you access the internet. |
The Number One Pet
Food Recommended by Veterinarians Swiffer WetJet safe around pets A Quality Protein
Source for Pets Flea control
for Dogs can kill Cats |
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Equine Herpes Virus – Quarantines in
Summary of the most recent About EHV-1 Clinical
Signs: Equine herpes virus type-1 can cause several different problems
in horses including abortions in mares, birth of weak foals, respiratory
disease in young horses, and paralytic neurological disease (paralysis and
inability to get up). Typical signs
include fever and mild respiratory disease.
Fevers caused by EHV-1 can spike quickly and resolve quickly. This is why people monitoring horses for an
outbreak must take rectal temperatures twice daily. EHV-1 incubates for 1-10 days. This means that horses may not show signs
of an active infection for one to ten days after they come
into contact with the virus. Horses
with EHV-1 become weak and uncoordinated.
They may show difficulty urinating or defecating. EHV-1 horses that go down and have trouble
getting back up (become recumbent) have a poor prognosis for survival. EHV-1 presents no known health threats to
humans. Mutant
Form: Dr.
Pleasant reports that a recently identified mutation of the neurologic EHV-1 has been linked to recent outbreaks. The mutant form demonstrates enhanced
capacity for multiplication. This
makes it more damaging to the horse and more contagious. Latent
Infections: As with other herpes viruses, apparently
healthy animals can carry EHV-1. This is called a latent infection. During a latent infection, horse blood
tests will not test positive for herpes, but a lymph node biopsy will reveal
the infection. The virus will not
spread while the infection is latent.
During times of stress, herpes viruses can overcome the body’s immune
system and become an active infection.
While the infection is active, EHV-1 proves highly contagious. How
EHV-1 Spreads: EHV-1 spreads most commonly by means of
secretions from a horse’s nose. These
secretions typically spread through the air by actions like snorting or
sneezing. In a moist environment
protected from sunlight, EHV-1 can survive up to one week. Therefore, humans can spread EHV-1 between
horses with their hands, clothing, or equipment. EHV-1 can live on surface areas until the
next horse rubs against the surface and picks up the virus. Aborted fetuses and their placental
membranes may also shed the virus.
Horses with an active infection typically spread the virus for up to
10 days after the start of clinical signs, but active virus shedding has
occurred for months in some cases. How to Protect
Horses from Equine Herpes Virus and Other Infections Vaccinations:
The market currently has no vaccine labeled
for the new mutant form of EHV-1. This
situation is likely to change rapidly over the near future. Recent tests have shown that current
vaccines for herpes virus provide varying levels of protection. For horse owners outside the Healing
Springs service area, you may want to know that monovalent,
modified-live vaccines appear to stimulate the most resistance at this
time. For those within the Healing
Springs service area, simply consult the veterinarian during your routine wellness
visit to find out the latest news on the progress with EHV-1 vaccines. Note some
vaccines currently on the market provide significant protection, but they are
not 100% effective. The best approach
will be to combine the best possible vaccination with good management
practices. In general, horses in our
area should receive immunization for rabies, West Nile virus, Management
Practices: Usual Practices · Test new horses before
purchasing them. · When new horses are introduced into your herd, isolate them for 30 days. · When horses develop a
fever or respiratory signs, isolate them until clinical signs resolve and ten
days longer. · When horses are
isolated, wash your hands between horses. · Do not share equipment
or space between isolated horses and other horses. If you must share equipment or space
between horses, wash and disinfect your equipment. · Avoid sharing
equipment or space with horses not from your herd. If doing so, wash the equipment or space. · Remember that equine
herpes infections become active when the horse is weak. Use the feeding and environmental practices
that will keep your horse strong and healthy. · Keep barn areas clean
and dry. Gold Standard
Practices · When entering or exiting a barn, disinfect footwear using a footbath
and wash hands. Wash hands with hands
with soap and water or use a dry disinfectant. · When you have been touching someone else’s horses, wash your
hands before touching your own horses. · When you have been on someone else’s farm, change clothes before
approaching your own horses. · While new horses are isolated, take rectal temperatures once
or twice daily. Consult Healing
Springs if a fever spikes even briefly. · When your horses return from events, isolate and monitor them
for 10 days. A Bit of Perspective: Here we have
discussed things that can go wrong with horses, and focusing on the negative
can make people nervous. While EHV-1
is a scary disease, the fact of the matter is that it has killed a very small
percentage of horses in |
Equine
Wellness Program at Healing Springs Animal Hospital Fescue Facts for
Horses, Cows, & Goats The Vaccine that
could Eliminate BVD for Good Square
Bales Better than Round Bales for Horses, but Cows Don’t Care |
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Bring your horses – mules – wagons and have a
GREAT TIME! Rain Date: May 19, 2007 $25 per rider: price includes ride, meal, music,
& camping 12 and under FREE $10 – Meal & Music only Contacts: Amy Nelson (276) 236-4884 Tommy Brown (704) 392-2962 Directions to |
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The Animal Health Bulletin is a FREE service of Healing (276) 236-5103 Visit our website at www.HealingSpringsAnimalHospital.com |
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