Message Board
August 2010
CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT
(03/02/10) Carella, Byrne, Cecchi, Olstein, Brody & Agnello, P.C., has filed a complaint seeking class action status on behalf of pet owners whose household pets were allegedly injured or killed by certain flea and tick products. The complaint was filed in United States District Court for the District of New Jersey against three pet product companies.
The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief in the form of a recall of the offending products, a refund of the purchase price, for compensatory damages, punitive damages and other relief.
For additional information concerning this lawsuit, click here.
If your pet was harmed by a flea and tick product, and you would like to participate
in this class action to help get these products off of the market, please contact:
Jacqueline Mottek
Positive Legal Group
415.302.5371 (cell)
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ANOTHER CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT
A class action law firm Green & Pagano LLP is currently investigating complaints from
New Jersey and New York residents whose pets were harmed by spot-on products.
If your pet was harmed by a spot-on product within the past couple years and you live
in New Jersey or New York, please go to: www.SpotOnComplaints.com
or call Michael Green at (732) 390-0480.
For additional information concerning this lawsuit, click here.
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I am lucky to have my little chihuahua alive. I wanted to share my story. Two years ago during flea season I gave my 5 lb dog Sentinel (up to 10#) that was purchased at a Veternarian's office. Within days she was very ill. She was shaking (although a Chihuahua she typically does not shake), her stomach was pulsing and seemed to have abdonimal pain, and she was very lethargic. She spent several days in the emergency animal hospital on fluids, antibiotics, and had numerous tests. While in the office she had a seizure. She had trouble breathing and still has "asthma" to this day. They did not diagonose anything and slowly she recovered. At that time I was suspicious of two things: the Sentinel and Duck jerky manufactured in China with an ingredients list of one item: "Duck". She only had one dose and it was only 1/2 of the application since I figured she was 1/2 of 10 lbs. I spent over $2000 on hospitalization and on numerous tests. Basically gave them cart blanc to figure out what was wrong. The idea that Sentenal was the problem was repeatedly dismissed. I spoon fed her baby food for a week to get her to begin to eat again.
The following year I did not give any spot treatments and her health was fine.
Last week the fleas were back and I applied K-9 Advantix-10. Immediately her eyes started to water and develop matter. Her breathing became worse overnight. The next morning she laid out in the sun on the patio. Her skin was red and inflamed all over her body and her body was hot. Blisters formed under her front legs and in the area of application. Her breathing was labored and she was wheezing. She was itching at nothing and rubbing her body on whatever she could. Her balance was not good. I started holding her little body under a tepid stream of water in the sink. The first time I used Dawn dish soap in the area of the application and it was painful to her and she tried to bite at her back as she cried as I washed her. Then I kept her under the running water for almost an hour the first time. Because she was in the sun, I figured that she sweated and spread the toxins around her. She found the bath refreshing. Her rash calmed down for a few hours. Then it flared up again making her ears red and her body hot. Although the Vet said that she did not have a fever her body was very hot to touch. She looks like she has a chemical burn. Ever few hours I would give her a running water sink bath for about 20 minutes duration. She likes to sleep under a blanket, but I noticed that whenever she got warm, her skin would flare up and she would develop blisters.
When I went to another Vet, he would not even consider the fact that the K-9 Advantix-10 caused it. He said it was a reaction to fleas. After several attempts to explain cause and effect, the documentation history of the seizure and the hospitalization, and reiterating myself he would not even entertain the thought. Finally I asked, "Do you see the "flea allergy" symptoms come on suddenly right after all of the fleas are gone all of the time? and then he had to pause and say "no" I dont. He asked where I purchased the product and I answered at the local "feed store" and he was unhappy with that. I brought the box with me so he could see the product. I thought that maybe I had picked something that he, as a professional didn't approve of. Then I turned around and looked at the wall directly behind the examination table and there it was, a large poster advertising K9 advantix 10. There were Bayer Chemical posters all over his office.
I am convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that my dog was poisoned by K9 advantix 10 and Sentinel. I am lucky that she is alive. My dog's medical chart and the medical records do not alude to the fact that I brought my dog into the office because she was suffering from a reaction to these toxins. Both the animal hospital and the vet have not documented this information. I feel that the very people who are there to help her are also the same people who could be able to help animals more fully if they would accept the precautionary statements of the hazards that they pose to fish, cats, people and dogs. Please post my story if you feel that it would help someone else. I believe that washing her for hours under running tepid water is what saved her life.
I applied the same dose to my other chihuahua Charlie and he only had a mild reaction: lethargy, darker skin (their stomachs are bare so you can easily see the change in color of their skin), watery eyes and itching. He received baths too. Who knows of the extent of the internal damage done?
Signed-
Never again! 8/3/10
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(Below is a message that was posted on Hartzvictims.org on 8/9/10)
Hartz Flea/Tick Drops Paralyzed My Westie Dog
My dog Rose Marie’s story.
West Highland White Terrier – female-18 months old
We applied Hartz 3 in 1 flea and tick drops on my Westie on August 5, 2010. I had previously used the same drops on her with no problems 30 days earlier.
That evening after applying the drops around 3:00 in the afternoon, I did not notice any reaction. At bed time, Rose sleeps with us and seemed restless to find a sleep spot on the bed. (Usually goes right to bed where ever you put her) Didn’t think anything of it until this morning she does not lift her head when we get out of bed. Just layed there flat on her side sleeping, I finish my shower and she has still not moved. I put her on the floor and she will not stand! OH MY GOD!!! She is paralyzed!!! I carry her downstairs and take her out to the back yard, she will not walk or stand, her rear and hind legs are paralyzed. I remember that I put the flea drops on her the afternoon before.
I give her a bath in case the drops could be the cause of her problem. She is trembling slightly but I am not sure if that is from being cold from her bath or trembling from the reaction. Husband takes her to the vet and they think it could be a reaction to the flea drops.
As a precaution they x-ray both hind legs to check for injury (No injury)
They give her a charcoal treatment to reduce and absorb the toxins in her system. The vet gives her another bath to wash off the drops as much as possible. Vet calls Hartz to report the incident and to get direction from the company of what they recommend. They tell Vet to do what they are doing and she should be fine. Hartz did say it sounded like a overdose of the flea and tick drops! We now have a case number for our incident.
It is 3:00 on Friday August 6th , 2010 – 24 hours after the flea drops where applied. Called the vet to check on Rose and no change, she is still trembling and they have her on diazepam to help her relax.
When we picked her up at 5:00 that evening she was responsive and walking. She threw up all evening and into the night and could not keep water or food down. On Saturday morning she threw up one time and has not since then. She seems to be completely back to normal even wanting to play with her toys.
Her vet said that the 48 hours would be the time frame to know if she would recover or not. Some dogs that have a reaction to this insecticide get kidney and liver damage and die. Others do like my Rose and recover fully.
It is like Russian roulette with these flea and tick drops, I have been giving all my pets over the counter flea and tick drops for years and have never had one have a bad reaction. I will not be taking that chance again.
I am so glad someone posted their story so I could find it when I had a problem with my westie. If I had not read others stories I might not have realized what was wrong with her and waited too long for her to be treated and risk permanent damage.
Products that can harm animals need to be off the market. Our vet said they are not even allowed to make this product anymore. Why can they still sell it? It is not only in the flea drops it is in all of there flea products, dips, shampoos etc…
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(Below is email that I sent to the EPA on 8/10/10)
Re: Freedom of Information Act Appeal
Dear Mr. Gottesman,
This is in response to your denial of my request for a fee waiver concerning Freedom of Information Act request HQ-FOI-01726-10. I formally request an appeal of your fee waiver denial determination.
In your letter, you stated that I failed to demonstrate that the release of the information requested would significantly increase to the public understanding of government operations or activities. The information requested concerns the safety and continued registration of certain cyphenothrin-based pet products which, according to the EPA, account for a significant number of reported adverse incidents each year.
Here is EPA's Cyphenothrin Summary Document for Registration Review:
Excerpt from page 14:
"There have been several reported pet incidents involving the use of cyphenothrin pet treatments on dogs. From January 2006 to November 2009, there were 149 reported mortalities, 367 major reported incidents, 13,455 moderate reported incidents and 32,713 minor reported incidents. From all reported pesticide related pet incidents, cyphenothrin products account for 10% of the total reported pet mortalities, 13% of all major incidents,
54% of all moderate incidents, and 65% of all minor incidents."
The above mentioned pet products also pose significant risks to human health. Here is the EPA's Human Health Assessment Scoping Document in Support of Registration Review for Cyphenothrin:
Excerpts:
"The toxicology database for cyphenothrin is not complete."
