You should think about protecting your pets from secondhand smoke. According to researchers at Oklahoma State University, secondhand smoke has been determined cancer-causing for household pets, such as dogs, cats, and birds

"There have been a number of scientific papers recently that have reported the significant health threat secondhand smoke poses to pets," says Dr. Carolynn MacAllister, an Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Service veterinarian. "Secondhand smoke has been associated with oral cancer and lymphoma in cats, lung and nasal cancer in dogs, as well as lung cancer in birds."

The news about smoking just keeps getting worse and worse. When we will get the hint?

More than 47 percent of people view their pets as family members, according to a 2002 American Veterinary Medical Association survey. It makes sense then that people are routinely treating their pets for ailments that might strike a family member -- like arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, allergies, dementia, obesity, and yes, cancer.

New studies show that Americans are stuffing their pets with more drugs than ever before. They are medicating their dogs, cats, and sometimes other pets as much as they medicate themselves -- and they are doing it with many of the same human drugs they use for themselves, like steroids for inflammation, antibiotics for infection, anti-depressants for anxiety, and even new slendering drugs for obesity.

It's a big market -- pharmaceuticals for pets -- and for those who love their pets so much they can't let go, going to extremes is worth every penny.

Think about this:

• For dogs and cats alone, Americans spent $2.9 billion on pet drugs in 2005. While this is equal to only one percent of human drug sales, the market has grown by half since 2000.

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved more than 40 new pet drugs in the past five years.

• A single three-month course of pet chemotherapy can cost $3,000 -- and chemotherapy doesn't typically extend the life of an animal as much as it soothes symptoms of the disease.

• Health insurance for pets was nearly invisible in 2002 but has gained popularity over the past few years. Premiums can cost $30 per month, and the total market is expected to climb to $500 million in the next five years.

• Some human drugs leave pets with unexpected, sometimes deadly, side effects. The drug Rimadyl, made by Pfizer and used as a treatment for dogs with arthritis, has been shown to cause kidney and liver damage in some animals. More than 3,000 pet deaths have been attributed to this drug.

• Some question the priorities of a society that allows for medically treating pets like they are humans. Dianne Dunning, an ethicist at N.C. State's vet school is concerned that millions of animals are lost, unwanted, and euthanized while millions are spent on pet medicines. David Rothman, an expert in medicine's role in society from Columbia University, says, "If you can't get malaria drugs in some Third World countries, what are we doing with chemotherapy for cats?"

• Others don't flinch at the expense it requires to keep their pets alive. One man, whose dog was expected to die of lymphoma within weeks, still enjoys the company of his pet some two years later. Chemotherapy saved the dog's life and when asked if he thinks the drugs are too expensive, this man says NO -- because his dog is still here.
  

Human touch with someone you trust and share a strong bond can bring immediate relief from stress, according to University of Virginia neuroscientist Dr. James A. Coan. The findings are based on the study of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans that measured the participant's response to a threatening situation when they were either holding the hand of a spouse, the hand of a stranger, or when they were alone.

"This is the first study of the neurological reactions to human touch in a threatening situation, and the first study to measure how the brain facilitates the health-enhancing properties of close social relationships," stated Dr. Coan.

For this study, the participants were women who expressed a high degree of satisfaction in the relationship with their husband. Holding their husband's hand while experiencing a threatening situation prompted the most dramatic decrease in stress level as reflected by the readings of a brain scan.

Based on previous studies that indicate beloved pets have the affect of lowering blood pressure and reducing stress for their owners, it seems logical that this current research finding will extend to include the close trusted bonds we share with both humans and pets. Anecdotal evidence has suggested that touch facilitates the healing process. This research offers scientific evidence that touch calms during times of stress and adds support to popular belief -- touch has the power to promote better health.

Steve, my rat terrier, has been having a problem with his eye for about two months. After four visits to two different veterinarians I was referred to the Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in North Jersey. What an amazing place. I did not know that a place like this existed. It was a real hospital but for animals. I was taking my dog to an animal hospital nearby but this was an entirely different experience. I wish I would have gotten him to this place sooner. I scheduled an appointment for their ophthalmologist, Michael J. Ringle, DVM. He knew what was wrong with Steve after about 5 minutes of examination. He used special equipment to look at his eyes and had a diagnosis and plan of action right away.

I was sad when I learned what Steve had was a degenerative eye disease and that without surgery he could go blind. I was however thrilled to get a diagnosis so quickly and actually was expecting them to tell me they didn't know what was wrong with Steve since I have been hearing that for two months. Steve will get surgery next Tuesday and I'm confident he will be fine under the care of Dr. Ringle.

