DEAR READERS: The Supreme Court's decision on California's Proposition 12 came out in late May. The measure was originally passed by California voters in 2018, with 63% voting in favor, but has been held up in legal challenges.

As ABCNews.com reports, "Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for a five-justice majority, said that California voters overwhelmingly endorsed the 'ethical pork' law in 2018 and have the right to decide what products appear on store shelves."

Some background from HumaneSociety.org: "Proposition 12 requires that mother pigs, hens used for eggs, and calves raised for veal be given at least enough space to stand up, turn around and extend their limbs. The law also bans the in-state sale of pork, eggs and veal produced via extreme confinement."

SentientMedia.org reports: "The Court upheld the rights of California to require pork sold in the state meet certain animal welfare requirements. Notably, all nine justices rejected the National Pork Producers Council's argument that Prop 12 is unconstitutional because it has indirect effects on pork producers beyond California -- (pointing out that) 'virtually all state laws create ripple effects beyond their borders.'"

As Gorsuch wrote in the decision, "Companies that choose to sell products in various States must normally comply with the laws of those various States. While the Constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list."

I doubt that this Supreme Court decision had anything to do with compassionate concern and humane ethics for factory-farmed animals. Rather, it is aligned with the intent to put greater responsibility on the states, especially regarding other ethical issues such as reproductive rights. However, this decision will have a ripple effect across the factory farming industry that has, for too long, been insulated from public censure and accountability for animals' health and welfare.

DEAR DR. FOX: It's been about 20 years since my beloved cat, Orso, passed away from natural causes. He used to hop onto the bed with my wife and me and do something like a fandango around our feet before settling down.

A week after his death, my wife and I were in bed at our cottage (about 150 miles away from our Toronto home) and each of us had this same experience: Orso doing his fandango at the foot of our bed, moving from right to left, then stopping. Neither of us spoke until after it happened and we each described it the same way. It hasn't happened again.

While I consider myself to be an agnostic, I agree with you that this phenomenon disconfirms our materialistic worldview -- or, to quote Shakespeare, "There are more things in heaven and Earth ... than are dreamt of in your philosophy." Buddhist beliefs seem to be more accepting of this kind of a transition phase after corporeal death. -- L.P., Toronto, Canada

DEAR L.P.: Many thanks for sharing your experience of an afterlife manifestation of your deceased cat. Such experiences are too often dismissed as a product of our own brain-conditioning, but when two or more people experience the same phenomenon at the same time, that theory is moot.

I would like to hear from other readers sharing similar experiences after their animal companions have died. For more details, see this post on my website: drfoxonehealth.com/post/animal-spirits-companion-animal-communications-after-death.

MEDICATION TO FACILITATE CAT RESCUE-ADOPTION

Cats rescued from hoarding situations were more amenable to human interaction after being given a dose of gabapentin, researchers reported in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. Also, they were rehabilitated and adoptable sooner than cats that received the same rehabilitation program without the drug. The rehabilitation protocol developed by Bailey Eagan, a graduate student in the University of British Columbia's Animal Welfare Program, has been a "game changer" for cats at a shelter in the province, says Kim Monteith, the shelter's manager of animal behavior and welfare. (Full story: CBC News, Canada, May 21)

MEALWORM PET FOOD PROGRESS

France-based Ynsect worked with veterinary nutritionists to develop a nutritional product made with mealworms that can be incorporated into pet foods, and the company recently acquired its first U.S. production facility in Nebraska. The product is high in fiber, omega-3s and protein; low in ash; and has a slightly nutty taste. Ynsect is developing feed for wild birds and backyard chickens and working with other companies on pet food formulations. (Full story: Fast Company.com, May 18)

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: I want to share with you some personal reflections on my career and concerns that are detailed in my latest book, "Animals and Nature First."