"Combined MOEs estimated for exposures to children from hugging treated companion dogs are of concern."
Incredibly, the current labeled dosages of Sergeant's cyphenothrin-based pet products are
2X larger than the dosages that were initially assessed and registered by the EPA. In other words, the current labeled dosages of these products are mislabeled and pose an even greater threat to the health of pets and people -- especially small children who are exposed
to treated pets.
I believe the public has a right to know if Sergeant's cyphenothrin-based pet products pose a significant threat to the health of pets and people. I also believe the public has a right to know what measures are being proposed by the EPA to mitigate those risks. Therefore, I believe the information requested concerning the safety and continued registration of Sergeant's cyphenothrin-based pet products would significantly contribute to the public understanding of EPA activities and, in the spirit of transparency, should be made available to the public.
Thank you in advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
James TerBush
Website Administrator
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Thank you for this website! I have spent the day researching
etofenprox, after using it via Sergeant's Gold for my cat. 4 days
after applying it, she still has fleas, so I wanted to know what would
happen if I dosed her again, far short of the recommended 30 day period.
I have learned that for a 7 lb cat, the dose I used was insufficient,
but a sufficient dose goes beyond the recommended safety limits,
so.... why bother? This product is useless.
I then found your website and have learned a lot. Thank you for such
well-informed and credible sources. I am now wondering if flea
products have anything to do with the seizure disorder of a much-
loved Springer Spaniel. Seizure disorders are apparently not uncommon
in Springers, but then, so are fleas...
I see that the EPA has incorporated many of your cites into their
recommendations for new registrations of pesticides for animals - they
seem to have not made them retroactive to already-registered products,
such as Sergeant's GOLD.
Again- great website
Now to figure out how to get rid of these fleas...
Nina 8/10/10
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As I write this I am waiting to hear if my 2 year old, 6 lb. Yorkie,"Charlie" will survive. I happened to come across your website and wanted to share my experience. Charlie never had a problem with fleas, and we just came back from vacation with him and he had a few fleas. I went to Pet Smart and purchased Adams Plus Flea and Tick Shampoo. I gave him a bath in it and he seemed unusually shaky afterward. I just assumed it was due to him being chilled from the bath,yet he seemed to be having tremors in his back legs. He settled down and went to sleep. The next day he seemed lethargic. Next he started vomiting. I just thought he had a virus, so I just watched him. The following day I took him to the vet. His urine was very dark and he wasn't eating and still vomited. The doctor did blood work, said it was probably a flu and sent us home with some special food. I asked him at the time if it could have been the shampoo since he was fine before. He assured me that it was probably the flu. This morning I woke to the phone ringing at 6:45. The vet said the blood tests came back and the dog had extremely high liver levels and to get him to the hospital ASAP. Now the vet seems to think it may have been toxicity from the shampoo. I called the company,and they connected me to "DR. Smith, Pet Poison Safety Service." She assured me over and over that the product was completely safe. I told her that I had been reading that shampoo with Pyrethrin was damaging to some pets., and that this product had .075% Pyrethrin in it. I asked her if she would like me to send her the info on her email, and she said that wouldn't be necessary because she had read everything on it. I replied by saying "everything" and she became very quiet. She assured me that even if i used "the whole bottle on the dog," it would not do damage. I know in my gut that this shampoo almost killed my dog. Right now he is fighting for his life. I don't know what else to do. Thank you for at least listening to me vent. At the very least I think the label should at least warn according to weight. As I said, my dog is only 6 lbs. Thank you again.
Debbie 8/12/10
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(Below is email that I sent to the EPA on 8/12/10)
Re: Freedom of Information Act Appeal
Dear Mr. Gottesman,
This is in response to your denial of my request for a fee waiver concerning Freedom of Information Act request HQ-FOI-01743-10. I formally request an appeal of your fee waiver denial determination.
In your letter, you stated that I failed to demonstrate that the release of the information requested would significantly increase to the public understanding of government operations or activities. The information requested concerns the safety and continued registration of pet spot-on products which, according to the EPA, account for tens of thousands of reported adverse incidents each year.
In March, the EPA announced the results of its evaluation of pet spot-on products. It found
that current product labels are inadequate and that more stringent testing and evaluation is needed for both existing and new products. Here is information concerning it:
The EPA also stated that it would continue to reach out to the public on actions EPA is
taking and provide information that will help consumers use pet pesticide products safely. Futhermore, the EPA stated that it is committed to transparency and will offer continued
public updates on EPA's actions on pet spot-on pesticide products.
I believe the public has a right to know if currently registered pet spot-on products pose a significant threat to the health of pets and people. I also believe the public has a right to know what measures are being proposed by the EPA to mitigate those risks. Therefore, I believe the information requested concerning product-specific meetings between the EPA and registrants of pet spot-on products would significantly contribute to the public understanding of EPA activities and, in the spirit of transparency, should be made available to the public.
Thank you in advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
James TerBush
Website Administrator
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(Below is a message that was posted on Hartzvictims.org on 8/10/10)
Casper & Roper Got Lucky
My experience with the Hartz product was with using the Flea & Tick Drip Sticks. Why they’re not recalled is beyond me and I will never use anything but Frontline ever again. Within minutes of applying this to the back of their necks, in between their shoulders, they began scratching and shaking. The substance applied turned into a greasy oil glob on the dogs. I kept a close eye on them because I was concerned with the shaking but since it was summer, we thought maybe they were trying to release the loose hair off them. The next couple days got worse, at least with one of the dogs. Casper’s fur is not quite as dense as Ropers so the substance must have sunk into her skin quicker. By the third day, she began acting a bit strange. She couldn’t sit still, jumping from the couch to the floor and back, walking like she was drunk, stumbling. I decided to comb through the oil on her back, her fur began coming out in clumps. Then all hell broke loose. Forgetting to wash my hands, I rubbed my eyes. I awoke during the night, my eyes on fire, swollen and red. I jumped in the shower and flushed my eyes immediately then iced them. When I realized the cause, I woke my husband and looked at Casper, through the fur, her skin was as red as a chili pepper. Her and Roper cried when we touched them. That was it..at 3″00 am we took both dogs outside, in the lightening and pouring rain and washed them with Dawn Dishwashing soap to remove any trace of the flea and tick substance. That day, I was heartbroken to come on line and find all of this information after I put my dogs through such an ordeal. I found out that Petco pulled the Hartz line completely from their stores. It should be recalled, in addition to being pulled from all stores. Next time, I will do the research before applying anything to my beloved buddies.
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(Below is a message that was posted on Hartzvictims.org on 8/12/10)
Hartz Permanently Damaged and Almost Killed My Kitten
I had just adopted my boy from a woman who had a ton of animals infested with fleas cooped up in her tiny apartment. I thought I was bringing him to a better life where he wouldn’t ever be mistreated or have to suffer but what I did to him was terrible.
After being in my home for just a few days my house was nearly infested with fleas not to mention my other cat was now itching like crazy. Money was tight and I wasn’t going to get paid for a while so I decided to buy Hartz flea drops and shampoo for cats. I washed my older cat first and she, thank god had no issues that I could see other than aggression I thought was from discomfort…though I’d never had her hiss at me or scratch me before.
Next I took my boy, who was about 10 months old and began to wash him. I was not sure if he’d ever had a bath before so when he started freaking out I assumed he was just afraid and would calm down when he saw nothing bad was going to happen to him. He meowed deep and wallowed and struggled. I was nearly done, I was rinsing him and all of a sudden his head cocked back at me very violently and he went kind of limp kind of stiff in my arms. He was lifeless and his pupils were enormous. He was just staring at me with out blinking. I rinsed him very quickly and took him out of the bath and wrapped him in a towel. He was completely still, his breathing was only slight and he still wouldn’t blink. I laid there with him on the bathroom floor sobbing and rubbing him thinking he was about to die. I thought I gave him a heart attack from being so frightened. I just rubbed him gently and cried and tried to sing to him imagining he was full of fear and pain. We laid there for about half an hr. I closed his eyes for him and watched his chest for when he would stop breathing. I was holding him now rubbing his forehead…and all of a sudden he opened his eyes widely and meowed really unpleasantly and started to move his lower body like he was trying to get out of the towel. I was so happy I just held him with me for a few minutes to make sure he wasn’t dying.
He was lethargic and cranky the rest of the day and I noticed he was suddenly getting stuck to the carpet. Like his claws wouldn’t retract. He also seemed to have a hunch in his back most of the time like he was really tense. He went around the house meowing and getting stuck to things.
