Scare Tactics & Intimidation
Veterinary Industrial Complex
Animal Welfare Lawsuits
Pet Food Industrial Complex
Flea & Tick Product Corporations, Death & Injury Lawsuits
"Is it ironic that Pharma coined the word “quack” for people who promote natural healing, when the word Pharmaceutical comes from the word Pharmakeia, which translates as “sorcery”, “witchcraft”, or "one who uses poison to manipulate & control others?"
Multiple investigations reveal the use of illegal scare tactics & intimidation on the public in order to drive profit. Governing bodies, media and corporations use narratives that emphasize gruesome outcomes and legal repercussions, creating panic and social pressure, posing vaccination as the only answer. A manufactured scenario to create profit from vaccines, then disease profiteering from the illnesses they cause.
_______________________________________________
Problem > Reaction > Solution
_______________________________________________
Global animal vaccine revenue 2025: $19+ billion
Global veterinary Rx revenue 2025: $57+ billion
Mars, Inc. Veterinary revenue 2025: $30+ billion
Global veterinarian revenue 2025: $157+ billion
Q: How are veterinarians compensated from vaccine companies?
A: "Veterinarians do not receive commissions or kickbacks from vaccine companies. While pharmaceutical companies may provide samples of products for veterinarians' personal pets or staff, there is no financial incentive tied to the volume of vaccines prescribed."
Q: When did kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies for vaccines & veterinarians stop?
A: "Kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies to veterinarians haven't stopped. They are illegal but continue to persist across human and veterinary medicine. The practice is active." 😡
Scare Tactic & Intimidation Profiteering
Corporations control more than 50% of U.S. veterinary clinics and 75% of specialty, emergency, and oncology practices.
They buy local veterinary clinics for 2-10x the value, consolidate and rapidly grow them with the goal to sell for profit within 4-7 years. Managed by non-veterinary executives focused on large scale domination across the globe, the goal is profit maximization. This is done through increasing patient volume, cost cutting and standardizing previous individually-based protocols, leading to compromised care, higher prices and increased veterinarian burnout.
Mars, Inc. dominates veterinary clinics in US, Europe & Asia. It owns Banfield, VCA & Blue Pearl. It owns the laboratories associated with its clinics and the data systems recommending its protocols, food, medications & diagnostics. It exerts massive influence over the entire U.S. veterinary industry by controlling the supply chain, pricing, and standards that every other clinic must follow, even the ones it does not own. How?
Diagnostic Monopoly: Through its ownership of diagnostic labs, it processes lab work for a majority of independent clinics (80-90%). It charges them higher prices for these necessary tests while giving its own clinics a discount. If you are an independent vet, you likely need to send your bloodwork to Mars. This gives Mars a monopoly and ability to see medical data of pets from clinics it doesn't even own, allowing it to tailor products and protocols industry-wide.
Price Setting: As the largest buyer of drugs, equipment, and pet food, Mars dictates prices. When it raises prices in its own clinics, independent clinics have to follow suit to survive, effectively letting Mars set the standard cost of care for everyone.
Hiring & Staff Control: Mars, Inc. is the largest employer of veterinarians. By setting salary benchmarks and offering student loans, Mars influences where vets work and how much they get paid, forcing independent clinics to compete with its deep pockets to hire staff. This forces independent clinics to compete for staff against a billionaire conglomerate. Most independents cannot match these wages, leading to staff shortages or forcing them to lower their own pay scales, making them less attractive to work for. This drives more vets to sell their clinics to Mars.
Protocol Standardization: Mars uses proprietary software to standardize treatment plans in its clinics. This "corporate standard" often becomes the industry norm, pressuring independent vets to adopt similar (often more expensive) treatment protocols to avoid liability or appear outdated.
Supply Chain Dominance: As the single largest buyer of veterinary drugs and equipment globally, Mars sets prices. When Mars raises prices, independents have no choice but to pay more, effectively letting Mars control the cost structure of the entire industry.
