UNION CITY, Calif., March 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Abaxis, Inc. a medical and veterinary manufacturer of point-of-care blood analysis systems, announced today that it is organizing a large scale community outreach program in response to the recent pet food recall.
On Saturday, March 31, the company will set-up a one day free Wellness Testing Program for concerned pet owners in the East Bay area of California to bring their pets for health screening. The location will be at the site of the company's worldwide headquarters in Union City, California.
Utilizing Abaxis' Comprehensive Diagnostic Test Profile and the company's state-of-the-art VetScan blood analyzer, pet owners will have results in less than 15 minutes. This process only requires a few drops of blood taken from the cat or dog and tests all the necessary blood constitutes to assure proper kidney function. Additionally, the profile tests for liver disease and can diagnose a wide range of illnesses often before the animal begins showing signs of clinical disease.
Pet owners for which the company uncovers underlying diseases will be referred to a local veterinarian, taking along with them the full blood chemistry report. For those without a regular veterinarian, the company will refer them to local clinics.
"We are hearing from customers all over the country and throughout the animal health industry that this problem might be much more widespread than reported, ultimately having a potentially tragic affect for many pet owners. We encourage in particular those families with pets that might not be able to otherwise afford routine or preventative treatment for their cat or dog to come to our facility for the free testing, in particular if any of the suspect foods were used, regardless of the animal exhibiting any signs or symptoms of illness," commented Martin Mulroy, Vice-President Marketing and Sales for the North American Veterinary Business.
For more information on this free one day Wellness Testing Program please visit http://www.abaxis.com/veterinary/ or call Jennifer Simonson at 800-822-2947, extension 6585.
The company will also have educational handouts for the pet owners on the importance of routine, preventative healthcare for their pets. Abaxis will also be accepting donations for the local ASPCA and will match funds collected during this community service event.
About Abaxis, Inc.
Abaxis develops, manufactures and markets portable blood analysis systems for use in any patient-care setting to provide clinicians with rapid blood constituent measurements. The system consists of a compact, 6.9 kilogram, portable analyzer and a series of 8-cm diameter single-use plastic disks, called rotors or reagent discs that contain all the reagents necessary to perform a fixed menu of tests. The system can be operated with minimal training and perform multiple tests on whole blood, serum or plasma samples. The system provides test results in less than 14 minutes with the precision and accuracy equivalent to a clinical laboratory.
This press release includes statements that constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. ABAXIS claims the protection of the safe-harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Reform Act. Specific forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties related to the market acceptance of the Company's products and the continuing development of its products, risks associated with manufacturing and distributing its products on a commercial scale, risks associated with entering the human diagnostic market on a larger scale, risks involved in carrying of inventory, risks from unexpected problems or delays in the Company's manufacturing facility, risks associated with the ability to attract and retain competent sales personnel, general market conditions, competition, risks and uncertainties related to its ability to raise capital in order to fund its operations and other risks detailed from time to time in ABAXIS' periodic reports filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statement was made. ABAXIS does not undertake and specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
Contact: Clint Severson Lytham Partners, LLC
Chief Executive Officer Joe Dorame, Robert Blum and Joe Diaz
Abaxis, Inc. 602-889-9700
510-675-6500
