Would You Willingly Poison Your Pet?

Probably not. At least I hope not.

But unknowingly, you might be poisoning your pet multiple times a year every year. All the commercials (and maybe even your vet) would tell you that your pet will be miserable with fleas and ticks if you don’t give them K9-Advantix, or Revolution, or Advantage, or Frontline, or, God forbid, Trifexis. And you want to be a loving and responsible pet parent.

So you give it to them. And you think you’re doing the right thing.

That’s because vets and commercials do not educate you on what flea and tick prevention is and what it does. What it is: a long list of toxins, pesticides, and poisons that you either soak into your dog’s skin, or through a tablet, put into their bloodstream. What these poisons do is make your dog’s blood/skin just toxic enough to kill the flea or tick when they bite, but not toxic enough (in theory) to kill your dog outright.

Your vet might tell you that it’s only poisonous to the flea or tick and not to your dog, but that’s a lie. Dogs absolutely are affected by the toxins we put on their skin and in their bloodstream. Sometimes they cannot voice to us what they are experiencing, if a toxin makes their skin burn or if it makes them dizzy or nauseous. But the dogs whose reactions are so severe that they have seizures, that their skin blisters, or their nervous system to shut down and unfortunately, many of them die. This is particularly true of the spot-on applications that soak the pesticides directly into the skin, and is even more true of the combination toxins that take enough poison to kill fleas, ticks, and heart worms all in one dose. Trifexis

is one of these combination tablets, and it has caused many deaths and been recalled a couple of times.

Sadly, although many pets can survive a lifetime’s worth of these toxins without actually succumbing to them, the flea and tick preventative industry is merely a money making scheme for those who don’t care about your pet. The industry makes millions of dollars every year. But there is no reason why it should.

There are plenty of natural flea and tick preventatives, if your pet is really at risk. Sadly many of the dogs killed by these drugs are small pets that spend 90% of their time indoors and really are not at risk for fleas and ticks anyway. But if your dog is outdoorsy like mine, you may need some kind of prevention. There are several types that have been effective for me and for many others:

Brewer’s Yeast
Apple Cider Vinegar
Only Natural Pet’s Flea and Tick Tag

A brewer’s yeast tablet everyday can help ward off unwanted pests, and adding a couple drops of apple cider vinegar in their water and then spraying a water/ACV mixture into their coat and brushing before going out in the woods or tall grass is also very effective. Only Natural Pet makes a tag you can attach to your pet’s collar that is effective for 6+ months (which is why it is $60, basically $10 a month). The tag contains essential oils and scents that deter pests and works brilliantly.

There is no need to poison your pets! Try a natural alternative.

Also, don’t forget that unless you live in, say, Florida, South texas, Southern California…you really do not need to give pets any preventative in the winter months, regardless of what commercials tell you.

On the Other End of the Leash

The darn leash.

There are so many problems that revolve around the leash.

The dog pulls on the leash.
The dog won’t walk on the leash.
The dog has leash aggression while on the leash.
The dog chews through the leash.
The dog jumps up and knocks you over when it sees the leash.

Why do so many dogs have issues with behavior while on a leash? The answer usually lies in you, the owner/pet parent. There are certain questions that have to be answered to properly evaluate the answers to these questions, like:

What is your energy like when you walk out the door with your dog and leash in hand? Excited? Afraid? Anxious?
How do you feel while walking your dog? How about when you approach other dogs?
How do you react when your dog pulls on the leash? Do you pull back, yell, jerk on the leash?

Think of the leash as a live wire between you and your dog.

Everything you feel while you hold that leash, your dog knows you feel, and reacts accordingly. If before you go on a walk, you say things like *high pitched voice* “Who wants to go on a walkie???? You want to go on a walkie, don’t you princess??? YAYYYYYYY walkies!!!!!” Your dog will be in an excited state before you ever leave the house, resulting in a pulling, hard to control dog.

Same goes for if you are anxious before a walk. The dog will feel that energy and pull and take charge. If you get nervous as you approach another dog, your dog will think there must be something to be scared of and will quite possibly react aggressively towards the other dog or start jumping and pulling, trying to get at the dog. Also, dogs generally do not understand yelling. Either it just scares them or they think you are barking and react. Pulling back/leash jerking also does not work. It never works. Often times, it even makes your dog pull harder.

