Category Archives: Euthanasia

SALT LAKE CITY It was standing room only for those with both two and four legs Tuesday as Utah lawmakers considered a bill that would ban the use of gas chambers as a method of euthanasia at animal shelters.

"I believe that how we care for animals and how we treat animals says a lot about us," said Sen. Peter Knudson, R-Brigham City.

Most of those who packed a Senate committee room to listen to the discussion and provide testimony about euthanasia of shelter animals supported Knudson's bill, SB56, calling the use of lethal injection much more humane than a carbon-monoxide gas chamber.

"This bill is to put euthanasia in a situation where animals receive less stress and a proper farewell, if you will," Knudson said.

Lethal injection, he said, is "relatively quick, animals don't suffer, and it's certainly a lot safer for the folks who have to put them down."

Utah is only one of four states that still allows the use of carbon monoxide gas chambers, he said.

Sen. David Hinkins, R-Orangeville, expressed concern about the cost of making the change to lethal injection.

"I have some counties and cities who are saying that this could be a hardship on them," said Hinkins, who voted against the bill.

Wendy Lavitt, vice president of the nonprofit pet rescue and adoption agency Nuzzles and Co., said the initial cost for shelters to make the change from euthanasia by gas chamber to lethal injection "is a factor."

"Certainly, in our organization, we are willing to help so that no county will be affected monetarily," Lavitt said.

In addition to Nuzzles and Co.'s willingness to help in the transition, the Humane Society has also offered up to $3,000 to any shelter that voluntarily transitions away from the use of gas chambers, she said.

"On behalf of my dogs of present and dogs of past, I would urge you to support the bill," Knudson said.

The Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Committee voted 8-2 to send the bill to the full Senate for consideration.

Sen. Daniel Thatcher, R-West Valley City, cast the other dissenting vote.

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Euthanasia reform moves forward in the senate - Deseret News

The pets had eaten a dog food called Hunk of Beef Au Jus, the best-selling offering from Evanger, an Illinois-based pet food company. The company quickly launched an investigation. After a month-long testing process, Evanger has zeroed in on the cause: the presence of pentobarbital -- a chemical that's used to put down pets.

For the first time in its 82-year manufacturing history, the company issued a recall. It affects all Hunk of Beef products produced the same week as the tainted can.

The recall affects 15 states: Washington, California, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

The lot numbers of the affected products are: 1816E03HB, 1816E04HB, 1816E06HB, 1816E07HB, and 1816E13HB. The cans were manufactured in June 2016, with an expiration date of June 2020.

Mael said she fed her four pugs Tito, Talula, Tinkerbell and Tank the canned wet food.

In a news release, Evanger's described the four-week investigation into the Mael pug's death.

Pentobarbital is very tightly controlled and, if an animal is euthanized, it's done so by a veterinarian.

But there's no regulation that says a vet then needs to put any kind of marker on the animal indicating it's been euthanized. Such a marker would ensure that product from euthanized animals didn't enter the food chain.

"We continue to investigate how this substance entered our raw material supply," the company said.

Evanger said it's ended its 40-year relationship with the meat supplier that sold them the contaminated meat.

"All Evanger's suppliers of meat products are USDA approved," the company said. "This beef supplier provides us with beef chunks from cows that are slaughtered in a USDA facility."

The company is paying for Mael's veterinary bills. It also made a donation to a local shelter in honor of the pug who died.

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Dog food recalled after euthanasia drug found in it - CNN

USA Today Network Zlati Meyer, Detroit Free Press Published 6:12 p.m. ET Feb. 6, 2017 | Updated 3 hours ago

Evanger's Hunk of Beef.(Photo: Recalls.gov)

DETROIT Evanger's is voluntarily recalling some of its dog food after a drug that is used toanesthetize or put down pets was found in it.

Pentobarbital was found inone lot of the dog food; five dogs got sick and one died, according to the Wheeling, Ill.-based company.

Fifteenstates are affected by the Hunk of Beef Au Jus recall. The 12-ounce cans were manufactured June 6-13 and sold in stores and online inWashington, California, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

As a precaution, Evanger's isrecalling Hunk of Beef products manufactured the same week, with lot numbers thatstart with1816E03HB, 1816E04HB, 1816E06HB, 1816E07HBand 1816E13HB, and expireJune 2020. The second half of the barcode on the back of the labelsays20109. The ill and deceased dogs ate from the1816E06HB13 lot.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is distributing information about the recall as well.

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All Evangers suppliers of meat products are USDA approved, the company said.

"We feel that we have been let down by our supplier, and in reference to the possible presence of pentobarbital, we have let down our customers," the company said in a press release on its website, adding that it's the first recall in 82 years of manufacturing.

Evanger's said it has terminated its relationship with that supplier after 40 years, though that company services "many other pet food companies."

Dr. Alan Lewis of DePorre Veterinary Hospital in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., advised dog owners to take the recall seriously.

"I would be vigilantof any of those things," he said. "Call yourvet to see if they have any more information. In most cases, theyre just taking abundance of caution."

Evanger's found out thatdogs became sick on New Years Eve and began what would become a four-week investigation, which included sending samples from the lot to an independent lab"to test for any toxin or bacteria we could possibly imagine. All of those tests came back negative.It was not until January 29th that we learned about the term, 'pentobarbital.'"

The company saidpentobarbitalis more of an issue in dry foods that get their ingredients from rendering plants, which Evanger's doesn't do.

Research suggests that dogs and cats can offer health-related benefits to their owners that range from stress-relief to encouraging higher levels of physical activity. Watch the video to learn the ways pets can improve your well-being. Time

In researching the supply chain, Evanger'slearned that "pentobarbital is very highly controlled, and that, if an animal is euthanized, it is done so by a veterinarian.Once this process has been done, there is absolutely no regulation that requires the certified vet to place any kind of marker on the animal indicating that it has been euthanized and guaranteeing that product from euthanized animals cannot enter the food chain."

Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-847-537-0102 10a.m.-5 p.m. CT Monday throughFriday.

Pentobarbital can causedrowsiness, dizziness, excitement, loss of balance,nauseaand sometimesdeath, said the company.

Evanger's is paying the ill dogs' vet bills and makinga donation to a local shelter in honor of Talula, one of four pugs owned by Nikki Mael and her familyin Washougal, Wash., who were sickened by the dog food. Talula died.

Follow Zlati Meyeron Twitter: @ZlatiMeyer

The worlds most expensive, well groomed and well trained dogs will be competing in New York Citys Madison Square Garden for the 141st Annual Westminster Dog Show, but this year, theres a twist. Buzz60

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Euthanasia drug found in dog food prompts recall - USA TODAY

PHOENIX - In an ambitious effort to become a "no kill community", staff at Maricopa County Animal Care and Control are hoping to form an aggressive partnership with community groups to help reduce euthanasia rates at the shelter.

Last year MCACC took in more than 35,000 animals -- about 4,700 of them had to be put down. Melissa Gable, a spokeswoman for the shelter said those numbers were already a big reduction from five years ago, but they hoped to do even better.

"In order to get to that next level, we're going to need even more help," said Gable.

She admitted that it was unrealistic to say that the shelter would never euthanize an animal, as it would not be humane for them to let a dog they knew to be very aggressive go home with a family, but they wanted to get as close to it as possible.

With new leadership now at helm, Gable said they were committed to working with existing partners, and thinking outside the box to form new partnerships with the community.

Right now MCACC works with more than 100 different groups and has a wide foster network of families who help rescue many dogs, but they hope to recruit more.

"These groups will drop everything they're doing and come to the shelter and pick up those dogs and make them available through their network," said Gable.

Foster orientation takes place once a month. Gable said they were alsowilling to work individually with those who were interested in fostering animals.

She encouraged the community to continue spaying and neutering.

The shelter faced some controversy in December when they had to euthanize pregnant female dogs. Gable said the decision to euthanize animals was never easy.

"I know that's difficult for people to hear. It's not something we want to do but the reality is there are so many animals coming into the shelter. If no one is able to step up and take those dogs, we don't have the ability to house pregnant moms in our facility because we're taking in 100 animals almost every single day," said Gable.

She said some of thestaff and volunteers took the criticism personally.

"I guarantee you there's not a single staff member that wakes up in the morning and says 'okay, I'm off to kill animals today'. It's not something anyone wants to do," said Gable.

"It's tough. Some of the employees here are young kids. For them to be called 'murderer' on Facebook, it's hard to hear," she added.

MCACC had started several programs to get more dogs into forever homes.

They were socializing dogs considered aggressive, and seeing big changes in their personalities.

"Because of that we're already putting down less animals," said Gable.

They were also working with the group Lost Dogs Arizona to help find the owners of all the lost dogs in the shelter. Gable estimated there were hundreds of lost dogs housed at MCACC. She said they were instructing staff to consider every dog as a "lost dog" and not as a stray.

