The Amazing Pet Profit Machine

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Maybe if I slip my can of Knowing Better in here, I can stop this damn machine…

Knowledge Stops This Machine Cold

Here’s a great business model (but one to avoid like the plague if you’ve got fur in the game!):

  1. Sell a product. We’ll call it Product #1. Better yet, give it away in a Special Package Plan you sell, so it looks like an amazing bargain. Brand the plan with the word “Wellness.”
  2. Tie into a profession that’s widely looked up to as purveyors of animal health who fully support this product. In fact, they push it as well, and make a good part of their bottom line by pushing it. (Hint: I’m in this profession. Sort of.)
  3. When Product #1 creates long term health problems, sell Product #2 that attempts to fix them. Make it expensive, “scientific,” high tech, and sold only by the animal health profession itself. At a high markup.
  4. Have Product #2 (“the fix”) in short supply. Demand will soar, so it’ll easily sell out at a high price.
  5. Deny Product #1 creates health challenges. Have the profession widely claim the opposite — “It prevents disease!” But explain how Product #2 will cure the disease (that Product #1 created).
  6. Smile all the way to the bank. You’ve made money creating a problem and then “fixing” the same problem!
  7. Rinse and repeat.

Now the reveal: What’s Product #1?

Vaccinations.

For everything imaginable.

Given as often as possible. Yearly or even every 6 months.

Combo wombo multiple vaccines mixed together in one syringe:

    • distemper
    • parvo
    • parainfluenza
    • lepto
    • hepatitis
    • toss in some kennel cough and Lyme.
    • maybe even push a rattlesnake vaccine.

But even one vaccination can get the machine cranking out its profits.

The Latest Machine Catching Your Animals

What’s Product #2?

There are two Product #2’s.

One of the latest on the scene: Apoquel.

We’ll get to the other #2 momentarily.

Apoquel has captured the minds (and pocketbooks!) of a huge segment of the dog owning public.

If you have a dog, and your dog has been under the vaccine needle, odds are high you’ll be enticed to climb into this machine called Apoquel.

Why?

Simply put, injecting a slew of viruses is a set up for what I call “immune confusion,” aka allergies.

Allergies are simply the wild over reaction to normal things.

      • A flea bite.
      • A bite of chicken.
      • A good romp in the grass.

What exactly is over reacting?

None other than your animal’s immune system.

“Confused” by the injection of multiple viruses, something that Nature has never designed defenses to withstand.

Do a little digging: If you have a too-itchy dog or cat or even horse, try to remember when this itch began.

If you need help, search your vet receipts or ask for your vet records.

Odds are very high, often 75%, that your animal started itching too much
about a month after a vaccination happened.

Another Profitable Version of the Machine

Variations of this business model live and thrive in many circles of society now, but here’s a second example of Product #2, purveyed by the Mars company.

Yep, the candy company now selling chicken feathers as protein, their idea of the best dog food: Royal Canin.

Unraveling the Scheme

So, who’s the Mars Company?

Purveyors of diabetes and cavities, through their Milky Way, Skittles, M & M’s and such.

And lately, purveyors of “animal health.”

Mars branched out in 2007 to own Banfield, The Pet Hospital. Who sells a “Wellness Plan” that includes “free vaccinations!” when you sign up.

Vaccinations often given twice a year.

Ahem.

You likely know that frequency of vaccination is excessive, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past twenty years.

And, you know it’s risky for your animals.

But know also that the profession here, conventional veterinary medicine, runs on this machine’s turnkey profits and Dr. WhiteCoat isn’t going to stop pushing vaccinations if he has any say in the matter.

Which he does.

He can do anything he wishes in the name of “professional judgment.”

And Banfield is a collection of corporate Dr. WhiteCoats, who vaccinate repeatedly.

Under the guise of “wellness.”

Now, through Mars’ subsidiary, Royal Canin, they’ll sell you a high end, laboratory made diet with this “novel protein” source: chicken feathers.

To cure the allergies they’ve created by repeatedly vaccinating every animal that comes through the doors of the Banfield machine.

Is your head starting to hurt, yet?

Drop Out, Quick!

You are the only one calling the shots for your animal’s health.

Sadie doesn’t vote.

She eats whatever you offer, goes to the vet when you say she’s going, and takes whatever you agree to in the name of “prevention” or treatment.

I submit that, unless you are keeping your eyes open and are willing to think outside the medicine box, your Sadie will become a casualty of this “wellness machine.”

If you follow this brand of “prevention,” it’s not a matter of “if my Sadie will get sick” but rather, “when.”

I’d hate to see you visiting your vet because you’ve got an allergic pet, one of the top three reasons the average consumer brought their dog in for veterinary services for well over a decade.

Because that’s a long, suffering road, with no cure in sight, if you stick to what Dr. WhiteCoat recommends.

