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| Thursday, November 10, 2005 | |
Burt Greenies Death | | Many of you have alreay read Mike Eastwood's heart breaking story about Burt and his death due to a Greenies treat. He has re-written it and I wanted to publish it again for those of you who may have missed it or are new and have not read all our greenies posts (you can do a search right here to the right on greenies and find a lot of information). |
Our wonderful dog, a healthy, 4-year old rescued Miniature Daschund named, “Burt”, died July 25, 2005. He died from a pet treat called a Greenie. |
Burt was promptly admitted to an emergency hospital after vomiting blood, bile and collapsing on the local vet's examination table. The doctor suspected an intestinal blockage and recommended exploratory surgery. What the doctor found inside of Burt was 3 1/2 feet of necrotic (dead) small intestines, as well as the "foreign body obstruction" behind the problem. The “obstruction” was none other than a well-chewed, partially digested portion of a Greenie. Both the large mass of dead intestines and the Greenie were surgically removed from Burt. The Greenie was saved and later placed in my hands. It was rubber-like and spongy. It had absorbed liquids and had expanded in size about 25-35%. It was the "toothbrush" end. My wife recognized the ribbed contours of the toothbrush immediately. But, it took me a bit longer to recognize it because it was well chewed (like they say it has to be). Burt tried as hard as he could but he just couldn’t hang on. He turned septic, got pneumonia and died 48 hours after the surgery with my wife and I by his side - after his 3rd cardiac arrest. The trauma was indeed too much for him and unfortunately the damage caused by the Greenie had already been done. Burt died from a Greenie. His problems would not have happened if it weren't for the wretched "treat" obstructing his intestines in the first place.
Prompted by our outrage over the unnecessary death of my dog, we immediately contacted Greenies and they investigated. We shared medical records with them. They spoke with our vet and then with me. They can't find any fault in our actions, or the doctor’s actions, or the timeline of events - at least that's what Dr. Brad Quest (Greenies on-staff veterinarian) told me over the phone. I voiced my strong concerns about the product and among other things, I told him that the product needed to be recalled and reformulated. To this day, they have not responded to this request. And all this from a product that comes with veterinarian recommendations and "highly digestible" and "edible" claims on its packaging and website. We read the packaging. We followed the instructions. We unfairly lost our dog. Burt died 3 years to-the-day that he came into our lives. He is dearly missed by his family. He is not replaceable. Burt will not die in vain. Neither will the other dogs and their owners that I am aware of that have suffered from this product. Please think twice about this product. Make smart choices for your pets. Why take any risk at all. Our new motto for the company is this: Greenies: your dog can live without them. **************************** If you find this article or our Blog interesting and informative, please share our address ( http://www.wholedognews.com ) with all your pet-loving friends, family, co-workers, and veterinarian. If you have any questions please email us or leave a private message here on the QMTP private Messenger. The Whole Dog News Blog is brought to you by: Jeannie Thomason and The Whole Dog.Org
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Posted on 11/10/05 at 14:45:10 by Jeannie Thomason
Category: In The News
Comments
Oh Beth,
I am so sorry to hear this. Please make sure your Dad reports this to Greenies Company with a copy of the vet's report. Hopefuly they will at least help with his vet bills and see that even the re labling and supposed re-formulation is still not a "SAFE" treat for dogs. :-(
My dad's dachshund, Betsy, just died. The culprit? Greenies. She ate them twice a day, and started having blood in her urine. Then she got incredibly lethargic, and did not want to eat. Upon a trip to the vet and x-rays, they found a mass in her intestines. She died, and the vets removed the mass, to find it was bits of Greenie clustered together.
My Labrador loves greenies. You can't say the word without him picking up his head and cocking it. I can tell you that on COUNTLESS occasions, he has vomited up large pieces of undigested greenies. I have given him several various sizes to try to control the size of the pieces that he gets into his system and it seems that the larger ones marketed for his size create the worse problems. My sister-in-law had a German Short Haired Pointer who died unexpectedly a couple of months ago...greenies were the culprit. I have stopped giving my dog greenies, I would much rather be safe than sorry!
My labradors like Greenies. I moniter them to assure they are chewing and not gulping them. The maker has package instructions for how to soften by microwaving. Contrary to one post my Greenies package proclaims made in USA, not China. As I watch my dogs eat and chew I allow them Greenies occasionally and will continue. Caution is well advised. Alarmism or jumping to conclusions is not.
I was just warned of this product by my next-door neighbor who had received a bulletin from the A.K.C.
Fortunately, I'm a label reader, and with the known fact that any product that's Made In China is manufactured with negligible if any quality control, I have avoided it.
Chinese products also are well known to contain many toxins.