Cindy Goetz with Lost Dogs Arizona said their social media page gave a lot of exposure to lost animals. They posted almost thirty new pictures a day and tens of thousands of people were liking and sharing the posts.

"We've had over 10,000 reunions since we've been around. Some amazing ones. A dog found a year and half later, a dog found at a campsite by another family, it's just amazing," said Goetz.

A town hall meeting is set to take place Wednesday between MCACC and community groups involved in the effort. It begins at 6 p.m. at Memorial Hall at Steele Indian School Park, at 300 E. Indian School Road.

If you would like to help, you can contact MCACC athttps://www.maricopa.gov/pets/adopt.aspx

Gable said everyone in the community could also help by simply sharing photos of shelter dogs, lost dogs, and encouraging others to adopt or rescue from the local shelter.

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County animal shelter aggressively working to cut euthanasia rate - ABC15 Arizona

A protester holds a picture of dead dogs during a demonstration in front of the Taiwan government's agriculture council, in Taipei, in 2013 (AFP Photo/SAM YEH)

Taipei (AFP) - Taiwan has banned euthanising animals in shelters, which follows the tragic suicide last year of a vet burdened with the task of putting down animals.

The law came into effect Saturday, two years after it was passed by parliament -- a period meant to prepare shelters for the ban.

But during the wait, animal lover Chien Chih-cheng took her own life with euthanasia drugs, reportedly upset at having to kill animals at the shelter she worked at.

Reports at the time said Chien was called a "butcher" by activists.

Her death sparked calls for authorities to improve conditions for animals and staff at shelters.

An animal welfare group, Life Conservationist Association, estimated more than 1.2 million animals not adopted from shelters have been put down since 1999.

"Animal protection in Taiwan has moved towards a new milestone," the association's executive director Ho Tsung-hsun said in a statement.

But Taiwan's Council of Agriculture warned the ban would lead to a deterioration in the quality of shelters through a surging intake or it may discourage the capture of strays.

"It's impossible for there to be no problems," said Wang Chung-shu, deputy chief of the animal husbandry department, according to The China Times.

He said Taiwan's ban was "quite idealised", adding that manpower was a problem because the vet's suicide had had a "chilling effect" on the sector, according to the report.

Even before the legislation, the number of animals being put down had been steadily declining.

Last year, 12.38 percent of the 64,276 animals in public shelters were euthanised, according to official statistics.

That compares with 94,741 animals in shelters in 2014, of which 26.45 percent were put down.

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Taiwan bans euthanasia of stray animals - Yahoo - Yahoo News

Evanger's Hunk of Beef.(Photo: Recalls.gov)

Evanger's is voluntarily recalling some of its dog food after a drug that is used toanesthetize or put down pets was found in it.

Michigan is one of 15 states affected by the Hunk of Beef Au Jus recall.

Pentobarbital was found inone lot of the dog food; five dogs got sick and one died, according to the Wheeling, Ill.-based company.

The 12-ounce cans were manufactured June 6-13 and sold in stores and online inWashington, California, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

As a precaution, Evanger's isrecalling Hunk of Beef products manufactured the same week, with lot numbers thatstart with1816E03HB, 1816E04HB, 1816E06HB, 1816E07HBand 1816E13HB, and expireJune 2020. The second half of the barcode on the back of the labelsays20109. The ill and deceased dog ate from the1816E06HB13 lot.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is distributing information about the recall as well.

All Evangers suppliers of meat products are USDA approved, the company said.

Related:

DETROIT FREE PRESS

Cat food recall for 9Lives, EverPet and Special Kitty

"We feel that we have been let down by our supplier, and in reference to the possible presence of pentobarbital, we have let down our customers," the company said in a press release on its Web site, adding that it's the first recall in 82 years of manufacturing.

Evanger's said it has terminated its relationship with that supplier after 40 years, though that company services "many other pet food companies."

Dr. Alan Lewis of DePorre Veterinary Hospital in Bloomfield Hills advised dog owners to take the recall seriously.

"I would be vigilantof any of those things," he said. "Call yourvet to see if they have any more information. In most cases, theyre just taking abundance of caution."

Evanger's found out thatdogs became sick on New Years Eve and began what would become a four-week investigation, which included sending samples from the lot to an independent lab"to test for any toxin or bacteria we could possibly imagine. All of those tests came back negative.It was not until January 29th that we learned about the term, 'pentobarbital.'"

