July/August 2010 - Dogs Naturally Magazine
July/August 2010 - Dogs Naturally Magazine
July/August 2010 - Dogs Naturally Magazine
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For <strong>Dogs</strong> Without Boundaries<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
Volume 1<br />
Issue 4<br />
<strong>July</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Satisfy your natural curiosity<br />
at the NATURAL PET EXPO<br />
Featuring<br />
‘Ask the Vet’<br />
with<br />
Dr. Deva<br />
Khalsa,<br />
Author of<br />
Natural Dog<br />
Plus many natural, holistic and organic<br />
Pet Businesses & Services * Authors & Speakers *<br />
Animal Rescues * Pet Parade * Raffles * Pet Contests<br />
* Kids Korner * Samples * Entertainment & Fun!<br />
Join Jo Join in the th the he NA NATURAL ATU TURA RAL Pe Pet Com Communi Community<br />
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October 3, <strong>2010</strong><br />
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Liberties Walk, Philadelphia, PA<br />
Between 2nd & American Streets<br />
visit www.NaturalPetExpo.net
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>!<br />
On the Cover:<br />
Volume 1 Number 4 <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong><br />
Stephanie and ‘Cooper’<br />
Contents<br />
Editor in Chief: Erika Phillips<br />
erika@dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
Associate Editor: Dana Scott<br />
dana@dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
Publisher: Intuition<br />
dana@dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
Advertising Inquiries:<br />
advertise@dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
Sales and Subscriptions:<br />
subscribe@dogsnaturallymagazine.com<br />
_______________________________________________<br />
Published by Intuition<br />
5065 10th Line RR2<br />
New Tecumseth, Ontario L0G 1A0<br />
_______________________________________________<br />
Contents of this publication are copyrighted<br />
and may be reproduced only with<br />
the permission of the editor. The views of<br />
the writers and advertisers do not necessarily<br />
reflect those of the publisher.<br />
Contributions in the form of articles,<br />
artwork or financial support are always<br />
welcome. We do not pay money for<br />
artwork or articles: these are considered<br />
to be contributed gratis for publication.<br />
We reserve the right to edit articles, but it<br />
is our policy to make as few changes as<br />
possible in the material that is sent to us.<br />
In sending an article for publication, the<br />
author represents that he/she is the sole<br />
owner of the rights therein. Copyright<br />
and ownership of articles submitted<br />
remain with the author, except we would<br />
like to retain the first magazine publication<br />
rights for both print and electronic<br />
publication.<br />
The deadline for submission for the next<br />
issue of <strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong> is <strong>August</strong> 23,<br />
<strong>2010</strong>.<br />
Photography by Karen Delong<br />
www.kdelongphotography.com<br />
info@kdelongphotography.com<br />
Columns<br />
4 Editorials<br />
6 Ten Minute Trainer<br />
Confinement Training<br />
7 Secret Garden<br />
Juniper<br />
8 Show & Tell<br />
Susan Jenkins<br />
11 The Apothecary<br />
Pulsatilla<br />
16 Oversees<br />
Catherine O’Driscoll<br />
60 Teacher <strong>Dogs</strong><br />
Features<br />
12 POTCAKES IN PARADISE<br />
by Ellen Kohn<br />
15 SHAMPOO: READ THE LABEL FIRST<br />
by Laura Boston<br />
20 RESOURCE GUARDING IN PUPPIES<br />
by Jean Donaldson<br />
22 PET HEALTH: WHAT WE EAT AND FEED THEM PART II<br />
by Dr. Michael W. Fox B Vet Med PhD DSc MRCVS<br />
26 CONSEQUENCES AND CONTROL: GETTING BEHAVIORS<br />
by Dana Scott<br />
28 KICKING THE KIBBLE HABIT: PART II<br />
by Lucy Postins<br />
30 DOGS, PARKS AND POLITICS<br />
by Julie Walsh<br />
32 MEAT FACTS AND DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS<br />
by Erika Phillips<br />
34 MOST DOGS DO WELL ON RIMADYL<br />
EXCEPT THE ONES THAT DIE<br />
by Chris Adams<br />
37 REIKI AND DOG RESCUE:<br />
FINDING HEALING THROUGH BALANCE<br />
by Kathleen Prasad<br />
40 HEARTWORM MEDICATION<br />
by Jan Rasmussen<br />
46 PILED HIGH:<br />
STACKING THE DECK AGAINST RAW FEEDING<br />
by Lynne Parker<br />
48 INTERVIEW WITH DR. JOHN VIRAPEN<br />
50 BORDATELLA: FRAUD AND FALLACY<br />
by Dr. Patricia Jordan DVM<br />
52 ASCORBIC ACID IS NOT VITAMIN C<br />
by Tim O’Shea DC<br />
60 IS MY DOG TRYING TO DOMINATE ME?<br />
by Leonard Cecil<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com l<br />
<strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 3
Editorials<br />
Well, the dog days of summer are here! As I type, I am sitting with my dogs huddled up in my<br />
office, all of us jostling for the spot closest to the air conditioner. Spending less time outdoors<br />
during this heat streak means spending more time with the magazine and that is a good thing.<br />
Erika and I have some very big plans that we are putting into place.<br />
First, we are going to offer an online learning centre where we will offer courses, chats, lectures<br />
and webinars on everything dog. We hope that we can launch this shortly after the release of the<br />
<strong>July</strong> issue.<br />
We are also working hard on The PACK Society. One of the reasons we produce this magazine is<br />
to bring Natural Health Care to the forefront. This is not an easy task because there is so much<br />
power and money behind allopathic medicine and of course, they are reluctant to give up a piece<br />
of their pie. The PACK Society is an organization that will bring us together into a unified front so<br />
that we fight power with power. We hope that through education, support and unity, pet owners<br />
will put more and more pressure on veterinarians to make alternative medicine more accessible.<br />
Our voices need to be heard now more than ever and we speak the loudest when we speak with our pocketbooks. Please support<br />
The PACK in any way you can and please let your veterinarian know that we are consumers and that we are free to purchase<br />
whatever services we deem fit for our dogs.<br />
In the meantime, stay cool and enjoy the <strong>July</strong> issue.<br />
Dana Scott<br />
Associate Editor/Publisher<br />
Summer has come and brought some scorching heat along with it for you eastern<br />
and southern folks. We on the other hand have had some unusually cold and<br />
wet weather for Montana. My dogs are loving it and feel truly grateful for the extended<br />
walks and hikes that normally at this time of the year would have them<br />
sprawled out throughout the house in front of fans and the A/C. The farm animals<br />
are thankful as well.<br />
Time is traveling at break neck speeds and before we know it fall will be here and<br />
My family and I will be back on home land in Canada. After 5 fantastic years in<br />
Montana, it is daunting to pack up again but deep down we are super excited. The<br />
kids and dogs have had some fantastic experiences living in the 'hills'. Being born in<br />
Newfoundland, I am thankful for the small community mentality and the friendly, stress free attitude that our little town has<br />
but sadly it doesn't offer much for the development of an international project. The behind the scenes work is in place and<br />
now it's time to pound the pavement. If we are going to make this publication available to those that really need the information<br />
to help make better decisions for themselves and their pets then we need to be proactive. On my journey back to<br />
Canada, I am looking forward to the plans that Dana and I have put into play. We will be promoting The PACK Society ( People<br />
for the Alternative Care of K-9s) by way of Conferences, Seminars and other education venues. We will working of getting<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong> <strong>Naturally</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> into print. We will also be working on a series of books that will compliment the topics in the<br />
magazine.<br />
We truly appreciate the support of our subscribers and we look forward to walking the road of change with each and every<br />
one of you! We do encourage all of you to express your opinions and pass along your comments. Without our readers, we<br />
are but ink on paper!<br />
I would like to congratulate my beautiful baby boy on his high school graduation. I am so proud of you Tanner!<br />
Erika Phillips<br />
Editor-in-Chief<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 5
Confinement and Crate<br />
Training<br />
By: Jean Donaldson<br />
SFSPCA<br />
Owners are often unsure whether they need to<br />
crate-train their puppies or newly adopted dogs<br />
or whether to simply confine them in a dogproofed<br />
area during the early weeks or months<br />
following adoption. Here is some information to<br />
help you decide if crate training is for you.<br />
Crate training helps with the following:<br />
1. Housetraining: prompts the dog to hold bladder<br />
and bowels when unsupervised to expedite<br />
housetraining<br />
2. Chew-training: prevents the dog from chewing<br />
furniture, walls and anything else except the<br />
chew toys he is crated with so good habits automatically<br />
form<br />
3. Settling down: patterns dog to be inactive<br />
when alone<br />
4. Owner as good guy: by decimating housetraining<br />
and chew-training mistakes, dog partially "self<br />
-trains," reducing amount of reprimanding and<br />
bad-guy stuff for owner<br />
5. Preparation for possible close confinement:<br />
dogs that are used to close confinement are less<br />
likely to be stressed when caged during a hospital<br />
stay or travel.<br />
Chewing and activity management could be accomplished<br />
with a well dog-proofed room or an<br />
ex-pen and these are alternatives if the dog is<br />
solid in his elimination habits. If the dog is shaky<br />
on housetraining, however, you're better off<br />
crate-training him as the close confinement will<br />
inhibit urination and defecation. To get the crating<br />
effect, the crate should be only large enough<br />
for the dog to stand up and turn around in. An expen,<br />
dog-proofed room or too-large crate allows<br />
the dog to use one end as bathroom area and the<br />
other end as bed.<br />
How To Get Him Used to His Crate<br />
You can't just throw the dog in the crate and<br />
expect him to adjust. That would be traumatic.<br />
Early association is important and, often, indelible.<br />
Make the crate comfy with a nice crate pad<br />
or blanket*, situate it in a high traffic area like the<br />
kitchen and, whenever the dog isn't looking, drop<br />
a couple of treats at the back. Don't point these<br />
out to him, rather let him discover them on his<br />
own. Feed him meals in there, always with the<br />
door open. Using heavy string, tie an attractive<br />
stuffed chew-toy to the rear inside so that the<br />
dog must lie in the crate in order to chew on it.<br />
After a few days of this, start teaching the dog to<br />
enter and exit on command. Say "into bed" or<br />
"into the crate," throw in a treat, praise as the<br />
dog goes in and eats the treat and then order him<br />
out with the command of your choice. Encourage<br />
him to come out and, when he does, praise him<br />
(no food treat for exiting). Repeat this a few<br />
times and then change the order of events<br />
slightly: instead of throwing the treat into the<br />
crate after you say "into bed," wait for him to go<br />
in on his own before dropping in the treat.<br />
If the dog doesn't enter on command, simply<br />
wait. Do not command him a second time and do<br />
not crack and throw the treat in. You can encourage<br />
him in with hand gestures but even this is<br />
riskier than simply waiting. If he doesn't go in,<br />
end the training session without comment. Try<br />
another session in a little while, still withholding<br />
the reward until the dog goes in on his own.<br />
When he does (and they all do eventually so hang<br />
in there), give him a double or triple reward, do a<br />
few more rewarded reps and then end the session.<br />
Always leave the dog wanting more.<br />
When the dog is going in and out on command,<br />
you are ready to try the first lock-in. Play the in/<br />
out of the crate game, only now close the door<br />
after he has gone in and feed him treats through<br />
the grate for a minute or two before opening the<br />
door. Do this several times. Then practice walking<br />
around the crate and around the room while he is<br />
locked inside, pitching treats at him occasionally<br />
and then, after a couple of minutes, opening the<br />
door and letting him out. Make the whole thing a<br />
positive experience for him. The next step is to<br />
add some real duration. Rent yourself a favorite<br />
video and stuff a couple of chew-toys with something<br />
extra-special. Set the crate up right next to<br />
your comfy movie chair and, just before you sit<br />
down to enjoy the movie, order the dog into the<br />
crate. When he goes in, give him the chew toys,<br />
close the crate door and start the<br />
movie. Leave a few times to get popcorn,<br />
a drink, but always come back<br />
within a minute or so.<br />
The first experience being locked in<br />
the crate for this length of time must<br />
be an overwhelmingly easy and good<br />
one. Any noise, agitation or tantrum<br />
from the dog should be ignored. At<br />
the end of the movie, if the dog is<br />
quiet and settled in the crate, simply<br />
open the door and order him out.<br />
Under no circumstances will you open<br />
the door to the crate if the dog is<br />
misbehaving, otherwise you are conditioning<br />
that behavior. If you do not<br />
like it, do not reward it. When you do<br />
open the door, don't gush and hug the dog. Make<br />
the exit an anticlimax. Behave very neutrally. All<br />
the good stuff should happen while he's IN the<br />
crate, behaving nicely. Once he's out, order him<br />
right back in for a food treat or two without closing<br />
the door before you finish your training/<br />
movie session. If he refuses to go in, do whatever<br />
it takes to get him in, reward him and get your in/<br />
out exercise polished up again.<br />
Now spend a few days locking the dog in the<br />
crate when you're at home, going about your<br />
usual business. Ignore or reprimand any noise<br />
and provide interesting crate puzzles (i.e., chew<br />
toys) each time. When the dog is going in without<br />
fuss and no longer distress vocalizing, you may<br />
start leaving the house. Leave for one to ten seconds<br />
over and over for the first "leaving home"<br />
session. Then, over the next few sessions, gradually<br />
extend the time you are gone, from a minute<br />
to five minutes to ten, fifteen, thirty, an hour,<br />
two, three and four hours. Throw in some short<br />
ones (5 to 60 seconds) in between to mix it up.<br />
Depart and arrive without any fanfare. Tire the<br />
dog out with vigorous exercise and training before<br />
the longest absences.<br />
It is important to gradually condition the dog to<br />
being in the crate this way before using it in your<br />
day to day life. Later on, if you discover your dog<br />
is soiling his crate, the first thing to try is removing<br />
the pad or blanket for a week - the porous<br />
material may be triggering elimination. Be sure,<br />
also, that you are not stretching the dog too long<br />
between bathroom trips and forcing him to eliminate<br />
in his crate. Keep both the dog and the crate<br />
scrupulously clean. It would be prudent to have<br />
him checked for a bladder infection if he is urinating<br />
really often. Finally, a minority of dog are just<br />
not inhibited from eliminating by crates or have<br />
lost their cleanliness instinct by being confined<br />
continuously.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
y: Erika Phillips<br />
Juniper<br />
Common Juniper – Juniperus communis, also known as Geneva.<br />
This small shrub like tree can be found throughout<br />
North America, Europe, Asia, southern Artic, the Himalayas,<br />
Atlas and Caucasus mountains.<br />
Native Americans used juniper for it’s childbearing properties<br />
as Juniper berries promotes uterine recovery after<br />
childbirth. Native Americans also used it to treat infections<br />
and for arthritis.<br />
It was also found by early Americans to be useful for congestive<br />
heart failure, eczema and psoriasis. As a tincture it<br />
was used to treat, although disputed, gonorrhea, bladder<br />
and kidney infections, and other genitourinary problems.<br />
Today Juniper is used effectively as an antiseptic, for bladder<br />
infections, arthritis, intestinal cramps and gout.<br />
Of course the largest use for juniper is the drink “Gin”. Discovered<br />
by the Dutch in the 17 th century, the word Gin<br />
comes from the word Geniver, the Dutch word for Juniper.<br />
Juniper’s aromatic oil contains the diuretic chemical Terpinenforol,<br />
this oil increases the fluid filtering rate of the<br />
kidneys.<br />
Juniper is effective in reducing blood pressure but should<br />
be done under medical supervision because of potentially<br />
harmful side effects.<br />
In animal studies, juniper stimulates uterine contractions<br />
and can be used to replace Oxytocin to expel retained placentas<br />
as well as to aid in uterine inertia confirming what<br />
early Americans believed.<br />
Because Juniper is a diuretic, it helps reduce bloating and<br />
premenstrual difficulties.<br />
There are side effects to be aware with juniper. They include,<br />
in high doses, kidney damage, irritation and impairment.<br />
Juniper should not be taken for longer than 6 weeks<br />
at a time..<br />
Overdose symptoms include diarrhea, protein in the urine,<br />
pain in the kidney region, elevated blood pressure, purple<br />
urine, blood in the urine, intestinal cramps. Stop using it<br />
right away if you notice any of these symptoms.<br />
It is important to note that Juniper has over 60 species belonging<br />
to this species and it is possible to mistake the common<br />
juniper to the highly toxic Juniper Sabin L. However<br />
the berries are different in shape.<br />
The most effective way to use Juniper is as an infusion of<br />
dried or fresh crushed berries. 1 cup boiling water to 1 tsp<br />
of the berries.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 7
Show and Tell<br />
<br />
<br />
Waltona Labradors and<br />
Papps Dog Training<br />
How did you get involved in obedience?<br />
I was getting ready to show saddleseat<br />
and happened to stop at a Collie specialty<br />
at the local fairgrounds. What<br />
caught my attention was the Utility<br />
class. I went home and told my husband,<br />
Lew, that I didn't want to show<br />
horses but wanted a purebred dog to<br />
compete with. Lew was working with a<br />
lady who had titled a dog to a Companion<br />
Dog Excellent title and introduced<br />
me to my first trainer (who we later<br />
bought the business from!)<br />
Tell us about your first dog(s)<br />
I have had dogs all my life but my first<br />
obedience dog was Becca, a field bred<br />
black Lab. She was amazing: before she<br />
was three years old she had her AKC<br />
Utility Dog title and was ranked in the<br />
top 20 in Utility for both placements<br />
and scores. She was spayed right at six<br />
months and ended up totally blowing<br />
her ACL and had to have re-constructive<br />
surgery on her knee. I still question if<br />
having her spayed so early contributed<br />
to her pain.<br />
Tell us about your current dogs<br />
I currently have two Labradors: a seven<br />
year old yellow, Caleb, and a two year<br />
old black, Micah. I am currently working<br />
on completing Caleb's AKC Obedience<br />
Trial Championship. Caleb and I<br />
have had so many firsts together: my<br />
first High in Trial (he has almost 20),<br />
my first High Combined (almost a<br />
dozen), my first Utility Dog Excellent,<br />
and he will be my first OTCh. He's also<br />
been the first dog I've gone to a tournament<br />
with: The All-Star Performance<br />
Dog Championship where we have<br />
placed multiple times. He's also been<br />
the first dog I've shown in breed, earn-<br />
ing his UKC Grand-Championship and is<br />
pointed towards his AKC Championship<br />
with a Best of Breed over Specials.<br />
Caleb also has his U-CDX, his Canadian<br />
OTCh/UD and numbers Rally<br />
titles.<br />
Micah is my silly happy go-lucky boy<br />
(where Caleb is Mr. Serious). Micah has<br />
just started his career and has completed<br />
his AKC Rally Advanced Excellent<br />
and will be making his debut at the All-<br />
Star Performance Dog Championship<br />
this <strong>August</strong> in Super Rally. I keep telling<br />
Micah that he has some big paws to<br />
fill. Micah is third generation weaned to<br />
raw, with minimum vaccines. Boy is<br />
that nice!<br />
Why Labradors?<br />
My husband did not grow up with dogs<br />
in the house, and was not really sure he<br />
wanted dogs, but after a huge fight and<br />
my telling him that I would never have<br />
married a man who would not have<br />
dogs, we began our search. Since I had<br />
all ready been to an obedience trial I<br />
knew I wanted to compete so I wanted<br />
something that I could show. Before I<br />
got married I had gotten a mixed Lab<br />
that stayed with my Mom and I<br />
had already fallen in love with<br />
the Lab temperament. We narrowed<br />
our search to Labs and<br />
Goldens and went to meet a<br />
Golden breeder. As it turned<br />
out it was a show breeder and<br />
when he brought his dogs out<br />
for us to see, they had tons and<br />
tons of long, beautiful coat. We<br />
got in the car and Lew said we<br />
were getting a Lab, which was<br />
what I really wanted all along.<br />
Why did you decide to feed<br />
raw?<br />
As most pet owners I wanted to<br />
do the best for my dogs. Becca<br />
ate premium food all her life<br />
but she was the type of dog that<br />
could have eaten trash and still<br />
be healthy. We got our second<br />
purebred Lab, and things<br />
changed. Tobie started with<br />
anal gland problems and<br />
through a long process we dis-<br />
covered an allergy to rawhides (during<br />
this time I found out they were a product<br />
of the tanning industry not a food<br />
producing industry), wheat and corn,<br />
and I actually had to cook for him. He<br />
was my first Lab on a totally wheat and<br />
corn free diet. Then Caleb came and he<br />
had chronic ear infections and then he<br />
was diagnosed with Pano. A lady that I<br />
was training with handed me Billinghurst's<br />
second book and told me just<br />
to read it. As I read it I was<br />
hooked! Even Lew said feeding raw<br />
makes perfect sense. That was over<br />
seven years ago and now I even travel<br />
with raw food for my boys.<br />
Do you vaccinate?<br />
Not anymore. I grew up being taught<br />
that MD's and DVM's were almost like<br />
gods and one must follow everything<br />
they say and never question. Becca developed<br />
tumors at what I realize now to<br />
be the injection site . Tobie had tons<br />
and tons of health issues. My vet at the<br />
time told me I needed to keep vaccinating,<br />
even though Becca was now 16<br />
years old. Really?!<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong><br />
Susan with Caleb and Micah
Susan with Caleb<br />
I realize a lot of Caleb's early health issues<br />
were due to being vaccinated while<br />
having ear infections. He was almost 3<br />
when I finally got in with a holistic vet<br />
that helped me rebuild his immune system.<br />
One of the reasons I began looking<br />
into Micah's breeder was because she<br />
weaned to raw and did minimum vaccines.<br />
It was one of the hardest steps I<br />
have ever taken. It is so against my<br />
"teaching" about health care for my<br />
pets. But I had already eliminated vaccines<br />
from my personal life so why<br />
would I vaccinate my dogs?<br />
What is your greatest accomplishment?<br />
Some would say almost having my Obedience<br />
Trial Championship would be<br />
the greatest accomplishment since I<br />
own a training center and actively compete.<br />
But, I must say my greatest accomplishment<br />
is Caleb's. He sired a<br />
littler of puppies for Leader Dog for the<br />
Blind and now has dogs in harness. One<br />
of the puppies that did not make it as a<br />
Leader Dog is helping abused children<br />
talk about their abuse and will actually<br />
sit in the witness stand as they testify<br />
against their abusers. They want Caleb<br />
back for another donation and plan on<br />
including Micah in the program once his<br />
OFA's are done.<br />
What are your goals for the future?<br />
Once Caleb finishes his OTCh I want<br />
to get back into tracking. I have<br />
never gotten a TD and would like<br />
one on both of the boys. This fall<br />
Micah should be making his AKC<br />
Novice debut. I have been amazed<br />
at this boy. The lady I train with<br />
thinks he will be able to go right<br />
through all three titles and be very<br />
competitive at the top levels of obedience--and<br />
not just the Labradors,<br />
but all obedience. He has been a<br />
challenge for me but oh do I love<br />
that boy! I also know with Caleb<br />
being over seven now I am facing<br />
his retirement which breaks my<br />
heart, but knowing that he's raw fed<br />
and minimum vaccines I do expect<br />
him to be healthy enough to keep<br />
competing for a while.<br />
What advice would you give to people<br />
starting out with Natural Rearing?<br />
The thing that helped me the most was<br />
having a good mentor who didn't<br />
"push things down my throat" but let<br />
me read and learn for myself and<br />
then was there for me when I had<br />
questions. I think now at the training<br />
center most of the regular people<br />
are feeding raw now and doing minimum<br />
vaccinating. Also find a good<br />
vet that you can work with and talk<br />
to. I left a vet because he told me<br />
that people who fed raw are killing<br />
their dogs and that the next thing<br />
that happens is that they stop vaccinating.<br />
I calmly told him that I had<br />
been feeding Caleb raw since he was<br />
six months old. That was my last<br />
visit there. About five years later I<br />
had a client come in and ask me<br />
about feeding raw and that her vet<br />
told her it is a good way to go if you<br />
have a good mentor. I thought,<br />
"Wow!" and asked who her vet was:<br />
it was the one who had told me I was<br />
killing my dog by feeding raw! My<br />
how things change!<br />
What advice would you give to<br />
people wanting to get involved<br />
with obedience?<br />
Find someone who has trained to advanced<br />
levels and has trained multiple<br />
dogs. Ask anyone who trains, what<br />
might work for one dog might not work<br />
for another. You want someone who<br />
has multiple tools in the their tool belt.<br />
Most importantly it must be fun for you<br />
and your dog. If you and your dog are<br />
not having fun (and yes we all have bad<br />
days) something has to change. For my<br />
boys it's all about having fun, we play in<br />
our work.. They fight to get to be the<br />
one who gets to "work" first and the<br />
other moans and whines waiting their<br />
turn. They love to work!<br />
Finally, be able to laugh at yourself and<br />
your dog. Have fun! I love obedience.<br />
I've done some agility but my<br />
heart is obedience. It's only boring if<br />
you make it boring! I'm blessed to be<br />
able to train myself under one of the top<br />
instructors in the nation. When I<br />
started you had to be invited to come to<br />
their classes. So that means I am still<br />
being challenged to grow as a trainer<br />
which makes me continue to grow as an<br />
instructor.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 9<br />
Susan with Michah
I’d like to tell you about a major campaign<br />
that’s taking place over here in the UK. I use<br />
the word ‘major’ – but this is more hope than<br />
reality at the moment, since it relies upon the<br />
support and action of those of us who know<br />
what vaccines are doing to our dogs.<br />
So … why the campaign? Although we have<br />
bodies such as the WSAVA and AAHA saying<br />
we don’t need to vaccinate every year, most<br />
vets in practice – in the UK at least - are still<br />
vaccinating against all the diseases on an annual<br />
basis. Even though there are vaccines<br />
licensed for boosting 3 to 4 years later, they<br />
are still using the one-year shots. And of<br />
course we all know that even the 3-4 year<br />
shots are unnecessary.<br />
There are some dog lovers who have wised-up<br />
and who won’t allow their vets to vaccinate<br />
their friends every year; there are even some<br />
ethical vets. But there are still too many people<br />
who are taking it all on trust, and then<br />
getting shocked, angry and catapulted into<br />
grief when their dogs (and cats, horses, rabbits..)<br />
get a vaccine-associated illness or die.<br />
So back in February, we wrote to the British<br />
licensing authority, the Veterinary Medicines<br />
Directorate, calling for them to take one-year<br />
MLV core vaccines off the market. At the same<br />
time, Canine Health Concern members wrote<br />
to their political representatives to exert pressure<br />
on the VMD.<br />
The VMD responded the DAY BEFORE a general<br />
election was called in the UK, a minute<br />
before everyone went home for the day. Parliament<br />
was dissolved, and we were without<br />
an acting government until the election was<br />
over. Essentially, we were in a position of having<br />
to start again with regards to our political<br />
system.<br />
The VMD’s response was a ‘position paper on<br />
canine vaccination schedules’. It was literally a<br />
position paper: “This is how it is, now naff<br />
off.” They had totally ignored our call. Therefore,<br />
with government blessing, annual vaccination<br />
continues in the UK (and all over the<br />
world, of course).<br />
There is some background to this which may<br />
interest you. The head of the VMD is a vet<br />
called Steve Dean. If you’ve read my book,<br />
‘What Vets Don’t Tell You About Vaccines’,<br />
you’ll know that the book starts with a column<br />
written by Steve Dean in one of the UK dog<br />
papers. This was back in the early 90s, and<br />
Steve was mocking the people who spoke of<br />
vaccine reactions in their dogs, and mocking<br />
anyone who said we don’t need to vaccinate<br />
every year. Then they made him the head of<br />
the government vaccine licensing body.<br />
Not only that, but it turns out that Steve Dean<br />
spent 17 years as a marketing man within the<br />
pharmaceutical industry, and then went on to<br />
be a pharmaceutical industry consultant. The<br />
government knew about his background when<br />
they made him head of the official body in the<br />
UK that monitors vaccine reactions, licenses<br />
vaccine products, and advises government on<br />
these matters.<br />
Further digging revealed that Steve Dean doesn’t<br />
have a hands off approach with the multibillion<br />
industry he legislates. Rather, he speaks<br />
at pharmaceutical company seminars and<br />
helps them with their press launches. He’s an<br />
industry man. On top of this, half of the people<br />
at the VMD have consultancy, research grants<br />
and shares with the pharmaceutical industry.<br />
Turns out that the Veterinary Medicines Directorate<br />
was set up following recommendations<br />
from the chief executive if ICI Pharmaceuticals.<br />
It reflected government policy under Margaret<br />
Thatcher to effectively deregulate the pharmaceutical<br />
industry and help it to get wealthier.<br />
This policy has been continued ever since.<br />
And this explains why the British government<br />
has successively ignored our calls to halt overvaccination.<br />
I’m pretty sure that the same<br />
scenario applies in most countries of the world.<br />
For example, in Denmark, dog owners are<br />
forced by law to vaccinate their dogs against<br />
everything EVERY SIX MONTHS. This isn’t<br />
about the science of vaccination – it must be<br />
because they can get away with it, or else they<br />
