Below is a comment that a user left for the last post. I felt it was so good it should be given it's own posting, as the brand recognition of Hartz led me since childhood to think it was an acceptable brand and a "trusted name". Thanks to the user who wrote in.
"Hartz Mountain has not been a "trusted name" for decades. In the late 1980's their flea and tick product, Blockade, was taken off the market because of an incredible number of animal injuries and deaths.
The EPA has required labeling revisions on their products on multiple occasions and in 2005 the EPA, probably the most lax oversight agency in the federal government, issued a Cancellation Order on Hartz's cat and kitten products containing exactly the same ingredients in precisely the same volumes as their dog products contain today. Hartz was forced to remove their cat products from the marketplace. However, the same pesticide neurotoxins in their dog and puppy products are injuring and killing animals and devastating families in unacceptable numbers.
Their reformulated cat and kitten products continue to injure and kill and were named in the EPA Public Advisory issued in May 2009. Hartz has also had senior executives indicted and brought before grand juries on unrelated issues but another example of their corporate culture.
Hartz has had a deplorable safety record and reprehensible corporate reputation for many years. Sumitomo continued to use the Hartz name because it had great brand recognition and unfortunately the vast majority of the American public still has no idea of the damage and devastation this appalling corporation is causing to this day."
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
What is Hartz Mountain Corporation?
As I had posted Leonard Stern as the CEO of Hartz Mountain Corporation, I was dutifully corrected by an anonymous poster. Since the history and corporate position of Hartz Pet Products is muddled, lets try and sort some things out for the 100+ people that visit this site daily.
Max & Gustav Stern started the Hartz Mountain brand in 1932 by selling bird food. The business quickly expanded as the Stern's began selling small animals and their associated supplies. Eventually the product was introduced into markets and grocery stores in the United States and U.K.
After 75 years of ownership, the Hartz Mountain Corporation was sold to investment group J.W. Childs. It was decided to keep the Hartz Mountain Corporation name. In 2004 Hartz Mountain Corporation was sold to the Sumitomo Corporation, a giant corporate congolmerate that specializes in heartwarming industries such as aerospace, defense and industrial pesticides.
Here's a bit from the Sumitomo Chemical page:
"Today, the Sumitomo Chemical Group includes over 100 subsidiaries and affiliates operating in six business sectors - basic chemicals, petrochemicals and plastics, fine chemicals, IT-related chemicals, agricultural chemicals, and pharmaceuticals - and supplies a broad range of products for global markets."
Why would a company that manufactures industrial pesticides care to take on ownership of a company focused on the well-being of pets?
The answer is Summit VetPharm. Taken from the website: http://www.summitvetpharm.com
"Sumitomo Corporation of America (SCOA) announced the appointment of Mr. Koichi Isohata as Chairman of its newest subsidiary, animal healthcare company, Summit VetPharm, LLC. Mr. Isohata joins the Summit VetPharm management team after spending over 15 years as head of Sumitomo's Household Insecticides and Agrochemical business in Tokyo, and serving as general manager for the Petcare business in the Life Science Division, Chemical and Electronics Business Unit, in charge of the establishment of Summit VetPharm."
It seems another way of profiting from grossly undertested industrial pesticides is to use them to create Flea & Tick drops, spray and baths and pawn such products off to unsuspecting consumers.
Most people would not pick up the bottle if the flea & tick spray came from a company like Sumitomo Chemical.
Most people would not pick up the bottle if the flea & tick spray came from a company like Sumitomo Chemical.
Hartz Mountain is merely a formerly trusted name corporate branding mechanism sustained by recognition that is being used to disguise industrial strength pesticides as usable pet products.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Almost a year
It's been almost a year since my incident with the toxic poison that is Hartz Flea & Tick spray. Almost a year since my complaints fell on deaf ears. I have sent written letters, veterinarian complaints, bills that remained unpaid and other evidence of their product almost killing the dog. I have received no replies, no compensation and no compassion from all of the heartless animal abusers employed by Hartz Mountain Industries.
