Decades ago, a chemist named Paul Krebaum (may his name be honored forever) cracked the chemical code of the stinky, sulfur-containing substances called “thiols” that are in the musk that skunks spray to defend themselves. According to an article first published in the Chicago Tribune in November 1994, Krebaum, who worked for a company called Molex Inc in Lisle, Illinois, wasn’t trying to solve the skunk-spray problem at the time. He was looking for a substance that could neutralize the smell of other thiols, which are also present in decomposing flesh and fecal matter. In an effort to neutralize foul-smelling thiols in his lab, Krebaum harnessed the power of oxidation, formulating a solution that changes the odorous thiols into odorless acids. He had been using the formula in his lab, but he shared the recipe with a workplace friend who had been complaining about the smell of his cat, who had been skunked. Soon, other scientists heard about the formula and it went viral!

The formula:

1 quart of 3% hydrogen peroxide
¼ cup of baking soda
1-2 teaspoons of dish soap

Mix together in a bucket or large bowl and use immediately.

So simple and inexpensive! And so incredibly effective! But there are some tricks and cautions about how to use it on a “skunked” dog:

1. You must not wash the dog with water before using the formula. Water will start to chemically alter the thiols and make their interaction with the “magic” formula slightly less effective.
2. You have to use a fresh, unopened bottle of hydrogen peroxide. Using peroxide from a bottle that has been opened and sitting around will be less effective. (Note: You can’t mix this in advance and store it; if you try, you may end up with a huge mess in your under-sink cupboard or wherever you thought you could store it. The combination of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide off-gasses oxygen and can explode whatever container you try to keep it in.)
3. If your dog gets skunked on a warm summer day, you are in luck! It’s easiest to keep the dog outdoors while you assemble the ingredients, a bucket, sponge, and a dog shampoo and towels to finish the job. But skunks are nocturnal, and are most active in spring and fall, so almost all of my dogs’ skunk encounters have happened late at night when it’s cold. A kind person would bring them in the house and straight to the bathroom for the de-skunking and post-formula bath—but just walking (or carrying) your dog to the bathroom is going to leave a strong skunk smell in the air of your house that the formula can’t remove! Poor Boone got a cold-hose bath outside. We were both shivering like mad by the time it was done.
4. Mix the formula in a clean bucket and use a sponge or washcloth to thoroughly wet your dog from nose to tail with the solution. I recommend starting at the tail end of the dog and working your way forward, because you have to be extremely careful around his eyes, nose, and mouth and will want to rinse the formulas off these areas quickly (and, remember, water will weaken the effectiveness of the formula). The formula really stings if it gets in the dog’s eyes, nose, and mouth (or any cuts you or the dog have have), so you have to wipe it on the dog’s face carefully.
5. You will notice that the skunk smell is dramatically reduced almost immediately on contact with the formula—but, with the exception of the dog’s face, let it remain in contact with the dog’s coat for at least a minute or two before rinsing the dog thoroughly with water. Knowing it can sting their lips and mouth, and because you cannot prevent them from licking their lips when you are sponging something wet onto to their face, I tend to take pity and rinse the dog’s face fairly quickly. (The skunk smell will disappear immediately, but if you don’t let the formula stay on the dog for at least a minute, it may become evident again any time the dog gets wet in the next few weeks. It won’t be as strong, but it will be apparent!) Rinse them thoroughly!
6. Follow with a quick bath with whatever soothing, good-smelling dog shampoo you have on hand and rinse them well. It’s not necessary, but they are all wet already and the nice smell of the shampoo will be a balm for your irritated nostrils.

There are a number of commercial formulas that claim to be effective for removing odors (including skunk) from your dog, but honestly, I haven’t tried any of them for skunks, because why would I? This formula works great! You just have to make sure you have the peroxide on hand at all times, or you will be driving around town in the wee hours of the night or morning, looking for an open supermarket or pharmacy where you can buy quarts of peroxide, all the while your dog is stinking up whatever location you stashed him in while you went out. I’ve been there! And now I buy two new quarts on the day after whatever skunk incident we most recently suffered ( I double the recipe for washing either of my large dogs.)

For tips on reducing the skunk smell on your clothing, shoes, towels, deck or bathroom, and so on, see this document, prepared by the University of Nebraska, Lincoln Extension, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

The post The “Magic” Skunk Formula is Science, Not Magic… appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

This commitment was acknowledged last month by an organization called Compassion in World Farming with a “Better Chicken Award,” given in recognition of the company’s as the first commercially prepared food and second overall company in the world* to fully implement the Compassion in World Farming’s “Better Chicken Commitment (BCC).” This standard does more than just requiring chicken farmers to provide the potential for birds to go outdoors (making them “free-range” or “cage-free”); it more fully encompasses the environment the birds live in. This includes the density of the birds in their living area, referred to as “stocking space,” giving them more room to flap their wings and walk comfortably. The BCC calls for an enriched environment, with more light provided than standard “growing barns” provide (conventional factory farms keep the light low, to keep overcrowded birds calm), clean and dry substrate underfoot, as well as giving them roosts and elevated platforms to sleep on. The BCC also addresses the genetics of the chickens—promoting breeds that don’t grow so quickly that they are unable to stand when they reach slaughter weight—and humane slaughter methods.