are experimenting on our dogs. Apparently<br />
the WHO passed a resolution to experiment<br />
with vaccines on dogs some years ago.<br />
So it seems to me that you and I can keep plugging<br />
on, year after year, mopping up the casualties<br />
and hugging the people who grieve the<br />
death of their dogs, but nothing much will<br />
change – unless we make the whole corrupt<br />
system more visible.<br />
People need to know that they are being manipulated<br />
by governments that don’t care<br />
about them and their dogs, but do care about<br />
industry, commerce, profits and power. We<br />
need to make the REASON why our dogs are<br />
being over-vaccinated more visible.<br />
People need to know that their vets are also<br />
being manipulated. They are educated in col-<br />
leges that take money from pharmaceutical<br />
companies. They are stalked by the pharmaceutical<br />
industry both in college and out of<br />
college. The pharmaceutical industry is throwing<br />
money everywhere. Pet charities, veterinary<br />
further education, vet seminars, political<br />
parties …. Everywhere that helps them sell<br />
more unnecessary product.<br />
There will be many on this list who understand<br />
that apathy is our greatest enemy. You will<br />
talk to dog owners and tell them the truth<br />
about vaccines and pet food, and their eyes<br />
will glaze over and they won’t hear you. We<br />
need to somehow find a way to turn apathy<br />
into action.<br />
I need you to go up to this website –<br />
www.petvaccine.weebly.com – and download<br />
the 369-page report I’ve written. Read it. It<br />
explains the science of vaccine damage, and it<br />
explains why annual vaccination continues.<br />
This is, in effect, a free book. Use the knowledge<br />
in the two-part report to open up the<br />
minds of dog lovers whose minds are currently<br />
closed.<br />
Importantly, if you are in the UK, please write<br />
to your MP. If you are outside the UK, please<br />
write to the UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer. We<br />
have put letter templates on the site, plus the<br />
addresses of the people you need to write to.<br />
Make it clear to the British government that<br />
the world is watching, and the world knows<br />
what is happening. Let them know that we<br />
don’t appreciate them selling our pets out.<br />
So – please go to the site and help expose the<br />
truth. I for one am fed up banging the drum<br />
day after day, year after year, with very little<br />
changing. It’s time to nail this one for good.<br />
Maybe if we are successful in the UK, then the<br />
light of truth will shine around the world.<br />
Typically, in any appeal, one person in a hundred<br />
will act. Let’s change this. Do something.<br />
Share this information with every dog lover<br />
you know, and on every list you are on.<br />
(There is a 10-page summary of the report that<br />
you can forward on to your dog-loving friends<br />
– it’s up on www.petvaccine.weebly.com. You<br />
can also forward the actual report, or the link,<br />
to your vets, dog-loving friends and anyone<br />
else you think might be interested. There’s a<br />
press release up there, too – so if you have<br />
contacts with any of the dog magazines,<br />
please feel free to send it on.)<br />
Lots of love...Catherine O’Driscoll<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
the<br />
PULSATILLA<br />
~ Wind Flower or Prairie Crocus<br />
by: Erika Phillips<br />
The mind, personality, disposition and mental state are the<br />
chief guiding symptoms to the selection of Pulsatilla. It is generally<br />
a female remedy as is Nux Vomica for men but should<br />
not be ruled out in male children or animal patients, especially<br />
for mild, gentle, yielding dispositions.<br />
Sad, crying readily; weeps when talking; <strong>Dogs</strong> that whine and<br />
want to be with you at all times. Does not want to be alone.<br />
Separation anxiety. Another interesting aspect of Pulsatilla is<br />
that the symptoms are changeable and contradictory. The patient<br />
seeks the open air; always feels better there, even<br />
though he/she is chilly. Mucous membranes are all affected.<br />
Discharges thick, bland, and yellowish-green. Often indicated<br />
after abuse of Iron tonics, and after badly managed measles.<br />
Symptoms are ever changing. thirstless, peevish and chilly.<br />
When first serious impairment of health is noted at the age of<br />
puberty. Great sensitivity. Wants the head held high. Lies with<br />
hands above head, outstretched, <strong>Dogs</strong> lie with forearms extended<br />
above the head or outstretched and stiff. It is very<br />
good for mothers who reject their newborns at birth, failing to<br />
nurse. An excellent remedy to be considered for the early<br />
stages of pyometra when the discharge is white/yellow and<br />
even green and when the bitch is clingy and depressed. Also<br />
useful for false pregnancy and split seasons.<br />
Stool can change between being bland and watery to slimy<br />
green, yellow, white “No two stools are alike”.<br />
Better with open air, motion, cold applications, cold food and<br />
drinks, though not thirsty, walking slowly, elevating feet when<br />
lying down.<br />
Worse from heat, rich fat food, after eating, towards evening,<br />
warm room, lying on left or on painless side, when allowing<br />
feet to hang down, does not tolerate eggs, thunderstorms,<br />
pregnancy, sun, twilight. Flannel and wool clothing.<br />
Complementary: Coffee; Chamomile, Nux Vomica.<br />
Higher potency seems to work more effectively than lower<br />
potency and that could be simply because of the strong psychology<br />
and mental picture of the remedy.<br />
SUMMARY<br />
Diarrhea can change between being white to Green or Yellow<br />
Discharge is bland, clear to greenish yellow<br />
Whiny, weepy, clingy (separation anxiety)<br />
Fear of thunderstorms<br />
Better with cold air, aggravated by heat<br />
Pains travel from one location to the next<br />
Irritability<br />
Irregular menstruation, false pregnancy, split seasons<br />
Cramping<br />
Irritation to flannel/wool<br />
Dry mouth with no thirst<br />
Constipation – large hard to pass stool<br />
Kennel cough—Upper respiratory infections<br />
Depression<br />
Measles<br />
Backache, headache, earaches<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 11
It began in 2002 with a trip to Grand Bahama<br />
Island in the Bahamas.<br />
The backdrop was dreamy: turquoise<br />
waters, balmy weather and lush tropical<br />
beaches with white sand and gorgeous<br />
vegetation. To top it off, the quick 30<br />
minute plane ride to Freeport from Florida<br />
landed me in a foreign country! Re-<br />
minders of the formal British colony<br />
were everywhere, including driving on<br />
the left side of the road. What fun it was!<br />
As we drove west from Freeport to West<br />
End, a boaters’ and fisherman’s haven,<br />
these beautiful visuals were quickly interrupted<br />
by scenes of third world type poverty.<br />
Broken down homes, old cars, rub-<br />
by: Ellen Kohn<br />
bish and a lack of cleanliness were all<br />
around. Children dressed in school uniforms<br />
ambled about the streets, returning<br />
home to sparsely furnished rooms<br />
overflowing with many siblings and relatives.<br />
The situation was abysmal for the animals.<br />
Roaming the streets searching for<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
scraps of food, the street dogs were everywhere.<br />
These potcakes, named after<br />
the leftover rice cake from the traditional<br />
Bahamian peas and rice dish, were starving,<br />
sick and abandoned. Litters of puppies<br />
lived under the houses, and were<br />
left completely on their own.<br />
Never had I seen so many starving, sick<br />
and abandoned dogs and cats in my life.<br />
Every time I rode a bike or walked into<br />
the village, I saw feral strays digging in<br />
the trash or cruising dangerously next to<br />
the road. Puppies were everywhere,<br />
and they also ventured near the cars.<br />
Many were killed, only to be left there<br />
to rot.<br />
The facts relating to animal control on<br />
Grand Bahama are sobering. There is<br />
no animal control agency; the only organization<br />
that deals with feral potcakes<br />
is The Humane Society of Grand<br />
Bahama in Freeport. It is difficult to get<br />
a van to leave Freeport and drive all the<br />
way out to West End to take the dogs to<br />
the shelter. Moreover, many feral potcakes<br />
are so wild that they can never<br />
trust a human, or be rehabilitated.<br />
The last, chilling fact about Grand Bahamas'<br />
animals was that the shelter was a<br />
high-kill facility, with a 95% euthanasia<br />
rate. The advent of the hurricanes aggravated<br />
an existing problem; by 2005<br />
more animals than ever were put to<br />
sleep.<br />
Deeply moved to do something, I contacted<br />
the Manager of the Humane<br />
Society of Grand Bahama, Tip Burrows.<br />
I explained that I wanted to help, that<br />
visiting her country with its animal<br />
problems was emotionally draining for<br />
me. I felt a sense of urgency to give<br />
back to these gentle canines, and ease<br />
their plight.<br />
The good news was that I had already<br />
started a 501(c) (3) non-profit in Colorado<br />
to help West End youth with college<br />
funding two years earlier in 2002.<br />
That enabled me to wrap the animal<br />
welfare efforts into an existing organization:<br />
The Kohn Foundation. We called<br />
our new offspring BARC for the Bahamian<br />
Animal Rescue Committee.<br />
This was the beginning of a very powerful<br />
partnership with The Kohn Foundation/BARC<br />
and The Humane Society.<br />
Now our animal welfare efforts had an<br />
official title and role in the non-profit. It<br />
was a bit daunting to start completely<br />
from scratch, but the effort garnered its<br />
own momentum.<br />
I asked everyone I knew to send them<br />
money. Little by little funds came in and<br />
then it began to explode. Our grassroots<br />
organization was making progress. We<br />
were making a difference in the lives of<br />
Grand Bahamas' potcakes, and it felt<br />
great.<br />
In 2007, The Kohn Foundation helped<br />
raise money for the first major spay/<br />
neuter initiative on Grand Bahama. Over<br />
18 veterinarians and techs paid their way<br />
and donated their vacation time to perform<br />
surgery. The result was more than<br />
300 sterilizations in a week, with additional<br />
amputations and emergency surgeries.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 13
Since 2007, The Kohn Foundation has<br />
helped fund four more spay/neuter clinics.<br />
Each time, we have been able to pay<br />
for all of the medical and surgical supplies<br />
needed to perform these clinics,<br />
now being held even in the more rural<br />
areas of Grand Bahama. The overpopulation<br />
problem has definitely been curbed.<br />
In spite of the tremendous success of<br />
these clinics, the overpopulation problem<br />
still has a foothold in Bahamian society<br />
due to the belief system inherent in<br />
their culture. Because they really do not<br />
support spay/neuter, education still remains<br />
a challenge in our process. But we<br />
are determined to continue the work in<br />
spite of the roadblocks.<br />
Another huge part of our work on Grand<br />
Bahama involves raising money to fund<br />
puppy lifts from the Freeport Humane<br />
Society shelter to the U.S. In April, <strong>2010</strong>,<br />
88 dogs and puppies were airlifted via a<br />
cargo flight to Ft. Lauderdale, and then<br />
rerouted to other no-kill shelters in Florida,<br />
Washington, D.C., Ithaca, New York<br />
City, Albuquerque, Denver, and Boston.<br />
With the cooperation of Delta Airlines, all<br />
of the dogs arrived safely and in great<br />
condition. All of them have already found<br />
their forever homes across the country.<br />
Looking back at the last seven years, establishing<br />
The Kohn Foundation was one<br />
of the most exciting adventures I have<br />
ever embarked on. In my wildest<br />
dreams, I would not have imagined that<br />
rescuing Bahamian potcakes would bring<br />
deep satisfaction in my life and nourishment<br />
for my soul.<br />
This journey has enabled me to look<br />
deeper into another culture. When given<br />
the opportunity, I have explained to<br />
young people that there is nothing merciful<br />
about euthanizing healthy puppies,<br />
and that it is preventable!!<br />
Explaining that dogs need to eat nutritiously<br />
to maintain proper health is another<br />
surprise to the Bahamians. The<br />
youth are open to learning, and many of<br />
them have departed from the ways of<br />
old, now caring deeply for their pets.<br />
Would I do it again? You bet. It has<br />
changed my life forever, introducing me<br />
to people who would give their last dollar<br />
to save a life. It is worth all of the anguish<br />
and sadness that I felt in the beginning<br />
to know that one person can make a<br />
difference in this world. Most of all, it<br />
demonstrates to all of us that we are<br />
connected, that each time we give, we<br />
receive and that even the smallest effort<br />
can blossom into a beautiful outcome.<br />
Ellen Kohn is an Interspecies Communicator,<br />
Healing Touch for Animals Certified Practitioner<br />
(HTACP), Reiki Master-Teacher, Meridian<br />
Practitioner and Spiritual Counselor.<br />
She frequently uses Bach Flower and Alaskan<br />
Gem essences for her clients. She is also a<br />
certified aroma therapist and uses crystal<br />
energy for her healing work. She is the founder<br />
of The Kohn Foundation, a Colorado 501<br />
(c) (3) non-profit which helps children and<br />
animals on Grand Bahama Island, The Bahamas.<br />
Visit Ellen on the web:<br />
www.EnlightenedAnimals.com.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
y: Laura Boston<br />
This article appeared in Barkleigh/Canadian Groomer<br />
<strong>Magazine</strong>. This article is copyright and may not be<br />
reproduced without permission by Laura Boston<br />
Shampoo is one of the key tools of a professional dog<br />
groomer. They expect shampoos to clean the dogs and<br />
leave them smelling nice. The key cleaning action in<br />
shampoos is done by surfactants. Surfactants, or<br />
surface active agents, can be of synthetic origin, an<br />
example being sodium lauryl sulfate; animal origin,<br />
such as tallow; or natural plant origin, like coconut oil<br />
or palm kernel oil. Shampoos may contain a blend of<br />
surfactants to create various properties such as lathering<br />
and cleansing. The molecules in the surfactants<br />
contain two chemical groups; one group is attracted to<br />
soils and the other to water. In simple terms the molecules<br />
work together to break down dirt from the surface<br />
of the hair shaft and scalp and remove it.<br />
Many of the chemical surfactants in dog shampoos are<br />
petroleum based and are known carcinogens, substances<br />
known to cause cancer. Some carcinogens<br />
may cause cancer only after prolonged high levels of<br />
exposure. If groomers don’t wear gloves these chemicals<br />
are ingested through their skin every time they<br />
shampoo a dog. A better option is to choose a shampoo<br />
that uses natural surfactants and non-toxic, natural<br />
ingredients.<br />
Different shampoo formulations can have different<br />
results on a dog’s coat. Shampoos are marketed as anti<br />
-itch, brightening, tearless, conditioning, anti-dandruff,<br />
flea and tick, medicated, hypoallergenic, and so on.<br />
Many shampoos contain harsh detergents that actually<br />
strip all of the coat’s oils leaving a fluffy looking coat.<br />
Other shampoos that claim to be “moisturizing” may<br />
contain chemical additives such as propylene glycol,<br />
which is a cosmetic form of mineral oil and works as a<br />
humescent, which creates retention of moisture. This<br />
chemical is also a skin irritant, can cause liver and<br />
kidney damage and is also found in paint, wallpaper<br />
removers and de-greasers. “Tar” which is in tar-based<br />
dandruff shampoos, is one of the first known human<br />
carcinogens. As tar is also found in all artificial colors,<br />
flavors and odors, it is best to stay away from using any<br />
shampoo containing artificial dyes or fragrances. Many<br />
perfumes that are added to shampoos are made with<br />
ethyl alcohol and synthetic chemicals. Perfumes can<br />
dry out the coat and trigger allergies in both dogs as<br />
well as humans. Some groomers even use dish detergent<br />
to wash their client’s dogs. These detergents are<br />
labeled as “mild” yet when you do a little research and<br />
read the “material safety data”, the specifics say,<br />
“Avoid skin contact as this strong skin irritant can<br />
cause dryness, is an eye irritant and if spilled on<br />
clothes, change clothes”. Many “tearless” shampoos<br />
use chemicals to counter-act and reduce irritation<br />
caused by other chemical ingredients, but these too<br />
may be carcinogenic in nature.<br />
Ultimately you simply want a shampoo that gently<br />
cleans without stripping the coat’s natural sedum but<br />
for special needs there are good, healthy alternatives.<br />
A good, basic all-purpose dog shampoo should be ph<br />
balanced for a dog’s coat, be made with natural and<br />
organic ingredients, have low lather and smell great.<br />
Look for shampoos that use essential oils. Essential oils<br />
nourish the dog’s coat leaving it clean and shiny and<br />
come in a wonderful variety of scents such as lavender,<br />
tea tree, rosehip, lemon and geranium.<br />
There are plenty of dog shampoos on the market now<br />
that offer skin treatments using natural ingredients. If<br />
a dog’s coat needs special treatment for dryness or<br />
itching, a natural shampoo containing oatmeal and<br />
aloe vera may be used; shampoos containing essential<br />
oils of rosemary, neem and tea tree help prevent<br />
dandruff; tea tree and pennyroyal shampoos are good<br />
anti-bacterial and flea repellants; lavender and calendula<br />
calm and sooth the skin. Natural oils such as<br />
jojoba, macadamia oil or safflower oil all naturally<br />
condition the dog’s coat leaving it soft and silky. These<br />
treatment shampoos are best left on the coat for up to<br />
ten minutes in order to allow the ingredients to penetrate<br />
thoroughly.<br />
Allergies have become quite common in dogs. An<br />
allergy is “ a hypersensitivity acquired through exposure<br />
to a particular substance (allergen)”. Pollen,<br />
foods, and chemicals can trigger allergic reactions in<br />
dogs. The body reacts by releasing chemicals that<br />
result in allergic symptoms such as rashes and dry,<br />
itchy skin. <strong>Dogs</strong> absorb a lot of allergens through their<br />
skin. One way to alleviate allergy symptoms is to wash<br />
the dog frequently with a hypoallergenic shampoo.<br />
These shampoos are specifically formulated with ingredients<br />
that have little likelihood of causing an allergic<br />
reaction. This does not mean that the dogs will not<br />
react to these shampoos whether or not they are<br />
made with all natural ingredients or chemical based<br />
ingredients. Ingredients that are likely to cause allergic<br />
reactions that may be listed in hypoallergenic (and<br />
other) shampoos are mineral oil, methyl paraben and<br />
propyl paraben. These ingredients can cause hypersensitivity<br />
and are linked to long-term health problems.<br />
My favourite way to apply dog shampoo is with a<br />
squeeze bottle that fits comfortably into the hand. This<br />
method is fast, easy and allows the shampoo to penetrate<br />
close to the skin. Mix your favorite professional<br />
concentrate shampoo with lukewarm water. Start at<br />
the base of head and neck and squirt the shampoo<br />
mixture into the dog’s coat. As you work your way<br />
down the back and the rest of the body, your other<br />
hand is free to massage the shampoo into the dog’s<br />
coat.<br />
When choosing your shampoo remember to read the<br />
ingredients. Familiarize yourself with ingredients that<br />
are known to cause serious health problems in humans.<br />
Choosing a shampoo with healthy, natural and<br />
organic ingredients may cost a little more but in the<br />
long run the benefits are worth it for you and the dogs!<br />
Laura Boston is President of Animal Sense Pet Products<br />
Inc., a privately owned Canadian pet product<br />
company specializing in organic pet foods and ecofriendly<br />
pet products. Heavenly Organic is a line of<br />
100% chemical free dog shampoos and spa products<br />
that that are now available for your four legged and<br />
furry-faced friends.<br />
www.animalsensepetproducts.com<br />
laura@animalsensepetproducts.com<br />
905-886-6975<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 15
Here is a picture of Edward O’Driscoll,<br />
with little Georgie in the background.<br />
The photo was taken in June, the day<br />
before Edward passed over to the<br />
Great Mystery. As they say, every picture<br />
tells a story. Here is Edward’s<br />
story and, later, Georgie’s story.<br />
Edward was the most perfect dog in<br />
the whole universe. I don’t want to<br />
start a fight here, but it’s true: Edward<br />
was the perfect companion and the<br />
perfect teacher. There simply couldn’t<br />
be a greater dog.<br />
Edward came into my life thirteen<br />
years ago, and he lost no time in alerting<br />
me to the fact that he was a Master<br />
Dog. He did this, perversely, by peeing<br />
on all the dog beds in the house, and<br />
escalating the campaign to my own<br />
bed. In those days I didn’t know I could<br />
communicate with animals, so I telephoned<br />
a medical intuitive friend to<br />
ask why he was doing that, and what I<br />
could do about it (I have never really<br />
followed the conventional training<br />
norm).<br />
“He’s upset because you haven’t acknowledged<br />
that he’s a Master,” my<br />
intuitive friend said. I did of course<br />
know his status; I just hadn’t thought<br />
to tell him I knew. So I went to Edward<br />
and apologised. He never peed on the<br />
beds again.<br />
I shouted at Edward once. He was still<br />
a puppy at the time, and he adored old<br />
Chappie. He used to sit in front of<br />
Chaps and suck up to him so Chappie<br />
would bark loudly and tell<br />
him to go away. One evening I couldn’t<br />
hear myself speak on the phone, so I<br />
shouted at Edward in exasperation.<br />
Edward went into the garden and<br />
stayed there for two hours until I went<br />
out and apologised. I never shouted at<br />
him again. I never actually needed to –<br />
he was the perfect companion. If using<br />
Edward as a measure, everyone would<br />
have believed that I was the most talented<br />
dog trainer in the world. The<br />
thing is, he was intelligent and he was<br />
happy to live in harmony. His perfection<br />
had very little to do with me.<br />
Edward was introduced to chicken<br />
wings far earlier than I had intended –<br />
on the day I brought him home from<br />
the breeder’s. She had insisted that I<br />
change him over to raw gradually, for<br />
fear of upsetting his stomach. So, dutifully,<br />
I mixed the Eukanuba with<br />
scrambled eggs and took it into the<br />
beautifully sunny garden for him. He,<br />
being a Master, naturally turned his<br />
nose up and refused to eat it.<br />
A little later, I took the older dogs’<br />
chicken wings out for them. (For anyone<br />
who thinks we are in charge of the<br />
dogs, consider this: who is the one who<br />
works to buy the food and then does<br />
the washing up afterwards?) Anyhow,<br />
Edward jumped into Chappie’s bowl<br />
and wolfed down five whole chicken<br />
wings. I could not stop him, and I was<br />
slightly alarmed.<br />
That night, my tiny little puppy lay on<br />
the bed panting so frantically that the<br />
entire bed shook. I thought that perhaps<br />
I had killed my puppy with all<br />
those bones. But we went to the garden<br />
and Edward peed, and then we<br />
went back to bed and back to sleep.<br />
From that day onwards, Edward was<br />
often called ‘Mr Bones’, and he grew<br />
into a strong and handsome man. Before<br />
the vet helped Edward to leave<br />
last week, we took him for a walk and<br />
gave him his last five wings. He loved<br />
his food to the end.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
‘Intelligence’, ‘enthusiasm’ and<br />
‘companion’ are words which sum Edward<br />
up. We talked with each other all<br />
of the time; he was one of those dogs<br />
who was everywhere we were, in the<br />
middle of the action and directing<br />
events. One of his specialities was in<br />
dealing with people who didn’t like<br />
dogs. He had a way of demonstrating<br />
to them that dogs aren’t just dogs –<br />
they are people. He also had a way of<br />
showing them that they weren’t just<br />
humans – they were beings of light<br />
who were worthy of great love.<br />
“There is a deep wisdom in the<br />
animal kingdom that you can<br />
tune into if you have the humility<br />
to listen. If you think they’re<br />
just animals who ought to follow<br />
our commands, think again. If<br />
you listen to a dog, they can tell<br />
you how to grow and evolve as a<br />
human being. “<br />
When my husband Rob and I got together,<br />
Edward quickly showed him<br />
that Golden Retrievers are just as wonderful<br />
as the German Shepherds that<br />
Rob was used to. Edward soon became<br />
Rob’s best friend, and accompanied<br />
him into the garden to play football and<br />
to help Rob with the gardening. Edward<br />
was the sort of dog who thought<br />
everything was fun; he’d turn the mundane<br />
into the happiest adventure.<br />
Rob and I were on our way home from<br />
teaching an Animal Communicating<br />
and EFT course a few summers ago,<br />
when we had a call from Rob’s Mum.<br />
Mum had been doggie sitting for us. So<br />
we were driving home, and the cell<br />
phone rang. Mum had fallen in the garden<br />
and knocked herself out. She was<br />
naturally shaken, but she was also in<br />
awe. Apparently, she was lying unconscious<br />
on the lawn and, as she came<br />
round, she felt Edward licking her face.<br />
There was blood everywhere, and Edward<br />
was cleaning her up and resuscitating<br />
her.<br />
Too frightened to stand up lest she lose<br />
her balance again, Mum got herself<br />
back indoors by shuffling on her bot-<br />
tom. Edward went with her all the<br />
way, keeping her going, tending to her<br />
lovingly, kissing her face.<br />
Mum sent Edward a thank you card. It<br />
may not have meant much to him –<br />
dogs don’t read cards after all – but it<br />
meant the world to Mum. She felt that<br />
Edward had saved her life. He may<br />
have been ‘just a dog’ but I’m certain<br />
that he felt the love and gratitude coming<br />
his way.<br />
I read somewhere that a dog’s memory<br />
extends to only ten minutes. I don’t<br />
know the name of the twit who wrote<br />
that, but he was surely wrong. During<br />
our next weekend trip, Edward refused<br />
to go into the garden unless Mum was<br />
with him, and when she did go out, he<br />
escorted her at every step. He was a<br />
kind and loving dog, a healer, and his<br />
will was set upon ensuring Mum’s<br />
safety.<br />
I also had deep respect for the way Edward<br />
dealt with other dogs. Rob, Edward<br />
and I had a hard year last year.<br />
Dannie and Gwinnie died, and we were<br />
all heartbroken. So we decided to<br />
bring someone else into the house who<br />
we could love and care for. This was<br />
Georgie, a tiny Papillion who, we were<br />
told, didn’t like men and who bit. It<br />
soon became apparent that this wasn’t<br />
a behavioural problem, though. Georgie<br />
has a form of epilepsy. The world is<br />
a confusing place for him, so if you put<br />
your hand out to him or touch him, he<br />
trips into a spin and snarls and attacks<br />
himself. I feel so sorry for the people<br />
who rehomed him, who just thought he<br />
was a bad boy. He is, in reality, an absolute<br />
joy, and incredibly worthy of<br />
love.<br />
For the first weeks of living with Georgie,<br />
we wondered what on earth we<br />
were going to do. We couldn’t touch<br />
him. We couldn’t cuddle or stroke him;<br />
we couldn’t get a lead on without triggering<br />
an episode.<br />
If we did get it on, we couldn’t get it off.<br />
How were we going to care for him?<br />
How could we expect a vet to sew up a<br />
cut paw, or take blood, or feel him for<br />
lumps?<br />
But Edward didn’t mind. He treated<br />
Georgie like a normal dog, and made<br />
him feel safe. He wasn’t frightened of<br />
being bitten, either. He just went in<br />
there and let George know it was safe<br />
to be near him, and he ignored it if the<br />
little man went into a spin. Edward<br />
also stood and shared our emotions<br />
Freddie and Ruby<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 17
when, for the first time – after weeks of<br />
gentle reassurance and gradual incremental<br />
improvements - Rob was able<br />
to sit down next to Georgie and brush<br />
him and stroke him. Rob and I had<br />
tears running down our cheeks, watching<br />
this little man enjoying being<br />
touched in what must have been the<br />
first time in years.<br />
Georgie, a tiny little fellow, was vaccinated<br />
annually until he was five, before<br />
he came to us. At the same time he was<br />
wormed and given a topical flea treatment.<br />
The shots he received were the<br />
exact same dose as might be given to a<br />
Pyrenean Mountain Dog. Vaccines can<br />
cause brain damage, and they can<br />
cause epilepsy, and studies indicate<br />
that little dogs fare the worse than big<br />
dogs from unnecessary shots. And his<br />
owners thought they were doing the<br />
right thing for him.<br />
We treated Georgie for vaccine damage.<br />
He had the canine combination<br />
nosode and a variety of homoeopathic<br />
remedies for epilepsy. He was changed<br />
to the raw diet, and fish oils (which<br />
improve brain function) were given<br />
daily.<br />
So when the new puppies arrived just a<br />
few weeks ago, we saw with relief that<br />
our worries were unfounded. Georgie<br />
loves the pups and wants to be with<br />
them, so long as they refrain from<br />
jumping on him. Every morning, now<br />
Edward is gone, Georgie goes downstairs<br />
to where the puppies sleep until<br />
they’re housetrained, and checks that<br />
they’re OK. Wherever they are, he<br />
wants to be with them. When he first<br />
came to us, he was a frightened little<br />
man, but because we were aware of the<br />
effects of unnecessary vaccines, we<br />
were able to treat him appropriately<br />
and help him back.<br />
Edward, before he left, had a few<br />
weeks to teach the puppies Freddie<br />
and Ruby how to behave with other<br />
dogs. He taught them about boundaries.<br />
He waited until Rob and I were<br />
set up again with puppies to love, and<br />
then he succumbed to the grief that<br />
had caused his broken heart, and went<br />
off to be with Gwinnie and Dannie<br />
again.<br />
Edward was thirteen years old, too<br />
young to die. He had never been vaccinated,<br />
he ate raw food, and he was<br />
never subjected to conventional drugs.<br />
Until a year ago, he was the healthiest<br />
of dogs. He was never ill. Never.<br />
It seems to me that we mortal humans<br />
can do everything right. We can give<br />
our dogs the very best food and protect<br />
them from the very worst pharmaceuticals<br />
and chemicals. But we are not<br />
God, and our dogs have their own<br />
agendas. They, like us, come to this<br />
earth with missions to accomplish, and<br />
when the mission is completed, they, of<br />
their own choice, decide when to depart.<br />
I have a feeling that Edward has<br />
just gone for a little while. He’s departed<br />
briefly so he can come back in a<br />
new body. I hope so, anyway.<br />
Unless you’ve had a relationship with a<br />
dog, you can be forgiven for thinking<br />
that they’re just hairy things with<br />
waggy tails. They jump around and<br />
bark a lot – but they’re just animals,<br />
