Food As Medicine, Yes. But Food From Mars for Your Pets?
Multifunction Artificial Martian Food? No. Just NO.
Food as Medicine. Not far fetched at all, as those of you know who feed balanced raw diets.
But there’s a flip side, which you’ve probably seen before, unless you’ve actually been away on Mars. It’s a pervasive idea in main stream veterinary pet food marketing:
Premise: “You couldn’t possibly know enough to feed your pet homemade food! So, don’t even try!”
Solution: “We’ll sell you food that’ll even fix your sick dog or cat. Developed by real scientists!”
Oh, my head. How far we’ve departed from Nature’s laws.
But, we humans are smart! We’ll design the fix for the consequences of that departure. And sell it to you in paper bags!
Cha-ching!
Where the Unnatural Path Has Brought Us
Main stream medicine is starting to get it. Sort of. They are seeing that animals are now getting sicker than they used to get. They now have multiple illnesses, stacked together in the same animal.
When we discovered that many cats and dogs suffer from more than one health condition, we created four different highly palatable and digestible multifunction formulas to address their multiple health needs.”
–Royal Canin, a division of Mars, Inc.
(Royal Canin is from Mars. Remember life on Mars? The candy maker who turned multibillion dollar pet food maker?)
What point are they missing on Mars?
Hmmm, how about a glaring one:
Main stream “prevention” is the cause of these multiple illnesses!
I mean, think about it for a moment. Use Nature as your reference point. (That’s always a good practice, by the way; take man largely out of the picture, and see what the wild cousins are experiencing.)
- Are lions plagued by lower urinary tract disease (LUTD)? [Think crystals, bladder stones, plugged up urethras, catheters, and cutting off penises here.]
- How about obesity in ocelots? Or hyenas, or cheetahs, or wolves? Seen any?
But, we’re seeing both in domestic cats and dogs, certainly. And to market comes, ta daaaaa:
“A MAGNIFICENT COMBINATION”
“Urinary + Satiety”
Thanks, Royal Canin. So, let me get this straight. I can buy, from my vet only, a special food for my obese cat who is plagued with repeated bladder inflammation and a chronically plugged up urethra?
That’d be so cool, because we’ve been to the ER multiple times with the poor guy to get him to be able to pee again.
And man, he’s got a lot to love at 16 pounds! Everybody thinks he’s so cute!
But What About My Anxiety-ridden Urinary Troubled Cat?
Royal Canin’s got you covered there, too.
Wait. Anxiety? Are we seeing anxious lynx with bladder troubles, worrying themselves sick?
Umm, no, I don’t think so. At least I haven’t seen them on the Nature Channel.
Never fear, the fix is here! New Royal Canin “Urinary + Calm” will help your hot-bladdered, anxious cat.
With a list of 70-odd ingredients, your first take on this might be,
Wow! Isn’t science wonderful?? I can feed this prescription diet and take care of his bladder and anxiety right in the food dish!”
Subconsciously, if you haven’t yet started making homemade raw food for your cat, your mind will also be reinforcing this thought, that keeps companies like Royal Canin and Science Diet assured of always making a profit:
No way could I ever make food for my cat or dog! Damn, where would I get all these ingredients, many of which I’ve never heard of and can’t pronounce or spell in the spelling bee? I guess I’ll let them do it for me.”
Labels Cut Both Ways
But let’s take a closer look at some of those 70-odd ingredients that you probably couldn’t buy if you wanted to. (Though you wouldn’t want to buy several of them, if you’ve been reading about what’s wrong with commercial pet foods nowadays).
The top 5–10 ingredients are usually plenty to tell you you need to put that bag back on the shelf and back slowly away… This food as medicine will be a bitter pill bringing a host of bad outcomes.
Byproducts: This could mean fine ingredients we humans don’t care to eat so much. Maybe some chicken feet or spleens or heads. No biggies. But it can also include the “4D meats” which should cause you concern.
4D Meats?
- Dead
- Diseased
- Dying or
- Disabled animals from slaughter houses
Some of those Dead have included euthanized animals, as evidence by pentobarbital residues showing up in pet food.
Sweets: Corn gluten meal (2nd ingredient on the dry version) is the stuff corn syrup is made of. Where do you suppose all these diabetic cats are coming from today?