One of my greatest joys is when my efforts, writings and consultations help improve the health and well-being of animals, whether wild, companion or farmed. I have served on several national committees of biomedical research scientists, veterinarians and animal scientists to advance the standards of animal care for laboratory and farmed animals. I have given lectures to professional organizations; universities; state and national egg, poultry, dairy, beef and pork producers; the national associations of state governors and of public health; and numerous organizations involved in environmental conservation, wildlife and domesticated animal rights. I have lectured to cat and dog owners in several countries about the behavior and basic needs and care of their animal companions. I also advised the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War to improve canine soldiers' stress-resilience and capacity to work under combat conditions.

As a veterinarian with doctoral degrees in medical science and animal behavior/ethology, I followed this conservative path in good faith to help improve how animals and the natural environment are treated. Looking back now over half a century, I still see more debate today than effective legislation and action in most of these sectors of animal concern and public and private responsibility.

The joy to which I alluded is tied to my childhood joy of coming to know and care for rescued dogs and cats, and also from observing wild animals in nature, all of which evoked awe and wonder. But my love for animals at the core was conflicted and compromised in my earlier years by my unquestioning acceptance of cultural norms: enjoying the Sunday roast lamb dinner and Christmas turkey; making collections of birds' eggs, butterflies and other insects; going fishing; and later, experimenting on animals as a biomedical research scientist.

I began to examine and question these cultural norms, and my involvement in them, when my own research in animal behavior, development and communication convinced me that other animals are more like us than they are different. They have interests and lives of their own. As such, they have the right not only to be treated as humanely as possible within the various contexts of human use, but to be liberated from all conditions that are dispiriting or harmful to their ethos, their intrinsic nature and their essential needs -- physical, emotional, social and environmental.

But this is all wishful thinking so long as the "pleasure principle" of killing animals for sport, trophies and fur overrides reason and compassion, and as long as economic interests and lack of international laws to protect animals and their habitats prevail over the rights of animals. The latter is exemplified by the traffic and trade in wildlife, both legal and illegal. This has opened the floodgates of species extinction and pandemics.

The genetic engineering, cloning and patenting of animals, primarily to enhance their utility to humans, is ethically questionable, especially at a time when scientific and medical resources are urgently needed for planetary restoration, public health and food security.

Now that more veterinary colleges and other animal-related disciplines, especially in Europe, are including courses in ethology, animal welfare and the law in their curricula (which should be mandatory), I see a glimmer of hope. The possibility of a more humane society where all creatures are not treated as mere objects or commodities, but are embraced equally within the scope of our moral and empathic concern, is within our reach.

DEAR DR. FOX: My 3-year-old American basset hound has developed an antebrachial deformity of her left front leg. She is on a glucosamine/chondroitin supplement as well as an anti-inflammatory, and we have shortened her walks. Her weight is appropriate for her size.

I understand that this condition can be common with the breed, and that surgical correction is the gold standard in severe cases. But is there any value to splinting or wrapping her leg during walks? Any other nonsurgical options we should consider for her? -- J.F., Trenton, New Jersey

DEAR J.F.: This deformity is, regrettably, all too common in the dwarf (achondroplastic) breeds with bent and shortened legs. Surgical correction is no "gold standard"; rather, the breed standards need to be changed by organizations like the American Kennel Club to prevent the perpetuation of extreme physical deformities in many breeds. For details, see my critique on this issue, "Recovering Canine Health," on my website: drfoxonehealth.com/post/recovering-canine-health-and-the-natural-dog.

A daily massage, as per my book "The Healing Touch for Dogs," plus a few drops of fish oil and 1/2 teaspoon of powdered turmeric and ginger daily in the dog's food may help. You may be able to avoid corrective surgery.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: I am concerned about the long-term adverse consequences of insecticides given to companion animals externally -- whether as spot-on applications or released from impregnated collars -- on both the animals' health and that of the humans in the home. The latter face exposure through petting contact and in the ambient environment.

