What does doing natural preventative care mean? I thought vaccinating, prevention medicines, and premium kibble was natural preventative care. Hardly.
Unfortunately the pharmaceutical companies and the pet food industry have really pulled the wool over everyone's eyes -but the wool is coming off! People are frustrated with the way traditional care has let them down and are seeking alternatives to help them not only give their pets more quality of life but longer lives. It seems as though we barely get our pets to a "settled" place in our lives before they're gone. It doesn't have to be like this.
Please don't misunderstand, mainstream care does have its place but it should not be the only choice people and their pets have. In fact, I think it's the imbalanced lean towards allopathic medicine rather than including homeopathic and naturopathic and alternative therapies that is a big part of the problem. At some point where do we stop and say, what happened to "first do no harm"?
Okay, so let's start with what preventative, natural, holistic care means with a definition of the words holistic, preventative and natural which I obtained from my American Heritage Dictionary: 1. Holistic: ?2) emphasizing the importance of the whole and the interdependence of its parts. 2. Natural: 1) present in or produced by nature; not artificial or man-made; 3) pertaining to or produced solely by nature or the expected order of things 3. Preventive: 1) designed or used to prevent or hinder; acting as an obstacle; precautionary. 2) Thwarting or warding off illness or disease. When we put all these definitions together: the whole of the parts working interdependently, without artificial ingredients or synthetics, in the natural order of things you will then ward off illness or disease! Now that we have the definition of natural pet care in place, let's go deeper into the how to do this and thereby lowering the costs of your pet care and increase the longevity of your pets lives.
The first place to always start is with nutrition and that starts with what you are feeding your pets. My initial answer will be as species specific as you can get in a domestic setting. For dogs and cats that means that meat needs to be the primary ingredient of their food. Not kibble. Kibble isn't fit for anything or anyone to eat. There a couple I will recommend in the light of a very reluctant pet owner not being able to stomach the idea of feeding raw meat to their dog or cat, but I will say that as long as you adhere to kibble your pets will experience the problems associated with food that their bodies weren't designed to digest.
There are many different forms of feeding natural for example in dogs you can choose a B.A.R.F. diet which translates to Biologically Appropriate Raw Food and can also stand for Bones and Raw Food. This diet consists of all raw meats, veggies, dairy products, and nuts. Some adhere to strictly feeding raw meat. Some to a cooked diet of meat and vegetables. I think that you've got to decide what will work in your household and do that and any of these, including the cooked diet is far better than any form of a kibble diet. Think of animals in the wild ? they do not get kibble or pellets. Our domestic pets don't need those things either!
I feed my dog a cooked meat diet along with a natural whole food liquid supplement. I also use essential oils to thwart parasites and help with the pain in his forelegs. He came to us as a very abused, starved, neglected nearly 5 month old puppy. Through trial and error we've found what keeps him healthy, strong and happy and he is completely natural. We do homeopathic for heartworm prevention. He actually runs with me and traditionally his breed is not a running breed ? or so it's thought! So you also need to include some precautionary nutrition along with natural feeding. For horses you always need to be concerned with worms but there are natural ways like using food grade (ONLY use food grade) diatomaceous earth ?this also works well in cats, dogs and other warm-blooded animals but I prefer to use essential oils in my dog.
Next I would consider why vaccinating seems to be so important to your pets health. Let me give you just a few examples of why that could be the very thing that is harming your pets rather than helping them (information from www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com):
"Routine" vaccination has adverse side-effects, either short or long term. With vaccines that are repeated year after year, the frequency and severity of these side-effects in our pets has increased dramatically. Most of the problems involve the immune system. After all, the immune system is what vaccines are designed to stimulate. But they do so in a very unnatural way that can overwhelm and confuse the immune system." Donna Starita Mehan DVM. I believe that Dr. Mehan is saying here that while vaccinations stimulate the immune system and that is supposed to rev it up, the vaccine actually not only does this unnaturally as Dr. Mehan stated but it also causes so much confusion in the immune system that much more harm than good is done by vaccinating.
Dr. Ronald D. Schultz, Ph.D..- "Annual revaccination provides no benefit and may increase the risk for adverse reactions. The percentage of vaccinated animals (those vaccinated only as puppies) protected from clinical disease after challenge with canine distemper virus, canine parvovirus and canine adenovirus in the study was greater than 95%." Current and Future Canine and Feline Vaccination Programs. Dr. Ronald Schultz is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Pathobiological Sciences at the School of Veterinary Medicine, UW-Madison. Schultz, R.D. - Current & Future Canine & Feline Vaccination Programs. Vet Med 3: No. 3, 233-254, 1998 more. A chart provided in the report shows immunity levels for all vaccines currently given to dogs lasting a minimum of 5 years with most lasting 7-15 years! Don Hamilton, DVM -Yearly "boosters" are unnecessary, provide no benefit if given (will not increase immunity). Thus boosters are either a legal issue (Rabies) or a manipulation issue (inducing clients to come in for examination rather than directly suggesting an examination). Charles E Loops DVM - "Homeopathic veterinarians and other holistic practitioners have maintained for some time that vaccinations do more harm than they provide benefits. Vaccinations represent a major assault on the body's immune system.... Vaccine induced chronic diseases range from life-threatening conditions such as auto-immune crises to conditions destroying the quality of life of an animal as in chronic skin allergies."
