Somone Wrote:

My mom ordered online Dr. Frank’s Dog & Date Joint Muscle Pain Relief tablets. She’s seen no improvement but wants to use the bottle up then switch to aspirin for her 13 yr old Sheppard (I tell her if its doing no good now then its doing no good the whole time she’s giving it to him so she should pitch it or try something else).
Well today I called her and she was looking everywhere trying to find a way to stop the payments because it seems she needs to cancel the order or they just assume you want more and keep billing you. The toll free number for Dr Frank’s not working. The website won’t pull up for her. I searched her credit card company and got her a number to call and had them report it as stolen (they knew the situation and suggested it be done that way) and my mom’s sending a registered letter to his address to cancel the orders.

I’m now trying to find information on the net but its hard because google gives me so many sites that want to sell me stuff (he now has a joint spray). Just thought I’d pop by and see if anyone has heard anything regarding Dr Frank. She probably won’t get her money back but I told her that I would not give Jessie a single dose more of that stuff. I would not give my dog the time of day from any source I can’t get a hold of after purchasing. I have to wonder why she can’t reach him by the number and website she originally used, as far as I’m concerned that medication is not safe now until proved otherwise.

Oh now I read that the spray is supposed to have mercury in it.
‘Mercurius Vivus
The treatment is derived from the element mercury. This remedy has no toxicity because the mercury is diluted to such extremely small amounts.’

I’m gonna go over to my mom’s place and read the label and if I see any mercury in it I’m confiscating the bottle for their own good!
 

Follow-Up Postings:
 RE: Dr Frank’s Health Products
Posted by lfnyc

Your mother has done all that can be done. There are a few scam alert websites where you might want to post her experience to warn others. Plug “Dr. Frank Scam” into Google. You will come up with something right away.
I think that by law, credit card companies have to give the consumer the benefit of the doubt on this kind of thing. Mom might not be able to get her money back on the first order (although by law, mail orders have to offer a 30 day money back guarantee…which is probably why “dr. Frank” changes his phone number frequently), but unsolicited subsequent orders should not be her responsibility.

The moral of the story is, Buyer beware: when you see a miracle cure advertised on TV, and the only way to buy it is thru an 800 number, it is probably a scam. They use the operators to fast talk consumers into things like “discount club memberships” with monthly fees, open-ended reorders, or into paying riduculous shipping fees if you don’t want to increase your order or pre-commit to re-orders. That maybe what happened to your mother.
 RE: Dr Frank’s Health Products

Posted by sweetchastity

Yeah my mom and dad thought it was worth a try but she didn’t realize that she had to stop the orders or they’d continue. She understands she probably won’t get her money back but I’m more concerned over the quality of the product. Her supplements come with his spray which indeed has some mercury in it. I don’t think mercury is safe and since the product is obviously not working she’s going to switch to aspirin and spray the doses out until they are all gone (its just easier than arguing with my father who assured me mercury is not dangerous because they use it in scales to make sure stuff is level; that makes little sense but that is what the argument was like).

 RE: Dr Frank’s Health

Posted by meghane

I agree that any amount of mercury is not ideal. Does your father eat the mercury in the scales, or allow it to come in direct contact with his skin? If so he may already have been poisoned with his brain affected, which may explain his rather lame argument…. Just kidding of course.
Anyway, aspirin is not the safest arthritis medication because it is very likely to cause potentially life-threatening GI ulcers. ALL non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs) have this potential side effect, but aspirin is one of the worst offenders, even the enteric coated ones. Some of the other veterinary NSAIDs are generally safer, although any NSAID can cause GI upset, liver problems, or kidney problems. It is important to monitor any patient taking NSAIDs on a regular basis with bloodwork (I recommend every 3-6 montjs, especially in dogs over 8 years) to look for signs of liver or kidney damage. And if the dog stops eating, starts vomiting, or has dark tarry stools, then your mom needs to immediately stop giving the NSAID and call her vet, because those signs indicate serious drug reactions. Drug reactions can happen at any time, not just when the dog is started on the medication.

There are several alternatives to NSAIDs:
Tramadol- a synthetic opioid that controls pain very well, has a wide margin of safety, and usually does not have serious side effects, although some dogs get nauseous. Can be used with NSAIDs for a synergistic effect, or alone.
Duralactin- a concentrated milk protein that has anti-inflammatory effects of unknown mechanism. Can be used with any other pain medication. No known side effects.
Glucosamine HCL 1500mg/ chondroitin sulfate 1200mg- this is the only ratio and form of glucosamine that has been proven to work. I get it at Costco 210 tablets for $21, which is WAY cheaper than the veterinary drug Cosequin. This can be used with any other medication as well. There is also an injectable glucosamine product called Adequan which works well, but is very expensive.
Acupuncture- may be hard to find a practitioner but this provides pain relief for many dogs. Usually the visits are more frequent at first, but you can lengthen the time in between visits as needed. Some dogs seem more painful immediately after the first visits, but this goes away. It can be used with any medication.
NSAIDs- tend to cause GI upset to ulceration, liver problems, kidney problems. Can NEVER be given with any steroid, as this is VERY likely to cause GI ulceration. Must stop NSAIDs for at least 2 weeks before starting on steroids, and vice versa. Most dogs tolerate NSAIDs well, as long as the particular NSAID is chosen with the dog’s medical history in mind. For example, I wouldn’t give Deramaxx to a dog with any hint of renal disease, or Rimadyl to a dog with any signs of liver disease. You can combine NSAIDs with anything except steroids.
Steroids- usually prednisone or a long-acting injectable. This is my short list of side effects with any steroid administration:
Long term dosing must be gradually decreased to allow recovery of adrenals or animal will go into Addisonian crisis; EOD dosing may minimize but not prevent adrenal atrophy. Polyphagia, euphoria, osteoporosis, fibroblast inhibition, decreased Ca++ absorption, GI ulceration, pancreatitis, colonic perforation, Na+ and fluid retention, PU/PD, hyperlipidemia, lipolysis, protein catabolism, fatty infiltration of liver, steroid hepatopathy in dogs, anti-insulin effects, HPA-axis suppression, decreased T4 synthesis, increased PTH synthesis, decreased bacterial killing, increased risk of septicemia, recurrent septic cystitis, increased risk of cardiomyopathy in cats.

That said, steroids are very effective for treating inflammation, but because of the side effects we generally reserve steroids for extreme debilitating arthritis or when other treatments fail. You cannot use steroids with NSAIDs because of the risk of GI ulceration, and must wait 2 weeks to switch from NSAID to steroid or vice versa. If given steroid injections, the wait is much longer.

I hope your mom does get her money back, and that her dog is given an appropriate pain management plan. Good luck.
 

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 20th, 2008 at 12:25 pm and is filed under Canine Health Symptoms. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.