William Ecker, the President of Hartz Mountain Corporation is guilty of animal cruelty and neglect on a grand scale. Hartz does not give a damn for your animals or well being, they only want your money. He enjoys the plush life and corporate benefit while the company he leads produces products that BURN THE SKIN OFF OF INNOCENT ANIMALS.
I see Dr. Marta Draper (Dr. Pet Death), Hartz Vice President of Research & Development pops up on some sites defending her toxic blends with the shielding of clueless standards of the EPA.
I have a challenge for you Dr. Marta Draper. IF you even own animals, let's apply Hartz Flea & Tick Medication to them. Let's see how long they last. If you are so confident of your product you shouldn't have any problem risking having your animals uncontrollably seizure and convulse, gasp for air all while the skin melts from their back.
I continue to maintain this site to put let the world know about what a heartless money driven death factory Hartz Mountain Industries is. It is almost fall, so please research natural remedies for flea control as opposed to OTC solutions from Hartz, Sargeant's or any other producer of this poison.
Make no mistake, Hartz Pet Products will KILL your pet. They are fused with industrial pesticides which are merely tested on your helpless animal.
William Ecker, the President of Hartz Mountain Corporation is guilty of animal cruelty and neglect on a grand scale. Hartz does not give a damn for your animals or well being, they only want your money. He enjoys the plush life and corporate benefit while the company he leads produces products that BURN THE SKIN OFF OF INNOCENT ANIMALS.
I see Dr. Marta Draper (Dr. Pet Death), Hartz Vice President of Research & Development pops up on some sites defending her toxic blends with the shielding of clueless standards of the EPA.
I have a challenge for you Dr. Marta Draper. IF you even own animals, let's apply Hartz Flea & Tick Medication to them. Let's see how long they last. If you are so confident of your product you shouldn't have any problem risking having your animals uncontrollably seizure and convulse, gasp for air all while the skin melts from their back.
I continue to maintain this site to put let the world know about what a heartless money driven death factory Hartz Mountain Industries is. It is almost fall, so please research natural remedies for flea control as opposed to OTC solutions from Hartz, Sargeant's or any other producer of this poison.
Make no mistake, Hartz Pet Products will KILL your pet. They are fused with industrial pesticides which are merely tested on your helpless animal.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Hartz Mountain Corporation is responsible for animal cruelty!
This video is graphic but necessary. All of the animal abusers employees of Hartz, Sergeant's and any other company marketing and distributing this POISON, take notice. You are helping the abuse of innocent animals.
How can anyone work for these companies and sleep at night daring to say they care for animals.
How can anyone work for these companies and sleep at night daring to say they care for animals.
Sergeant's Flea & Tick on notice from Oregon's KVAL
By Laura Rillos KVAL News
Read the original article HERE.
JUNCTION CITY, Ore. - Wayne Buckholz thought he was helping his cat, Spits, when he applied a small tube of flea medicine to the back of his pet's neck last week.
But within 90 minutes, the cat started walking strangely and from there, said Buckholz, things went downhill.
"He couldn't stand up, couldn't walk and started convulsing," he said. "His whole body started tweaking, his jaw was going 100 miles an hour."
After several baths to remove the medicine, trips to the vet for muscle relaxers, Spits recovered. But not before the 2-year-old cat suffered several seizures.
"I mean, he's our kid. If something would have happened to him," said Buckholz. "I'm the one that put it on him, so I would have had to live with that."
It's an extreme reaction to a type of over-the-counter flea medicine that happens frequently during flea season, according to Dr. Ingrid Kessler, a vet at the Emergency Veterinarian Hospital in Springfield.
Veterinarians treat 50 to 75 animals each year for similar reactions, said Kessler. Most of those cases are cats given medicine intended for dogs and small dogs given medicine intended for large animals.
Symptoms can include twitching, seizures, hyper salivation and, in rare cases, even death.
"I didn't realize it was for dogs," said Buckholz, pointing to the small print on another tube of the flea medicine. He didn't have the package the tubes came in. "The one for dogs and the one for cats are both white tubes, so I didn't think anything of it."
KVAL News spoke with veterinarians at two other animal hospitals and one veterinary clinic in Eugene. All said they had treated pets with bad reactions to several brands of over-the-counter flea medicines containing various forms of the insecticide pyrethrin, including pyrethroids and permethrins.