It’s been almost a year from then and he is alive thankfully but is still getting stuck to things, falling off of things, seems to have a poor depth perception, and is afraid of almost everything.
He didn’t act like this before, even when I met him in his original home he was outgoing and friendly and sweet.
Recently he seems to be getting into really weird positions and sleeping like that and then waking up and not being able to get out of them…like his body is tightening up or something.
I hate Hartz and I wish there was something I could do to get this sh*tty god awful product away from anyone who thinks they are doing something to help their loved ones.
All it did to my poor guy was almost kill him or give him a seizure, make him disabled, and make him suffer.
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(Below is a message that was posted on Hartzvictims.org on 8/14/10)
Facial Paralysis from Hartz 3 in 1 Flea Spray for Dogs
to all out there who have furry family members, PLEASE take a moment of your time to read my story… and pray for my four legged child, sebbe (boxer).
my furry child (Seb) has been on frontline flea preventative for over 10 years now, with much success.. i have never noticed more than one flea on her, until this year. it has been very hot, and very dry–ideal flea romance weather apparently. needless to say, she has a LOT of fleas, and the frontline was just not cutting it, so my vet advised me i needed to supplement with some other method to help keep her comfortable.. she gave me many options, but i needed some time to think about it.
after much consideration, i really didnt want to give her anything else that may be potentially harmful to her, so i decided to simply bathe her more frequently (luckily i have no carpet-hence no house fleas) to try and rid her of the annoying itching. first couple times went GREAT.. killed and washed all fleas harmlessly down the drain… then i noticed within hours (after being outside) that she just picked up more, so i came up with this wonderful idea to get some flea spray to put very lightly on her legs to discourage the nasty blood suckers from jumping on her and hopefully extend the flea free afterbath for at least a couple days… off to the store i went..
i purchased Hartz 3 in 1 flea spray for DOGS.. at the local walmart (brand has been there for AGES, so i thought it must be okay)…. went home eager to help my bestest bud with her constant itching problems.. put Sebbe in the bath and washed away all those nasty fleas (once again) dried her off, and lightly (4 sprays) covered her legs from elbows down… within 15 minutes she COLLAPSED.. could not walk, drooling uncontrollably.. OFF TO THE BATH WE WENT.. i knew, from working at the shelter and the vet that she was having a reaction and washed it all off immediately!!!!
OFF to the vet we went… she was bathed several times.. and monitored closely for the next several hours. still drooling but seemed to be regaining her balance and walking ability–so she was brought home.
the next day however, the real damage reared its ugly head, [b]she is completely paralyzed on one side of her head[/b]. cannot blink, cannot hold her tongue in, cannot eat unassisted, cannot drink effectively.. the entire right side of her face just hangs several inches below the left. she is damaged beyond belief.
PLEASE, i dont care what kind of pet you hold near and dear to your heart… PLEASE do not use any of the Hartz products. the vet told me i am very lucky that she is alive!!
after the damage was done, i found several websites and stories related to the damage done my hartz products… a day late and a dollar short. this company MUST be held responsible for the blatant disregard for the health and safety of our pets–
please pray for sebbe, and all of the other victims living with disabilities from this monsterous product.
feel free to contact me by email with any information on joining a class action lawsuit.. they must be STOPPED!!
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About 2 years ago I had given my 4 1/2 month old puppy BioSpot because she was
scratching at her coat and assumed it was fleas. About 24 hours later she began to have seizures all throughout the night. We took her to the vet around 4 am after about 5 seizures. They had given us medication for the seizures & valium and told us to watch her and see
what happens. At around 7:30 am after about a total of 10 seizures we took her to the vet again. While bringing her in she had another seizure so the vet told her to leave her there
and they would take care of her. At about 11:30 am the vet had called and said they had
given her enough Valium to put a 200lb dog to sleep (Ava weighed about 27 lbs) They had
no idea what was wrong with her but the only thing to do now was to put her to rest. We had
to put our poor 4 month old puppy to sleep and I was devastated. To this day I still think about her and was unsure what went wrong. I recently had a friend who told me the same thing happened to his dog and it was due to the flea and tick medication he had given his puppy. Then I began researching and found out that I am not the only one. I also had a suspicion
that it was the BioSpot I had purchased from the pet store but everyone told me I was only blaming myself. I cannot believe that this is happening and I am angered by this!
Christine 8/16/10
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My husband and I purchased bio spot at pet supplies thought it would be an easy and safe way to protect against fleas. I brought it home applied just as the package said within 2 hours our youngest cat Harley started having grand mal seizers. It was horrible! She was shaking all over saliva/foam stuff coming out of her mouth. By her 3rd one her gums where changing a grey color and not slowing down on the seizer it just got worse fast. My husband got her in the car to take her to a after hour vet and we lost her before he could get there. Within an hour and a half our one year old baby girl had died. We were devastated. We finally went to bed the next morning we get up and our other cat was shaking and unbalanced also had salvia/foam on the side of his mouth we rushed him to the vet, told him what happened and then linked it to the bio spot because nothing was wrong with either cat before using this product. The vet administered some meds to try to stop the chemical in his body. We also learned that this happens in felines with the chemical used in bio spot their chemistry can't handle it. We then left him there Sebastian still uncontrollably shaking. Within an hour we knew it wasn't working his gums also grey and now the seizers got worse unless he was sedated. For humane reasons we went back to the vet's said our good byes to Sebastian our 3 yr old cat then put him to sleep. I had TWO HEALTHY CATS then I used BIO SPOT and now they are both gone! Please does anyone know how to get this off the market? How is this product being sold when it is killing our babies, my cats were beautiful, young, healthy animals that stayed inside at all time and we loved them so much this company should NOT be allowed to do this. That was such awful deaths for my cat's and to lose both with 8 hrs apart is nothing I want anyone else to have to endure! Please help me get this product off the market and people be aware of the dangers. This medication absorbs into their system and once it does you can't stop the horrlble tragedy that comes next.
Christina 8/16/10
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Another toxic pesticide bought the farm - Aldicarb
Here is a blog concerning the cancellation of a highly toxic pesticide that was posted
today by Jennifer Sass, senior scientist in the NRDC's health and environment program:
Excerpt:
"What's the not so good news? Well, although EPA determined that these pesticides no longer met the safety standard required to be registered ('reasonable certainty of no harm'), EPA negotiated in all cases with the registrants, and only the registrants. No public health or environmental groups were consulted or involved. Maybe that's why all the pesticides were granted phase-outs of several years or longer. That means that even though EPA decided that Aldicarb is unsafe today, it will continue to be manufactured until 2014, and sold until 2018. That's a lot of years of unsafe continued use of a hazardous pesticide!"
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Below is testimony that Larry F. Gottesman, National Freedom of Information Officer,
U.S. EPA, provided to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on
March 18, 2010, concerning transparency and openess at the EPA:
Recently, I submitted several Freedom of Information Act requests for records concerning pesticide safety to the EPA, which were all denied by Mr. Gottesman and are currently being appealed. So much for transparency...
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Hello All,
I would like to share a horrible experience likely linked to Comfortis
flea prevention from Lilly. Our little 14 month old Japanese Chin,
Pixie, came down with K-9 dry eye, keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS). We
noticed she was having a problem about two weeks after giving her
Comfortis. Our vet said that she was very young to be experiencing such
an issue, and that such cases are usually linked to drugs. The only drug
I'd given her was Comfortis. The vet called Lilly, and Lilly opened a
case and agreed to pay to have her seen by a k-9 ophthalmologist. As
expected, he could of course not determine a cause. This gets Lilly off
the hook I guess. He said that would be impossible to tell. He did say
it was unusually suspicious for the drug company to pay for the visit,
and that he'd recently had a colleague inquire of him if he'd seen other
cases of Comfortis possibly causing dry eye. It has been almost two
months of treatment with Optimmune and other drugs ongoing for Pixie
now, which has not led to any improvement in her tear production. She
has none. Her tear ducts are likely permanently destroyed. This means no
amount of drops can ever really help, in that no one can stand there and
constantly put them in every three seconds like a normal tear duct
would. She is suffering, and it looks like our options are to try to
save up for surgery where they move a saliva duct to the eyes (very
expensive with a set of problems all on it's own and no guarantee it
will even work), or have the eyes removed. It is devastating for us and
especially for Pixie. I am trying to see if others out there have had a
similar experience with Comfortis. We do not know for sure what caused
the KCS, but if there are other cases like ours (and I really hope there
are not), people need to know. Thanks for reading everyone, and good
luck with all of your furry family members!
