Dogs Dying from Microchip - Page 1

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=131533


Dogs suffer cancer after ID chipping
'I saw it growing every day, and I could see it taking his life'
March 24, 2010

By Chelsea Schilling
© 2010 WorldNetDaily


Do implanted microchips cause cancer in dogs and cats?
That's the question owners are asking after highly aggressive tumors developed around the microchip implants of two dogs, killing one and leaving the other terminally ill.

The owners – and pathology and autopsy reports – suggest a link between the chips and formation of fast-growing cancers.
'I could see it taking his life'

A 5-year-old bullmastiff named Seamus died last month after developing a hemangio-sarcoma – a malignant form of cancer that can kill even humans in three to six months, explains privacy expert, syndicated radio host and best-selling author Dr. Katherine Albrecht.

Albrecht, an outspoken opponent of implantable microchips, has been contacted by pet owners after their animals experienced what they believe to be side effects from the procedure.
According to a pathology report, Seamus' tumor appeared between his shoulder blades last year, and by September a "large mass" had grown with the potential to spread to his lungs, liver and spleen.

Seamus underwent emergency surgery, and doctors extracted a 4-pound, 3-ounce tumor from the dog. They used four drains to remove fluid from the area in which the tumor had developed. The veterinarian informed the dog's owner, Howard Gillis, that there had been two microchips embedded in Seamus – one presumably inserted by the dog's breeder when Seamus was only 9 months old. The chips were both located in and around the tumor.

In just three months, the cancer returned. Seamus, a once energetic dog, struggled to walk.

Seamus "was 150 pounds of heart," Howard Gillis, the dog's owner, said in a recent interview. "He wanted to live."
Read the whole story: Get "Spychips: How Major Corporations and Government plan to Track your every Move"

Gillis explained that he "got the microchip because I didn't want him stolen. I thought I was doing right. There were never any warnings about what a microchip could do, but I saw it first-hand. That cancer was something I could see growing every day, and I could see it taking his life … It just ate him up."

To end the suffering, Seamus was put to sleep in February.

Microchip embedded inside tumor

Albrecht told the story of another dog, a 5-year-old Yorkshire terrier named Scotty that was diagnosed with cancer in Memphis, Tenn. Scotty developed a tumor between his shoulder blades, in the same location where the microchip had been implanted. The tumor the size of a small balloon – described as malignant lymphoma – was removed. Scotty's microchip was embedded inside the tumor.

Scotty was given only a year to live. His owner, Linda Hawkins, said the veterinarian was skeptical that a chip implant could cause cancer.
In Scotty's December pathology report, the doctor wrote: "I was previously suspicious of a prior unrelated injection site reaction" beneath the tumor. "However, it is possible that this inflammation is associated with other foreign debris, possibly from the microchip."

The doctor said the chip was coated with a translucent material to keep the microchips from moving around the body. "This coating could be the material inciting the inflammatory response," he wrote.

A national pet recovery and identification network, asked a vet to review the pathology report, according to Hawkins. The company reported that

 http://www.vetinfo.com/canine-microchip-controversies.html

"The Cancer Controversy

There has only been one published report of a suspected relation to microchips and tumors, which was still rather nebulous, as the study was done with lab mice (which tend to be more sensitive to research). There is no conclusive evidence linking microchips and tumors. There was a study in UK done, where more than half the canine population was microchiped. In this 10 year study, there were only 2 tumors reported, and one of which may have been related to multiple rabies shots."

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Given the millions of dogs now chipped around the world, I doubt that the claim can be made that chips cause cancer in more than a few dogs. The one proponent of this idea is Dr. Katherine Albrecht. She is the director of CASPIAN (Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering) and has an ax to grind.  Further, I have had hundreds of dogs whom I chipped and not one died of a cancer that could be, in any way, related to a microchip.

For a history of the issue read this link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/08/AR2007090800997_pf.html

 Let's see.  Microchip your dog and have a heck of a lot better chance of getting him back should he ever get loose, or don't microchip him, and reduce a small risk of cancer, but risk him being euthanized at the pound if he ever gets lost.

I believe I'll take my chances with the microchips.

Micky, not only that, but do you think it's sheer coincidence that the vaccine crowd injects this very spot repeatedly throughout a dog's life? It's widely known that vaccinating a cat in this area is a recipe for cancer-related problems, so why not dogs too? Much easier to blame a microchip than repeated, unnecessary vaccination. Too much money at stake to blame the vaccines.