you might think, and they leave muddy<br />
footprints on the carpet and hairs on<br />
the sofa.<br />
Yet many of the most poignant and tender<br />
moments in my life, the most<br />
meaningful and spiritual moments,<br />
have been with dogs. If you doubt this,<br />
wait until you hold your friend’s paw<br />
as they die, and they thank you.<br />
There is a deep wisdom in the animal<br />
kingdom that you can tune into if you<br />
have the humility to listen. If you<br />
think they’re just animals who ought<br />
to follow our commands, think again.<br />
If you listen to a dog, they can tell you<br />
how to grow and evolve as a human<br />
being.<br />
Our dogs are concerned with our<br />
physical wellbeing, our emotional<br />
wellbeing, and our spiritual wellbeing.<br />
They can teach us how to love oneanother,<br />
respect one-another, and<br />
cherish one-another. They can teach<br />
us about boundaries. They can teach<br />
us how to have fun. They can teach us<br />
that human beings are not superior to<br />
them; just different. They give us humility,<br />
and they can fill our<br />
hearts with gratitude and joy.<br />
They can also break our hearts when<br />
they leave – but I think they know that,<br />
if we can find a way to heal our broken<br />
hearts, love will become a conscious<br />
act rather than an indulgent feeling.<br />
They can set our feet upon the healer’s<br />
path, which is born of sorrow and the<br />
search for truth and life.<br />
Catherine O’Driscoll has been running<br />
Canine Health Concern since 1994. In<br />
June this year, she spearheaded a campaign<br />
to forcefully persuade the British<br />
government to put an end to the normal<br />
practice of annually vaccinating dogs in<br />
the UK. To support this campaign, she<br />
has written a 369-page response to the<br />
UK’s licensing body, the Veterinary Medicines<br />
Directorate. This report is available<br />
free by logging onto<br />
www.petvaccine.weebly.com. It contains<br />
the science to explain why vaccines cause<br />
so many diverse adverse effects in our<br />
dogs, and also explains why governments<br />
around the world will not legislate to halt<br />
unnecessary vaccination. Catherine also<br />
asks her fellow dog lovers to write to the<br />
British government to lend their voices to<br />
the campaign. Contacts and template<br />
letters for you to send are also carried on<br />
the site.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong><br />
Catherine and Edward
y: Jean Donaldson<br />
Dear Jean,<br />
I just got a new nine week-old Rottie puppy. He’s<br />
stunning, smart and generally friendly but<br />
growls and snaps if I go near him while he’s eating.<br />
He also does this to my adult Rotties. I’ve<br />
never seen this in a puppy so young. Is he some<br />
sort of lemon? Is he a dominant dog? Is there<br />
anything I can do? Help!<br />
It is indeed alarming for most people to see frank aggression in<br />
puppies. In the case of resource guarding – food, bone, bed<br />
etc. possessiveness – there is good news and bad news. The<br />
good news is you can start addressing it in a young, hopefully<br />
plastic, spongy puppy with weak jaws. The bad news is that<br />
there is some sentiment out there among trainers that aggression<br />
in puppies is an insidious sign of the problem having Deep<br />
Genetic Roots and therefore fruitless to tackle. I’m going to<br />
explore the whole nature-nurture debate later but for now will<br />
simply say that there doesn’t seem to be any overwhelmingly<br />
tidy correlation between behavior problems that are thought<br />
to have a strong genetic component and their susceptibility (or<br />
lack thereof) to behavior modification.<br />
I recently had a similar case, in my own foster puppy. Buffy, a<br />
stray six week-old Chow, presented with object and food<br />
guarding against people and dogs. I elected to not touch the<br />
dog-dog issues, which is a relatively common approach. Her<br />
socialization and play skills were coming along nicely and she<br />
was developing good acquired bite inhibition. The guarding<br />
against people, however, needed to be actively resolved. The<br />
following is a summary of Buffy’s food guarding exercise regime.<br />
Incidentally, Buffy also presented with socialization deficits<br />
and severe body handling problems, which were also addressed,<br />
as was her object guarding. The key to good hierarchy<br />
design is small enough incremental steps that at no point do<br />
you see the original guarding problem. In the case of a puppy,<br />
such as this, there may actually be more aggressive increment<br />
jumps. I did a few other things in the can’t-hurt-might-help<br />
category. These included impulse control (stay, off and wait)<br />
and extra soft-mouth training.<br />
Baseline<br />
When approached while eating<br />
from her dish, Buffy would freeze<br />
and, if approach continued, growl briefly and then lunge and<br />
snap. If touched while eating, she would growl simultaneous<br />
to whirling and biting. Due to the independent body-handling<br />
problem, this had to be partly resolved prior to combining it<br />
with food bowl exercises. Buffy did not guard an empty dish.<br />
Hierarchy<br />
Step 1 (day 1): Installment feeding of canned food. I sat on the<br />
floor next to Buffy’s dish and spooned in one mouthful. Once<br />
she had swallowed, I spooned the next mouthful into her dish.<br />
By the end of the second meal, she demonstrated a clear<br />
happy anticipatory orientation to my spoon hand after each<br />
swallow.<br />
Step 2 (day 1-2): Overlap. This was essentially the same as Step<br />
1 except that I added the next spoonful to her dish while she<br />
was still consuming, always a much dicier proposition. We did<br />
this for three meals without evidence of guarding seen.<br />
Step 3 (day 2-3): Approach overlap. I was now standing. I<br />
spooned larger installments, withdrew two paces, reapproached<br />
and added the next spoonful while Buffy was still<br />
consuming. So, this combined approach with the overlap exercise.<br />
We stuck with this for three meals, at end of which time a<br />
Conditioned Emotional Response (CER) had become evident –<br />
Buffy wagged and looked up on approach. We then repeated<br />
the exercise for one more day (5 small meals) with larger withdrawal<br />
distances and intervals.<br />
Step 4 (day 4): Trumping. Now I spooned her entire puppysized<br />
ration into her bowl. I withdrew five paces, paused 15<br />
seconds, approached and added a (hidden) marble-sized dollop<br />
of goat cheese. I had pre-auditioned the goat cheese out of<br />
context and ascertained it to be in Buffy’s Top Five All Time<br />
Foods. I withdrew to six paces and waited for Buffy to continue<br />
to consume – this was not immediate (typical of trumping –<br />
dog orients to handler rather than back to dish) – then repeated.<br />
On the third trial I got a clear CER– withdrawal from<br />
bowl on approach, orientation to me and tail wag. Clever little<br />
thing.<br />
Step 5 (day 4-6): Covering High Value Base. To up the ante, I<br />
tried some approaches while she was consuming a top food<br />
(bowl of treats), rather than normal meal ration level food. I<br />
trumped it with higher value stuff (gorgonzola). In two trials, I<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
once again saw her happy anticipatory CER, a<br />
very rapid curve indeed.<br />
Step 6 (day 4 onward): Cold Trials. To better<br />
simulate real life, I initiated random trumping.<br />
At least once per meal, from a random direction,<br />
at a random time and with one of Buffy’s top<br />
foods, I approached and added the bonus. Better<br />
than 80% of the time, I got an evident<br />
“yippee” CER. At no point did she guard.<br />
Step 7 (day 8 onward): Generalization. I recruited<br />
my husband, colleagues in my office and<br />
a neighbor to do some random trumps, with<br />
careful monitoring for any evidence of regression,<br />
including the absence of “yippee” CERs to<br />
their approach. Had this been an adult dog, the<br />
hierarchy – and, notably, a much more gradual<br />
one too – would have been recommenced at the<br />
beginning by each new recruit, with likely accelerated<br />
progress rate for each successive person.<br />
Step 8 (day 15 onward): Body Handling. It was<br />
only here that I commenced patting, grabbing or<br />
pushing her around while she was eating. In<br />
most cases this would come earlier (prior to cold<br />
trails), however with Buffy it took me this long<br />
to get the independent body-handling problem<br />
up to speed. The handling during eating exercise<br />
consisted of the body touch (later handling) followed<br />
by a trumping addition, repeated until the<br />
body touch/handling elicited the “yippee” CER.<br />
Buffy’s CER consisted of a wag as well as orientation<br />
to my hand. If I stored the bonus in my<br />
other hand behind my back or my pocket and<br />
reached with a blank hand, she would wag and<br />
orient to my face.<br />
Buffy is now on maintenance with a cold trumping<br />
or body handling trial usually once per meal<br />
and use of other people whenever an opportunity<br />
presents itself. I ended up adopting her.<br />
You can throw in bowl removals if you like, rather than sticking<br />
with approaches and body handling. The principles are the<br />
same. Good luck with your Rottie!<br />
© Jean Donaldson, all rights reserved<br />
Vic Neumann<br />
Jean Donaldson is a native of Montreal, Canada. A graduate of McGill,<br />
Jean holds degrees in Music and Comparative Psychology.<br />
In 1996 James & Kenneth Publishers published Jean's first book, The<br />
Culture Clash, which has won numerous awards, including The Dog<br />
Writer's Association of America's Maxwell Award for the best training<br />
and behavior book of the year. Since its publication, The Culture Clash<br />
has been the number one recommendation for dog trainers of The<br />
Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) each year it has had a recom<br />
mended reading list. Her other books include the multiple award-<br />
winning MINE! A Guide to Resource Guarding in <strong>Dogs</strong>, Fight! A Guide<br />
to Dog-Dog Aggression, and the newly released Oh Behave! <strong>Dogs</strong> From<br />
Pavlov to Premack to Pinker. She has also recently authored a DVD on<br />
basic obedience, Perfect Paws in Five Days.<br />
In 1999 she founded The Academy for Dog Trainers at The San Francisco<br />
SPCA, which has gained a reputation as the Harvard for dog<br />
trainers. Jean is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Evolutionary<br />
Biology. She lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her Chow, Buffy,<br />
adopted from The San Francisco SPCA in 2002, and currently the only<br />
Chow registered with the North American Flyball Association.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 21
By: Michael W. Fox<br />
BVetMed, PhD, DSc, MRCVS<br />
PART II<br />
Herbicides and Digestive System<br />
Bacterial Health<br />
It is not widely understood that the digestive<br />
tract is not simply an organ system<br />
designed for the assimilation of food. It is<br />
our primary organ of defence against potentially<br />
harmful food and water-born toxins,<br />
viruses, bacteria, and other potentially<br />
harmful organisms. Integral to this lymphatic-intestinal<br />
defence system is the<br />
population of intestinal ‘flora’---bacteria<br />
and other micro organisms -- that are symbiotic,<br />
having a symbiogenetic relationship<br />
with the cells of the gut that recognize<br />
them immunologically as eubiotic enteric<br />
residents (i.e. helpful resident organisms).<br />
This is an adaptive response because these<br />
enteric bacteria act as a defence against<br />
invasive organisms, and provide the cells<br />
with various nutrients essential to the<br />
health and functional integrity of the rest<br />
of the body, much as the mycorrhyza do<br />
around the roots of plants.<br />
Agrichemicals, especially the herbicide<br />
residues in GM crops and their even more<br />
toxic breakdown products, when digested<br />
by humans and their pets, could cause a<br />
host of health problems if the normal gut<br />
flora is harmed. If this healthy, disease-<br />
preventing, nutrition-providing, and immune<br />
system-supporting population of<br />
symbiotic bacteria in the intestines is disrupted,<br />
nutritional deficiencies, overwhelm-<br />
ing bacterial infection (Clostridia in dogs,<br />
for example), increased susceptibility to<br />
‘allergies’, and other neuroendocrine and<br />
metabolic changes may ensue. These health<br />
problems have been linked in recent research<br />
to imbalances in the intestinal bacterial<br />
population where some species of bacteria<br />
come to dominate.<br />
This condition of dysbiosis is compounded<br />
by the over-prescribing by doctors of antibiotics<br />
and their wholesale use in livestock<br />
feed. What we have done to our digestive<br />
system bacterial flora and to that of our<br />
companion animals mirrors what we have<br />
done to the life of the soil.<br />
The most widely used herbicides sprayed<br />
on GM (genetically modified or engineered)<br />
herbicide-resistant cotton, corn,<br />
soybean and canola, such as Monsanto’s<br />
Roundup (glyphosate) and Bayer’s Ignite<br />
(glufosinate), can also have toxic effects on<br />
the body. Glyphosate may be an endocrine<br />
disruptor, and in test animals has caused<br />
elevation of some liver enzymes and calcium<br />
oxalate crystals to form in the urine,<br />
along with inflammatory changes in the<br />
kidneys and lower urinary tract. Glufosinate<br />
can inhibit glutamine uptake. Deficiency<br />
of this amino acid is linked with<br />
bowel/digestive problems, impaired immune<br />
function, and possibly obesity due to<br />
increased appetite. It may be no coincidence<br />
that glutamine is widely prescribed<br />
for pets with ‘leaky gut’ syndrome and inflammatory<br />
bowel disease, and probiotics<br />
and prebiotics (like inulin and oligofructose)<br />
prescribed to help animals with allergies<br />
and other related health problems.<br />
Dysfunctional Agriculture, Hazardous<br />
Foods<br />
We should not be surprised that there are<br />
so many nutrition-related health problems<br />
when we look at the soil that is used to<br />
produce food commodities that are not<br />
organically certified. As one California<br />
farmer told me some thirty years ago,<br />
‘Farmers today just use the soil to prop up<br />
their plants. Then they pour on the<br />
chemical fertilizers that they must, because<br />
they killed the soil with pesticides.” Petrochemical-based<br />
agriculture has made our<br />
life-sustaining soil deficient in micro organisms<br />
that provide vital nutrients to the<br />
plants---and so our staple foods are also<br />
nutrient-deficient, especially in essential<br />
trace minerals and antioxidants like magnesium,<br />
zinc, and selenium.<br />
Dead soil means no food without chemical<br />
fertilizers, herbicides, nematodicides, fungicides,<br />
insecticides, agricultural biotechnology’s<br />
genetically engineered, cloned, and<br />
patented ‘improved’ varieties of crops and<br />
animals, with a frosting of USDA- & FDAregulated<br />
food irradiation. While denying<br />
that Mad Cow Disease could be an endemic<br />
problem in US cattle, it is notable<br />
that the FDA prohibited the inclusion of<br />
brain and spinal chord in pet foods (the<br />
primary source of prions responsible for<br />
this neurological disease in cattle, pets and<br />
people), soon after the exposé of ‘downer<br />
cow’ cruelty at a California cattle handling<br />
and slaughter plant in early 2008.<br />
Studies have shown that crops from organically<br />
certified producers, along with the<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
meat and milk from farmed animals fed<br />
organic feed and allowed to graze on organically<br />
improved soils, contain far more<br />
essential nutrients than conventionally<br />
produced foods**. And they suffer from<br />
far fewer viral and bacterial diseases which<br />
pose a serious public health concern today<br />
because of the intensive, concentrated<br />
animal production systems of the poultry,<br />
dairy and meat industry’s ‘factory farms.’<br />
The billions of pounds of offal that is recycled<br />
into pet food and farm animal feed is<br />
the bedrock of the main stream pet food<br />
industry. But it is a hazardous waste. Bacterial<br />
contamination, as with Salmonella, can<br />
be so difficult to control that Mars Pet care<br />
decided to permanently close one of its pet<br />
food manufacturing facilities in Everson,<br />
Pa in 2008 because the entire plant could<br />
not be effectively sanitized. There had been<br />
repeated recalls of contaminated dry dog<br />
and cat food, associated with nearly 80<br />
reported cases of human illness.<br />
Another form of offal is termed "byproducts"<br />
which are presumed heavily<br />
contaminated with harmful bacteria, and is<br />
therefore subjected to high temperature<br />
and pressure sterilization and then slow<br />
cooking to evaporate off all moisture. The<br />
resultant solid is ground into a meal of<br />
essentially heat-denatured protein of little<br />
nutritive value. It loses more amino acids<br />
by evaporation, and others by cross-<br />
linkage into an indigestible product. Beef<br />
by-products have less protein than chicken<br />
by-products, and the actual digestible protein<br />
is significantly lower than the calculated<br />
‘protein’ content of the manufactured<br />
foods.<br />
Time for Change<br />
There is already a rush-to-market special<br />
and expensive, prescribed diets to help<br />
obese pets lose weight, along with an approved<br />
prescription-only diet pill for obese<br />
pets. Many veterinarians see this as a legitimate,<br />
profit-making business. There is a<br />
plethora of special prescription diets to<br />
help pets with a host of illnesses, such as<br />
allergies and digestive and urinary tract<br />
problems. But compared to simply transitioning<br />
cats and dogs onto a more biologically<br />
appropriate, whole-food diet with<br />
specific supplements and health restoring<br />
nutraceuticals as needed, these costly<br />
manufactured diets are of very limited<br />
value. Their scientific validity and medical<br />
efficacy are also questionable, especially the<br />
low-cal, high fiber weight loss formulations.<br />
The veterinary profession is as yet behind,<br />
rather than leading, as it ought, the human<br />
medical profession, in addressing a host of<br />
health problems arising from manufactured<br />
pet foods, in part because of its ties to industry<br />
as an organized profession, colleges<br />
of which a richly endowed by the pet food<br />
industry: and in part because of indoctrination<br />
as students, that manufactured pet<br />
foods are scientifically formulated, animal<br />
tested, and provide complete and balanced<br />
nutrition for the health and maintenance of<br />
cats and dogs. There is much more to the<br />
basic ingredients and misleading terminology<br />
on the bag and can labels of these<br />
mainstream, main-street pet foods that the<br />
public trusts, no thanks to professional dog<br />
and cat performance events and other dog<br />
and cat shows, local, national, and international,<br />
that the pet food industry helps<br />
underwrite !<br />
Commercial pet foods that people buy are<br />
a major factor in this obesity epidemic as<br />
well as a host of other health problems that<br />
are in part due to ignorance, overfeeding,<br />
and sheer convenience; and to the belief,<br />
shared, it would seem, by many veterinarians,<br />
that high cereal diets are not a significant<br />
contributing factor. Yet once informed,<br />
many pet owners will readily even<br />
cook home-prepared, wholesome, biologically<br />
appropriate meals for their animal<br />
companions, and attest to the almost immediate<br />
benefits observed in their animals’<br />
demeanor and vitality. Fortunately, new<br />
approaches and solutions are on the hori-<br />
“The billions of pounds<br />
of offal that is recycled<br />
into pet food and farm<br />
animal feed is<br />
the bedrock of the main<br />
stream pet food industry.<br />
But it is a hazardous<br />
waste.”<br />
zon. This necessitates an understanding of<br />
how nutrients act and interact at the molecular<br />
level. Accordingly, nutrition research<br />
has shifted from epidemiology and<br />
physiology to molecular biology and genetics.<br />
Diets for animals should be designed<br />
and tailored to the genetic profile of individuals<br />
in order to optimize physiological<br />
homeostasis, disease prevention and treatment,<br />
and promote desired athletic, obedience<br />
or reproductive performances.<br />
For example, a series of specialized semimoist<br />
canned pet food formulas containing<br />
all human grade and organic food ingredients<br />
is now in clinical trials in Italy. These<br />
diets act as cleansing foods for the bowel<br />
and specific organs (e.g. liver and kidney)<br />
of pets with sub-acute and chronic illnesses.<br />
The specific needs of these animals<br />
are determined by applying the principle of<br />
nutrigenomics, where optimal nutrition can<br />
be designed based on an individual’s<br />
unique genetic makeup or genotype. The<br />
resulting food formula is termed the<br />
“molecular dietary signature”, and is<br />
formulated to restore the animal to health.<br />
The Codes of Practice for the Welfare of<br />
Cats and of <strong>Dogs</strong> established by the UK<br />
Government’s DEFRA (Department of<br />
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)<br />
opens up pet owners to prosecution under<br />
the Animal Welfare Act (potentially<br />
facing up to 12 months in jail and a fine of<br />
up to 20,000 pounds sterling) if they<br />
allow their animals to become overweight/<br />
obese.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 23
This may help veterinarians and pets' caregivers<br />
to work together to solve the problem<br />
of feline and canine obesity---<br />
DEFRA's Cat document clearly states cats<br />
are carnivores. This should mean that cereal-based<br />
cat foods will soon be off the<br />
shelves. So I would heartily endorse similar<br />
animal welfare legislation in the US and<br />
other countries that indirectly induces the<br />
public to be more responsible and support<br />
better farming methods and more nutritious<br />
prepared and convenience foods for<br />
their pets and for themselves.<br />
It is time for a revolution in agriculture and<br />
consumer choices and habits. According to<br />
Business Week (<strong>August</strong>, 2008), two thirds<br />
of adult Americans are either overweight or<br />
obese, along with 23 million children.<br />
This food health crisis cannot be denied<br />
any longer by those who claim to regulate<br />
agriculture, the food and beverage industries,<br />
and allow the mass poisoning of<br />
people and their pets with erroneously<br />
considered safe and nutritious basic ingredients,<br />
like corn, wheat, soy, dairy products<br />
and by-products. In these basic food commodities<br />
are metabolism and endocrinedisrupting<br />
ingredients, like corn fructose<br />
syrup, wheat and soy gluten, and certain<br />
cow milk immune-system disrupting glycoproteins.<br />
The public heavily subsidizes this<br />
agribusiness food industry with billions of<br />
dollars in government subsidies and price<br />
supports, indirectly underwriting its own<br />
demise---and nemesis.<br />
Conclusions<br />
The above documented concerns about<br />
manufactured pet foods are not meant to<br />
imply that all manufacturers do not care<br />
enough about dogs and cats to really become<br />
part of the solution. By ‘solution’, I<br />
mean becoming a creative participant in<br />
the food and agriculture revolution like<br />
those ‘green’ pet food companies and other<br />
pet product manufacturers and suppliers<br />
profiled by the author.<br />
It is no coincidence that the Western diet,<br />
based on highly processed components of<br />
corn, soy, and cereal grains, and on the<br />
dairy, meat and poultry products from<br />
animals fed these food commodities,<br />
should result in several recently identified,<br />
endemic health problems that are mirrored<br />
by cats and dogs fed the by-products of<br />
this diet. The pork, poultry, egg, dairy, and<br />
beef industries, along with the prepared<br />
foods, beverage, and candy industries, use<br />
companion animals as highly profitable<br />
waste-recyclers. The irony is inescapable,<br />
considering the fact that these sectors of<br />
agriculture receive the greatest government<br />
support in subsidies and incentives, all<br />
at taxpayers’ expense since these are public<br />
funds. But they are not being spent on the<br />
public good when we calculate the enormous<br />
health and environmental costs of<br />
the Western diet; and not to forget the<br />
horrendous existence of the animals down<br />
on the factory farm and feedlot.<br />
Consumers and health-care providers alike<br />
are more widely realizing the connection<br />
between diet and the prevention and alleviation<br />
of a host of complex, so called<br />
degenerative, auto-immune, and idiopathic<br />
diseases that are in turn recognized as<br />
being brought on by other factors in addition<br />
to nutrition, or lack thereof. The so<br />
called pluri-causal, multifactor nature of<br />
such diseases makes it challenging to identify<br />
and control causal agents. But as evidence-based<br />
medicine affirms, often most<br />
effective treatment comes through attention<br />
to dietary factors.<br />
With a burgeoning human population and<br />
growing social unrest with shortages of<br />
food, water, land and fuel, such a revolution---that<br />
includes the adoption of organic,<br />
low-input, sustainable farming methods<br />
and a reduction in meat production<br />
and consumption by many -- is as vital to<br />
global food security as it is to national security<br />
and progress in public health.<br />
The more that pet food companies obtain<br />
food ingredients from organic and alternative,<br />
sustainable sources rather than from<br />
conventional ones that rely on pesticides,<br />
cruel livestock and poultry confinement<br />
systems, and ‘cheaper’ imported crop and<br />
food-products and supplements, the more<br />
‘green’ they become. It is enlightened selfinterest<br />
for pet owners to support this food<br />
and agriculture revolution in their market<br />
choices for their pets and for themselves.<br />
POSTSCRIPT<br />
Eat grain and suffer the consequences:<br />
http://wideturn.com/Holdingdirectory/<br />
CarbEating/fatthincarbs.htm<br />
Michael W. Fox, BVetMed, PhD, DSC,<br />
MRCVS is a member of the British<br />
Veterinary Association and an Honor<br />
Roll Member of the American Veterinary<br />
Medical Association. He has doctoral<br />
degrees in ethology/animal behavior<br />
and medicine from the University<br />
of London, graduating from the<br />
Royal Veterinary College London in<br />
1962. In 1961 he was awarded the gold<br />
medal and Fellowship of the Royal<br />
Veterinary College Medical Association<br />
for his report on the effects of poor<br />
nutrition on the health of working<br />
sheepdogs, (published in the J. Small<br />
Animal Pract., 5:183-192, 1964). Spending<br />
most of his professional life in the<br />
US as an advocate for animal health,<br />
welfare and rights under the flag of One<br />
Medicine, One Earth, he has published<br />
over 40 books and writes the syndicated<br />
newspaper column Animal<br />
Doctor.<br />
For more details, visit<br />
www.twobitdog.com and<br />
www.doctormwfox.org<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
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Part 3 Getting Behavior<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong> are always behaving. Your job as a trainer is to convince<br />
your dog to do the behaviors you like by reinforcing<br />
the behaviors you like. The problem is, you have to get that<br />
behaviour in the first place! Fortunately, there are several<br />
ways to set your dog up to start doing the behaviors you<br />
want, although some are much more effective than others.<br />
© K Delong Photography<br />
Luring<br />
Luring would involve having the dog follow a cookie or toy<br />
in order to produce the behaviour you want. An example of<br />
this would be putting a cookie on his nose to entice him to<br />
sit or holding it up to your face to get eye contact. There are<br />
definite limitations with luring. The first problem is the<br />
timeline: you are putting the reinforcer before the intended<br />
behavior. You learned in Part 1 that consequences drive<br />
behaviour. If you intend to teach your dog to look at you by<br />
luring him with a cookie, then you must be aware of what<br />
he is doing when you pull that cookie out of your pocket<br />
because you will be reinforcing that behavior. This is a<br />
problem with luring: the trainer can inadvertently reward<br />
an unwanted behavior. If your dog looks away and you<br />
then pull out a cookie to lure him to look at your face, you<br />
are rewarding looking away because it is that precise behavior<br />
that makes the cookie appear.<br />
This brings us to the second problem with luring: it rewards<br />
passivity. Clicker trainers love behavior: the more<br />
behaviors a dog can give you, the faster and better we can<br />
teach him which ones you want. Trainers normally bring<br />
out lures when the dog is doing nothing and the dog quickly<br />
learns to do nothing because that is exactly what earns him<br />
reinforcement.<br />
The third problem with luring is that the dog is not actively<br />
involved in the learning process. If you lure the dog into a<br />
sit with a cookie, the dog is not thinking about the sit, he is<br />
thinking about following the cookie. The sit just happens<br />
and there is little learning occurring. Once again, the dog is<br />
passive in the process.<br />
Finally, luring can be very reinforcing for the trainer because<br />
the dog actually does the desired behavior very<br />
quickly. The problem is, you want the dog to learn, not just<br />
behave. The dog will be a lot more reliable if he is actively<br />
learning, not just following cookies.<br />
Prompting<br />
Prompting is similar to luring although you would use body<br />
language to persuade your dog to do the things you<br />
want. You might blow in your dog's face to teach him to<br />
wave or start running to teach him to come when<br />
called. Prompts have the same limitations as lures.<br />
Capturing<br />
Capturing would be waiting for the dog to offer the behavior<br />
himself and reinforcing it when you get it. If you wanted<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong><br />
by: Dana Scott
to teach your dog down, you might sit on the couch with a<br />
clicker and cookies and wait for him to lie on his bed and<br />
reinforce that.<br />
On the up side, capturing actively engages the dog in the<br />
learning process. When the dog lies down and hears the<br />
click, he will eagerly engage in other behaviors, trying to<br />
make you click again. He might sit, spin, lift a paw, and finally<br />
lie down - Click! It may take you a bit longer to get the<br />
down this way, but because the dog is actively deciphering<br />
what earns him reinforcement, he will easily remember and<br />
repeat it willingly, unlike a dog who is prompted or lured.<br />
The draw back of capturing is that your dog may not feel like<br />
lying down at the moment you want to train. Although capturing<br />
promotes better understanding in your dog, it can be<br />
very inefficient to have to wait for him to offer desired behaviors.<br />
To speed the process up, you can use shaping.<br />
Shaping<br />
Shaping is the process of successive approximations. If you<br />
want your dog to lie down and he is not freely offering it,<br />
then you can start with a muscle movement that would precede<br />
lying down. To shape a down, you might first click your<br />
dog for standing still. Then when you have that, you might<br />