Having grown up in Petaluma, California, once the “egg capital of the world” (and still home to many chicken and egg producers when I lived there), I have seen factory chicken farms. One of my best friends in high school lived in a rental house that was situated on the property of one of these farms, and not only was the smell and noise of the highly concentrated chickens evidence of the suffering we couldn’t see going on inside the barns, we regularly witnessed farm workers removing the birds that died in the barns before they were mature enough to harvest; their carcasses were horrible to behold, as sick and dying chickens often get attacked and maimed by their peers. The ones that lived didn’t look much better! We’d see them only when they were loaded into trucks (usually at dusk or dawn, when the low light kept them calm), but even these “healthy” birds looked awful, only half-feathered and with skin raw from ammonia burns—a side effect of living their entire but short lives in their own mess.

Anyway, I applaud any efforts made by food producers to buy and use humanely raised meat sources in their products—and wholeheartedly admire companies like Evermore. It’s awesome that they have managed to make a high-quality food for dogs at a price that is not out of line with their competitors, using ingredients that are demonstrably far better than just “cage-free.”

*By the way, Campfire Treats, located in a town not far from me, is the first company in the world to meet all the standards of the BCC. I’ll be checking out their dog treats soon!

Do humane certifications or humane claims influence your buying decisions? Please tell us why or why not!

The post Do Humane Certifications Influence Your Dog Food Buying Decisions? appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Dog costumes

Many of us are amused by seeing a dog in a cute costume—and some dogs honestly love the extra attention they receive in a Halloween outfit. But if your dog gets growly or glum in his costume, take it off! Don’t force costumes on dogs ever! It’s not worth getting someone bitten over!

Human costumes

As funny as you might think it would be to film your dog’s reaction to you or your kid fully disguised in an elaborate costume, please don’t! Many dogs are terrified by Halloween costumes, and it’s just as likely that they will run away from you in fear as growl and perhaps even attack the scary intruder. If possible, let your dog see you getting dressed up and/or made up. Talk to them so they are sure to look at your face and see that it’s still you. Save putting on any masks for when you’ve left the house!

Similarly, don’t expect your dog to be able to happily greet trick-or-treaters in full costumes. If she rolls with all the aliens, witches, ghosts and more, great. But if she’s even the slightest bit apprehensive, follow the tips in the next section to keep her (and the trick-or-treaters) safe and intact!

Trick or treat!

• Keep your dog confined. If you are going to be providing treats for trick-or-treaters, set up an “air lock” around your front door with an exercise pen, so your dog can’t approach (much less run out of) the front door when it’s open. Better yet, confine him to a part of the house where he can’t access the door area at all. If you have baby gates set up so that he can see what’s happening at the door, but can’t come to the door, that may be ideal.
• Alternatively, consider setting up a trick-or-treating station in front of your home, on the porch or in the driveway. Grab some chairs and blankets and the candy bowl and sit outside for the peak of trick-or-treating traffic. That moves the noise and hubbub farther from the house, and eliminates the door opening and closing multiple times.
• Of course, turning the lights off and NOT answering the door is a good option, too!
• Given that there may be an unusual amount of traffic, noise, and strangers in your neighborhood, make sure your dog is wearing a collar with current identification. It’s always a good time to check the registration of your dog’s microchip, too, to make sure that the registry has your current contact information.

Above all: Keep candy out of reach!

Secure all candy—especially chocolates—well out of reach of your dog! Go beyond the middle of the dining room table or counter; think top-of-the-refrigerator or a high cabinet. Make sure your kids secure their candy stashes in a safe location, too. Hiding a bag of candy under their bed will not prevent your dog from finding and eating it, wrappers and all. Help your kids determine a dog-proof hiding spot for their sweet treasure.

Happy Halloween!

The post Have a Happy (and Safe) Halloween with Your Dog appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

A 7-month-old Lab/German Shepherd-mix got adopted by a woman who quickly became overwhelmed by the dog’s over-exuberant, physical interaction. She was jumping up, mouthing, and nipping. If the woman sat down, the dog would leap into her lap and start rough, physical play. And the dog was going to the bathroom all over the house! The adopter called the shelter, asking for a referral to a trainer, and they gave her my number. When she called me, sobbing, she admitted that she was thinking of bringing the dog back to the shelter, because she was just too much! But at the same time, the woman already loved the dog and didn’t want her to be at risk of euthanasia if she was returned!

I visited the woman in her home to assess the dog and the situation. Yes, the dog jumps and is mouthy, but she stopped these rude behaviors when I kept turning my back to her. The dog is not going to be huge and she’s smart; I had her offering sit and down and calmly accepting petting (with all four feet on the floor) within just a few minutes. The woman was equipped with a large crate (though she hadn’t been able to get the dog to quiet down in there, so she gave up on crating her). She had a large yard (though the fence needs some work). And she works a split shift, so she could actually come home in the middle of her work day to let the dog out of a crate and take her for a walk (if she could get her into the crate and get her to tolerate the crate, and work on her leash manners).