Again, for reference, the big cats in the wild don’t get diabetes. It’s entirely a man-made disease.
Brewers rice comes in at #3. This is white rice, further depleted by being used first in brewing. It also adds to the sweet carb intake for our carnivore dogs and especially cats. Empty calories that a carnivore has no means to deal with.
Sawdust: Seriously??
One of my favorites, seen in so many commercial “scientific foods,” is powdered cellulose, aka sawdust. Indigestible fiber from the lumber mills. I’m not seeing anyone who’s home feeding stocking up on this one, for some reason.
The Way Out
So, bravo, Royal Canin. You brought us chicken feather based dog food earlier and now you’re right there in the trenches with our pets who “suffer from more than one health condition.”
Now, if you don’t see yourself buying expensive junk food to treat man-made multiple chronic diseases in your furry family members, you likely will take what’s behind Door #3:
A healthier approach to preventing this whole mess in the first place!
That starts early in life, but it’s never too late to make changes, even for those middle aged or older dogs and cats who laze about most of the time and are starting to show wear around the edges. You’ll likely be happily surprised at the renewed vitality you can create for them by making some simple changes in their world.
Let’s hit the main points of your exit strategy:
- Stop vaccinating the already vaccinated. Just stop. It’s unwarranted, ineffective, and unsafe. Yearly vaccines? Fire that vet!
- Start making balanced raw food diets for your little carnivores. Here’s a great site for you mini-lion owners, and there’s a Raw Roundup poster just below for you domestic wolf owners. (Yes, I’m still talking to you, owners of the Bichons, Maltese, and Chihuahuas! Aww-ooooo!)
- Or buy it ready made. Your choices are now more than ever, some in your local stores. Here’s one of the first to make a fine raw food, long before the competitors came. Still great diets today, easily delivered to your door.
- Stop the poisons!
- Against fleas
- Against heartworms
Pardon me if this seems too obvious, but how will you raise a healthy, Vital Animal while you poison them monthly?
Click the banner above to get your raw dog food game on
My History Helps You
Years ago, when I first hung out my holistic shingle, I had little to offer besides making home prepared diets. No acupuncture training, no homeopathy training yet, just sound nutritional principles.
And I often saw dramatic results in my patients. Adding in vaccine cessation strategies and non-toxic pest avoidance added to that happy drama.
The rest is history.
Let us know in the comments what you’ve seen since you left the Big Pet Food Circus and started on a more Natural Path. Your story of food as medicine can spread encouragement to the folks who are new here.
I’ve been following your path for over 15 years now. I believe in homeopathy and the magnificent powers of the immune system once it is supported properly by nutrition and healthy living. I would like to share a story with you. Barb called me in tears to tell me her Bichon Mimzie was diagnosed by her vet with bladder cancer. She told me of the vets attempts at treating UTI’s and bladder stones over the last year with antibiotics, prescription canned diets, and now an ultra-sound revealed a large mass in her bladder. She had just returned from the vets office and felt her Mimzie would soon need to be put down or die from surgery. After asking a few questions about Mimzie I immediately asked Barb if I could take Mimzie because I believed I could pull her out of this using a holistic method. She didn’t want to let Mimzie go but agreed to follow my instructions. I asked her to stop the antibiotics and go with natural infection fighting herbs like oregano oil, coconut oil to be massaged into her gums nightly before bed. I asked her to stop all chemical parasite preventatives and rely upon black walnut powder added to her food 5 consecutive days monthly. I asked her to put Mimzie on a diet and limit her to smaller portions of either raw or cooked meat (3/4) and pureed veggies (1/4) suggesting pumpkin, fermented veggies, or even bone broth and fermented powder greens that had mushrooms added. I asked her to add probiotic powder, multivitamin-mineral powder, cranberry extract powder and dried organic parsley to her meal daily. Since Mimzie was overweight and “food loved” I asked Barb to hire a dog walker to take Mimzie on vigorous walks twice daily. Mimzie was obese and needed to loose 12 lbs. Barb agreed and did everything I asked her to. I followed up every month. After a year, Barb took Mimzie, who had lost 10 lbs., in for an ultra-sound, bloodwork and a urinalysis. The mass in her bladder had shrunk 75%. The blood work was great and showed no infection. The urinalysis showed a balanced ph and no crystals or excessive bacteria. I was so happy for Mimzie. I have Bichons myself and always keep them vigorously exercised, walking/running 1-3 miles every other day. I feed wet raw or cooked meals with some veggies, adding cranberry extract, probiotics, multivitamin-minerals, fermented greens w/mushrooms, and bone broth. I run titer tests instead of re-vaccinating, never use chemical parasite preventatives, and my Bichons have never had urinary tract infections ever.