Lauria 8/19/10
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(Below is a message that Claudia posted on her Facebook page concerning a meeting that she participated in with several directors of EPA's Office of Pesticides Program on 8/10/10)
BACKGROUND: For those who don't know Oliver and Timmy's stories here is a quick version for you: Oliver suffered from chronic renal failure due to exposure to over-the-counter flea powder. He was given his wings on August 10th, 2009. We rescued Tiny Timmy while he was in the throes of a toxic reaction to over-the-counter flea and tick spray. He has neurological damage from this exposure. Since our own personal experiences, Aundria (Oliver's person) and I have worked to educate others about these dangers products and affect change to get these dangerous products off the store shelves.
THOUGHTS: As I flew home from our trip to DC, I was excited to be coming back home to Portland. My partner, who unfortunately was unable to attend the DC trip and meeting with the EPA because we were one flight short, gave me constant Timmy Updates. I laughed as my partner described his antics while I was away. Timmy has brought so much joy into our lives. Daily, he makes us smile and our hearts sing. Even when my partner and I had to wipe the poo off of him several times a day for months when he first came here, we don't begrudge a moment of it. We wouldn't change a thing about the decisions we made rescuing him, his care and his duties as Spokeskitty against over-the-counter flea and tick products that harm pets. He is a light in our lives and a beat in our hearts.
I was struck by the fact that I would be able to come home to Timmy, while Aundria would not be able to come home to Oliver. Ever. Aundria is propelled forward by a promise she made to Oliver as she gave him his wings. That promise is simple and powerful: Not One More Like Him. Ever.
Shortly after meeting Aundria in October, 2009, she brought up her intention of going to the EPA offices in Washington, DC and holding a vigil for Oliver to raise awareness. She wanted to organize this on the date and at the time she gave Oliver his wings. It was beautifully symbolic. At the time, my health was at an all-time low and I doubted the ability of myself and my partner to attend due to health and finances. But we put trust in the fact that everything with Timmy and this cause has always worked out. If this trip was meant to be, it would materialize.
And materialize it did. Thanks to all of our supporters we were able to make this trip to DC happen for Aundria and I, though my partner had to stay home. I know we keep saying this, but it's a little overwhelming what you have accomplished. Your support came in the form of sharing, spreading the word, encouraging us to move forward, monetary contributions, moral support, donation of air miles and hotel points. Not only were you as much a part of this leg of our journey as Oliver and Timmy are, but your conviction and dedication is what put us on the map in DC. Your support, emailing, faxing and calling the EPA, when our requests for a meeting with Lisa Jackson went unanswered, as well as covering the costs and transport for the trip helped Aundria score the meeting with the EPA in THREE DAYS. It takes most months to get such a meeting. It takes most causes years to get to the point we have gotten in the blink of an eye. I just wanted to put the entire vastness of it all in perspective for you. YOU MATTER. We could not do this without you in so many ways. Without you and your voices, we would be two people making a ruckus. With you, between Oliver, Timmy and Tamar (who also attended the meeting), we are approximately 20,000 strong. We are a force to be reckoned with.
I don't know exactly how Aundria has managed to organize so much in such a short time while juggling everything else in her life, but I am so glad that she is a part of this fight, and feel fortunate to call her friend. I like to think she had a little toffee angel gracing her way the entire time and that while we were in the meeting with the EPA, he was purring. Aundria took on the brunt of organizing just about everything to take pressure off of me and ease complications from my health issues. Without her doing this, I would not have been able to attend.
When she and I first met outside of the Holiday Inn, we both felt a rush of relief. It was true. This was really happening and none of us needed to shoulder the weight of tens of thousands of harmed pets alone.
THE TRIP: Although I arrived very late on the 9th, Aundria and I promptly got to work. We sat outside in the courtyard and compared notes, talked of things we thought were important to prepare for the meeting with the EPA and developed a strategy for the following day and forward. We slept hard. Promptly upon waking, we both rolled over in bed and grabbed our laptops. We giggled and Aundria said, "Time to get to work." She had been working another meeting with a major retailer before the Silent Protest, so we weren't sure what our day would hold for us.
The extra meeting did not happen, but we had a crazy and wonderful day. We rented a car for several hours due to my health and the heat coupled with the humidity. We wanted to be sure that we could be as efficient as possible in as short amount of time as possible.
SILENT PROTEST: We picked up Tamar Arslanian from http://www.ihavecat.com/ at the train station. Last minute, she cleared her workload to be able to support this fight. She took the train in from New York City and did not return home until very late that evening. Her presences was incredibly valuable. We then headed straight for the DC EPA building on Pennsylvania Avenue. The building was large with a European design. I stood for a moment to take in this large symbol of the power of our government and the promise of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Aundria sat, in the blazing heat, on the wide walkway leading to the building, bowing her head, meditating on Oliver's leash. Only she can tell you what she was thinking, but I am pretty sure she was letting Oliver know that she was staying true to her promise to him. Not One More Like Him. Ever.
Armed with Oliver Bracelets, actual photos Aundria mounted on cards of Timmy and Oliver with their story on the backs, stickers and our loud mouths, we started talking to people. Anyone who walked past was fair game. We spoke to anyone who would listen and asked people to wear the bracelets in support today, and pass on the message of these harmful and readily available products. Aundria spoke with a couple that had lost their dog to the effects of these products. We spoke with over 100 people in a short amount of time, simply raising awareness. Some were incredibly supportive; others didn't want to look us in the eyes. One man opened his wallet and pulled out a dollar bill saying this was to help us make sure no more animals suffered from these products. I felt like I did when I earned my first dollar upon starting my own company years ago. This should be mounted. It wasn't that the dollar made so much of a difference, but the symbol of what that dollar represented.
THE MEETING WITH THE EPA: We arrived at the EPA building in Crystal City, Virginia and cleared security, ready for our meeting. There were 6 representatives from the EPA Pesticide Division there. Marty Monell, Deputy for Management Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), Tina Levine, Director Health Effects Division, Lois Rossi, Director Registration Division, Byron Backus, Technical Review Branch of the Registration Division, Margie Fehrenbach and Kimberly Nesci, Special Assistant of Registration Division. We introduced ourselves and thanked them all for clearing their schedule and giving us this meeting.
Aundria started by telling Oliver's story, including sharing some of the process after his death with reporting and dealing with the EPA, Wal-Mart and Sergeant's, the manufacturer of the flea powder that killed him. This included being told repeatedly by Sergeant's and the EPA that the product she used did not contain permethrin (highly toxic to cats). We now have "official" confirmation that it did indeed contain permethrin. I think sharing her experience was very enlightening for them as they rarely get to see the frustrations involved from the perspective of a pet owner suffering a loss. It was significant that the meeting started almost to the minute of the anniversary of Oliver getting his wings. With all her research and experience she had one resounding question that kept haunting her this past year... That question was simply, "Why?"
I was able to share Timmy's story with them and some of the ups and downs my partner and I have gone through with him, including very high vet costs that we are still in the process of paying off. Aundria read some of the stories she received from all of you and we were able to show and discuss the Tribute video.
We discussed at length that many of these incidences occur when these products are used as directed, by intelligent, educated people who love their pets and think they are doing the right thing. Sometimes they occur with vet-applied products, or those applied at home by veterinary professionals. We also discussed the misuse of the products such as exposure of a cat to dog product, or purchasing a product for a larger animal and titrating the dose amongst smaller animals. (This is 12% of adverse reactions.) We discussed counterfeit or foreign-labeled products on the market (an unknown amount of incidences because the issue is likely not rampant, but it is impossible at this point to assess how many cases of this there are).
I don't envy these people their jobs. It must be both frustrating and rewarding. They must consider the legal risk of manufacturer lawsuits against the EPA for any actions they take, health issues to people and pets, fixing the rules and creating regulation that sometimes takes years to change and a wealth of other considerations that I will never know. I believe at heart that we were in a room with mostly concerned individuals, open to what we were saying and supportive of what we were doing.
