HARTZ Flea and Tick shampoo is making my Luci suffer

The same thing happend to my Tuzo. All

I cannot tell you how sorry I am that this has happened to Luci, you and your family. It’s even worse knowing that thousands of other families go through exactly the same pain and anxiety you are going through, year after year after year. Please know that you are not guilty. It is Hartz and the other manufacturers of these over-the-counter topical pesticide spot-on’s that have created this reprehensible tragedy and it has been going on for decades. Unfortunately, the federal agency established to protect consumers and American citizens, the Environmental Protection Agency, has been completely complicit–actually an enabler–of the devastation to animals and pet owners. The EPA is one of the most lax bureaucracies in our federal government and in spite of years of studies and factual documentation, including science objectively concluding the appalling impact of these products they rarely take significant action to protect consumers and pets, and when they do it’s insignificant and disgustingly late.

You wrote that you intend to take action. Please call Hartz (1-800-275-1414) and also call your state Attorney General and the EPA (703-305-7090) and the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC). Believe me, Hartz will not be happy to hear from you and will NOT want you calling the EPA or your Attorney General or the NPIC. You should be sure to insist that Hartz reimburse you for your veterinary expenses–do not take no for an answer–and let your state Attorney General know the outcome of that demand. Additionally, please, take one other important step to help yourself and other pets and pet owners. Please take the time to report your incident to the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC). This organization works with the EPA to compile the database of incidents and statistics that will be analyzed and used as a basis for corrective action. The NPIC can be reached at 1-800-858-7378. They are very professional, courteous and efficient. This is a critical step in the public forcing the EPA–one of the most lax oversight agencies in the federal government–to do the right thing and get these neurotoxin pesticide ingredients out of the marketplace. I have spoken with people at the EPA who, “off the record”, completely agree that these products are extremely dangerous and should not be in the marketplace but feel they cannot do anything about it.

Hartz Mountain has one of the most deplorable safety records in the industry with these pesticide products. Their disgraceful safety record goes back to the late 1980′s with their product “Blockade” which caused immense damage to animals and also injured humans, prior to Hartz having to remove it from the marketplace. Since then they have been fined, forced to make labeling changes and had their cat and kitten product cancelled by the EPA in 2005. In spite of this late and lax action by the EPA, Hartz and other manufacturers continue to develop, distribute, market and sell pesticide neurotoxins that injure and kill pets by the tens of thousands each year. It’s reprehensible that Hartz, BioSpot (Farnam), Sergeant’s, Summit VetPharm (Vectra and Vectra D) and others continue to injure and kill thousands of pets–-it’s absolutely unacceptable. We should all do whatever we can to prevent this from happening to other animals and families. Communications to the proper regulatory agencies, manufacturers, NPIC, the media and politicians are critical steps. The media actually frightens the manufacturers more than any entity I’ve mentioned. Your Attorney General is another person Hartz does not want to hear from. All the best. Again, I’m very sorry this has happened to Luci. I understand the pain and sense of guilt. I hope you’ll translate that grief into action and do everything you can to ensure these products are taken off the market. All the best.