Nice, Cheryl! The power of treating a dog like the wolf inside.
My dog shows no outward signs of diabetes. The vet checked his blood glucose levels. It was about 260. He also checked his urine for glucose. It was 250 to 500 in his urine. He is from a shelter who said he is about two. He was rescued from a house of 32 dogs. The Ziwipeak and lots of love helped a lot. I had him on Ziwipeak, but when my husband started fighting cancer in November, we changed it to kibble. The vet told me to feed him the Prescription Diet food or cook a high fiber diet at home. Should I do this or feed him raw? If raw, I worry about them being around my husband when he has no immune system from chemo.
No outward signs? I suspect he’s minimally more thirsty and urinating more than usual, as both his blood glucose and urine glucose are way out of normal range.
Raw food with low or no starch would be best. Diabetes is a carb disease, and it takes carbs to make kibble stick together.
Just be aware that kibble has been recalled repeatedly for salmonella. It just doesn’t make the news. Use good hygiene around the raw food and have your husband exercise caution on handling the dogs (mouths and anus and stools to be avoided).
All the best with the challenges before you.
My vet recently told me I *had* to start feeding my cat the Royal Canin cat food for Urinary Health, and Calm. (According to the vet, when he gets upset, it causes him to get uti’s) I almost choked on the price, but took it home with me. $40.00 for a 6lb bag?! Then I looked at the ingredients. Is there actually anything real in this stuff? I’m glad I found your site, so I can learn to take charge of my cats health the right way.
Oh, my! I had no idea it was that expensive!! Definitely fits the bill for what I can all the prescription diets: “Expensive Junk Food.”
Welcome to the real world, DJ. I’ve got a great cat story coming up in my next video coming on Labor Day. If you missed the first one, here’s the link to get started on a great series, and get a great free report on natural immunity as well.
so much great information! Being a bit new to this journey I do have some questions regarding feeding raw. I have been really reading up / researching and I see that some just feed raw meat, organs, bones without any supplements.
I have read two different vets who have their own raw or cooked homemade recipes and both state that vitamin/mineral supplements along with omega3, enzymes, and other stuff are needed. In all of your literature you recommend the Transfactor product(s). Is this a vit/min supplement as well? or do I need other supplementation? Also recommended is AddLife from Wysong. I switched my dogs and cats to Wysong while I researched the raw before just jumping in. Dogs like it, Cats not so much. I’m still unsure if you need the AddLife when feeding the Wysong products. Its a tad confusing. I thought I would try cooking for the dogs and cats instead of jumping in on raw, but the more I read here the more I realize I just need to “do it”.
Next, I do have a puppy that I agreed I would not feed raw the first 24 mo of his life. Well…. that kind of makes this difficult. I had no intentions of feeding raw up until a few months ago. Puppy is 51/2 mo old. I suppose feeding home cooked is still way better than kibble. I’d like to feed raw, just not sure about the supplement part. if all I need is the transfactor or something else in addition to.
Puppy had all his puppy shots, but I plan on not doing any more as well as with my 5yro border and cats as well. no more HW since April and started the HW nosodes. no more flea poisons either. So… we are on our way, just need to nail down the food. 🙂 Thanks! Love being a part of the pack.
Hey Rachelle,
Nothing hard and fast on supplements from my side while feeding raw. I lean towards adding EFA’s unless you’ve got great grass fed meat sources available. Transfer Factor Complete (canine and feline) both have vitamins and minerals in addition to the base of amazing immune support, yes. I’d probably also add alfalfa leaf and kelp (50:50 mix), on again and off again. Main thing is, as you say, just start. Change it up, at 3-4 week intervals, and balance over time. Lot of room for creativity, but I like to think of percentages of what prey might look like. I think it’d be close to 70% meat/bone, 20% organs, and 10% macerated veggies.
