In the Spotlight: Popular Flea Collar Allegedly Linked to Nearly 1,700 Pet Deaths, Report Says

March 12, 2021

UPDATED: MARCH 21, 2021
A Congressional subcommittee is calling for a temporary recall of Seresto flea and tick collars (RELATED SECTION).

“Seresto, one of the most popular flea and tick collars in the country, has been linked to hundreds of pet deaths, tens of thousands of injured animals and hundreds of harmed humans, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency documents show” according to a report co-published by USA TODAY and the MIDWEST CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING.

Seresto was developed by BAYER and is now sold by ELANCO which closed on the acquisition of Bayer Animal Health in August, 2020.

According to the report, “since 2012, the EPA has received incident reports of at least 1,698 related pet deaths. Overall, through June 2020, the agency has received more than 75,000 incident reports related to the collars, including nearly 1,000 involving human harm.”

OFFICIAL ELANCO STATEMENT POSTED ON THEIR WEBSITE FOLLOWING THE INVESTIGATIVE REPORT:

Elanco takes the safety of our products very seriously, and thoroughly investigates potential concerns related to their use. It is critically important to understand that a report is not an indication of cause. Since its initial approval in 2012, more than 25 million Seresto collars have protected dogs and cats in the U.S. from fleas, ticks and the resulting tick-borne illnesses that can impact their quality of life.

  • There is no established link between death and exposure to the active ingredients contained in Seresto.
  • The reporting rate for all adverse events related to Seresto is less than 0.3% of all collars sold since 2012 – defined by the WHO (World Health Organization) as “uncommon”.
  • The significant majority of these incidents relate to non-serious effects such as application site disorders – reddening of the skin or hair loss below the collar.
  • As a globally marketed product, more than 80 regulatory authorities around the world, including the US EPA, rigorously reviewed the safety data collected over the course of Seresto’s development prior to registration and/or approval, as appropriate.
  • Further, the safety and efficacy of Seresto are continuously monitored and scrutinized by global regulatory bodies as well as via internal processes.

RELATED:

A Popular Flea Collar is Linked to Nearly 1,700 Pet Deaths. Now Congress is Pushing the Company to Recall the Product. (3.19.21)
-A Congressional subcommittee is calling for a temporary recall of Seresto flea and tick collars.
-Elanco, the company that sells the collars, told Insider it doesn’t think a recall is warranted.

Amazon is Reviewing Best-Selling Seresto Flea Collar After Reports of Illnesses, Deaths (3.5.21)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2021/03/05/amazon-reviewing-seresto-flea-collar-amid-reports-illnesses-deaths/4586990001/

petBASICS: Seresto Flea and Tick Collar
https://www.petbasics.com/our-products/seresto/

Elanco Poised to Acquire Bayer Animal Health (6.18.20)
https://news.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=210&Id=9690199

Bayer HealthCare Introduces Seresto™, Offering Easy-To-Use Flea and Tick Control for Dogs or Cats that Lasts Eight Months (1.20.13)
-Bayer HealthCare LLC Animal Health Division today announced the launch of Seresto.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bayer-healthcare-introduces-seresto-offering-easy-to-use-flea-and-tick-control-for-dogs-or-cats-that-lasts-eight-months-187650591.html

ABOUT THE MIDWEST CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING:
The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting is a nonprofit, online newsroom offering investigative and enterprise coverage of agribusiness, Big Ag and related issues through data analysis, visualizations, in-depth reports and interactive web tools. Visit us online at www.investigatemidwest.org
-ORIGINAL STORY: Popular flea collar linked to almost 1,700 pet deaths. The EPA has issued no warning.