It wasn’t hopeless. But the dog, who had been in the shelter for four months, needs to learn a ton before she’s going to be much fun to live with. Because I think it’s possible for the dog and woman to work things out, and because I don’t want to see this dog go back to the shelter (where her prospects at this awkward age in a shelter crowded with younger, cuter puppies are not good), and because the woman can’t possibly afford all the training this youngster needs to be bearable to live with ASAP, I offered to foster her for a couple weeks. This would give the woman time to work on her fence and think about whether she’s really up for the challenge, and give the dog some training and manners so she’d be more adoptable if the woman does decide to return her to the shelter. She readily agreed.

Over the past decade or so, I’ve mostly fostered puppies who were less than 8 weeks old, keeping them until they were old enough to have spay/neuter surgery and get adopted. But when I first started fostering for my local shelter, I used to take on one ignorant teenaged dog after another, and teach them a few basic cues (sit, down, wait, and come), how to politely greet other dogs and humans, and to follow house rules (No helping yourself to human belongings! No counter-surfing! No going potty in the house!), until they could be presented to potential adopters as reasonably civilized young dogs. It’s not the most enjoyable type of fostering—but it’s demonstrably more critically needed.

When we raise puppies in our homes, they learn and absorb so much more than we think they do. We are aware that we are educating them when we teach them sit and down and come and when we carefully introduce them to leashes and collars and harnesses. But we don’t really think about the education that they are also receiving about not helping themselves to food off the counter, about not walking exactly in front of humans, that the sofa is best approached from the front (not over the back), that the TV is not a threat (no matter how loud it is or what scary sounds come from it), that one should not jump into humans’ faces when they are petting you (or when they are just bending over to put their shoes on), and a million other things. My foster puppies get adopted knowing all those things without my actively teaching them any of it.

In contrast, though, when a puppy gets raised in the shelter, and lingers in the kennel wards well into adolescence—like far too many dogs in crowded shelters today—their incorporation into a human home (if they are lucky enough, lacking manners, to appeal to an adopter) rarely goes smoothly. They are larger, stronger, and more independent than tiny puppies, and at the developmental stage when they have interests and a will of their own. No longer are they happy to toddle along and follow their humans everywhere; adolescent dogs are quick to judge a situation as unsatisfying or boring and pursue something more to their own tastes. Sleep in the closed-off kitchen? Why, when you are strong enough to push that gate over? Settle for the food they served you hours ago? Why, when you can easily reach all the food on the counter, in the breadbox, in the garbage can, and the cat’s litter box? Speaking of cats, is there anything more fun than chasing them through the house?

As I’ve been living with this very cute, sweet, friendly 7-month-old foster dog, I find myself grumbling to myself, calling her names (in my head, not out loud). “Oh, you idiot!” I think to myself when she wraps her leash around her legs and falls to the ground in front of me as I’m carrying things to the car, or steps into the water bowl on the kitchen floor, making it flip over and flood the room, or tries to run out the front door as it’s swinging closed and gets momentarily squashed, or stretches and falls off the couch, knocking into a side table and spilling the drink that was on it, or leaping into the air barking wildly because of the song that the clothes dryer made at the end of its cycle. She’s a dope! Only, not really! It’s not her fault that she didn’t have the opportunity to learn about doors and leashes and water bowls when she was a little puppy, and the consequences were tiny inconveniences. Now she’s big and rough and when she spontaneously—playfully!—paws at you and accidentally gets you in the face, it hurts!

No wonder that so many newly adopted adolescent dogs get returned to the shelter, many within a single day! I’m a very experienced dog handler, and I love dogs, but I can’t say I love this experience—and if I find it annoying at times, I can only imagine how daunting a relatively inexperienced adopter finds it.

But she’s also smart, learning fast, cute, and funny. She loves fetch, loves to play tug, is very careful with her mouth, loves being snuggled, and has been so good at listening to my recall cues and following along with my dogs on walks in our off-leash wildlife area, that I let her off leash on the very first walk she joined us for. She’s going to be a joy—with a couple more weeks of habituating to a human home.

So, even though I’m not making it sound like much fun, I have to recommend the experience. I know that the things this dog is learning are going to make the difference between getting adopted and having a good life, or leaving the shelter, lifeless, out the back door. And having been called and asked for help, I can’t turn my back on a dog who has the potential to be a very good one.

Will you answer the call for help fostering a needy dog at your local shelter?

The post Help Needed (at Your Local Shelter) appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

I’m pretty sure she specified parvovirus to distinguish this vaccination from the only legally mandated vaccine (rabies) and because parvo is a ubiquitous and serious disease, and its vaccination is considered a “core” vaccine—recommended for all dogs, irrespective of lifestyle, unless there is a specific medical reason not to vaccinate.

I’m also sure that she specified vaccines for adult dogs because while there are a variety of puppy vaccination schedules that are more appropriate for puppies in different situations—from a breeding farm similar to a quarantine facility, to a backyard-breeder, to a shelter or rescue—there shouldn’t be any debate whatsoever about the fact that all puppies should receive their core vaccines (distemper, adenovirus, and parvovirus, and perhaps also including parainfluenza). The guidelines published by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), which are followed by most veterinarians, recommends that puppies who are younger than 16 weeks old at the time of their first vaccination receive three doses of a combination shot containing the core vaccines between the ages of 6 and 16 weeks, with doses spaced two to four weeks apart. If the puppy is older than 16 weeks old at the time of his first vaccination, AAHA recommends that two combination core vaccinations, given two to four weeks apart.