"I think it happens a lot because of the packaging," said Kessler. "I don't think they're meant to be intentionally deceiving, but the print is so small, the average person likely won't see it."
Buckholz said he used flea medicine from Sergeant's Pet Care Products, so KVAL News contacted the company.
Jennifer Windrum, company spokesperson, said Sergeant's labels its products five times. She also said the company created a website, lookatthelabel.com, in 2005 to raise awareness about the important of reading labels.
Some veterinarians said cats can even have bad reactions to flea medicine intended for cats.
"I would not recommend using any permethrin or pyrethrin based products on any cats. Some cats will tolerate them OK and there are a lot of cats that are sensitive. Just to be on the safe side, I wouldn't use any over-the-counter products on them," said Dr. Amelie Hatfield, a veterinarian with the Eugene Animal Hospital. "Even if it's intended for a cat."
According to Hatfield, many cats do not produce an enzyme to metabolize and eliminate pyrethrins.
"There is a certain percentage of dogs and cats that will just have an allergic reaction to some products, just like we humans do with lotion or whatever we might try," said Windrum. "I might have a reaction and you might not."
KVAL News contacted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). We asked spokesman Dale Kemery if any amount of pyrethroids is safe for pets. In an e-mail, he wrote "all products should be used according to their label directions."
According to lookatthelabel.com, Sergeant’s flea and tick control products meet EPA requirements to ensure that they are as safe as possible for pets.
In 2005, the EPA cancelled a flea and tick product manufactured by Hartz from store shelves. According to Kemery, the Flea and Tick Drops for Cats and Kittens contained a high concentration of phenothrin, a type of pyrethroid, which current products do not contain.
Vets say a safer alternative are types of medicine available at veterinary hospitals and offices. These include Frontline, which uses a synthetic insecticide called arylheterocycles, and Advantage, which uses imidacloprids.
However, those medications can cost 10 times as much as over-the-counter alternatives.
That is a cost Buckholz is willing to pay.
"I'll never use anything else again," he said.
Read the original article HERE.
JUNCTION CITY, Ore. - Wayne Buckholz thought he was helping his cat, Spits, when he applied a small tube of flea medicine to the back of his pet's neck last week.
But within 90 minutes, the cat started walking strangely and from there, said Buckholz, things went downhill.
"He couldn't stand up, couldn't walk and started convulsing," he said. "His whole body started tweaking, his jaw was going 100 miles an hour."
After several baths to remove the medicine, trips to the vet for muscle relaxers, Spits recovered. But not before the 2-year-old cat suffered several seizures.
"I mean, he's our kid. If something would have happened to him," said Buckholz. "I'm the one that put it on him, so I would have had to live with that."
It's an extreme reaction to a type of over-the-counter flea medicine that happens frequently during flea season, according to Dr. Ingrid Kessler, a vet at the Emergency Veterinarian Hospital in Springfield.
Veterinarians treat 50 to 75 animals each year for similar reactions, said Kessler. Most of those cases are cats given medicine intended for dogs and small dogs given medicine intended for large animals.
Symptoms can include twitching, seizures, hyper salivation and, in rare cases, even death.
"I didn't realize it was for dogs," said Buckholz, pointing to the small print on another tube of the flea medicine. He didn't have the package the tubes came in. "The one for dogs and the one for cats are both white tubes, so I didn't think anything of it."
KVAL News spoke with veterinarians at two other animal hospitals and one veterinary clinic in Eugene. All said they had treated pets with bad reactions to several brands of over-the-counter flea medicines containing various forms of the insecticide pyrethrin, including pyrethroids and permethrins.
"I think it happens a lot because of the packaging," said Kessler. "I don't think they're meant to be intentionally deceiving, but the print is so small, the average person likely won't see it."
Buckholz said he used flea medicine from Sergeant's Pet Care Products, so KVAL News contacted the company.
Jennifer Windrum, company spokesperson, said Sergeant's labels its products five times. She also said the company created a website, lookatthelabel.com, in 2005 to raise awareness about the important of reading labels.
Some veterinarians said cats can even have bad reactions to flea medicine intended for cats.