I get my underwear in a bunch when I read about a breeder thinking they’ve still got control over your pup for 2 years! At what point do you own this animal? I wrote about this here, and urge you to kick that agreement under the bus.
And: we’re glad you’ve joined us! Keep us posted on how you do with the shifts of diet and paradigm!
Thank you so much for your reply and the suggestions. No grass fed here that I can reasonably afford. so I will add some EFA’s along with the alfalfa leaf and kelp.
Hindsight 20/20 and getting on this natural track after the fact.
Read your blog on the strings attached. Very thought provoking. I agree. I will do what is best for us and hopefully not too many questions will be asked. (crossing my fingers) 🙂
Not sure I can avoid the neuter issue as we train with our breeder as well. My breeder does not spay / neuter until at least 15 months of age. Thank you so much for all your hard work educating others (me). There is a lot of information here and trying to soak it all in . What is the easiest way to look through/find past articles on various topics you have written in the past?
Thanks again!
ok, so I started feeding raw using the recipes in the book I had. Though I understand that this might be a bit much. Of course, it calls for a homemade supplement mix as well. I have been using a prepared one to finish using it up. My biggest confusion/worry in all this is getting it right. With a 6 month old puppy I worry about all the vit and minerals (calcium…) he needs for growth. I have read so many websites now trying to figure this out that have scared me. I don’t want to cause any problems for the puppy. so… you mentioned adding EFA’s – what exactly should I add and how much? Also the alfalfa leaf and kelp? What, where and how on that too? if you don’t mind me asking.
I want to see this through I am just so unsure of what I am doing. Making these recipes that I got from a book is a bit of work and there isn’t any bone in them. so…. I am clueless as to how to go about this.
Thank you so much in advance for your help!
I don’t know how I found your site but thank God I did. My story started 13 years ago when we brought Belle (Maltese) into our home. She is a classic story of doing all the wrong things to this beautiful girl. She received all of her shots and boosters like clockwork. She had her flea treatments and heartworm meds. I thought she needed all this. She ate a dry kibble and a commercial wet food mixed together. She seemed perfect for the first few years. The problems came fast and furious. Her teeth became a huge disaster. This one needs to come out now that one….terrible. Cysts on her skin began to appear. Our vet recommended removal of them, another painful experience. She would recover but really was never the same ever again. Our vet charged us a small fortune to get this test and that med, nothing that really helped her. She passed in my arms and as I looked into her eyes she seemed to say “I love you”.
We were never going to experience that again but April 15th we will welcome Mia our new Maltese. Things will different. Mia will have a holistic vet and she will follow a new and healthful life.
Best Regards to all
I would like to switch my dog from prescription science diet z/d to raw but I am being told by my vets not to. Do you agree?
Nope. You’ll see an improvement almost immediately when you switch, except if you have an allergic dog with multiple allergies. That’s why z/d is often prescribed. There are no foods left that the dog doesn’t react wildly to, so they put them on protein sources that have been very manipulated to appear “novel.”
If that’s how he got on z/d, I’d recommend hiring a veterinary homeopath to cure the allergy state. See my Resources page for the AVH list.
Oh, and you’ll want to never vaccinate him again. That’s what made him sick in the first place. See Immune Confusion to learn more. And a series of vaccination pages.
How do I go about finding a homeopathic vet in the Sacramento, CA area? Is there a specific directory for them? I would like to check them out as we have a cat who has scabs that itch and we give him a natural flea treatment. I don’t find fleas on him and I don’t think it’s flea allergies but my sister insists it is. Thank you for any help.
You can search for a holistic vet on this site http://www.ahvma.org/ Choose Find a Vet, select your State, choose small animal, and if you’re looking for any specific modality you can select that too.
You can also search directly for a homeopathic vet on this site http://www.drpitcairn.com/referrals/
Hi Yvonne,
If it’s truly homeopathy you’re after, it’s best to search via the AVH list. You’ll find it arranged geographically, but more importantly, you’ll find it searchable for those vets who’ve dedicated most or all of their practice to this fine medical system.
Find that list on my Resources page, and do a few kinds of searches till you find what you want. Ultimately, locale is not the only means to work with a fine homeopath. Many of us work by telephone very effectively.