AAHA recommends that adult dogs who have received those core puppy shots be revaccinated a year after the last puppy vaccinations, and every three years thereafter. This is a somewhat reduced schedule from decades ago, when most veterinarians would recommend giving all the core vaccines to every adult dog annually (and a few old-timers still do!).

Most people go along with their veterinarians’ recommendations, and most veterinarians follow the AAHA guidelines—but some owners do depart from these guidelines, which is what my trainer friend was trying to investigate.

She has not yet tabulated the results from her posts, but she invited people to comment with details about their vaccination protocols for their dogs and all I can say is, WOW! There is a ton of variation in how people deal with vaccination decisions.

Many dog owners, including myself, are concerned about the potential for adverse health effects from overvaccinating, and we seek to reduce the number of unnecessary vaccinations our dogs receive. In my view, the only responsible way to skip recommended vaccinations is to get a vaccine titer test, which can tell you if the dog has circulating antibodies for the diseases in question. If the test results indicate that the dog does possess circulating antibodies for the diseases tested for, the odds are very good that a “booster” vaccination is not needed.

When I adopted Otto in 2008, he had received 4 combination vaccinations, starting at an estimated 4 to 5 months old, and was about 7 months old. He proved to have moderate seasonal allergies, which was one of the reasons I decided to use titer tests, which I had been reading about (and writing about), to monitor his antibody levels before I made any core-vaccination decisions. (Some veterinarians speculate that dogs who have allergies are more prone to developing adverse reactions to vaccinations.)

I had parvo and distemper antibody titer tests performed for Otto in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2019, and every time, the results showed positive antibody titers, which is indicative of protection from those diseases—which I used as a justification to decline to vaccinate him for those core diseases. (He was never vaccinated for distemper and parvo after his youth in the shelter in 2008, and lived to nearly 16 years old.) He did receive the core rabies vaccinations that are required by law until his very last years (when I declined even those).

I was fortunate in not having to ever board Otto—many boarding facilities refuse service unless a dog’s vaccines are current within three years—and I didn’t compete with him in any events where vaccines would have been required. However, every time we saw a new veterinarian, I would have to have a discussion with them about why I wasn’t giving him those core vaccines, and showing them all of his titer tests (or agreeing to a new test). Although this was somewhat costly, I felt like I was doing my part to educate his veterinarians about the value of antibody titer tests and why continually revaccinating healthy adult dogs is perhaps not necessary.

I didn’t participate in my trainer friend’s poll or leave a comment, though I will be interested to see the results. I am curious, though, if WDJ’s readers will mirror her followers’ results, or if they would vary. If you’re read this far, please comment!

How often do you vaccinate your adult dog for parvovirus? (Let’s not talk about puppies, rabies, or non-core vaccines in this discussion.)

The post How often do you vaccinate for parvo? appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Keeping my book collection to only three tall shelves has taken ongoing effort. At least once a year, I’ve had to give the shelves a critical pruning, throwing away titles that contained either incomplete or poor information and donating to my local library books that were of good quality, but not something that I planned to refer to again and again.

The books that contain incontrovertibly useful, accurate information—the ones that I still consult when in doubt about someone’s facts, or to check their spelling or description of a medical condition—I have boxed up and mailed to WDJ’s new Executive Editor, Kate O’Connor. With a receipt from the United States Postal Service in hand, I can tell you that I have shipped 96 pounds of books to Kate. Some are veterinary school textbooks—massive, weighty tomes that we use to fact-check articles. Some are expert compilations of information on using herbs, nutritional supplements, massage, acupressure, and other alternative or complementary healthcare methods. All of the books written by Pat Miller, WDJ’s guiding light on training and behavior for many years—Kate can use these to make sure WDJ’s training advice is consistent and clear.

There were many, many books that contain great information on specific topics: caring for senior dogs, managing kids and dogs, doing agility with dogs, teaching tricks to dogs, puppy training, dealing with housetraining problems, and so on—way too many books to send to Kate, but also, probably far too many to donate to my local library. Happily, my friend Sarah Richardson, owner of The Canine Connection (a boarding, daycare, and training facility in Chico, California), said she would be happy to host a dog-book lending-library at her facility, and so I delivered several boxes of books there. I am thrilled to know that I can visit the books there and even borrow some back if need be.

As much as I want to clear my bookshelves entirely, I kept finding myself holding onto certain books—even ones that I know Kate would find helpful. There are a bunch of books about pet food that I can’t part with yet; I know I will be referring to them for years to come. I also kept books written by people who have either become my friends, or who feel like old friends because of my familiarity of appreciation for their words. And I couldn’t yet part with a small stack of books on canine cancer that I haven’t had time to fully explore yet.