Food Industry Monopoly: 6 corporations also dominate 90% of US pet food sales, the two most being Mars and Nestlé, equal in revenue ~22.5+ billion/year. Together, Mars & Nestle own over 70 pet food, treats and supplies in the US alone. The others are Diamond, Hills/Colgate, J.M. Smucker & General Mills. https://goldenageanimal.care/food-and-supplements
Veterinary Industrial Complex
We acknowledge veterinarians like Dr. John Robb, DVM who couldn't be bought, paid-for.
Animal Welfare Lawsuits
Mars
Animal neglect and abuse due to Mars' internal protocols.
Pets being subjected to unnecessary medical procedures for profit.
Deceiving consumers by marketing standard pet food as "prescription".
Altering medical test results in patients.
Forced vets into exclusive 6-year contracts.
"Optimum Wellness Plan" scheme, claiming Banfield sold unnecessary services to plan members and made it virtually impossible to cancel the plans without paying prohibitive penalties.
Pedigree kibble contained more than four times the permitted level of vitamin D, contradicting its "100% Complete & Balanced", endangering pets.
False advertising (multiple suits) as "natural" despite synthetic ingredients or "Grain Free" or "No Chicken" that contained those ingredients.
Conspiracy to enforce mandatory food prescriptions to drive up prices.
Animal Testing: Testing flavanols (a chocolate ingredient) on animals to support health marketing claims, with invasive artery experiments on rats noted.
Poor Welfare: In 2020 Mars was ranked Tier 6 (lowest), indicating no evidence that farm animal welfare was on its business agenda, contrasting with its touted policies.
False health claims charges by the FTC for Eukanuba (owned by Mars, Inc), claiming increased dog longevity based on a study that did not support such a conclusion.
International Rights Advocates v. Mars, Incorporated, while focusing on child labor in the cocoa supply chain, it represents a broader global supply chain paralleling with animal welfare litigation regarding transparency.
Employees of Mars Petcare plant filed suits alleging exposure to toxic phosphine gas used to fumigate animal food, affecting animals and people.
Purchasing puppies from an unlicensed peddlers with facilities littered with broken plastic and holes up to a foot deep.
Nestlé
Large scale animal cruelty within its dairy industry, notably, a Pennsylvania supplier of milk to Dreyer’s and Häagen-Dazs. Investigations documented severe abuse, including dragging downed cows by their hips, spraying scalding water on animals, and dehorning calves with hot irons without pain relief.
Colgate/Hills
Hills & its affiliates paid veterinarians to produce studies showing grain free dog foods (made by competing brands) caused dilated cardiomyopathy in animals, causing extreme losses in competitor sales. Were the FDA and media complicit? A $2.6 billion misinformation lawsuit. There is no evidence linking grain-free diets to heart issues.
Received "extensive" funding from Hills & its affiliates:
Dr. Lisa Freeman (Tufts University): Defendant, veterinary researcher received funding from Hill’s and other major pet food companies. Faculty member at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.
Dr. John Rush (Tufts University): Professor at Tufts’ Cummings Veterinary School, funded by Hill’s.
Dr. Joshua Stern (University of California, Davis): Defendant
Dr. Darcy Adin (University of Florida): Defendant
Dr. Ryan Fries (University of Illinois): Defendant
Heavy Metal & Toxin Contamination. Accused of selling products contaminated with dangerous levels of heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, and mercury, with third party testing revealing toxin levels capable of causing kidney disease, liver failure, and cancer. Plaintiffs claim Hill’s was aware of these contamination issues but failed to disclose them.
Vitamin D Toxicity Settlement: A multi-million dollar settlement was reached after many animals died from Science Diet vitamin D poisoning.
Anti-Trust, Price Fixing. Suits involving conspiracy to fix prices by maintaining the "prescription-only" status.
Deceptive Marketing. A major class action lawsuit, alleging deceiving consumers by labeling standard food as "Prescription Diet.", that the food contains no medicinal ingredients. The suit claims the mandatory veterinary prescription requirement is a fabricated barrier designed to justify inflated prices and restrict competition, seeking over $80 million in damages.
Diamond
Taste of the Wild contained undisclosed lead and arsenic, pesticides, acrylamide, and bisphenol A (BPA) that accumulated in dogs, leading to poisoning, injury, and disease.