My journeys interesting. I was feeding kibble but wanted the best for my dog so I hired a vet nutritionist at tufts who ended up just giving me a list kid dry foods and prescription foods. I didn’t know about raw until a friend told me what he fed his dog and I got curious, brought it up to the nutritionist and was told mu dog is doing well, not to change anything and that raw was dangerous because of the pathogenic bacteria. Well i switched to raw anyway and my dog loved it at first but then got sick but it was because of ingredients she has a sensitivity to, it had nothing to do with raw but the vet blamed the raw. My dog was actually hospitalized with internal med trying to figure out why she lost weight and wouldn’t eat but they had no answers for me. It was sensitivities To oats, lentils, peas, white fish oil and more found in the dehydrated raw diet I fed. but before I knew it was sensitivities I just thought my dog was being stubborn so I waited her out and thought she would just eat when she’s hungry. She barely ate and so lost weight and hospitalized. they scared me back into feeding kibbles for a while but I knew it wasn’t good so I went back to a raw diet. I did Stella and Chewy’s for a while but again I think there were some aggravative ingredients in it. Sooo I went to Prey Model Raw. Strictly meat, organs and bones. Nothing else. My dog is now doing better than ever. I spent thousands at the vet. THOUSANDS! and got nothing. I had to figure it all out myself pretty much. And my dog has not had to go to the vet in like 8 months except for a wellness visit with a new vet who supports raw and minimal to no vaccinations and natural everything. My dog is very fit. Her coat is beautiful, she’s got great muscle tone. Her teeth are so so much better and her energy seems a lot more stable I don’t know how to describe it. Her eyes are clear too, she just has a different look in her eyes now. A good one. It costs me about $250 a month but I got another part time job to do it. Between expensive kibble and weekly vet visits that were costing hundreds of dollars each it is so worth it. My dog was always in a state of mild dehydration. Kibble is like cereal. It’s junk. And my dog didn’t drink much water anyway so she wants always getting fluids under the skin and meds for her tummy. No more. Life is good. If I couldn’t afford to feed raw I would supplement kibble the best I could. I realize some people can’t swing it and not judging anyone. I make it work. I certainly could be saving that $250 and putting in my bank and going with 98 cent cans of Purina chow like my dad does for his dog. Now he could afford raw but he is all about saving every penny he can and doesn’t see eye to eye with me on dog nutrition. To him his dog is happy even though it has lost all the hair on its back.. Everyone’s situation is different. To me, I just want to live comfortably and I will always own dogs and from now on I’ll only feed raw and do whatever it takes to be able to afford it. It means my dog doesn’t go to day care every day like she used to because I can’t afford that and raw. Daycare was like 500 a month. Now I just wake up earlier to walk her before work. And when I get home I walk her again. And on weekends I have time for hikes. I’m sure if I did raw myself I could do it cheaper but I like the convenience of having it planned and portioned for me. I use Reel Raw. ReelRaw.com I highly recommend!
Great story, Peter. I’m sure many can relate, especially having to tread this path on your own, Dr. WhiteCoat stuck to his kibbles and cans.
Even though it may seem like a lot to take on, I’d keep open to ways you might make this work homemade style. I’d recommend a visit with Lizzy Meyer, a wonderful holistic vet tech on my Resources page. She figures out how to make raw affordably and efficiently, depending on what’s available in your area and within your budget. She worked for me for a few years until she got so busy with her consulting biz she had to tend to it solely!
Best of luck in this. You’ve seen the benefits first hand of your commitment. Now, you should be able to bring the cost down substantially with a bit of guidance.
Once again my little JRT/border collie Jack has been a test case (last time was cruciate injury made exceedingly better by bone broth and manganese). He’s been fed raw since joining me 4.5 years ago, however I’d been adding a popular dehydrated food to ensure he had lots of other “extras” in case I was missing any. In January we were away, and I ran out of the dehydrated so we did without — just a veggie mash and lots of other extras plus raw. Well, lo and behold, within a few days, this little guy who’d been scratching off and on for 4.5 years, stopped! I’d attributed the scratching to be an anxiety thing since his previous owner said he’d done it with him too. I haven’t used any of this dehydrated/processed food since — and no itching!