So, beyond just two shelves of the books I’ve kept, now all I have to do is slowly file the rest of the books into my recycling barrel. You see, in addition to all the books I loved and consulted, over the years, I also kept several shelves of really bad books for reference. Do you know how many books of recipes for home-prepared dog diets are out there that fail to provide complete and balanced recipes for dogs? SO MANY BAD RECIPE BOOKS! Many of them provide recipes that lack ingredients that supply critical minerals, some omit discussion of customizing recipes for dogs with health problems, some fail to address the needs of large-breed puppies, and others omit measurements of protein, fat, or calories provided by the recipes they publish.

Hey! We need to publish an updated article about the BEST books on home-prepared diets (was our last article on that topic really in 2011??). I’ll talk to Kate about that.

I also kept bad training books for occasional reference—usually, when I was just trying to track down the source of some garbage advice or theory, such as the idea that owners should eat before their dogs are served, or how pinch collars replicate a mother dog’s grasp on her errant puppies’ scruff.

But honestly, I think the recycling bin is the best spot for the bad books; while they couldn’t cause any trouble on my shelves, I wouldn’t want them to inadvertently fall into the wrong hands.

The post Sorting Through My Books appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

What Is Quality of Life in a Dog?

Veterinarians don’t have crystal balls that say it’s time to let your frail, elderly dog go, but they do have the education and experience to offer advice. Dr. Alice Villalobos, a renowned veterinarian, created a widely accepted way of judging your dog’s qualify of life using the “HHHHHMM Scale.”  The letters stand for Hurt, Hunger, Hydration, Hygiene, Happiness, Mobility, and More good days.

The HHHHHMM scale uses a scoring system to assess the dog. It’s still subjective, but it gives you a score. Some veterinarians advise that you score an ill dog every month, or every few weeks, to watch the dog’s progression. Quality of life is a tough thing to judge, and this scale, with its numerical final score, helps.

Judging Frailty in a Dog

So, what does “frail” really mean? It’s not a measure of age. I believe it’s a subjective measure of thriving. According to the Morris Animal Foundation: “Frailty is a physical state in which health reserves are limited, decreasing response to stress, and increasing death rate.”  In other words, a frail dog’s overall health and mental response to life are worsening. The likelihood of recovery is nonexistent, and the decision about euthanasia is no longer a matter of “should we?” but a decision about when. Pain is most certainly a factor in that decision.

A study funded by the Morris Animal Foundation and published September 24, 2024, in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, offers veterinarians a way to predict mortality within a six-month range using frailty. The North Carolina State University researchers hope to provide a way for veterinarians and dog owners to make decisions about what to do or not do to prolong a dog’s life. “Frailty is a well-defined clinical syndrome in humans caused by accumulation of impairments which result in loss of reserve capacity and increased vulnerability to disability, dependence, and death. Dogs are of particular interest in studies of frailty due to the similarities they share with people in their environment, lifestyles, and age-related diseases,” say the researchers.

They developed a frailty phenotype that is predictive of all-cause short-term mortality regardless of age, sex, and weight. Interestingly, the study found that breed was a significant factor in the analysis, with purebred dogs having 1.85 times higher mortality than mixed breed dogs. It does ask veterinarians to assess the dog’s body and muscle condition, which they routinely do at every veterinary visit.

“The tool—when coupled with simple assessments of body and muscle condition by the veterinarian—can predict the likelihood of short-term (within six months) mortality and provider important data to owners faced with treatment and quality of life decisions for their aging dogs,” says the news release from North Carolina State University.

No Desire to Stay Alive

The timing of this study’s release was tough for me. Some years ago, in the early fall, my frail husband was confined to a nursing facility due to a long illness. We both knew his time was short. We had four dogs, and I had finagled a way so I could bring one dog for a short visit. I expected my husband to choose the puppy we bought before he became ill, as he had never seen her. He didn’t. He asked for Draco, who was battling an inoperable tumor. I told him I would bring Draco on my next visit, hoping the visit would cheer them both up. Unfortunately, he never got to see Draco, as my husband died the next day.

Less than two weeks later, Draco, at age 16, indicated it was time to go. It was agonizing. I believe my husband arrived at the Rainbow Bridge and, after looking around, said, “Draco, come!” It’s comforting to think they are together.

So, while it’s still no crystal ball, frailty matters. Happiness matters. Pain matters. And sometimes, maybe, the timing matters. Meanwhile, this frailty study is another good tool we can use to help make the best decision for our beloved dogs.

The post Assessing Frailty in Dogs appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Salmonella is a nearly ubiquitous bacteria in the animal world. Cattle, chickens, rodents, reptiles, and amphibians commonly carry Salmonella in their intestines and show no signs of illness. According to the Merck Manual, salmonellosis is most prevalent in regions with intensive animal husbandry, where food-source animals live in densely packed spaces where contact with their feces cannot be avoided. More than 2,500 groups (called serotypes) of Salmonella have been identified, including around 100 that cause illness (called salmonellosis) in humans.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), humans commonly get infected with Salmonella by eating contaminated food, such as raw or undercooked meat and poultry products, raw or undercooked eggs or egg products, raw or unpasteurized milk and dairy products, and raw fruits and vegetables. Poultry is among the leading sources of Salmonella foodborne illness acquired domestically in the United States. Currently, according to Consumer Reports, a chicken processing facility is allowed to have Salmonella in up to 9.8 percent of all whole birds it tests, 15.4 percent of all parts, and 25 percent of ground chicken. Food producers and manufacturers are expected to take all steps possible to reduce the levels of bacteria in their products, but the fact that there are allowable amounts at all is due to the expectation that the meats will be cooked before being consumed, thus rendering the bacteria harmless.

