Made in China

 

 

 

 

Recent reports about safety of China-made toys for children have prompted pet owners to ask if toys made in China for pets might pose a risk.

From NYTimes article: Nancy Rogers, who has had three dogs that died in the last four years — one from kidney problems, one from liver failure, and one from cancer — said she thinks twice about what she gives her dogs today. Ms. Rogers, 57, a registered nurse from Orland Park, Ill., said she recently checked and found all of her dog toys had “Made in China” labels.

After going to a Petco and searching in vain for toys made elsewhere, Ms. Rogers purchased 24 toys from Petco and PetSmart and had them tested for lead at a lab at the Illinois Department of Agriculture. All were found to fall below the federally regulated children’s toy lead-content limit of 600 parts per million. (The American Academy of Pediatrics wants the limit reduced to 40 parts per million.)

“I’m concerned that we don’t have any standards, but the levels were well below the lead point limit for children, and I thought that was good,” said Ms. Rogers, who paid $192 for the tests.

 

We'll talk bout whether there have been any pet products that have been found to be dangerous, who's perpetuating the idea that China-made toys are inherently more dangerous than American-made toys, what American pet toy manufacturers are doing to assure the safety of their products, and what - if anything - pet owners need to do to assure the safety of our pets.

 

 

Links:

  • Consumeraffairs.com's report about China-made pet toys found in Wal-Mart

  • Article about how consumeraffairs.com works and how they make their money

  • New York Times article about what independent veterinary toxicologists said about the Consumeraffairs.com lab's findings

  • AVMA press release: Advice to Pet Owners Concerned about Lead in Toys

 

There have not been any pet toy recalls.

 

What can manufacturers do?

  • Manufacturers can obtain certification that the products they’re selling are produced in a lead-free, contaminant-free environment.

  • Mfrs can require production facilities to adhere to U.S. product safety standards.

  • Manufacturers can test for the presence of lead, formaldehyde release from fabrics, and heavy metals such as broken needles in stitched toys.

  • There are no standards for pet products, so U.S. manufacturers can apply standards used for children’s toys and apparel. Kong does.

  • Pet Age tells retailers to stock American-made products and market them as “safe” products. But even products made here must be tested, and not every one can be tested, so that's not a 100% guarantee, either.

 What can owners do?

  • Take toy away if your dog chews pieces off
  • Ask questions & be informed. If there’s scary news out there, ask yourself who’s serving it up and why.
  • Pay for quality

 

 

 

 

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Radio show about dogs and new products for pets. Pet industry manufacturers, retailers, shoppers and consumers call in to discuss pet trends and what's new in dog toys, dog beds, pet apparel, dog treats and other pet gear. Listen at www.blogtalkradio.com/luckydogshow . Copyright Uptown Dog Club, Inc.