look for the next step to a down like a movement of the head<br />
toward the ground or even a sit or a bow. You can split the<br />
behavior down into very small sums and ask for those one by<br />
one, until you get the complete behavior, the down. Another<br />
example would be to teach your dog to spin. You would first<br />
click for any head movement, then a head movement to the<br />
side, then moving one foot to the side, then two feet, then<br />
curling his spine, then a half a turn, then finally a full<br />
turn. This seems like a lot of work but dogs who are clicker<br />
savvy learn to offer a lot of behaviors very quickly and become<br />
very engaged in the learning process. They will keep<br />
moving and trying new things in order to get you to click and<br />
once your dog is freely offering behaviors (in other words,<br />
the dog is operant), you can shape even complicated behaviors<br />
in minutes. Unlike luring, because the dog is actively<br />
involved in the process, the motivation and reliability for the<br />
desire behaviour are built in and the behavior will be very<br />
strong for a very long time.<br />
Let's make the difference between Luring/Prompting<br />
and Capturing/Shaping more clear. Let's assume you<br />
are in a strange city and need directions from your<br />
hotel to the dog show site. Fortunately, there are dog<br />
people staying at your hotel and they say you can follow<br />
them to the show site. You climb into your car<br />
and follow the bumper in front of you, playing with<br />
your radio and singing to your dogs as you drive<br />
there. You arrive in just ten minutes and haven't<br />
made any wrong turns: the "driving to the show site"<br />
behavior would appear to be strong. Now let's say the<br />
next morning you have to return to the show site. You<br />
go down to the parking lot and look around and your<br />
dog friends are gone. You get in your car and try to find your<br />
way back to the show site. It suddenly dawns on you that<br />
you really don't know how to get there, even though you did<br />
it just yesterday.<br />
Now assume that there were no people going to the show the<br />
first day so you bought a map. You got in your car and<br />
maybe had to pull over once or twice to get to the show site<br />
and it took you fifteen minutes instead of ten. The following<br />
morning when you are ready to go back to the show, your<br />
efforts will have paid off. You have retained the street<br />
names, landmarks and turns because you were actively looking<br />
for them the previous day. You get to the show site the<br />
second day with almost no hesitation.<br />
Luring and Prompting are the same as mindlessly following a<br />
bumper. You will quickly get the behavior you want but<br />
when you try to repeat it, you will have difficulty because<br />
you were not actively involved in the learning process. Capturing<br />
and Shaping are like following a map. Map following<br />
may be slower than bumper following in the initial steps,<br />
but retention is much greater and subsequent efforts are<br />
easier and faster.<br />
So what methods do clicker trainers use? To be honest, they<br />
use all four. Although shaping and capturing create the best<br />
environment for learning, they can be a bit slower in the initial<br />
stages. It is OK to use a lure or a prompt to get the ball<br />
rolling but if you do so, it is important to begin shaping as<br />
soon as possible. An important rule of thumb is this: if you<br />
must use prompts or lures, use them only three or four<br />
times, then move to shaping. This will get you maximum<br />
learning in minimum time.<br />
Now you are well on your way to getting the behaviors you<br />
want. The next step is to put the behaviours on cue and we<br />
will look at this important step in Part 4.<br />
The owner of WatchMe! dog training, Dana Scott has a degree<br />
in animal behavior and has titled her dogs in obedience, rally,<br />
conformation and in the field. Dana breeds Labrador Retrievers<br />
under the Fallriver prefix. She can be reached at<br />
www.fallriverlabs.com<br />
© K Delong Photography<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 27
y: Lucy Postins<br />
Part II: Embarking On A Home-<br />
Made Diet For Your Dog<br />
If you’ve fed a kibble diet for a long pe-<br />
riod of time, it can be a daunting prospect<br />
to make the switch to fresh fare.<br />
Some animal guardians are especially<br />
intimidated by switching to 100% raw<br />
foods and there are some concerns<br />
about combining kibble and raw food<br />
together since they digest at different<br />
rates and this can increase the risk of<br />
illness from bacterial contamination.<br />
One option is to begin combining some<br />
fresh vegetables and fruits plus lightly<br />
cooked meats, organs and fish as well as<br />
plain yogurt or cottage cheese, with your<br />
dog’s regular food. Several companies<br />
provide premixes or ‘base diets’ or supplements<br />
to be used as the base of a<br />
homemade diet and these can be helpful<br />
in making the transition as well as ensuring<br />
an adequate array of nutritional components<br />
to the diet.<br />
Following is a list of suggested ingredi-<br />
ents to include in your dog’s homemade<br />
meals, or to combine with a premix as<br />
you gradually make the move away from<br />
kibble, to a varied healthy diet:<br />
Ground meat such as chicken, turkey,<br />
beef, and buffalo, which can be<br />
served raw or cooked depending on<br />
what you’re comfortable with.<br />
Raw Meaty Bones such as chicken<br />
necks or backs. It’s a good idea to grind<br />
bones to begin with, to allow your dog to<br />
get used to them. Your butcher may be<br />
able to do this for you, or you could invest<br />
in a good quality meat-grinder capable<br />
of grinding bone. Never feed cooked<br />
bones!<br />
Raw (or lightly cooked) organs and<br />
other muscle meats.<br />
Raw or lightly cooked white fish such<br />
as cod, sole and haddock as well as oily<br />
fish like salmon, sardines and herring<br />
(salmon should be cooked because of the<br />
possible risk of parasitic infestation in<br />
raw salmon) as well as low sodium<br />
canned fish.<br />
Root vegetables such as sweet potatoes,<br />
yams, pumpkin, parsnips (these<br />
vegetables should be lightly steamed or<br />
pulped to aid digestibility), plus other<br />
fresh vegetables such as zucchini, green<br />
beans, kale and celery.<br />
Plain yogurt, cottage cheese, kefir<br />
and eggs – these can be lightly scrambled<br />
if preferred but are perfectly acceptable<br />
raw for most dogs. Some raw feeders<br />
also include the finely ground shell as a<br />
great natural source of calcium.<br />
Fresh or dried fruits like melon, blueberries,<br />
cranberries & pitted peaches.<br />
Fresh herbs such as parsley, nettles,<br />
watercress and dandelion leaves.<br />
Ground nuts such as almonds and seeds<br />
like shelled sunflower, pumpkin or<br />
ground flax, also make an interesting<br />
addition.<br />
Ingredients to Avoid<br />
Chocolate<br />
Grapes<br />
Raisins<br />
Macadamia Nuts<br />
Onions<br />
What are the challenges of preparing<br />
your pet’s food, yourself?<br />
It takes some homework to prepare<br />
balanced, nutritional meals but it's not<br />
much more difficult than providing ourselves<br />
or our human children with wholesome<br />
& healthy nutrition, when a broad<br />
array of foods is offered throughout the<br />
week.<br />
Homemade meals can be time consuming<br />
to prepare, and messy as well.<br />
Some regimens for homemade food re<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
quire the acquisition of a meat grinder<br />
capable or pulverizing bones, which can<br />
add to the initial start-up costs.<br />
Some vets advise against homemade<br />
meals and if this causes a conflict, it may<br />
be necessary to locate an alternative or<br />
holistic vet who will support and assist<br />
you with your decision.<br />
If you have larger animals or a multi-pet<br />
household, the ingredients storage can<br />
become an issue – a dedicated chest<br />
freezer might be a wise investment, so<br />
you can store raw ingredients and finished<br />
meals.<br />
Here are two tasty recipes you might like<br />
to prepare at home and offer as a treat<br />
or accompaniment to your dog’s regular<br />
food – and a first step in getting off the<br />
kibble bandwagon:<br />
Liver Loaf Treats<br />
This delicious recipe is nutritious and<br />
delicious, and can be sliced up into any<br />
size to make training treats suitable for<br />
your individual pet. The added bonus is<br />
that this treat is completely wheat-free.<br />
Ingredients<br />
1 lb fresh raw organic beef liver<br />
3 free range eggs<br />
¼ cup canola or other vegetable oil<br />
1 clove fresh garlic, crushed<br />
2 cups instant oats<br />
1 tbsp applesauce<br />
2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)<br />
3 tbsp powdered kelp (optional)<br />
Filtered water sufficient to make a batter<br />
What To Do<br />
Process the liver in a blender or food<br />
processor, until completely pureed.<br />
Beat the eggs in a bowl and pour in the<br />
oil. Add the liver. Mix in the dry ingredients<br />
slowly, so they are thoroughly combined.<br />
Add water gradually, until you<br />
have a ‘batter’ consistency. Pour into a<br />
loaf tin. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.<br />
Cool in the tin then gently turn the<br />
loaf out onto a rack and refrigerate to<br />
cool completely. Slice with a sharp knife<br />
and dice into bite sized pieces appropriate<br />
for your pet.<br />
Salmon & Peach Cooler<br />
This recipe is super-simple to prepare<br />
makes a refreshing recipe to beat the<br />
summer heat. Be sure to use cooked<br />
boneless salmon only.<br />
Ingredients<br />
1 cup very lightly cooked boneless<br />
salmon fillet with skin.<br />
2 diced fresh peaches, stones removed<br />
1 cup roughly chopped watercress<br />
¼ cup diced cucumber<br />
¼ cup flaked almonds<br />
½ cup plain yogurt<br />
3 tbsp honey (optional)<br />
2 tbsp olive oil<br />
1 sprig fresh basil to garnish<br />
What To Do<br />
Combine the first seven ingredients in a<br />
bowl so they are thoroughly mixed.<br />
Spoon into a serving dish or use to top<br />
your dog's regular food.<br />
Add the mango on top and finish with<br />
the fresh basil.<br />
Serve for your dog in moderate portions,<br />
once cooled. Store in a refrigerator and<br />
serve a little each day, or freeze in individual<br />
portions for later use.<br />
Once you understand and witness the<br />
benefits of serving fresh, healthy, home<br />
prepared food that’s been created with<br />
your own hands – and infused with love<br />
and good intent – the habit will likely<br />
become a part of your routine. Even if<br />
it’s just a more occasional treat, the fun<br />
of making (and sometimes actually sharing)<br />
the food that your dog eats, is novel<br />
and rewarding for everyone!<br />
Lucy Postins is a companion animal<br />
nutritionist and founder of The Honest<br />
Kitchen, a natural pet food company<br />
in San Diego, CA. More nutritional<br />
resources are available on<br />
www.thehonestkitchen.com<br />
or (866) 437 9729.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 29
Victor neumann<br />
DOGS, PARKS AND POLITICS<br />
by: Julie Walsh<br />
The verdict is in. Off-leash play is not only good for dogs, but<br />
for their people too! Off-leash advocates have successfully made<br />
this case over and over again, prompting cities and towns all<br />
across the country to establish “dog parks” or off-leash areas.<br />
These parks are not only found in heavily populated places such<br />
as Virginia and New York City, but also in rural states such as<br />
Montana, Wyoming and Iowa. Indeed, Eco-Animal now lists<br />
over 1,500 places nationally in its online “Dog Park Directory.”<br />
A Sampling of Benefits<br />
Given the social nature of dogs, it is not too surprising that the<br />
opportunity to play and interact with others benefits them. <strong>Dogs</strong><br />
are pack animals, who delight in the company of canine friends.<br />
Off-leash areas additionally provide room for dogs to exercise<br />
vigorously, an essential need for many breeds and almost all<br />
young dogs. Studies show that well-exercised and properly socialized<br />
dogs are less likely to be aggressive and/or destructive. Humans<br />
certainly benefit from that fact alone, but there is more!<br />
It is not just the dogs who have fun at these parks. Humans enjoy<br />
watching their dogs play and often bond with the other human<br />
observers. They build friendships and communities. At our<br />
local park, the humans threw a baby shower for a father-to-be,<br />
who walks his golden retriever regularly, and his wife. They also<br />
had a party for a long-time walker who decided to move away<br />
after his dog had died the previous year. At both events, several<br />
people spoke about how meaningful these friendships were in<br />
their lives. When people have had to confront their dogs’ deaths,<br />
the outpouring of love and support has been extraordinary and<br />
perhaps the surest indication of the strength of this particular<br />
community. Clearly, via the creation of these human connections,<br />
these spaces contribute to psychological health, which, according<br />
to more and more studies, yields physical benefits as well. Indeed,<br />
the mere act of walking provides beneficial exercise for the<br />
humans.<br />
Dog Parks or <strong>Dogs</strong> at the Park<br />
Typically, off-leash areas are fenced, single-use spaces set aside<br />
from the rest of the park. In many cases, they have been established<br />
because dog walkers, shut out of common areas via the<br />
enforcement of leash laws, have battled for some space to exercise<br />
their dogs. Multiple factors account for this dynamic, including<br />
suburban sprawl, increases in population, and a general decline<br />
in community. These factors and others have led to greater<br />
competition for less park space, with dogs finding themselves on<br />
the short end of the stick. Dog parks compensate for this loss<br />
and are thus a positive development that helps to fulfill a need.<br />
However, they are not enough!<br />
It is also necessary to retain some access to multi-use areas for off<br />
-leash dogs. For example, a multi-use area might be a hiking trail<br />
or a wide open field or a beach, all of which are used by non-dog<br />
walkers. Given the growing demand for off-leash areas, singleuse,<br />
fenced spaces cannot possibly accommodate it on their own.<br />
Indeed, the more outlets for off-leash recreation, the less likely<br />
that there will be problems at any one location. Overcrowding or<br />
“too many dogs” is the oft-cited complaint of other users, one<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
which should be remedied with more (not fewer) places for this<br />
activity. Hours restrictions can help to balance the needs of other<br />
users with dog walkers as well.<br />
Because authorities in so many places have cracked down on offleash<br />
walking, multi-use places are increasingly rare gems: and<br />
gems they are! Arguably, multi-use areas multiply the already<br />
considerable benefits of dog parks. It is much more likely that<br />
humans will exercise at such places via walking or running than<br />
they would in a fenced area. Given the need to share the space<br />
with other users, it is imperative that humans develop a good<br />
relationship with their dog(s). That requirement tends to lead to<br />
better trained dogs. For their part, the dogs have even more opportunity<br />
in such places to be “dogs,” chasing squirrels, investigating<br />
scents, and using their minds.<br />
A Human Pack for the <strong>Dogs</strong><br />
Multi-use places have more often than not formed “naturally,”<br />
perhaps due to a lack of enforcement of a leash law or the lack of<br />
such a law altogether. As the number of places allowing for offleash<br />
activity shrinks, such gems become more attractive to dog<br />
walkers, who sometimes travel to get to them. A growing number<br />
of visitors can trigger complaints from other users and calls<br />
for a leash law. The political fight can then be a formidable one,<br />
which it would obviously be better to avoid.<br />
While that goal is much easier said than done, there are some<br />
steps to take if you enjoy such a place with your dog. Be proactive.<br />
Do not wait passively until there are complaints and an<br />
organized attempt to enact a leash law. If there is a community of<br />
dog walkers at the location, organize them into an association and<br />
dedicate it partly to the service of public ends. For example, such<br />
an organization can educate people about proper etiquette with<br />
other users. The group can invite local dog trainers to speak or<br />
give a demonstration, which would give the trainers free advertising<br />
and help to encourage people to seek training for their dog.<br />
On this matter of training, members of the dog-walking community<br />
can additionally help one another out with tips. That is more<br />
Vic Neumann<br />
likely to happen with an organization that might, for example,<br />
have an online discussion group. Importantly, the group could<br />
identify stewardship of the land as one of its public priorities and<br />
sponsor clean-up days.<br />
Be aware that it is not always easy to organize people in the absence<br />
of a threat to their interests. A few dog walkers might have<br />
to take the initiative and convince others of the need for this. It<br />
helps if you make the endeavor fun, not all bitter medicine. Our<br />
group had meetings to discuss our goals, develop our website, and<br />
plan activities. We all brought goodies to the meetings and conversation<br />
was not all business. In short, they were enjoyable<br />
events that strengthened friendships already developed at the<br />
park. We also capitalized on the individual talents of our membership.<br />
For example, some were artistic and they created our<br />
business card; others were computer savvy and they developed<br />
our website. People were very generous with their time and talents<br />
after they bought into the idea of the group.<br />
Once organized into such a group, it becomes possible for dog<br />
walkers to reach out to other users at the park. It is amazing how<br />
beneficial this can be. At our park, the mere fact that a group of<br />
us were trying to encourage good etiquette won over some individuals<br />
who had previously advocated a leash law. In some cases,<br />
people want simply to be heard and to have their concerns validated.<br />
Too often, dog walkers are defined by an irresponsible few<br />
who are arrogant and combative. Do not let such individuals<br />
define you! Let the non-dog owners who use the area see the<br />
humanity of the dog walkers and know that most are just as upset<br />
with irresponsible behavior as they. In attempting to eradicate<br />
that behavior via education, dog walkers are identified on the<br />
same side as the other users. They are a part of the community,<br />
not a group in need of segregation.<br />
Sadly, even with these efforts, there is simply no guarantee that a<br />
multi-use area will not be threatened with a leash law. In that<br />
unwanted event, be mindful of appearances. Raw displays of<br />
anger are not helpful. Use your association to mobilize all who<br />
walk their dogs at the park. Learn the precise steps in the political<br />
process, which can vary widely from jurisdiction to<br />
jurisdiction, and focus on prevailing in them. Although<br />
elected officials tend to take notice when confronted<br />
with a fully mobilized group, dog walkers are<br />
unfortunately still in the situation of convincing officeholders<br />
and citizens about the legitimacy of offleash<br />
walking and play. Dog walkers must explain<br />
how passionate they are about it and must do so in<br />
terms that non-dog lovers can understand. Remember<br />
that many people have not heard the case for this<br />
activity, let alone the verdict on it!<br />
Julie Walsh lives in Bloomfield, Connecticut with dogs<br />
Devin and Sadie.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 31
y: Erika Phillips<br />
We are what we eat. Raw feeders take this simple statement<br />
very seriously and eschew kibble for its dubious origins and<br />
questionable ingredients. We rightly feel more comfortable<br />
feeding foods to our dogs with known origins: we like to know<br />
not only what foods are going into our dogs but where they<br />
came from. Unfortunately, we might not know as much about<br />
the origin of feed animals as we should.<br />
The Times They are A-Changing ~Bob Dylan<br />
For generations our food has been raised on soils rich in nutrients.<br />
Cows ate grass, sheep ate grass. Chickens ranged and<br />
ate worms and frogs and other meaty morsels rich with protein<br />
necessary to produce wonderfully nutritious eggs. Pigs<br />
received 80% of their nutritional requirements from rich and<br />
living soil. Life was simpler and life was in our nutrient-dense<br />
leaner and lower in calories, and higher in omega-3 fatty acids<br />
food. Sadly, this does not ring true today: cows are now grain<br />
and vitamin E. Grass-fed dairy products also have five times<br />
fed with many of them never seeing a blade of grass, chickens<br />
the levels of conjugated linoleum acid (CLA) than their grain-<br />
are grain fed and factory raised without sunshine and never<br />
fed counterparts. Grass fed cows also convert Chlorophyll that<br />
seeing a bug or a worm, pigs are raised in concrete buildings<br />
they get from grass into Vitamin D that they get from the sun<br />
and sheep are normally pastured but too expensive to eat.<br />
which in turn produces vitamin A found in the liver and other<br />
The ramifications of industrialized farming have very real<br />
health implications for us and for our dogs.<br />
organs. Without grass Cow’s are not worth eating!<br />
On factory beef farms the staple of the cow’s diet is corn and<br />
soy which are not well digested by cows. In fact, cattle can<br />
The cow is nothing but a machine which makes grass fit for us develop severe health problems from grains, some of which<br />
people to eat. ~John McNulty<br />
include liver abscesses and sudden death syndrome. For filler,<br />
Cows are ruminants, and ruminants are designed by nature to<br />
digest grass and only grass. They digest it first by eating it raw<br />
and then by regurgitating it and eating it again in a partially<br />
digested form known as cud. As ruminants, cows have four<br />
chambers in their stomachs, and as a cow digests, the food<br />
moves slowly from one chamber to the next.<br />
factory farms will also add animal by-products to industrial<br />
cattle feed, and these additions can transmit diseases like mad<br />
cow to both animals and humans. Grains ferment in the stomach<br />
and create serious bacteria overloads including salmonella<br />
and e-coli. In large production facilities where the animals<br />
stand and sleep in their feces, the bacterium is spread<br />
throughout the herd and when the time comes for slaughter<br />
Raising cattle on pasture not only makes sense for their diges- the feces/bacteria often remain in the meat unless bleached.<br />
tive systems, but makes sense for humans too, by turning On top of that, run-off from factory farms and feedlots can<br />
something we can’t eat (grass) into something we can (meat) contaminate surrounding crops with salmonella and e-coli and<br />
and dairy products. Cattle raised on grass provide meat that is this has resulted in numerous illnesses and recalls.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Regard it as just as desirable to build a chicken house as to<br />
build a cathedral. ~Frank Lloyd Wright<br />
Factory farmed chickens fare no better than cows . Millions of<br />
tons of meat and bone meal from post-slaughter animal waste<br />
are recycled back into animal feed each year, and poultry and<br />
hog producers are the main purchasers of these products. On<br />
industrial poultry farms, a range of antibiotics and additives<br />
are also added to the birds’ feed and water and are necessary<br />
to combat the ill effects of poor quality feed and lack of sunshine<br />
and fresh air. Factory farmed chickens are regularly fed<br />
arsenic (and sometimes turkeys and pigs) to encourage weight<br />
gain and create the appearance of healthy color in the meat.<br />
If the chicken is eating arsenic, your dog is eating arsenic and<br />
the insidious effect of this low level exposure mimics many<br />
chronic diseases. Arsenic exposure leads to cancer, nerve<br />
damage, diabetes and cognitive dysfunction. Like e-coli, arsenic<br />
is not only found in the meat but in the feces which eventually<br />
pollute surrounding water supplies.<br />
The Dark Side Of The Other White Meat<br />
According to the Sustainable table, “In some states, garbage<br />
can legally be fed to pigs, and if this garbage includes rotten<br />
meat, pigs are at risk for diseases such as hog cholera, Foot<br />
and Mouth Disease, African swine fever, and swine vesicular<br />
disease. Other pathogens of concern are Salmonella, Campylobacter,<br />
Trichinella, and Toxoplasma. These diseases may<br />
be spread to other livestock or humans if hogs eat contaminated<br />
meat in improperly treated food waste.<br />
Pigs have a completely different digestive system than cows<br />
and unlike cows, can digest soil and dirt. As a matter of fact<br />
most pigs can get 80% of their daily food ration from soil<br />
alone. They eat grasses, legumes, ground cover, standing<br />
plants and are about the easiest animal to raise on pasture<br />
without the worry of supplementation. Unfortunately, this<br />
is not the practice that is employed by large pig operations.<br />
What does this all mean for ourselves and our pets? With-<br />
out the nutrients that are normally found in healthy soil and in<br />
turn the plants that soils contain, our companion animals are<br />
at critical risk for disease and insufficiencies.<br />
If you knew how meat was made, you'd probably lose your<br />
lunch. ~k.d. lang<br />
As much as possible, ensure that your meat comes from local<br />
farmers who raise their animals as naturally as possible. If you<br />
are forced to feed grain-fed animals, then you might want to<br />
supplement a prey-model diet to replace the nutrients erased<br />
by factory farming and to boost your dog‘s immune system to<br />
fight the ill effects from additives such as hormones, antibiotics<br />
and arsenic. Although the full extent of the dog’s ability to<br />
digest plant matter is largely unknown, all of the deficiencies<br />
in vitamins and minerals are readily available in herbs. Unless<br />
you are able to feed exclusively organic, grass-fed animals, the<br />
benefits of feeding plant matter to dogs likely outweighs the<br />
risks of feeding deficient meats which have joined the<br />
alarmingly large and growing list of products contaminated<br />
by increasingly powerful industries.<br />
Erika Phillips is the Editor in Chief of <strong>Dogs</strong> <strong>Naturally</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong><br />
and the proprietor of The Controversial Canine.<br />
She can be reached for consultations in Homeopathy/Herbs/<br />
Behaviour/Nutrition at www.controversialcanine.com<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 33
y: Chris Adams<br />
Staff Reporter The Wall Street Journal<br />
With the aid of slick commercials featuring once-lame dogs<br />
bounding happily about, Rimadyl changed the way veterinarians<br />
treated dogs. ""Clients would walk in and say, 'What about this<br />
Rimadyl?' "" says George Siemering, who practices in Springfield,<br />
VA.<br />
Today, those TV spots are gone. The reason has to do with dogs<br />
like Montana. A six-year-old Siberian husky with stiff back legs,<br />
Montana hobbled out of a vet's office in Brooklyn, N.Y., six<br />
months ago accompanied by his human, Angela Giglio, and a<br />
supply of Rimadyl pills. At first, the drug appeared to work. But<br />
then Montana lost his appetite. He went limp, wobbling instead<br />
of walking. Finally he didn't walk at all. He ate leaves, vomited,<br />
had seizures and, eventually, was put to sleep. An autopsy showed<br />
the sort of liver damage associated with a bad drug reaction.<br />
Pet drugs are big business -- an estimated $3 billion world-wide --<br />
and Rimadyl is one of the bestsellers. It has been given to more<br />
than four million dogs in the U.S. and more abroad, brought<br />
Pfizer Inc. tens of millions of dollars in sales, and pleased many<br />
veterinarians and dog owners. But the drug has also stirred a controversy,<br />
with other pet owners complaining that nobody warned<br />
them of its risks.<br />
Montana's owner, Ms. Giglio, is among them. After she informed<br />
Pfizer and the Food and Drug Administration of her relatively<br />
youthful dog's death, Pfizer offered her $440 ""as a gesture of<br />
good will"" and to cover part of the medical costs. Insulted by the<br />
offer and a stipulation that she agree to tell no one about the payment<br />
except her tax preparer, she refused to sign and didn't take<br />
the money. ""There's just no way in my conscience or heart I can<br />
release them from blame,"" she says.<br />
After reports of bad reactions and deaths started streaming in to<br />
the FDA, the agency suggested that Pfizer mention ""death"" as a<br />
possible side effect in a warning letter to vets, on labels and in TV<br />
ads. Pfizer eventually did use the word with vets and on labels,<br />
but when given an ultimatum about the commercials -- mention<br />
""death"" in the audio or end the ads -- Pfizer chose to drop<br />
them.<br />
Pfizer's director of animal-products technical services, Edward W.<br />
Kanara, says that when reports started coming in, ""we acted extremely<br />
promptly based on the information we had."" Pfizer<br />
points out that reported adverse events involve less than 1% of<br />
treated dogs.<br />
Since Rimadyl's 1997 launch, the FDA has received reports of<br />
about 1,000 dogs that died or were put to sleep and 7,000 more<br />
that had bad reactions after taking the drug, records and official<br />
estimates indicate. The FDA says such events are significantly<br />
underreported.<br />
While the numbers include cases ""possibly"" related to Rimadyl,<br />
it is hard to be sure. Many dogs given the arthritis drug<br />
are older, and few are autopsied after they die. Pfizer says it analyzed<br />
cases of Rimadyl treated dogs that died in 1998 and found<br />
a link to Rimadyl to be ""likely"" in 12% of cases and ""not<br />
likely"" in 22%; it says there was too little information for a<br />
judgment about the others.<br />
Still Approved<br />
Despite these problems, the FDA says Rimadyl deserves to be<br />
on the market, provided vets take the proper precautions. These<br />
include advising dog owners what bad reactions to watch for<br />
and periodically doing liver-function or other lab tests.<br />
Within a few weeks, Pfizer will begin affixing a safety sheet directly<br />
to packages of Rimadyl pills. It is the first time either FDA<br />
officials or Pfizer can recall such a step being taken in the world<br />
of animal drugs.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Rimadyl -- generically carprofen -- is an anti-inflammatory medicine.<br />
Developer Roche Laboratories expected to market it for<br />
people in 1988 and received FDA approval, but shelved the plan<br />
after concluding the market for such drugs was too crowded. In<br />
addition, some outside experts expressed concerns; a commentary<br />
in a pharmaceutical journal noted unusual liver-function<br />
readings in 14% to 20% of test subjects and opined that ""until<br />
additional data on carprofen are available, older compounds<br />
should probably be tried initially.""<br />
The idea of switching the product to the animal-drug track soon<br />
arose. A couple of corporate transactions later, it ended up in<br />
the hands of Pfizer's animal-drug unit.<br />
There, it was treated to the kind of sophisticated marketing<br />