Humans are much more prone to salmonellosis than dogs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

“Each year in the U.S., there are about 1.35 million cases of salmonellosis, with 26,500 hospitalizations and 420 deaths. Contaminated food is the source for most of these cases. Salmonellosis is the second leading cause of foodborne illnesses in the U.S. (after norovirus), but is the leading cause of hospitalizations and deaths from food poisoning.”

In contrast to humans, dogs who consume Salmonella-infected food (or Salmonella-infected feces) rarely suffer symptoms of salmonellosis. Cases of salmonellosis in dogs seem to occur only if a dog has consumed a sufficiently large dose of a virulent serotype of the bacteria, in which case they may develop acute enteritis. Some studies assert that as many as 20% of dogs may be infected with Salmonella—some with more than one serotype—without any symptoms of illness. Dogs who are carriers of the bacteria can shed the bacteria in their feces and saliva and thus serve as sources of infection in humans.

This is why the FDA is concerned about Salmonella in pet food, treats, and chews—because of the risk to humans who handle pet food and dishes, and who have household contact with dogs who may become infected from eating/chewing contaminated food.

When Should We Worry?

Because of the relatively ample amounts of Salmonella in our meat supply, it should be understood that pet food that is meant to be served to our dogs uncooked may well contain some amount of Salmonella, unless that food has been treated in some way to kill the bacteria. In addition to cooking, pet food producers may use high pressure pasteurization (HPP), irradiation, lactic and acetic acid washes, and/or a new technique called refrigerated instantaneous temperature cycling (RITC), a direct steam injection and vacuum expansion chilling meat pasteurization system, to reduce or eliminate the pathogenic bacteria that may be present in their products.

If the producer of a raw meat-based pet food doesn’t take any of these steps, they stand a much higher chance of having Salmonella detected in their products by the FDA, who will then issue a recall for the entire batch or lot of food that delivered a positive test result—even though the chance of a dog getting sick from the product is vanishingly small. In this case, it’s the humans who live with the dogs who eat the food that the FDA is trying to protect.

Still, people who feed raw diets to their dogs are generally aware of the risks of Salmonella (and other pathogenic bacteria) that may be present in raw meat-based foods, and handle those products and their serving dishes accordingly. You’d never let your toddler or an immune-compromised person in your household handle raw chicken, and every raw dog food I’ve ever seen is covered with warnings to protect vulnerable humans from exposure to the potential presence of pathogenic bacteria in a similar fashion.

I have greater concern about foods that have been produced via a method that absolutely kills pathogenic bacteria—that is, extruded and baked dry foods—that have tested positive for Salmonella. Why? Because most people handle these products as if they do not contain potentially pathogenic bacteria. Lots of people use kibble as treats, using their bare hands. Few people wash their dogs’ bowls daily in hot water and with soap, or wash their hands well after handling kibble or their kibble scooper. Most of us handle kibble like a breakfast cereal, free of pathogens—because it is supposed to be, but it might not be!

Baking and extruding does kill pathogenic bacteria, so when a dry food tests positive for Salmonella, it’s evidence that the food was contaminated after it was baked or extruded, either by bacterial-contaminated equipment or contaminated coatings that are applied after the kibble is cooked. Either route of contamination indicates a faulty or sloppy process, which makes me suspicious of the producer’s abilities.

All of this is why I’m not particularly concerned when a raw-food manufacturer has a recall for Salmonella-contaminated food, but my hackles go up when a dry-food maker issues an identical recall notice. In neither case am I worried about dogs getting sick from Salmonella; rather, I worry about vulnerable humans (such as toddlers or immune-compromised people) getting sick from treating kibble as an absolutely safe product when it may not be.

The post Salmonella in Pet Food appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Putting Together an Emergency Kit for Your Dog

Even if you don’t live in an area where natural disasters occur often, it’s a good idea to keep some kind of emergency kit on hand. I’ve only had to use mine a few times, thank goodness, but it’s been invaluable when I’ve needed it.