What does this have to do with cancer? Well, when I was in the waiting room I met a women who was with her dog who was getting his second chemotherapy treatment. He was diagnosed with lymphoma. I was so impressed with this place that I wanted to share some information about what they offer at the Red Bank Veterinary Hospital.

The Red Bank Veterinary Hospital offers the most state-of-the-art medicine. RBVH has become the country's largest privately owned veterinary hospital with a general medicine and surgery practice, 24 hour emergency and critical care service, and specialty practice, which includes Avian and Exotics, Cardiology, Critical Care, Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Dermatology and Allergy, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Oncology/Radiation Therapy, Ophthalmology, and Surgery.

The Canadian Cancer Society, concerned with the potential long-term effects associated with the ornamental or cosmetic use of pesticides, has launched an email Take Action! campaign to support a ban on the ornamental use of pesticides in the City of London.

According to the the cancer society, the majority of Londoners support a ban on the use of ornamental pesticides. In a recent poll, 81 percent of Londoners want to phase-out pesticides in city parks and 74 percent support a phase-out on private residential property; 71 percent of Londoners feel cosmetic pesticides are a health threat to children and pose a health threat to pets such as cats and dogs and 74 percent of Londoners believe pesticides are a threat to the environment, including wildlife, air quality, and ground water.

If you would like to participate in the campaign to support the ban, the Canadian Cancer Society has provided an advocacy action page where you can send an email to the Mayor and London City Council. The deadline is June 12.

Several months ago, we posted the news The Canadian Cancer Society was calling for a ban on the use of pesticides in private gardens, lawns, parks, recreational facilities and on golf courses because of the potential cancer risks associated with the chemicals used in maintaining ornamental gardens and lawns in Canada.

For many people, pets are a beloved member of the family. If you are cancer prevention health-conscious in the foods you eat, you want the best in nutrition for your pet as much as you do for the rest of the family. I prepare meals for Murphy, our Rat Terrier, the same as I would for a family meal. He does not eat exactly what we eat, as salt and spices for Murphy are not a good thing, but he does get a balanced diet of fresh organic foods. I am not an eccentric purist in my care for Murphy -- no -- I came to my common sense pet food preparation choice as a result of discovering that the pretty bags of dry dog food that line the shelves of the local grocery were not nearly as healthy as all the vegetable and real meat claims printed on the side of the bag. Warning: the following descriptive preparation of commercial pet food is gross.

In 1994, the first Million Paws Walk was held to benefit the RSPCA of Queensland, Australia. Dr Cam Day, veterinarian, felt a special event involving animals of all types walking together would provide a fun day for pets and their owners and raise much needed funds for the RSPCA. In the first event, five hundred people took their dogs and cats for a stroll around suburban streets, raising almost $10,000 dollars for RSPCA's disadvantaged animals. Participation in the fundraising event has grown each year, with the most interesting entrant to the Million Paws Walk being a sheep raised in suburbia who thought it was a dog.

RSPCA Australia, who works so that animals are treated with the compassion and consideration they deserve, is a non-profit, non-government charity, dedicated to animal welfare and responsible for implementing state animal protection laws. The RSPCA holds the belief that an animal's welfare should be considered in terms of five freedoms: freedom from hunger and thirst; freedom from discomfort; freedom from pain, injury or disease; freedom to express normal behavior; and freedom from fear and distress.

This year, one of the dogs who will be walking in the Milllion Paws Walk is 12-year-old Welsh Springer spaniel, Dylan, who is battling cancer. Bringing him to the walk will be his owner, Denise Mullins. If Dylan and Denise can show up to benefit disadvantaged pets, then the healthy younger dogs have no excuse, now do they. The challenge is on!
The Western Australia Million Paws Walk event takes place on Sunday, April 30 and then one more Million Paws Walk will take place on May 21, 2006. Visit the RSPCA website for locations and details. 

The Western College of Veterinary Medicine oncology unit at the University of Saskatchewan offers radiation treatment for dogs and cats suffering from cancer. Pets from British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba have been treated for cancer at the hospital clinic. When a pet comes in for treatment, they are often not sick enough to warrant staying overnight during cancer treatment. Nor is it very comfortable for a pet to stay overnight at the hospital clinic, as the disturbance of lights and noise can result in an animal becoming sleep-deprived.

Foster families have been taking in pets from other provinces while they undergo cancer treatment. As the pet clinic is getting more and more referrals from out of province, more foster families are needed. Full-course radiation treatment usually lasts a month for each pet at the unit, while treatment for palliation, which aims to improve the quality of life of pets with incurable cancer, runs three to four treatments.

"I think it's scary for them to be in an environment where it is not their normal bed and not their normal family," states Monique Mayer, veterinary radiation oncologist. "They know it's a hospital so I don't think they are as relaxed." Cancer is one of the leading causes of death for cats and dogs.