ANIMAL HEALTH

November 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1993:

The September newsletter of the Missouri

Veterinary Medical Association told members that

the MVMA backed the state veterinary medical board

in establishing clinic and hospital inspections because

inspection was inevitable and otherwise the inspectors

“would probably be non-veterinarians and possibly

animal rights activists,” whose agenda might “roll

over veterinary practices.” Exactly how and why was

not explained.

Dr. James Serpell, author of several

books on the human/animal relationship, has been

named to fill the new Marie A. Moore Chair in

Humane Ethics and Animal Welfare at the University

of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

DIET & HEALTH

October 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, October 1993:

The Clinton administration has

proposed ending the conflict of interest

between the regulatory and promotional

functions of the USDA with respect to the

meat and poultry industry by transfering the

Food Safety and Inspection Service to the

Food and Drug Administration. The FDA

staff of 1,000 now inspects 53,000 non-

meat food producers, drug manufacturers,

and makers of medical equipment, while

the USDA employs 9,000 people to inspect

6,100 meat and poultry processors.

Coincidentally, tainted meat that passes

inspection causes an estimated 9,000

human deaths per year and 6.5 million ill-

nesses. The National Cattlemen’s Associa-

tion, American Meat Institute, and

National Broiler Council oppose the plan.

ANIMAL HEALTH

October 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, October 1993:

IN THE VETERINARY CLINIC

Despite concerns about bites and animal-transmitted

disease, veterinary staff are as often hurt on the job by ordi-

nary slips, trips, falls, and lifting injuries, according to sta-

tistics supplied to ANIMAL PEOPLE by the American

Veterinary Medical Association Professional Liability Insurance

Trust. From 1988 through 1992, dog bites accounted for 16.3%

of claims, cat bites for 13.8%, kicks by horses and cattle for

5.2%, and all other injuries done by animals combined amounted

to just 4.1%––but slips, trips, and falls came to 17.2%, while

lifting totaled 16.2%. Three-fourths of the lifting injuries

involved lifting “small” animals, whose weight and ability to

struggle were probably underestimated by the injured. Average

costs per claim were $2,808 for animal-related lifting injuries;

$6,253 for other lifting injuries; $6,212 for slips, trips, and falls;

$4,174 for horse and cow-kicks; $1,527 for dog bites; and $678

for cat bites. Job safety statistics have apparently never been

compiled for animal control officers and shelter workers, but

similar ratios may apply.

Girl’s death due to bat rabies

October 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, October 1993:

BLOOMINGBURG, New York––The New York State Health Department is running

a search of all computerized hospital records to find possible undiagnosed deaths from silver-

haired bat rabies. The review began following the August 26 discovery that silverhaired bat

rabies was responsible for the first human rabies fatality in New York state since 1954.

The mid-Atlantic raccoon rabies pandemic recently spread into mid-state New York.

Northeastern New York is meanwhile contending with sporadic invasions of fox rabies from

Quebec and northwestern Vermont. But the rabies strain that killed 11-year-old Kelly Ahrendt of

Bloomingburg on July 11 has apparently been in New York, little noticed, for many years.

The case served to warn animal care and control workers, rescuers, veterinary staff,

Horse Tips

September 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1993:

Reporters Rans Pierson of The New York Post and Phillip

Nalbone of the Wall Street Journal recently followed Phyllis Orrick of

the New York Press in amplifying ANIMAL PEOPLE’s April and

July/August exposes of the treatment of horses in making the estrogen

supplement Premarin. Up to 75,000 pregnant mares spend half of each

year catheterized for urine collection and confined to narrow stalls;

most of their foals are sold to slaughter. Their numbers could triple

when the manufacturer, Ayerst Organics Inc., completes expansion of

its urine processing plant in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. According

