I often hear people say that they have considered euthanizing their pet because they are in such terrible pain. Of all the reasons to euthanize a pet, pain seems like an extreme. Severe trauma, yes. Cancer, okay. Untreatable debilitating illness, sure. But pain?
Pain can be treated. It can be dealt with. It is often temporary.
It is actually difficult for us to tell when an animal is in pain. They don't cry or whine, and still want to go for a walk or car ride. Sometimes the only way to know is to say, Well, if my eye looked like that, I'm pretty sure it would hurt. Or the relatively obvious, If it didn't hurt, he wouldn't be limping on it.
The human pharmacy is full of drugs that treat different kinds of pain. There might be many drugs in the same class, like Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatories (NSAIDs), because response to these drugs differs from one person to the next. Many of these drugs are not safe for use in dogs and cats, so it is not a good idea to treat your pet with things you find in your own medicine cabinet at home. We tend to use a smaller variety of drugs with animals, because we don't know how they feel in the first place. The current trend is towards polypharmacy, where drugs are used in combination in an attempt to mitigate the toxic side effects of each one. Using them together often allows lowered and safer doses.
Naturally, there are all kinds of options. Boswellia is the classic "arthritis herb." The herb Slippery Elm soothes digestive irritations. Homeopathy offers many remedies for various kinds of pain and discomfort; the most common one is probably Arnica montana for trauma and bruises. Massage, chiropractic, acupressure, and myofascial release all have their places in the natural medicine chest.
I suggest that if you think your pet is in pain, or if there is a diagnosis of a condition that would be painful for a human, check out all your options. All drugs have side effects, so it can be helpful to use the safer herbs and homeopathic remedies first, and only turn to the drugs as a last resort. In addition to the modern tendency to "take a pill for that," we should remember the healing benefits of the hands-on manual therapies like massage as well as the hands-off therapies like Reiki and Healing Touch.
Monday, April 22, 2013
Friday, February 8, 2013
Welcome to the new year!
Wow, it's been a while since I've last written. Well, here I am getting back on track after the insanity that was last fall.
Last spring I started a seasonal detoxification program for my dogs. It was based on the Chinese calendar and organ affinities, and I came up with combinations of the Standard Process human supplements for detoxification of the various organs. Unfortunately, I never made it past the spring. One of my dogs, Alice the Aussie mix, couldn't tolerate one of the supplements that I had chosen. Then she developed other problems and ended up dying of mast cell tumor at home.
She was a great dog. I'd had her for years, since she was picked up as a stray in Elk River. She was bold, aggressive, and wise, a go-anywhere, do-anything kind of dog. Over the last couple of years of her life she struggled a little with the fallout from a bout of vestibular disease, but never lost her appetite or attitude.
So, anyhow, back to the detox idea. Since then I have reverted to using more of the veterinary line of Standard Process products in my practice. I have also read more and learned more. I lean more and more towards supporting the organ systems so that they can naturally detoxify themselves, rather than forcing detoxification on systems that may be weakened.
This means that before you try this program, make sure you have your basics in place. This means raw food diet and appropriate basic supplementation - essential fatty acids, probiotics, and digestive enzymes. I will be utilizing Standard Process veterinary products exclusively. These are available from my office (obviously), at many chiropractic offices, and you can even find some of them on Amazon.
The goal is to use the supplements for organ support for a limited period of time. All Standard Process products are whole food supplements, i.e. food sources of vitamins and minerals (as opposed to synthetic crap that your body can't easily utilize or absorb). In between the organ-specific seasons, I suggest that you go back to some other whole food supplement (which you are probably already using for your pets, if you have been to see me or taken any of my classes). This means something like Springtime's Fresh Factors, Dr. Harvey's E-Mune Blend, Missing Link, Udo's Essentials, Azmira's Daily Boost, etc.
I'll be recording my dogs' progress through the program, with a brief heads up as we start each season and the list of what you'll need. I encourage all pet owners to follow through the program with me, and let me know how your pets respond and any changes you see, and I'll do the same. As my dogs age, I am anxious to do whatever I can to help keep them healthy and functional, and I'm sure many pet owners feel the same. Come along on this journey with me!