Made In China on the Greenies package is the only thing that stopped me from purchasing them for my several Chihuahuas, based on my prior experiences with other kinds of products. Thank Goodness!
Greenies' manufacturer can afford that gentleman's lawsuit, with the unwarranted high price of the product combined with the world's lowest cost manufacturing.
Thank goodness for Milk-Bones! They may not be "like trendy," but nobody ever died from eating them.
Judy,
You are your dog's caregiver and guardian so YOU must make responsible decisions on what you feed your dog, what kind of treats you give, etc. She looks to you for her ultimate good care.
Whole Dog News is here to share information and knowledge to help you become more informed and pro-active in your dog's care.
I suggest you research this out for your self. If you go to the right hand side bar here on any page at Whole Dog News and type in greenies into the "Search by Keyword" box you will see all the posts and comments ever presented here. Then if you can also go to the world wide web and do searches there as well.
Go with your "gut" Judy, go with common sense about what is good for your dog and what is not.
One thing to remember, just because your dog LOVES something, be it a greenie or a big, yummy dog cookie, does not always mean she wants what is good for her. She relies on you to make smart decisions and choices for her. IF you should decide not to feed her anymore greenies there are many other things you can give her as treat before you put her to bed.
If you continue to feed greenies, PLEASE do not leave her alone with it under any circumstances! Watch her to make sure she does not choke or swallow a large piece. If she should vomit any green pieces, have diarrhea or any other problems, STOP feeding them A.S.A.P. Same with any chew toy/treat.
I have been feeding my little pug/dashound mix greenies for apprx. 4 yrs, I only give her one at bedtime, as her favorite bedtime snack. My neice was here on vacation and told me about the greenies causing deaths in dogs, so now I am worried about giving her anymore. She loves them and if I don't give her one at night she barks until I get her one. Now I do only allow her only 1 per 24 hours. I feel I should stop, but so far everything has been good. Any advice I can get from anyone would be much appreciated. My e-mail address is moonrisemaden@cox.net
I LOVE MY PUG WITH ALL MY HEART, and I don't want anything to happen to her, she is my baby girl.
Hi WJ!
Did you send a copy of the veterinary report and inform the Greenies company at S & M NeuTec about your dog having to have surgery?
Please do not feel dumb at all. These are a popular treat and I am hearing of negative incidents with them weekly!
It is very important that if you want changes made with product that you contact the company and let them know what happened. No, you will most likely will not be re-imbrued for your veterinary bills but you will be letting them know that these problems with their so called treat are not "RARE"! I believe many people are not reporting the problems to the company at all.
Here is their contact information. Please let them know.
E-Mail: info@greeniesfacts.com
(you can also post on their blog at: http://thetruthaboutgreenie... )
Mailing address:
S&M NuTec, LLC
N Kansas City, MO 64116
Phone: (815) 221-8538 Fax: (816) 221-8928
Our dog had surgery 2-1/2 weeks ago to remove a piece of Greenie (the bone-shaped end, still hard) from his small intestine. Somehow we'd missed warnings in the news to date about this product! We're feeling pretty dumb about that - and for assuming Greenies were digestible. Thankfully, our dog is doing well now. We too would like to see the company do the right thing and reformulate their product - and media continue to warn pet-owners in the meantime.
I am very sorry for your loss. Our local news did a report on greenies during their 5 o'clock news about 7 days ago. As I listened, it answered questions about our emergency veterinary nightmare on Dec. 31, 2005 and Jan. 1, 2006 and Jan. 2, 2006. We have a 4 year old 8 pound Maltese in perfect health with no history of any illness, diarrhea or digestive problems, UNTIL receiving a greenie from my Mother over the christmas holiday. I never bought these and she doesn't normally have any type of chews or treats. It was the small size and she chewed on this thing for several days (approximately 3 days) After she finished it, within 12 to 24 hours on Dec. 31st, she was not eatting and having severe bloody, diarrhea We took her into the emergency hospital at 7:00 a.m. on Jan. 1st. I told the vet that the only thing out of the ordinary was she had eatten a greenie which she never had before. We spent the next two days with our dog on an IV, and praying she would live. Our prayers were answered, and she has fully recovered, the only sign of any trauma is the hair on her right leg still looks shaved where she had the IV. Everyone needs to know about GREENIES and what they can do. I think the more TV and internet exposure this gets, the more people like myself, will become aware of the dangers of this product. I am so sorry for all the pet owners who lost pets.
my cat became extremely ill after giving him greenies over just a 1-week period. I had never heard any of the greenie horror stories, so I wasn't biased with any preconceived notions. About 1 week after starting to give him 3-4 of the cat greenies per day (he loved them), he started projectile vomiting liquid with pieces of chewed greenie, had bloody diarrhea, and when he passed a large, completely undigested lump of greenie with blood in it (this is key, because the multiple chewed little cat greenies had clearly combined to create a much larger mass than a single undigested one possibly could have; this contradicts the "they are ok if chewed bulls*** that the company spews)- i stopped the greenies imediately, & now 2 weeks later he's still not really eating much, still passing bloody diarrhea, and still clearly ill, but hopefully he dodged a greenie bullet.
mind you the cat product is supposedly a different composition and much "safer" than the dog product.
so yes I'm here to bash this product, as far as I'm concerned, it's poison. This cat never, ever had a digestion problem, and only threw up twice before in his life.