Pfizer does well. A survey of 885 dog owners was done. Besides<br />
shedding light on favorite dog names (Jake, Ginger, Lady), the<br />
poll revealed that one-fifth of dog owners would be willing to<br />
spend ""whatever it took"" to buy an aging dog an extra year or<br />
two of life. No fewer than 53% agreed that ""my dog is a better<br />
companion than other members of my family.""<br />
“The FDA had received just over 3,000<br />
animal-drug bad-reaction reports in 1996,<br />
the year before Rimadyl's launch; in 1998,<br />
the drug's first full year, Rimadyl alone<br />
produced more than that many. “<br />
The FDA requires safety and efficacy testing for animal drugs just<br />
as for human ones, but animal-drug tests are smaller. Pfizer says<br />
about 500 dogs got Rimadyl in various trials, which is no more<br />
than a fifth of the number of subjects in comparable human-drug<br />
trials. Some dogs showed unusual liver-function readings and one<br />
young beagle on a high dose died, but for the most part, the FDA<br />
and Pfizer didn't find side effects alarming. The drug was approved<br />
for an early-1997 launch.<br />
That same year, the FDA made it easier to market drugs directly to<br />
consumers on TV. Soon, Pfizer was running commercials in which<br />
a once-stiff yellow Labrador retriever named Lady bounded over a<br />
fallen tree as she fetched tennis balls beside a lake. In another ad, a<br />
dog leapt through a window and slid down a banister.<br />
There were also full-page magazine ads and a public-relations campaign,<br />
whose results, the PR firm later said, included 1,785 print<br />
stories, 856 radio reports and 245 TV news reports ""generating<br />
25.5 million positive impressions on the product.""<br />
Early on, vets were floored by the drug's effects. ""The results in<br />
some cases have been pretty darn close to miraculous,"" says David<br />
Whitten of the Hilldale Veterinary Hospital in Southfield, Mich.<br />
""I'm using this drug on my own dog. It has been effective. But as<br />
with all medications, side effects are certainly a problem.""<br />
The First Complaints<br />
Indeed, within months of the launch, vets at Colorado State University<br />
in Fort Collins noticed troubling reactions. Labrador retrievers<br />
seemed particularly affected. Since the safety studies for<br />
Rimadyl had emphasized testing on young beagles, Pfizer went<br />
back to conduct another, small test just on Labs; it says that test<br />
showed no particular problem.<br />
Bill Keller, an FDA veterinary-medicine official, notes that ""any<br />
time you take a product from the investigation and put it into actual<br />
practice, you're going to see things you didn't expect."" But<br />
reports about Rimadyl came in by the hundreds. The FDA had<br />
received just over 3,000 animal-drug bad-reaction reports in 1996,<br />
the year before Rimadyl's launch; in 1998, the drug's first full year,<br />
Rimadyl alone produced more than that many.<br />
They swamped the FDA's tiny Center for Veterinary Medicine in<br />
Rockville, MD. Pfizer was scrambling as well. ""Basically, their<br />
response,"" says Dr. Keller, ""was 'Tell us what you want us to do.<br />
We love the fact that it's selling so well, but we don't know what to<br />
do with all these adverse reactions.' ""<br />
The FDA and Pfizer discussed a ""Dear Doctor"" letter to be sent<br />
to vets. FDA records show the agency found parts of an early<br />
Pfizer draft ""unacceptable as they are promotional in tone... ."" It<br />
was revised.<br />
The records also show Pfizer disagreed with the FDA's suggestion<br />
that the letter cite ""death"" as a possible side effect. To get the<br />
letter out, the FDA told Pfizer it was ""agreeing to your exclusion<br />
of the 'death' syndrome from the letter at this time. However, we<br />
will revisit the 'death' syndrome issue and other potential side effects<br />
for possible inclusion in labelling at a later date."" So the term<br />
didn't appear in the first warning Pfizer sent, in mid-1997.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 35
Clear Benefits<br />
Meanwhile, dog owners were asking for Rimadyl. ""It was their<br />
advertising that sold me on the drug,"" says Michelle Walsh, a<br />
Phoenix woman who says her miniature schnauzer was given it<br />
and later died.<br />
Not that vets needed much convincing. They saw clear benefits<br />
from the drug. On top of that, they could get points from Pfizer<br />
for each Rimadyl purchase they made; points were redeemable for<br />
PalmPilots, Zip drives for PCs and other equipment.<br />
Although Pfizer's letter told vets to explain to owners the signs of<br />
a bad reaction to Rimadyl, such as vomiting, lethargy or diarrhea,<br />
it is evident that a great many didn't. The FDA's Dr. Keller says,<br />
"There are a lot of veterinarians who don't think they need to take<br />
the time, or who forget, or for whatever reason are not providing<br />
animal owners with this information."<br />
Donna Allen, whose chow-mix, Maggie, started on Rimadyl last<br />
summer, says, ""All my vet did was give me this little bag of pills,<br />
with no information."" She says ""Maggie didn't want to take it,<br />
but I made her.""<br />
After four weeks, Maggie began to vomit violently, Ms. Allen<br />
says. The dog vanished from their home outside Birmingham,<br />
AL, and later was found lying in a ditch. Ms. Allen loaded her into<br />
a truck and sped 35 miles to a veterinary clinic, but the five-yearold<br />
dog died. Her vet wouldn't implicate Rimadyl in the death<br />
until Ms. Allen urged him to send the dog's internal organs to the<br />
University of Illinois vet school, where an examination showed<br />
liver toxicity.<br />
Maggie was buried under a marker adorned with the figure of an<br />
angel. Ms. Allen took to the streets, delivering a letter to all the<br />
vets in the area urging them to ""understand that Rimadyl helps<br />
certain dogs, but it is poison to other dogs.""<br />
The D-Word<br />
As the complaints poured in, the FDA told Pfizer it would have<br />
to revisit the label issue. Pfizer had referred to ""fatal outcomes""<br />
on the label as a possible effect of the drug class to which Rimadyl<br />
belonged, but not specifically of this drug. Now the agency<br />
asked that Pfizer cite ""death"" prominently as a possible side<br />
effect of the drug. Describing the back and forth with Pfizer, the<br />
FDA's Dr. Keller says, ""They did it. They weren't enthusiastic<br />
about it, but they have always been cooperative. And that's part of<br />
the nature of the game we play with industry.""<br />
But the FDA also wanted the word ""death"" in the audio of<br />
commercials. Pfizer indicated this ""would be devastating to the<br />
product,"" FDA minutes of a February 1999 meeting show. A<br />
company spokesman says that ""putting 'death' on a 30-second<br />
commercial and in proper context was something we didn't think<br />
was possible."" Rather than do so, Pfizer eventually pulled the<br />
commercials.<br />
Pfizer says it now will do traditional marketing to vets, making<br />
sure they know the proper way to use the drug. Another ""Dear<br />
Doctor"" letter will soon go out, and the company will start attaching<br />
a safety sheet to pill packages.<br />
Pfizer acknowledges it has a perception problem with some dog<br />
owners; a consumer group, for instance, has mounted a campaign<br />
dubbed BARKS, for Be Aware of Rimadyl's Known Side-effects.<br />
The company is contacting dog owners who have told their stories<br />
on the Internet, and it is offering to pay medical and diagnostic<br />
expenses for some dogs who may have been harmed by Rimadyl.<br />
But Pfizer stands firmly behind the value of the drug, of which it<br />
says sales have continued to grow. Most vets also remain strongly<br />
behind Rimadyl. Owners, too, generally say they think the drug is<br />
important -- they just want to know the risks.<br />
Atlantan Roger Williams gave his mixed-breed terrier, William,<br />
Rimadyl for more than a year and believes it contributed to the<br />
dog's death. ""But if I had to do it all over, I would give my dog<br />
Rimadyl again,"" he says. ""The difference is I would have known<br />
what to expect. Without Rimadyl, William was miserable. And<br />
what's the point of living another three years if you're miserable?""<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
The shelter dog had clearly been neglected in his past. His coat<br />
was dull, and his eyes stared blankly into space as he barked<br />
continuously. The staff asked me to please try to help calm<br />
him, since he had been hysterically barking since he had arrived.<br />
I sat quietly outside his kennel, put in my earplugs and<br />
took a deep breath. I imagined the energy of the earth flowing<br />
up through my body, grounding and centering me, and mentally<br />
offered the dog some healing energy, if he chose to connect<br />
with me. I closed my eyes and inside my mind imagined<br />
myself in a quiet, beautiful place. Peace, safety and harmony: I<br />
held these three words in my heart. I imagined how the dog<br />
looked when he was calm and perfectly relaxed. I imagined I<br />
could embrace him with love from my heart. Sure enough, as<br />
I’ve seen in so many Reiki treatments, after a few moments<br />
the dog stopped barking and stared intently at me. A few more<br />
moments passed and he lay down in the kennel, took a deep<br />
breath and rested his head on his front paws. Silence had<br />
never felt so golden.<br />
Reiki, a system that creates relaxation and stress-relief, is a<br />
wonderful way to support the healing journey of rescued dogs<br />
and to support ourselves as we walk this path with them. The<br />
name Reiki, pronounced “ray-key,” comes from the Japanese<br />
words “rei” meaning spirit and “ki” meaning energy. It is usually<br />
translated as “universal life energy.” Reiki is about being<br />
able to hold a space of balance within ourselves—even in the<br />
midst of a chaotic or troublesome situation. If we can practice<br />
maintaining this kind of inner balance and calm in our own<br />
lives, we will see a ripple effect in all that we do. In working<br />
with rescued dogs, we can see them responding to our inner<br />
state of balance in a positive way, becoming calmer and more<br />
peaceful. We can also see our relationship with them going<br />
much deeper.<br />
The Five Precepts<br />
Reiki as a healing modality is a meditative art. It is simply<br />
about focusing one’s compassionate intention to support another<br />
being. When using Reiki to heal a dog, for example, the<br />
practitioner simply sets an intention to facilitate the healing<br />
process of the dog and then allows Reiki to flow in whatever<br />
amount the dog wishes to receive and for whatever he or she<br />
needs most.<br />
<br />
by: Kathleen Prasad<br />
Reiki is ideal for use with animals because effectiveness is not<br />
dependent upon physical contact. The animal controls the<br />
treatment, accepting Reiki in the ways that are most comfortable,<br />
either hands-on or from a distance, or a combination of<br />
the two. Easy for anyone to learn and use, Reiki can do no<br />
harm, even when used by the most novice practitioner. It always<br />
goes to the deepest source of the problem and always<br />
supports a path toward balance and harmony. Since we often<br />
don’t know a rescued animal’s past, with Reiki we can simply<br />
allow the energy to flow where it will, knowing that a healing<br />
shift toward balance will occur.<br />
The five Reiki precepts for balanced living, taught by the founder<br />
of the system, Mikao Usui, are as follows:<br />
Just for today …<br />
Do not anger.<br />
Do not worry.<br />
Be humble.<br />
Be honest in your work.<br />
Be compassionate to yourself and others.<br />
These precepts are not only the foundation for self-healing in<br />
the system of Reiki, but can also be used as guides when working<br />
with rescued animals.<br />
1. Just for today do not anger. Working with rescued dogs can<br />
be very difficult when we see the results of past abuse or neglect.<br />
We can begin to feel ourselves becoming very angry<br />
about how the dog was treated, what he had to go through<br />
and so on. This anger at the dog’s situation can spiral into anger<br />
about the world as a whole and anger toward humanity’s<br />
treatment of dogs in general. Pretty soon we can find ourselves<br />
encompassed in a bubble of anger. This anger will<br />
merely distract us from our primary goal, which is to help the<br />
dog. If we are angry, the dog will sense that and not want to<br />
connect with us. If we can focus instead on our desire to help<br />
the dog, our anger can be mitigated by our compassion.<br />
It can also help us to see the dog with our heart instead of our<br />
eyes. If we can see deeper into the very essence and spirit of<br />
the dog—see that shining star just waiting to brighten our<br />
life—it will be easier to work through any difficulties we face<br />
with patience and calm. When we approach our rescued dog<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 37
with this kind of inner peace, everything will flow toward healing<br />
much more easily.<br />
2. Just for today do not worry. When working with a rescued<br />
dog, we can find ourselves dealing with many health problems.<br />
We might rescue a dog suffering with Parvo, kennel cough or<br />
some physical injury from past abuse or neglect. As we nurture<br />
the dog toward healing, we may find ourselves worrying: worrying<br />
about other problems that might manifest, about how<br />
and if the dog will be able to fully heal from illness and injury<br />
and so on. We also might worry about our rescued dog being<br />
able to fit into our family, especially if we know the dog has<br />
faced difficult and traumatic events in the past. Worrying and<br />
fretting about things beyond our control is not helpful for us or<br />
the dog.<br />
If we can again look deeper into the heart and spirit of the dog<br />
to see him as already healed, we can help our dog find the<br />
hope and courage to get better. We can, for example, see how<br />
shiny their coat must have once been, how they would look<br />
with proper weight on their bones. We can imagine they are<br />
breathing freely and running with strength and vigor across<br />
our yard. When we begin to look at our dog for who he really<br />
is, he, too, will see us for who we really are, and the relationship<br />
can deepen. And in that deepening of trust, the healing of<br />
the heart begins. This is where it all starts for the rescued<br />
dog—with healing of the heart.<br />
3. Be humble. Working with a rescued dog can bring us back<br />
into humility. We might have thought initially we were the one<br />
doing the “rescuing”—and yet as we create a new and loving<br />
relationship with this dog, we might find that our lives are forever<br />
changed for the better. We may find our hearts opening<br />
more than we had ever thought possible. In working through<br />
the healing journey of our rescued dog, me may learn about<br />
ourselves and in so doing, find that we are better people for it.<br />
And so one day we may realize that it is we who were rescued<br />
by this dog. We find ourselves humbled by their capacity to<br />
heal and forgive, to let go of the past, and to move forward<br />
into a new future with courage, joy and selfless devotion. If<br />
only we could learn to live our lives as a rescued dog lives his.<br />
4. Be honest in your work. Going through our lives, how often<br />
do we ask ourselves, what is our life’s work? When we work<br />
with a rescued dog, we are helping him to heal, nurturing him<br />
physically and emotionally, providing exercise, food and attention,<br />
and helping him to build a new beginning as a part of our<br />
family. We can realize that it is in this daily practice with him,<br />
where we devote ourselves single-mindedly to our task, that<br />
we find our heart’s true calling. In helping this dog to heal<br />
from the past and live his life surrounded in love, we suddenly<br />
find that it is in this place that we are being truly honest in our<br />
work.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
5. Be compassionate to yourself and others. Helping a rescued<br />
dog is a very compassionate action, which I believe has a<br />
ripple effect out into the world. By working with rescued dogs<br />
in your life, you are not only helping that individual dog, but<br />
also making the world a better place by being a model for others.<br />
So first and foremost, be kind and gentle to yourself. In<br />
following your heart for the dogs who need you, you will develop<br />
and nurture the compassionate spirit within you.<br />
Using Reiki in Animal Rescue<br />
If you are a trained professional or volunteer involved in animal<br />
rescue, you may find yourself in unexpected situations<br />
with extreme stress and sometimes even danger. This can take<br />
a toll on your body, mind, emotions and spirit. Images and<br />
memories of what you have seen may stay with you long after<br />
you have left the scene. Here are some ways Reiki can help<br />
support rescuers’ health and the animals being rescued:<br />
Preparing to go to the scene of the rescue and arriving on the<br />
scene: Breathe. Picture a calm and peaceful place in your<br />
mind. Keep this place with you in your heart as you go about<br />
your work.<br />
Rescuing animals from the scene: Whatever issues the animals<br />
are manifesting, stay positive. Find affirmations to hold in<br />
your mind and heart depending on the animal. For example,<br />
for a very fearful dog, you might use the affirmation courage.<br />
For a dog that has been neglected, you might use the affirmation<br />
love.<br />
After the rescue: Imagine you can breathe earth energy up<br />
from ground and into your heart. As you speak to the dog and<br />
spend time with him, see him with your heart—see through to<br />
his spirit and imagine he is already healed.<br />
Many of us aren’t professional rescue workers, but choose<br />
instead to support rescue efforts by opening our homes to<br />
these animals and asking them to join our families. Here are<br />
some ways Reiki can support adopters and the rescued animals<br />
in their new homes:<br />
Preparing to go to a shelter or rescue to adopt an animal: Set<br />
your intention that your heart is open to connect to the perfect<br />
animal for your home and family. Breathe earth energy<br />
into your heart to help you to stay grounded and centered. Try<br />
to listen to your heart as you meet each animal. Feel for that<br />
special heart connection—that animal will be your rescuer!<br />
Bringing your new dog home: Your role will be to assist your<br />
new dog in healing old wounds and creating new beginnings.<br />
Use affirmations to help the energy stay positive and supportive<br />
as your dog adjusts and begins his new life. Remember to<br />
always see your dog as you know he is at his very essence—as<br />
perfectly in balance. Anything outwardly out of balance<br />
(illness, injury, behavior problems and so on) is simply a manifestation<br />
of wounds which you will help him to heal. In seeing<br />
and believing in his healing potential, you will help him to<br />
reach it.<br />
Reiki teaches us that our role in dog rescue is not only an outward<br />
physical “doing” of the rescue. We can also nurture the<br />
healing of the dog’s body, mind and spirit in focusing our compassionate<br />
intention in a positive direction. Through the Reiki<br />
techniques of staying mindful of the precepts, remembering to<br />
connect to the earth and ground ourselves, using affirmations<br />
and seeing with our hearts, we are better able to stay in balance.<br />
And when we ourselves are in balance, we are better<br />
able to help our dogs.<br />
Kathleen Prasad is an Animal Reiki Teacher, founder of Animal<br />
Reiki Source and President of The Shelter Animal Reiki Association.<br />
Kathleen is a student of classical Japanese Reiki methods,<br />
training with internationally recognized Reiki researchers Frans<br />
and Bronwen Stiene of the International House of Reiki. She is<br />
a registered practitioner with the Shibumi International Reiki<br />
Association (www.shibumireiki.org). She has co-authored The<br />
Animal Reiki Handbook (Lulu, 2009), Animal Reiki (Ulysses<br />
Press, 2006) and edited and contributed to the books Tails<br />
from the Source and Animal Reiki Tails, Volume 2. She has written<br />
many educational articles on animals and Reiki for holistic<br />
publications around the world. Kathleen has taught Reiki to the<br />
staff of organizations such as The San Francisco SPCA, The East<br />
Bay SPCA, The Humane Society of Silicon Valley, BrightHaven<br />
Healing Arts Center for Animals, Guide <strong>Dogs</strong> for the Blind, and<br />
The Elephant Sanctuary. She has also authored The Animal<br />
Reiki Practitioner Code of Ethics, which has been published<br />
in professional Reiki publications and adopted by practitioners<br />
around the world. In addition to offering an extensive animal<br />
Reiki training program and worldwide practitioner directory on<br />
her website, she self-publishes a free e-newsletter on Reiki and<br />
animals. Kathleen enjoys life in beautiful Marin County, California<br />
with her husband, daughter, and two horses. Visit Kathleen<br />
online at www.animalreikisource.com.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 39
y: Jan Rasmussen<br />
TRUTHS, OMISSIONS AND PROFITS<br />
It’s getting warmer outside — time for<br />
sellers of heartworm medications to<br />
start scaring you to death. Television<br />
and print ads, which used to push meds<br />
only during warm summer months,<br />
now urge you to keep your dog on<br />
medication year round. The question is:<br />
why the change?<br />
Drs. David Knight and James Lok of the<br />
University of Pennsylvania School of<br />
Veterinary Medicine, addressing recommendations<br />
for year round meds,<br />
warned: “The practice of some veterinarians<br />
to continuously prescribe<br />
monthly chemoprophylaxis exaggerates<br />
the actual risk of heartworm transmission<br />
in most parts of the country and<br />
unnecessarily increases the cost of protection<br />
to their clients.”<br />
So, is the change to year round meds all<br />
about money? Or is there more to this<br />
story?<br />
Heartworm “prevention” is a major<br />
health decision for pet parents and<br />
multi-billion dollar Big Business<br />
for drug companies, veterinarians, testing<br />
laboratories and on-line sellers of<br />
medication. When health intersects<br />
money, there’s a lot of room for conflict<br />
of interest. Only by understanding the<br />
business aspects and the truth about<br />
heartworm transmission can you make<br />
an informed decision about if, how and<br />
when to protect your dog with commercial<br />
products.<br />
While everyone agrees that heartworm<br />
infestations can be life-threatening, infestation<br />
is far from inevitable nor is it<br />
the immutable death sentence advertisers<br />
would have you believe.<br />
(Otherwise, all dogs and cats not on<br />
meds would die of infestation. But they<br />
don’t.)<br />
Every holistic vet I’ve consulted had<br />
concerns about the long-term safety of<br />
heartworm medications. Well-known<br />
vet, author and columnist Martin Goldstein<br />
wrote in his wonderful book The<br />
Nature of Animal Healing that he sees<br />
heartworms as less epidemic than the<br />
“disease-causing toxicity” of heartworm<br />
medicine.<br />
Dr. Jeff Levy, vet and homeopath, concluded<br />
“that it was not the heartworms<br />
that caused disease, but the other factors<br />
that damaged the dogs’ health to<br />
the point that they could no longer<br />
compensate for an otherwise tolerable<br />
parasite load.” Those factors include, “…<br />
being vaccinated yearly, eating commercial<br />
dog food, and getting suppressive<br />
drug treatment for other symptoms….”<br />
Heartworm meds do not, by the way,<br />
prevent heartworms. They are poisons<br />
that kill heartworm larvae (called microfilariae)<br />
contracted during the previous<br />
30-45 days (and maybe longer due<br />
to what is call the Reach Back Effect).<br />
The heartworm industry authority, The<br />
American Heartworm Society (and their<br />
cat heartworm site) offers a wealth of<br />
information. Their website is a public<br />
service but also a marketing tool aimed<br />
at buyers and resellers of heartworm<br />
meds. Sponsors of this website are a<br />
Who’s Who of drug companies. Fort<br />
Dodge Animal Health (Wyeth), Merial<br />
and Pfizer are “Platinum Sponsors.”<br />
Bayer merits Silver. Novartis, Schering-<br />
Plough, Virbac and Eli Lilly get Bronze.<br />
Most of these<br />
companies have sales reps that regularly<br />
call on vets and show them how to<br />
sell you heartworm meds. With any<br />
purchase of any drug, we recommend<br />
you ask for information regarding possible<br />
adverse effects, the necessity for<br />
taking this drug and available alternatives.<br />
How Heartworms Infect <strong>Dogs</strong>: It’s<br />
Not Easy!<br />
Well, now that we’ve looked behind the<br />
scenes of the heartworm industry, let’s<br />
take a look at how the heartworms<br />
themselves (called Dirofilaria immitis)<br />
do business. Seven steps must be completed<br />
to give your dog a dangerous<br />
heartworm infestation:<br />
Step 1: To infect your dog, you need<br />
mosquitoes (so you need warm temperatures<br />
and standing water). More<br />
specifically, you need a hungry female<br />
mosquito of an appropriate species. Female<br />
mosquitoes act as airborne incubators<br />
for premature baby heartworms<br />
(called microfilariae). Without the<br />
proper mosquito, dogs can’t get heartworms.<br />
Period.<br />
That means dogs can’t “catch” heartworms<br />
from other dogs or mammals or<br />
from dog park lawns. Puppies can’t<br />
“catch” heartworms from their mothers<br />
and moms can’t pass heartworm immunity<br />
to pups.<br />
Step 2: Our hungry mosquito needs access<br />
to a dog already infected with sexually<br />
mature male and female heartworms<br />
that have produced babies.<br />
Step 3: The heartworm babies must be<br />
at the L1 stage of development when<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
the mosquito bites the dog and withdraws<br />
blood.<br />
Step 4: Ten to fourteen days later — if<br />
the temperature is right –the microfilariae<br />
mature inside the mosquito to<br />
the infective L3 stage then migrate to<br />
the mosquito’s mouth. (Yum!)<br />
Step 5: Madame mosquito transmits<br />
the L3’s to your dog’s skin with a bite.<br />
Then, if all conditions are right, the L3’s<br />
develop in the skin for three to four<br />
months (to the L5 stage) before making<br />
their way into your dog’s blood. But<br />
your dog still isn’t doomed.<br />
Step 6: Only if the dog’s immune system<br />
doesn’t rid the dog of these worms<br />
do the heartworms develop to adulthood.<br />
Step 7: It takes approximately six<br />
months for the surviving larvae to<br />
achieve maturity. At this point, the<br />
adult heartworms may produce babies<br />
if there are both males and females, but<br />
the kiddies will die unless a mosquito<br />
carrying L3’s intervenes. Otherwise,<br />
the adults will live several years then<br />
die.<br />
In summation, a particular species of<br />
mosquito must bite a dog infected with<br />
circulating L1 heartworm babies, must<br />
carry the babies to stage L3 and then<br />
must bite your dog . The adult worms<br />
and babies will eventually die off in the<br />
dog unless your dog is bitten<br />
again! Oh, and one more thing: heartworms<br />
Development Requires Sustained<br />
Day & Night Weather Above<br />
57˚F<br />
In Step 4 above I wrote that heartworm<br />
larvae develop “if the temperature is<br />
right.”<br />
The University of Pennsylvania vet<br />
school (in a study funded by Merial)<br />
found: “Development in the mosquito<br />
is temperature dependent, requiring<br />
approximately two weeks of temperature<br />
at or above 27C (80F). Below a<br />
threshold temperature of 14C (57F),<br />
development cannot occur, and the<br />
cycle will be halted. As a result, transmission<br />
is limited to warm months, and<br />
duration of the transmission season<br />
varies geographically.”<br />
Knight and Lok agree: “In regions<br />
where average daily temperatures remain<br />
at or below about 62˚F (17˚ C)<br />
from late fall to early spring, insufficient<br />
heat accumulates to allow maturation<br />
of infective larvae in the intermediate<br />
host [the mosquito], precluding<br />
transmission of the parasite.”<br />
The Washington State University vet<br />
school reports that laboratory studies<br />
show that maturation of the<br />
worms requires “the equivalent of a<br />
steady 24-hour daily temperature in<br />
excess of 64°F (18°C) for approximately<br />
one month.” In other words, it<br />
has to be warm day AND night or development<br />
is retarded even if the average<br />
temperature is sufficiently warm.<br />
They add, that at 80° F, “10 to 14 days<br />
are required for development of microfilariae<br />
to the infective stage.”<br />
Jerold Theis, DVM, PhD, says, “If the<br />
mean monthly temperature is only a<br />
few degrees above 14 degrees centigrade<br />
[57 degrees F] it can take so<br />
many days for infective larvae to develop<br />
that the likelihood of the female<br />
mosquito living that long is remote.”<br />
I have never found this temperaturedependent<br />
information on a website<br />
promoting “preventatives,” but only in<br />
more scholarly works not easily accessed<br />
by the public. There is, as far as<br />
I can find, only one mention of temperature<br />
on the Heartworm and<br />
none in the Merck/Merial Veterinary<br />
Manual site or Merial’s heartworm<br />
video — even though Merial<br />
funded the UPenn study.<br />
The Society also reports, “Factors affecting<br />
the level of risk of heartworm<br />
infection include the climate<br />
(temperature, humidity), the species of<br />
mosquitoes in the area, presence of<br />
mosquito breeding areas and presence<br />
of animal reservoirs (such as infected<br />
dogs or coyotes).”<br />
OPTIONS TO FEAR BASED RECOM-<br />
MENDATIONS<br />
A Heartworm Society news release<br />
states: “By giving heartworm prevention<br />
every month, forgetful pet owners<br />
will have their pets protected when<br />
they need it most.” But doesn’t that<br />
also mean they get it when they need it<br />
least? Or need it not at all? Are you a<br />
“forgetful” owner?<br />
In this part of my heartworm series,<br />
we’ll discusses informed decisionmaking,<br />
and suggests ways, if you want<br />
them, to limit or eliminate heartworm<br />
drugs. I am a researcher and holistic<br />
health advocate, not a vet. Please learn<br />
the facts then discuss with your vet the<br />
appropriate course given your dog’s<br />
location, lifestyle, travel schedule,<br />
health, climate and the time of<br />
year. Expect an open-mind and respect<br />
from your vet, or find another vet. Just<br />
as with vaccination, “one size fits all” is<br />
outdated, profit-driven, lazy medicine.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 41
Take a look at the map above, courtesy<br />
of the Heartworm Society. As expected,<br />
dark areas of the map, which<br />
show the most heartworm cases per<br />
clinic, are found in the hot, humid<br />
Southeastern US, especially the Atlantic<br />
and Gulf coasts and Mississippi Delta.<br />
Don’t let the map scare you. If published<br />
seasonally, map colors would<br />
pale significantly during cool months.<br />
Also remember that you’re seeing generalities,<br />
not specifics. A clinic near a<br />
rural pond will likely have many cases<br />
while an urban clinic 15 miles<br />
away may have a much lower incidence.<br />
Maps are general. Determine<br />
your own microclimate. Ask your vet<br />
how many cases of heartworm infection<br />
he/she treated in the past<br />
year. Also ask if he/she treats all positive<br />
cases, or just those with advanced<br />
infestation. If the vet doesn’t keep detailed<br />
