Bad Moon Rising

A new study suggests that injuries in cats and dogs increase during full moons. The catchy title of the study, “Canine and feline emergency room visits and the lunar cycle: 11,940 cases (1992-2002)” tells you a lot about its design.

By reading the conclusions one would conclude there is a definite correlation:

The data, compiled from 10 years of nearly 12,000 case histories of dogs and cats treated at the university’s Veterinary Medical Center, indicates that the risk of emergencies on fuller moon days was 23 percent greater in cats and 28 percent greater in dogs when compared with other days. The types of emergencies ranged from cardiac arrest to epileptic seizures and trauma, and the increase was most pronounced during the moon’s three fullest stages – waxing gibbous, full and waning gibbous.

However, when looked at in actual terms, this equates to only one additional dog and cat per night for average emergency vet clinic.

What I really care about, and not a mention of this, is how many humans turn into werewolves and kill people during full moons.