NATURAL PET CARE
Article by herbalist
Dave
Hawkins, MH, CNC
Pet care is big
business in the
United States
and it is growing. As a matter of fact many people treat
their animals better than they treat themselves. This
article will deal with some of the aspects of animal care
and how animal needs can be fulfilled. I am not an expert
on animal health problems but in my studies there are many
remedies for humans that work equally well for animals. Be
sure to consult a professional trained in complimentary
therapies.
Veterinary
medicine has made great strides in the last decade.
Veterinarians are now using the same therapies with animals
that are used with humans. These therapies include
acupuncture, homeopathy, nutrition, vitamin and mineral
supplementation, herbs, Bach flower remedies and
chiropractic.
According to
Christopher Day, M.A.,
Vet.M.B.,
M.R.C.V.S who runs an alternative veterinary clinic in England
states “ complimentary therapies provide a vast therapeutic
armory that not only outweighs modern
conventiional medicine in scope but also in
capacity. At our clinic we very rarely need to resort to
modern drugs, and then only to provide symptomatic relief.
Alternative medicine provides the keys to cure instead of
supression.”
The president
of The American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association,
Joann Stefanatos, D.V.M. Has
found that holistic veterinary medicine has proven to be
the best for treating animal disorders such as, feline
leukemia, feline peritonitis, radial nerve paralysis,
distemper, arthritis, cataracts, heart, liver, and kidney
disease; chronic skin diseases, hip
displasia and pesticide and chemical toxicities.
One reason for
this effectiveness and the consistency of results can be
explained quite simply states H.C. Gurney D.V.M. is “
animals do not have the power to reason whether a treatment
is going to work or not, it either will or it won’t.
Lets discuss
the diet and nutritional need of animals and compare their
diet to their health conditions. The diet is the
cornerstone to the total health of your pet. Unfortunately
most pet owners fail to pay attention to the food they feed
their pet. Did you ever wonder about how pet food is made
and where the ingredients are obtained? Most commercial pet
food is processed, devitalized and filled with toxic
chemicals and additives.
Additives like
BHT, BHA, lead, artificial coloring, salt and sugar should
be avoided. Slaughterhouse waste, known as the 4 D’s-tissue
from dead, dying, disabled, or diseased animals are common
ingredients in canned pet food. These wastes can be moldy,
rancid, or spoiled before and during processing. This is a
common practice and is the theory behind mad cow disease.
It has been discovered that in the cattle feed there was
ground up cattle (the 4-D’s) so
it appears to be caused by a protein imbalance due to a
form of cannibalism. I won’t go into that issue with this
article.
So what do we
feed our pets? Dr. Pitcairn recommends feeding your pet
whole foods like meat, soft vegetables (yams are good), and
fruits along with whole grains that can be flavored with
broths. Raw beef bones once a week and
to use natural oils like safflower or olive oil. Do
not use processed hydrogenated oils.
Dr.
Stefanatos also recommends the
following:
·
Feed
your pet twice a day instead of one large feeding.
·
Avoid
heating food in a microwave.
·
Replace
tap water with filtered or spring water.
·
Avoid
irradiated, and chemical laden foods,
·
Exercise
your pet regularly.
·
Offer a
wide variety of food selections.
Our pets like
us humans have ailments and diseases similar to our
afflictions. The same remedies that we use on ourselves
work well with our pets. Nutritional supplements are
available to boost the nutrients not found in pet foods.
The following are some of the conditions where nutrition
has helped. The hair and coat of animals is regulated by
essential fatty acids and the use of flax oil, dosage by
body weight, has shown to improve the coat.
Fleas are a big
problem and we have sold for year a product called
nutritional yeast that seems to help deter fleas. Yeast is
high in protein and the B complex vitamins plus many of the
essential minerals. Well known local columnist Marie Wood
wrote many years ago about the benefits of yeast with her
dogs and the theory behind yeast is that it changes the
smell of the animal and the fleas ,
which are attracted by smell, don’t want to jump on for the
ride.
We have also
seen the use of pennyroyal oil, diluted, to deter fleas and
not harm the pet. The recipe for pennyroyal is to take
15-20 drops of the pure essential oil add it to 8 oz of
alcohol and then dilute this with one cup of water to make
a diluted solution. This can be put into a spray bottle and
misted on the coat of the animal and its’ bed. Be sure to
avoid the face and eyes.
There are many
herbal remedies for ailments such as, nervousness,
arthritis, dandruff and kidney problems. There are many
good resources that will give you this information. A new
magazine, Natural Pet, is full of advice on how to treat
your pet naturally. Some other good reading is Dr.
Pitcairn’s Complete Guide To Natural
Health For Dogs And Cats, Keep Your Pet
Healthy The Natural Way by Pat Lazarus and a video
Holistic Pet Care by Joanne
Stefanatos. Good luck with your research and your
pet.
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