to Pierson, more than eight million American women take Premarin

for menopausal symptoms. Costing half as much as synthetic alterna-

tives made by Ciba Pharmaceuticals, Mead Johnson, and Abbott

Labs, Premarin holds 80% of the estrogen supplement market, and is

now the most prescribed drug in the U.S. An Ayerst spokesperson said

the number of horses involved is much lower than the 75,000 estimate

produced by longtime estrogen industry observer Tom Hughes of the

Canadian Farm Animal Care Trust, adding that the firm isn’t responsi-

ble for the fate of the foals anyhow. Medical columnist Zoltan Rona,

M.D., meanwhile argued in the July issue of Alive magazine that

menopausal women could avoid needing estrogen supplements by

avoiding meat and taking appropriate vitamins, minerals, and herbs.

Los Angeles and New Jersey will stay in neutering business

September 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1993:

The pioneering Los Angeles and New Jersey

discount neutering programs, in financial trouble a few

months ago, are back up to speed, top officials have

assured ANIMAL PEOPLE.

“As you noted in your June edition, City of Los

Angeles general manager Elza Lee wrote, “the city did

indeed close its low-cost neutering clinics due to a budget

crisis. But I am pleased to inform you that we have insti-

tuted another program to take its place. The Department

of Animal Regulation, with assistance from many com-

munity humane groups, is now issuing vouchers valued

up to $28 toward the sterilization of pet cats or dogs. Pet

owners who receive a voucher are referred to a participat-

ing private practice veterinarian, who will accept the

voucher as payment in full or as partial payment toward a

reduced fee surgery. Another program which is new for

us is the pre-release sterilization of dogs and cats adopted

from our animal care centers.” All six centers were “on

line with this project,” Lee said, by July 5.

DIET & HEALTH

September 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1993:

Violinist Edgar Stanistreet, of

Philadelphia, still performing at 94, attrib-

utes his longevity to “No meat, eggs, milk,

booze, or cigarettes. Milk is for calves.”

The USDA on August 12

unveiled labels for meat, to become

mandatory in October, that include instruc-

tions on cooking to kill toxic bacteria. The

labels were drafted to settle a lawsuit

brought by the parents of a child who died

from tainted meat and the advocacy group

Beyond Beef, whose president, Jeremy

Rifkin, warned he would sue again if the

language isn’t strengthened. Added Farm

Animal Reform Movement president Alex

Hershaft, “The USDA should require that

animal products carry warning labels with

full disclosure of the documented dangers of

meat consumption to human health.”

BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

September 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1993:

Validation of non-animal tests gains momentum

Significant progress in validating non-animal toxicity tests was announced

during the summer by both the Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to

Animal Testing and the Scandinavian Society of Cell Toxicology’s four-year-old

Multicenter Evaluation of In Vitro Cytotoxicity Tests program, headquartered in

Sweden. Validation is the process of establishing how test results relate to human health.

The Johns Hopkins team published a “Framework for the Validation and Implementation

of In Vitro Toxicity Tests” simultaneously in four leading scientific journals, hoping to

speed researcher interest, while the Swedish team, somewhat ahead of Johns Hopkins,

now has 90 European in vitro toxicologists working on a variety of tests of their own

design, measuring the toxicity of 50 chemicals with well-known effects on humans.

“Relevance remains the key problem,” John Frazier of the Johns Hopkins team

said. “It was clear from the beginning that the ill-defined nature of the ‘gold standard’ we

are trying to measure with an in vitro test––human toxicity––was going to be difficult.

It’s a moving target. Nobody has come up with a definitive solution.”

Editorial: Make sure you’re covered

September 1, 1993 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 1993:

On August 18, U.S. president Bill Clinton announced his design for an employer-

financed national health plan, intended to extend coverage to all Americans––not just those

who can afford it. To avoid increasing the cost of hiring so much that struggling firms

might cut jobs rather than pay the mandatory premiums, the Clinton plan would collect pre-

miums on a sliding scale. Small businesses, including charities, might be able to cover

their workers for as little as 3.5% of payroll expenditure.

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