When you think about it, this is a longevity issue. A dog that gets little physical activity likely will be overweight and therefore have a shorter lifespan. In addition to being overweight, getting no exercise makes dogs stir crazy and often causes them to displace their energy in negative ways such as shredding things, destroying things, barking, and being generally out of control. These behaviors, sadly, often cause people to just drop their dog off at a shelter. A dog that walks and behaves nicely on a leash is essential to a happy and healthy dog/human relationship and a healthy dog life, especially for those that do not live in places where they can walk their dog off leash (also, dogs that walk nicely on leash are usually the ones you can trust off leash).

So, before you go on a walk, evaluate your mood and energy. Calm down. Don’t say anything to your dog to excite them, just grab the leash, put it on, walk calmly out the door. Walk past other dogs like it is no big deal (it shouldn’t be, anyway). Ignore the other dog completely. When do you meet other dogs on leash, do not let your dog approach the other dog face to face. Your tension and the other person’s tension on the leashes can cause a negative reaction or even a fight. Guide your dog to greet the other dog from the back, so they can do the “doggy handshake.”

If your dog pulls on the leash, stop moving. Wait for them to quit pulling, then begin walking again. Do this as often as it takes for your dog to understand, pulling means we stop, walking nicely means they go. I did this with my dog, and it really does work. He currently walks on a loose lead. The better behavior your dog has on the leash, the more walks you will want to take with him or her, and the happier everyone will be!

The American Spay & Neuter Issue

Most body parts have an essential function that help us in some way.

Rarely is a body part considered totally non-beneficial. Tonsils, gallbladders, even the appendix–even body parts that we can live without still have uses and benefits. We keep them if we can.

That said, we tend not to consider the same for our pets. We remove their ovaries, uterus, and testicles by the hundreds every day, maybe even by the thousands. We only consider what our vet tells us about these procedures: it’s routine, risks are low, benefits are high–no more marking, aggressive or dominant behavior, unwanted attention and behavior towards females in heat, and no testicular/ovarian cancer risk.

This analysis is completely unfair for a number of reasons. Neutering or spaying your pet does not guarantee or even make likely the disappearance of any negative behavior you may be experiencing. If your dog marks, if he or she is aggressive, dominant, easily excitable, bounding with energy–they are likely to continue to be the same and do the same things after spay or neuter. Also, most female dogs are spayed and if they are not, they come into heat for two brief periods per year, unlike human females.

And while it is true that spaying and neutering does reduce certain cancer risks, those cancer risks (in most breeds) are low to begin with, and they do not discuss with you the risks associated with spaying and neutering. They only share the benefits, and that is not proper disclosure, especially from a veterinarian.

There are two main sources of sex hormone in every mammalian body, the sex organs and the adrenal gland. The body is programmed to have a set amount of sex hormone that is normal. If that level drops to below normal, for any reason, then the body kicks the adrenal gland into overdrive to try and compensate for the lack of sex hormone. This leads to endocrine system problems and often, adrenal disease. Spay and neuter has increased risks of many forms of cancer as well, but your vet likely will never share that with you, nor will the spay/neuter advocates at your local shelter or Humane Society.

The early age that most vets and shelters advocate spay/neuter is also a troubling thing. Neutering puppies at 8 weeks of age at the shelter and vets performing spay and neuter surgeries on dogs that are not even six months old has numerous increased risks, even over adult spay/neuter surgeries. These serious risks include but are not limited to: improper growth plate closure, lack of full muscle and bone development, joint problems, and hypothyroidism. These occur at any age of spay and neuter but are drastically increased if the surgery is performed at an early age. There is no reason why this surgery cannot be delayed til one year of age, if it must be performed at all.

Certainly, there is an undeniable over population of unwanted pets in the world.