Some things to include in an emergency kit are:

• Food: I prefer to have a minimum of two weeks of food on hand. If your dog is on a special diet, remember that supply lines can be affected if the damage is bad enough. It might be worth storing more if you can.
• Water: It’s generally recommended that you have at least 3 days’ worth of clean drinking water available. That’s typically calculated as 1 gallon of water per person per day plus extra for pets. I plan an extra gallon per day for my Airedale, Carmen, who weighs about 50 pounds.
• Medications: If your dog is on medication, make sure you have several weeks’ worth available. Again, you don’t want to be frantically searching for an essential medication if disaster damage slows down shipments.
• First-aid kit: A basic pet first-aid kit can be a big help for minor injuries, especially if you can’t make it to a veterinarian. For some suggestions on what to include, see “12 Items to Include in Your DIY Dog First-Aid Kit.”
• Paperwork: It’s a good idea to keep printed copies of your dog’s vaccine records, vet contact info, microchip information, food and medication schedules, and a photo in your emergency kit. If you need to send your dog with someone else—for example, if you were badly injured and had to be taken to the hospital—this can make all the difference in keeping her safe and healthy until you can get back to her.
• Extra collar and leash: It’s always a good idea to have spares in case something breaks.
• Crate or carrier: It’s important to have an easily transportable, secure way to contain your pet. If you have a large dog, consider a collapsable travel crate. The last thing you want is for her to bolt in a strange place.
• Bowls and bedding: While not essential, it’s a huge help to have food and water bowls on hand. I keep a water bucket that I can clip to the crate door. Familiar bedding can help a dog feel more comfortable in an unfamiliar environment.

Preparing for Evacuation

Evacuating with dogs can be difficult, especially if you have multiple animals or if they are not used to car travel. If you think you might need to evacuate, go as early as you can. Pack the car well in advance. If you need to get several crates or carriers in the car, I’d recommend doing a test run to make sure everything fits the way you think it will. Trying to outrun a storm is the wrong time to discover that you need an extra inch of clearance to get the travel crates in the back seat.

You’ll also need a plan for where you are going to go and where you will stay when you get there. Pet-friendly hotels can book up fast. Some states, of which Georgia is one, provide resources for evacuating pet owners that include lists of pet-friendly places to stay.

Pack your emergency kit and, if at all possible make sure your dog is wearing a collar or harness with a current identification and rabies tags.

Sheltering at Home

For the most part, the things you need to shelter at home with your dog during a natural disaster will be in your emergency kit: food, medication, first-aid kit, and so on. Although I don’t use them day-to-day, I do stock potty pads in case taking my dog outside to relieve herself is unsafe. As a note, if you decide to use something similar, you will need to work with your dog first to be sure she’s comfortable using them.

Keep in mind that the intensity of a hurricane or tropical storm can be frightening to your dog even if she is not usually afraid of storms. The same goes for blizzards, floods, fires, and other natural disasters. Extreme conditions can be scary for all involved. Watch for signs of stress and be prepared to comfort your dog if she needs it.

Finally, if you find yourself stuck inside with an energetic young dog (which is exactly what happened to me last week), it doesn’t hurt to have some entertainment planned. It’ll help keep you both sane until the weather clears.

The long and short of all of this is that being prepared can save a lot of stress and potential heartache. If you’re not sure what to do, the U.S. government, along with organizations such as the American Red Cross, offer resources aimed at helping pet owners prepare for emergencies. If you haven’t done so already, I highly recommend making an emergency kit for your dogs and spending a bit of time thinking through what you might need to do in the event of a natural disaster.

The post Weathering Storms With Your Dog appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

I have chalked all of this up to the fact that so-called Emotional Service Animals (ESAs) were permitted to fly with their owners on airplanes for free, and that more and more people were willing to call their pet dogs an emotional service animal. But I was unaware until recently that in March 2021, after a lengthy public comment period and analysis, the Department of Transportation (DOT) changed the rules in its Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) concerning emotional service animals (ESAs) on airplanes. At least when it comes to air travel, ESAs have been reclassified as pets, with no greater rights or privileges on airplanes as any other pets. Today, only service dogs—dogs who have been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability—can fly with their owner outside of a pet carrier.

Undoubtedly, some owners who previously claimed that their dogs were emotional service animals are now claiming that their dogs are service dogs, trained to perform specific tasks if they detect their owner is having or about to have a psychiatric challenge or crisis. Owners of a psychiatric service dog must now submit forms to the airline they plan to travel with, attesting to their service animal’s health, behavior, and training.

As daunting as that may sound, a person who just really wants to fly with their reasonably well-behaved dog in the cabin with them will not find it difficult to lie on these forms—though I must mention that the forms state at the top, “It is a Federal crime to make materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements, entries, or representations knowingly and willfully on this form to secure disability accommodations provided under regulations of the United States Department of Transportation.”

I love seeing calm, well trained service dogs in public—and I hate seeing stressed dogs who are clearly being pushed past their comfort zone being dragged through public places. I find it hard to believe that there at genuinely that many people with trained psychiatric service dogs traveling by air, but maybe I am just flat wrong.

What’s your experience with dogs in airports and on airplanes?

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So, while corporations have the right to grow, expand, and set prices they think people will pay, our alternatives to fight back are limited. The options include:

• Seek out privately owned veterinary clinics, which include around half of clinics nationwide. They may offer basic services at less than their corporate competitors. The downside is big, however: You may need to leave your favorite veterinarian and/or drive a distance.
• Buy insurance for your dog—not just accident coverage—but real health coverage for the pricey things, like surgeries and many diagnostics. My dogs have pet insurance. When one dog needed emergency surgery, what the insurer paid totaled more than every premium I had paid! The outdated “establish a savings account for your pet expenses” advice pales when you’re faced with a surgery estimate of $7,500. And, God forbid, you’re told that your dog has cancer, but he can be cured. $15,000, please.
• And here’s the biggie: Support a new bill proposed by two congresswomen that will amend IRS rules on the use of HSAs and FSAs to include pet expenses up to $1,000. They’re asking that benefits for verified service animals would be limitless.