We spent a long time discussing and quoting scientific studies and previous EPA quotes to back up what we were saying. I think we had the right blend of emotion and science behind us. Our main points:
In 1988 Hartz Blockade was pulled form the market due to 200 pet deaths. Later, several re-labeling efforts were attempted to curb adverse effects of Hartz products, but they had no real impact on the numbers of incidences. In fact, the incidences have been on the rise. This addressed the re-labeling efforts in the EPA mitigation plan for spot-on flea and tick products. It hasn't worked in the past, what's going to be different this time? Apparently this time, they are asking for packaging and not just an image of the label. This will help them look at labeling in a way that consumers making a choice on the shelf would do. Personally, I am skeptical that this will work since they have asked manufacturers also to re-package and re-name their products to make it clear something is for cat or dog use. Having worked in marketing, I know packaging changes on a dime. I will follow up to ask if every time there is a packaging change, will manufacturers be required to send in the new packaging prior to release. The EPA is looking into requiring notice of all possible side effects from using the product, which currently does not need to be listed. This would be similar to the warnings, cautions and disclosures legally required on human prescription medication. We brought up the issue of instructions, cautions, warnings and ingredients being written in fonts too difficult for most people to read easily. (This was brought up by Sparky). We also raised the point that currently ingredients are hidden by using the names of derivatives or the chemical structure instead of common names that people would understand.
To their statement that fleas & ticks must be combated somehow. This is true and we never said it isn't an issue. However, fleas are mutating so that they are immune to pyrethrin and pyrethroids, including permethrin and the products do not work the same way they did 30 years ago. To combat this, manufacturers continue to add other ingredients designed to make the active ingredients more "effective" and this is causing them to be more highly toxic. This would account in part for the 53% increase in incidences from spot-on products only from 2007 to 2008. As you know, despite having been copiously sprayed with Sergeant's Flea & Tick Spray for Cats, we still pulled over 350 fleas off his tiny body when we rescued him. The same spray that was killing Timmy, did nothing to kill the fleas.
We discussed at length permethrin. Both Timmy and Oliver were exposed to this highly toxic ingredient in a cat product. It is pretty much understood that cats lack the enzyme to metabolize permethrin so even in tiny doses it can cause adverse reactions. We also discussed the human health risks associated with this ingredient, specifically it's endocrine disrupting properties. They said it would be worth taking a look at the cat products containing permethrin and that perhaps they should be re-evaluated. Since the scope of their lengthy investigation to date only covered spot-on products, others such as powders, sprays, collars, foggers, shampoos and dips have not been focused on yet. It is known that endocrine disruptors work in very small amounts to disrupt the body's functioning. This is true in companion animals, humans and other mammals and especially in children.
We discussed the lack of funding for alternatives that are non-toxic and work just as well as chemicals in most cases. They have added an area on their site (which is a little difficult to find) listing alternatives such as bathing, vacuuming, washing bedding, steam cleaning and flea combing.
We discussed our concern that the life and health of a pet has come down to "two bucks at Wal-Mart" (in the case of Timmy) or a dollar at the Dollar Store. They were concerned to hear about these products being sold in Dollar Stores, by the way. I am going to go to the ones around here and buy all of these products and send them onto the EPA so they can evaluate how this happened and whether or not they are selling items on "phase out" or counterfeits. When a product is voluntarily recalled, the manufacturer has one year (usually) to continue to make the product. The product will continue to be sold through the supplies on the shelves and distribution channels until the supply is gone. This is why I found most of the products at the dollar store were collars, like the ones named in the NRDC lawsuit in California, and the organophosphate collars, which are the last to be recalled voluntarily though the EPA has been trying to get them removed for over ten years.
We discussed the marketing of products, claiming to be "safe when used as directed" and pitching to the veterinary profession through conferences and marketing that they must be used year round despite location. The EPA themselves said in the latest webinar that these products should only be used in case of an outbreak and when other methods fail to control the situation. In that webinar, they also stated that no one product appears to be safer than another. Depending on where you live, usage recommendations might be more or less. The South, for example, has a much larger flea problem than where I live, in Oregon. (Webinar link can be found below.)
We brought up how an incident is rated as to "minor, moderate, major". An example that came up was the dog, Ellie, in the Tribute video with horrible burns. If someone said, "skin irritant" I would assume that to be minor, however as the pictures showed, what this dog went through is so much more than a minor reaction. The EPA said each manufacturer has some sort of rating system in place, but this sounded to be individual and not a standard process.
So far their investigation and the products that they have put under scrutiny have been spot-on products only. We discussed powders, collars, dips, sprays, foggers and shampoos. Particularly we spent a lot of time discussing powders (what killed Oliver) and sprays (the hurt Timmy) in addition to all these products that contain these harmful ingredients.
Many of the EPA attendees are pet owners. On a personal level, they feel saddened by our loss and disturbed by the stories and Tribute video. However, as EPA employees dealing with pesticides they are required to work within the legal framework established and weigh things like benefit vs. loss as well as profit loss for the manufacturers. At the end of this note, I have made suggestions on how you can help and let you know what we need from you for our next steps.
We explained that a manufacturer of these products, because pets are considered "personal property" in most places, could pay out an awful lot of claims for a few hundred dollars of vet before they find they operate at such a loss it becomes unprofitable for them to continue a product. It isn't the same as human drugs, where legally a human life has a much higher valuation from a legal aspect. This is one example of why tort reform should never happen. It
is the only way we have to take steps to protect the public when the system in place fails us. (Asbestos, for example, despite reams of documentation collected by the EPA, the EPA lost the lawsuit manufacturers filed against them when trying to remove it from the market. It was only class action lawsuits that closed down these businesses and removed asbestos from buildings.)
We urged them not only to look at deaths of these products, but also permanent damage such a Timmy's. We discussed Timmy's unique situation. That the place he originated from bragged of having 18 generation of cats that they sold as "drunken kitties" for $100 through the use of these products. They were shocked and offered federal prosecution for that individual if we can ever find where he lives. (We have had an investigator help us track him down and we now have a name and city, but he lives under the radar, so this is very difficult.) One member of the EPA team said, "Who would do such a thing?" The answer is, "a monster." Timmy's history, as we later discovered, is partially to blame for his severe chemical sensitivity and his severe reaction to the spray that was used on him when we rescued him.
The EPA reviewed their mitigation plan for spot-on products, which we were all familiar with. It is available here if you are interested as well as individual accounting of pet incidences from different products and other information on the mitigation and analysis, and the Evaluation of Pet Spot-On Flea & Tick Products Next Steps Webinar with slides and sound.
Currently there is no post-market surveillance of pesticides regulated by the EPA that are already on the market. This means that once on the market, it is not the same method that the FDA uses to regulate drugs. Also, as stated in the mitigation plan, the EPA is looking to other organizations, such as the FDA (who does do post-market surveillance), Health Canada and their other foreign organization, to see how their registration process works and if any improvements can be implemented to the EPA's current process. This is a step in the right direction, however tens of thousands of pesticides will be grandfathered in and it will only apply to new registrations for new chemicals.
Understandably the governmental process is not a swift one and so they need to make changes via new regulations that allow them to control certain aspects of the registration process. We asked what we could do on our part to speed things along for them. They requested that everyone get involved in this process. They want to hear your stories as veterinary workers and pet owners with these products. When there is an open public comment period (such as the 60 days after the webinar was held), they request that you
take a few moments and write your thoughts, experiences and suggestions. We will keep
you apprised of these open public comment periods. This is the period after a regulation is presented where the public opinion can sway the outcome. It is open to professionals, the manufacturers and industry as well as the general public. You can bet that the industry and manufacturers have a vested interest in having all the parties involved on their end comment on these things, so it is up to us, the public who tends to be less organized and aware of such regulations as a whole, to take the time to pipe in with our two cents worth.
Is something going to change overnight? No. But we all felt as though we were able to share your stories with the people at the EPA who matter. Although both Oliver and Timmy were harmed by Sergeants products, we made it clear Sergeants is not the main focus of our interest, but that all such pet products that cause injury, harm and death are. We feel that we had opened lines of communication for the future and that we were able to honor you all and represent you and all those hurt and killed by these products with grace and intelligence. Above all, we came away with a deep sense that if we could do this, with your support we could do anything. This was only our first step in this fight. Considering it was such a large one, we are optimistic about the future.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP: Aundria is compiling a list of all stores that carry these products in all areas, including online retailers and your local stores. Please send her an email at ithinkimoliver@yahoo.com to share those in your area.
To contact me, you can email t.timmykitty@gmail.com. Please share your stories, pictures of your pets (you do not have to show actual damage) and the product that was used.
Become involved in any number of legal and legislative actions & add your thoughts to any open comments at the EPA when regulations are being reviewed or product registration is reviewed.
Share Oliver's story and Timmy's story and videos with as many people as you can. I have created Timmy TV on his website for the videos documenting his journey and the Tribute video. http://tinytimmy.org/timmy-tv/
Invite all your friends on Facebook and ask them to invite all their friends to join the following pages and group:
Oliver D. Cat http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=108672672490236&ref=tsTiny Timmy's Healing Journey http://www.facebook.com/TinyTimmysHealingJourney?ref=tsOfficial List of Toxins Killing Animals http://www.facebook.com/officiallistkasperay
Sign and share the petition to ban harmful over-the-counter pet products http://www.petitiononline.com/4oliver/petition.html
I am working on compiling a list of actions you can become involved in from the comfort of your own home.