There are far better options if you find yourself stuck in this profit machine. Click below to get my Apoquel Alternatives Report and start extricating yourself today.

Note: Current Vital Animal Pack members: a shortcut for you.
Visit Pack Home to get your copy.

I’m trusting you’ll be smarter now, and won’t get clothing or body parts or tails caught in this sinister profit machine. Choose your natural path carefully, eyes and ears wide open, learning all you can before making health decisions for your animals.

Some Brilliant Words for Dr. WhiteCoat

When you are in for an exam, and something is recommended to you, especially more vaccinations in one already vaccinated, try these words out:

Doctor, I’ve been studying this very closely. Unless you can prove otherwise, I don’t believe my animal needs more vaccinations!”

Wow. See how you just took control of that situation? Powerful stuff.
Tell us in the comments below if you’ve gotten pinched by this profit machine in the past. Extra credit for tips on artfully getting unstuck!

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23 Comments

  1. Patti on July 10, 2016 at 9:40 am

    I’m so glad to have found your site! I’ve been lucky enough to have found an integrative veterinarian in our new home; we are running titers for rabies and will be doing for my dogs other vaccinations in the future. We feed her a freeze dried raw with veggies and fruits and use only herbal insect repellents. I’m planning to read your info on heartworm too- although our vet says she advises year round topical meds due to the climate in SC we have only used it when temps exceed 57 for 2 week, and I only apply every 45 days which is what they tested per FDA site info. I also bathe after 90 min to remove the residual insecticide in this med (advantage multi). If I could avoid doing this it would make me feel better. Thank you for all the great info.

  2. Cynthia Barnes on July 7, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    How can I get information on switching from a hydrolyzed protein diet to a raw diet or home cooked diet and which do you prefer?

  3. nancy brown on July 6, 2016 at 3:58 pm

    The Pet profit machine is alive and well for sure Dr. Will, and is the main reason many vets continue to prescribe drug after drug and vaccinate, despite the obvious adverse effects in their patients.
    When I brought home my new pup 11 years ago I had no idea which vet in town to go to. A neighbour highly recommended a local vet I’ll call Dr. C.
    I went to her for my pup’s 2nd set of shots (yes, it’s true:() but was not impressed with her manner toward me, though she gushed all over my pup (cuter I guess..).
    I also noticed she had the highest prices in town, so I switched to another vet I liked much better.
    Over the years since then, when I have talked to pet owners about their animal’s health (or lack thereof), I am flabbergasted that this particular Dr. C is the vet of choice, despite many other vets in our area to choose from. I have come to describe her as a “drug pusher” since every pet owner who goes to her ends up being prescribed something, or pushed to vaccinate regularly. She even told one client that she was “required by law to vaccinate her dog for rabies” despite the fact that we have no such law here (a Canadian province which doesn’t require it)!
    Ears repeatedly itchy and infected? My friend’s dog had antibiotics prescribed by Dr. C again and again. Could it be the dog’s (kibble) food that might be a problem, I suggested to my friend? It wasn’t until their dog had endured multiple rounds of antibiotics that they finally suggested to this vet it might be the food and she agreed they should change it. Presto! The dog’s ears finally cleared up. Mind you, now there’s that little yeast problem to deal with.
    In another friend’s case, allergies were diagnosed at 6 months of age and the dog was put on a drug for 7 years until the owner discovered from another vet that the drug had a high risk of causing cancer. Are you telling me that Dr. C wasn’t aware of this, or the many other serious side effects of this particular drug?? Now my friend’s dog is on raw food and herbs and the allergies have disappeared. I guess that latter approach wouldn’t have netted Dr. C much in the way of income.
    This same vet is always quoted in the local newspaper when there’s a parvo (or other) outbreak, admonishing those negligent owners who haven’t vaccinated their pets (oh and by the way, just go straight to her for those shots, and she’ll even help you out with more drugs when your pet becomes ill from the effects of those shots….cha-ching!).
    I could go on with more examples but I think I have made my point.
    I have to say my eyes have been opened. When I look back at how I fed that profit machine by blindly going along with whatever my vet recommended, I cringe.
    I now see that many of the things I did to keep my dog “healthy” (the kibble, the shots, the drugs) were likely big contributors to his poor health and early demise.
    But eyes open is the way I have now chosen to go and my current pup is having an excellent start to her life.
    Thanks Dr. Will for choosing the path you have and helping the rest of us along the way.

