RECALL ALERT: Nutrisca Chicken and Chick Pea Recipe Dry Dog Food

Some 4-pound bags of Nutrisca Chicken and Chick Pea Recipe Dry Dog Food are being voluntarily recalled because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.

According to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recall notice, Tuffy’s Pet Foods, Inc., of Perham, Minn., manufactured the product for Nutrisca.

The recall was initiated after a routine sampling program by the Ohio Dept. of Agriculture found Salmonella in one 4-pound bag of the product.

Salmonella can affect animals as well as people who handle the contaminated food. The symptoms for both people and animals include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. If you or your pet experiences these symptoms after handling or eating the recalled product, see a doctor or veterinarian.

The recalled Nutrisca Chicken and Chick Pea Recipe Dry Dog Food was distributed nationwide to distributors, brokers, retail stores and internet retailers.

The recall is limited to 4-pound bags of the product, with the UPC Code “8 84244 12495 7” (located on the lower back of the bag) and the following Lot Codes and Best by Dates (both are located on upper back of the bag).

Lot Codes (First Five Digits):

  • 4G29P
  • 4G31P
  • 4H01P
  • 4H04P
  • 4H05P
  • 4H06P

Best By Dates:

  • Jul 28 16
  • Jul 30 16
  • Jul 31 16
  • Aug 03 16
  • Aug 04 16
  • Aug 05 16

If you purchased the recalled product, do not feed it to your dog. Discard it in a safe manner (for example, in a securely covered trash receptacle) and contact Nutrisca at 1-888-559-8833.

Photo credit: U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Small Dog Safe After Owner Shoots Himself at End of L.A. Car Chase

A man wanted for assault with a deadly weapon led police on a car chase through the San Fernando Valley early this afternoon. When it ended in a hour-long standoff on an Arleta, Calif., street, a passenger could be seen through a tinted window of the suspect’s utility truck — a small, white dog.

The window was rolled all the way up on an 85-degree day, and the dog appeared to running back and forth inside the cab.

When video taken from a helicopter showed the suspect to apparently be bleeding and unconscious, SWAT team members approached the truck and opened the passenger-side door. The dog watched them from the driver’s seat. An officer attempted to open the driver’s-side door, but it was locked.

After a couple of minutes, the dog jumped out of the passenger side of the cab and bolted down the street.

“Here’s the moment poor pup ran out of the truck,” tweeted FOX 11 reporter Gigi Graciette.

Another reporter following the chase, Kristine Lazar of KCBS, tweeted, “Pursuit update: The dog is safe! But he ran off and wouldn’t come to me!”

After a few minutes, KTLA tweeted that the dog returned to the truck and jumped inside the cab, where the driver remained.

The dog then jumped out of the cab again. “Officers still trying to capture dog running near truck following standoff,” KTLA tweeted four minutes later.

The suspect reportedly shot himself in the head and has died. Animal control officers were able to capture his dog, who appeared to be terrified.

“#LAPD thanks our animal regulations partners for safely getting dog from pursuit,” the LAPD tweeted. The dog has been reunited with family members, according to news reports.

If you lead police on a car chase, you’re an idiot. If you bring your dog along, you’re an even bigger idiot.

“Some think sympathy should be for suspect, not dog. Not me,” Graciette tweeted. “Sad for his family, YES but he made those choices, including the one where he endangered so many lives by speeding thru our city streets. Dog had no choice. The end.”

Hear, hear. I hope the dog ends up in a home with a responsible pet parent.

Photos via @tarawallis, @GigiGraciette, @CBSLAKristine, @KTLA, @KTLA, @LAPD HQ

First-Ever Greyhound Racing Report Says Nearly 12,000 Dogs Injured

More than 900 Greyhounds have died and nearly 12,000 have been injured while participating in races from January 2008 through November 2014, according to a report released today by GREY2K USA and the ASPCA.

And those are only the deaths and injuries that have been reported. “The vast majority of the 80,000 greyhounds born into dog racing can’t even be accounted for,” GREY2K USA and the ASPCA note on Change.org. Neither Alabama or Florida report Greyhound injuries.

“High Stakes,” the humane groups’ first-ever report on Greyhound racing, is being emailed to state lawmakers and opinion leaders.

“For the first time, both the humane and economic costs of this cruel industry are documented for all to see,” said Christine Dorchak, president of GREY2K USA, in a news release. Founded in 2001, the non-profit is the largest Greyhound protection organization in the United States.

“Taxpayers are losing money, states are doling out millions in annual subsidies and gentle Greyhounds continue to die as pawns to this antiquated industry.”