No doubt about it. But this has way more to do with irresponsible pet ownership and feral colonies of pets than it does with needing to desex the animals. Most of the time, the people who take their dogs and cats to the vet to be spayed or neutered are fairly responsible pet owners that do not just let their dogs run wild throughout the neighborhood. People that allow that do not usually take their dog to the vet for surgery. That said, most of the spayed and neutered pets we have in the world live in a home and are contained either in a yard or in the house and have no access to breeding situations with other dogs. The risk of creating unwanted animals in these situations is next to nothing.

In Europe and in most other countries such as Norway and Australia, responsible pet ownership is what is so heavily advocated. People keep their dogs under their control at all times, no body parts removed, no tails cut, no ears cut, and they have very little unwanted animal problems. If every pet owner is simply accountable and responsible for their pets, there is no need for this damaging surgery to occur.

All that said, there are other ways to control unwanted breeding issues, if the risk is really there.

When humans want to no longer be at risk for getting pregnant or impregnating anyone else, they do not chop their testicles off or remove their uterus and both ovaries. They receive a tubal ligation or a get a vasectomy. These surgeries have less risk, very few associated health issues in the future, and can be performed as easily or easier on a pet as they can on a person. The main issue tends to be that vet’s just aren’t taught how to do it and it is not discussed in vet school, so they don’t do it. That’s it. The vets who do perform these surgeries say they can do them as quickly as a spay or neuter, possibly even faster. This prevents unwanted breeding just as effectively as spaying or neutering but leaves the sex hormones and the stabilization and original processing of the body in place.

Again, do your research before agreeing to have any surgery on your pet. Do not just take your vet’s word for it. Really look into the benefits and consequences of the options and make an educated decision on what is best for your pet. Some breeds do have elevated risk of ovarian cancer, in which case a partial spay could be performed, leaving the uterus and removing the ovaries. But those breeds are few and far between.

And know that if you choose not to spay or neuter, you will face persecution. People will call you irresponsible, negligent even, uncaring–but you are a responsible pet owner and will be secure in your decision.

Here is a video on the risks and benefits of spaying and neutering: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enPCZA1WFKY

A Free Dog is a Happy Dog

Dogs were built to make choices.

A wild dog (e.g. a wolf, a coyote, a dingo, a Carolina dog) makes many of his own choices. He chooses when to eat, where to live, what scent to follow, what places to visit, etc. The choices he doesn’t make, the pack makes for him, such as what part of dinner to eat, when to hunt, etc.

How many choices do domesticated dogs get to make? For most, not many. You decide when your dog goes outside. You probably decide when he walks, where he walks, when he can smell, when he can’t smell, when he eats, what he eats, whether or not he gets to play with toys, etc. You make every choice. Domesticated dog has very few choices, very little freedom, very little exposure.

Believe it or not, this is a health issue, as referenced in Ted Kerasote’s books.

Dogs who get to make more choices actually live longer than dogs who get all their freedom taken from them. For some, this is difficult, especially without a yard. My dog has a dog door and chooses to come in and out as he pleases. But for some this simply isn’t possible.

One way to get your dog some freedom (and exercise) is to take them for an off-leash walk. This requires a certain set of skills, including excellent recall and a safe place without nearby roads. There are many parks and trails in my area that fit this description, and Cookie has near 100% recall. They get way more exercise this way because they may run up ahead of you and back to you 100 times in one walk.

Of course your dog isn’t going to go hunt a meal or choose when to eat, but little things can go a long way. Even just taking your dog with you wherever you can and exposing him or her to new places can help give your dog valuable socializing experiences and help them be happier, healthier, more well rounded animals.

The Importance of Selecting a Good Vet

We all want to believe that our vet wants what is best for our pets, just like we ourselves do.

Many times they do, but your vet is not always the most educated on every animal health issue.

That, or they are blinded by the dollar signs that pet pharmaceutical companies and pet food companies pay them to promote their products.

One of the keys to finding a good vet is finding an honest vet, and the key to finding an honest vet is asking questions.

“Is Science Diet really the best food out there for my dog?”
“Will this flea and tick preventative hurt my dog?”
“Is vaccinating this many times really necessary?”

