America’s pets receive better medical treatment than many Americans do, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. While many Americans receive less and poorer health care than their pets do, there seems to be no limit on the amount they are willing to spend to save their animals.

The Society wrote that American pet owners spent US$12 billion last year paying veterinary bills – about double what they spent ten years earlier. Treatments for pets include state-of-the-art image-guided radiation treatment, stem cell transplants (one for treating arthritis costs $4,000) and sophisticated diagnostic procedures to pinpoint anything from cancer to lung disease.

However, intensive treatment of pets can have positive spin-offs for humans. For example, a new technique for repairing torn knee ligaments in dogs developed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine was so successful that it is now being used on NFL players. ~ AP, Jul 20