DEAR READERS: See the following post from pet food safety advocate Susan Thixton:

"A new white paper, 'Raw Safety: Mitigating the 20x FDA Recall Risk of Fresh Pet Food,' was recently published in an industry website, written by a food irradiation company. Due to the many misleading statements made in the paper, we assume it was published to scare pet owners so badly they would be open to having a raw pet food treated with irradiation.

"The most concerning statement in the white paper is this: 'Raw Pet Foods Are 20x More Likely To Be Recalled.' ... (However, based on) FDA recall data -- number of recall incidents, specific to pathogenic bacteria recalls from 2018 through 2025 -- non-raw recalls (counted for) 42%. Raw recalls (counted for) 58%. Definitely NOT 20x more." (Read the full article here: truthaboutpetfood.com/they-want-to-irradiate-your-raw-pet-food.)

Dr. Fox here: Food irradiation can destroy essential nutrients and create radiolytic breakdown products that may put human and animal consumers at risk.

According to the Center for Food Safety, "These irradiation byproducts include a variety of mutagens -- substances that can cause gene mutations, polyploidy (an abnormal condition in which cells contain more than two sets of chromosomes), chromosome aberrations (often associated with cancerous cells) and dominant lethal mutations (a change in a cell that prevents it from reproducing) in human cells. Making matters worse, many mutagens are also carcinogens.

"Research also shows that irradiation forms volatile toxic chemicals such as benzene and toluene, chemicals known, or suspected, to cause cancer and birth defects. Irradiation also causes stunted growth in lab animals fed irradiated foods. ... The FDA has never tested the safety of these byproducts. Irradiation has also been shown to cause the low-level production of furans (similar to cancer-causing dioxins) in fruit juice." (Read more here: centerforfoodsafety.org/issues/1039/food-irradiation/about-food-irradiation.)

I am opposed to feeding raw animal products to companion animals because of bacterial risks, especially to those animals who may be immunocompromised. The so-called BARF (bones and raw food) diet for dogs, promoted by a veterinarian in the U.K. years ago, ignores the reality of extensive bacterial contamination of meat and poultry products from factory farms, many strains of which have evolved antibiotic resistance. Gamma irradiation will kill these bacteria, but the simple, safe alternative is light cooking.

The only raw foods dogs should be given are fruits and vegetables such as blueberries, carrots and broccoli. Dogs can even thrive on well-formulated vegan diets. Read more here: sites.tufts.edu/petfoodology/2025/10/27/raw-pet-food-research-update.

DOG FOOD ADVISORY FROM FDA

The FDA has issued an advisory on eight lots of Raaw Energy dog foods that tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes, salmonella or multiple pathogens. The products were tested by authorities in Connecticut and New Jersey after Connecticut officials received a report about a dog illness. The FDA has recommended a recall, but the manufacturer has not complied. For more, visit FDA.gov.

FREEZE-DRIED PET FOODS: A SAFETY ISSUE?

Harmful bacteria, many now resistant to antibiotics, are prevalent in meat and poultry products from inhumane factories, and many fish are contaminated with mercury, heavy metals, "forever chemicals" and microplastics. For these reasons, I advise against feeding raw and freeze-dried ingredients of animal origin to cats and dogs.

With air-dried pet foods, the drying process removes the moisture so that microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and molds are less likely to grow. However, it does not effectively destroy any such substances that are already present.

The same is true with freeze-drying. According to the Pennsylvania State Extension Service, "Raw and cooked meat and eggs can be freeze-dried. However, the freeze-drying process does not kill harmful bacteria that can cause foodborne illness. Therefore, it is important to carefully label raw meat and handle it appropriately before and after freeze-drying." Read more here: extension.psu.edu/lets-preserve-freeze-drying.

An additional concern are bacterial endotoxins: toxic components from the outer membrane of dead gram-negative bacteria, such as E. coli and salmonella. Also, toxins from molds -- such as aflatoxin, especially found in contaminated kibble -- frequently sicken pets. These heat-stable toxins survive cooking, enter the bloodstream and can cause systemic inflammation. They are primarily found in meat, dairy and high-fat products. As biologically adapted scavengers, dogs may be somewhat adapted to deal with endotoxins in carrion and contaminated pet foods, but in cases of inflammatory bowel disease in dogs, the food source must always be suspected.

