Drama and Controversy!

My very first thread "Mutts: What the heck are you?"on the "Who's Feeling Silly" forum was a bit controversial.... Here is a recap located on page 10...

Hi Butch, (Taking a deep breath) Well in a nut shell you missed me getting yelled at by several dogs... first for saying heck (which you read) then for saying mutt, for saying mutt and for saying mutt, then for encouraging designer dog breeders then Pete yelled at a dog, Then Mom lost her temper and was mean to Trixie, then Trixie apologized and then Mom apologized to Trixie and now we are friends and in between lots of other dogs kept writing in for fun which was the whole idea..... (whew... almost ran out of breath)

George said: Kitai...everytime I come to this thread you're in hot water!

Then I said: I know George Underwood.... What's up with that?

Then I said: Mom says my new forum name should be "Jacuzzi Joe" maybe she'll make me a hot tubbin picture...

So now I have a hot tub where I invite over my friends for dogaritas (virgin of course) tacos and chips and salsa... Getting yelled at in the forums? Since you're already in "hot water" don't be surprised if you receive a paw mail from me inviting you to come on in...

My first guest was Naila who said: MUTTS MUTTS MUTTS... HECK HECK HECK!!! *gasp* Say Georgie, it feels so good to be so bad! BOL!

All in all my first month here I learned that there are countless fun dogs to become pals with here on Dogster. I also learned that my Mom cannot control herself and is going crazy making pictures for me and my best pals :o) Thanks to Bella Bean, Buddy, Butch, George Underwood, Jombie, Lady Bug, Maddie, Merry Man, Missy, Naila, Nutmeg, Peanut, Sabrina, Tallie, Tasha and Wishbone! You are the best! When I filled out my page I never dreamt I would find so many great friends here.

Oh yes, and now I have an evil laugh... Bwaaaa haaa haaa haaa... And sincerely hope that George's mom seeks my suggested revenge on his Auntie Lice...

Let it Snow!

Mom took me to play in snow! Every year there is a little holiday event near our house where the city brings in like 40 tons of snow for human kids to play in. For the past 3 years now at the end of the night we hang around and after all the kids are gone I get to play on the snow for about a half hour until they start to bull doze it into trucks to haul away!

I LOVE SNOW... I go jumpy jumpy all over it and dig little holes!

This year we told our neighbor about it so Murphy a real-life-labrador pal of mine got to come and play! He was really funny cause he wouldn't stop eating the snow. I only eat a little bit... The humans make snowballs and throw em and we chase em down... that's when I eat a little cause I bite the snowballs until they disappear into nuthin! Grrrrrrrrrr... Watch out you snow balls!

Mom wants to be rich so she can buy me my own snow machine someday and then I can have snow every single day!

GREAT CHRISTMAS GIFTS!

What a great Christmas! Everytime I turned around there was another beatiufully wrapped gift... So of course I got to work and tore off all of those bows and wrapping paper! Mom discovered my first year here that I was quite an accomplished gift opener.

So here's what I got:

A beautiful red water bowl for the bedroom from Gina & Michael
A big bag of compressed rawhide chew sticks from Gina & Michael
A super cool tug-a-war rope toy from my neighbors Bob and Linda
A squeaky Isaac Mizrahi shoe toy from Auntie R.
A beautiful doggie photo album from Auntie R.
$$$ from Auntie J. think I might have to go buy me some cookies!
A plush Snowman from Sally
A plush squeaky pug from Mom
A oool collar tag from Mom
A cool new leash from Mom cause my old one was getting pretty grungy!

Hopefully there will be some late-comers... A pup can never have too many presents!

Hmmmmmm Come to think of it, how come my Granny, who I love and adore so much failed to send little ol' Mwa a gift? I'm sure she sent her human grandchildren presents... And me? Nothing! Nadda! Zero! Zilch!

*Sighs and sinks to the floor, sadly putting head on his front paws and looking up with a sad little boo boo face*

I guess I just don't rate...

