News

June 1, 2022

NAIC Consumer Rep Blasts Proposed Changes to Pet Insurance Model Law To Be Discussed June 7

After six-months of sidelining the Pet Insurance Model Law aimed at protecting consumers – and following what has been an almost three-year drafting process— the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Pet Insurance Working Group will meet again on June 7 to consider proposed changes to the model law. NAIC Consumer Representative Birny Birnbaum, who is also the Executive Director of the Center for Economic Justice, called the proposed changes to the draft “stunning” in an email to TCR last week.

May 28, 2022

As some states pare back human rights, California considers dog rights

California is now one step closer to a “Dog and Cat Bill of Rights” that would declare dogs and cats […]

May 25, 2022

AKC Pet Insurance/PPI promises “most comprehensive” pre-existing condition coverage, but CEO declines repeated requests to discuss policy

The policy says if condition X occurs during the 365-day pre-existing condition waiting period, it is not eligible. Only “Treatment that occurs AFTER [emphasis TCR’s] the three hundred and sixty five day waiting period” is eligible. Thus, even PPI’s own fine print even seems to indicate that it would not cover conditions that its salespeople told TCR in three different conversations with different representatives it would cover.

And here’s the kicker: PPI’s leaders refused repeated requests to discuss any of our questions over more than two weeks of attempts to get help clarifying the policy language.

April 28, 2022

$599 Petco canine cancer test announces its scientific validation one year after press release, marketing campaign

California-based PetDx, owner of OncoK9 – “the liquid biopsy test for dogs -” has announced that there is now science […]

April 4, 2022

USA Today writes another hit job on Seresto; ‘investigative’ report fails to seek comment; vets continue to be ignored

Just over a year ago, on March 2, 2021, USA Today, whose parent company Gannett became America’s largest newspaper publisher when it merged with Gatehouse in 2019, printed a thinly sourced story declaring one of America’s most popular pet products, Seresto flea and tick collars, to be killer collars. The story was castigated by veterinarians and other health professionals — including board-certified veterinary toxicologists we interviewed.

March 29, 2022

FDA announces injunction barring New Jersey raw pet food firm from operating

The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine announced on Monday that New Jersey-based raw pet food manufacturer Bravo Packing, Inc., agreed to a court order barring the company from operating until further notice.

March 3, 2022

AVMA’s Salois departs in a hurry, ahead of scheduled appearances at Western Vet Conference updated

The AVMA’s veterinary economics director Matthew Salois is leaving his post to become president of the Veterinary Management Groups (VMG), a trade association for veterinary professionals.His announcement comes less than one week ahead of his in-person scheduled appearances at the Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas representing the AVMA:
Late Friday afternoon, AVMA spokeswoman Lisa Howard issued the following statement:
“Matt has accepted a new position as President of the Veterinary Study Groups, and we are very happy for him. Thursday was his last day, and he committed to fulfill his two presentations at WVC. Matt has done remarkable work at the AVMA and will be missed, but this is a wonderful opportunity for him. We’re so glad that his expertise will continue to benefit the veterinary profession.”

February 15, 2022

As more dogs die, pea lobbyists muzzle FDA; FDA continues information blackout of often fatal heart condition tied to dogs’ diets; in new statement, FDA says hundreds of dogs’ cases ‘not relevant’

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January 28, 2022

Veterinarians, owners angered by farm lobby muzzling of FDA canine heart data as cases rise. Biden admin transparency?

No individual at the FDA or at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has yet provided any basis for refusing to release canine DCM quantity of reports received, and it has now been more than eighteen months since the FDA last provided such data, saying then that it had received “1100 + reports of canine DCM between January 1, 2014 and July 31, 2020.”

January 26, 2022

Press feasts on dog ‘death by rat urine’ lepto rumors — but NYC Health Dept. spox says no cases reported

This report has been updated to include a statement we received around 6pm ET on January 26 from acting press secretary Michael Lanza at NYC’s Department of Health: “The Health Department so far cannot confirm recent reports of canine leptospirosis related to McCarren Park. We have not received reports of leptospirosis in dogs from Brooklyn this year. The Health Department has reached out proactively to several veterinary hospitals in the area, none of which have seen cases so far this year.”
“‘Multiple’ dogs may have been sickened by rat-transmitted illness,” ABC affiliate WABC-TV reported Monday. However, in New York City, Health Department officials have not confirmed even one case involving the illness. And we’re not trying to pick on bloggers, but there’s a reason our only blogger is Nellie the Labrador: One blog declared a leptospirosis “outbreak” as early as last week, apparently scooping The Canine Review, and even The New York Times. In fact, the blogger’s source on “outbreak” is city councilman Lincoln Restler, who is not, in fact, on the payroll of any health department.

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