Congresswomen Deborah Ross of North Carolina and Claudia Tenney of New York introduced the People and Animals Well-being (PAW) Act on September 10. The bill wants to “expand eligibility to include veterinary care expenses under tax-advantaged health care spending accounts, specifically Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). Additionally, the legislation supports veterans and people living with disabilities by imposing no limit on veterinary care expenses for service animals and by ensuring that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) relies on an up-to-date federal definition of ‘service animal’ for HSA and FSA expenses, which includes animals trained to assist with both physical and mental disabilities,” says Ross.

“Our pets and service animals are cherished members of our families, and it’s essential that owners have the ability to pay for quality care. The PAW Act offers greater flexibility to pet owners by allowing them to use HSAs and FSAs for pet care expenses,” says Tenney.

No, this bill isn’t perfect and $1,000 isn’t a lot, but it will help. Our pets are part of our family.

With so many people struggling just to feed and care for their children, shelters are overflowing with homeless pets with heartbreaking stories. If this bill keeps just one dog in his forever home, I think it’s worth it. Tell your local representatives that this bill needs to be supported and passed.

The post A Law to Help With Veterinary Fees appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

You see, the article wasn’t actually about a dog-napping; it was about a man who was arrested after violating a protection order and threatening a 26-year-old woman at her home, and then taking her dog. Several people called 911 after witnessing the man threatening the woman, and reported that the man had a gun and left in a car. When the responding officers couldn’t find the woman, they initiated a search for the car and, upon spotting it, initiated a pursuit. They discontinued the pursuit as the vehicle was being driven recklessly, but after the driver crashed the car, a law-enforcement helicopter spotted the man and followed him until he was apprehended. He was charged with domestic violence felony harassment, domestic violence theft in the third degree (for the theft of the woman’s dog), unlawful possession of a firearm, driving with a suspended license, hit-and-run of an attended vehicle, domestic violence violation of a no contact order, and obstruction. (According to the article, the woman was found and the dog returned to her, and both are “OK.” I would submit that “OK” is probably an inadequate description of how the woman is likely to feel, even if she and her dog were not physically harmed.)

People who commit domestic violence rarely abuse only the people with whom they have been in a relationship; they often target anyone or anything that their victims care about, and frequently this includes pets who belong to their victims. Consider these facts, compiled by RedRover, a national animal welfare nonprofit:

• 71% of women in domestic violence shelters report their abuser threatened, injured, or killed a pet. (Source: National Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
• Nearly half of victims stay with an abuser rather than leave their pet behind. (Source: Carlisle-Frank, Frank and Nielsen (2004), Pets as Pawns.)
• 52% of survivors in shelters leave their pets with the abusers. (Source: National Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
• As many as 25% of survivors will return because the abuser is using their pet as a means to get the person back. (Source: ASPCA)

Fortunately, there is a growing number of organizations that provide support to pet-owning victims of domestic violence, and others who are working to help domestic-violence shelters become pet-friendly. If victims have resources that can safely accommodate their pets, they are more likely to seek help and shelter for themselves.

• Only an estimated 18% of domestic violence shelters allow the people they admit to bring their pets. Since 2019, Purina has invested over $2 million through its Purple Leash Project and partnership with RedRover to help domestic violence shelters make the changes needed to accept pets. When Purina and RedRover began this work only 4 percent of shelters accepted pets. However, through the Purple Leash Project, and over $500,000 in grants awarded last year alone, 18 percent of domestic violence shelters are now pet-friendly. But there’s more work to be done. Purina’s goal to help ensure at least 25 percent of domestic violence shelters become pet-friendly by 2025.
• RedRover’s Relief Safe Escape grant program helps families with pets safely escape domestic violence together. Funding is mainly provided to help with the cost of temporary pet boarding while a survivor is in a domestic violence shelter, though other costs associated with boarding (like vaccinations) can be considered. Assistance does not typically cover pet boarding once the survivor has moved from the safe house into transitional housing.
• Greater Good Charities and RedRover have teamed up to create effective and sustainable programs for people and pets in crisis. Their expert team works with organizations around the country to help build pet-inclusive housing programs that keep families together. See Don’tForgetThePets.org for more information.
• Sheltering Animals and Families Together (SAF-T) maintains a state-by-state list of domestic violence shelters that accept people with pets.
• The National Domestic Violence Hotline has information about how to include pets in a plan to escape from an abuser.
• The Animal Welfare Institute maintains a guide to teach advocates and attorneys who represent pet-owning domestic violence survivors, to teach the advocates how to get the pets of domestic-violence survivors included in domestic violence protection orders. The guide is tailored for the laws in California—but may be helpful as a model for attorneys in other states.

If you or someone you know is in an unsafe or abusive relationship and concern about their pets is preventing them from getting help, please share these resources with them. You just may help them save their lives—and those of their beloved animal companions.

The post Help Is Available for Dogs Owned by Victims of Domestic Violence appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.