Advantage warning!

Dog stuck in crate highlights rare risk of spot-on flea treatment October 7, 2009By: Edie LauFor The VIN News Service A veterinarian presented with a peculiar case of a poodle stuck in itscrate last week traced the problem to the pet´s spot-on flea treatment. Residue from the product Advantage, which was applied between the poodle´sshoulders, somehow came in contact with the plastic base of theanimal´s crate, dissolving the plastic and causing it to adhere to thedog´s belly. When the dog wouldn´t come out of its crate the next morning, itsconcerned owner brought the dog, crate and all, to Dr. Tej Dhaliwal ofNorth Town Veterinary Hospital in Ontario, Canada. Following two hoursof sleuthing, Dhaliwal concluded that benzyl alcohol, an inactiveingredient in Advantage, was to blame. Bayer Animal Health, maker of Advantage, acknowledged that the fleatreatment was the likely culprit and offered to pay the owner´sveterinary bill, compensate him for loss of salary and replace thecrate, Dhaliwal said. Bob Walker, a spokesman for Bayer in the United States, confirmed thatAdvantage contains benzyl alcohol, which reacts with certain plastics.He said he consulted with colleagues in veterinary services and wastold, "We know it can happen, but we´ve never seen it." Walker said a lead veterinarian in the department thought that most ofthe veterinary community was aware of the potential for the product toreact with plastic. Walker said that he personally had not heard ofsuch a thing before. He added, "My counsel would be, if you´re notaware, you need to be aware." The incident certainly surprised Dhaliwal, a practitioner for 13 years, who posted his experience in an online discussionboard of the Veterinary Information Network (VIN). Some veterinarianssaid they were familiar with the potential for the product to damageplastic, but many were astonished by the news. Dhaliwal said the owner of the dog, a 15-year-old poodle mix, hadapplied Advantage to the dog before bedtime. He speculated that the dogrolled over in the crate before the liquid pesticide dried. Presumably,residue of the product made contact with the plastic floor of thecrate, causing the plastic to dissolve and "glue" the dog in placeovernight. Dhaliwal noted that the dog had been unable to eat, drink or relieveitself for 15 hours by the time he managed to free it with a toolnormally used to scrape excess plaster from drywall. The white dog had a patch of dark gray plastic about 6 inches by 4inches stuck to its fur. Following the advice of representatives atBayer, Dhaliwal said, he removed the remaining plastic using thecontents of another two tubes of Advantage. Once freed, the dog wasfine. From the start, the dog´s owner suspected that the Advantage was toblame, Dhaliwal said. The veterinarian figured some chemical wasinvolved but wasn´t sure what. At first, he applied regular alcohol tothe plastic base, to no effect. Then he tried a tube of Advantage. Theplastic liquified almost instantly, and his gloved hand stuck to theplastic. Photographs snapped with his iPhone show a puddle of liquid across thebottom of the crate. Dhaliwal said one tube containing .5 cc of productcovered half the crate base; he speculated that the plastic, as itdissolved, perpetuated the chemical reaction. According to a Material Data Safety Sheet for benzyl alcohol posted at www.sciencelab.com, the compound "can extract and dissolve polystyrene plastic and may attack other plastics." The chemical is in wide use, found in hundreds of cosmetic formulationsincluding baby toiletries, mascaras, hair dyes and skin care products,according to the article "Benzyl Alcohol Allergy: Importance of PatchTesting Personal Products," published Feb. 15, 2006, in the journalDermatitis. Its function in topical preparations is as a preservative, solvent, anesthetic and/or to decrease viscosity, the article states. Walker at Bayer said the company veterinarian he consulted speculatedthat benzyl alcohol is found in a variety of spot-on flea treatmentsbesides Advantage. However, it´s not possible to determine whichproducts contain the compound by reading their labels, as manufacturersare not required to list inactive ingredients. Dale Kemery, a spokesman for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency(EPA), which regulates pesticides including spot-on pet parasiticides,said the agency is considering a new rule to require that manufacturersdisclose pesticides´ inert ingredients. "This increased transparency will assist consumers and users ofpesticides in making informed decisions and will better protect publichealth and the environment," Kemery said by e-mail. "The Agencyanticipates publishing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in theFederal Register within the next few months." Kemery also encouraged anyone aware of adverse reactions with anEPA-registered product to report the matter to the manufacturer anddirectly to EPA. "Manufacturers of pesticide products are required to report to EPAinformation they receive about potential adverse effects of theirproducts, but reporting to the EPA directly is beneficial because thedata we receive from the manufacturers is aggregated by severitycategory, and the report of an individual incident that we receivedirectly may provide more details initially that could lead to afollow-up by EPA with the manufacturer," Kemery said. Walkersaid Bayer officials in Canada examined the lot of Advantage used onthe dog to check whether it contained an abnormally high concentrationof benzyl alcohol but found nothing unusual. Dhaliwal complimented Bayer for taking responsibility right away. "Obviously, this is something of ongoing concern," he added. Hesaid he plans to write a report on the incident and submit it to aprofessional journal in hopes of spreading the word. "This is somethingthat everyone needs to know," he said.