Although the website for Timmy and this cause is still not completed, it is my top priority to do so and serve as a resource for all the vast materials we have collected, things you can do to help, educate on alternatives and ofcoursically, keep you posted on what Timmy is doing as his duties as Spokeskitty increase over the coming months. That URL is http://www.tinytimmy.org/
We have gained amazing momentum and there are many people to thank individually. From those who made this trip possible to those who have created wonderful graphics for Timmy's Cafe Press Store and his website to those who changed their profile pictures in support of our United Cause. Aundria has garnered the goodwill of professionals who are donating their own time to make this happen for all of us. When we all started this fight, we knew change would be slow. Now we feel that change is within our grasp in a much shorter time. We can't continue without you. Your names, added to those who support this cause, are our most valuable asset.
If you would like a copy of this note in PDF format to share with others not on Facebook, please let me know and I would be happy to provide it.
With your help...
Not One More Like Him. Ever.
WOW!!! That was a high level meeting you had with OPP, and the issues that were raised during it were outstanding. The preparation that you, Aundria and Tamar did for that meeting, and the sacrifices that the three of you made to get there, was absolutely incredible!
Thank you for everything you and your friends are doing to raise awareness of this problem.
James TerBush
Website Administrator
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Pesticide Exposure Linked to ADHD Risk
Study Shows Prenatal Exposure to Organophosphates Raises Risk of Attention Problems
in Children:
Excerpts:
"Exposure in the womb to pesticides known as organophosphates may increase the chance that children, especially boys, will develop attention problems by age 5, a study shows."
"Moms who had higher concentrations of metabolites or breakdown products of these pesticides in their urine during pregnancy were more likely to have children who showed signs of attention problems by age 5, the study showed. The risk was more pronounced in boys than girls."
"It is worth looking at this more carefully and conducting more research on this topic since
low-level exposure to pesticides and pesticide residues in food is quite common," says study researcher Amy Marks, MPH, who was a research analyst at the University of California at Berkeley's School of Public Health when the new study was conducted.
"Other classes of pesticide compounds should be looked at as well, Marks says in
an email. "Given the impact and prevalence of attention disorders in children (and adults), finding potential opportunities for prevention is important."
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Insecticide to be banned – three decades after tainted melons sickened 2,000 people
Twenty-five years after the worst known outbreak of pesticide poisoning in U.S. history, an agreement is announced that phases out all uses of aldicarb:
Excerpts:
"Manufacturer Bayer CropScience agreed to stop producing aldicarb, a highly toxic insecticide used to kill pests on cotton and several food crops, by 2015 in all world markets. Use on citrus and potatoes will be prohibited after next year."
"Tuesday’s announcement comes 25 years after a highly publicized outbreak of aldicarb poisoning sickened more than 2,000 people who had eaten California watermelons."
“Aldicarb no longer meets our rigorous food safety standards and may pose unacceptable dietary risks, especially to infants and young children,” the EPA said in announcing the agreement.
"For infants, consumption of aldicarb residue – mostly in potatoes, citrus and water – can reach 800 percent higher than the EPA’s level of concern for health effects, while children between the ages of one and five can ingest 300 percent more than the level of concern, according to an Aug. 4 EPA memo."
“After thousands of poisonings, it is mind-boggling that aldicarb is still in use,” said Steve Scholl-Buckwald, managing director of the environmental group Pesticide Action Network North America. “The wheels just grind so, so slowly. It never should have been registered in the first place back in 1970 and by the mid-1980s there was sufficient data to suggest it should have been taken off the market.”
"Richard Jackson, who was a top official in California’s health department at the time of the watermelon poisonings, testified at a U.S. Senate hearing back in 1991 that aldicarb posed a health risk to children and that regulations offered an inadequate margin of safety."
“It is good the revocation is happening; it is a shame it took 20 years,” said Jackson, now chair of environmental health sciences at UCLA.
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(Below is a message that was posted on Hartzvictims.org on 8/22/10)
Praying for my Beloved 13 yr old Yorkie
I love my 13 yr old 6 lb Yorkie Chewch and consider him as much a part of my family as my 5 yr old Son. As a rule I don’t like to use chemicals on any of my pets such as Frontline etc but realize sometimes they may be needed . When my wife brought home the Hartz Ultraguard Flea & Tick drops I figured we would give it a try ; that maybe it wont be as harsh as Frontline and I trusted a company as old as Hartz . Even then because he is a small Yorkie…I used less than the recommended dosege for his size and weight and on account he is an older dog.
Well we are keeping our fingers crossed and praying. A day or so after applying the Hartz Ultraguard Chewch began to vomit and have severe diarreah. He became lethargic and could hardly stand up. We quickly went to the Vet who took blood, gave him subQ liquid injections for dehydration and medicine to control the vomiting and diarrhea. As much as I hated to do it because he was so sick…I gave Chewch a quick Bath too. The next day we got the news……very high Kidney blood numbers- possible Kidney malfunction. The Vet asked if we changed anything or “gave him anything ”. I mentioned we used Hartz brand Flea and Tick drops which his assistant replied “Oh no…not good”…you should use Frontline” but did not elaborate so I just figured they were just trying to sell their product as opposed to the otc product.
It was’nt until a co-worker who is vehemently against the use of all of these Flea /tick pesticides, even many of the controversial shots that are given annually… opened my eyes and said to look into the possibility that it was this Hartz product that caused my Yorkies illness. He said I should check if other pet owners have had similar incidents with Hartz too.
After reading all of the horrible stories here it didnt take long for me to put the puzzle together noting the similarities of Chewchs symptoms to many of the Victims here. Ok so can I prove that Hartz UltraGuard did this to Chewch…maybe not. All I know are the above facts as well as the many similar stories and incidents here which strongly point to the possibility that Hartz Ultraguard nearly killed my Yorkie. I can only find comfort in saying “nearly killed” Chewch because he has slowly improved over the past few days but may not be out of the woods yet. You can bet that Hartz will be getting a vehement phone call and a letter from me blasting them for their use of this Terrible poison. What makes this even mor despicable is …Hartz…a long standing company who I thought was in the business of bettering the health of Pets is putting out a product that they market as a remedy which clearly should be removed but have failed to do so for whatever reason. I will be demanding that I be given a case number and be either wholly or partially compensated for the nearly $1,000 I had to pay out in Vet bills . I unfortunately will join the Alumni of other Pet Owners who have been Victimized by a clearly DANGEROUS Product. Please pray for my Yorkie Chewch. I will pray for all your Pets. Pass this on to any of your friends and family who own pets as I have…DO NOT USE HARTZ
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On Monday I lost my dog. She had been a family member for almost 13 years. She was also my best friend. I am without words to explain the depth of the sorrow I feel over losing her and it is to the point that it actually makes me ill if I think about it too much.
My children are devastated and our home is empty. June 19th I took her to the local feed store and they were having a Bio Spot free trial. I decided to give it a try. If I could go back in time and change this decision I would. Worst decision of my entire life. The reps asked me her age and weight and they applied the treatment. 24 hours later she was vomiting and had diarrhea. I looked up side effects of the Bio Spot and was instructed to wash it off immediately. We did. Within a week or two she began to have trouble standing up and laying down. The diarrhea was on and off. Then she started having trouble walking. Then she went deaf. Then she went blind. Then she lost weight. It all snowballed and last week she could hardly stand. She ended up so ill and her liver was beyond repair. I had to make the painful choice to put her down. It was by far the worst moment in my entire life. Prior to Bio Spot my dog was fine. NOTHING wrong with her.
I am not going to ask them to reimburse me for medical expenses. They can kiss my ass.
I am going after them with everything I have until this product is off the shelf. I will not sign a damn thing. I want this garbage gone. I don't want anyone to ever feel the way I feel right
now. I still wake up every morning at 4am to take my dog out to pee. I still forget and go to feed her at 7pm. I cry every day. My heart is broken and it aches from the loss. I would give ANYTHING to have her back. I miss my dog and I want her back damn it.
Celeste 8/22/10
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(Below is email that Claudia sent to Kimberly Nesci, Special Assistant, Registration
Division, EPA on 8/12/10)
Hi Kimberly,
I left you a voice mail this afternoon, but realize I may have missed you for the day. Hopefully we can touch base Thursday. My flight did not get me home before the wee hours of the morning today.
