My Mini has not had Greenies, but was a healthy 10- year old dog when all of the sudden she became lethargic. She cries at night, has trouble opening her mouth, about 70% makes her yelp. My wife and I feel she is not going to make it. We took her to the VET and had bloodf and Urine work done, it was normal. Now she can't even walk, but still has her appetitie and will onlyh drink water when mixed with milk. Can anyone give me advice on what we should do?

Michelle,

How is Rocky doing? I was away from the computer for a few days and got behind on the posts at Whole Dog News.

If he had trouble walking, was cold, etc. he should have gone to the Vet's A.S.A.P. he might have had a blockage!

Please let us know how he is doing and what was wrong!

my dog rocky had one greenie this afternoon and found another one and ate that one.I became disturbed when 2 hours later, he had trouble walking, he was cold, his stomach was distended and his eyes glazed over. I walked him and gave him some pepto bismol. He is in distress still. I know it was from the greenies and I read the package and I had given him the correct size. It said 2 a day would be o.k. then my sister told me about the greenies story. this is very upsetting that this company is still selling and advertising this product .
Thank you for this website and I hope it helps others.

Well, my dog has been at the vet for 2 days with tests & a barium xray, as she has been throwing up everything she eats for the last 3 days & diarrhea before that. Then my girlfriend told me about Greenies & what a coincedence! Last week I gave her one for the first time - she had 2 last week! I am going to the vet's right now to let him know about this!!!I can only hope she will be okay! She is my best friend & is only 3 years old - a shepherd-blue heeler mix!

I am very sorry for your loss.
I have a Dachshund myself and this whole thing has raised some concerns. My puppy had been coughing due to a kennel cough he had from the pet shop we purchased him at. We had never heard about the dangers of greenies until now and so we had been giving our puppy greenies once a week (considering his breath was smelling funny from his medication). It turns out that he had stopped eating and even drinking water. We just took him to the hospital yesterday and the doctor discovered that he has an advanced pneumonia. My fear now is that maybe the greenies are what has been causing him to have difficulty when eating and drinking and maybe even had an influence on his condition worsening (maybe blocking the medication). He's vomitted once about two weeks ago and I saw a small piece of green and one entire antibiotic pill, but thought nothing of it. I am definitly going to voice this concern to the doctor when I see him today. I'll keep you posted.

does anybody know of any dogs in the boston area that have suffered from greenies?

Debbie,

Did you ever report your dog's vomiting to S&M NuTec? They need to know of these problems in digesting their treats!!!!

S&M NuTec, LLC
N Kansas City, MO 64116

info@greenies.com

Please, everyone, if you have any problems such as vomiting, dirrehea, lethargy after your dog (or cat) eating Greenies, report it to the company as well as share it with everyone you know. The company says they hear only "rare" incidents with problems and thier so called "treat".

Thank you!

I am so very sorry to all people who have lost their beloved pets to GREENIES. I promise I personally will help spread the word to all pet owners that I know. Also, just a few days ago, channel 9, Chicago, had a brief segment on the problem with Greenies. The company's reply was to supervise your pet while they are chewing on the greenie, and that 15 reported cases are SMALL, compared to their million sales plus. I am outraged at their lack of concern.Again, my deepest heartfelt thoughts to all who lost their family pets.

Brian brings up an interesting point and Greenies have defended their product in that they should be chewed completely and the dogs monitored. If I can only give a dog a treat under strict supervision then it's not a treat it's a death sentence. As for the "low number of incidences", this is not an acceptable argument. If it were people, how many deaths due to consumption of a specific product is considered a low incidence before it's removed from the market? One? Forty? If it's your dog that dies, is that ok because statistically the count is still low? What an outrage. The point of it being public is to educate people and they can decide. The general consensus is the risk is too great to take.

i am so sorry about your precious lost. i've been feeding them to my dog for a year now...and i think after all the bad things that i've heard...i too believe my dogs can live without them before its too late....

my neighbor just told me about the greenie problem. my 40 pound husky has been eating them for a couple of years and the only problem has been an occasional vomit with a chunk of green. but thanks to your site, no more. a co worker said that milkbones will clean the teeth too, so i am switching. anyone have a non toxic use for left over greenies?

What happened to Burt is tragic and heartwrenching; Mike, I'm so sorry for your loss.

I hate being the voice of dissent on such an emotional issue, but if the piece was not only the size of the toothbrush head, but even recognizable as that piece, it clearly wasn't chewed enough. Doesn't it say right on the package that the treats are not for dogs who gulp their food or treats? The <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/... CNN article</a> cited only 40 cases of complications after being on the market since 2003 and millions of units sold. You could probably find worse relative statistics from dozens of products. Anything in the world -- a leash, a doggy door, kibble, a bed -- can somehow, someway harm our pets. With such a low number of incidences, it doesn't seem like the product itself is to blame as much as misuse or horrible luck. There isn't always someone to blame. Bad things do happen to good dogs.

Kelly,

I am more then happy to send out emails and even host a petition here at Whole Dog News if someone wants to make them up for me. If you do a word search on Greenies here on the right hand side of the page, you will see all the many posts, articles and comments here. I can also make a special page just for the petition if you like but do not have the time to make up the petition or the email letter to go out.

Anyone able to help here by making up a petition and creating an email everyone can copy and send out?

This is not a bad idea at all!

I have never been a fan of greenies however, rawhide bones for larger dogs are just as bad. I would like to make a suggestion as one pet lover to another, can someone create a chain e-mail asking everyone to send it to anyone they know that has pets to notify them of the Greenies issue, and possibly create a website to veto greenies where people can sign a petition as well as find all the related greenie stories in one spot. Maybe by spreading the word and having people (electronically) sign a petition, the company will have to take notice. Another item for thought may be to think about all the other brands of hard bone type items by other companies that are out there. Are they safe? I have 2 doberman and the only thing hard that I have ever given them to help clean their teeth are real bones.