Veterinarian Joe Cummins' letter in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association ("Parkinson's disease and the veterinary profession," March 1, 2021) questions if his later-in-life development of this incapacitating disease might be caused by "repeated exposure to flea and tick collars" in the animals he attended to during his career. I would also extend this awareness of exposure risk to dog groomers and anyone working in tanneries and slaughterhouses/animal processing facilities, considering the fact that insecticides are widely used by the livestock and poultry industries. K.A. Jennings et al, in their study, "Human exposure to fipronil from dogs treated with Frontline" (Veterinary and Human Toxicology, October 2002), quantified human contamination from touching dogs treated with this insecticide.

It would seem that many autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's have multiple potential causes. Several studies have linked these diseases to farmers' exposure to insecticides, fungicides and herbicides, as well as non-farming people's living in communities close to agrichemical-treated fields. For a general overview, see beyondpesticides.org and americanscientist.org/article/the-rise-of-parkinsons-disease.

Authors Freya Kamel and Jane A. Hoppin, in their extensive 2004 review of clinical and research studies of these concerns entitled "Association of Pesticide Exposure with Neurologic Dysfunction and Disease," conclude that "there is mounting evidence that chronic moderate pesticide exposure is neurotoxic and increases risk of Parkinson's disease" (Environmental Health Perspectives, June 2004).

The precautionary principle of risk reduction is an essential component of preventive health care maintenance. This means reducing the use of and human exposure to externally applied insecticides to companion animals in particular, and to farmed animals with the adoption of organically certified husbandry practices that preclude and negate the need for such chemicals.

DEAR DR. FOX: My dog is a small terrier mix, 17 pounds. She has kidney problems. The one thing my vet said not to do was to feed her chicken, but it seems like everything has some form of chicken in it. What do you suggest I feed her? -- L.T. (no location given)

DEAR L.T.: I am not sure why your vet said no chicken; some protein is needed, albeit at a low level, for dogs and cats with deteriorating kidney function. The low level is the key. As you likely know, if such animals are fed too much protein, it can lead to uremic poisoning (kidney failure/buildup of waste in the body).

This article on my website may help improve your dog's condition and provide some quality of life with food that she will enjoy, and that will not cause problems for her kidneys. See drfoxonehealth.com/post/care-for-dogs-cats-with-chronic-kidney-disease.

DEAR DR. FOX: I am so grateful for your compassionate heart for ALL life. Although I presently do not have a pet, I always read your column in our local newspaper.

My husband and I hope to do some extended traveling, and we do not feel it's right to leave one's pet -- a member of the family -- for extended lengths of time, even at one's home. For that reason, I hope to volunteer at our local animal shelter. We have also thought of doing some home exchanges with other travelers who need someone to take care of their pets.

Do you have any other ideas for those presently pet-less? -- P.S.G., Cape Coral, Florida

DEAR P.S.G.: I appreciate you sharing your sensible view that having one or more companion animals would be unfair, since you want to travel. During your trips, they would have to be boarded or have in-home care-providers come by, either of which would be stressful as well as costly.

However, many dogs are good road travelers, if that is your intent. I do not advise air travel or "shipping" them by plane.

I like your idea of taking in other people's animals when they are away for a short vacation or hospital stay. Local community networks can facilitate such endeavors. Also, consider taking shelter dogs for walks, or grooming and socializing with shelter cats.

I have raised the issue of people taking extended vacations -- from ocean cruises to international flights and even eco-safaris -- in terms of their carbon footprint. That issue stands, and now, even if vaccinated against COVID-19, there are evident health concerns with international travel. I think it preferable to enjoy what America's national parks and other wild places have to offer. These need more public involvement in their protection and restoration.

International travel is costly and the money does not always benefit the local communities whose dependence on tourism is a regrettable reality. Such dependence is no foundation for a secure and sustainable economy in times of global pandemics and other uncertainties, both political and environmental.

BE ALERT FOR SCAMS IF YOUR DOG IS LOST OR STOLEN

Two people who posted information on social media about their missing pets received calls from a number purporting to belong to the San Francisco Animal Care and Control Office claiming that the pet had been found and the owner would have to make a cash or gift card payment to get the pet back. "It's a scam," said the agency's Virginia Donohue. (Full story: KNTV-TV San Francisco, May 12)

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)