To your email message, I will look up the reference about the fines.
Also, I included Aundria on this string and I am sure she would love to provide you with a copy of the letter from Mr. Owens regarding the statement that permethrin was not in the Sergeant's product applied to Oliver. Thank you for verifying, officially, that it does indeed include permethrin.
As a further note, upon arriving home, I had the gut wrenching experience of receiving an email from one of Timmy's supporters. She had sprayed a home/carpet spray containing permethrin and other pyrethroids.
Within 24 hours her cat was having seizures and what appears to be a classic reaction. I asked her to contact Sergeant's as well as the reporting number for the EPA. She said she called Sergeant's already and got a "typical response" which is likely that it could not possibly have been their product causing this. That seems to be somehow standard from many who call the manufacturers. I wanted to be sure it was reported to you. It's a relatively new product that also claims to "eliminate odor" and stays in the home for 210 days according the description. This long term in-home exposure has me very concerned for human and animal health.
I will forward the email to you.
Thanks much for your speedy response and sorry I missed your first call due to travel.
Yours,
Claudia
(Below is email that Kimberly Nesci at the EPA sent to Claudia on 8/16/10)
Hi Claudia,
Thank you for your email; I was out of the office on Friday but am back in today. I'm very sorry to hear of your supporter's experience and I'll make sure that the incident gets to the correct person. Was she able to provide Sergeant's with an EPA Registration Number, or did Sergeant's not request this? We're discussing internally the permethrin situation.
With regards to Aundria's letter from Mr. Owens, she did send me a copy, which was very helpful. Apparently there are two different products with the "Sergeant's Flea and Tick Powder" name, one of which contains permethrin and the other does not. We'll send some follow-up information to Aundria on that shortly. I appreciate you relaying the message to her.
And finally, my last question had to do with reporting information/fines for under-reporting that you mentioned from our web page. I was unable to find this so I was hoping you could point me in the right direction. I apologize for this; I must simply be too close to the web page at
this point.
Best regards,
Kimberly
Kimberly Nesci, Special Assistant
Registration Division (Mail Code: 7505P)
Office of Pesticide Programs
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(703) 308-8059
(Below is email that Claudia sent to Kimberly Nesci at the EPA on 8/20/10)
Hi Kimberly,
I apologize it has taken me so long to get this information to you regarding the under-reporting and non-reporting issue that was brought up the meeting we had with you. I hope this is helpful. I likely have other "official" references as well, and I will keep looking for them.
Based on these two EPA reports as well as the Health Canada report, it appears that the experience of the woman I just forwarded to you is not a singularity. This is commonplace
and I hear about it over and over. When someone calls the manufacturer, they are often disconnected (sometimes multiple times) and details are not taken that ought to be, such as the EPA registration numbers and/or lot numbers. As was the case with the woman who used the new "deodorizer" and flea product by Sergeant's, her case was immediately dismissed because only one cat of several treated had an adverse reaction. Due to the line of questioning of the Sergeant's representative, if you recall she was told it was likely plants, though the symptoms started only after this carpet treatment (which contains permethrin)
was used. Does the EPA have any system in place to monitor these hot lines for how their calls are handled?
I attached an EPA overview of pet pesticide products, which was written in 1996 (file 004003-032.pdf)
Excerpt (p.12):
"The [Hartz] company was fined $45,000 for failure to report the complaints to the EPA."
Again in 2007, the EPA published a report titled, "OPP Report on Incident Information: The Baseline", which indicated severe limitations in OPP's incident data collection system, including under-reporting, lack of resources, and data lacking in sufficient detail. Here is the report:
Here is a summary of Health Canada's evaluation of pet spot-on products (Health Canada collaborated with the EPA on its evaluation):
Excerpts:
"Key limitations were identified during this analysis. They included the following:"
"questionable quality of the data reported in incidents"
"under-reporting of incidents by the registrants."
Thanks again for your time and looking into this matter. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Yours,
Claudia
(Below is email that Kimberly Nesci at the EPA sent to Claudia on 8/23/10)
Dear Claudia,
Thank you for this email, too. The Agency shares your concerns about the quality of the incident information we receive. As you know, accurate information is critical so that the Agency can use it to identify problems and make sound regulatory decisions.
Federal Law requires registrants of pesticides to inform EPA about harmful effects of their products. Failures to report information, or delays in reporting, will be regarded by EPA as violations of FIFRA section 6(a)(2), actionable under FIFRA sections 12 (a)(2)(B)(ii) and 12(a)(2)(N). This means that if registrants fail to report or if they do not report within the required time period, they may be subject to civil or criminal penalties. That may have been the situation in the Hartz case you mention.
We do not currently have plans to monitor registrants' hotlines, but we are concerned about obtaining accurate, reliable adverse event information. For the spot-on products, we are asking registrants to change their labels to provide a specific phone number to call if a pet is experiencing an adverse event. Additional information will be available on our web page on product-specific mitigation efforts in a couple of weeks. Further, we are in the process of revision the 6 (a)(2) reporting regulations to require the submission of additional information for pet products. This rulemaking effort requires a public process, so we can send you a link to the proposed rule that will be issued for public comment when it is available. We will stay in touch about other pet efforts as well. We have set up an internal meeting to discuss permethrin in all pet products (spot-ons, sprays, and powders) in early September.
Thank you again for your email and your concern.
Best regards,
Kimberly
(Below is email that Claudia sent to Kimberly Nesci at the EPA on 8/23/10)
Hi Kimberly,
Thank you so much for taking some steps towards evaluating the permethrin in
products, particularly in cat products. Possibly contacting TEDEX - The
Endocrine Disruptor Exchange - who did a thorough review of numerous tests
on permethrin, might be of help to you. Here is the link and they also have
data available in spread sheet format.
As we discussed in our meeting, endocrine disruptors are unique in that they
are just as potent at very small doses, even when there is no outward signs
of toxicosis.
The reporting situation is a huge concern to us. Over and over we hear that
people are NOT asked for the EPA registration numbers because the operator
on the phone has already "ruled out" their product. You may also wish to
contact James TerBush, who I know you are familiar with. He runs
biospotvictims.org and over and over has also heard the stories of
difficulties reporting incidences to manufacturers. Mr. TerBush has been
running his site for a long time and has been able to amass much information
from those people who have had adverse reactions in their pets. As Aundria
showed you in our meeting, after speaking numerous times with Sergeant's,
she finally got a form sent out to her in the mail that asked for extensive
data.
The reporting issue is a large portion (other than the personal tragedies)
that people in the general public are angry and feel as though their pets
are seen as expendable. They feel angry at the manufacturers for continuing
to make these products and not giving adequate warning of the possible
issues. They are confused as to why the EPA, who up to that point, believed
had their best interests at heart, continues to allow a product with epidemic
numbers. Then when they go to report, they are told it is all their fault,
not the fault of the product or any number of other reasons not to report.
They feel as though this very real experience has been completely
disregarded, and so the anger and frustration continues. This seems to be
"standard operating procedure" from most, if not all, of these companies.
One very concerning issue also is the sweetheart deal that Hartz has with
the ASPCA poison control line. As you know, the ASPCA call center is
considered one of the best in the country. As you know, the line charges a
hefty fee for their services. However, if a consumer calls about a Hartz
product, that fee is waived and the call is funnelled directly to Hartz.
This allows them to filter information in a way that other manufacturers are
not able to do. Dr. Steven Hansen, who ran the PCC for the ASPCA and also
recieved not one, but two "Vet of the Year" awards sponsored by Hartz, has
recently been promoted to COO of ASPCA. He was the one who brokered this
sweetheart deal on the reporting line, and as I am sure you are aware claims
that most of their calls are from misuse. This does not represent the actual
numbers, which state that 12% of incidences correspond to misuse. He has
also been quoted as saying they have many more calls now then they used to,
yet fewer reports.
Dr. Jill A Richardson worked for both Hartz and the ASPCA PCC at the same
time. She was the Associate Director, Consumer Relations & Technical
Services of the Hartz Mountain Corporation.
These things all allow Hartz special considerations and are a conflict of
interest for pet owners everywhere. Does the EPA have any ability to address
this?
The EPA at our meeting commented that notes on our meeting would be
available. Have they been drafted yet? If so, would it be possible for us to
get a copy?
Thank you so much for all your time and insight. I also appreciate the fact
that you will be discussing the permethrin issue in more detail. Who will be
attending that meeting? And will we be able to get a copy of the notes of
the meeting?