These are just a few of the questions you can ask to find out where your vet’s interests are vested, or how informed they are on the latest veterinary science studies and inquiries. I have found, unfortunately, that most vets will swear by Science Diet, regardless of what’s in it and what they know is optimal for your dog’s health. This is because Science Diet is made by Hill’s, a brand originally made by a vet back when vets didn’t know the things they know now (seventy years ago). Ever since then, vet office’s have gotten a slice of the Hill’s Dog Food Manufacturing pie, and the office gets a percentage of whatever they sell.

The overwhelming majority of vet’s will also tell you that flea and tick preventives are perfectly safe for your dog or cat, regardless of the known side effects and the numerous recalls, particularly with spot on products and combination products that combine flea, tick, and heart worm preventative. Vets continue to recommend Trifexis, even though it has been directly related to over 1,000 dog deaths. Because vets do make money off of the sale of chemical flea and tick preventatives, they refuse to even give clients information regarding natural flea and tick preventatives which I have found to be just as effective (to be discussed at a later date).

Many vets will also insist on the regular revaccinating of your pet, even though a simple titer (pronounced “tighter”) test will confirm to many, many pet owners that their dog or cat is still immune from their last series of vaccinations. Rabies vaccines are often mandated by state laws (in South Carolina, pets must be vaccinated every three years), but there are no regulations on Lyme, Distemper/Parvo, Canine Influenza, Bordetella, or any other vaccines, and despite the fact that titer tests continue to show that many dogs, after their initial vaccinations and boosters, are usually immune and carry the antibodies for 5-7 years. Many vets do not even carry the 3 year rabies vaccine, basically forcing clients to receive the vaccine every year, even though there are dangerous side effects that can shorten the overall lifespan of the pet related to over vaccination (also to be discussed at a later date).

Overall, it is extremely important to find a vet who is willing to tell you the truth regarding what is really necessary for your pet, even if it means they will miss out on a couple of dollars. Finding a vet that will also entertain holistic options (e.g. acupuncture, organic food) is also a good sign. If at the first sign of illness your vet puts your dog on heavy duty antibiotics or major pain killers, beware. Look for a vet that really cares and wants the best for your pet, not just the big $$$.

Word to the wise: Don’t just take your vet’s word for it. Get a second opinion and also check forums, check the data, and make sure you realize that you are the client and anything your vet suggests is just that, a suggestion. You are the decision maker! A great vet is like finding a diamond in the rough–once you find one, be grateful and stick with them.

If you put good in, you get good out.

Dogs, in many ways, are just like people.

Sounds cliche, but it’s the truth. If you eat McDonald’s and drink Coke and don’t exercise, you feel like crap. You’re tired. Your blood pressure is high. You don’t sleep well. Maybe you’re overweight. The opposite is equally true.

If you eat clean, exercise regularly, drink clean–you, essentially, are clean. You sleep well, your blood pressure stabilizes, you have energy, you look good. All of these factors can affect your lifespan.

The same goes for your dog. For years, many people just went to the grocery store and bought a bag of Dog Chow and called it a day. Dog is sort of fat, lays around the house, lives 7-8 years, and people just attribute it to them being a dog and not having very long of a lifespan. But the length of a dog’s lifespan is determined by various factors just like human’s are, diet (and source of that diet) being one of them.

The number one ingredient in Dog Chow is corn. Dogs’ bodies are not genetically designed to eat corn as a main subsidy of nutrients. The next ingredient is meat/bone meal, followed by corn gluten meal. None of these things are things that wild dogs would eat, nor are they what dogs’ bodies are programmed to eat.

One way to have a healthier (and thereby happier) dog is to feed a dog food that has higher quality ingredients that come from good, safe sources. Checking the ingredients of your dog’s food and looking for specific meats (as in buffalo, beef, chicken, fish, nothing that just says some unspecified “meat” or “meat meal”) as the first couple ingredients is a great start. Looking for the absence of any nonspecific “animal product” or “animal fat” (this could be any and I mean any animal) wheat, corn, soy, or gluten is another easy way to check the quality of your dog’s food. The source of the ingredients is also important! Looking for food that says “Made in the USA” or “Sourced in the USA” helps verify that your dog’s food isn’t being shipped from unsafe sources overseas. Selecting healthy food for your dog is just as important for their lives as choosing healthy food for yourself is for yours.