What about the coated material they arenow using around the chip? Is this not recent, coating the chips? Aslo where is the coating being made?

Having all the available information can only help in the decision making process. No reason to blindly obey what they tell us to do, such as over-vaccinating and unnecessary spays. I want to know the facts before I have anything done...and the vet sure isn't going to tell you all the potential risks when you threaten the old bread and butter.

VomMarischal:

Some vets will:

Here is one such:

A lot of articles in this to read.

Scroll down to the bottom of page for other articles previously published.

Not sure if this is the same one that Uglydog posted but there are some great pictures in this one...and other info as well.

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=131533

This is being sent to a lot of people from vets to breeders so there must be some concern

LMD

One of these days somebody is going to link dog food to cancer and then what will we do?  LOL

There are humans that could have a deadly allergic reaction to eating corn.  Other people could die from taking aspirin.  There will always be rare cases of sensationalist and bizarre deaths from seemingly benign objects and causes. 

It seems like as more of these rarities occur the more obtuse the "new" cases become.  It seems like an internet paranoid game of one-upmanship - who can report the most tragically bizarre cause of a hideous and untimely death?

I do not dispute the fact that a large tumor was pulled from a dog with the microchip inside, but does this prove the chip caused the tumor in the first place?  Even if it did, this is unquestionably rare.

As a responsible and loving dog owner I have to ask myself which is more probable - will my dog turn out to be the rare freak of nature that has a bad reaction to a chip, or is it more likely that he just may take off running after a bird or rabbit and get snagged by Animal Control or even worse hands?

This is no different that the anti-vaccination argument.  Thanks for the info, but no thanks I choose to protect my dogs.  All chipped AND routinely vaccinated. (gasp)

But then again, I also eat corn and take aspirin so perhaps I am a wreckless fool with callous disregard for my own personal safety.  I also mountain bike, and that has been PROVEN to cause broken bones in MANY individuals.  :D

Thanks SchHBabe......

i was not going to respond because I am tired of trying to bring reason and thought into these types of discussions. So it goes: " I did X and then I saw Y." Clearly, X caused Y. If this is how one things, pathetic. Just plain lack of any critical thinking at all. The same lack of understanding does, indeed, apply to the entire subject of vaccinations, as well as microchipping. There is always a potential for some adverse effect to be a result of just about anything, including taking aspirin. it is all about risk vs benefit. Micky D has it right as well.

I am always astounded at how many here are so rude when it comes to talking about vets. What is the matter with some of you? Next time your dog has an emergency, take it to the florist. Or do nothing. Are there vets who are not particularly well skilled or knowledgeable? Of course, just like there are people in all walks of life that are so. Are there some who are trying to make a living? Yes, all of them are. Just like the mechanic or the grocery store or the florist or the boarding kennel owner. Do some charge more than others? Sure. If you don't like it, go elsewhere. But to constantly affront the veterinary profession is unreasonable and undeserved.

As far as these studies go listed on the one link about, look at the entire picture. How many millions of dogs around the world are chipped now? How many dogs are involved in the few studies cited in the article above? A very few. Can an irritant or particle in skin cause some sort of reaction in some dogs or people? Of course. But to ascribe cancer as a huge danger as do these selected articles is irresponsible and, in fact, there is a ulterior motive. Some people don't want any type of id system in play, period.

As for vaccines and their efficacy, thank your lucky stars that vaccines were discovered and have been improved over and over. The world would be a very different place without them, and not so great. Just 100 years ago people and animals died routinely in this country from diseases that are now preventable. In some cases, we have been able to eradicate the disease altogether. But there are some who hear from someone else that they are the devil incarnate, and rather than really understand virology or look for real studies and try to understand their limitations, a few just latch onto the possible adverse effects in the few. Suddenly it is gospel and no further thought is needed. It is no wonder that the students I see in my college courses cannot think or research......it is a lost art.

I don't care whether people vaccinate themselves or their dogs, or use a chip or not. But it would be nice if some people used the brain they supposedly have to really learn how to evaluate issues. But I give up trying to help people understand. Believe whatever you want, however unsupportable it may be.

Do not mess up with nature.