Interesting, Joanne. The few dehyrdrated ones I’ve seen all looked pretty simple and pure. Which one was this?
Could you id an ingredient that you guessed might be an issue for him? Usually these foods are well made, just low heat dehydrated, so I’m a bit surprised at what the Keenan Laboratories have turned up here!
The food for “weight loss” NEVER made sense to me either. First – get the dog off carbs and feed him less food a day. If he still isnt losing weight it can be a medical issue like hypo-t. Yet people would rather just buy weight loss food and I have yet to meet a dog/cat who has lost weight on the food. Out of all foods manufactured, the prescription diets urk me the most because pet owners truly believ them the most and I see 10x a week people who claim “my dog/cat can only eat this food or he will get sicker”. Really sad.
Good observations, Destiny. I’d go a step further and inquire, “So tell me what improvements you’ve seen since feeding the Rx diet? They must be quite striking!”
Odds are, you’ll hear a lot of “ummm” and “ahhh” at that point.
Just can’t imagine a body rejoicing with a rebound to health by eating this poor quality (but expensive!) food.
Just recently found your web site. I had been reading a holistic Vet out of Canada. My little dog pound rat terrier was diagnosed with Pancreatitis two years ago. My Vet put her on prednisone and two special “anti rejection” prescriptions (that caused a personality change to agressive) for over a year. She did not start getting better until I finally found out how bad pet food is and started feeding her raw and boiled organic chicken and organic veggies and organic vitamins and minerals. I also gave her a product called Pancreatrophin PMG. The diet and the Pancreatropin PGM saved her life. I did not tell this to my Dr. White Coat. This little dog has been through the ringer for over two years now. She has been doing great for the past 6-8 months. “Boinging” around and happy! However, now she is getting lethargic again. Runs right out and eats grass and throws it right back up.
Eats anything! I have always thought it was bad habbits she had when we adopted her at about 3 y/o. I can’t go back to Dr. White Coat because they keep sending me a reminder that she needs her Rabies Vac. Their chemicals did not help her. Of course, now the US FDA or someone has put a stop on buying the Pancreatrophin PMG directly. I need to go to my Dr. Whitecoat to ask her to order it for me. Her blood work had been absolutely normal! However, I can’t even get that checked out now! I do have Pancreatrophin PMG on hand. Is this something that I should continue giving her as a precaution. I’m sorry if this is not the correct venue to ask this, but I don’t want this little girl with the mystery history (before we adopted her) to go too far down hill. ~ ~ ~ I must also state here that we seem to be in the bulls eye of the chemtrails and our grass seems to be damp most of the time because we hardly ever have sunshine. The dogs all come in licking their feet and bellies. I have acatually picked them right up and rinsed off their bellies and their feet and legs because I don’t want them ingesting these chemicals. Is their a detox bath or soak that I could use on her and the other two? It is not a pretty picture what is going on around here. Trees are dying, just about everyone is sick and on chemicals. Thank you for everything you are doing for our animals. Blessings,
Hey Linda,
Thanks for stopping by. If it’s difficult getting the Pancreatrophin, just write me via my Contact page and I’ll get you set up. No cost.
That alone probably isn’t going to cure her though. Support, yes, but not deep enough to cure chronic disease. That’s where homeopathy shines. I’d get a homeopathic vet on board, even if she/he is long distance. Then you’ll really see a restoration of health.
The best place to start is on my Resources page. Scroll down to find the AVH list there, and search for someone doing at least 75% homeopathy. All H is the best, there’s just fewer of us doing that.
All the best to you and her.
I was feeding our dogs what’s referred to as a B+ diet. The best of the bagged kibble. I was a tad lazy and not as laser-focused on my dogs’ perfect health as I am now. Making raw food for the dogs seemed like a foreign concept to me. Sometimes I’d purchase raw chicken necks from Bark n Purr but not often. I cared enough nough though to pay the extra price for the Flint River Ranch kibble.
When my older boy was stressed out because I was away for a month (even though I had wonderful, loving house sitters), he started to develop something that looked like IBD. He was vomiting on a fasting stomach every morning and was having bowel movements in the house at odd hours, which was totally not like him at all.