Contaminated food (salmonella) causing illness & death
Deceptive marketing practices (Kirkland Signature, Taste of the Wild contamination)
General Mills
Food contamination causing illness and death
False, misleading product labeling
J.M. Smucker
Over 90 million dog food cans contaminated with phenobarbital, a drug for euthanasia
Fraud
Failure to inform consumers about PFA's & titanium dioxide in food
USDA
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the USDA for large scale under-enforcement and failure to comply with animal welfare protections. Some, include:
Large-scale puppy mill breeders with extensive histories of animal welfare violations & horrific conditions, including untreated wounds, no veterinary care, & interference with inspectors. The USDA knowingly licenses operators to engage in puppy laundering, and permits commercial breeders to sell animals wholesale & sight unseen.
Failing to respond to nearly 40 information requests around inspection and enforcement records for commercial dog breeders, endangering animal welfare.
Failure to enforce animal welfare regarding primates in research facilities and the USDA’s vague regulations on psychological well-being and failure to conduct required inspections.
Refusal to relocate animals from facilities whose licenses are revoked.
Pet Food Industrial Complex
6 companies dominate 90% of US pet food sales, the two most being Mars and Nestlé, nearly equal in revenue around 22.5+ billion per year. Together they own over 70 pet food, treats and supplies in the US alone. Diamond, Hills/Colgate, J.M. Smucker & General Mills dominate the rest of the market. They have been involved in many animal welfare lawsuits.
Mars & Nestle, Colgate, Diamond, J.M. Smucker & Colgate (Hills) brands:
4Health, Acana, Advance, Alpo, Baker's, Banfield Pet Food line, Beggin', Beneful, Beyond, Bright Bites, Blue Buffalo, Buckeye, Buddy Biscuits, California Natural, Canidae, Castor & Pollux, Cat Chow, Cesar, Champion, Chapipe, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul, Crave, Deli-Cat, Diamond, Diamond Care, Diamond Naturals, Diamond Pro89, Diamond Value, Dine, Dog Chow, Dogswell, Dreamies, Eukanuba, Eva, Evo, Fancy Feast, Felix, Fera, Friskies, Frolic, Good-o, Gravy Train, Greenies, Healthwise, Iams, Innova, James Wellbeloved, Just Right, Kibbles n Bits, Kirkland Signature, Kit and Kaboodle, Kit-e-Kat, Lily's Kitchen, Made by Nacho (stockholders), Max, Meow Mix, Merrick, Milk Bones, Muse, My-Dog, Native Pet (stockholders), Natura, Natural Balance, Nine Lives, Nom Nom, Nudgets, Nutra Nuggets, NutraGold, Nutro, Ol' Roy, Optimum, Orijen, Pedigree, Pill Pockets, Perfect Fit, Pet Botanics, Prescription Diet, Prime, Pro Plan, Professional, Purina, Purina One, River Dog Food (stockholders) Royal Canin, Science Diet, Sheba, Smalls (major stockholder), Solid Gold, Temptations, The Goodlife Recipe, The Honest Kitchen (stockholders), Tidy Cats, Tiki Cat, Tiki Dog, Top Chews, True Chews, Waggin' Train, Wag More Bark Less, Wellness, Whiskas, Zukes
Multiple lawsuits filed against flea &/or tick companies including Bayer & Merck for killing & harming tends of thousands of animals (neurological, skin necrosis, seizures, tremors, etc.) from pyrethroids & other ingredients.
They were involved in:
Lack of disclosure despite the knowledge of harmful ingredients and side-effects.
Misrepresentation of product.
Inadequate warnings.
A majority of the adverse events & deaths were in small animals.
In one case, a Scottish Terrier died 3 days after the treatment.
The settlement for some? Eligible claimants could receive $300 plus medical and burial costs.
No individuals have ever been prosecuted.
All products below have been in lawsuits. Many brands are still on shelves. There could be others.
Adams Flea and Tick Drops
Advantage products
Bio Spot products
Blockade products
First Shield products
Frontline products, Frontline Plus, Frontline Spray
Hartz products
K9 Advantix
Sentry products
Seresto products
Sergeant’s Flea and Tick products
Vectra products
Zodiac Spot On products