Ian, what's your keen analysis of this? Did i give my cat the wrong-size greenie? oops! they only make one size for cats... there goes that brilliant theory of yours. i saw him chew the damn things, yet they combined in his system to create a pure undigested green plug with streaks of blood. The greenies had to actually ACCUMULATE in his system, because he only got 3-4 per day and the plug was about the size of 10 or more of the little cat sized fishies.
How connected to the the parent company are you? You own stock? You never had a problem, good for you, you're lucky. But don't insult the intelligence of others who ran into legitimate problems with this product. The numbers may be statistically low, but it doesn't include cases that go undetected or only cause a bout of temporary illness.
I am just not sure why anyone ever buys the greenies. There is absolutely no reason why they should be so expensive and there are many many great effective dental options out there that cost much less(brushing...). It is like all greenie buyers are looking to waste money or just like sheep following the latest fad to feed the pet. Just think about it. That will save you everytime.
Also, I don't think it ever makes sense to feed yourself or any animal for that matter artificial or questionable foods. Mammals are healthier on a whole food diet, no one can argue that. Dogs give us their unconditional love everyday. They deserve nothing less from us and that includes our concern for their health. Pets don't need treats for training and postive times. They need attention and love. That does not require food!!
As for Greenies, why don't you pull it off the market (if for none other reason than) just to avoid the bad press? Then try and devise a more natural digestable option?
Meanwhile those of us who love our pets and their health should get off the couch and take the time to brush their little teath. Go figure. I do it to myself twice a day, and I have never eaten greenies...
ok, i think the weirdest thing is to 'supervise' ur dog when he/she chews. let's be realistic, we can watch and stare, but if a part of it breaks off but it's still in his/her mouth, is it really possible to know when she/he had swallow it or will soon swallow and open up his/her mouth to grab it back when u r outside of his/her mouth??
In response to the questions left for us.
First any product can be harmful if it is not used properly and apparently Mr.Eastwood did not care about his dear Burt enough to follow the instructions and watch to make sure that the dog was chewing the bone rather than swallowing chunks of it. No I am not blaming the dog however I do place responsibility on the owner and not on S&M Nutec. I do not feel I was blaming the dog for not reading the instructions and if you came to that conclusion from reading my post you need to go to reading comprehension classes then maybe you could better understand my point.
Second I took the time to do some research before ever posting here and I found that Mr. Eastwood is trying to get $5 million - that in its self proves to me that he is just a money hungry crook who wants to get a free ride off of someone else for the rest of his life rather than working to earn an honest living like the rest of us are or at least should be doing. If he did not want to look like a money hungry crook he could have asked for a much more reasonable amount of money which would leave S&M Nutec more money to do research and find out if this really is a true problem because if it is I am sure this reputable company would put forth every effort to fix it.
Third - Once again we have not had 40 dogs die,we can not even prove 15 dogs have died and out of 600,000,000 bones this is the small .000000025% possible harm rate.
Finally, while we realize that a lot of people care deeply for their animals we have to remember that these are just animals. Dogs typically die before their owners - we have lost several dogs over our lifetime and yes it is sad, and yes we do miss them, and yes some of the deaths were preventable - but accidents happen. It is the owners responsibility to accept responsibility for their irresponsibility when their pet dies an accidental death. Also no matter how much you may care about your animal their is no comparison between the life of your pet and the life of your child. Many individuals have lost children in autombile accidents and have not received the five million dollar compensation that Mr. Eastwood is seeking for the loss of his dog.
Why were my posts deleted?
OUR BLACK LABS (who ever you are)
WOW, how can you say such a thing about a person that lost his best friend? How would you feel if one of your Labs was now gone from your life due to the ingestion of a product that claims to be safe?
Whiners???? Someone is a whiner if they are devastated over their dog dying needlessly? You are blowing me away here!
I sure feel sorry for you if you have never known the love of a dog in your life. That you would not think anything of it if your dog or dogs died from ingesting a so called treat. What would you think? Would you just blame the dog like S&M Neu Tec does? Would you just chalk it up to your dogs inability to read the label and know that he has to chew , chew, chew before he swallows, it was all his fault??? PLEASE! give me a break here!
