Funeral home offers services for 4-legged family members
D.O. McComb & Sons’ Tribute Center in Indiana includes services for deceased pets such as burial, cremation and a private room for viewing by owners, reflecting pets’ modern status in many homes as family members.
Memorials to pets prove itâs more than puppy love
An unusual item appeared in the newspaper the other day. It was an obituary â for a dog.
The death notice identified the dogâs owner and even included calling hours at D.O. McComb & Sons new Tribute Center on West Main Street near Lindenwood Cemetery.
While the obituary was, as far as I can recall, a first for the newspaper, the concept of special treatment for a deceased pet is nothing new.
People have been falling in love with their pets since long before Rin Tin Tin, Lassie or Old Yeller came along, sometimes with good reason. A pet will never tell you youâre ugly or overweight, and it will never ask you where youâve been when you come home late. It will just be delighted to see you.
While your kids may prove to be crushing disappointments, a pet generally doesnât have the wherewithal to ruin the family name, get busted for selling drugs or sell your jewelry while youâre out of town.
Truth be told, for many people, a pet is the most loyal â even the only truly loyal â creature in their lives.
That has become evident to the people at D.O. McComb. A lot of people want a respectful exit for their pets, so when the funeral home opened the Tribute Center in October it included something unusual: a separate crematorium for pets, and a separate room, now called Emmaâs Room, where a deceased pet can be briefly laid out and the owner can enter and say hello and offer one last goodbye before cremation, Dave McComb says.
Itâs just a sign of the times, he said. Pets have become more important as members of the traditional family move to far-flung places. Kids leave. Wives leave. But pets remain as faithful companions and, McComb said, their status has become elevated.
Other animals, such as service dogs and police dogs, have earned a higher status in the minds of many. Maybe they donât rate a funeral, but a thoughtful sendoff is soothing for the owners.
McCombâs can either cremate a pet and put its ashes in an urn, or arrange a burial in a portion of Riverview Cemetery that has been set aside for pets.
The funeral home hasnât promoted the service yet, but at a Tribute Center open house, the concept drew a lot of attention and was well received, McComb said.
âWeâve had requests for even services for a while now,â McComb said.
While you wonât find preachers conducting funerals (donât all dogs go to heaven anyway?) there can be services where an owner or friend might even eulogize an animal and friends or family members can show up and offer condolences.
âWhat weâve learned is that people fall into two categories: pet owners and pet parents.â
To the pet parent, a pet becomes just as important as any other member of the family, somebody they will always remember.
The cost of a pet cremation? It varies depending on the size of the animal, which can obviously vary wildly, but the pet crematorium can handle animals up to 300 pounds.
Feline asthma: Diagnosis and treatment
Asthma occurs when an allergen incites airway inflammation, resulting in varying levels of respiratory distress, more commonly in cats than in dogs, according to veterinarian Bernhard Pukay. Some cats experience mild symptoms such as coughing fits that resolve on their own, while others can have severe reactions that progress to panting and even death in rare cases, writes Dr. Pukay. X-rays help to make the diagnosis of asthma and rule out other conditions. Treatment depends on the severity of symptoms, according to Dr. Pukay, who points out that some cats may only need monitoring while others require medication.
Question: We have a four-year-old calico cat. About three months ago, she started wheezing and having coughing spells. These episodes only last for a few minutes and then she seems perfectly normal afterward. She is still very active and appears healthy otherwise.
Our vet took chest X-rays and told us she had asthma. We were also told that medication was not really necessary at this time. Is this true? What are the chances that she will get worse and eventually need treatment? Could this kill her?
Answer: Your cat has a condition called Feline Asthma, which has several other names, including bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis and allergic bronchitis. While it can be a problem in cats of all ages, it usually occurs most often in young and middle-aged cats. Dogs can also get asthma, but it is much more common in cats.
Put simply, asthma is an inflammation of the airways that is caused by an adverse reaction to allergens. Specifically, inhaled allergens cause a sudden contraction of the muscles around the windpipe and this leads to symptoms such as wheezing and coughing. It is usually difficult to determine precisely which allergens will trigger a reaction, but grass and tree pollens, house dust, smoke, sprays (hair sprays, deodorants, etc..) have been implicated.
