DEAR DR. FOX: You will be interested in this recent article from The Guardian, featuring an interview with John Vaillant, author of "Fire Weather: A True Story From a Hotter World."

Vaillant is quoted as saying: “We’ve given this Earth a fever. And the irony is that the fossil fuel industry is, in essence, a fire industry: We draw these substances from the ground at great expense so we can burn them. ... Fire has empowered us and enriched us beyond our wildest dreams. But the strange side-effect is that we’ve also empowered the climate. We now live in a world that is more explosively flammable than at any time in human history.” (Full story: The Guardian, Nov. 17)

What is your view? -- I.P., Swansea, Wales, U.K.

DEAR I.P.: I am glad that this issue is receiving more publicity, which may lead to more immediate government action around the world. I wrote years ago about this existential reality: the human-caused acceleration of the Earth’s metabolism.

Firmageddon -- the dying of fir trees that cannot withstand drought -- is now causing Firemageddon: unextinguishable megafires, with all the attendant death of wildlife, air pollution and lingering health effects on humans and other animal survivors. The loss of trees that absorb carbon dioxide and release the oxygen we breathe calls for massive reforestation, forest farming without pesticides and cessation of all commercial logging, hunting and trapping.

A carbon tax should be instigated on all human events with a big carbon footprint/energy use. These would notably include the proliferation of data centers; the increase in air travel; and big events like concerts, from Taylor Swift on down. This tax would fund reforestation and provide help for the rising numbers of people who fall victim to climate change.

In the U.S., rather than communicating by phone or Zoom over the Thanksgiving holiday, an estimated 50 million people traveled long distances by road. Another 30 million traveled by air. The pollution-causing, climate-changing consequences of burning fossil fuels to get them from here to there and back will be their negative Thanksgiving contributions. On top of that, most will not think twice about eating parts of a turkey, a pig or some other animal at their festive gatherings. The annual Thanksgiving ritual of U.S. presidents “pardoning” turkeys from being slaughtered is curiously termed. Should not the turkeys be pardoning us instead?

The Thanksgiving holiday itself is "not without controversy," per History.com. "Many Americans -- including people of Native American ancestry -- believe Thanksgiving celebrations mask the true history of oppression and bloodshed that underlies the relationship between European settlers and Native Americans. (Full story: history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving)

In my heart’s core, every day is a Thanksgiving of gratitude for all this good Earth provides to sustain my life, and all life, and for celebration when harm and suffering are prevented by our benevolence, vigilance and compassion.

Speaking of holidays, there is also Independence Day, with its loud fireworks that terrify animals. The noises cause roosting birds to fly off in panic, collide with branches and die. Many dogs and cats go into panic mode and suffer terror, as do some war veterans with PTSD. The added factors of air pollution and fire risk in drought-stricken communities are generally ignored, fire stations on emergency standby being a joke.

I am writing this on Nov. 20, and already I see vehicles passing by with severed fir trees tied to their roofs to be decorated in people's homes in celebration of Christmas, rather than several live ones (with roots wrapped) for planting to replace their toxic lawns.

The ethos of Christmas today seems more consumer-driven than ever, with shopping trumping the spirit of giving to those in need, including the homeless and the animals in our communities. Celebrating the birth of a holy child who was later crucified can center us in the spirit of self-sacrifice, but only if we step back from our capitalist habits.

Come January, suburban streets will be lined with dead brown fir trees waiting for the garbage pickup service. I see these corpses as evidence of how we are killing the Tree of Life. I want to pull the plug on all of this so we may properly reconnect and save the trees and, in the process, help the unseen and the voiceless. All the wildlife is falling victim to what we are doing to the environment and to ourselves.

In our family, every Oct. 4, we celebrate the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi, Patron Saint of the Environment, and commune with friends who care for animals as St. Francis did. We share vegan meals and send donations to nonprofit organizations doing something about our concerns.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: You may recall my earlier column this year detailing the plight of racehorses collapsing while racing from limb fractures, bleeding from the lungs and even dying from heart attacks. Now, thanks to investigations by the FBI, the illegal drugging of these poor animals to mask lameness and enhance “performance” may at last come to an end.

From justice.gov:

“Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that defendant Seth Fishman, DVM, received a sentence of 11 years in prison today for his role at the helm of an approximately 20-year scheme to manufacture, market, and sell to racehorse trainers and others in the racehorse industry 'untestable' performance-enhancing drugs for use in professional horseracing. Fishman was one of over 30 defendants charged in four separate cases in March 2020, each arising from this Office’s multi-year investigation of the abuse of racehorses through the use of performance enhancing drugs.”

DEAR DR. FOX: We have a 16-year-old orange neutered male tabby named Rusty. He has enjoyed good health over his lifetime despite eating nothing but kibble. (My attempts to change that habit would have resulted in his early demise due to liver failure from not eating. “Gradual transition” does not work with him, believe me!)

I'm hoping my experience will be informative for other cat owners. About a week ago, we noticed he had some blood on the bottom of his left front paw. His dewclaw looked as though it had been pulled somehow -- apparently he got it caught on something. We figured it’d heal on its own. However, it did not heal, and later appeared to be infected. I made an emergency vet appointment and the wound was soaked and cleaned, leaving something of a “crater” around the dewclaw. He was given the proper medications, and all his claws were trimmed while we were there.

Now comes the cautionary tale. Rusty has always gotten very, very carsick, ever since he was a rescue kitten, so in his advanced age, we have not been taking him to the vet regularly. (Risks-vs.-benefits thinking.) Consequently, his claws had gotten long. We have never attempted to trim them ourselves; a vet tech does it.

Upon examination during his dewclaw appointment, a couple of his claws were just starting to turn up into his toe pads. The vet said this is an issue with aging cats.

I want to urge owners of senior cats to check their cats’ feet and claws so this does not happen! -- C.M.C., Cumberland, Maryland

DEAR C.M.C.: Your insights will be appreciated by many readers who have older cats. Thanks!

CAT LANDS ON FEET SOON AFTER BRAIN SURGERY

Veterinary surgeons in Cheshire, England, removed a large tumor from the brain of a 6-year-old pet Bengal cat that had lost its vision and ability to walk. Neurology specialist Rory Fentem led a transfrontal craniectomy, removing the tumor in pieces from the center outward to prevent damaging surrounding tissue. The cat regained his vision and was able to walk only four days after surgery, and was nearly back to normal neurologically about a month later. (Full story: Cheshire-Live.co.uk, Nov. 1)

CHAGAS DISEASE FROM 'KISSING BUGS' ON THE RISE

Nearly 13% of dogs in the U.S. have Chagas disease, a parasitic infection transmitted primarily by insects known as "kissing bugs." Thanks to climate change, these kinds of insect-transmitted diseases are becoming more prevalent. Dogs can get the disease from a bite from an infected kissing bug, or by consuming an infected bug or contaminated food. Mother dogs can also pass Chagas to their puppies.

Signs of Chagas disease include lethargy, fever and swollen lymph nodes, but veterinarian Roy Madigan says 95% of the cases he sees are asymptomatic. Madigan leads the Canine Chagas Treatment Study at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland.

Owners of dogs with Chagas disease should be tested themselves. While dogs cannot transmit the disease to humans, people can contract it from the bugs, contaminated food and other sources. (Full story: KSAT-TV San Antonio, Nov. 7)

PLANTS COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER

Several research studies have demonstrated that some trees and plants send chemical signals in the air when they are under attack by insects, to which other plants will respond by releasing insect-repelling substances. This raises our understanding of the concept of “sentience,” and should also increase our respect for these life forms.

For more details, see the study "Green leaf volatile sensory calcium transduction in Arabidopsis" by Yuri Aratani et al., published in Nature Communications, October 2023.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: Below is a report from nonprofit organization As You Sow, originally published Nov. 8, which I encourage all to read.

From AsYouSow.org:

As You Sow released its third ”Pesticides in the Pantry” report today (Nov. 8), ranking 17 major food manufacturing companies on their progress in pesticide reduction and the adoption of regenerative agricultural practices. Compared to As You Sow’s 2021 report, the overall average scores dropped from a “D” to an “F” due to continued heavy pesticide use in major food supply chains and a lack of progress in reducing harm to farmworkers, fence-line communities, ecosystems, pollinators, farm resiliency and climate health.