The company has the control and for sure the means to re-formulate their Greenies so that they digest instead of causing vomiting, diarrhea and obstructions!
Yes, someone is suing over the preventable loss of their dog that was more like a child to them. What if this was a human product? What if 4o or more people had had their kids die from ingesting this? Would you think they were just out for the money if they sued or tried to warn others of the potential dangers? I am curious, WHAT WOULD YOU DO????
Vanessa,
I am so very sorry for your loss! My heart goes out to you.
Please, report this to the Greenies Company (S&M Nutec)
info@greeniesfacts.com
S&M NuTec, LLC
N Kansas City, MO 64116
Does not matter if you have no vet report, they would not pay for any bills anyway but they need to know when these happen. They have been saying that there are only "RARE" reports of negetive things with Greenies. I believe many people do not report it to them when they should!
Let them know you are NOT happy with their product.
Hey guys I think this Mike Eastwood is trying to get rich off of a company he knows is doing well selling a high volume of high quality products which have been proven highly effective in canine dental hygene.I think if we do the simple math and for the benefit of the whiners say that even possibly 15 dogs have died (you will not find this many that can prove Greenies were the cause of death) but lets say 15 out of 600,000,000 bones sold gives us the huge percentage of .000000025%. I don't know about you but I just can not believe that anyone would continue to use a product with such a small percentage of problems, why don't we find something with at least a .00000000000000000% before we even consider feeding it to our dogs. Yes I do own dogs in fact I own one high dollar retriever out of champion blood lines who can handle his greenies better than most people can handle their beer.
Sure we feel sorry for people whose pets die but you can't blame Greenies when a dog pukes up an identifiable piece of a Greenie, or a vet removes it through surgery - it isn't well-chewed if you can tell that it is the toothbrush end! Anyone trying to make money by trying to sue a profitable company over something the company had no control over is just trying to take advantage of a company and our legal system!!We can thank people like these for our high insurance rates and high everything else because you now have to raise your prices to cover possible stupid legal fees from $$$$$$$ hungry individuals.
My 5-year old German Shepherd died September 20, 2005. He was a very healthy, active dog. I suspected something very terrible was wrong when he sat next to me and would not move. He then started vomiting and was very lathargic. I slept with him all night (after all we've been together since he was 10-weeks old) the next day he was dead. I fed him greenies all the time. I suggested an autopsy but the vet said it was "too late". I am absolutely horrified by reading this information on greenies.
Thank you for sharing the greenies info with the public. I was placing an order for my 1 year dachsund. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am deeply sorry for your loss.
Ian,
You have stated that you fully support and indorse Greenies and that is fine because you are welcome to your opion but it is not right to call other people idiots because they do not. Peoples dogs have become ill and died and from what I have heard and read it is mostly because of the greenie NOT DIGESTING. And not because the product was not chewed either. Let me ask you this.. Alot of people say they had given their dogs these treats for a long time before something happened. You support the product now, but what if tomorrow your dog died from a greenie? What then? Would you then become the irresponsible pet owner you claim these people have to be??
As for as the lawsuit goes they seek so much in damages because its only a slap on the wrist to this company and they are not after the money but to get them to change Greenies for the better. And yes a digested track can die in less than 24 hours. Ask any vet or doctor.
You can support this product all you want but it is wrong to bash people who feel differently than you do and especially these poor people who have lost their beloved pets.
I just read the article and want to add that my best friend lost her little dog Jumbo, she was a chiahuha.She was very sick for months on end lost her appitite couldn`t eat but tiny little bits then would spit up. Her treats included Greenies. Her diagnisis was stomach cancer. After her death my friend brought her left over Greenies for my puppy . I am happy that I did not give her the treat often, as I saw the price on the package and thought that it should be a special treat. I will throw out the remainder of the bag, thanks to reading all of this info.
My mom just told me about this posting. I have a 5 pound chihuahua named Maggie Moo who had a greenie in a "blind" doggie treat taste test. She became very ill. Vomitting and totally non social to start. The vet thought it was a pancretic? attack. I called the people who had the panel and they said the product was a Greenie (which my dog had before, it was so obvious it was a Greenie...not sure why they said it was a blind taste test). I was a bit fussed with the people who did the taste test because they didn't cover my vet visit, etc. and claimed Greenies were safe & that my dog must of caught a bug. They insisted that the Greenie could not cause the problem. The poor little dog suffered a seizure as well from the stress of this treat. I thought she was going to die in my arms because she couldn't breathe during the attack. Luckily she survived. I'm glad someone else is coming forward and that this is being shared. I think several dogs have suffered from Greenie treats. It doesn't take a CSI agent to figure this one out! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Brian and Lisa,
Thank you for leaving a comment at Whole Dog News.
