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As important as natural skin rejuvenation is,  I think this topic is even more important this week, especially for us dog and cat lovers.

Almost 4,000 dogs and 10 cats have been sickened in the U.S. since 2007 with jerky-treat related illnesses, resulting in the deaths of 600 pets.

The dog treats in question are sold as jerky tenders or strips made of chicken, duck, sweet potatoes and/or dried fruit.

Most of the suspected jerky products were manufactured in China, and  pet foods  companies are not legally required to list the country of origin for each ingredient in their products.

"This is one of the most elusive and mysterious outbreaks we've encountered," veterinarian Dr. Bernadette Dunham, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, said in a formal statement.

The FDA is now contacting both pet owners and veterinarians around the country, urging them to contact the agency if they observe suspicious cases by calling the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator in their state.

Symptoms  include decreased appetite, decreased activity, vomiting, diarrhea (sometimes with blood or mucus), increased water drinking, and increased urination within hours of eating the treats.

About 60 percent of cases involved gastrointestinal illness, and about 30 percent involved kidney and urinary systems. Severe cases may present with kidney failure, gastrointestinal bleeding, and a rare kidney disorder.  The rest involved a variety of symptoms, such as collapse, convulsions or skin issues.

The FDA also issued letters to veterinary clinics across the country urging them to contact  pet owners and send in any materials that might help with the investigation.

In some cases, vets will be asked to send in an animal's blood, urine and tissue samples for testing, with the owner's consent.

The FDA's latest warnings are no surprise to Dr. Karl Jandrey, an assistant professor and board-certified clinical and emergency medicine veterinarian at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in California. 

His hospital has been telling pet owners since the initial outbreak  to avoid all jerky treats, because it is unknown which ingredients in the products are causing the illnesses, or which products are affected.

The FDA urges owners to be cautious and stop giving treats immediately if a pet becomes sick after eating them, and place the container in a sealed bag for analysis.

Contact your veterinarian as soon as possible at the first sign of any issue. That will not only help the investigation, but could save your pet's life.

Since 2011, the FDA has tested more than 1,200 jerky pet treat samples, working with laboratories across the country. The agency is also working with regulators and scientists in China to search out a cause.

A number of chicken jerky products were removed from the market in January 2013 after a New York State lab reported finding evidence of up to six drugs
in certain jerky pet treats made in China, including antibiotics.

The FDA has stated, levels of  drugs were low and it's unlikely that they caused the illnesses but incidents declined when products were removed from the market.

There have been other outbreaks in recent years involving pet food.  These include a 2006 outbreak linked to a mold called in aflatoxin naturally occurring in peanuts resulting in deaths and a 2007 pet health scare linked to melamine that resulted in more than 4,000 pet deaths.  The FDA has said that this outbreak is quite mysterious as to its cause.

The FDA has more information for pet owners in this fact sheet.  Please contact them at FDA.gov for further information or to report any unusual activitity.

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Best of Health!

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Taryn DeCicco, ND, LAc, LDN

Naturopath

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Arlington Heights, IL

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