The company saidpentobarbitalis more of an issue in dry foods that get their ingredients from rendering plants, which Evanger's doesn't do.

In researching the supply chain, Evanger'slearned that "pentobarbital is very highly controlled, and that, if an animal is euthanized, it is done so by a veterinarian.Once this process has been done, there is absolutely no regulation that requires the certified vet to place any kind of marker on the animal indicating that it has been euthanized and guaranteeing that product from euthanized animals cannot enter the food chain."

Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-847-537-0102 10 a.m.-5 p.m. CT Monday throughFriday.

Pentobarbital can causedrowsiness, dizziness, excitement, loss of balance,nauseaand sometimesdeath, said the company.

Evanger's is paying the ill dogs' vet bills and makinga donation to a local shelter in honor of Talula the Pug.

Contact Zlati Meyer: 313-223-4439 or zmeyer@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @ZlatiMeyer

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Dog food recalled after discovery of euthanasia drug - Detroit Free Press

Our task is difficult but urgent: to show that people who are old and ill nevertheless have value

There has been a new but entirely predictable development in the practice of euthanasia in Holland, as this magazine reports. A woman suffering from dementia has been executed by lethal injection, having first been sedated with drugged coffee, and then having been held down by her relatives when she attempted to struggle.

It is very hard to see how anyone can justify this sort of behaviour, which not only goes against the law of God, which commands us to respect all life, but even goes against the usual practices of those who support euthanasia, who generally stress its voluntary nature. There was nothing voluntary here. All the victims actions indicated that she was not co-operating with those trying to kill her; and as a demented person, she was not capable of making an informed choice to die. It is true that she had expressed a preference for euthanasia four years previously, but in the meantime she might well have changed her mind.

The same article also gives us another chilling piece of information, this time from Canada:

A new study has predicted that Canadas new euthanasia laws, which closely resemble those in the Netherlands, could cut as much as 84 million from its annual health budget.

Researchers from the University of Calgary identified the substantial savings that could be made from reducing end-of-life care. The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, said that health care at the end of life was intensive and could go on for months. Euthanasia, however, would cost the state just 15 per patient.

As always, the old adage follow the money has a lot of wisdom in it. If we see old people, and demented people in particular, simply as useless mouths and a drain on resources, then this sort of argument becomes a powerful one. The Church now has an urgent task, and a difficult one: to make people realise that people who are old and ill, and who add nothing to the economy, nevertheless have value, intrinsic value; and that to kill these people off not only harms them, but harms all of society. In other words, the Church has to stress the intrinsic worth of every human being, something which transcends their economic productivity.

If we were to see people purely in terms of what they can produce, what sort of society would that makes us?

Given that we all know that the funds for social care in this country are limited, we need to prepare to defend society from the threat of euthanasia here in Britain. We could be the next Canada or Holland. Above all, as this case, and others like it, has made clear, euthanasia, which starts as voluntary, soon becomes compulsory. As such it is a threat to us all.

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Once euthanasia is voluntary, it will become irresistible. Just ask the Dutch - Catholic Herald Online (blog)

A Dutch doctor who ordered an elderly dementia patients family to hold her down as she was given a lethal euthanasia injection has been cleared of any wrongdoing.

The doctor at a nursing home in the Netherlands, where euthanasia is legal, was investigated following the death of the unnamed woman who had expressed a wish to die when the time was right.

The Catholic News Agency reported that the woman woke up despite the sleep-inducing drug she had been given in her coffee and tried to resist the procedure.

The doctor then asked the relatives of the woman, said to be aged over 80, to restrain her while she administered the lethal injection.

The senior doctor had determined the time was right because of a recent deterioration in the womans condition.

I am convinced that the doctor acted in good faith, and we would like to see more clarity on how such cases are handled in the future, said Jacob Kohnstamm, chairman of the Regional Review Committee, which considered the case.

The case will be further examined by the Dutch courts to clarify the laws around euthanasia and determine whether doctors who carry out the procedure should be prosecuted if they are found to have acted in good faith.

The Dutch Parliament is considering revising the euthanasia laws to allow anyone older than 75 who is tired of life to have the right to assisted suicide, widening the current restriction which limits the practice to the terminally ill.

The Netherlands was the first country in the world to decriminalise euthanasia and assisted suicide in 2002, but has had several high-profile cases of doctor-assisted suicide in recent years.

In 2015, there were more than 5,000 euthanasia deaths in the country which represents a leap of 50 per cent in the past five years.