Just checking to see how Ducth is doing and how his checkup went? I have had and still continue to get many stories every week about greenies and sick or dying dogs and now cats.
If you would like to read them all, please go the Whole Dog News at http://www.wholedognews.com and type in greenies in the word search box on the right hand side of the site. Mike Eastwood is one of many that have or are still having problems with this so called treat.
Please let us know how Dutch is doing.
Hi Donna,
Thank you for posting your story at Whole Dog News about Sasha and Greenies. PLEASE, get in touch with the S&M Nutech company (they manufacture greenies) and let them know what happened. They are continuing to deny that dogs are gettting sick or dying from their treats, not everyone is reporting this to them or to the FDA.
info@greeniesfacts.com
S&M NuTec, LLC
N Kansas City, MO 64116
After reading more of the comments here, I feel I should also add that we have given our dog a variety of other artificial bones/treats (including edible Nylabones). Greenies is the only one that has been problematic.
i just read an article in the CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER(OHIO)1-18-06 , the article was written by : laura smitherman w/ the baltimore sun , it talks about the tragedy of mike eastwoods experience w/ greenies , mike my wife and i both feel your loss and our hearts go out to you , we have a 35# terrier mix named "dutch" he just turned 6 , and were turned on to greenies about 3-4 months ago , our guy loves them , we feed him the proper size greenie for his size , but ... in the past month or so we noticed a big change in his appetite ,
he doesnt want to eat like he normaly did for the past 6yrs. , he will eat one day then not eat for a day or a day & 1/2 , he seems less like himself , my wife always asks me when i take him out ... did he poop ? , he doesnt seem to have lost weight , today his poop looked like it was not formed very well and had a glossy/gelatin look to it ? , we are taking him to the vet on saturday , and want a thorough check up and poss. x-ray taken , we will update you on his results ... bryan & lisa
I can personally attest to this. My girlfriend and I have a German Shepherd puppy that is currently 7 months of age. He absolutely loved Greenies, but on three occasions, he ended up regurgitating it. The first two times we didn't think too much of it, but the third time was a different story. On that particular occasion, the Greenies came out a full day after he had consumed it. It sounded like he was choking, and out came this large green toothbrush-shaped blob along with some fluids.
Now that I've seen this website for the first time, I'm extremely thankful that our pup didn't suffer any worse consequences. It's very disheartening to hear that Greenies isn't taking responsibility.
Cathy,
I hope you have reported your Tessa's death to the Greenies company, FDA, and your local news station. Evidently there are dogs dieing and the deaths are not being reported. The Greenies say they have had very few deaths reported! Something wrong here.
Have you been in touch with Mike Eastwood? He is the gentleman that filed the first lawsuit against the company and he can be a great benefit to your trying to get Greenies pulled.
When you feel up to it, please send me the story of what happened with Tessa and I will post it for all to see. People need to KNOW about this!
I was told by my vet to feed my dog Sasha the Greenies. They even made sure to give her the correct size for her weight. I fed her two greenies to date, one on Saturday and one on Monday. Early Tuesday morning she started whining, and I heard trying to throw up. Within 20 minutes she threw up 4 times. There were chunks of greenies in her vomit, and they were not big chunks, but they had not digested.
I will definitely be requesting that my vet take them off the market.
I just lost my beautiful, Cairn Terrier Tessa to a greenie and am devastated.
I am doing everything I can to get the product pulled.
Thank you for this very informative site. I feel also that dogs and cats should not be given artifical 'bones/treats'. I must confess however that this was not until I almost lost a dog to a piece of rawhide years ago. I am sure that at least 98% of animal guardians do what they feel is the very best for thier babies. I just hope that everyone does look in to the actual digestive systems of dogs (and cats for those of you feline greenies) and how this things affect them.
I have a Pomeranian which I was feeding greenies to, and have since stopped, since she began passing blood immediately after consuming a greenie. I had given her greenies only 3 times, and several months apart. She is NOT a GULPER, and CHEWS everything VERY WELL before swallowing. I have told everyone I know not to give these to their pets due to the horrors I have heard about, and my own horrific experience.
I feel so terrible for those that have lost their pets because of this product!!!
Greenies manufacturer - you should be held accountable for this, and if you had any sense of responsiblity, you would recall this product and take it off the market!!!!!!!!!!
I own a German Shepard and I do not feed him Greenies, but I'm reading all the posts with great interest. I've seen Greenies at my local pet store and it does have a label that warns pet owners to feed their dogs the appropriate size treat for their dog. As with any dog treat, feeding our dogs the appropriate formulas and size treats is paramount.