Typically, a cat with a mild case of asthma will have a dry, hacking cough that may be confused with gagging, retching or vomiting. These cats will have episodes of coughing and wheezing, yet can be perfectly fine in between âattacksâ.
In more severely affected cats, the coughing and wheezing may become a daily occurrence and they may experience breathing difficulties to such an extent that they start open-mouth breathing and panting. In a very small number of cases, feline asthma can be life threatening. In these cases, an injection of epinephrine may be necessary during a severe attack.
There are several other diseases that can mimic asthma. Heartworm disease, congestive heart failure, lung cancer and pneumonia can all show clinical signs similar to feline asthma. For this reason, veterinarians turn to diagnostic tools such as chest X-rays or ultrasound, blood tests (including heartworm testing) and tracheal and bronchial washings (i.e. taking cell samples by flushing the trachea and lungs).
Depending on degree of severity, treatment of feline asthma can range from simple monitoring to symptomatic relief of clinical signs. Medications such steroids, antihistamines, and bronchodilators are usually effective.
Corticosteroids are the most effective drugs for treating feline asthma because they reduce the inflammation in the windpipe and bronchi. Bronchodilators are also used in some cases because they help to open up the air passages to make breathing easier.
While there is no cure for feline asthma, fatalities are extremely rare. In patients where respiratory distress is not a manifestation and inflammation can be kept under control with medication, the prognosis for control of this disease is excellent. Unfortunately if inflammation cannot be controlled, lung damage can occur and the prognosis is more guarded.
Stop and think before giving a pet as a holiday gift, experts say
While a puppy or kitten under the Christmas tree may seem like the quintessential holiday gift, experts warn that pets given as gifts don’t always have a happy ending. Veterinarian Mollie Hurley advises against surprising people with animals as gifts, as they may not be prepared for the commitment. Animal shelter educator Deeann Schaefer notes that recipients of pets may not be financially or emotionally prepared for the responsibilities and often end up surrendering those animals to already overburdened shelters.
While the excitement of surprising a loved one with an adorable puppy or kitten may be tempting, pets are not like a sweater or piece of jewelry that can be easily returned or re-gifted.
“Pet ownership is not an impulse to jump into,” Dr. Mollie Hurley, of Stack Veterinary Hospital in Onondaga, said. “And by not talking it over with the recipient or really thinking things through completely, (giving or receiving a pet as a gift) might not be as enjoyable as it could be.”
Companion animals may live for 15 years, and need life-long care in homes where they are loved and treated as members of the family.
“We see it a lot,” Deeann Schaefer, humane educator at Wanderers’ Rest Humane Association, an animal shelter in Canastota, said. “The person they’re giving the pet to may not have time for it, they may not be able to afford a pet, and some of them may not even want a pet at that particular time.”
While a pet given as a gift initially costs the person on the receiving end little or nothing, there is no such thing as a “free” animal.
A spread sheet at aspca.org listed first-year pet care cost estimates — not including the cost of purchasing the animal — ranging from $1,314 for a small dog to $1,843 for a large dog, and $1,035 for a cat. Of course, that’s just for the first year, and as animals age, their need for veterinary care may increase.
Schaefer said that too often gift animals end up in shelters, which are already filled with unwanted pets. Or worse, they may be neglected, abused or abandoned. She estimates the number of dogs and cats at Wanderers’ Rest increases by at least 10 to 15 percent after the holidays.
“People realize they may have bitten off more than they can chew,” Schaefer said. “We see a lot of kittens and cats coming into the shelter six months later, when the cuteness has worn off. Same thing with puppies, eight or nine months later. Suddenly, it’s not the cute roly-poly puppy that was underneath the Christmas tree, it’s a dog that’s chewing up your furniture.”
Hurley said adding a young animal to a household at this time of year presents special challenges.
“During the holidays there’s a lot of chaos, it’s a hectic time. People have a lot of things going on and may not be able to pay attention to the pet’s needs,” she said.
Hurley also cited the health risks of young animals ingesting ribbon and other holiday items, and added, “Taking a puppy outside every couple hours to get it potty trained in the winter is certainly not easy,” she said.
