Nashville Paw News

FROM NEWS CHANNEL 4 / A News Channel 4 I-Team investigation reveals more than 24,000 complaints in 2008 about animals getting sick from a medication designed to keep them healthy. One hundred-ten pets died that year after using medicine sold by Sergeant’s Pet Care Products, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Two Middle Tennessee pet owners said they used products made by Sergeant’s, and not only did their animals get sick, one of them died. ”It made me sick. I thought to myself, ‘I’m trying to help my animals, and I’ve killed one of them,’” said pet owner Tammy Nauman.

But Caryn Stichler, vice president of marketing for Sergeant’s, said if the company’s products are used properly, there should be no problems. ”We feel very comfortable that our products are safe and effective,” Stichler said.

The I-Team began investigating Sergeant’s medication after several Middle Tennessee pet owners contacted the I-Team about how their animals had suffered after using the medicine.

Nauman said she put the flea and tick medicine, made specifically for cats, on four of her cats. All four started twitching and scratching. One of her cats, Hal, died three days later.

Melissa Harris put the flea and tick medicine, made by the same company, on all five of her dogs. She said all five quickly started shaking and crying. ”To see each one of them with the symptoms was heartbreaking,” Harris said.

Both Nauman and Harris said they had no idea the EPA was investigating all types of topical flea and tick medications, the type of product applied directly to the skin.

In the EPA’s findings in 2008, there were 44,000 complaints of pets having complications from topical medicine, and 600 pets died. The EPA told the I-Team half of those complaints they received were about Sergeants products, and 110 of the deaths were reported after pet owners put Sergeant’s products on their animals.  READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.