Free Food donations for Animal Rescue
(5/16/2003) While it's good to be skeptical about any information received via e-mail chain letters, there are a few 'to good to be true' offers that prove themselves true. Of course, a chain letter - even one about a real charitable effort - can be misleading.
SAMPLE CHAIN LETTER TEXT
Subject: FW: FW: Please Help!!
The Animal Rescue Site isn't getting enough visits to keep the free food donated for the animals!
Please tell ten friends to tell ten today! The Animal Rescue Site is having trouble getting enough people to click on it daily to meet their quota of getting free food donated every day to abused and neglected animals. It takes less than a minute to go to www.theanimalrescuesite.com and click on "feed an animal in need" for free. This doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for advertising.
END CHAIN LETTER TEXT
There are a lot of people out there using charitable notions to take advantage of generous strangers. Generally, BreakTheChain.org recommends against responding to or acting on any e-mail message that claims you can help others simply by forwarding an e-mail (virtually all of these are hoaxes) or visiting a web site. But this one is one the few exceptions.
The Animal Rescue site is the newest addition to a network of charitable web sites run by CharityUSA.com. CharitiesUSA.com uses the marketing power of the World Wide Web to get corporate sponsors to donate in exchange for advertising. Proceeds generated by the site are used by the North Shore Animal League America and The Fund for Animals "to provide food and care to animals awaiting adoption or living in the animal sanctuaries."
Other CharitiesUSA sites include the Hunger Site, the Rainforest Site and the Rain Forest Site.
The e-mail message above to urge your participation is borrowed heavily from the slightly misleading message about the Breast Cancer Site. The message claims the site is having trouble meeting its "quota." The CharitiesUSA sites have no daily quota, though they do have goals. They each also offer an online form you can use to privately tell your friends about them, so you don't have to rely on this anonymous chain letter. Break this chain.
Swiffer Wet Jet
(5/4/2004) Urban legends abound about terrible threats posed to us by the same household products that art supposed to make our lives easier. This one has many common components of a such a legend and fails to stand up to scrutiny.
SAMPLE CHAIN LETTER TEXT
I recently had a neighbor who had to have their 5-year old German Shepherd dog put down due to liver failure. The dog was completely healthy until a few weeks ago, so they had a necropsy done to see what the cause was. The liver levels were unbelievable, as if the dog had ingested poison of some kind. The dog is kept inside, and when he's outside, someone's with him, so the idea of him getting into something unknown was hard to believe. My neighbor started going through all the items in the house. When he got to the Swiffer Wetjet, he noticed, in very tiny print, a warning which stated "may be harmful to small children and animals." He called the company to ask what the contents of the cleaning agent are and was astounded to find out that anitfreeze is one of the ingredients. (actually he was told it's a compound which is one molecule away from anitfreeze).
Therefore, just by the dog walking on the floor cleaned with the solution, then licking it's own paws, and the dog eating from its dishes which were kept on the kitchen floor cleaned with this product, it ingested enough of the solution to destroy its liver.
Soon after his dog's death, his housekeepers' two cats also died of liver failure. They both used the Swiffer Wetjet for quick cleanups on their floors. Necropsies weren't done on the cats, so they couldn't file a lawsuit, but he asked that we spread the word to as many people as possible so they don't lose their animals.
END CHAIN LETTER TEXT
The chain letter above employs many of the most common elements of an urban legend:
It's an anonymous third-person's account of something that supposedly happened to "a neighbor."
The cause of the bad thing is not supported by evidence or diagnosis, only the author's assumption of cause and effect.
The manufacturer supposedly willingly admits the product is harmful.
Procter & Gamble, the makers of the Swiffer line of cleaning products, insist that their product is safe for pets in their "Swiffer Q&A."
"Question: Is Swiffer safe for animals? What if my pet licks the floor?
"Answer: Great news for you and your pets! Swiffer Wet and Swiffer WetJet are specially designed to not leave a residue on the floor, so there's no need to rinse. We suggest you make sure the floor is completely dry before letting your pet walk on it, though, because wet floors can be slippery. Since there isn't a residue, there are no problems if your pet licks the floor.
"No more worrying about the owner of those muddy paw prints. You can enjoy the convenience of our Swiffer products without any worries for your pet's safety."
Furthermore, they specifically address this rumor:
"Let us assure you, this rumor is completely false. Our Wet cloths and WetJet liquid solution cleaners do not contain antifreeze or any ingredient similar to it.
We have pets too and their health is very important to us. All our products have been evaluated by internal and external veterinarians and scientists, and Swiffer WetJet and Swiffer Wet cloths are safe to use around pets.
