Weekly News Roundup 7/13–7/19

FDA warns against using possible nonsterile animal drug products

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is alerting veterinarians and animal owners not to use animal drug products labeled as sterile that are produced and distributed by Ranier’s Compounding Laboratory “due to a lack of sterility assurance.” Jeannette, Pennsylvania–based Ranier’s also does business as Ranier’s Pharmacy and Ranier’s RX Laboratory. The FDA is urging veterinarians to check their inventory, quarantine any purportedly sterile drug products, and not administer them to patients. Administration of a nonsterile drug product intended to be sterile may result in serious and potentially life-threatening infections or death, according to the report.

Woman whose monkey attacked Home Depot employees arrested

A Florida woman whose pet spider monkey allegedly attacked two Home Depot employees in separate incidents has been arrested. Tina Ballard was arrested Monday by police officers in North Carolina—where she allegedly fled—and is slated to be extradited back to Okeechobee County, Florida. The news comes after the monkey, named Spanky, reportedly jumped out of a shopping cart and grabbed a Home Depot cashier’s shirt, leaving “red marks on the cashier’s shoulder and back,” the Palm Beach Post reported in May. The incident was not reported to wildlife officials at the time. In early June, another Home Depot employee in Okeechobee claimed that Spanky attacked her after she noticed him roaming the store’s parking lot wearing a leash.

Petco opens a new type of store

Petco is trying to Amazon-proof its business. The privately held pet-goods retailer has just opened a new service-focused store that aims to give shoppers something they can’t buy online. A pilot location opened last Friday in San Marcos, California. Called PetCoach, it offers grooming, training, veterinary care, dog walking, and more to pet owners, in addition to a limited assortment of products. The company said it plans to open more of these spaces in the future, using the San Marcos location as a testing ground. Part of this experiment also includes a new membership option. Keeping the growing client base of millennial pet owners in mind, a Petco spokesperson said Petco wanted “to be able to figure out what the world of retail looks like five years from now.”

IKEA recalls pet water dispenser after 2 dogs die

After the reported deaths of two dogs, IKEA is recalling 16,700 Lurvig water dispensers sold in the United States and Canada. The company says the dispensers are a suffocation hazard. Part of the Swedish retailer’s new line of pet products, the dispenser featured a large, clear well that replenished a drinking bowl as needed. However, the inverted tank can entrap the heads of smaller dogs and cats and poses a major safety risk. IKEA is now urging all customers to stop using the dispensers immediately and return them for a full refund.

Those cute cat photos you post online could be giving away your home address

Those photos you post of your cat could lead strangers straight to your home: It turns out that the metadata hidden beneath those heartwarming Instagram pics include your geolocation. One website took the metadata from cat photos on Instagram and compiled a visual map of where those photos were taken. So, a television news station in Tampa Bay, Florida, went around to find out if the owners of those cats knew exactly what they were posting. And one of the cats they found was actually Instagram famous Dasha the Ragdoll, who has more than 3,000 followers. Dasha’s owner had no idea. “I don’t want all of her fans just showing up unannounced,” she said. “I just don’t want all that out there. I’ll have to look at the privacy settings.”

NEWStat Interesting/unusual