Schaefer said the phones are already ringing at Wanderers’ Rest. “We actually have people calling and asking us, ‘When are you getting your puppies in?’ like we’re Kmart or something,” she said.
Schaefer recommends, instead, giving a pet-themed gift basket and a gift certificate from a shelter, which would allow the recipient to personally pick out his or her own animal.
If a person says they want to adopt a dog or cat to give to someone else, Schaefer said Wanderers’ Rest requires the recipient to come in and confirm that he or she does indeed want the animal.
“Is it going to ruin the surprise? Yes, but we want every family member on board.” Schaefer said.
Costs of owning a pet include expenses for: Food and treats. Collars and leashes. Bedding. Veterinary care, including vaccines, medications, spaying and neutering, heartworm, flea and tick prevention. Grooming. Training, boarding or pet sitting. Fencing or containment systems. Time to exercise, play with and train the animal.
Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips RECALLED
Carolina Prime Pet Inc. Announces Recall Of Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips Because Of Possible Salmonella Health Risk
Contact: Consumer: 1-888-370-2360
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -November 20, 2012 – Carolina Prime Pet Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of dog treats, is voluntarily recalling the following product:
Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips in a 5-count package UPC: 0-21130-42080-3 Lot Code: 20082712 S 3195 and Lot Code: 20090312 S3195
The UPC can be located on the back label of each package. The lot Code is located on a sticker on the back of each bag of the 5 count product.
This lot of product has yielded a positive test for Salmonella when tested by the Colorado Dept. of Agriculture. Carolina Prime Pet is not aware of any reported cases of illness related to this product.
Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.
Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.
Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.
Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips are sold in Safeway stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington DC and Wyoming as well as Vons, Pavilions and Pak âN Save stores in California; Randalls and Tom Thumb stores in Texas; Genuardiâs stores in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and Dominickâs stores in Illinois. This product was distributed from about the first of September until now.
Customers who purchased the recalled dog treats should discontinue use immediately, and return items to the purchase location for replacement, refund, or discard.
No other products are included in this recall.
For further information, please call Carolina Prime Pet Inc. at 1-888-370-2360. (Mon-Fri. 9:00 AM â 4:00 PM EST)
Lazarus’ 3-week checkup
This picture shows Carolyn Davis  and Lazarus and Agatha during Lazarus’s three week check up.
Lazarus had an amazing recovery from his bladder surgery despite his anemia and  his liver issues.
But our concern with today’s physical exma on his three week recheck and suture removal
Is that he is experinecing some neurologic issues. This may be related to his liver’s inability to
Digest proteins in his diet. Last week this happened and Carolyn lowered the protein in his food
and Lazaarus improved. But it only took a little bit of fish protein in his diet this morning to bring
on the neuologic symptoms again. We are watching Lazarus closely with hope in our hearts!
How many more times can Lazarus defy the odds?
Lazarus, the Miracle Dog
Lazarus was well named by Carolyn Davis. She adopted him the day before he was to be put down as an unwanted stray at a pound. Lazarus has turned into my most miraculous patient because he escaped death from three terminal diseases.
In 2008, when Lazarus was eight years old, he developed stage five terminal leukemia. At presentation, Lazarus had been vomiting blood and had a white blood cell count (WBC) of 659,500! The WBC normal ranges from 6,000-18,000. He was at end stage crisis from Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. His overall prognosis was poor (less than 4 months). Carolyn would not allow a bone marrow biopsy because she did not want the risk since he was so sick (risk:benefit ratio).
We entered Lazarus into our Pawspice program. Pawspice rhymes with hospice but it is much much more! Pawspice embraces palliative medicine (reduces the signs and discomfort of illness) and offers kinder gentler standard chemotherapy. Lazarusâ chances for a long life were grim but Carolyn felt that as long as he did not feel sick from the treatments, she wanted us to try to save him. She said, âI want to save him. I want him to be the miracle dog!â Lazarus responded to the gentle chemotherapy and he survived stage five leukemia!
Two years later in 2010, Lazarus was swimming in Lake Arrowhead. He developed a severe infection of his liver (hepatitis). The infection concentrated in the tiny pathways of his bile system. Lazarus developed yellow jaundice of his skin. He he had bloody small bowel diarrhea and extremely elevated liver enzymes. His liver biopsy diagnosed hepatitis with an infected biliary system (suppurative cholangiohepatitis).
Rcently, Lazarus started having blood in his urine. When we checked his bladder, we found a large tumor involving the apex of his bladder. We tried to control the bleeding with an infusion into his bladder. Despite our efforts, his urine continued to be bloody. It became obvious to all of us, especially to his mom, Carolyn, that Lazarus would need surgery to remove his bleeding bladder tumor. There was no other feasible alternative. Despite the risk, surgery had to be done because Lazaruswas losing so much blood in one week that he required blood transfusions!
Of course, Carolyn was on board for the surgery. She almost demanded the surgery. We had to remind her that Lazarus had a special pre-existing history and co-morbid conditions. Read about his skirmishes with death in my Lazarus blog of September 24, if you donât remember Lazarus! He is the miraculous survivor of near-death liver failure, horrible hepatitis and raging acute leukemia. All these factors, including his severe anemia, put Lazarus into the âhigh surgical riskâ category. I needed Carolyn to understand that Lazarus could die.
Dr. Villalobos founder of Pawspice (rhymes with Hospice) applied and received an Angel Fund Grant from the AHF-SCVMA. Thank you Dr. Villalobos!
Nearly lost, Gypsie is back!
In June, 2011, Kira Davidsonâs boyfriend took her to Disneyland for her birthday. It was a great day â until they returned home and Kira found her dog, Gypsie, shaking and acting âreally strange.â
Gypsie, a 4-year-old Manchester terrier Kira had rescued âstraight off the streetâ a year earlier, was âshaky and sheâd never been shaky before. I figured that maybe it was because it was colder that night. The next morning, I woke up and I went out to get her some dog food. When I came home, she was excited and jumping like she normally does and we went upstairs. The next thing you know, I turned around and she was falling and tipping over and then she really fell down and I freaked out.
âMy first instinct was to feel her heart and I noticed it was very, very, very slow. So I took her to my local veterinarian in Pasadena. He said there was a heart murmur and it was beyond what he could do because heâs not a heart specialist.â
The veterinarian referred Kira, who lives in Temple City, to the Advanced Veterinary Care Center in Pasadena. Fearing an expensive treatment, Kira â who had been laid off from her job with an insurance company days before â went to a couple of other veterinarians first. She was told the same thing that the first practitioner had said. So she took Gypsie to Advanced Veterinary Care.
âThey were very accommodating and we found out that her heart wasnât working right and the only way to save her was to put in a pacemaker.â The hospital filled out forms for an Angel Fund grant to help Kira and AVCC matched the grant. âSo basically they saved us $1,000 on the pacemaker. And within about a week I had found out what was wrong with Gypsie and she was on the surgery table. She has always been a very fit dog. Sheâs got a lot of muscle, more than fat. So she was the first patient of theirs where they actually had to implant the pacemaker under her muscle, instead of just under her skin. The pacemaker is the exact same thing they put in a person. And it turned out really good. Dr. [Sarah] Zimmerman said she loved the result. She said she wanted to do it that way on more dogs.â
Today, Gypsie is a healthy, normal terrier. She can keep up with other dogs. She jumps and runs and plays. âSheâs fit!â Kira says happily.
But her dog would be gone by now, if she had not gotten the pacemaker, Kira believes. And she is delighted to have Gypsie back â just as she was before last June.
Pinky gets Angel Fund Grant
The Rodriguez family’s 12 year old pomeranian – Pinky – had bladder, ureteral and kidney stones that had to be removed surgically. In order for the family to afford the surgery, The Advanced Veterinary Care Center applied for an AHF-SCVMA Angel Fund Grant. This helped the Rodriguez family save the life of their beloved Pinky!
Fifi is helped by an Angel Fund Grant
The Portnoy family thanks the Northridge Pet Hospital for applying for and receiving a grant from AHF-SCVMA’s Angel Fund. Their domestic shorthair cat – Fifi – had an ulcerated growth between her paw pad and needed attention to several teeth. Fifi is recovering nicely.