Dr. Falconer recommended that I start feeding him raw immediately. Anything for my boy, so we began feeding raw. That was 3 years ago. He’s now almost 9 years old and has never had another incident like those prior to the raw feeding. While he’s slowing down a bit (he weighs about 110 lbs, mostly muscle, very little fat if any), he’s glowing with health, his teeth are clean, his breath is sweet, his feces are small and turn white in a short while and blow away, his eyes are clear and shiny, and he’s the picture of health.
It’s hard to see that he can no longer jump up into the back of an SUV without assistance and he sleeps more than he did in the past, but he runs miles every day, gets plenty of sunshine, fresh air, filtered water, raw food, no vaccinations, flea or heartworm toxins, and lots and lots of love.
One thing I have to share is that when I’d feed him the kibble, he’d come over to his bowl, sniff the kibble and just stand there. He’d sniff it again and looked like he was thinking about what to do. (“Am I hungry enough to eat this shite?” “Is it worth the energy expenditure?”). Then he’d sigh and lay down, put his chin on the edge of the bowl for a minute or two. Then he’d eat some of it.
Now, with the raw, there’s no hesitation at all. As soon as I put it on the ground, he eats everything in his bowl and happily licks his chops when he finishes. What a difference!!!
Dr. Falconer has saved my dogs from the dangerous hamster wheel of conventional veterinary medicine. I am ever grateful for his courageous and informative counsel. Thank you, Dr. Will.
Oh, Elle, such a great verification of the power of changing things for a more Natural Path, eh? Bravo.
That story about his take on kibble vs raw is priceless!
Glad you kicked that hamster wheel under the bus. I salute you!
I make my dog’s food now. He developed a benign tumor a while ago that was surgically removed. The vet dismissed it as no “problem”. I now give him balanced organic and no more pricy Six Fish. I would never feed myself processed, food-like products, so why him? Friends question me and doubt I can feed him enough “nutrients”. They have been brainwashed by the industry and unenlightened vets. Amazing! My six year-old terrier mix is shiny, healthy and vibrant. I will never go back to junk food for my dog or myself. I also do titers. After three years he still has tons of antibodies. I am so grateful for alternative medicine. I have studied homeopathy and have seen the results with kids and adults. Now I am learning about dogs.
Nice, Lora. I admire your confident stance in what you see right before your eyes as a result of making sound decisions.
Carry on. Ripples will issue forth from your good works.
I have been using a Scalar Energy Tag for fleas and ticks for 3 years which has kept both critters at by in my woodsy environs so no need for any of the toxic remedies i used on past pups. I ‘d like to know what you think about these tags. Thank you!
Hi Ann,
I’m fine with them as long as people are seeing benefit and no harm. I’ve always been a bit wary of EM things that man constructs, but I hear people like these, so, what can I say? Too many other interests grabbing my attention to give any to these.
Hi doc!
As you know, I am a huge fan of yours. With regard to these diets, I refer to them as “synthetic diets” as the ingredients are nothing more than a dog’s version of Lucky Charms cereal. Mars is a manufacturer that gets some of their vitamin premix from China. Getting that info. out of them was exhausting. I asked about their ingredients. They told me about the “chicken” and “beef” as if they are trained to ignore the other garbage. I asked them about “every component that the food is made with” and they still didn’t get it. I them asked them about vitamin premix, colors, and binders.
Manufacturers avoid saying “China” at all costs. They will use terms like “international” or “Asia.” Some manufacturers won’t disclose what part of Asia. Are they talking about Iran? Pakistan? Wait… China – that’s in Asia, right???
Taurine is very expensive. It is cheapest in China so China is the go-to for synthetic vitamins. Japan is too expensive for their taurine as profits overshadow the importance of feeding and medicating our pets. I wrote an article about the trials and tribulations of accomplishing the task of finding the companies that use ingredients from China.
How can these vets even dream of synthetic diets for healthy dogs – let alone sick dogs?
Good point, Janie. And oodles of taurine in a natural raw diet. Just hard to profit from raw for these big guys. It’s not scalable and they know their buyers (conventional vets) are into raw food, so why bother?
If we learned nothing else from the melamine disaster coming from China, it that’s they cannot be trusted to do the honest work of making quality ingredients that are pure and trustworthy.