Posted on 02/15/2006 3:57:34 AM PST by LouAvul
KANSAS CITY, Missouri (CNN) -- At least 13 dogs have died after being fed the top-selling pet treat in the country, owners and veterinarians have told CNN.
The problem comes because the treats, called Greenies, become lodged in a dog's esophagus or intestine and then some veterinarians say they don't break down.
"I know they are marketed in saying that they do digest. Certainly the ones that we've taken out, esophageal or intestinal, that have been in for days are still very hard," Brendan McKiernan, a board-certified veterinary internal medicine specialist from Denver, Colorado, told CNN.
Greenies recommends owners check that the treats are chewed and Joe Roetheli - who launched the brand as a treat that can freshen a dog's breath and clean its teeth - said it was important to pick the correct chew for a particular dog. There are 7 different sizes to choose from depending on the size of the dog.
But most of the dog owners CNN talked to say they did follow package instructions and they still had a problem.
Mike Eastwood and his wife, Jenny Reiff, recently filed a $5 million lawsuit in New York, blaming Greenies for the intestinal blockage that caused the death of their dog Burt.
"I'm mad that their packaging states that the product is 100 percent edible, highly digestible and veterinarian approved, yet our dog died of it," Eastwood told CNN.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Sounds like Greenies is named for some "bad stuff" out of the 70's. Who in their right minds would buy such.
I have two labs who loved Greenies but since they told me about this at my vet's office last week, I've stopped giving them to them. Probably wouldn't bother my chocolate lab. I swear he'd eat nails and not even burp. He has, more than once, pulled the Greenie bag off the counter and consumed an entire bag of them. But my yellow lab is older and her teeth are wearing away. I'd noticed lately that she was having trouble chewing them completely, (the petite size) so this was timely information.
A coupla things.
One, my wife feeds the "petite" size to our Llasa Apso (about 18 pounds), but only after cutting them into quarters. A full treat, even at that small size, is just too much.
Secondly, after reading posts complaining about the price, a little investigation reveals that the package my wife purchases contains 6 treats (six!) for which we pay about five bucks.
Could you give me some advice on bones? I was always told never to give a dog bones, but someone told me its alright if they are raw. Is that all kinds of bones?
Greenies recommends owners check that the treats are chewed…
It has been my experience that most dogs will chew just enough to make it small enough to swallow – then GULP.
"Greenies recommends owners check that the treats are chewed..."
How do we do that? My mother taught me to never put my hands near a dog's mouth, especially while it is eating.
Chicken and fish bones could cause trouble because they easily splinter. Beef, pig, sheep etc. are usually safe.
I'd hate to own any of their stock today, if it's publicly owned.
Five million for a dog?
I bet they heard about this and thought "Get rid of the dog and score a lawsuit at the same time".
You want nice breath on your dog... buy them a denta-bone and brush their teeth... man, what some folks will fall for... oooo a breath treat for my dog....
Just brush their damned teeth if its so damned bad.
Only if the dog is not yours. If it is your dog, you, or whoever is the alpha-human, should be able to take anything from your dog without it attacking you. You have to establish that as a puppy. I do it to mine. When they are puppies I will give them a treat and then in a stern voice tell them to "drop it" while taking it from them. Then I reward them with a a "good dog" and let them have the treat back. Don't do this more than once a treat. Do it about once a week. By the time they are six months old you should be able to take anything away from them with no trouble. It has worked for all my dogs.
"And it isn't about the money."
Really? Okay, I'll bite...what is it about then?
Um...er...its the principle. Or should I say the principal. Um, principle, yeah thats it. It is the principle of the whole thing.
LOL
Yeah, yeah... thats it....principle. :o)
MM
We feed chicken all the time but you're right, we don't feed fish bones. They don't really like fish anyway. We don't feed turkey bones. They love ox tails which are mostly cartilage and our local Whole Foods market sells wonderful marrow bones. Lamb shank is good but a bit pricey.
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