"I would not recommend using any permethrin or pyrethrin based products on any cats. Some cats will tolerate them OK and there are a lot of cats that are sensitive. Just to be on the safe side, I wouldn't use any over-the-counter products on them," said Dr. Amelie Hatfield, a veterinarian with the Eugene Animal Hospital. "Even if it's intended for a cat."
According to Hatfield, many cats do not produce an enzyme to metabolize and eliminate pyrethrins.
"There is a certain percentage of dogs and cats that will just have an allergic reaction to some products, just like we humans do with lotion or whatever we might try," said Windrum. "I might have a reaction and you might not."
KVAL News contacted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). We asked spokesman Dale Kemery if any amount of pyrethroids is safe for pets. In an e-mail, he wrote "all products should be used according to their label directions."
According to lookatthelabel.com, Sergeant’s flea and tick control products meet EPA requirements to ensure that they are as safe as possible for pets.
In 2005, the EPA cancelled a flea and tick product manufactured by Hartz from store shelves. According to Kemery, the Flea and Tick Drops for Cats and Kittens contained a high concentration of phenothrin, a type of pyrethroid, which current products do not contain.
Vets say a safer alternative are types of medicine available at veterinary hospitals and offices. These include Frontline, which uses a synthetic insecticide called arylheterocycles, and Advantage, which uses imidacloprids.
However, those medications can cost 10 times as much as over-the-counter alternatives.
That is a cost Buckholz is willing to pay.
"I'll never use anything else again," he said.
Monday, December 29, 2008
OTC Flea & Tick questioned by The Center for Public Integrity
A very informative article regarding the horrors of over-the-counter pet flea and tick remover, such as Hartz Mountain Flea & Tick Spray and Sergeant's Flea & Tick remover, has been published on the website of The Center for Public Integrity.
Pets and Pesticides: Let’s Be Careful Out There
Are Over-the-Counter Flea-and-Tick Treatments Really Safe for Dogs and Cats?
By M.B. Pell, Jillian Olsen | December 16, 2008
"Last June Diane Bromenschenkel applied a flea-and-tick product to her English pointer, Wings, so the dog wouldn’t get ticks while hunting pheasant in the tall grasslands of western Idaho. Wings, a healthy five-year-old with a sleek white coat and a chocolate brown mask, enjoyed long walks in the woods, bacon treats, and burying things in the yard. But three months after the pesticide was applied, the animal was dead.
It was just hours following the use of the product that Bromenschenkel knew something was wrong. She noticed her dog walking around in a daze. Wings was unresponsive. On the advice of her veterinarian, Bromenschenkel tried to wash off the treatment —Bio Spot Spot On Flea and Tick Control for Dogs — but the next day Wings was still suffering."
I wish the companies that produce this pet killing poison nothing but the worst in 2009. I pray the executives from these companies at some point feel the anguish of losing their best friend or having a loved one ripped away, poisoned in front of their terrified eyes.
Read the article in it's entirety HERE.
Pets and Pesticides: Let’s Be Careful Out There
Are Over-the-Counter Flea-and-Tick Treatments Really Safe for Dogs and Cats?
By M.B. Pell, Jillian Olsen | December 16, 2008
"Last June Diane Bromenschenkel applied a flea-and-tick product to her English pointer, Wings, so the dog wouldn’t get ticks while hunting pheasant in the tall grasslands of western Idaho. Wings, a healthy five-year-old with a sleek white coat and a chocolate brown mask, enjoyed long walks in the woods, bacon treats, and burying things in the yard. But three months after the pesticide was applied, the animal was dead.
It was just hours following the use of the product that Bromenschenkel knew something was wrong. She noticed her dog walking around in a daze. Wings was unresponsive. On the advice of her veterinarian, Bromenschenkel tried to wash off the treatment —Bio Spot Spot On Flea and Tick Control for Dogs — but the next day Wings was still suffering."
I wish the companies that produce this pet killing poison nothing but the worst in 2009. I pray the executives from these companies at some point feel the anguish of losing their best friend or having a loved one ripped away, poisoned in front of their terrified eyes.
Read the article in it's entirety HERE.
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