Boronia Posted April 30, 2018 Share Posted April 30, 2018 Putting this here (rather than 'News' as it'll be seen by more) video in the link http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-30/popular-dog-food-suspected-of-making-dogs-sick-advance-dermocare/9699866 Dozens of dogs confirmed sick in investigation into popular dog food Advance Dermocare 7.30 By Angelique Donnellan Posted about an hour ago Media player: "Space" to play, "M" to mute, "left" and "right" to seek. Video: Holly has a special chair so she can still eat despite her megaesophagus (ABC News) Related Story: Urgent recall of dog food after pets contract rare, deadly illness Related Story: 'We don't know the cause': Rare illness kills police dog, 8 others sick More than 60 dogs across Australia have been struck down by a debilitating and incurable illness, 7.30 can reveal, with a popular pet food being investigated as the cause. Melbourne University have confirmed 65 cases of megaesophagus, and in all cases the dogs ate Advance Dermocare. Advance Dermocare dry dog food was voluntarily recalled at the end of last month after a spike in megaesophagus cases was discovered. The rare condition causes the oesophagus to become enlarged and lose the ability to move food down to the stomach. Melbourne University said it would likely take months to determine whether there was a definitive link to the food. The manufacturer said its investigations had not revealed a root cause, but it had offered to reimburse vet bills. 7.30 has spoken to a number of owners who say their dogs have megaesophagus and were being fed Advance Dermocare. The condition can be fatal and 7.30 is aware of eight cases where the dogs have been euthanased. Do you know more about this story? Email [email protected] 'He was my best friend' Photo: Shirley Benn with photos of Chief, who had to be put down. (ABC News: Angelique Donnellan) Shirley Benn's five-year-old Maremma, Chief, had to be put down in February. "He was my best friend," she said. Photo: Chief, a Maremma, was put down in February. (Supplied: Shirley Benn) She said vets suspected megaesophagus because he was regurgitating his food. "He was panting all the time, a lot of saliva, he'd lost so much weight," she said. Around the same time Chief died, dozens of other dogs across the nation were diagnosed with megaesophagus. Ms Benn was shocked when she found out last month the sick pets had been fed Advance Dermocare, made by global food and confectionery company Mars. "It came up on social media," she told 7.30. "I read the whole thing and I burst into tears. "When you're paying $140 a bag you assume you are getting the best of the best. "I think to (Mars Percare) a dog is a dog. To them it's about making money, they're selling their product. "I really don't think they do take into consideration how much a pet means to their owners." Owners make feeding chair for dog Photo: Holly can now only swallow food when she sits in an upright position. (Supplied) Megaesophagus is not always a death sentence, but it is a life sentence. The owners of Holly, a Golden Retriever, sent 7.30 a video showing how the dog has to be fed after contracting megaesophogus. She too was fed Advance Dermocare. Her owners built a chair that holds Holly upright while she eats. Because she can't swallow properly, gravity has to do the job. Many dogs with megaesophagus have to be fed this way. Police first to alert Mars Petcare Photo: Vet Andrew Spanner hopes the self-regulation of the pet food industry comes to an end. (ABC News: Tony Hill) It was Victoria Police that first alerted Mars Petcare about a potential problem in December last year, after nine of its police dogs were diagnosed with megaesophagus. They were being fed Advance Dermocare. One has been euthanased. The police enlisted the help of Melbourne University who, through the Australian Veterinary Association, last month called for vets across Australia to come forward with cases. Vets did and the recall followed soon after. Adelaide vet Dr Andrew Spanner said the outbreak highlights the problems in the pet food industry. "The only way a recall of a pet food will occur is if a company decides off their own back to do it," he said. "That's an incredibly expensive thing to do, it happens extremely rarely." 'How many dogs have eaten this food?' Photo: Buddy developed megaesophagus last year. (ABC News: Angelique Donnellan) Craig and Kate Bradbrook's seven-year-old Dalmatian, Buddy, was diagnosed with megaesophagus late last year. They say they fed him Advance Dermocare. "If this was human food we certainly wouldn't have waited three months or so before we see some kind of voluntary recall and investigation into what may have been going on here. It would have been absolutely immediate," Mr Bradbrook told 7.30. "You've got to wonder how many dogs are out there, in between December and March, that have actually been on this food and possibly ended up with megaesophagus as well," he said. The company refused 7.30's request for an interview but did provide answers to some questions. Photo: Mars Petcare voluntarily recalled Advance Dermocare in March. (ABC News: Andrew Burch) It said hundreds of tests were run on Advance Dermocare and its Bathurst factory from January, including for heavy metals, pesticides and potential neurotoxins — known to trigger megaesophagus. The company said no causal link was uncovered by its examinations. Until late March it said it believed cases of unexplained megaesophagus only involved service dogs. As well as Advance, Mars Petcare makes popular pet foods including Chum, Pedigree, Schmackos and Whiskas. The company said none of its other products had been recalled or were under scrutiny. Pet food needs to be regulated, vet says Photo: Stan had to be put down after falling ill with megaesophagus. His owner says he was fed Advance Dermocare. (Supplied) Mars Petcare wasn't required to inform vets or any government authorities when it learnt of a potential problem with its product, as the pet food industry is self-regulated. Dr Spanner hopes the megaesophagus controversy leads to more oversight of the industry as a whole. "When I see a problem with a pet food I feel essentially powerless. I don't have anyone I can turn to," he said. "In the United States, it's the complete reverse. There's the FDA which regulates human foods and also regulates pet foods." The Federal Government has signalled it's not willing to get involved. Six years ago it reviewed the industry after a number of cats and dogs suffered kidney problems and other illnesses after eating pet food and pet treats. Agriculture Minister David Littleproud has made it clear there are no plans to revisit the issue. Photo: Titan also suffers from megaesophagus. He used to be fed Advance Dermocare, his owner says. (Supplied) "The cause of the dog deaths is still under investigation and Advance Dermocare has been voluntarily recalled from the shelves," he said. "The Pet Food Industry Association manages compliance with Australia's pet food safety standards in close consultation with the Australian Veterinary Association to track potential health problems linked to pet food." The Pet Food Industry Association and the Australian Veterinary Association said they were first alerted to a potential problem by Mars Petcare in March. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apricot Posted April 30, 2018 Share Posted April 30, 2018 Oh that's just terrible! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loving my Oldies Posted April 30, 2018 Share Posted April 30, 2018 This terrible story made it to the ABC 7.30 Report, so it is hoped that it will provide impetus for more oversight of the industry. What is shocking is that Mars knew of the problem last year. How many dogs and their families have suffered because there is no regulation? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westiemum Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 While I know this won't make me popular, the solution is simple. Make the effort and don't feed commercial dog food. You can't know what's in it, it's made to maximise profits and not for your dogs health and in my mind its just Macca's for dogs. Imagine being fed that same gunk day in, day out? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirislin Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 13 hours ago, westiemum said: While I know this won't make me popular, the solution is simple. Make the effort and don't feed commercial dog food. You can't know what's in it, it's made to maximise profits and not for your dogs health and in my mind its just Macca's for dogs. Imagine being fed that same gunk day in, day out? I haven’t fed commercial dog food for many years and I agree with your suggestion but it’s hard for some people to realise what’s right when there’s so much supposedly good advice telling them to feed dry dog food and beware of raw. Their own vets will try to convince them it’s the best food for their dog. I would have believed it years ago too. I wonder if they will will be able to sue the company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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