Greyhound racing is banned in 39 U.S. states, “but this cruel sport continues to exploit Greyhounds despite public outcry and overwhelming financial losses from a dying industry,” said Nancy Perry, senior vice president of ASPCA Government Relations.

The 80-page report documents the cruelty and neglect in the industry, including the training of young dogs on unregulated breeding farms; the administration of illegal drugs (including cocaine); poor kennel conditions; lack of veterinary care; and a diet based on diseased meat.

Fortunately, the Greyhound racing industry has been on the decline in recent years. During the past decade, gambling on dog racing has dropped by 66 percent, and Greyhound breeding has dropped by 57 percent.

Along with the report, GREY2K USA and the ASPCA have started a Change.org petition urging governors of the seven states that continue to operate dog racing tracks — Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Texas and West Virginia — to end this cruel sport. The petition currently has about 2,000 signatures. [Update: As of April 15, the petition has more than 193,000 signatures!]

“The ASPCA is proud to stand with our partners at GREY2K USA to shed light on the wanton cruelty inflicted on the thousands of dogs that enter the racing industry each year,” Perry said. “We hope state lawmakers will agree that it is time to end dog racing once and for all.”

How to Help End Greyhound Racing

  • Make a donation to GREY2K USA. “A generous supporter has offered to match your donation in celebration of the release of the U.S. report,” according to the website.

Photos via Facebook

Meet ‘Spot,’ a 160-Pound Dog Robot

A dog named Spot isn’t exactly what you’d call cuddly. The 160-pound, electrically powered, hydraulically actuated robot dog was introduced today by Boston Dynamics, a company bought by Google last year.

“Our mission at Boston Dynamics is to develop a new breed of rough-terrain robots that capture the mobility, autonomy and speed of living creatures,” states the company, which makes robots for the military. “The goal is to achieve animal-like mobility on rough and rugged terrain, terrain too difficult for any existing vehicle.”

Boston Dynamics previously created a robot named BigDog — the “Most Advanced Rough-Terrain Robot on Earth” — that weighs a whopping 240 pounds and can carry 340 pounds. But BigDog isn’t as agile or quick as Spot, who has a sensor head that helps it navigate and negotiate rough terrain.

A video rather disturbingly shows Spot getting a gentle kick, and then, moments later, a really hard kick. I know, I know, it’s just a cyberdog, but I bet that made you gasp, too. For a robot, Spot’s movements are remarkably doglike.

“No robots were harmed in the making of this video,” Boston Dynamics assures us. Uh, okay.

Photo via YouTube

Animal Control Officer Wins Adoption Lottery for 2-Legged Chihuahua

No one won the $380 million Powerball jackpot Saturday, but the winner of another lottery held in Devore, Calif., this weekend is over the moon.

Doug Smith, supervising animal control officer for San Bernardino County, is the new dog dad of a very agile, two-legged Chihuahua named Joey.

The 6ish-year-old stray was picked up by animal control officers in Highland, Calif., Tuesday night after someone called to report an injured dog.

As it turned out, the healthy Chihuahua wasn’t injured. Due to a birth defect, Joey is missing his right front leg and left hind leg — but from the way he runs, you’d barely notice it.

“He is a truly unique dog, not just because he has two legs, but because he is so capable and does not let his challenging circumstances slow him down,” Brian Cronin, chief of San Bernardino County Animal Care and Control, said in a statement last week.

Joey had no ID tags or microchip, and although he appeared to be very well taken care of, no one came forward to claim him during the shelter’s holding period.

On Sunday, about 20 people entered their names in a lottery to adopt Joey — including Smith, who’d been smitten with the little guy ever since he met him.

“He can do almost anything any other dog can do,” Smith told the San Bernardino Sun last week. “He’s very friendly with people and gets along well with other dogs.”

Smith’s family has two other outdoor dogs, so Joey “will have the run of the house,” he told the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. He said he’ll make sure Joey stays on soft surfaces to prevent strain on his two legs.

His 13-year-old daughter, Rodri, “already has a spot in her room picked out for his bed. Everyone is excited,” Smith said.

“I said I needed that dog. I needed that dog,” Rodri told the Bulletin. “He stands out to me because he only has two legs and he overcame his problems, and now everything is all right.”

Joey’s adoption kicked off San Bernardino Animal Care and Control’s week-long Furever Yours Pet Adoption Event. Through Valentine’s Day, dogs and cats at the county’s Devore and Big Bear Lake shelters will be available for discounted adoption fees. Spay and neuter fees are covered by Animal Control’s nonprofit fundraising arm, Animals Are First Fund (ARFF).

Photos via Facebook

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