These are just a few examples with veterinarians leading the way in sharing this information which I find interesting since vaccinations and surgeries are their bread and butter. A few of the holistic/homeopathic vets I know started in mainstream medicine and became frustrated and moved into the holistic arena so they could do their patients the most good. Feed correctly with proper back up supplementation and your pets will have natural immunities that protect them naturally from disease.
Another thing to do is to keep your pets stimulated mentally through exercise, play and training. Animals love to have a job and they love to be useful. The key to a good interaction here is training according to the natural interaction of the animal you own. What does that mean? For a dog it means approaching him or her using the "pack" mentality. For the horse it means approaching the horse the way another horse would. It all makes common sense really. Good practical common sense, do away with all these synthetics, using the natural order of things, and all the parts working together means you don't treat an illness, you treat the pet. I like what I saw Dr. Shawn Messonnier write recently to one of the groups I belong to, "I don't treat crystals in the urine, I treat the pet". That's what holistic means: all the parts working together interdependently. So not treating the symptoms but caring for the entire animal is the answer to lowering your veterinarian costs and increasing the longevity of your pets lives.
Article originally published on and for http://www.Suite101.com under the Holistic Pet Care topic.
Kim Bloomer is a preventative pet care consultant. She offers natural products and a business opportunity. She is partnered with a dog breeder and internationally known master dog trainer in their online audio pet care classes, All God's Creatures. Visit her website for details aspenbloom pet care and her dog's blog aspenbloom pet care
move in cleaning service Mundelein ..Doggie day care is becoming more and more prevalent in... Read More
The greatest benefits of ownership is knowing that your property... Read More
Obesity is one of the most important health concerns facing... Read More
Is your bird a seed only eater? Did you know... Read More
Your dog seems to be driving you up the wall... Read More
There are many ways in which you can prepare for,... Read More
The shutting and opening door trick can be taught to... Read More
Their scientific name is Cavia Tschuldi and their nickname in... Read More
"Where's the harm? My cat seems to enjoy chocolate and... Read More
Over the last 20 years, vaccinations have generally been started... Read More
I would like to write a few words about my... Read More
You want your dog to swim?We're going to try to... Read More
Uh-oh, it's that time again. The dreaded vet visit, and... Read More
Herbology, basically, is the use of herbs in the treatment... Read More
Electric Dog FencesIs an electric dog fence something for you?... Read More
Choosing a dog is a fun adventure. The search for... Read More
It is entirely normal to look for signs of intelligence... Read More
Many pet owners don't like using a leash, for a... Read More
Pets are many things in many ways but they are... Read More
Dogs and children are a perfect fit. They are what... Read More
One of the greatest thrills for a little boy or... Read More
This may come as a surprise...but if the tables were... Read More
Animal welfare organizations and humane societies have been very successful... Read More
Imagine being on a horse and he bolts. You pull... Read More
It's been weeks since you went riding. Now you have... Read More
insured cleaning company Highland Park ..Pets are people, too. At least, that's the way they... Read More
A crate is a valuable and useful training tool. Its... Read More
Our Charlie's dog health was a very important issue to... Read More
As overwhelming as picking out a pet bird can be,... Read More
Problems with Commercial Flea Killers & TraditionalFlea Bite Treatments***Chemicals that... Read More
Puppies can be so exasperating! They know what we want,... Read More
In a recent discussion about pet safety, the services provided... Read More
Brings live to your community tanksMany freshwater fish-keepers have a... Read More
Many people don't realize that their dogs, just like human... Read More
Fleas have plagued dogs, cats, and their owners since time... Read More
If you have a passion to learn all you can... Read More
Dog SupplementsA good nutritional program of dog supplements is just... Read More
I'm a dog lover who believes that every dog owners... Read More
The answer is "no" if you are the type who... Read More
He will be there by your side, as your loving... Read More
Keeping fish as pets takes more than just feeding them... Read More
"Westies" or West Highland White Terriers are furry coated dogs,... Read More
You need a strategy for using or disposing of your... Read More
Boxer Dogs Information - What Are Boxer Dogs? Boxer dogs... Read More
Every day we are looking for ways to make our... Read More
There are many ways in which you can prepare for,... Read More
My dear owner,Thank you once again for giving me shelter.... Read More
If Your Dog Suffers From Arthritis, Consider The Natural Alternative:Rimadyl... Read More
My love of horses began at the age of 11... Read More
Pets are many things in many ways but they are... Read More
Pet |