Last spring I started a seasonal detoxification program for my dogs. It was based on the Chinese calendar and organ affinities, and I came up with combinations of the Standard Process human supplements for detoxification of the various organs. Unfortunately, I never made it past the spring. One of my dogs, Alice the Aussie mix, couldn't tolerate one of the supplements that I had chosen. Then she developed other problems and ended up dying of mast cell tumor at home.
She was a great dog. I'd had her for years, since she was picked up as a stray in Elk River. She was bold, aggressive, and wise, a go-anywhere, do-anything kind of dog. Over the last couple of years of her life she struggled a little with the fallout from a bout of vestibular disease, but never lost her appetite or attitude.
So, anyhow, back to the detox idea. Since then I have reverted to using more of the veterinary line of Standard Process products in my practice. I have also read more and learned more. I lean more and more towards supporting the organ systems so that they can naturally detoxify themselves, rather than forcing detoxification on systems that may be weakened.
This means that before you try this program, make sure you have your basics in place. This means raw food diet and appropriate basic supplementation - essential fatty acids, probiotics, and digestive enzymes. I will be utilizing Standard Process veterinary products exclusively. These are available from my office (obviously), at many chiropractic offices, and you can even find some of them on Amazon.
The goal is to use the supplements for organ support for a limited period of time. All Standard Process products are whole food supplements, i.e. food sources of vitamins and minerals (as opposed to synthetic crap that your body can't easily utilize or absorb). In between the organ-specific seasons, I suggest that you go back to some other whole food supplement (which you are probably already using for your pets, if you have been to see me or taken any of my classes). This means something like Springtime's Fresh Factors, Dr. Harvey's E-Mune Blend, Missing Link, Udo's Essentials, Azmira's Daily Boost, etc.
I'll be recording my dogs' progress through the program, with a brief heads up as we start each season and the list of what you'll need. I encourage all pet owners to follow through the program with me, and let me know how your pets respond and any changes you see, and I'll do the same. As my dogs age, I am anxious to do whatever I can to help keep them healthy and functional, and I'm sure many pet owners feel the same. Come along on this journey with me!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
AVMA War Against Raw Food is Half Baked
To all friends and fans of holistic medicine, raw food, and common sense: Do not be alarmed by the AVMA's decision to pass a resolution warning people against feeding raw food to dogs and cats! This resolution was pushed through by the processed pet food companies in an economic assault on the raw food companies, and the AVMA are a bunch of idiots and cowards for passing it!
Supposedly, the purpose is
Supposedly, the purpose is
to protect the public from the horrible infections we could get from feeding our pets raw food. They are totally ignoring all the DRY food recalls - many more than raw foods have ever had - because of bacterial contamination! Just to let you know, I am writing the organization a goodbye letter and terminating my membership. I can't stand to be a part of this irresponsible idiocy any more.
If you're looking for more information, please check out this article on Dr. Fox Vet. It basically reinforces everything my colleagues and I have been talking about.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
How old are your pets?
Perhaps you have come across this chart, either at your vet's office, in a publication, or online.
One of my goals with holistic medicine is to help our pets outlive our expectations. I assume that my clients, just like me, want their pets to live as long as possible. Throughout the years of practicing medicine, our expectations have gradually been diminished, so that we no longer know what is possible for our pets.
For example, when I was a kid, our neighbor's Standard Poodle Billy was 21 and went for a walk every day. Our cats lived to be 22 and 23. The party line of conventional veterinary medicine is something like: "Thanks to modeern medicine, our pets are living longer and healthier lives than ever before!" And yet, on the ground, this is not true.
At a conference last summer, a vet from California began her lecture by saying, "As you all know, we're dealing with animals that have a ten-year life span." And we know that giant breed dogs (Great Pyrenees, Bernese Mountain Dogs, mastiffs, St. Bernards) are seniors with three feet in the grave by the time they're six. Cats are senior citizens by seven or eight.