records, that should tell you<br />
something.<br />
Conservative start/stop maps from<br />
heartworm researchers Drs. David<br />
Knight and James Lok (in “Seasonality<br />
of Heartworm Infections and Implications<br />
for Chemoprophylaxis”) show<br />
only two areas requiring year round<br />
heartworm meds: the southernmost<br />
areas of Florida and Texas. Houston,<br />
New Orleans and similar areas are<br />
shown requiring meds for 9<br />
months. Other states range from 3-7<br />
months. The Drs. wrote: “For nearly<br />
80% of the states, the potential for<br />
heartworm transmission is limited to 6<br />
months or less.”<br />
The Heartworm Society warns that<br />
heartworm infections are getting<br />
worse. DVM <strong>Magazine</strong>, a magazine for<br />
vets, reports that recent results do<br />
show a rise in the number of positive<br />
cases per clinic in 31 states.<br />
DMV reports: “The reasons likely are<br />
multifactorial, including increased<br />
heartworm testing, increased client<br />
base per clinic or even climate trends.”<br />
Does Year Round Medicating Bring<br />
Extra Protection?<br />
Applying sunscreen at night is useless.<br />
So is taking heartworm medication<br />
when climate conditions prevent<br />
transmission. Only a small percentage<br />
of climates permit year-round transmission.<br />
Everyone else is unnecessarily<br />
subsidizing drug companies and<br />
“preventatives” sellers and, more im-<br />
portantly, exposing their dog to unnecessary<br />
risks.<br />
Two exceptions: 1) “Forgetful” and irresponsible<br />
pet parents who won’t begin<br />
the medication on time or build<br />
their dog’s natural immunity might<br />
want to medicate year round, although<br />
that means they have to remember to<br />
give meds every month. 2) If your dog<br />
contracts heartworms within a few<br />
years of beginning medication … and<br />
you can show you gave meds year<br />
round … and your dog had the required<br />
blood tests (2 or 3), you may benefit a<br />
little financially because drug companies<br />
will pay for dog’s treatment.<br />
Are Heartworm Preventatives Safe?<br />
You’ve seen those scary photos of<br />
worm-strangled hearts,<br />
right? Shouldn’t you give meds year<br />
round just in case? Isn’t safe better<br />
than sorry?<br />
But is that harmless little pill or yummie<br />
medical “brownie” really safe? No<br />
drug is completely free of risk and adverse<br />
reactions. I can find no long-term<br />
studies regarding cancer risks and or-<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
gan damage for dogs receiving heartworm<br />
insecticides year round (or even<br />
for a few months). Such a study would<br />
be difficult to conduct and very expensive.<br />
Who would fund such a study – or<br />
publish any negative findings?<br />
One clue to the possibility of adverse<br />
reactions should be label warnings: call<br />
your doctor immediately if ingested; keep<br />
away from children; wash your hands<br />
immediately after use…. How<br />
can medication be good for dogs but so<br />
dangerous for you?<br />
Another question: is your dog healthy<br />
enough for these medications? The<br />
“Heartworm Prevention” page of the<br />
American Animal Hospital Association<br />
states: “Healthy kidneys and normal<br />
liver functions are essential in metabolizing<br />
most medications.” Many dogs,<br />
including my Jiggy, do not have healthy<br />
organ function. I wonder how<br />
many unhealthy animals are nevertheless<br />
on meds?<br />
A touching and informative account of the<br />
benefits and obstacles to creating safe and<br />
social environments for off-leash dogs. By<br />
Julie Walsh.<br />
Release date: January 2011<br />
Adverse Reactions to Heartworm<br />
Medications<br />
With any drug, study FDA and manufacturer<br />
information before medicating.<br />
These adverse reactions have been reported<br />
to the FDA by manufacturers.<br />
(Click the links for more information;<br />
write or call manufacturers with<br />
any questions). Terms you might not<br />
understand include ataxia (gross lack of<br />
coordination of muscle movements),<br />
pruritus (itchy dermatologic condition),<br />
urticaria (hives), mydriasis (excessive<br />
pupil dilation), and erythema (skin redness).<br />
Other terms should be selfexplanatory.<br />
HEARTGARD and TriHeartPlus<br />
(ivermectin): Depression/lethargy,<br />
vomiting, anorexia, diarrhea, mydriasis,<br />
ataxia staggering, convulsions and hypersalivation.<br />
INTERCEPTOR<br />
(milbemycin oxime) reports the above<br />
reactions plus weakness. Sentinel<br />
(milbemycin oxime) reports vomiting,<br />
depression/lethargy, pruritus, urticaria,<br />
diarrhea, anorexia, skin congestion,<br />
ataxia, convulsions, hypersalivation and<br />
weakness.<br />
REVOLUTION® (selamectin), Topical<br />
Parasiticide For <strong>Dogs</strong> and Cats: preapproval<br />
reactions of vomiting, loose<br />
stool or diarrhea with or without blood,<br />
anorexia, lethargy, salivation, tachypnea,<br />
and muscle tremors. Post-approval<br />
experience included the above plus pruritis,<br />
urticaria, erythema, ataxia, fever,<br />
and rare reports of death and seizures<br />
in dogs.<br />
Proheart 6 : severe allergic reactions<br />
(anaphylaxis): facial swelling, itching,<br />
difficulty breathing, collapse; lethargy<br />
(sluggishness); not eating or losing interest<br />
in food; any change in activity<br />
level; seizures; vomiting and/or diarrhea<br />
(with and without blood); weight<br />
loss; pale gums, increased thirst or urination,<br />
weakness, bleeding, bruising;<br />
rare instances of death. This product<br />
was voluntarily withdrawn from the<br />
market in 2004 because of deaths but<br />
has been reintroduced.<br />
For any other brand, research the prod-<br />
uct or its active ingredient before even<br />
thinking of administering it.<br />
Also, never give any meds without first<br />
learning if any vitamins, minerals,<br />
herbal products or drugs interact negatively<br />
with the medication. Note age<br />
restrictions. Most importantly, learn<br />
what symptoms alert you to a reaction.<br />
Important note: Collies, Australian<br />
Shepherds and related breeds have a<br />
sensitivity to Ivermectin (Heartgard and<br />
others).<br />
Beware any website or person professing<br />
the absolute safety of any medication.<br />
I’d like adverse reactions for pet<br />
medications to be included in all TV ads,<br />
as they are for meds for humans — but I<br />
don’t expect it.<br />
Reporting Adverse Events: Call your<br />
veterinarian immediately if you suspect<br />
a reaction to this or any other drug.<br />
Discuss alternatives and treatment and<br />
make sure the reaction is recorded in<br />
your dog’s file. The AVMA says : “… notify<br />
the US Food and Drug Administration<br />
(FDA) by contacting the manufacturer.<br />
The FDA requires that manufacturers<br />
of FDA-approved drugs forward<br />
adverse event reports to the agency.”<br />
Is the fox is guarding the hen house?<br />
Ask your vet to report the reaction,<br />
then follow up and make sure your vet<br />
did it. Under-reporting is common. (An<br />
estimated 99% of adverse reactions go<br />
unreported according to the FDA.)<br />
Tests for Heartworm Infection<br />
Heartworms can, and should, be detected<br />
by a simple blood test before administering<br />
medication. The antigen<br />
test detects an adult female worms at<br />
least 5-8 months old. The Merck Veterinary<br />
Manual says: “The antigen detection<br />
test is the preferred diagnostic<br />
method for asymptomatic dogs or when<br />
seeking verification of a suspected HW<br />
infection.”<br />
Microfilariae (babies) in the blood are<br />
detected by a different blood test.<br />
These show exposure, but do not detect<br />
female adults (potential breeders).<br />
Antibody tests (as opposed to anti-<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 43
Specializing in<br />
Homeopathy<br />
Herbs<br />
Nutrition<br />
Clicker training<br />
Behaviour problems<br />
gen tests) are not preferred because they<br />
indicate only that the dog has been exposed<br />
to heartworms at some time in his<br />
or her life, even if the worms subsequently<br />
died.<br />
If you plan to give “preventatives,” test<br />
before beginning medication, preferably<br />
within a month of when daily temperatures<br />
consistently climb above 57˚ F.<br />
If you’re not going to use meds, homeopathic<br />
veterinarian Jeff Feinman wrote<br />
me that he advises semi-annual testing<br />
when not using preventatives. My own<br />
vet, Tamara Hebbler, agrees. Testing<br />
twice yearly helps you catch disease<br />
early when it’s easier to treat. Dr. Martin<br />
Goldstein in The Nature Of Animal Healing<br />
says: “Only a small percentage of<br />
dogs who get heartworm die of it, especially<br />
if they’re routinely tested twice<br />
yearly for early detection. Even in untreated<br />
dogs, after a period of uncomfortable<br />
symptoms, the adult worms<br />
die….”<br />
Did you know that the latest canine<br />
movie star “Benji” was found in a shelter,<br />
infected with heartworms? Benji was<br />
treated successfully and went onto canine<br />
fame and a healthy life.<br />
Starting this fall<br />
Group class<br />
Online learning<br />
Seminars<br />
Conferences<br />
Consultations available by phone or in person.<br />
We do not use aversive methods.<br />
www.controversialcanine.com<br />
Heartworms, like other parasites, don’t<br />
become life threatening quickly or inevitably.<br />
It takes at least 5 months, and<br />
more often 7-8 months, for a baby to<br />
grow to a reproducing adult — presuming<br />
the dog’s immune system doesn’t<br />
intervene. Also, adult males and females<br />
must both survive to breed.<br />
Important Note: If your dog’s antigen<br />
test comes back positive, holistic<br />
vet Tamara Hebbler suggests that before<br />
you rush into treatment with harsh, poisonous<br />
drugs, you should get a cardiac<br />
ultrasound to determine the extent of<br />
the infestation. Heartworms, like other<br />
parasites, often live with their hosts<br />
without ever causing a dangerous problem.<br />
It’s quite common for animals in<br />
the wild to live entire lives with heartworms.<br />
(If worms always killed dogs,<br />
they’d soon run out of hosts.) Unless<br />
heartworms are re-introduced by another<br />
infected mosquito, the adults and<br />
their babies will eventually die off.<br />
When Should You Start Administering<br />
Meds — If You’re Going To?<br />
Remember, you kill heartworm babies<br />
after the fact. You can only “prevent”<br />
them by avoiding mosquitoes. (You can<br />
also kill them with a healthy immune<br />
system.) This means starting meds 30-<br />
45 after the weather warms and mosquitoes<br />
appear. Also, Washington State University<br />
warns, “If your pet travels to<br />
heartworm areas, prevention needs to<br />
be administered within 30 days of exposure<br />
to infected mosquitoes. Adult dogs<br />
(older than 6 mos.) need to be tested<br />
before starting preventative.”<br />
Dr. Margo Roman, an integrative vet<br />
from in Massachusetts, documentary<br />
film maker and Founder of the firstever<br />
Integrative Health Pet Expo, tells<br />
me she begins medication six weeks after<br />
sees mosquitoes. This allows 2 weeks<br />
for the microfilariae (baby heartworms)<br />
to mature inside a mosquito to the infective<br />
stage and be transferred to a dog,<br />
plus 30 days additional days covered by<br />
the medication working backwards to<br />
kill those babies.<br />
When Should You Stop Heartworm<br />
“Preventatives”?<br />
Dr. Roman recommends stopping meds<br />
after the first frost for people living in an<br />
area with cold winters. In other areas,<br />
vets recommend stopping 30-45 days<br />
after weather is consistently below 57<br />
F degrees and you see no mosquitoes.<br />
See Part 1 of this article, and the start/<br />
stop maps, for more details.<br />
What Brand Should You Use?<br />
Consumers often think that “preventing”<br />
as many parasites as possible with<br />
one product is a bargain — and ultimately<br />
safer for the dog. But why expose<br />
your dog to additional, unnecessary<br />
toxins? Most holistic vets will tell<br />
you to protect against only those pests<br />
(and diseases) your dog is likely to encounter.<br />
.<br />
More than a decade ago — on June 4,<br />
1998 — the FDA approved a 1/5 dose<br />
version of Interceptor heartworm medication,<br />
a product called Safeheart. This<br />
expensive field trial was conducted and<br />
the dosage approved — but inexplicably<br />
the product was never marketed in the<br />
U.S.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
To duplicate the Safeheart heartworm<br />
“prevention” method — which you<br />
can’t buy — you have split the Interceptor<br />
dose into quarters. Check with Interceptor<br />
first, and ask your pharmacist<br />
or vet how to do this accurately. The<br />
recommended once-a-month dosage<br />
is 0.1 mg of milbemycin oxime per kg of<br />
body weight (0.05 mg/lb).<br />
(Interceptor’s regular dose of dosage is<br />
0.5 mg milbemycin oxime per kg of<br />
body weight.) Print the FDA’s Safeheart<br />
report and take it to your vet for your<br />
prescription and additional instructions.<br />
Note: At this dose, only heartworms will<br />
be treated with the Safeheart method,<br />
not other worms or fleas.<br />
How Often Should You Give Meds?<br />
In his important book Homeopathic<br />
Care For Cats and <strong>Dogs</strong>, veterinarian<br />
Don Hamilton says of heartworm: “In<br />
dogs the “monthly” preventives are effective<br />
if given at six week intervals,<br />
and possibly even at seven- or eight<br />
week intervals….” Author/<br />
veterinarians Richard Pitcairn and Allen<br />
Schoen told us essentially the same<br />
thing when we were researching our<br />
book Scared Poopless. If you opt for<br />
this “less is more” treatment with<br />
“preventatives,” mark dosing dates on<br />
your calendar and don’t miss them.<br />
The vets at Holistic Vet Center say: “…<br />
monthly heartworm preventatives are<br />
actually 100% effective if given every<br />
45 days and 99% effective if given<br />
every 60 days.”<br />
I presume that the monthly schedule<br />
was designed for the ease of remembering<br />
when to give meds. However<br />
… giving meds monthly rather than<br />
every 45 days requires more doses –<br />
and offers more opportunities for adverse<br />
reactions. For someone medicating<br />
year-round, that’s 4 fewer doses per<br />
year.<br />
Are There Natural Heartworm Preventatives?<br />
Mosquito control is the ultimate natural<br />
preventative. No mosquitoes, no heart-<br />
worms. Control mosquitoes by eliminating<br />
standing water and staying indoors<br />
at dusk and dawn. Use bug spray<br />
(marked safe and non-toxic for animals<br />
and children). Buy bug zappers. (All<br />
these are good ideas for human protection<br />
from mosquito-borne diseases as<br />
well.)<br />
Is mosquito control 100% effective? No,<br />
but Mosquito.org has some great tips.<br />
(Note: one study showed that a full<br />
moon increased mosquito activity by<br />
500%.) Find more information on controlling<br />
mosquitoes in this University of<br />
California report.<br />
What do I do? Well, for me, the choice<br />
was easy. I live in So. California. I rarely<br />
see mosquitoes. My dogs spend most of<br />
their time indoors. Nights are invariably<br />
cool.<br />
With the advice of two local vets, I decided<br />
to protect my own dogs (both of<br />
whom have health challenges) against<br />
the toxicity of heartworm<br />
“preventatives” rather than protect<br />
against an unlikely infection. I use nontoxic<br />
alternatives like mosquito control,<br />
an excellent diet and no drugs unless<br />
they’re absolutely unavoidable. I increase<br />
safety by testing blood<br />
twice yearly. I haven’t used<br />
“preventatives” for five or six years and<br />
my dogs remain heartworm free. This is<br />
my personal decision. I am not a vet.<br />
If I lived in a mosquito-heavy<br />
area, however, I might do much the<br />
same. I would determine local risks and<br />
would consult a local holistic vet to get<br />
help preventing heartworms naturally.<br />
I would control mosquitoes and<br />
test blood twice or more yearly. Someone<br />
who had “outside dogs,” and who<br />
was the nervous about heartworms,<br />
might also use heartworm meds or the<br />
Safeheart method during the peak<br />
heartworm months of <strong>July</strong> and <strong>August</strong>,<br />
but only if their dogs had healthy kidneys<br />
and livers. They should make any<br />
decision with a knowledgeable vet.<br />
Dr. Will Falconer, a holistic vet certified<br />
in acupuncture and homeopathy, has<br />
written an e-book called “Drug-Free<br />
Heartworm Prevention Program.” This<br />
9-page, well-written e-book (currently<br />
$9.95) is delivered electronically. I do<br />
not profit from sales of this book. Drs.<br />
Richard Pitcairn and Martin Goldstein<br />
have also written about this in their<br />
books.<br />
Please leave us a comment and let us<br />
know how you liked this article. Tell us<br />
about your concerns and decisions. If<br />
we have made any errors, please let us<br />
know so we can rectify them. And,<br />
please, tell your friends the facts behind<br />
heartworm transmission.<br />
Most importantly, do not make decisions<br />
out of fear. Don’t let anyone, even<br />
your vet, intimidate or ridicule you. Be<br />
an educated consumer and a rabid advocate<br />
for your dog’s health.<br />
Disclaimer: The information provided<br />
here is for educational purposes only. Do<br />
not rely on this information without doing<br />
your own research including consultation<br />
with your own veterinarian. Do<br />
not buy or fail a product for treating<br />
heartworm without evaluating it carefully.<br />
Jan Rasmusen is a former computer<br />
industry executive and a life long dog<br />
lover and equestrian. She has written<br />
four books, two of which are hidden<br />
in her closet. She shares her life<br />
with 2 gorgeous Maltese dogs. One of<br />
which wrote the book "Scared<br />
Poopless: The Straight Scoop on dog<br />
Care". Jan has a very informative<br />
blog that host all kinds of information<br />
on the dangers of vaccines and<br />
medications. www.dogs4dogs.com<br />
and www.truth4dogs.com She can e<br />
reached at dogs4dogs@aol.com<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 45
y: Lynne Parker<br />
Monetary interests are working to stack the deck against raw feeding<br />
and they are building quite a pile. One glaring example of this is the<br />
recent proclamation by the Delta Society, a non-profit organization<br />
in Bellevue, Washington. According to their website,<br />
“We help people throughout the world become healthier and happier<br />
by incorporating therapy, service and companion animals into<br />
their lives.” Therapy dogs are welcome—unless those animals are<br />
raw fed.<br />
Delta’s board of directors recently voted to preclude animals eating<br />
raw protein foods from participating in their Pet Partners program.<br />
They claim that scientific evidence backs up their concerns over raw<br />
fed pets shedding significant amounts of pathogenic bacteria. According<br />
to the board members, “The use of raw animal proteins to<br />
promote animal health has not been based on proven or known<br />
scientific facts, only anecdotal incidents.” Dr. Tom Lonsdale would<br />
be surprised to hear this. Dr. Tom Lonsdale’s book Raw Meaty Bones:<br />
Promote Health—first published in 2001—includes a 20 page bibliography<br />
citing studies that back up his assertion that raw feeding promotes<br />
health.<br />
Questioning the validity of health claims from raw feeding is merely<br />
a side issue. The main show is the increasing response to raw feeding<br />
by those who are heavily invested in maintaining the status quo.<br />
The Delta Society’s website carries this entry:<br />
What was the role of pet food manufacturers in the adoption of the Raw<br />
Protein Diet Policy?<br />
No pet food manufacturer representatives contacted, encouraged, lobbied, or<br />
influenced the Delta Society Medical Advisory Group in recommending to<br />
the board that they approve a Raw Protein Diet Policy.<br />
They didn’t have to—they have a pet food representative on their<br />
board of directors! Delta Society Secretary Brenda Bax is the Marketing<br />
Director for Purina. On Delta Society’s home page is the<br />
note “Thank you to our incredible partner, the passionate pet lovers<br />
at Purina” atop the Purina logo. It would certainly not be in the<br />
Purina corporation’s interests to support raw feeding, would it?<br />
Bax is not the only board member with a conflict of interest pertaining<br />
to this issue. Board member Rebecca Johnson is the Director<br />
of the Research Center for Human Animal Interaction at the<br />
Missouri University College of Veterinary Medicine. The center’s<br />
last conference was sponsored by Mars, Purina, Hill’s, and Bayer<br />
Healthcare.<br />
Board member Laird Goodman is the owner and Director of the<br />
Murrayhill Veterinary Hospital. Goodman is a guest speaker/<br />
educator for the Pfizer corporation. He has served on the Veterinary<br />
Advisory Board for The Heska Corporation since 2001. The<br />
Heska Corporation is heavily invested in products such as vaccines<br />
and heartworm preventatives. Goodman has also served since 2003<br />
on the Veterinary Advisory Board for The Intervet Corporation.<br />
The Intervet Corporation: Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health<br />
is a global, research-driven company that develops, manufactures<br />
and markets a broad range of veterinary medicines and services.<br />
Raw feeding threatens not only the pet food manufacturers but also<br />
the pharmaceutical industry as well. Healthy dogs require far fewer<br />
“medicines” for the illnesses caused by kibble fed diets. Those pet<br />
owners who choose to raw feed frequently eschew pest control<br />
chemicals as well. Conventionally trained vets continue to push the<br />
kibble and chemicals, however, despite mounting evidence that<br />
both are harmful to pets.<br />
In their book Whole Health for Happy <strong>Dogs</strong>: A Natural Health Handbook<br />
for <strong>Dogs</strong> and Their Owners, authors Jill Elliot and Kim Bloomer<br />
write, “While a raw diet has long been a common practice in<br />
Europe and other countries, it is still not readily accepted in the<br />
United States. European veterinarians commonly recommend a raw<br />
diet for dogs, while American veterinarians commonly recommend<br />
feeding kibble. The fear of feeding raw meat in the United States is<br />
usually due to concern over salmonella, e. coli, and parasites. As we<br />
stated earlier, dogs are bacteria machines, and their digestive systems<br />
are designed to handle raw meat. They are much more likely to<br />
get parasites or bacteria from sources such as another dog’s feces or<br />
dirt rather than the human-grade meat you’ll provide for them.”<br />
One motivation for the Delta Society’s decision may be based on<br />
fear. On their Raw Protein Diet Policy page they include this sentence:<br />
“Also, your veterinarian is not assuming legal responsibility<br />
for you and your pet, Delta Society is.” Board member Chuck<br />
Granoski is an attorney and owner of The Law Offices of Betzendorfer<br />
& Granoski. One of the areas of practice listed on their website<br />
is Animal Injuries. The fear of a lawsuit is probably uppermost<br />
in his mind.<br />
One can only speculate on the pressures that donors may place on<br />
the board as well but it is hard to know for certain. According to the<br />
Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org) Delta Society has a<br />
written donor privacy policy.<br />
The Delta Society is not responding directly to questions about their<br />
decision. I sent an email to them on June 2, asking, “What studies<br />
back up your claim that raw fed dogs are any more dangerous than<br />
kibble fed dogs?” and received the following form letter email:<br />
“Thank you for your question, comment or concern regarding the<br />
Raw Protein diet policy, all will be reviewed and addressed through<br />
global FAQ and the Delta Society's website.—Medical Advisory<br />
Group” Their initial statement of policy was apparently not researched<br />
enough to answer a simple question.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Recent developments raise some disturbing questions about the<br />
true motivations behind the decision. In a June 4 th post for Truth-<br />
AboutPetFood.com, Susan Thixton exposes the patent application<br />
by Brenda Bax, the Delta board member and Purina representative.<br />
The goal of the patent is to control marketing of products<br />
through animal welfare organizations. Thixton writes in her<br />
post:<br />
“I am confused and concerned. Why would Purina Pet Food<br />
want to patent a marketing method associated with an Animal<br />
Welfare Organization? Is this patent application a concern to<br />
all Animal Welfare Organizations that do not currently work<br />
with Purina Pet Food? Does this patent provide Purina Pet<br />
Food control over all other corporations working with/<br />
donating to an Animal Welfare Organization?<br />
Is/was Delta Society their first test market and the "wherein the<br />
animal welfare organization must meet a specified requirement to be a part<br />
of the marketing program" was the ban of pets fed a raw diet?”<br />
The full patent application can be read at http://www.faqs.org/<br />
patents/app/20090254418<br />
The implications are frightening to consider and do not bode well<br />
for animals or the people who love them. How will the animals<br />
truly be served if the welfare and rescue groups are turned into<br />
marketing tools for the pet food industry?<br />
Pet owners who have been raw feeding for decades are, as one<br />
put it, “just plain tired of this debate”. Unfortunately, the battle<br />
between pet food corporations and enlightened pet owners is<br />
only in the beginning phase. Decisions made by animal welfare<br />
and rescue groups will continue to be impacted by pressure and<br />
donations from these corporations. All we can do is continue to<br />
care for our pets in the healthiest, most natural way possible. Our<br />
pets’ health will speak volumes.<br />
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you,<br />
then you win.”—Mahatma Gandhi<br />
Lynne Parker has worked as the advertising and design<br />
manager for a University press for 10 years. What free time<br />
she has is devoted to her dogs and learning more natural,<br />
healthy ways to care for them.<br />
DAWGS - Through the Eyes of Our <strong>Dogs</strong>, is the first volume in a series of books dedicated to the wonder of dogs. We can never be sure of<br />
what they're thinking or feeling, but if we look more closely into their eyes we can begin to get a glimpse.<br />
DAWGS - Unconditional Love, photographically portrays the special kinship between people and dogs. This is the second volume in the<br />
DAWGS series. The photographs in this volume illustrate the strong bond that exists between pet lovers and their companions and can<br />
only begin to tell the story of this unique partnership. The reader who understands will have a special awareness of this symbiotic relationship.<br />
A beautiful pictorial portrayal of dogs and the people who love them from acclaimed photographer Vic Neumann.<br />
Available now for a special early bird price at www.blurb.com. Offer expires September <strong>2010</strong>.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 47
DN: How did you discover that pets were targeted by<br />
the Pharmaceutical companies?<br />
John Virapen: Although I was primarily involved in this for<br />
children, I had met a homeopath who owned two Yorkshire<br />
Terriers. As I observed her relationship with her dogs, I<br />
understood that people could become as close knit to their<br />
dogs as to their children. The common thread is life; and<br />
Pharma, with the help of the government, is destroying it.<br />
DN: How has pet insurance changed veterinary care?<br />
John Virapen: Expensive new diagnostic and surgical gadgets<br />
are primarily designed to screw the insurance companies.<br />
Vets and doctors are both very well paid to use these<br />
fancy tools and the pet owners pay the price in higher<br />
fees. There are numerous opportunities for Pharma to<br />
corrupt the marketing of animal medicine because nobody<br />
really checks them. These people make a lot of money because<br />
nobody questions them and the animals get the short<br />
end of the stick. Vets can do whatever they want without<br />
fear of malpractice suits because dogs are property and their<br />
value is insufficient to be much of a threat. Last year they<br />
released a new anti-depressant for dogs and this is just<br />
crookery. The pharmaceutical companies have a strong<br />
hold on the veterinary business and they are incapable of<br />
being honest. In the end, the individual vets and their associations<br />
must be the ones to stop the madness.<br />
DN: Why are dogs targeted so heavily?<br />
John Virapen: With all of the debates going on regarding<br />
vaccination primarily, the animals get short changed because<br />
government makes people believe it is for granted<br />
that if we, as humans, get vaccinations then animals should<br />
as well. They depict dogs and cats as nasty carriers of<br />
bugs. This is why in North America, dogs aren’t allowed in<br />
markets, stores or restaurants. It is discrimination<br />
really. The bottom line is money and the Pharmaceutical<br />
companies are fleecing people of their money. Pet owners<br />
must purchase licenses which should give them rights but<br />
does the opposite because we all no that dogs have no<br />
Interview with Dr. John Virapen<br />
Pharmaceutical insider Dr. John Virapen has worked more than 35 years in the pharmaceutical<br />
industry. In Sweden he was general manager of Eli Lilly & Company and was<br />
involved in the market launch of several drugs, all with massive side effects.<br />
John Virapen published his first book under the pseudonym “John Rengen in<br />
2006. “Rubio Talks – A Story From A Pharma-Insider” is about his activity as a manager<br />
in the pharmaceutical industry. In 2008 his new book “Side Effects: Death” was published<br />
and is currently a best-seller in Europe.<br />
John Virapen is now dedicated to expose and create awareness on how the pharmaceutical<br />
industry is operating with their own best interest as their primary goal.<br />
John’s website is http://www.john-virapen.com<br />
rights. Pretty soon we will need to get permission to deal<br />
with our kids too. In Leipzig, there is a push for mandatory<br />
psychiatric evaluation of infants and soon, mothers will lose<br />
control of their children.<br />
DN: Why are animal vaccinations more problematic<br />
than human vaccinations?<br />
John Virapen: The pharmaceutical companies use vaccinations<br />
and drugs they can’t dispense for humans on<br />
dogs. This includes expired lots as well as products not<br />
approved for human use. They then use fear mongering to<br />
market it.<br />
I recruited the General Manager of animal product in Scandinavia<br />
and we had frequent conversations. He warned me<br />
of the many issues with the animal products. For example,<br />
while the company was still trying to get approval for Human<br />
Growth Hormone for animals, they were already injecting<br />
it into pigs and cows. They didn’t care that the<br />
HGH was contaminated: they were mostly waste from the<br />
human market although humans would be consuming these<br />
animals in the end.<br />
DN: How are these products marketed?<br />
John Virapen: The media now works so closely with<br />
Pharma that it is called seeding. For example the press<br />
might claim that women with big bums are protected from<br />
diabetes. Soon thereafter, the media will feature a doctor<br />
talking about these findings then a few months later the<br />
press will announce “we are close to a breakthrough for<br />