I love you anyways Granny... Don't feel guilty or anything but here it is... Christmas Day and I think you forgot me... Again.

Time will heal my pain.

And some therapy.

Woooo Hoooo! I'm dog of the week!

Oh my Goodness... I don't have anything prepared... I never dreamt I would receive this honor... *nervously putting on his tuxedo*

I would like to begin by thanking the Academy (MGL & HQ) and to all of my fans (Friends and Pup Pals). Without your love and support this just wouldn't have been possible! *starting to cry* When I was a puppy living in the Humane Society I had a dream that one day I would grow up to be someone... And now *openly weeping* I feel that moment has come.

Thank you everyone *gesturing with both paws to the crowd* I love you all. *blowing kisses to everyone*

I would say more but they're saying I'm out of time....

*being forcibly drug off the stage*

Oh yeah and thanks to my Mom for all her hard work typing my posts, fixing my pictures and teaching me how to be a nice pup! *voice fading away into the wings*

Who Hates Peanut Butter? I DO!

Well my Mom always says I'm one of a kind and now she knows I am fur sure!

She read that dogs love peanut butter in their Kongs.... So she went and bought me some and thought it would a great surprise for me....

And guess what? I hate peanut butter! Yup, can't stand the stuff, wouldn't even lick it! She thinks I must be the only dog on dogster who hates peanut butter. (OK there are three of us who hate the PB... My new Pup Pal Oliver informed me won't touch the stuff either and I just got a pmail from Dusty Charms who claims his hatred of the nasty brown goo runs even deeper then mine.)

I guess she'll try the frozen yougurt next...

Guess what Mom had for dinner last night? A peanut butter sandwich. Yup I think she'll be eating quite a few more of em to get rid of that nasty old jar she bought me :o)

So I'm a brat.... She'll love me anyways!

Welcome to the members list of the" I HATE PEANUT BUTTER CLUB"

Founder: Kitai
Charter Member: Oliver
Charter Member: Dusty Charms

Wow Jombie and I are Couple of the Week!

What an honor and a really nice surprise! THIS is the kind of fun with our pals Dogster is supposed to be all about. Thanks to all of the pups who voted for us. It means a lot that you are all so supportive of our relationship. I was really sad last week when our Engagement Announcement thread was closed because of the little fleas that keep hopping into the threads and making everyone uncomfortable. So this means even more because of that. Jombie and I are having a long engagement by Dogster standards as we are planning a June wedding.

I really want to thank our pal PEANUT for all of his hardwork running the contest every week and for our fabulous photo he made us as a special reminder of this very special honor. Thank you dear friend :o)

Truly this means a lot and I appreciate all of the love, friendship, and support more then I can say...

Crouching Leopard Hidden Dog Treat

Ha ha ha Mom says I'm starring in the new Oscar nominated movie "Crouching Leopard Hidden Dog Treat" as I lay in wait in a classic predatory stance... Or did I fall asleep? Or did I have too many dogaritas?

BOL! My Mom's friend went on a business trip overseas and while there found a cute pet shop that sold cute dog clothes... Her note said she couldn't resist getting this cool leopard print jacket for me, complete with a dark olive green faux fur lined hoodie!

Hee hee it was a little too small (made for an 11 lb dog and I weigh 24 lbs) but with some minor alterations should fit quite nicely when Mom is done with it!

My Fair Lady...

In case you don't know this, Lady Bug is one of my best friends here on Dogster. She is a very very very funny pup who like me is a night owl, loves twizzlers, and loves to have fun. Seems like everytime I bump into her in a thread something silly happens :o)

So a SHOUT out to Lady! I'm so glad we're pals!

TSL against Greenies.... Are they the "Pitbulls" of the dog- treat industry?

We LOVED Greenies... Now we HATE Greenies... But are they really as bad as people are making them out to be?