In my little home experiment with natural care and feeding, here's how it's going: Tonka, who is 13 now and a 97 lb Malamute mix, is now officially off the chart. He still goes for a walk every day and does a happy dance at feeding time, although the dance is more sedate than it used to be. Tootsie, who is 14 years and 22 lbs, can still jump up on the dining room table and gets into everything she possibly can. Yesterday she ran away, ate lots of compost, and swam in the swamp. Ariel, at 8 years and 17 lbs, is a child in comparison. I hope she never grows old. When the other two are gone, I'll adopt a big goofy black dog and another snarky little terrier, just to keep Ariel on her toes!
For example, when I was a kid, our neighbor's Standard Poodle Billy was 21 and went for a walk every day. Our cats lived to be 22 and 23. The party line of conventional veterinary medicine is something like: "Thanks to modeern medicine, our pets are living longer and healthier lives than ever before!" And yet, on the ground, this is not true.
At a conference last summer, a vet from California began her lecture by saying, "As you all know, we're dealing with animals that have a ten-year life span." And we know that giant breed dogs (Great Pyrenees, Bernese Mountain Dogs, mastiffs, St. Bernards) are seniors with three feet in the grave by the time they're six. Cats are senior citizens by seven or eight.
In my little home experiment with natural care and feeding, here's how it's going: Tonka, who is 13 now and a 97 lb Malamute mix, is now officially off the chart. He still goes for a walk every day and does a happy dance at feeding time, although the dance is more sedate than it used to be. Tootsie, who is 14 years and 22 lbs, can still jump up on the dining room table and gets into everything she possibly can. Yesterday she ran away, ate lots of compost, and swam in the swamp. Ariel, at 8 years and 17 lbs, is a child in comparison. I hope she never grows old. When the other two are gone, I'll adopt a big goofy black dog and another snarky little terrier, just to keep Ariel on her toes!
Friday, June 1, 2012
Danger, danger! What you don't know can kill you!
In the April 2012 issue of DVM Newsmagazine, there's an article titled "CDC cautions public about raw milk consumption." Raw milk is illegal in some states (Minnesota included) precisely for this reason - it could kill you!
Here is what the CDC's research showed: Over the 13 years from 1993 to 2006, there were 4,413 illnesses, 239 hospitalizations, and three deaths - Yes, people DIED from drinking raw milk! This means that raw milk is BAD! It could KILL YOU!
OK, let's do some math. 4,413 illnesses in 13 years, that's, umm, let me see, roughly 339 people per year made ill by consuming raw milk. 239 hospitalizations, that's, oh, my...18 people per year. And three deaths, hmm, wait a minute! That's three deaths in thirteen years!
Honestly, folks, don't we have more serious things to worry about?
Here's some information from the New England Journal of Medicine in 1999: Each year 107,000 people are hospitalized from side effects caused by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. You know, aspirin, tylenol, ibuprofen, etc. And each year there are 16,500 NSAID-related deaths among patients with arthritis. And that's just folks with arthritis, not the rest of us who might be taking these drugs for headaches, injuries, heart-attack prevention, etc.
Is the CDC telling us to avoid non-steroidal anti-inflammatories? Hell, no! There's money in them thar hills, I mean drugs!
But raw milk could kill you.
Beware.
Here is what the CDC's research showed: Over the 13 years from 1993 to 2006, there were 4,413 illnesses, 239 hospitalizations, and three deaths - Yes, people DIED from drinking raw milk! This means that raw milk is BAD! It could KILL YOU!
OK, let's do some math. 4,413 illnesses in 13 years, that's, umm, let me see, roughly 339 people per year made ill by consuming raw milk. 239 hospitalizations, that's, oh, my...18 people per year. And three deaths, hmm, wait a minute! That's three deaths in thirteen years!
Honestly, folks, don't we have more serious things to worry about?
Here's some information from the New England Journal of Medicine in 1999: Each year 107,000 people are hospitalized from side effects caused by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. You know, aspirin, tylenol, ibuprofen, etc. And each year there are 16,500 NSAID-related deaths among patients with arthritis. And that's just folks with arthritis, not the rest of us who might be taking these drugs for headaches, injuries, heart-attack prevention, etc.