While overall and individual scores were low, General Mills achieved the highest score of “C.” ADM’s overall grade jumped from an “F” in 2021 to a “C-” in 2023 and received the highest score for pesticide risk-reduction strategies. ADM was also the only company that has effectively banned glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant across its supply chain. General Mills and Conagra adopted, maintained or improved their pesticide reduction practices, with Conagra also significantly improving its pesticide risk-reduction strategies from 2021 to 2023. Kellanova, previously Kellogg, lost ground this year as it eliminated its goal of phasing out glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant by 2025.

“Low company scores highlight the industry’s stagnation in making the systemic changes necessary to increase the resilience of our food supply chain and reduce the destructiveness of the current chemical-based agribusiness system,” said Andrew Behar, CEO of As You Sow. ”Shareholders, policymakers, communities, workers and advocates want cleaner, healthier foods. As the documentary 'Common Ground' points out, the time to transition to regenerative agriculture is now or never.”

The report grades 17 companies under seven pillars, including Pesticide Reduction Policies, Regenerative Agriculture, and Farmworker Health and Safety. The report relies on a grading curve to determine companies’ letter grades, as no companies received more than 10 out of 27 possible points.

“Current farming practices that depend on monocrops and high pesticide use deplete the soil, allow dangerous levels of topsoil loss, harm people and ecosystems, and put food production at increasing risk under current climate-altered, high-risk weather patterns,” said Cailin Dendas, lead author and As You Sow’s environmental health coordinator. ”These practices also continue to harm farmworkers. In the U.S., 83% of farmworkers are Hispanic, and many are likely to experience pesticide poisoning. This creates reputational risk associated with environmental racism as well as litigation risk to food companies.

”These companies are at a crossroads that will determine the health of our land, our communities, and their own viability as an industry,” said Dendas. ”All companies need to monitor pesticide use in their supply chain strictly. But they can’t stop there. Food companies must ensure that regenerative agriculture policies are adopted to protect farmworkers and nearby communities and reduce harm to soil, waters, ecosystems, and climate.”

DEAR READERS: I was deeply disturbed when I read about the research below, and would like to know what you think. Should there be any ethical boundaries on using animals in biomedical research where there is a promise of human benefit?

From Nature.com:

Scientists have created an infant "chimeric" monkey by injecting a monkey embryo with human stem cells from a genetically distinct donor embryo. The resulting animal is the first live-born chimeric primate to have a high proportion of cells originating from donor stem cells.

The finding, reported today (Nov. 9) in Cell, opens the door to using chimeric monkeys, which are more biologically similar to humans than are chimeric rats and mice, for studying human diseases and developing treatments, says stem-cell biologist Miguel Esteban at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Guangzhou, a co-author of the study.

But the monkey had to be euthanized when it was only 10 days old because of hypothermia and breathing difficulties, highlighting the need for further optimization of the approach and raising ethical concerns, say researchers. (Full story: Nature.com, Nov. 9. Study: "Live birth of chimeric monkey with high contribution from embryonic stem cells" by Jing Cao et al., published in Cell, November 2023)

ADVICE FOR BEEKEEPERS

Residues of various insecticides, herbicides and fungicides were found in beeswax at managed honeybee colonies in New York, and because bees reuse wax, the compounds can accumulate and pose significant threats to bee health, researchers reported in the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation. Beekeepers should remove old wax every few years to reduce colonies’ exposures to toxic compounds, says veterinarian Karyn Bischoff, the study’s lead author. (Full story: Cornell Chronicle, Nov. 9)

RAW PET FOOD RECALL

North Carolina-based Blue Ridge Beef recalled Breeders Choice brand raw dog food sold in 2-pound logs in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The FDA notified the company that samples had tested positive for salmonella, and said that people who bought the food should not handle it, feed it to animals or donate it. Pets that have eaten it and shown signs of illness should be seen by a veterinarian. (Full story: PennLive.com, Oct. 30; FDA.gov, Oct. 27)

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)