FDA Issues Warning on Chicken Jerky for Dogs

Pet owners should be aware that chicken jerky products from China may be associated with reports of Fanconi-like syndrome in dogs, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned.

The FDA issued the following alert:

Chicken jerky products should not be substituted for a balanced diet and are intended to be fed occasionally in small quantities.

FDA is advising consumers who choose to feed their dogs chicken jerky products to watch their dogs closely for any or all of the following signs that may occur within hours to days of feeding the products: decreased appetite; decreased activity; vomiting; diarrhea, sometimes with blood; increased water consumption and/or increased urination. If the dog shows any of these signs, stop feeding the chicken jerky product. Owners should consult their veterinarian if signs are severe or persist for more than 24 hours. Blood tests may indicate kidney failure (increased urea nitrogen and creatinine). Urine tests may indicate Fanconi syndrome (increased glucose). Although most dogs appear to recover, some reports to the FDA have involved dogs that have died.

FDA, in addition to several animal health diagnostic laboratories in the U.S., is working to determine why these products are associated with illness in dogs. FDA's Veterinary Laboratory Response Network (VLRN) is now available to support these animal health diagnostic laboratories. To date, scientists have not been able to determine a definitive cause for the reported illnesses. FDA continues extensive chemical and microbial testing but has not identified a contaminant.

The FDA continues to actively investigate the problem and its origin. Many of the illnesses reported may be the result of causes other than eating chicken jerky. Veterinarians and consumers alike should report cases of animal illness associated with pet foods to the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator in their state or go to http://www.fda.gov/petfoodcomplaints.

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/11/fda-repeats-warning-on-chicken-jerky-for-dogs/

FDA Launches New Outbreak Response Team

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has assembled a new network of epidemiologists and other public health experts in hopes of responding more quickly and effectively to outbreaks of foodborne illness.

The CORE network is a multi-disciplinary team of epidemiologists, veterinarians, microbiologists and other specialists who will work full time on outbreak prevention and response, the agency said.

"The CORE Network builds on the best practices FDA has already implemented in its outbreak response efforts," said Mike Taylor, FDA deputy commissioner of foods.  "And, in keeping with the reforms of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, CORE activities will learn from outbreaks to develop preventive systems in an effort to reduce them.

The fulltime staff will be better equipped to respond to outbreaks, Karas said. "And we can concentrate more on lessons learned, to try and prevent incidents in the future."

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/09/fda-launches-new-outbreak-response-team/

Veterinarian to receive National Medal of Science for the first time

Ralph Brinster, a prominent veterinary scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, is to receive the National Medal of Science for his work on transgenic lab animals - research that helped lay the foundation for much of modern biomedicine.

Brinster, 79, a professor of reproductive physiology at Penn's School of Veterinary Medicine, is among seven recipients of the science medal this year. They are to be honored at a ceremony this year, along with five inventors who are receiving the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.

In the early 1980s, Brinster and colleagues made some of the first mice with foreign genes, a powerful technique for drug development because such mice can be tailored to have a particular disease. The scientists created these mice by injecting the genes into mouse eggs and then implanting them in a female mouse.

Untold numbers of mouse "disease models" are still made this way in nearly every university lab in the world.

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pennsylvania/130679108.html