We hope you’ll help us put an end to this rumor by letting others know the truth."
It is possible that this rumor is borne out of a mistaken association of two similar, but significantly different chemicals. Ethylene glycol is a common ingredient in antifreeze solutions and is extremely dangerous to pets (and humans). Propylene glycol is an ingredient in the Swiffer cleaning solution (along with water and isopropyl alcohol) and is also used in some antifreeze solutions. The difference is that propylene glycol is safe for pets and humans and is often used in "pet-safe" alternative antifreeze solutions, as well as other products.
In its original form, the letter above contained no signature or attribution. However, as it circulates, especially among animal rescue and breeder circles, it picks up names of folks whose identities lend undue credence to its claims.
Claim:
Raisins and grapes can be harmful to dogs.
Recently, there was a letter in the AVMA Journal from Dr. Gwaltney-Brant and others at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center discussing grape and raisin poisoning in dogs. Apparently, grapes and raisins can be toxic to dogs when ingested in large quantities.
The grapes and raisins came from varied sources, including being eaten off
the vine directly. The dogs exhibited gastrointestinal signs including vomiting
and diarrhea and then signs of kidney failure with an onset of severe kidney
signs starting about 24 hours after ingestion of the grapes or raisins. The
amount of grapes eaten varied between 9oz. and 2 lbs., which worked out to be
between 0.41 and 1.1 oz/kg of body weight. Two dogs died directly from the
toxicity, three were euthanized due to poor response to treatment and five dogs
lived. Due to the severity of the signs and the potential for death, the
veterinarians as the poison control center advocate aggressive treatment for any
dogs suggested of ingesting excessive amounts of grapes or raisins, including
inducing vomiting, stomach lavage (stomach pumping) and administration of
activated charcoal, followed by intravenous fluid therapy for at least 48 hours
or as indicated based on the results of blood tests for kidney damage.
I have fed my dogs a few grapes every now and then for years, so I don't think there is a need to panic if a dog eats three or four grapes but if the whole bunch is missing from the table one day, it would be good to think about watching for any signs of a toxic reaction.
Michael Richards, DVM
WARNING Dog
Owners
This week I had the first case in history of raisin toxicity ever seen at MedVet.
My patient was a
I had heard somewhere about raisins AND grapes causing acute renal failure but
hadn't seen any formal paper on the subject. We had her bring the dog in
immediately. In the meantime, I called the ER service at MedVet, and the doctor
there was like me—had heard something about it, but.... Anyway, we contacted the
ASPCA National Animal Poison Control Center and they said to give I V fluids at
The dog's BUN (blood urea nitrogen level) was already at 32 (normal less than
27) and creatinine over 5 (1.9 is the high end of normal). Both are monitors of
kidney function in the bloodstream. We placed an I V catheter and started the
fluids. Rechecked the renal values at
At the point I felt the dog was in acute renal failure and sent him on to MedVet
for a urinary catheter to monitor urine output overnight as well as overnight
care. He started vomiting again overnight at MedVet and his renal values have
continued to increase daily. He produced urine when given lasix as a diuretic.
He was on
Today his urine output decreased again, his BUN was over 120, his creatinine was
at 10, his phosphorus was very elevated and his blood pressure, which had been
staying around 150, skyrocketed to 220. He continued to vomit and the owners
elected to euthanize.
This is a very sad case—great dog, great owners who had no idea raisins could be
a toxin. Please alert everyone you know who has a dog of this very serious risk.
Poison control said as few as
Laurinda Morris, DVM
Danville Veterinary Clinic
Danville, Ohio
Although it is not known what
component of the grapes or raisins causes renal failure in dogs, certain
possibilities have been ruled out, including various pesticides, some heavy
metals such as zinc and lead, and fungal contaminants. That dogs react in this
fashion to both commercially-produced grapes and those grown informally in their
owners' back yards indicates the likely culprit has nothing to do with the
growing or cultivation process but is instead basic to grapes themselves.
In other words, all grapes are potentially dangerous to dogs — both grapes in
the plump, "just picked" form and as their dried counterparts, raisins, and
regardless of whether they came from the store or off the neighbor's vine. Don't
feed your dog grapes or raisins, and don't leave these foodstuffs out where he
could help himself to them.
This is not to say you need live in fear of your pooch's keeling over dead if he
swallows a grape or two. However, if he downs a handful of grapes or even a
smaller amount of raisins, get him to your veterinarian right away. Aggressive
treatment with intravenous fluids and close monitoring are his best chance for
survival.
Grapes and raisins aren't the only people foods known to be dangerous to man's
best friend.
Chocolate and cocoa can prove deadly to them, as can onions and macadamia
nuts.
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