Behavioral issues underlie most barking problems, AVMA says
According to the AVMA, devocalization of dogs should be a last resort in cases where behavioral modification has not been effective, and it should be performed only by a qualified, licensed veterinarian. “Barking is a normal behavior for animals, and that’s how they communicate,” said Dr. Sheilah Robertson, assistant director of the AVMA’s animal welfare division. “Nuisance barking or excessive barking usually has an underlying social issue.” The procedure may be the only option for families facing eviction or euthanasia of their pet, Dr. Robertson points out. AVMA is reviewing recommendations on devocalization as part of a regular review of all its policies. CBS News (11/12)
When Sue Perry adopted her dog Porter two and a half years ago from a rescue group, she noticed he had a hoarse, raspy bark. Her veterinarian confirmed the dog had been devocalized.
“He really has trouble breathing even on a very short walk, and he coughs,” Perry told CBSNews.com. “Before I really knew anything about this, they thought he had kennel cough. He gags so I have to monitor him closely when he is eating his food, and I have to water it down.”
“It’s horrible, it’s horrific,” she said. “Don’t do it. Devocalization should never be an option.”
Perry, in conjunction with the Coalition to Protect & Rescue Pets, has started a petition get the American Veterinary Medical Association to make sure it’s never an option.
Devocalization, or ventriculocordectomy, is a non-therapeutic surgical procedure that is undertaken to stop a pet from making loud noises, according to the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association. As a result, the animals make either low-pitched, harsh sounds or raspy, high-pitched squeals. Normally it is undertaken on dogs, but veterinarians have seen cats that have had the procedure done.
“As far as I can see, there are no benefits to this surgery,” Dr. Alex Klein, a veterinarian with the North Shore Animal League, said to CBSNews.com.
During the procedure, vocal chords are either partially or mostly removed through the oral cavity or through the larynx. With both procedures there are risks for infection, blood loss, scar-tissue growth and negative health effects from anesthesia. The Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association said success for this type of surgery is low, and it is often undertaken more than once in the same animal.
“The consequences are the animal is in chronic pain, and they can’t breathe and can’t eat well,” Klein explained. “Then, the owners say they don’t want the animal anymore and dump it.”
The procedure is banned in the U.K., and in some U.S. cities and states including Massachusetts and New Jersey. It was once taught as a standard part of veterinary school education and is still legal to perform in most states. Klein doesn’t know any doctors who offers the surgery, but he has treated some dogs that have had the surgery done.
In the case of Perry’s dog, Porter has needed $2000 worth of surgery to remove scar tissue. While he can breathe a little easier, he can’t play with other dogs or even take regular walks because he risks heat stroke. But, at least Porter is still alive: One of Perry’s friends had a devocalized dog that choked and died while eating because the food went into his lungs. Perry’s petition on Change.org calls for the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to ban devocalization in the U.S., something that Klein wholeheartedly supports. At press time the petition has more than 133,000 signatures.
The AVMA states that dog devocalization should only be undertaken as a final alternative after other behavioral modification efforts have not worked and only by licensed and qualified veterinarians. A spokesperson for AVMA told CBSNews.com it is currently reviewing its policies on the subject, a process that done every five years for all of its recommendations.
Dr. Sheilah Robertson, a board-certified anesthesiologist and the assistant director of the AVMA’s animal welfare devision, admitted that there are no health benefits to the surgery.
“Barking is a normal behavior for animals, and that’s how they communicate,” she explained to CBSNews.com “Nuisance barking or excessive barking usually has an underlying social issue. Is it because a person leaves a dog alone for 12 hours? Does it have an anger issue is it because it hasn’t been socialized?”
However, for a family that is facing eviction or people who have no other choice than to euthanize the animal, it may be their only option, Robertson pointed out.
In her 30-year career, she said she’s only seen four or five animals that clearly had the surgery. That was mostly at a research facility, where researchers wanted animals to be quiet in the laboratory, she said.
However, Klein said he’s heard of many cases where breeders will devocalize their young animals to make them easier to sell.
“The whole thing boils down to personal responsibility,” Klein said. “If you are going to get a dog that barks, the answer is not to cut its vocal chords out. You work with a trainer. This doesn’t really need to be on the list of things to do.”