A blog about Animals.
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Must-clicks Mars issues pet food recall due to possible salmonella contamination A lovely tribute BBC freaking over "freak show" dogs Another non-animal person hired for Animal Control Pedigree recalls bagged variety of pet food Pennies, not puppies They don't mess around in Canada City eyes new approach to licensing pets Adoptable Animal Control pets June 06 July 06 August 06 September 06 October 06 November 06 December 06 January 07 February 07 March 07 April 07 May 07 June 07 July 07 August 07 September 07 October 07 November 07 December 07 January 08 February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 October 08 
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Since it's obvious that we all spend a wee bit of time on the ol' computer, what are your must-click sites? Those sites that you simply must keep going back to on a regular basis. I'll start: Postsecret --- can't get through a Sunday without peeping. The Daily Coyote - Even if I didn't dig critters, the photography alone is worth the visit. Easily worth the weekly visit. Violet Blue's column in the SF Chronicle. You wouldn't even get her headlines in print around here, let alone the columns. Kittenwar - One of the best timewaster's ever. Your turn. Mars has issued a voluntary recall of several brands of dry cat and dog food including some varieties of Pedigree, Ol' Roy (sold at WalMart) and Natural Cat Food and Natural Dog Food (sold at Sam's Club). For a full list of recalled foods go to the Mars Petcare web site. This weekend a wonderful little tribute, located in the "personals" section of the classifieds caught my eye. Rachel Byrom placed a tribute on the passing of her cat, Mufasa. It was a simple, loving piece noting his passing and the importance he had in her life. Increasingly, people are looking for ways to publicly acknowledge the depth of their relationships with their pets. I couldn't help but notice that during the "Tails of Bakersfield" promotion that several people sent in photos in memory of pets who were no longer with them. I'm happy that Ms. Byrom found a way to express her feelings of love and loss, and that she shared her feelings of love of grief with her community. According to a Daily Mail story, the BBC is considering ending their 42 year relationship with Crufts (Britain's version of the Westminster Dog Show) after seeing a documentary airing on BBC tonight called "Pedigree Dogs Exposed". Whether you are someone who would only have a purebred dog in your life or someone who believes mixed breeds rule, this is a fascinating article. Maybe the reason nothing ever seems to move forward at Animal Control is that, rather than hire people who have experience with shelters, shelter management or animals, they continue to appoint people who have no apparent animal experience whatsoever. They couldn't find one person who had some animal management experience?
SHAW NAMED FIRST KERN COUNTY ANIMAL CONTROL DIRECTOR
Guy Shaw has been appointed Director of the new Kern County Animal Control Department by Resource Management Agency Director David Price III. Shaw, a 29 year health science professional and Registered Environmental Health Specialist, has worked with the department in the past and is currently the Chief Environmental Health Specialist over the Food and Consumer Protection, Land, Water, Housing and Institutions, Customer Service Counter, and Cross Connection programs of the Kern County Environmental Health Services Department. “Mr. Shaw brings tremendous skills and experience to Animal Control,” said Price. “He has experience working with varied interests, including other groups and the public, and will be able to effectively manage and expand the services of our field, shelter, veterinary and public outreach programs. “Animal Control is developing new offsite adoption, foster care, low cost spay and neuter, and public education programs. All of these will benefit from Mr. Shaw’s enthusiasm and fresh perspective,” Price stated. Shaw has policy development and management experience and has managed controversial issues for Kern County, such as the biosolids land application program. An important early effort will be to further the Department’s policy development project while implementing new standardized procedures and accountability measures. Shaw will assume his duties on September 1. Just in case this is what you're feeding your pets... of PEDIGREE® Complete Nutrition Small Crunchy Bites at Albertsons in Southern California and Las Vegas due to Potential Salmonella Contamination
Contact:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – FRANKLIN, Tenn. – August 08, 2008 – Mars Petcare US today announced a voluntary recall of limited bags of PEDIGREE® Complete Nutrition Small Crunchy Bites sold in Albertsons stores in Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada. The pet food is being voluntarily recalled because of potential contamination with Salmonella. There have been no complaints or reports of injury resulting from consumption or handling of the recalled product.
The product should not be sold or fed to pets. Pet owners should dispose of product in a safe manner (example, a securely covered trash receptacle) and return the empty bag to the store where purchased for a full refund.
Salmonella can cause serious infections in dogs and cats, and, if there is cross contamination caused by handling of the pet food, in people as well, especially children, the aged, and people with compromised immune systems. Healthy people potentially infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. On rare occasions, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.
Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Animals can be carriers with no visible symptoms and potentially infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.
Recalled Pet Food A friend of mine who works for the Animal Emergency & Urgent Care hospital sent me this email the other day. Arrowhead is donating 50 water bottles to be placed at businesses around Bakersfield to start a "Pennies, not puppies" campaign. The gist of the campaign is that even in these tough economic times people still have a little loose change. If we all pitch in a little bit we can help raise funds for spay neuter voucher programs for the Bakersfield SPCA and Kern County Animal Control. All proceeds raised will be divided equally between these two organizations. If you happen to run across one of these bottles while out and about, consider dropping a couple of coins. I'm attaching a copy of the poster so you'll know it when you see it. By the by, the dog on the poster is a recent rescue who was found wandering the streets on July 5. If anyone recognizes the little guy, call the number on the poster. If you can't make it out just get in touch with me and I'll get you the info.
When it comes to pet abandonment, it appears that Canada takes a pretty harsh stance. My favorite line? "...the proposed penalty was lower than normal..." Abandoning family cat on road nets woman hefty fineUPDATED: 2008-07-09 02:27:48 MST By KEVIN MARTIN, SUN MEDIA Leaving a family pet to fend for itself in the wilds of rural Alberta has landed a Calgary woman a $600 fine. Provincial court Judge Sean Dunnigan yesterday accepted a joint submission from Crown and defence lawyers for the fine after Typhany Mae Haydock pleaded guilty to a charge under the Animal Protection Act. Dunnigan said while the proposed penalty was lower than normal it was "not the usual animal cruelty case." Haydock, 33, admitted causing distress to an animal after she left her pet cat along Dunbow Rd., just south of the Calgary city limits. Crown prosecutor Gord Haight said Haydock admitted abandoning the animal last Dec. 27, when confronted by Calgary Humane Service investigators. Haight said officials were notified by Haydock's ex-husband, who reported she had deserted one of the family's two felines. "She had taken one of their cats out into the country and let the cat go," said Haight. "The cat was nowhere to be found and has not been seen since. "One of the reasons she gave for abandoning the cat was it didn't get along with the other cat in her home and she was hoping it would find an owner in one of the (nearby) acreages." Humane Service peace officer Brad Nichols said he hopes the fine levied against Haydock will serve as a reminder to others thinking about dumping domestic animals in the wild. "In this case she likely killed the cat," Nichols said, suggesting the animal would stand little chance against coyotes. "It is a rural area with predators and traffic -- a risky thing for sure," he said. Nichols said there are much cheaper alternatives than the one which resulted in Haydock's fine. "People are going to be in a lot less trouble by taking it to us, or a pet clinic, instead of abandoning it without care," he said. This story flew a little under the radar (O.K., waaaaaaay under the radar, since I can't even find it on the web site), but it looks like the City of Bakersfield may be close to taking a new approach towards dog licensing. A City Council committee approved a pilot program proposal where a team of two animal control officers would spend 13 weeks canvassing selected neighborhoods in Bakersfield to educate people about the legal requirements for licensing and vaccinating their dogs against rabies. The officers would leave fliers with deadlines for getting dogs vaccinated and licensed and could follow up with citations. In addition the officers would schedule licensing and vaccination clinics at city parks to facilitate compliance. Should the program prove successful, the City Council could continue it beyond the 13 week trial period. The proposal is scheduled to go before the City Council for approval on June 25. I appreciate the City of Bakersfield looking for a proactive approach to getting more dogs licensed. More licensed dogs equals increased funding for Animal Control, which in turn equals more available funding for programs desperately needed in the area, like low cost spay/neuter. Here's hoping the City Council approves this common sense proposal. Finally, my apologies to James Geluso for paraphrasing his piece, but as I mentioned, I couldn't find it so folks could get it straight from the source. As I've noodled along the blogs this afternoon, I've seen a little discussion about Kern County Animal Control needing an Internet presence to display their adoptable animals. Just so interested folks are in the know, you can currently search for an adoptable pet from KCAC's web site just by heading here. They're not necessarily the cutest photos ever, since they are taken just after the animals arrive, which means that in some cases they appear a little less than squeaky clean or a little shaken by the sudden change in their life, but adoptable animals are on the site and available for viewing. You can sort the search a number of ways so that you see results that best match what you may be looking for. Is it perfect? No, but it's better than not having any info at all. The other site for people looking for an adoptable pet is the hugely popular Petfinder. Enter your criteria (right down to breed preference) and your zip code and you can see all the furry friends who are awaiting a forever home. Hope this helps.
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