pet connection

Last night I’m watching HGTV, a nasty little time-wasting habit I picked up from Christie, who is alway raving on the phone about this kitchen makeover or that color palate. I used to like “Curb Appeal” best, figuring if the inside of my house was always a study in cat and dog fur and the back yard was designed by Heather, the retriever who has taken up gardening in her dotage, well, at least the front of the house could look somewhat pulled-together.

More recently, I guess my thoughts have shifted more from fixing to moving, because I watch “House Hunters,” in which people tramp through homes for sale, picking the taste of the current occupant to bits (which is the reason why when I sold my first home to buy the current one, I emptied it completely and painted the interior white. I’m not having anyone make fun of my pet-themed decor, even in absentia). At the end, the drama: Which will they choose? The one they can’t afford? The one they can’t stand, but oh, the location? Or the one that …

But I digress …

Last night, I’m watching a couple look for houses in the New Orleans area. Strangely enough, the show never refers to Katrina (even though the TiVo said it was a new episode), rambling on about the culture, the music, the French Quarter and so on. The market is vibrant! Prices are on the rise!

But two of the three houses shown were vacant, one still without flooring after what I’m assuming (perhaps incorrectly) was flood damage. And yet, the elephant in the room is still not mentioned.

I kept thinking, “Kids! Ask about mold! Make sure you can get insurance! And ask if the insurance covers mold!”

Of course, they did not (at least not on camera), and the final scenes showed the happy new homeowners in a vibrant color palate of intense reddish-orange-yellow, scatting jazz standards on the couch with their cat.

But what lurks under the house and in the walls? I still wonder. And then this morning, the news feeds bring this, from Medical News Today:

The deaths of two cats from what is believed to be the first documented case of toxic black mold poisoning in pets point to a new health concern for pet owners, according to a veterinarian who co-authors a report in the Sept. 1, 2007, issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Douglas Mader, a veterinary specialist in Marathon, Fla., was performing routine dental procedures on two cats when he noticed frothy blood within endotracheal tubes used to supply anesthesia to the animals. The veterinarian immediately stopped the procedures, but both animals died – one the following day, the other about two weeks later.

“The circumstances of these cases are just not heard of,” Mader said. “Anesthesia doesn’t cause pulmonary hemorrhage [bleeding from the lungs.]” These were healthy, indoor cats. Examinations conducted prior to the dental cleanings showed no indications of illness. Blood collected prior to the cats’ death was tested and demonstrated the presence of the toxin produced by Stachybotrys chartarum, also known as “toxic black mold.” Exposure to the mold can cause respiratory-related health problems, pulmonary hemorrhage and death in people.

It had not previously been associated with disease in pets, Mader said.

The toxin from the black mold causes a weakening of the capillaries in the lungs. When the capillaries are stressed, they burst and bleed. The cats died from complications arising from the pulmonary hemorrhage.

The cats lived in a home that sustained water damage during a hurricane in October 2005, seven months prior to the development of pulmonary hemorrhage. After Mader discovered the presence of the toxins, he urged the cats’ owners to check their home for mold. “Sure enough, they had very severe mold contamination in their walls,” Mader said. Mader hopes the report will raise awareness that illnesses associated with mold can also affect pets, particularly those living in flood-prone areas. He also suggests pet owners share more information with their veterinarian.

Here’s the rest.  Buyer beware, indeed.

Share & Enjoy

Facebook	Twitter	Google Buzz	Digg
Technorati	StumbleUpon	Delicious	Email