For more details, see this review by veterinarian Dr. Jean Hofve: littlebigcat.com/pet-food-contaminants. And for more insights about pet foods, plus recipes to make your own, read the book that I co-authored with two other veterinarians: "Not Fit for a Dog: The Truth About Manufactured Cat and Dog Food."

(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: Please see the following excerpt from a recent study about the ways that diet, public health and the environment interact.

The study's conclusion states: “This paper offers an in-depth analysis of the intricate relationship between evolving dietary practices and the health trajectories of non-communicable diseases, with particular emphasis on pressing global concerns such as the obesity epidemic, climate change, and eco-environmental sustainability. ...

"An increasing amount of scientific evidence supports the role of planetary health diets in facilitating sustainable food transitions, as demonstrated by comparisons between resource-intensive animal-based food production and more sustainable plant-based alternatives. These comparisons also reveal the ecological footprints of different dietary patterns within the framework of planetary boundaries. Furthermore, plant-based diets have been shown to reduce the prevalence of diet-induced obesity.

"The Earth’s finite resources -- particularly in relation to food and water security -- pose significant challenges to global public health, necessitating further exploration. The interplay between food production systems, dietary patterns and environmental sustainability calls for a reimagining of nutritional health transitions to promote both human health and eco-environmental resilience in the Anthropocene.”

See the full study: "Planetary health diets: sustainable nutrition transition for obesity epidemic and eco-environmental sustainability in the Anthropocene" by Alice Li, published in Academia Nutrition and Dietetics, 2025.

DEAR DR. FOX: My cat, nearly 18 years old, has a megacolon. I refuse to put him down, as he’s showing no signs of pain or nausea. I have been giving him IV fluids (at the vet's direction) and laxative powder. The vet gave him an enema and also prescribed cisapride. He’s been on it for just over 24 hours and still hasn't pooped, but I think it can take a few days.

Any advice would be welcome. He is eating wet food and currently drinking lots of water, which is good. -- S.A., Sydney, Australia

DEAR S.A.: Cisapride is a commonly used and effective medication for treating mild to moderate feline megacolon and chronic constipation by stimulating the smooth muscles of the colon. It helps move feces through the digestive tract, preventing painful impaction.

It’s great that your senior cat is drinking fluids. It may also help to add cooked pumpkin or pulverized lima beans to his wet food. Begin with one half-teaspoon of each mixed in with his food, daily, then increase to a teaspoon of each.

As per my book “The Healing Touch for Cats,” giving your cat a deep, gentle abdominal massage for five to 10 minutes, three or four times a day, can be a helpful complementary therapy to encourage evacuation. Adding some physical activity, like chasing a laser pointer or feather toy, could also help.

ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS OF FLEA AND TICK INSECTICIDES

Isoxazoline flea and tick treatments for pets might contaminate the environment and harm insects that feed on dung, according to a study in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Researchers found the drugs in pet feces even after treatment had ended. They said fluralaner and lotilaner pose significant risks to insects and ecosystems.

“Our preliminary assessment suggests that pet ectoparasiticides may be detrimental to the environment,” the researchers write in their conclusion. (See the study "Prolonged fecal elimination of isoxazoline antiparasitic drugs in dogs and cats: Is there a risk for nontarget species?" by Philippe Berny et al., published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 2026.)

This is bad news for bugs, but also for the wider ecosystem. Insects are essential for processes like nutrient cycling, soil health and pest control, so falling victim to environmental contaminants may disrupt the already-delicate equilibrium that exists.

As I have advised repeatedly in this column, the use of these external insecticides on companion animals should be prohibited since they also put children (and anyone else who pets the animals) at risk.

DOGS CAN LEARN NEW WORDS BY OVERHEARING

Some "gifted" dogs can not only learn the names of hundreds of objects, but they can learn new words just by listening in on conversations between human family members, new research shows. These abilities put them on par with the language-recognition skills of toddlers at about 18 months old.

Only a few animals, including bonobos and an African grey parrot, have been observed to recognize objects through unique names. Learning words indirectly through watching human interactions is even harder.