diabetes”. This build up is meticulously designed to scare<br />
people because Pharma knows that people still run to their<br />
doctor when the government or media reports any new<br />
virus or disease.<br />
Marketing strategies are planned years ahead. If a new<br />
product is on the way, the Pharmaceutical companies will<br />
do the market research first and based on that, lay down<br />
strategies in terms of time and method. This is normally<br />
done with a five year projection before launch. Their ploys<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
include personal letters to vets and doctors with large practices,<br />
targeting specific sections of medicine (dogs, cats),<br />
gathering information on how many animals can be target,<br />
who owns them (and they get information from licenses so<br />
the government is in on it). It is a well kept secret that government<br />
gets their piece of the cake too. When this information<br />
is all in place, the pharmaceutical companies then<br />
need contacts so they go to the professional associations<br />
such as the AVMA and pick out a guy who is willing to accept<br />
bribes and goodies in return for solicitation. They also<br />
look to government. When politicians wear out, they are<br />
not put to pasture, they are picked up by Pharma. They<br />
work as consultants so that Pharma has a government connection<br />
and they are impossible to convict because they are<br />
all glued together.<br />
The WHO is also entwined into one group controlled by<br />
Pharma as they work together to create pandemics and then<br />
go to industrial sections such as food companies and tell<br />
them what to do and what to sell.<br />
Marketing is the single highest cost for pharmaceutical<br />
companies, not research<br />
DN: What can people do about it?<br />
John Virapen: My aim is to get people to understand that<br />
Eggs, Eggs, Wonderful Eggs<br />
Fresh eggs provide important brain, eye and body<br />
nutrients in natural, unprocessed forms. They<br />
should be a part of every dog's diet, especially pregnant<br />
bitches. There are four parts to an egg. Only 3<br />
are necessary. Whites, yolks and the membranes on<br />
the inside of the shell but not the shell itself. Egg<br />
whites are an excellent source of protein and provide<br />
riboflavin, magnesium, potassium, selenium and<br />
Zinc. The yolk contains essential fats including:<br />
conjugated linoleic acid, phospholipids, choline, lutein,<br />
Vitamin D and (along with Sardines) a full<br />
range of natural Vitamin E compounds, including<br />
they need to take their own lives into account. I have been<br />
mislabelled as a conspiracy theorist but they will learn they<br />
are messing with the wrong guy because everything I say I<br />
have evidence for and the documents are safely in a vault.<br />
Vets want to be accepted as doctors and they like the title<br />
and power. The title doesn’t make you God or an expert, it<br />
only depicts a level of education. Unfortunately, vets and<br />
doctors are behaving like Pharma trains them to behave.<br />
Unless you are hospitalized you are not a patient. When<br />
you visit a Doctor or a Veterinarian you are a consumer and<br />
you pay for the medicine and you must remember they are<br />
not demi-gods.<br />
If a car’s brakes don’t work every time, if the windshield<br />
falls out when it is driven over 40 kph, or if it’s exhaust<br />
fumes are channelled into the inside of the car, it wouldn’t<br />
make it onto the market. Medicines with equally dangerous<br />
side effects do. Why are consumers better protected against<br />
defective cars than against what happens to their bodies, to<br />
their health or to their lives?<br />
Of course, not the entire pharmaceutical industry is bad. I<br />
can’t judge them all since I don’t know all of the companies.<br />
But the search for an ethically pure company can be<br />
equated with searching for a needle in a haystack.<br />
the cancer fighting gamma tocopheral and the tocotrienols.<br />
Egg membranes contain nutrients that<br />
can help relieve joint pain. While eggshells provide a<br />
source of calcium when properly prepared ( washed<br />
and finely ground), we do not need to use the shells<br />
with the ABC day plans. See what Steve's ABC plan<br />
is in his book Unlocking the canine ancestral diet<br />
available through Dogwise.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 49
Bordatella or Kennel Cough is commonly<br />
required by boarding kennels<br />
and veterinary hospitals. These vaccinations<br />
are delivered to a staggeringly<br />
large percentage of dogs and the reason<br />
is not to protect your dog: the reason<br />
is to protect these facilities against<br />
liability.<br />
The proprietors who push for these<br />
vaccines may be assuming more liability<br />
than they can handle and the stakes<br />
are very high. The truth is, the vaccines<br />
are not only ineffective but they<br />
are far from safe. Yet they are routinely<br />
given to combat a self limiting<br />
disease that amounts to as much danger<br />
to your dog as the common<br />
cold does to you.<br />
What is interesting is that when you<br />
bring your dog to the vet for his Bordatella<br />
vaccination, he will have al-<br />
by Dr. Patricia Jordan DVM<br />
ready been exposed to the natural<br />
flora: all animals are exposed to both<br />
Bordatella and Parainfluenza prior to<br />
vaccination. It makes little sense to<br />
vaccinate an animal for something he<br />
has already been exposed to.<br />
There are at least forty agents capable<br />
of initiating Bordatella so vaccination<br />
might appear to be prudent if it weren’t<br />
for the fact that only two of these<br />
agents are contained in the intranasal<br />
vaccine. This poor percentage truly<br />
makes the Bordatella vaccine a shot in<br />
the dark. The lack of efficacy is well<br />
summarized by noted immunologist<br />
Dr. Ronald Schultz: “Kennel Cough is<br />
not a vaccinatable disease”.<br />
Despite the lack of any real effectiveness,<br />
the Bordatella vaccine is routinely<br />
given and touted as safe, especially<br />
in the intranasal form. Make no<br />
mistake however: the dangers and<br />
misinformation surrounding this seemingly<br />
innocuous spray are just as tangible<br />
and frightening as any other vaccination.<br />
A major problem with the Bordatella<br />
vaccine is that it is part of a combination<br />
vaccine. Unbeknownst to most<br />
pet owners, the Bordatella intranasal<br />
spray also contains Parainfluenza (the<br />
vaccine for which is not surprisingly,<br />
just as ineffective as Bordatella). The<br />
problems with the Parainfluenza portion<br />
are threefold.<br />
First, there is a real danger of dangerous<br />
immunological overload when vaccinations<br />
are offered in combination.<br />
Second, like Bordatella, most dogs have<br />
already been exposed to Parainfluenza,<br />
making the necessity of vaccination<br />
questionable.<br />
Third, the Parainfluenza vaccine is just<br />
as ineffective as the Bordatella vaccine<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
ecause the vaccine does not provide<br />
antibody against Parainfluenza where<br />
it is most needed: on the mucosal surfaces.<br />
Other dangers associated with the Bordatella<br />
vaccine are obviously not far<br />
removed from the dangers associated<br />
with any other vaccination. Although<br />
Bordatella is a bacterial vaccine, we<br />
now know that bacterial vaccines present<br />
the same threat as Modified Live<br />
Vaccines. Modified Live Viruses from<br />
human vaccines are now known to become<br />
incorporated in the genes of the<br />
host and can shuffle, reassert, and reactivate<br />
thirty or more years after vaccination.<br />
Bacterial genes are capable of<br />
the same activity, lurking in the genetic<br />
makeup, waiting to replicate and<br />
awaken.<br />
The intranasal Bordatella vaccine has<br />
been known to activate a previously<br />
asymptomatic collapsing trachea and<br />
disrupt phagocytic activity which can<br />
progress to pneumonia. The toxins<br />
from the vaccine will also kill the ciliated<br />
lining of the trachea, creating a<br />
denuded area susceptible to anything<br />
coming down the windpipe. Perhaps<br />
collapsing trachea, irritable tracheas<br />
and pneumonias are all complications<br />
of Bordatella and the Bordatella vaccine.<br />
“Kennel Cough is not a<br />
vaccinatable disease”.<br />
Vaccination of any sort also elevates<br />
histamine which can promote cancer,<br />
chronic inflammation and loss of tolerance.<br />
In general, all vaccination creates<br />
immune dysregulation and is responsible<br />
for a vast array of pathology.<br />
The Bordatella vaccine can wreak<br />
havoc outside the body as well. Bordatella<br />
will shed from a vaccinated host<br />
for seven weeks while Parainfluenza<br />
will shed for a week. This means that<br />
every vaccinated dog is a walking dispenser<br />
of potentially damaging bacteria.<br />
While the risk to other dogs is obvious,<br />
it should be of little concern to<br />
healthy dogs because Bordatella is generally<br />
a self limiting disease. What you<br />
might find surprising is that the shed<br />
bacteria is a risk to other animals…and<br />
to people.<br />
The reason we now have a feline Bordatella<br />
(and not surprisingly, a feline<br />
Bordatella vaccine), is likely thanks to<br />
the widespread use and subsequent<br />
shedding of Bordatella from vaccinated<br />
dogs to cats sharing the household.<br />
If this seems hard to imagine, consider<br />
how dogs first fell victim to Canine Influenza.<br />
Canine Influenza was initially<br />
documented in racing greyhounds. It is<br />
worth noting that many of these dogs<br />
shared tracks with race horses: race<br />
horses who are routinely vaccinated<br />
with Equine Influenza.<br />
It is not a stretch to predict Bordatella<br />
will infect gerbils, hamsters and rabbits<br />
in the near future and it is with certainty<br />
that the vaccine manufacturers<br />
will be well rewarded with the continued<br />
fruits of their canine Bordatella<br />
vaccine.<br />
Not surprisingly, humans are not left<br />
out of the equation. Ruth Berkelman<br />
MD (Former Assistant Surgeon General,<br />
US Public Health Service) writes:<br />
“The potential for both exposure and<br />
for adverse consequences secondary to<br />
exposure to veterinary vaccines in humans<br />
is growing. Enhanced efforts are<br />
needed to recognize and to prevent<br />
human illness associated with the use<br />
of veterinary vaccines”.<br />
Dr. Berkelman noted that pertussiswhooping<br />
cough-like complaints in<br />
children followed exposure to Bordatella<br />
bronchiseptica from the Bordatella<br />
vaccine and it is no coincidence<br />
that Bordatella bronchiseptica and<br />
whooping cough pertussis are very<br />
closely related. Interestingly, the rate<br />
of whooping cough is highest in highly<br />
vaccinated populations.<br />
Immunocompromised humans and<br />
animals are at an elevated risk of infection<br />
from these canine vaccines. There<br />
is a recently reported case of Bordatella<br />
bronchiseptica pneumonia in a<br />
kidney and pancreas transplant patient<br />
who had to board and subsequently<br />
vaccinate her dogs at a veterinary clinic<br />
while she was hospitalized.<br />
Vaccines contain contaminating agents<br />
including mycoplasmas which are also<br />
very communicable to humans and<br />
other mammals.<br />
In the end, vaccination for Bordatella is<br />
at best fruitless and at worst, apathetic<br />
fraudulence at the hands of veterinarians<br />
and vaccine manufacturers. It is up<br />
to you whether or not your dog receives<br />
this vaccination and that is not<br />
overstating the obvious. Sadly, most<br />
pet owners are aware of this but<br />
choose vaccination because they feel<br />
they are at the mercy of boarding kennels,<br />
training schools and veterinarians.<br />
Patricia Monahan Jordan is a graduate<br />
of the North Carolina College of Veterinary<br />
Medicine. She practiced conventional<br />
veterinary medicine for twenty<br />
years and founded six different veterinary<br />
facilities in North Carolina. Dr.<br />
Jordan has traced the paths of immunopathology<br />
to vaccine administration<br />
and uncovered the cycle of disease<br />
and the endless cycle of disease management<br />
that results from vaccine administration.<br />
Dr. Jordan can be reached at<br />
www.dr-jordan.com<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 51
y: Tim O’Shea DC<br />
Without further ado, here’s the kernel: ascorbic acid is not<br />
vitamin C. Alpha tocopherol is not vitamin E. Retinoic acid is<br />
not vitamin A. And so on through the other vitamins. Vast<br />
sums of money have been expended to make these myths<br />
part of Conventional Wisdom. If you have several college<br />
degrees and all this is news to you, don’t feel bad. Unless<br />
you think your education ended at Commencement. Which<br />
is generally true.<br />
WHEELS WITHIN WHEELS<br />
Vitamins are not individual molecular compounds. Vitamins<br />
are biological complexes. They are multi-step biochemical<br />
interactions whose action is dependent upon a number of<br />
variables within the biological terrain. Vitamin activity only<br />
takes place when all conditions are met within that environment,<br />
and when all co-factors and components of the entire<br />
vitamin complex are present and working together. Vitamin<br />
activity is even more than the sum of all those parts; it also<br />
involves timing.<br />
Vitamins cannot be isolated from their complexes and still<br />
perform their specific life functions within the cells. When<br />
isolated into artificial commercial forms, like ascorbic acid,<br />
these purified synthetics act as drugs in the body. They are<br />
no longer vitamins, and to call them such is inaccurate.<br />
A vitamin is “a working process consisting of the nutrient,<br />
enzymes, coenzymes, antioxidants, and trace minerals activators.”<br />
FORGOTTEN TRAILBLAZER<br />
Dr. Royal Lee was the pioneer researcher in the field of<br />
whole food vitamins. For decades he documented the basic<br />
facts summarized in this chapter. His work has never been<br />
scientifically refuted. Anyone who seriously undertakes the<br />
study of vitamins today corroborates Lee’s work. His story<br />
is a fascinating study in itself, a study of indomitable perseverance<br />
in the pursuit of true principles. Jensen tells us that<br />
Royal Lee’s work will not be appreciated until the next century.<br />
Hasn’t happened yet.<br />
Lee felt the full weight of organized drugs/medicine bearing<br />
down on him. Reading like something out of Schindler’s<br />
List, we learn that the FDA not only persecuted Lee for challenging<br />
the economics of synthetic vitamins, produced by<br />
giant drug companies, but that he was actually ordered by a<br />
court to burn all his research of the past 20 years! Burn his<br />
research! When has that ever happened in this country?<br />
They didn’t even do that to Larry Flynt.<br />
Going off on a tangent, ever wondered how the FDA attained<br />
its present position as attack dog for the drug companies<br />
and food manufacturers? It’s another whole story in<br />
itself. The precursor of the FDA was the Bureau of Chemistry.<br />
Up until 1912 the Bureau of Chemistry was headed up<br />
by a man named Dr. Harvey W. Wiley. Here’s a quote from<br />
Dr. Wiley that illustrates where his interests lay:<br />
“No food product in our country would have any trace of<br />
benzoic acid, sulfurous acid or sulfites or any alum or saccharin,<br />
save for medical purposes. No soft drink would contain<br />
caffeine or theobromine. No bleached flour would enter<br />
interstate commerce. Our foods and drugs would be wholly<br />
without any form of adulteration and misbranding. The<br />
health of our people would be vastly improved and the life<br />
greatly extended. The manufacturers of our food supply,<br />
and especially the millers, would devote their energies to<br />
improving the public health and promoting happiness in<br />
every home by the production of whole ground, unbolted<br />
cereal flours and meals.” -The History of a Crime Against the<br />
Pure Food Law, 1912<br />
Now obviously we can’t have a dangerous lunatic like this in<br />
charge of the public nutrition, can we? Dr. Wiley actually<br />
filed suit against the Coca-Cola company in an attempt to<br />
keep their artificial product out of interstate commerce, and<br />
off the market. Fortunately Wiley was eventually replaced<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
y a saner individual, more attuned to the real nutritional<br />
needs of the American people, as determined by the experts<br />
who knew what was best for us: the food manufacturers.<br />
This was Dr. Elmer Nelson, and in his words we get an idea<br />
of the change in philosophy that marked the transformation<br />
of the Bureau of Chemistry into the FDA:<br />
“It is wholly unscientific to state that a well-fed body is<br />
more able to resist disease than a poorly-fed body. My overall<br />
opinion is that there hasn’t been enough experimentation<br />
to prove that dietary deficiencies make one susceptible<br />
to disease.” - Elmer Nelson MD Washington Post 26 Oct 49<br />
Bernard Jensen illustrates how the tobacco industry and the<br />
food giants like Coke were indirectly behind the legal persecution<br />
of Royal Lee. Cigarette ads in the 40s and 50s<br />
showed medical doctors promoting the digestive benefits of<br />
smoking Camels. Or the advertising of Coke and other refined<br />
sugar foods stating that “science has shown how sugar<br />
can help keep your appetite and weight under control.”<br />
(Empty Harvest)<br />
During this same period, Royal Lee was kept in courts for<br />
years, fighting to keep the right to advertise his vitamin<br />
products, because he was a threat to the food manufacturers.<br />
Lee knew they were poisoning the American public. He<br />
proved that refined sugars and devitalized, bleached flours<br />
were destroying the arteries and the digestive system, causing<br />
heart disease and cancer.<br />
WHOLE VS. FRACTIONATED<br />
OK, natural vs. synthetic. Let’s start with Vitamin C. Most<br />
sources equate vitamin C with ascorbic acid, as though they<br />
were the same thing. They’re not. Ascorbic acid is an isolate,<br />
a fraction, a distillate of naturally occurring vitamin C. In<br />
addition to ascorbic acid, vitamin C must include rutin,<br />
bioflavonoids, Factor K, Factor J, Factor P, Tyrosinase,<br />
Ascorbinogen, and other components as shown in the figure<br />
below:<br />
_____________________A s c o r b i c A c i d______________________<br />
ascorbinogen<br />
bioflavonoids<br />
rutin<br />
tyrosinase<br />
Factor J<br />
Factor K<br />
Factor P<br />
__________________________________________________________________<br />
In addition, mineral co-factors must be available in proper<br />
amounts.<br />
If any of these parts are missing, there is no vitamin C, no<br />
vitamin activity. When some of them are present, the body<br />
will draw on its own stores to make up the differences, so<br />
that the whole vitamin may be present. Only then will vitamin<br />
activity take place, provided that all other conditions<br />
and co-factors are present. Ascorbic acid is described<br />
merely as the “antioxidant wrapper” portion of vitamin C;<br />
ascorbic acid protects the functional parts of the vitamin<br />
from rapid oxidation or breakdown.<br />
Over 90% of ascorbic acid in this country is manufactured<br />
at a facility in Nutley, New Jersey, owned by Hoffman-<br />
LaRoche, one of the world’s biggest drug manufacturers.<br />
Here ascorbic acid is made from a process involving cornstarch<br />
and volatile acids. Most U.S. vitamin companies then<br />
buy the bulk ascorbic acid from this single facility. After<br />
that, marketing takes over. Each company makes its own<br />
labels, its own claims, and its own formulations, each one<br />
claiming to have the superior form of vitamin C, even<br />
though it all came from the same place, and it’s really not<br />
vitamin C at all.<br />
FRACTIONATED = SYNTHETIC = CRYSTALLINE = FAKE<br />
The word synthetic means two things:<br />
– manmade<br />
– occurs nowhere in nature<br />
From the outset, it is crucial to understand the difference<br />
between vitamins and vitamin activity. The vitamin is the<br />
biochemical complex. Vitamin activity means the actual biological<br />
and cellular changes that take place when the stage<br />
is set for the vitamin complex to act.<br />
Think of it like gas and a car. Pumping the gas into the tank<br />
doesn’t necessarily mean the car is going anywhere. Other<br />
conditions and factors must be also present, in order for<br />
Activity to occur. The gas line to the carburetor must be<br />
clear, the carburetor jets must be set, there must be an exact<br />
mixture of air flow, the ignition must be turned on, the<br />
spark plugs must be clean, the exact amount of gas must<br />
reach each spark plug right before it fires, no gas must be<br />
left over in the cylinder after the plug fires. Getting the idea?<br />
If any of this stuff is missing, there’s no Activity: the car<br />
doesn’t run, or at least not very well.<br />
Amazing as it may sound if you’re hearing this for the first<br />
time, vitamins are more than the synthetic fractions we are<br />
commonly taught they are. The ascorbic acid you buy at the<br />
grocery store every few weeks, thinking you are buying<br />
Vitamin C, is just a chemical copy of naturally occurring<br />
ascorbic acid, which itself is still only a fraction of the actual<br />
Vitamin C. Real vitamin C is part of something living, and as<br />
such, can impart life. Your synthetic, fractionated chemical<br />
ascorbic acid never grew in the ground, never saw the light<br />
of day, never was alive or part of anything alive. It’s a<br />
chemical, a cornstarch derivative, a sulfuric acid byproduct.<br />
In your body it’s just another drug. Synthetic vitamins<br />
have toxic effects from mega-doses and actually can<br />
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increase the white blood cell count. Vitamins are only necessary<br />
in minute quantities on a daily basis. Whole food vitamins,<br />
by contrast, are not toxic since the vitamin is complexed<br />
in its integral working form, and requires nothing<br />
from the body, and triggers no immune response.<br />
DEFICIENCY<br />
Scurvy is a disease caused by vitamin C deficiency. Scurvy is<br />
characterized by bleeding gums, slow wound healing, softening<br />
bones, loose teeth, ulcerations of the mouth and digestive<br />
tract, general weight loss and fatigue. From 1650 to 1850<br />
half of all seamen on transoceanic voyages died of scurvy. It<br />
was discovered by ship surgeon Thomas Lind in the early<br />
1800s that British sailors were spared the disease altogether<br />
simply by a diet rich in citrus fruits. Since limes travelled<br />
well, they were the common choice during the early years,<br />
and thus the expression “limeys” was coined to describe British<br />
sailors. It was later found both at sea and in prison fare<br />
that potatoes were equally successful in preventing scurvy,<br />
and much cheaper to obtain. (Lancet. 1842)<br />
We find that there is less than 20 mg of ascorbic acid in a<br />
potato. Yet this small amount, since it is complexed in a food<br />
source, is all the body needs not only to prevent scurvy, but<br />
also to cure it, even in its advanced state. Such a remedy is<br />
described in detail in Richard Dana’s amazing journal Two<br />
Years Before the Mast, written in 1840.<br />
Whole food vitamin C as found in potatoes, onions, and citrus<br />
fruits is able to quickly cure any case of scurvy. By contrast,<br />
the fractionated chemical ascorbic acid has been shown to be<br />
insufficient in resolving a scurvy condition, simply because it<br />
does not act as a nutrient. (Lancet 1842)<br />
Ascorbic acid simply cannot confer vitamin activity, as taught<br />
by the discoverer of vitamin C himself, another Nobel Prize<br />
laureate, Dr. Albert Szent-Georgi.<br />
Szent-Georgi discovered vitamin C in 1937. In all his research<br />
however, Szent-Georgi found that he could never cure<br />
scurvy with the isolated ascorbic acid itself. Realizing that he<br />
could always cure scurvy with the “impure” vitamin C found<br />
in simple foods, Szent-Georgi discovered that other factors<br />
had to be at work in order for vitamin activity to take place.<br />
So he returned to the laboratory and eventually made the<br />
discovery of another member of the vitamin C complex, as<br />
shown in the diagram above: rutin. All the factors in the complex,<br />
as Royal Lee and Dr. Szent-Georgi both came to understand,<br />
ascorbic acid, rutin, and the other factors, were synergists:<br />
co-factors which together sparked the “functional interdependence<br />
of biologically related nutrient factors.” The<br />
term “wheels within wheels” was used to describe the interplay<br />
of co-factors.<br />
Each of the other synergists in the C complex has a separate<br />
function:<br />
P factors for blood vessel strength<br />
J factors for oxygen-carrying capacity of red cells<br />
tyrosinase as an essential enzyme for enhancing white<br />
blood cell effectiveness<br />
Ascorbic acid is just the antioxidant outer shell – the protector<br />
of all these other synergists so that they will be able to<br />
perform their individual functions.<br />
Now I can hear you asking, what about Linus Pauling, double<br />
Nobel Prize laureate, and his lifetime espousal of megadosing<br />
on ascorbic acid – up to 10 grams per day. He lived to be 93.<br />
Are we saying that he took a synthetic vitamin all that time?<br />
Yes, that’s exactly right. Bernard Jensen suggests that ascorbic<br />
acid has an acidifying effect in part of the digestive tract,<br />
making an unfriendly environment for viruses, Candida, and<br />
pathogenic bacteria. Pauling’s good health was not the result<br />
of synthetic vitamin activity. Good genetics and maintaining<br />
an internal bioterrain not conducive to inflammation are<br />
likely what brought longevity to Linus Pauling. He eventually<br />
died of cancer at 93, but then who wants to live forever?<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Dr. Royal Lee’s phrase “biological wheels within wheels” always<br />
comes up in any discussion of whole food vitamins.<br />
Essentially it means that individual synergists cannot function<br />
as a vitamin in a chemically isolated form, like ascorbic<br />
acid. Vitamins are living complexes which contribute to other<br />
higher living complexes – like cell repair, collagen manufacture,<br />
and maintenance of blood circulation. Ascorbic acid is<br />
not a living complex. It is a copy of a part of a living complex<br />
known as vitamin C. Ascorbic acid is a fractionated, crystalline<br />
isolate of vitamin C.<br />
Why are you a high school graduate or a college graduate or<br />
a doctor, and you don’t know this? Because drug manufacturers<br />
like things clean and simple and cheap to produce. To this<br />
simple fact add the politics which always comes into play<br />
when anyone mentions the word “billions,” and you are beginning<br />
to get the idea about where to begin your investigation.<br />
Burned his research???<br />
DIETARY SOURCES<br />
Most vitamins cannot be made by the body. They must be<br />
taken in as food. The best sources then are obviously whole<br />
foods, rich in vitamins. Because of soil depletion, mineral<br />
depletion, pesticides, air pollution, and erosion, it is common<br />
knowledge that foods grown in American soil today have<br />
only a fraction of the nutrient value of 50 years ago. That<br />
means a fraction of the vitamins and minerals necessary for<br />
normal human cell function. Royal Lee described the American<br />
diet as the cultivation and production of “devitalized<br />
foods.” Dr. Weston Price describes these empty products as<br />
the “foods of commerce.” Think it’s gotten better or worse<br />
since their time? Thus the necessity for supplementation.<br />
Vitamins and minerals are not functionally separable. They<br />
make each other work. Example: vitamin D is necessary for<br />
the body to absorb calcium. Copper is necessary for vitamin<br />
C activity. And so on. Mineral deficiencies can cause vitamin<br />
deficiencies, and vice versa. Epidemic mineral deficiency in<br />
America is a well-documented result of systematic soil depletion.<br />
So that is the other prime difference between whole food<br />
vitamins and synthetics: whole food vitamins contain within<br />
them many essential trace minerals necessary for their synergistic<br />
operation. Synthetic vitamins contain no trace minerals,<br />
relying on, and depleting, the body’s own mineral reserves.<br />
FUNNY FARMS<br />
Following the German agricultural methods of Von Leibig in<br />
the mid-1800s, American farmers found that NPK (nitrogen,<br />
phosphorus, and potassium) was all that was necessary for<br />
crops to look good. As long as NPK is added to the soil, crops<br />
can be produced and sold year after year from the same soil.<br />
They look OK. But the trace minerals vital for human nutrition<br />
are virtually absent from most American soil after all<br />
these years. Many of these minerals, such as zinc, copper, and<br />
magnesium, are necessary co-factors of vitamin activity. Depleted<br />
topsoil is one simple, widespread mechanism of both<br />
vitamin and mineral deficiency in American produce today.<br />
This doesn’t even take into account the tons of poisonous<br />
herbicides and pesticides dumped on crops. According to the<br />
UN, two million tons of pesticides are used worldwide annually.<br />
American agri-business has one motive: profit. Such a focus<br />
has resulted in an output of empty produce and a nation of<br />
unhealthy people. The earth’s immune system is its soil. To<br />
be vital and capable of growing vital foods, soil must be rich<br />
in both minerals and soil-based organisms – life forms.<br />
Healthy produce naturally resists insects. Insects are like bad<br />
bacteria in the body: they are attracted to diseased tissue,<br />
though they do not cause it.<br />
THE FOODS OF COMMERCE<br />
And we’re still only talking about people who actually eat<br />
raw fruits and vegetables, which is a minority. Processed<br />
food composes the majority of what most Americans eat. The<br />
only nutrients in most processed foods are “enriched” and<br />
“fortified” as described below.<br />
When a doctor says that food supplements are all unnecessary<br />
because we can get everything we need from our food,<br />
that doctor is lacking basic information published and agreed<br />
upon by his own peers. Whether or not we need supplementation<br />
is no longer an issue, except for one who is totally out<br />
of touch. The issue is what kind and how much. Vitamin and<br />
mineral deficiency can be tagged to practically ANY disease<br />
syndrome known to man. DW Cavanaugh, MD of Cornell University<br />
actually concluded that “There is only one major disease,<br />
and that is malnutrition.”<br />
Malnutrition of the affluent is the natural result of the foods<br />
of commerce.<br />
WEB SURFING<br />
The best vitamins are called whole food vitamins. It will be<br />
difficult finding this out on the Internet, however, because<br />
the Web is dominated by mainstream nutritional theory,<br />
which means pharmaceutical underwriting. In the area of<br />
vitamins, the Internet is 99% marketing; 1% actual information.<br />
But then again, this isn’t Mission Difficult. This is Mission<br />
Impossible, Mr Hunt.<br />
There are about 110 companies who sell vitamins in the US.<br />
Less than 5 of them use whole food vitamins. The reason is<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 55
HOLISTIC HEALING AND SPIRIT TO SPIRIT COMMUNICATION<br />
SERVICES FOR PEOPLE AND THEIR PETS. A NATURAL APPROACH<br />
TO IMPROVED HEALTH, WELLNESS, AND EMOTIONAL BALANCE<br />
IN OUR LIVES<br />
ENERGY HEALING<br />
Healing Touch for animals<br />
Meridian<br />
Reiki<br />
Aromatherapy<br />
Crystal therapy<br />