I feel for anyone who has lost their pet due to these treats. I lost one of my dogs to liver disease and I felt like I had lost a clild. Reading these stories made me cry. I'm so sorry for your loss.

Thank You Dr Ulbrich! I am hearing from more and more veterinarians that feel the way you do about these so called "treats".

my dog has been eating greenies for a while ( about 1 month). i'm worried about him, and i hope that these "treats" are removed from store shelves. i will never give them to ny dog again,

AS a veterinarian, I can't tell you how angry I am with greenies. Unfortunately, we have seen similar cases. Every time I contac the company, they ignore my calls! This has been going on for over a year now!
I educate all of my clients about the dangers of Greenies.
With my sympathies,
Dr. Deborah Ulbrich

I had no idea that greenies were bad until I caught the end of a CNN story last night about a pet death related to a dog treat. I searched pet death and dog treats on CNN.com and it came up with an article on greenies - a treat I give my three Italian Greyhounds almost daily! They love them! Then I searched the web about greenies and pet deaths and there are a lot of stories out there about intestinal obstructions and death related to greenies. I will never feed my dogs greenies again and I'm very angry that this has not been made more public until now.

I just saw this story on CNN last night. I had no idea.

I have 3 dogs that have been having Greenies since October. I am very concerned now.

Are there any warning symptoms at all before hand? Please let me know.

Thank you so much for sharing your story- my two year yorkie Vegas loves Greenies, but now she will have to live without them. Had I known these risks beforehand I never would have given them to her. I also plan to write to this company and request that they recall these dangerous treats. Maybe if enough people write they will reconsider the dangers they are posing to our pets.

Mike:
My wife and I just stayed up all night at our local Emergency Veterinarian Surgical center that performed the same surgery on our 4 year old Chihuahua Annie. She loved Greenies and had a "Greenie related" intestinal obstruction removed last night after exhibiting the same exact symptoms as Burt. She is in recovery and hopefully did not have the long term damage that unfortunately took Burt. I thank you for the article as I will ask the surgeon tonight who worked on Annie the condition of the intestine as well as bring a copy of Burt’s story. As dog lovers we were fans of Greenies, basically because or dog’s loved them. I will make it my mission to warn other friends about how this tasty product can kill. After seeing the dozens of sites on the dangers of Greenies it sickens me that because it is a product for a pet, it is still sold everywhere. I have even seen them sold in the Vet’s office. If a product like this was sold in the candy aisle in the supermarket and was found to contribute to the death of humans, it would be pulled off of the market the next day. This is an outrage to all pet owners.

Thanks for your article.
Ben & Gina

I am very sorry about the loss of Burt. I have a 10 yr. old Dachshund, whom we adore. I thank you for this warning, as greenies were his favorite treat. I thought they were good for him. I have passed the info. on to all my family and friends who have dogs. I hope that the vets know about this and are warning people about greenies. Again, my sympathy and thanks. Ginny

Thank you for sharing your story...I HAD NO IDEA. about the danger of greenies...I can't believe that they are still on the market! Poor Burt. I am so sorry..I will NEVER buy greenies for my Doxie beacause of this story and I will tell other's not to either.

I had no idea that Greenies were bad for for their health. I asked our Vet about them and he said it was Ok. I know that our Odie "gobbles" them down and wondered it that was a good thing for him. Molly and Chloe seem to chew on them for a long time.

As the former dog owner whose dog died this summer from a Greenie, I APPLAUD all of those that have decided to simply not risk putting your dog in harms way.

I also APLAUD people like Jeannie who are trying to make a difference by bringing to the public's attention my story and all of the others, as well.

Burt should not have died. Had we known that there was even the slightest risk from this product we would not have given it to Burt. Never in a million years. However, when you're led to believe that the product is safe by the company that manufactures it, you have no reason to doubt it. But, when you witness your dog throwing up blood and bile and ultimately dying a painful and unecessary death, you'll think otherwise.

How many more dogs have to suffer...

BURT WILL NOT DIE IN VAIN.

Greenies: your dog can live without them.

Mike

BTW -Angela, a MALTESE named Nicky died from a Greenie this summer:
http://www.elstrod.info/nic...

I am so sorry to hear about your little boy, Burt. I just recently lost my little girl, Missy. I am unsure of what took her. She had some health issues about three months ago but other then that she was a happy healthy girl. She looked very much like your Burt. I hope with time we both can find comfort in our loss. May God and your memories of Burt be with you.

I am so sorry to hear about Burt, we have lost 2 dacshunds in the last 6 months due to age. My daughter in-law kept telling me about a friend that will only feed her dogs greenies, and that I should try it for my new piebald dacshund "DASH". I am sooooo glad to have read this before tryoing and I will warn th friend that swears by greenies!! Again deepest heart felt sorrow for your loss.

Thank-you so much for the warning about Greenies!!!
I am so sorry to hear about Burt. Our Long Hair Mini Daschund, Billy, will turn 3 this Dec, and Burt has the same cute little face.
Billy lost his best buddie, our 13 year old yel lab,Elliot, on July 3rd.
I know Elliot is with Burt taking care of him...Elliot always let Billy cuddle up to him and protected him at all times...Your little Burt is in very good hands...Peace be with you

OMG I am so sorry! I had no clue that Greenies were bad. I thought they were good for dogs. I have a Maltese and I give him Greenies all the time. What does it do to them? OMG I am never giving him a greenie again. Please give me more info.