CLEVER COW USES TOOLS TO SCRATCH HERSELF

Veronika, a pet dairy cow who lives on an Austrian farm, can use a utensil to scratch and groom parts of her body -- the first documented instance of tool use in cattle. Over the years, she’s advanced from sticks to implements as large and heavy as brooms; she switches between using the handle and the bristles to scratch different areas of her body. The use of a single tool for more than one purpose has only been seen before in chimpanzees and humans, says cognitive biologist Alice Auersperg. I would add crows to that list!

(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: The continuing news reports about the Trump administration's dismantling of environmental protections -- primarily, cutting back on regulations in order to eliminate compliance costs for various polluting industries -- should be a wake-up call for all citizens. Putting profits before public health and the environment is an unconscionable crime against humanity.

The latest instance is the Environmental Protection Agency's abandonment of a rule that would have strengthened limits on fine-particle pollution. The particles in question come from burning fossil fuels -- notably from vehicular traffic, oil refineries and power plants. They can exacerbate asthma and have been linked to heart attack, stroke and lung cancer. Their potential contribution to Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases is also considerable. The public health costs of this change far outweigh the savings to polluters.

According to the EPA, these particles "can be carried over long distances by wind and then settle on (the) ground or water. Depending on their chemical composition, the effects of this settling may include: making lakes and streams acidic, changing the nutrient balance in coastal waters and large river basins, depleting the nutrients in soil, damaging sensitive forests and farm crops, affecting the diversity of ecosystems, and contributing to acid rain effects."

For more details, visit: epa.gov/pm-pollution/health-and-environmental-effects-particulate-matter-pm.

The impact of these fine particles on wildlife, especially in the burning of the Amazon forest, may play a significant role in many species' declining numbers. Air pollutants can poison wildlife, causing endocrine function disruption, organ injury, increased vulnerability to stresses and diseases, lower reproductive success and even death.

For more details, visit: canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/air-pollution/quality-environment-economy/ecosystem/wild-animals.html.

On Jan. 27, the U.S. withdrew from the Paris agreement on climate change, becoming the only country in the world to abandon its commitment to slow global warming. Climate change is not a “hoax,” as many claim, but a reality, and extreme climatic events cost the U.S. billions of dollars annually.

Rather than bringing more federal police into America’s cities and allowing ever-more petroleum-burning traffic, it would be prudent to bring in more trees. We should restore our forests and construct towers of irrigated greenery to improve air quality and public health.

The traditional Japanese practice of forest bathing (deliberately spending time in nature) is good for our health because forests are cooler and less polluted than cities. Researchers suggest that the misty air near sources of moving water, such as forest streams, can inundate us with beneficial microbes and charged ions. Also, the phytoncides that plants release, which give wood its smell and repel certain parasites, might also have immune benefits for people. For details, visit: nature.com/articles/d41586-026-00105-x.

Some readers may recall the "deep ecology" movement and one of its founders, John Seed. I recommend the 1988 book he co-authored, "Thinking Like a Mountain: Towards a Council of All Beings."

DOGS AS DISEASE DETECTORS

We know that dogs can help heal us emotionally, and that some of them can sense when we are physically ill. Anecdotes abound about dogs "sniffing out" cancer in a human before a diagnosis was made. But now, dogs can help other dogs!

Five dogs previously trained to detect the scents of human and animal diseases correctly identified 70% of blood serum samples from dogs with hemangiosarcoma, suggesting that trained dogs could effectively screen other dogs for the aggressive cancer, according to a study in The Veterinary Journal. The findings also suggest that hemangiosarcoma has a distinct scent profile, and that identifying specific compounds associated with the disease could lead to the development of an “electronic nose” for annual screenings, says veterinarian Cynthia Otto, director of the Penn Vet Working Dog Center. (Full story: University of Pennsylvania, Jan. 15)

FAMILY DOGS MAY ALTER TEENS’ MICROBIOMES

Owning a dog may support adolescents’ mental health by altering their microbiomes. Researchers found that 13-year-olds with a dog at home had lower delinquency and aggression scores than their peers who didn’t have dogs. Saliva samples from dog owners contained more Streptococcus and Prevotella species; a higher abundance of Streptococcus has been linked to a lower likelihood of delinquent behavior.

See the study "Dog ownership during adolescence alters the microbiota and improves mental health" by Eiji Miyauchi et al., published in iScience, December 2025.

(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.)