I keep waiting to hear that someone has started TSL (treat specific legislation) banning Greenies from being sold in the city they live in... Considering all of the dangers out there with many many other treats it just seems to me that some are losing sight of the big picture that Greenies are not the first potentially dangerous treat, they are not the only potentially dangerous treat, and they certainly won't be the last potentially dangerous treat on the market.

The similarities between Greenies and Pit Bulls and BSL/TSL are so strong I had to comment. Pitties/Greenies are not the only dogs/treats that kill but they are the most focused upon in the media due to the types of attacks/deaths that have occured and because they are easy to single out as a breed/treat.

It would appear that the public was misled as to just how safe Greenies are when it comes to digestibility. The company claims they are 85% digestible when eaten properly. Yet several dogs have died from undigested obstructions caused by Greenies, which the Company then says were eaten "improperly" as the dog should not have been allowed to swallow such a large piece. But I also keep in mind that the dogs that have died from a chunk of Greenies could just have easily choked or suffered an obstruction on any other treat or toy including rawhide, bones, cow hooves, pigs ears, a rubber or plush toy. Even nylabones, which I give Kitai, says to replace the toy when half of it is gone. Now personally I have never seen anyone take away the second half of a Greenie and throw it away, but I do that with Kitai's Nylabones every single time. If I ever gave him another Greeenie you can bet I would do the same thing even if the package doesn't say I have to or should.

Here is a website that shows how to perform CPR and the Heimlich on your dog if it ever chokes on anything. LINK HERE

The CNN article that talks about this issue points out two numbers of interest to me. Last year the company says they sold 325 million Greenies. There are a recorded 13 deaths due to Greenies. That means the odds of your dog dying from a Greenie is 1 in 25 million. Statistically those are good odds people.

For the sake of argument lets double the number of fatalities for those that went undiagnosed or unreported. Then your odds are 1 in 12.5 million. Statistically still very good odds.

I have been unable to locate statistics on how many dogs died from bones or rawhide last year but I can only assume that the number would be equal to or greater then the number of deaths attributed to Greenies.

I also found a statistic (not verified) on the internet that said of dogs who get their teeth cleaned the old fashioned way by going under anesthesia the odds of your dog dying are 1 in 400 which means that statistically speaking for the same 325 million dogs who ate greenies lasts year to keep their teeth clean to avoid the old fashioned cleaning method... 812,500 dogs may have died.

So 13 dogs died using one method of teeth cleaning and somewhere in the neighborhood of 800,000 might have died using another method? Hmmmmm as I stated before the statistical odds of using Greenies to keep your dogs teeth clean are actually pretty darn good. So how dangerous are Greenies really? Of course the best and safest way is to brush your dogs teeth every day and you can avoid all the risks. It's really that simple.

I agree the companies original warning was misleading and insufficient, and think they should use the same warning as nylabones to discard an uneaten portion so as not to create a piece large enough to cause an obstruction that can be swallowed when the dog reaches the end of the toy/treat... And I do believe they should be held accountable to some degree so I hope Burt wins his lawsuit. But now that the information is out there, I think owners need to be more vigilant when feeding their dogs any treats that can cause them harm... Not just Greenies.

To read both sides of this argument go to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and read the most unbiased article about the dangers of Greenies I have found to date. Here is a snippet of the article:

Sherwood Johnson, a veterinarian with Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialists in Shaler, often has dogs referred to him with esophageal or intestinal blockages.

He said that rawhide and chicken bones are the most frequent culprits for internal blockages. He's also removed a bottlecap, a bolt with the washer still attached, socks, underwear, gloves and even an entire bathroom rug from the insides of various dogs over his 11 years doing endoscopies.

But never a Greenie -- which he regularly feeds his own dog.

Regardless of whether it's a Greenie or any other dog treat, Dr. Schaer said that pet owners should monitor their dogs carefully while they eat, particularly if their dog starts to gag, salivate or act restless afterwards.