Only four of these 5,306 deaths were found by officials to have involved irregularities.

Psychiatric patients can be put to death at their own request as can under 18s. Those aged between 12 and 16 wishing to die must also have the consent of their parents, but 16-18s can take the decision themselves.

This has led to fierce opposition from numerous groups, including church leaders and psychiatrists who do not believe young girls and boys or the mentally ill have the capacity to make such decisions.

Those opposed to euthanasia have highlighted the potential pitfalls of allowing doctor-assisted death for those with dementia or mental health conditions.

A new study has found that Canadas new euthanasia laws, which closely resemble those of the Netherlands, could save the state as much as 84 million from its annual health care budget, with lethal injections said to cost just 15 per patient.

Robert Flello, the Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent South, told the Catholic Herald the implications of the Canadian study were absolutely horrific.

It reinforces anecdotal evidence coming out of Holland that doctors are rationing health care by using euthanasia, said Mr Flello, a co-chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Pro-Life Group.

Quite frankly, it terrifies me, he said. We have issues with bed-blocking and if we ever had euthanasia or even so-called assisted dying in this country then we would have a real issue with cuts to our NHS being softened by actually just killing people off.

Euthanasia has been debated in the UK Parliament, with the last right-to-die private members bill defeated in the Commons in 2015.

Public opinion in the UK shows the majority are in favour of the right to die, with the largest ever poll conducted on assisted suicide finding 82 per cent were in favour in 2015.

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Doctor who asked dementia patient's family to hold her down while she gave lethal injection cleared - The Independent

Taiwan has banned euthanising animals in shelters, which follows the tragic suicide last year of a vet burdened with the task of putting down animals.

The law came into effect Saturday, two years after it was passed by parliament a period meant to prepare shelters for the ban.

But during the wait, animal lover Chien Chih-cheng took her own life with euthanasia drugs, reportedly upset at having to kill animals at the shelter at which she worked.

Reports at the time said Chien was called a "butcher" by activists.

Her death sparked calls for authorities to improve conditions for animals and staff at shelters.

An animal welfare group, Life Conservationist Association, estimated more than 1.2 million animals not adopted from shelters have been put down since 1999.

"Animal protection in Taiwan has moved towards a new milestone," the association's executive director Ho Tsung-hsun said in a statement.

But Taiwan's Council of Agriculture warned the ban would lead to a deterioration in the quality of shelters through a surging intake or it may discourage the capture of strays.

"It's impossible for there to be no problems," said Wang Chung-shu, deputy chief of the animal husbandry department, according to The China Times.

He said Taiwan's ban was "quite idealized", adding that manpower was a problem because the vet's suicide had had a "chilling effect" on the sector, according to the report.

RELATED: 'Euthanized' Dog Rises from the Dead

Even before the legislation, the number of animals being put down had been steadily declining.

Last year, 12.38 percent of the 64,276 animals in public shelters were euthanized, according to official statistics.

That compares with 94,741 animals in shelters in 2014, of which 26.45 percent were put down.

WATCH VIDEO: China's Controversial Dog Meat Festival

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New Law in Taiwan Halts Euthanasia of Stray Animals - Seeker - Seeker

ATLANTA, Georgia An animal control captain in Georgia is setting the record straight after rumors circulated on social media suggesting workers at a shelter were planning tokill any dogs that had not been adopted when the shelter temporarily closes for repairs.

Clayton County Animal Control Captain Anthony Thuman saidonline talk of mass euthanasia is absolutely not true.

The department as a whole is very committed to these animals, Thuman said.

WGCL received emails from concerned dog lovers across the nation worried that more than 50 dogs would be put down. The controversy was sparked shortly after animal control officials put an alert on Facebook, warning that one of their shelters would be temporarily closing for renovations, which meant they needed to find new homes for more than 130 dogs.

We have been very fortunate [and] received a great response from folks to find adopters, Thuman said.

Avolunteer with the Ginny Milner Rescue saidworkers within animal control stressed to them that any dogs left behind would be killed.

Not true, saidThuman.

We will find alternate placement for the dogs, whether they be at a secondary facility, or reaching out again to some of the rescue groups, Thuman said.

As of Friday afternoon, February 3rd,officials posted on Facebook that the shelter had been emptied.

The renovation is expected to shut the shelter down for at least two weeks.

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Mass euthanasia rumors prompt adoptions en masse at animal control shelter in Georgia - fox6now.com