Is the CDC telling us to avoid non-steroidal anti-inflammatories? Hell, no! There's money in them thar hills, I mean drugs!
But raw milk could kill you.
Beware.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Newsletter and Nutrition Classes
Did you know that what you feed your pets affects
their behavior as well as their health? Click here for more information about the
Nutrition Classes for Dogs and Cats I co-teach with Katie K9, professional
dog trainer, coach and radio personality. You will find our 2 ½-hour classes informative
and entertaining.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Things That Drive Me Nuts
In the latest issue of Veterinary Medicine magazine there's an article about a dog with anal sac adenocarcinoma. This is a malignant tumor in dogs, and it's a sad story that ends badly for this little guy. Initially surgery was performed to remove the tumor, and it was repeated a month later because the darn thing grew back. During the second surgery, 40% of the anal sphincter was removed as well as part of his rectum.
Other than mild fecal incontinence (surprise, surprise) and bladder stones, which were not treated because they were not deemed to be causing any problems, the dog went home for a year and a half, at which point he had developed ribbon-shaped feces and was having trouble pooping. The tumor had not only reoccurred locally, but had spread to his liver and lungs.
Over the next 6 months this poor little dog went through chemotherapy, side effects of chemotherapy, feeling like crap, drugs, more drugs, drugs to treat the side effects of the first drugs, and eventually his kidneys shut down and he was mercifully euthanized.
The article is meant to be educational, in kind of a "this is the way it goes" presentation, with each actor - the surgeon, the oncologist, the clinical pathologist, the pharmacologist - playing their part in the drama of treating the tumor, um, I mean, the patient.
This article was tragic for me. I've treated some dogs like this with nutrition, correct diet, and homeopathy, and have had them live out their normal life spans in comfort at home. Not every pet will share the same level of success with treatment, depending on the state of the immune system, which plays such a huge role in these conditions. But when I think about my patients - at home, eating great food, benefiting from the gentle medicine of homeopathy - versus this little dog, who spent his last months of life ill, receiving injections of toxic drugs and having all kinds of pills shoved down his throat on a regular basis - it strikes me as very sad that there was no search for alternatives here. Even if homeopathy and other forms of "alternative" medicine wouldn't have offered hope of a cure, necessarily, well, this dog didn't get a cure from conventional medicine. He got suffering, from professionals whose oath states that their goal is to relieve suffering. And that's why I do what I do.
Other than mild fecal incontinence (surprise, surprise) and bladder stones, which were not treated because they were not deemed to be causing any problems, the dog went home for a year and a half, at which point he had developed ribbon-shaped feces and was having trouble pooping. The tumor had not only reoccurred locally, but had spread to his liver and lungs.
Over the next 6 months this poor little dog went through chemotherapy, side effects of chemotherapy, feeling like crap, drugs, more drugs, drugs to treat the side effects of the first drugs, and eventually his kidneys shut down and he was mercifully euthanized.
The article is meant to be educational, in kind of a "this is the way it goes" presentation, with each actor - the surgeon, the oncologist, the clinical pathologist, the pharmacologist - playing their part in the drama of treating the tumor, um, I mean, the patient.
This article was tragic for me. I've treated some dogs like this with nutrition, correct diet, and homeopathy, and have had them live out their normal life spans in comfort at home. Not every pet will share the same level of success with treatment, depending on the state of the immune system, which plays such a huge role in these conditions. But when I think about my patients - at home, eating great food, benefiting from the gentle medicine of homeopathy - versus this little dog, who spent his last months of life ill, receiving injections of toxic drugs and having all kinds of pills shoved down his throat on a regular basis - it strikes me as very sad that there was no search for alternatives here. Even if homeopathy and other forms of "alternative" medicine wouldn't have offered hope of a cure, necessarily, well, this dog didn't get a cure from conventional medicine. He got suffering, from professionals whose oath states that their goal is to relieve suffering. And that's why I do what I do.
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