Yours,
Claudia
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Ten Reasons Why I Don't Like the ASPCA
The ASPCA should be ashamed of themselves when it comes to the welfare of
animals. Although some of their programs do good in the community, these are
usually ones that their branches take on. When you donate to the ASPCA from
the "hot line" number on their commercials featuring Sarah McLaughlin that
show pitiful cases of animal abuse and neglect, this money is spent
primarily on their corporate offices and very little is seen by their local
branches. All local branches must do their own fundraising for the lions
share of their operating budget. Yet, they pledged a whopping $5.2 million
to open NEW spay/neuter clinics across the country, instead of supporting
those already under the ASPCA.
Yeah, we fell for the sad commercial too. Now we are diverting the monthly
"membership" from the ASPCA to MEOW CAT RESCUE, an organization in
Washington State that helps cats (and dogs through their dog division) find
homes. They often take on animals who have extra issues like FeLV or CH.
They are solely funded by donations and receive no grant money.
1. The ASPCA Toxicology Pet Poison Control Center is one of the largest
in the nation. They charge a hefty $65 for their services. Despite other
similar agencies, like the Humane Society, stating that over-the-counter
flea & tick products are harmful, the ASPCA maintains that although their
call volume has increased tremendously, their reports have not. The ASPCA
official blame goes, again, to pet owners for misusing, titrating doses from
large animals to smaller ones and applying dog products to cats. According
the EPA's recent findings, this accounts only for 12% of incidences of
adverse reactions. However, their last Press Release on this from March 2010
shows support for the mitigation plan of spot-on products. They focus on
re-labeling efforts, again because they hold that owners have mis-applied
the product, though the numbers don't add up to the empirical data.
Re-labeling efforts have not worked in the past and don't make the product
any safer. http://www.aspca.org/pressroom/press-releases/032310-1.html
As a side note, manufacturers (also known as Registrants) sigh a huge sigh
of relief. They want the EPA to chase tail for years on re-labeling efforts
instead of pulling or restricting the use of these products on market.
2. Dr. Steven Hansen, who was the VP of the ASPCA's Poison Control
Center, then promoted to Senior Vice President of Animal Health Services, a
division "dedicated to providing pet health and wellness information to pet
owners", came to the ASPCA from Wellmark. Wellmark owns many companies that
make over-the-counter flea & tick products that have a high reporting of
harm, such as Zodiac. He was was the Director of Veterinary Research and
Support for Bensenville, IL-based Wellmark International (Sandoz Agro Animal
Health Division). - That should be interpreted as instrumental in getting
and keeping bad flea & tick products into the open market.
3. Dr. Steven Hansen also received the Vet of the Year award twice, lastly
in 2007, sponsored by Hartz.
4. Dr. Steven Hansen worked a sweetheart deal with Hartz. All calls that
come into the PCC regarding Hartz products goes directly to Hartz and the
$65 dollar fee is waived. Hartz, in return, gets to skew it's reporting
information by filtering all complaints first. No other company has such a
deal with the ASPCA.
5. Dr. Steven Hansen was promoted to ASPCA's COO on July 21, 2010. I see
many more dubious brokered deals in their future.
6. Dr. Steven Hansen brokered a sponsorship deal with IAMS for the ASPCA.
In return, he "reviewed" the care of the animals in one facility in the face
of an outcry of foul and inhumane treatment of test animals. IAMS is well
known for it's horrific experimentation practices, despite there being other
models available to gather information. One example is an experiment to see
how much sawdust an animal could take in before dying. You make PET FOOD.
7. He is not the only conflict of interest story at the ASPCA. Dr. Jill
A. Richardson also worked for the ASPCA PCC while working for Hartz Mountain
Corporation. Dr. Jill Richardson was the Associate Director, Consumer
Relations & Technical Services of Hartz.
8. In addition to NOT including other flea & tick manufacturers, they
accepted a large volume of in-kind donations and corporate sponsorship from
Hartz Mountain. http://www.onlinedigitalpubs.com/publication/?i=43280 Yet
they fail to disclose all their corporate sponsors on their website as most
charitable organization of any size do. They also fail to disclose that
their major food sponsor is IAMS.
9. The ASPCA recently started a new partnership with WalMart to sell
ASPCA licensed carriers and pet products in their stores. WalMart is a major
player in selling and promoting flea & tick products with the highest
incidences of adverse reactions. The flea spray that caused Timmy's
neurological harm was "only $2 at WalMart". The flea powder that kill Oliver
was also purchased at WalMart. WalMart also sells "packages" for a bulk
price of flea & tick products to promote over use of these harmful
chemicals. They may contain a collar, spray, fogger and lawn treatments all
for one price. One of the largest arguments a manufacturer makes is that if
other treatments are used, it could be a contributing factor. Many of these
products state clearly NOT to use them in conjunction with other treatments.
All the "bulk packaged" products are made by Hartz.
10. According the ASPCA financial statement for 2008 their mission
statement is "to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to
animals throughout the United States." They spent over $74 million on their
different programs, including the largest amount to communications of $23.1
million. Anti-cruelty programs came in second to last of spending at $8
million. Apparently they launched 5,227 animal cruelty investigations and
only made 78 arrests relating to animal cruelty. Meanwhile, in 2007, Edwin
J. Sayres, the President of the ASPCA earned $490,315. If you only take the
excess of his salary over $400,000 and applied it to spay/neuter programs
and rescues at $50 allocated for spay/neuter and vaccines, that would help
1,806 animals. The ASPCA brought in a total of $105.2 million in income. I
am curious as to where the other $31.1 million went to? They claim 2% or
$1.7 million goes to administrative expenses and that they had 525 paid
employees. Apparently in 2008, they also state they "joint costs" for
fundraising of $28 million, with only $25,706 going to administrative costs
and they received nearly $1.8 million in in-kind donations, including media
resources and another $25,000 in pet food.
Do not be fooled. If you think your donation is going to help stop animal
cruelty, you are wrong. Only a small portion does. If you think you are
helping your local ASPCA with your donation to the larger ASPCA, only a tiny
portion goes to help them. Never think that a non-profit status means NO
PROFIT. Your donation would be better served with a small local rescue or
your local branch of the Humane Society.
Claudia 8/24/10
***************************************************************************************
(Below is email that I sent to Kimberly Nesci at the EPA on 8/24/10)
Hi Kimberly,
I just became aware that Walmart is bundling several Hartz pesticide products in one package that it describes as "complete care for home and dogs". Here is the link for it:
As you are probably aware, these products state that they should not be used in conjunction with other pesticide products. Many people may not be aware that ALL of the products in the above package are considered pesticide products!
Does federal law allow retailers to bundle pesticide products and sell them as a complete system? Does federal law allow manufacturers to encourage retailers to sell their pesticide products as a complete system? Has the EPA conducted a risk assessment to determine if all of the above products can be used simultaneously without unreasonable harm to humans (especially children) and pets? If someone purchases the bundled products and an adverse incident occurs, which EPA Registration numbers should be reported? Would the incident
be classified as misuse?
If the above bundled product is allowed by federal law, please contact Walmart and urge them to voluntarily remove this bundled product, which is clearly harmful to humans and pets, from their shelves.
Thank you for your consideration.
Best regards,
James TerBush
Website Administrator
***************************************************************************************
Vectra application cost me $300.00!
I have always used Frontline for over 10 years, went to the vet to get it and they were out so they sold me Vectra. After application on my youngest shephard mix of 2 years old he became irritable. Jumpy if someone came near him way out of character for him. Within the hour he was very restless, trying to rub on anything to get it off. By the next day he was beyond miserable! I have washed him 6 times with dawn soap and now he has a skin infection. After taking him to the vet and they shaved the area it looks like a chemical burn, I was so upset! Ive included a picture of him for people to see.
I have always been very hesitant about applying any product to their skin that I wouldn't put on mine. However, being the responsible dog owner that I am I reluctantly do. After reading the site and seeing all the other issues, I realize my error in judgement to trust my Vet and do everything he says. He's a firm believer in Frontline/Vectra and Heartguard. I do however have an official report from my vet that this is what caused his issues and it will be submitted to Vectra. I'm relieved to have them on board in this when I read so many Vets are not.
So now I have to bathe him 3 times a day with a $35.00 shampoo with oral antibotics and steroids. All this to prevent flea's........
Shelly 8/25/10
Northern Indiana
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DISCLAIMER: Below are messages that I have received from others whose dogs and cats experienced adverse reactions after using flea control products. I have no way of knowing if the information in these messages is factual, or if the products they used were the actual cause of the adverse reactions.
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