To All cat lovers& micheal&Jennifer,
I saw the aricle in newsday on december19 and was completly devasted as I buried my beautiful deeply loved cat Kato on december 8 05. Kato was in great shape until mid september when I purchased a bag of feeline greenies. I gave them to him for a week and a half not even every day or any where near the amount they say is "acceptable". I decided not to give him any more because he would eat them to quickly . Well about a week after that his problems started I desperatly brought him to vet after vet. Each time I saw a new vet I would start with HE WAS FINE UNTIL I GAVE HIM THESE TREATS CALLED GREENIES AND AFTER THAT HE SEEMED TO GO DOWN HILL I WAS CONVINCED THEY WERE HIS PROBLEM UNFORTUNATLY NO ONE ELSE was I have NO doubt in my mind they killed my cat! If the article was published sooner and word was out maybe he would be alive today!They need to be off the market completly! If I never saw them I would still have my cat and he and I wouldn't have suffered horribly for months I am furious that a product that kills pets is still offered to unknowing people . We need to inform people of the dangers. Anyone can contact me at 631 470 1088. Alana
Jeansholistics
Thanks for listening!!!
Ian,
It is sad that Veterinarians only get one semester of nutrition in veterinary school and guess who teaches them??? LOL dog food companies... These vets then go on to offer this dog food to their clients as the best there is. You know why? Because they get a large kick back on everything they sell to Joe Public, silly.....
I have worked for and with Vet's all of my adult life and I am pushing 50 years old really hard! The majority of Vets I worked for sent all the clients to me for nutritional advice and counsel as they realized they did not have the knowledge I did in the field.
Ask anyone educated in animal science/physiology or better yet, go observe wolfs and wild dogs. or just watch any dog that eats a raw meat and bones diet. They do NOT chew, they gulp and they often swallow huge chunks of raw meat and bone as well that digest very quickly and very well. Dogs do not have the same digestive enzymes as we do, Dogs do not have the long intestines we do, Dogs are NOT humans and are designed by God to able to digest their natural diet of meat and bones. Now, granted, if a dog swallowed a huge chunk of COOKED meat it could cause some intestinal distress but ask any vet how many blockages they have done surgery on that were caused by cooked or raw meat..... Don't think you will find very many if any at all.
I have studied and researched nutrition and animal science all my life and while I never became a veterinarian I did become a vet tech. I have worked with both conventional vets as well as holistic ones. Have you?????
You are entitled to your opinion on nutrition and what constitutes a great pet product this is America and God gave us free thinking and free wills.
I have emails from many people who used to feel the way you did about Greenies until one day out of the blue the"DOG" accidentally did not "chew thoroughly" or drink enough water after eating it and they either got sick, choked or it blocked their bowel and required surgery to remove it. Come on Ian, we are talking about dogs here. They count on us to make wise, healthy choices for them because they are dogs and can not read labels and warnings and ingredients. If this were a product for your toddler's treat and dental health, would you feed it to them? At least they have the digestive tract and the right enzymes to break it down and digest it eventually.
Thank you for your comments.
Hi Jeansholistics
I'm a consumer yes - I happen to think that this product is a great product - I am educated. Probably more so than you, but that is not what I'm debating. You have your opinion about how dogs eat - I disagree with you - dogs do chew - most do. However, there are some that gulp and are aggressive chewers.
If you want to argue what is good and what isn't than do that - but you are influencing people based off of a small amount off smut.
I could through a ton of research on here that disputes what you say you should feed a dog - I don't agree with you.
Why should everyone believe what you say is right. Are you the queen of nutrition - I could debate your holistic diet any day of the week. But I won't...it's beyond me.
If your dog swallowed a large chunck of meat to you think that it would digest - I know it would not. The stomach acids have to be able to penetrate the surface area to be able to completely digest the food. Ask a vet - he'll tell you.
I just think it is a shame that you and all of these people that spout of negatism about this product or any other think that you can influence others - but the product is not the issue - it's the unresponsible pet owner.
Jan said "Have been giving these to by 4pd yorkie for over 8 months now I will not be giving them to her anymore. Should I be concern about her now from what she has consumed?
NO Jan, unless she has been having vomiting, loose stools, lack of appetite, etc. She has most likely passed any undigested greenies in her stools by now. Just watch her for any problems.
Ian, you need to get in touch with the Greenies company! You would be a great spokes person for them if you are already!
Come on! Did you not read any of my posts? Dogs are carnivores and as such it is very rare for them to chew anything more then once or twice as they lack the molars necessary to chew things. Thier teeth are made for ripping, shredding and tearing. Their powerful jaws are made for breaking bones, not chewing!
Being an ex-vet tech and now an educator I am more then aware that most dogs form major peridontal disease! I have posted several articles about such and natural preventive ways to avoid this! Greenies are NOT the answer. They break into large pieces too easily and are NOT digestable. Eatable maybe but not digestable.