Part 2: TSL against Greenies.... Are they the "Pitbulls" of- the dog treat industry?

Thanks to all of you who sent me a pmail following the publishing of my first column about the Greenies debate... I appreciate the time all of you took to write them. That being said it would seem there are more here that feel the way I do, they just don't want to become embroiled in the hostile conversations that sometimes occur in the forums when it comes to this topic.

To recap here are the thoughts that inspired my headline: The similarities between Greenies and Pit Bulls and BSL/TSL are so strong I had to comment. Pitties/Greenies are not the only dogs/treats that kill but they are the most focused upon in the media due to the types of attacks/deaths that have occured and because they are easy to single out as a breed/treat.

Just for the record. I am not pro or anti Greenies. I am just trying to present both sides of this story. With that being said here is Part 2 of TSL against Greenies:

So the Greenies People have decided to change their labeling...

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From the MSNBC article:

Roetheli said the company plans to enlarge and expand wording on the packaging that tells dog owners to carefully monitor their pets when feeding them Greenies and make sure they feed their dog the right size of treat. The company has long warned that dogs who gulp their food or otherwise do not adequately chew Greenies could have trouble digesting the treat, as could animals eating Greenies that are too big or too small for them.
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Seems folks are begrudgingly pleased with this decision.

But at the same time it seems not many here on Dogster want to give Greenies too much credit for doing the right thing as they feel it was coereced by the negative media attention. So will the Greenies people catch a break? They are apparently damned if they do improve their labeling and damned if they don't.

Same goes for their new Greenies biscuits. There was an outcry for a safer product. They have produced one. The biscuits are recieving a luke-warm reception at best here on Dogster. Many say that the reason they won't buy the new biscuits is on "principle" because of how poorly the company has handled the whole situation... But again I will question have they really handled it that poorly?

Last night I saw a feature on CNN where the owner clearly stated that his company has voluntarily entered into testing with the FDA to analyze their product... And that they have always been willing to pay owners who's pets have been injured or died because of their product either the cost of vet bills or the replacement value of their pet. Apparently they have always felt this was the right thing to do.

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From the MSNBC article:
Roetheli said his company regularly investigates consumer complaints about Greenies and sometimes reimburses pet owners for veterinary expenses or even to replace a dog who died. He estimated the number of times his company has reimbursed owners since he began selling Greenies in 1998 at "several dozen" and that the 13 fatalities reported by CNN "is in the ballpark of what we've heard of."
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So what do consumers want? Some still just want their Greenies. Their dogs love them and they say they aren't buying into the "hype" because many toys and treats present the same dangers to their dogs.

Others seem to want even more clear labeling... Which I believe in the CNN interview last night was eluded may be coming... the removal of the 100% edible comment altogether.

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From the MSNBC article:
The maker of Greenies, the country's best-selling dog treat, said Wednesday it plans to change its packaging in response to complaints from some pet owners and veterinarians that the treat may pose a health hazard to some dogs. S&M NuTec, based in North Kansas City, also said it may remove a claim that Greenies are fully edible, saying its own study shows a dog can only digest up to 85 percent of the bone-shaped treat.
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Others apparently just want Greenies to close shop and get the hell out of town.

While I understand the sentiment "too little to late" which is becoming the unwelcomed tagline that seems to be following the Greenies name... I have to say that in todays world I doubt many other companies would have responded any better... And most would have handled things far worse.

Several owners here on Dogster have stated they hold the treat while their dog eats it so that they can be certain no large chunks are swallowed. Sounds reasonable to me.

I did hold an impromptou off camera interview with the owner of one of the high end pet shops I often frequent. As I stood at the counter purchasing a bag Flint River Ranch kibble I asked if they had noticed a decrease in their sales of Greenies... "Not really he replied. A couple of people a day will ask about it but we haven't noticed a decline in sales at all."

If you agree or disagree with the information presented here... All comments are welcome by pmail.