| ■ Melamine-Tainted Food Kills 1,500 Raccoon Dogs in China | 2008.10.29 |
| Melamine-tainted food is being blamed for the deaths in China of about 1,500 dogs bred for their raccoon-like fur that's used to make trim on coats and other clothing. All the raccoon dog deaths occurred on farms in a single village, the Associated Press reported. An examination of about a dozen of the dead dogs revealed they died of kidney failure, said Zhang Wenkui, a veterinary professor at Shenyang Agriculture University. "First, we found melamine in the dogs' feed, and second, I found that 25 percent of the stones in the dogs' kidneys were made up of melamine," Zhang told the AP. It's not clear how melamine got into the dog feed, but the deaths increase concerns about the extent of the chemical's presence in China's food chain. Melamine, used to make plastics, has been found in a large number of Chinese-made dairy products and foods with milk ingredients. |