As pet owners and lovers, we owe it to our pets to KNOW not only our individual dogs but "DOGS/Carnivores" in general. Dogs should be fed Raw meaty bones for the very best dental hygine, not artifical, undigestable treats that they are told are SAFE, SMART and RECOMMENDED when they are NONE OF THE ABOVE!
I Blame the Greenies company, the vets that sell them and people like you that tell everyone how safe these products are when in reality they are far from it.
The Greenies company, should have a LARGE disclaimer and Vets and pet shops that sell their products need to made aware of the dangers involved in feeding these treats to any pet!
Whole Dog News is here for just this, Education and warning people so they can keep their pets safe, healthy and longer lives. So People can make educated and informed decisions.
My 2 cents and educated opinion.....
Have have been giving these to by 4pd yorkie for over 8 months now I will not be giving them to her anymore. Should I be concern about her now from what she has consume.
Hi Jeansholistics
I certainly appreciate your response and respect it. But all of the items that you have listed and the cause isn't because of Greenies - that is our point.
You have to know your animal. If you look at these situations, unfortnate as they may be, were because the owner didn't pay attention to the animal and they chewed off to big of a piece.
Watch the KIRO report - Gilbert gave his dog one and unfortunately the poor thing chewed off a piece that got caught in it's throat.
My animal (dog) holds the Greenies in its paws and slowly chews it and chews it and chews it. I watch the dog eat it. The benefit is the dog has fresh breath and keeps the dogs teeth really clean. Did you know that most dogs by the age of three form major peridontal disease, that can cause major issues with bacteria forming in the blood system resulting in major heart problems and potential death?
I think that Greenies are great - I also think that everything in life is a risk - we take risks everyday. Don't blame Greenies for what is ultimately our responsiblitiy as pet owner's. It's a cop out man if we let that happen - take some responsibility.
Hello... I agree with Ian. How can the toothbrush end be identifiable if it was chewed? I believe that shredding or feeding the lil'bits are the way to go. i have used this product for years this way, allowing my dogs to eat untill they TRY to swallow that lats bit, after allowing it to dry I then use a grater and make little peices so that they can have the rest! a solution! How mamny dogs have had the same fate from rawhide or nylabones? Is any thing really safe? Think about it be save !!
Gilbert - why are my comments suspicious? Because they contradict yours. You say dozens have been reported - that would be 12 times whatever dozens mean. I cannot find even twelve. This company sells millions every week - do the math! I have read that they have sold over 600 million Greenies - take 600 million and divide it by 12 - dude that is 1 in 50,000,000 man. You have a better chance of being struck by lightning, or winning the lottery. I also did some research, vets charge a handsome some for their services to clean a dogs teeth - they have to put the dog under to do this. What do you think the odds are that a dog put under anesthesia will die.....1 in 400. I think I will take a chance on Greenies - thank you very much. You are saying exactly what the manufacturer is saying - you had a choice of whether to give to your animal or not man! But I don't think it was the product - your dog accidently choked on the product and it got lodged in it's throat and it unfortunately died. HOW CAN YOU BLAME THAT ON THE MANUFACTURER? You said before that you fed these for a long time without incident - why all of the sudden does your dog choke on a piece of whatever and dies - come on man.
You know you trust the reports of all the negative stuff you see because it supports what you want to believe - you what to blame somebody for an accident that could happen to any of us.
Bottom line - I do think the product is awesome. My dogs love them. They are great for their teeth - even my vet makes a comment everytime I take them in for an exam. I know my animals. I watch them when I give them a treat or treats.
Gilbert - don't be so suspicious just because someone is positive about a product and disagrees with you. I'm sick of all you people bashing this product (Greenies), especially unjistly - you don't even have all the facts - you just read a bunch of negative crap and think it's true.
The most suspicious comments on this subject are those made by ian hetzel. Why is this individual so supportive of this wretched product? As to how many cases that I am aware of, there are three in my area and anyone only has to scan the internet to find the dozens of report s that are being made by dog owners. I trust these reports more than the propaganda that is spewed forth by the manufacturer.The easy course to follow is to do nothing. If I had read this stuff before using these wretced things I would still have my dog.
I'm writing this to Gilbert...how do you know how many incidents that this has occured - do your really know? Aren't you just making an assumption?
You know man, I really feel for you. I feel bad that you lost a pet. I would feel bad that I lost a pet - but man, your dog swallowed a piece and it got lodged it its throat. That could happen to anyone's dog man. Why are you blaming this product.
This is ridiculous - all of you people. Think about it - would you knew that your human child would swallow or chew something - would you give to them?
Be responsible - there is risk in everything we do in life. Here is something else you all should know about Mike Eastwood - after reading his posting of his lawsuit - think about this - I would recommend that everyone read the lawsuit posted at the plaintiff's website burtcause.com. I suspect their motives are solely financial--why $5 million in damages?
Before everyone sounds the alarm bells consider the following:
1. Burt was a 12 pound miniature dachshund.
2. Plaintiff's bought the Greenies on before July 22, 2005
3. Gave the dog
the Greenie on July 22, 2005
4. Dog was taken ill on July 23, 2005 5. July 23, exploratory surgery found an undigested greenie (12-24 hours after consumption)
6. 3.5 feet of "decayed" intestine were removed.
7. Dog dies on July 25, 2005.
Questions for the Plaintiff:
1. What was Burt's pre-existing health?
2. Would a Vet agree that an intestinal tract become "decayed" within 12-24
hours?
3. If the intestinal tract was already decayed, would that have slowed or stopped the digestion of a Greenie?
4. Did the dog expire due to complications related to the exploratory surgery or from complication from the removal of the decayed intestinal tract?
5. How many other instances can the plaintiffs cite of Greenies causing
death, as they allege.
6. Is it possible that the dogs death and consumption of a Greenie purely
coincidental?
Aweful suspicious too me man!
Again, this is a great product - they are number one in the country I understand and because a few people can't be responsible they catch the heat - wow - I say that you people are looking for the easy way out.
I am shocked and horrified hearing about Greenies causing death in dogs! I have a beloved 4 lb Yorkie who just turned 10, and I watched her last night consuming the end of a Greenie treat I had given her only the night before! Imagine my horror when I hear about the danger of this product on my local 11 o'clock news!
greenie
HeY Steve,
I heard about this article on the news. Be careful with those greenies!
Ing
Snoop,
Check this out..Beware of greenies! It was on the 11pm news.
Please forward to Darin ( i don't have his e-mail address) as I bought Buddha a greenie a couple months back.
I lost my beloved dog to a greenie. The wretched piece that killed her stuck in her traches and she died of strangulationl I had been feeding her these things for several months before this happened and unfortunately had trusted it. I only wish I had been out on the internet and had read the stories that people are posting now. Anyone who feeds their dog this stuff after being warned is negligent. The writer who says that this is a rare event is badly mistaken. There are many dogs of all sizes and breeds who have suffered from this product. One must wonder how many dogs died from these things but were not diagnosed, becaused they were not autopsied or the owner assumed the death was due to natural causes. These products should have a warning label as large as the package itself.
What is wrong with you people. It is always a sad story to hear of someone pet dies because we expect that noting will happen? We have to know our pet - do they gulp or not chew the product adequately? If you are not paying attention - your not a very responsible pet owner. We feed Greenies all the time and one of our animals doesn't get them because he gulps.
This product is very digestable when chewed adequately. Almost every dog food out there is only 70% digesteable - Greenies is 85%. But, when chewed adequately. When I was in the 5th grade I learned that chewing was part of the digestive process - why would it be any different for an animal?
After reading all of these emails it also appears that many-many situations are caused by giving the animal the wrong size Greenies. Who is responsible for that? Then they say (consumers) that they need to make it more prevalent on the package - com'on - be responsible.
This is an awesome product. You all also need to be questioning what these reporters are reporting - some say that they have 9 reported cases, some say 3, some say 1. Yet, they have only been able to confirm that the the one's that you see on this site and others. Which, I counted 5-6. 5-6 out of 500-600 millions being sold (from the manufacturer). You have a better chance of winning the lottery, being struck by lighting, being involved in a critcial car accident - I would say that 1 in 100,000,000 is pretty low risk. I also did some research - did you know that for every 400 dogs that are put under anesthesia one dog dies - how many dogs really died from anesthesia?
This is a very safe product - all treats are as long as you know your pet and supervise the pet - I don't know about this Mike Eastwood guy - but if they pulled a toothbrush end out of dog, doesn't sound like the dog chewed it.
hello..i have 2 shelties to which i have feed the greenies treat and neither one of them ever had a problem..however my heart goes out to those who have lost their pet to this product..i will not buy greenies again..
I just heard of your story on the news this afternoon, which prompted me to research further on the internet. I have 2 large Akita's and have always considered buying the Greenies treat. (but never have)
I am absolutely appalled that the manufacturer has not pulled the product off the shelf. I would hope that you are pursuing this to the highest level possible.
I feel for you and your family. If you need any support, please let me know!!!! I am a big dog lover and would hate for this to happen to anyone else.
Traci/Lakewood, CA
hello, my dachshund Benny,also nearly suffocated from eating and not chewing a Greenie. We will not buy these, as he could easily die by choking! Tana
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I am so sorry to hear this. Please make sure your Dad reports this to Greenies Company with a copy of the vet's report. Hopefuly they will at least help with his vet bills and see that even the re labling and supposed re-formulation is still not a "SAFE" treat for dogs. :-(