Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

October 8, 2008 12:55:54 AM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

America: Land of Doggy Doping

Posted Jul 10, 08 7:07 AM CDT in Science & Health,  Arts & Living,  Glossies 

(Newser) – Americans spent $49 billion on their pets last year, with an ever-growing percentage paying for treatment of  behavioral issues with tailor-made psychotropics, reports James Vlahos in the New York Times Magazine. Frustrated owners are feeding dogs drugs like Reconcile—beef-flavored Prozac—-for "mental illnesses that eerily resemble human ones," from separation anxiety to compusive disorder. There are even doggy diet pills.

"Owners want their pets to be more like little well-behaved children," says one industry observer.  "People always want the magic pill,"  a veterinarian adds. For some, however, drugs may be the only thing saving a beloved out-of-control animal from euthanasia. "It's a lifesaving thing," says another vet.

Source New York Times

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon
Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis produces Reconcile, an anti-anxiety medication for the canine set.   (AP Photo/Keystone, Steffen Schmidt)
Prozac: it's not just for humans anymore   (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Cleary, a canine in need of depression medication   (Flickr)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (
1
 of 4)

Tags

pets  • New York Times  • pharmaceutical companies  • pharmaceutical industry  • veterinarian  • Prozac  • medicating pets



Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other Glossies Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »