Have a safe and happy holiday!

https://www.app.com/story/life/pets/2019/12/14/h-3-n-2-monmouth-county-spca/2648901001/

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In reality, this isn’t true. Although a highly trained Veterinarian will use all the subtle information they can gather to piece the puzzle together there generally is very little information that can be gleaned from the status of a dog or cat’s nose. In addition, sometimes that information can be very misleading. For example, I have seen a pet have a very high temperature and suffering from pneumonia have a slightly damp and very healthy looking nose. The temperature and moistness of a dogs nose can even vary hour to hour or day to day and depends on the environmental temperature and humidity.

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Internet Myth #3: Giving your dog or cat Garlic and/or Brewers Yeast is a great natural method of flea control.

Unfortunately, not only is this inaccurate but in the case of Garlic it can actually be harmful. A scientific study was done using Brewers Yeast and submitted for publication in a very reputable Veterinary Journal… the link is http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6885593. The results of the study showed that there was no benefit to using Brewers Yeast to control fleas. Interestingly, it should also be noted that some of the growth medium used to actually grow Fleas in a laboratory setting contains Brewers Yeast.

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By now, many of you may have heard about the lawsuit filed against Purina’s “Beneful” brand dog food. For those unaware, an individual in California has filed a class-action lawsuit against the company, as he believes his dogs’ unfortunate deaths were a result of being fed Beneful.

We have been fielding many calls from concerned pet owners today about the news, and we are hoping we can clear some things up for those of you whose dogs are on Beneful.

1.) First, this is a class action lawsuit, and NOT a recall. It is important to remember that anyone can file a lawsuit at any time, and for any reason. The FDA has not substantiated any of these concerns regarding Beneful dog food, and there is no recall in place at this time.

2.) The dogs in question did die terrible deaths. But unfortunately, the autopsies performed were not able to determine a definitive cause for the dogs’ symptoms. Many different diseases and toxins in the environment can cause similar symptoms and deaths. A link between the dogs’ deaths and Beneful has not been proven.

3.) The ingredient mentioned most often in both the lawsuit and the news stories we have read is a sweetener called “propylene glycol.” While this ingredient sounds very similar to the ingredient in antifreeze (“ethylene glycol”), they are two VERY separate ingredients. Propylene glycol is an FDA-approved food additive found in thousands of pet products, and thousands of human products we use every day. Numerous studies have shown that the amount of propylene glycol in the products that we and our pets consume every day are within proven, safe levels, even when large amounts of those products are consumed.

4.) We at Squan Animal Hospital see a handful of dogs every day that are on Beneful dog food and have been for years, without incident. Neither our veterinarians, nor veterinarians at large, have noted a pattern of toxicity around Beneful dog food.

5.) If there is a recall, be assured that we will tell you as soon as we are aware. Pet safety is something we take very seriously.

6.) If you do plan to transition your pet off of Beneful, we still recommend you do a slow transition over 1-2 weeks to prevent any stomach upset from an abrupt diet change.

7.) As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call us.”

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Myth #2: “You’re telling me my pet needs an anaesthetic but she’s 13 years old. She won’t survive”

The reality… As long as a pet is healthy (meaning the internal organs are all working properly) there is no reason that they can’t have an anaesthetic procedure. Today’s anaesthetics and the way we monitor the patients is far superior than “yesteryear”. The oldest pet I have personally anaesthetized quite successfully without any trouble at all was a 19 year old dog.
Keep something in mind… the Queen Mother (now deceased) had reportedly a total hip transplantation (with anaesthesia) at the age of 95 years of age. As stated previously, old age is not a disease and is not a reason for avoiding a necessary procedure.

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               Duke started off as one of our kittens that we had come in this summer who was looking for his forever home. He now has a wonderful home with his new best friend Daisy. Thank you for adopting this little guy and giving him a great home and keeping us up to date with new pictures of him.

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