SPIRIT TO SPIRIT COMMUNICATION<br />
Rose Readings<br />
Past lives<br />
Layers of the Aura<br />
Animal Communication<br />
www.enlightenedanimals.com<br />
simple: whole food vitamins are expensive to make. A few<br />
of the largest pharmaceutical firms in the world mass produce<br />
synthetic vitamins for the vast majority of these 110<br />
“vitamin” companies, who then put their own label on them,<br />
and every company claims theirs is the best! It’s ridiculous!<br />
Americans spend over $9 billion per year for synthetic vitamins.<br />
Whole food vitamins are obtained by taking a vitamin-rich<br />
plant, removing the water and the fiber in a cold vacuum<br />
process, free of chemicals, and then packaging for stability.<br />
The entire vitamin complex in this way can be captured<br />
intact, retaining its “functional and nutritional integrity.”<br />
Upon ingestion, the body is not required to draw on its own<br />
reserves in order to complete any missing elements from<br />
the vitamin complex.<br />
Mainstream marketing of vitamins and minerals has successfully<br />
created the myth that vitamins and minerals may<br />
be isolated from each other, that correct amounts may be<br />
measured out, and then we can derive total benefit from<br />
taking these fractionated chemical creations. Nothing could<br />
be farther from the truth. Vitamins and minerals, and also<br />
enzymes, work closely together as co-factors for each<br />
other’s efficacy. If one part is missing, or in the wrong form<br />
or the wrong amount, entire chains of metabolic processes<br />
will not proceed normally. Result: downward spiralling of<br />
health, probably imperceptible for long periods of time.<br />
MARKETING AND<br />
PROMOTION<br />
What is the marketing philosophy behind the prevalence of<br />
the type of synthetic vitamins available in the supermarket<br />
and mall vitamin stores? Simple: profit above all else. Once<br />
the public is shown that vitamin supplementation is necessary,<br />
the rest is marketing. Marketing is the art of persuading<br />
by suspending logic and twisting data into junk science.<br />
Example: what’s the actual difference in composition between<br />
Wheaties and Total, two cereals put out by the same<br />
company? Total is advertised as being much more nutrientrich<br />
than “ordinary” Wheaties. Look at the labels. What justifies<br />
the extra $1.30 for a box of Total? Answer: 1.5¢ worth<br />
of synthetic vitamins sprayed over the Wheaties. That’s it!<br />
That’s what “vitamin enriched” always means. The other<br />
trick word is “fortified.” Generally that means that the food<br />
itself is devoid of nutrients or enzymes, so they tried to<br />
pump it up a little with some “vitamins.” Cheap synthetic<br />
vitamin sprays are all that is required for the manufacturer<br />
to use labels like “enriched” and “fortified.” These words are<br />
red flags – if a food needs to be fortified or enriched, you<br />
can bet it was already dead.<br />
The mega-vitamin theory doesn’t really hold when it comes<br />
to synthetics: If A Little Is Good, More Is Better. Macro doses<br />
of vitamin E, and also vitamin D have been shown to decrease<br />
immune function significantly. It stands to reason.<br />
Vitamins by definition are necessary in phenomenally small<br />
doses. The discoverer of thiamine, a B vitamin, and the man<br />
who came up with the word vitamin, Dr. Casimir Funk, has<br />
this to say about synthetics:<br />
“Synthetic vitamins: these are highly inferior to vitamins<br />
from natural sources, also the synthetic product is well<br />
known to be far more toxic.”<br />
Nutrition authority DeCava describes it:<br />
“Natural food-source vitamins are enzymatically alive. Manmade<br />
synthetic vitamins are dead chemicals.” - The Real<br />
Truth About Vitamins p 209<br />
The marketing of fractionated crystalline synthetic vitamins<br />
has been so successful that most nutritionists and doctors<br />
are unaware that there is something missing from these<br />
“vitamins.” Vitamin manufacturers compete for customers<br />
with identical products – they all bought their synthetic<br />
vitamins from the same couple of drug companies. To differentiate<br />
their product, each makes claims of “high potency.”<br />
Our vitamins are higher potency than theirs, etc. The<br />
point is, the higher the potency, the more the drug like effects<br />
are present. Natural whole food vitamins are very low<br />
potency. Remember the 20mg of vitamin C in a potato that<br />
was able to cure a patient of scurvy? That was low potency.<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
Low potency is all we need. Low potency is enough to bring<br />
about vitamin activity. High potency overshoots the mark –<br />
the chemical is very pure and refined, like the difference<br />
between white sugar and the type of sugar that’s in an apple.<br />
THE MILLIGRAM GAME<br />
Generally speaking, if milligrams are being discussed at<br />
length, the author has no clue about vitamins. Synthetic vitamins<br />
are refined, high potency chemicals, and therefore<br />
may be accurately measured in milligrams, just like drugs.<br />
This has nothing to do with vitamin activity or nutrition,<br />
except in a negative way.<br />
HALF THE STORY<br />
The same type of incomplete action can be seen with any<br />
synthetic vitamin. Let’s take beta carotene for a minute,<br />
which the body can turn into vitamin A. Now you’ll remember<br />
that vitamin A is necessary for good eyesight, DNA synthesis,<br />
and protects cells from free radicals. A study reported<br />
in Apr 94 in the NEJM of some 30,000 Finnish subjects<br />
showed conclusively that synthetic vitamin A had no<br />
antioxidant effect whatsoever. A true antioxidant helps to<br />
protect heart muscle, lungs, and artery surfaces from breaking<br />
down prematurely. In this study, the subjects who received<br />
the synthetic beta carotene actually had an 8%<br />
higher incidence of fatal heart attacks, strokes, and lung<br />
cancer than those who got the placebo (sugar pill). Stands<br />
to reason: the synthetic brought no vitamin activity to the<br />
tissues that needed it. As a dead, purified chemical introduced<br />
into the body, the synthetic further stressed the immune<br />
system, the liver, and the kidneys which all had to try<br />
to break down this odd chemical and remove it from the<br />
body. It would be bad enough if they were harmless, but<br />
synthetic vitamins actually have a net negative effect.<br />
VITAMIN A<br />
was first discovered in 1919. By 1924, it had been broken<br />
down and separated from its natural whole food complex:<br />
“purified.” By 1931, LaRoche – one of the largest pharmaceutical<br />
companies in the world, even today – had succeeded<br />
in “synthesizing” vitamin A. That means they had<br />
created a purely chemical copy of a fraction of naturally<br />
occurring vitamin A. <strong>Naturally</strong> occurring vitamin A is found<br />
associated with an entire group of other components:<br />
– Retinols<br />
– Retinoids<br />
– Retinal<br />
– Carotenoids<br />
– Carotenes<br />
– Fatty acids<br />
- Vitamin C<br />
- Vitamin E<br />
- Vitamin B<br />
– Vitamin D<br />
– Enzymes<br />
– Minerals<br />
Isolated from these other factors, vitamin A is a fraction<br />
which cannot perform its biological functions. Taken as a<br />
synthetic, it must then draw on this list of resources already<br />
in the body in order to complete its make-up. Whole food<br />
vitamin A, by contrast, is already complete and ready to go.<br />
Most synthetic vitamin A consists only of retinal, retinol, or<br />
retinoic acid. The well-publicized potential for toxicity with<br />
mega doses of vitamin A involves one of these three. Vitamin<br />
A toxicity, known as hypervitaminosis, always results<br />
from an excess of synthetic, “purified” vitamin A, and never<br />
from whole food vitamin A. Effects of vitamin A toxicity<br />
include:<br />
– tumor enhancement<br />
– joint disorders<br />
– osteoporosis<br />
– extreme dryness of eyes, mouth and skin,<br />
– enlargement of liver and spleen<br />
– immune depression<br />
– birth defects<br />
BETA CAROTENE<br />
is a precursor the body can convert to vitamin A. Unfortunately,<br />
as a supplement, synthetic beta carotene is usually<br />
“stabilized” in refined vegetable oils. In this trans fatty acid<br />
form, oxidation occurs and the chemically “pure” beta carotene<br />
can no longer act as a nutrient, because it was changed.<br />
Almost all synthetic beta carotene is produced by the Swiss<br />
drug giant Hoffman-LaRoche. This form can no longer be<br />
converted to vitamin A. The best it can be is worthless, and<br />
the worst is toxic.<br />
Natural vitamin A and beta carotene are well known as immune<br />
boosters and cancer fighters, in their role as antioxidants.<br />
Synthetic vitamin A by contrast has actually brought<br />
about significant increases in cancer. The same Finnish<br />
study we saw above provided smokers with large doses of<br />
synthetic beta carotene. Lung cancer incidence increased<br />
18%! (NEJM Apr 94 “The Alpha Tocopherol Beta Carotene<br />
Cancer Prevention Study Group”)<br />
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These findings were corroborated two years later in another<br />
study written up in Lancet. Pharmacologic doses of<br />
synthetic beta carotenes were found to block the antioxidant<br />
activity of the other 50 naturally occurring carotenoids<br />
in the diet. Anti-cancer activity was thus blocked by the synthetic.<br />
(Lancet 1996)<br />
With the vast outpouring of wrong information about vitamins<br />
A and C, the findings of a 1991 article in Health Counselor<br />
are no surprise: 50% of Americans are deficient in<br />
vitamin A and 41% are deficient in vitamin C.<br />
Synthetic vitamins cannot prevent deficiencies.<br />
FAKE VITAMIN B<br />
In one experiment, synthetic vitamin B (thiamine) was<br />
shown to render 100% of a group of pigs sterile! 100%<br />
would be considered a significant finding. (Dr. Barnett Sure,<br />
Journ Natr 1939) Perhaps the fact that synthetic vitamin B<br />
comes from coal tar, maybe that has something to do with<br />
it, you think? Then there’s vitamin B12, which comes from<br />
activated sewage sludge. Been shooting blanks since you<br />
started on those multi’s?<br />
For the licensed dieticians and clinical nutritionists reading<br />
this in disbelief because it is too “unscientific,” consider the<br />
way Theron Randolph MD delineated between natural and<br />
synthetic:<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
“A synthetically derived substance may cause a reaction in a<br />
chemically susceptible person when the same material of<br />
natural origin is tolerated, despite the two substances having<br />
identical chemical structures. The point is illustrated by the<br />
frequency of clinical reactions to synthetic vitamins – especially<br />
vitamin B1 and C – when the [same] naturally occurring<br />
vitamins are tolerated.”<br />
Always keep this idea in mind when confronted with the<br />
marketing hook “bio-identical.”<br />
IRRADIATION<br />
According to Los Angeles naturopath, Dr. Jack Singh, all commercial<br />
lecithins in supplements, as well as most vitamin D,<br />
comes from irradiated vegetable oils. That’s rancid, oxidizing<br />
trans fatty acids! A birthday party of free radicals. This is the<br />
precise mechanism for arterial wall breakdown prior to<br />
plaque deposits, then arteriosclerosis, then heart disease. I<br />
thought we were supposed to be taking vitamins to stay<br />
healthy!<br />
LOST HORIZON<br />
Why is this information so difficult to find? It’s in none of the<br />
“alternative” health ‘zines, or any of the mainstream media.<br />
Alternative-Lite guru Julian Whittaker, in his summer 1998<br />
newsletter actually had the temerity to state outright<br />
“Synthetic vitamins and whole food vitamins are identical.”<br />
I’m sure his synthetic vitamin company and all its retailers<br />
were reassured by this incredibly arrogant and flagrantly<br />
inaccurate pronouncement. But who is objecting? Only those<br />
clients of the 5 companies who know enough to take whole<br />
food vitamins, because they have become educated to realize<br />
the difference. These are the vast minority, having no control<br />
of the media.<br />
Royal Lee and Harvey Wiley lost. Nobody knows who they<br />
are today, except we few. This is no accident. What everybody<br />
does know is Pepsi and Viagra and Wonder Bread and<br />
prednisone and Double Whoppers with Cheese and Zantac<br />
and Baskin-Robbins and Long’s Drug Store. And grocery<br />
store vitamins: synthetic vitamins. That’s America, today as<br />
the product of yesterday. Control of information in America<br />
today is one of the most sophisticated systems of influence<br />
ever devised. The simple ideas contained in this chapter are<br />
simply not available to the mass consciousness. The documentation<br />
is out there, but you really gotta dig.<br />
100 years ago if a medical doctor saw a case of cancer he<br />
would call all his colleagues to come and have a look, telling<br />
them it was unlikely they would see another case, as cancer<br />
was so rare. People rarely died of heart attacks; in fact the<br />
term heart attack itself didn’t even exist. There was no incidence<br />
at all of atherosclerosis. Diabetes was practically un<br />
heard of. What did they eat? Fruits, vegetables, meat, butter,<br />
and lard. But none of it was processed with drugs and chemicals.<br />
Today one in three dies of cancer. One in two dies of heart<br />
disease. Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the<br />
U.S. (Vital Statistics) For anyone born after 2003, there is a<br />
one in 3 chance of Type 2 diabetes. Is that progress? If you<br />
are a food manufacturer it is, and especially if you are a drug<br />
manufacturer. In 2007 the WHO ranked the US as #39 in the<br />
world in infant mortality. Male sperm count is less than 20%<br />
of what it was in 1929. (1981 University of Florida report,<br />
Natural vs. Synthetic) Infant mortality is up; birth defects are<br />
up. We spend $1.5 trillion per year for health care, most of<br />
which goes for administration and executive salaries. Who<br />
are the largest advertisers for TV and the printed media?<br />
Right: drug companies and food manufacturers. Do they<br />
want to keep the ball rolling? You bet. Will they kill you to do<br />
it? You bet. Do they want people to take charge of their own<br />
health by natural inexpensive foods and supplements? Negative.<br />
A cure for cancer has been “right around the corner”<br />
since Nixon. People are starting to ask questions; they’re less<br />
inclined to believe the slick ads coming every 10 minutes on<br />
TV and in Newsweek.<br />
Perhaps Hippocrates did not envision doctors as detail men<br />
or drug reps. He most likely thought like Henry Bieler, MD:<br />
“Nature, if given the opportunity is always the greatest<br />
healer. It is the physician’s role to assist in this healing, to<br />
play a supporting role.”<br />
– Finding the Right Cure for You<br />
So what do you do? Well, you may now have some insight<br />
that your vitamin needs are not being met by the Walgreen’s<br />
generics. Wallach used to talk about expensive urine from<br />
these unmetabolized grocery store synthetic placebos.<br />
The water soluble vitamins are best obtained through organic<br />
produce grown in mineral-rich soil. The best supplements<br />
in this category are the top-shelf green foods, like<br />
David Sandoval’s Best of Greens, and its equivalents.<br />
The fat soluble vitamins, A, E, and D are best obtained<br />
through fish, raw dairy, avocado, raw nuts, raw coconut, and<br />
clean meats. High end supplements like Udo’s Choice, MOR,<br />
and Nordic Naturals can round out your EFA requirements<br />
Beyond this it’s MLM marketing roulette, and if you can’t<br />
spot the mark in the first 5 minutes, baby, it’s you.<br />
Dr. Tim O'Shea is the author of the book The Sanctity of<br />
Human Blood : Vaccination is Not Immunization.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 59
y: Leonard Cecil<br />
Two of the questions you have to ask before answering that one<br />
are:<br />
Why would my dog want to dominate me?<br />
What's in it for her that she doesn't already have?<br />
These three questions are actually quite intertwined, so let's<br />
look at the situation with her - oops, I mean OUR pack:<br />
She gets 2 squares a day. And that doesn't count all the treats<br />
for doing tricks, coming back on recall and such. Would she<br />
somehow get MORE to eat if she were to win domination over<br />
me? Maybe a better quality? Are you inferring, that what she<br />
gets now is of inferior quality and that by dominating me, she<br />
would get better food? Or more?<br />
She gets all the water she can drink, both from her water dish,<br />
but also on walks from the various fountains and water troughs.<br />
Now if she were to dominate me, would she somehow demand<br />
and get more and better liquid refreshment? German white<br />
wine, French red wine? Maybe a real Czech Pilsner beer. Single-<br />
Malt Scotch (from my collection?)?<br />
If she were to win domination over me, would she then get to<br />
leave the house before me? Maybe. But it's very possible she<br />
wouldn't live very long, charging out the door in front of me into<br />
the street. But then I'd just have to get another dog to dominate<br />
me. And another. And another. And then where would she want<br />
to go? Can't go shopping with no money. She's not crazy about<br />
the movies unless they're animal films.<br />
If she were trying to dominate me, what would she have to gain<br />
by walking in front of me. Well, for one thing she would have to<br />
STAY in front of me. What a drag, if there was a lovely piece of<br />
cow dung behind me or to the side of me. She'd have to make<br />
that hard choice between cementing her domination over me by<br />
staying out in front of me and perhaps losing her domination by<br />
falling behind to savor that dead bird. Choices, choices and the<br />
RESPONSIBILITIES attached to them. What's a dog to do?<br />
And of course, she'd have to choose the route to take, determining<br />
where we are to go. Fine. And if there's no food or water<br />
there when we get there, is she supposed to force me to provide<br />
it for her wherever we end up? Now try this with your dog, just<br />
what I tried today. My dog was sniffing dominantly 10-20 yards<br />
in front of me. We came to a fork in the road. She headed down<br />
the right fork and I, being the rebellious soul I am, purposely<br />
took the left path. I would have thought, her being the dominant<br />
wanna-be, that she would have insisted, that I come to her, but<br />
no, low and behold, without me even calling to her, she not only<br />
was suddenly running past me up the left road, but when I then<br />
decided to go on the right road, she then bounded on by me and<br />
up the right road. Well, ok, I see your point. What a cunning little<br />
cur. She actually TRICKED me into thinking I was dominating her<br />
by going on the left road, when she knew, that I would eventually<br />
see it her way and go on the right path, which she'd originally<br />
been on. Sometime you don't have to dominate with force,<br />
you can do it by cunning and treachery.<br />
Now, when I come home, it's obvious who is the dominant one<br />
in the house. As soon as my key hits the door, she is at the door,<br />
demanding my attention. It's quite clear, that if my wife were<br />
actually the leader of the pack (for what husband is EVER the<br />
leader of the pack?), she would come right to the door, beating<br />
my dog by a nose to greet me at the door, I would then give her<br />
a big smacker, a bunch of roses and a bottle of champagne. Or<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong>
something. But it's apparent, that my dog has banned my wife<br />
to the kitchen, in order that she can take over this dominant<br />
function. This has caused countless "discussions" between my<br />
wife and I - and tears. But we have been able to strike a compromise.<br />
I will not kiss my dog on the mouth any more and will<br />
wash my hands and face before kissing my wife. I try ignoring<br />
my dog when I come home, but that simply doesn't work. She<br />
just follows me everywhere I go, sometimes running up ahead<br />
of me, for example on the stairs. The more I tried to keep her<br />
behind me, the more excited she becomes. And of course my<br />
wife hollers down "If you would ignore the dog, maybe she'd<br />
stop pestering you. And why should you deal with her before<br />
even saying hello to me?" So I had a choice. Either keep peace<br />
with my wife and ignore my dog in her attempt to dominate me<br />
or accept the fact that she'd already dominated my wife and<br />
ignore that in favor of trying to first greet my dominated wife,<br />
thus not allowing my dog to dominate me. These dogs can put<br />
you in an untenable position. I guess that's part of their plan.<br />
“Her seemingly sweet demeanor and wagging<br />
Retriever tail is obviously just a ruse for<br />
a plotting, scheming canine version of the<br />
next military K9 junta, just waiting to lay<br />
claim to the leadership of our pack. “<br />
One aspect where my dog has completed her move to take over<br />
domination of her humans is how she will lay down on our feet,<br />
taking over our space, claiming her rule-of-dog. Now she doesn't<br />
do this all the time, but does whenever the fancy strikes her,<br />
whether we want this or not. We've of course given in lock,<br />
stock and barrel to this overt domination, so much so that we<br />
do not wear slippers any more in the winter, knowing that may<br />
dog will claim her rightful spot on our feet. Frankly, this doesn't<br />
really bother us much, especially in the winter in the kitchen/<br />
dining area where we have stone floors. But it is of course the<br />
idea of allowing her to dominate us and claim a piece of our<br />
space that needs to be noticed here.<br />
I'm sure, if our furniture were more comfortable for her, she<br />
would try to show her dominance over us in this respect also,<br />
but she's never shown any inclination to get up on the sofa, my<br />
office chair, the dining room chairs or the junk-chair (I suppose<br />
you have one too, a chair that just seems to fill up with all sorts<br />
of junk that has no other place in the house) by the door. She<br />
also has never shown any inclination to counter-surf or beg at<br />
the table. I suppose that's because in order to fulfill her domination<br />
over us, we see that she has her own place by the ta-<br />
ble or the sofa near us at all times which she can use to keep a<br />
watchful eye on us. To appease her dominating character, we<br />
will occasionally give her a pig's ear or ostrich tendon while<br />
we're eating and that seems to give us a break from her ironpawed<br />
rule of the house. Strangely enough, when we're on<br />
trips, she's never tried to claim a spot on the hotel bed. Maybe<br />
she'd prefer sheets and blankets to the usual Nordic bed coverings?<br />
We count ourselves lucky here.<br />
She has shown however some cracks and inconsistencies in her<br />
drive to take over the alpha of our pack. One such area is playtime.<br />
There seems to be no pattern to when she wants to play<br />
and when she doesn't. In fact, she's always up for a long game<br />
of tug. I suppose if we always gave in to her she'd try to expand<br />
this dominating behavior to Checkers, Monopoly (what would<br />
be more natural for practicing the domination of the world except<br />
for Sim City?) or even Chess. We did see a film of one lady<br />
who taught her dogs to play chess with her dogs, but we've<br />
been warned not to even entertain the idea of this, in as much<br />
as chess is THE game for aspiring socially upwardly mobile dogs,<br />
looking for any way to take over control. We've also only ever<br />
played poker, cribbage and (yes, I admit it) Masters of the Universe<br />
when she's been asleep in her bed in her room (well, it's<br />
actually the stair well next to my office, but we call it her room).<br />
We have been able to hold her blatant dominating scheming in<br />
this area at bay. So it's a small price to pay, to play tug with her<br />
sock - used to be my sock, but she claims them, when they get<br />
holes in them. I wonder how the holes get in them ….<br />
As you can see, we're fighting an up-hill battle on all fronts with<br />
my dog. Her seemingly sweet demeanor and wagging Retriever<br />
tail is obviously just a ruse for a plotting, scheming canine version<br />
of the next military K9 junta, just waiting to lay claim to the<br />
leadership of our pack. We've been able to work out our compromises,<br />
but we feel we need help to reclaim our house and<br />
family.<br />
Born 1952, Swindon GB, raised in San Francisco, living in Switzerland<br />
since 1977. After escaping high school in San Francisco,<br />
he completed a Bachelors of Music Education. He's now an IT-<br />
Geek at the University of Zürich.<br />
Although he grew up with dogs, the first dog he really trained<br />
(Luna, a Greater Swiss Mountain Dog mix) was in Switzerland,<br />
using "balanced" methods. His present dog, Vela (a Flat-Coated<br />
Retriever) changed his life due to her reactivity. After tossing<br />
everything he thought he knew about dog training and starting<br />
anew in order to help her, he is now enrolled at James O'Heare's<br />
CASI and is preparing to do dog training and behavior modification<br />
when he retires in 3-4 years.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 61
Teacher <strong>Dogs</strong><br />
Teacher <strong>Dogs</strong> is dedicated to the dogs that have brought<br />
us to this point in our lives, the turning point to natural<br />
rearing and raising of our beloved pets. These pets may<br />
have been with us only a short period but the lessons<br />
they brought last a lifetime. We want your stories. We<br />
will feature a special story in each edition of our<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>!<br />
Close Call<br />
by Vic Neumann<br />
Prologue<br />
My friends told me that my wife is eventually going to find<br />
out anyway (they always do) so I might as well get it out in<br />
the open. The last time something almost as serious as this<br />
happened with one of our Leos and myself while on one of<br />
our long hikes - aka "adventures" - was about fifteen years<br />
ago when Bogey and I together slid down a steep incline on<br />
an icy cliff face. Clinging to his tail as we picked up speed<br />
heading to a hundred foot drop off, the only way I got us to<br />
survive that one was by throwing out my leg and catching a<br />
well placed hemlock twenty feet from the edge. It took us<br />
about four hours to get back up to safe ground and five<br />
years to get up the nerve to tell Joan. Well, Saturday's adventure<br />
was witnessed by three of our friends and their<br />
dogs and already by Sunday morning emails were coming in<br />
asking how Cassie, Lincoln and I were doing...<br />
The Close Call<br />
It was an afternoon like any other when we set out Saturday<br />
for the Farmington River in the northwestern part of Connecticut.<br />
It's almost a daily ritual to join up with friends and<br />
their canine companions about a mile from our house as we<br />
find shade and cool sparkling water to play in. This time<br />
however it had been raining felines and canines all week<br />
and the river was running brown, high and fast. That has<br />
never deterred us because Lincoln and Cassie are extremely<br />
strong swimmers and have been tested in all conditions.<br />
Their favorite game is fetching sticks that I throw in<br />
as they race to be the first one to retrieve it. Cassie knows<br />
that Lincoln feels it is his responsibility to always bring it<br />
back to me, which he usually does. She, however, enjoys<br />
aggravating her big brother and does so by taking the stick<br />
across the river to the other side, knowing that he will follow<br />
her every time to either grab the stick away from her or<br />
more often as is the case pull her all the way back through<br />
the hundred feet of water with her jaw firmly clenching her<br />
end. It is quite a spectacle that elicits cheers and encouragement<br />
from the kids and adults that understand the game<br />
and often pick their favorite to win.<br />
So on this day, Cassie had taken a stick across and as I<br />
watched her trying to elude Lincoln I was surprised that she<br />
had given up so quickly and was now preparing to swim<br />
back without the stick. However, she wasn't making any<br />
progress in her effort to return even though I could see her<br />
working her legs quite vigorously. "Oh, no!", I cried out,<br />
"she looks like she's stuck." As I watched her struggle, I<br />
realized her hind legs were caught up either in a vine or<br />
<strong>Dogs</strong>...<strong>Naturally</strong>! <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong><br />
Vic Neumann
Vic Neumann<br />
roots that had been washed downstream. I did not want to<br />
wait to see if she could extricate herself, because if I waited<br />
too long she might go under. Throwing my cell phone and<br />
wallet up to my friend I headed into the rushing water determined<br />
to get to her before it was too late.<br />
It's been about a year since I had shoulder surgery to replace<br />
my right joint with titanium and this was going to be<br />
my first test to see what kind of strength I really had - but I<br />
wasn't thinking about that at the time. I knew that my arms<br />
already felt like rubber from the brush cutting I had been<br />
doing all day, but I felt certain that I could get across without<br />
too much difficulty. Boy, was I mistaken. As soon as I<br />
got near the middle of the river I knew I was in big trouble,<br />
as I underestimated the strength and speed of the rushing<br />
water. My friend, Roger, heard me exclaim, "Oh,<br />
(expletive)!" Then he dove in after me. The combination of<br />
the work boots and jean shorts that I was wearing started<br />
to drag me down as the river carried me away from Cassie<br />
and the shouts of people from where I started in.<br />
I didn't panic, but I knew I wasn't going to stay afloat much<br />
longer, regardless of how hard I stroked and kicked. It was<br />
one of those moments when the realization that "this could<br />
be it" comes into focus. And then as I reached out feebly for<br />
another stroke, my hand brushed against wet fur - a lot of<br />
wet fur. I turned my head and there was Lincoln, snorting<br />
water and pushing up against my side. I wrapped my arm<br />
around his back and cried out, " swim, Lincoln, swim!" He<br />
threw himself into another gear and struggled against the<br />
current with me grasping him for dear life.<br />
It felt like an eternity before we angled enough to reach<br />
some tree limbs that had fallen into the river from the opposite<br />
shore. Clutching the branches with my left arm and<br />
trying to help support Lincoln with the other I began to<br />
think about Cassie again. It was then, that Roger reached us<br />
and I grabbed his shirt before he was swept further downstream.<br />
As he struggled to catch his breath, he told me that<br />
a teenager had dove into the water and Michael Phelps-like,<br />
made it across to Cassie. What a relief!<br />
We had no idea how we were going to get back when suddenly<br />
we heard shouts that two kayakers were headed our<br />
way. They dropped each of us a line and paddling with all<br />
the effort they could muster pulled us back across, Roger<br />
behind one kayak and Lincoln and myself in tow following<br />
the other. When we finally were pulled out by our friends<br />
waiting on the river bank, there was Cassie with a look of<br />
puzzlement on her face, as if to say, "why did you guys swim<br />
without me?"<br />
They both got extra treats Saturday night before they curled<br />
up for a much needed sleep. Well, okay, Lincoln got two<br />
extra treats and a long hug and thank you.<br />
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com <strong>July</strong>/<strong>August</strong> <strong>2010</strong> | 63