  4. Paul on July 4, 2016 at 8:04 am

    I rescued Rusty last August and he was in bad shape when the shelter found him. The SPCA vet diagnosed him with atopic dermatitis (cause unknown) and said he might also be allergic to fleas. They gave him 4 rounds of antibiotics along with steroids over a 2 month period. I started him on daily EPA/DHA fish oil and probiotics. Once the first frost arrived his dermatitis disappeared, which suggested to me that he had seasonal allergies. He was healthy throughout the winter months with no signs of dermatitis.
    When spring arrived Rusty started to scratch and bite again, although no as bad as before. I took him to the vet and Apoquel was recommended as a miracle drug – suggesting that his itching would stop within 4 hours of his first pill. Yup. The itching stopped, but by day 10 I had a different dog – paranoid, not eating, restless at night and experiencing diarrhea in the house. I immediately stopped the medication and returned to the vet to get my money back (which hasn’t happened yet).
    Of course the vet said this was the “first time” they’ve ever heard of this type of reaction, and then she recommended two things: Royal Canin dog food and a $500 dermatology test to determine what he was allergic to. I declined both.
    Instead, I have been applying colloidal silver to his itchy spots (twice a day) and started him on a supplement containing bovine colostrum (as recommended by your website) to boost his immune system.
    Rusty is back! And although he still has 2 or 3 little spots on his skin, they are healing and he is one happy dog! I have been treating myself naturally for almost ten years, so why not Rusty! Thank you for your insight and advocacy regarding healthy dogs!

    • Will Falconer, DVM on July 4, 2016 at 9:24 am

      Nice, Paul, especially challenging with a rescue, whose history often includes so many vaccinations, some while “under” for a neutering that further challenges their homeostasis.
      Rusty: a lucky dog!

  5. Adele on July 3, 2016 at 8:27 pm

    One of my dogs got pancreatitis some years ago. Was told she had to be on a low fat diet. Only the vet sold the correct products, I was informed. They cost a fortune, but I paid the price. When I retired I could not afford the food from the vet anymore, so I hunted around, only to find that regular supermarkets were selling dog food that was lower in fat than the ones from the vet, and half the price. Beware, don’t believe anything. Heartworm isn’t even in Melbourne Australia, but plastic models of hearts with worms pouring out, adorne every vet clinic! I never have my dogs vaccinated apart from initial ones, they are really healthy. Beware, beware, beware unsuspecting animal lover!

    • Will Falconer, DVM on July 4, 2016 at 4:49 am

      Plastic hearts, Adele? A pale comparison to what the drug reps bring us in America: Real dog hearts, in a jar of formalin, cut open to reveal a mass of worms. Cha-ching!
      (Of course, no vet clinic advertises the fact that the heart was a street dog’s in Mexico, barely surviving on what ever garbage it could scrounge up to eat.)
      Just one of Big Pharma’s victories over the minds of pet owners. So, yeah, beware is a good strategy when it comes to the drug pushers.

  6. Stormy Wynter on July 3, 2016 at 8:05 pm

    Forgot to mention. His reception area, one wall covered with packages of Royal Canin!

  7. Sandy Barringer on July 3, 2016 at 7:58 pm

    Hey, all,
    I am in the process of converting all 4 of my cats to a raw diet. No more vaccinations. I have two cats that I’m sure have a flea allergy from the vaccinations. Thanks, Doc for being here for us.

    • Will Falconer, DVM on July 4, 2016 at 9:22 am

      Way to step out, Sandy! We’re glad you’re here. All bets in: you’ll see nice improvements before the month is out.

  8. Stormy Wynter on July 3, 2016 at 7:47 pm

    The vet I chose in my town (close) of course a conventional vet. He emails me regularly about my dogs ears (inserts her name) may need (and names drug) for her ears, and bring her in if she has these symptoms etc.. he repeatedly emails me about this, pushing the drug. The one that really made me laugh was: you need to make an appointment for (inserts my dog’s name) by the end of June. She is due for her DHPP (at least they took the ‘L’ out!) I have NO plans to ever vaccinate my dog again!! I ignore all the emails. However, if they should make the mistake of calling me, they will get an ear load!!! I remember the good old days (not) when got post cards in the mail. I have a funny story to relate, I got a post card once in my NAME saying I was due for my DHLPP booster, it was from a local vet, when I was living in KY. I was in between pets at the time, and got a good laugh that they mistook me for a dog! Haha!

  9. Will Falconer, DVM on June 24, 2013 at 4:52 pm

    You got it, Elle. Just haven’t run into the model: create and SELL the problem, profit from it, then create and sell the solution, profit from that, too. It’s genius, and evil.
    Glad your raw white boy is doing so well. And now a puppy white guy to join him! Sounds like a happy home front.
    Thanks for stopping by, Elle.

  10. Elle on June 24, 2013 at 3:25 pm

    The model they follow is problem/reaction/solution…they create the problem, then use the media to provoke and create a public reaction, then they step in with the solution. It works every time. And will continue to work…until people start waking up.
    I believe it’s happening, but for me, at a snail’s pace.
    If anyone’s seen FOOD INC, they’ll know that only a few companies control all the food and that would include animal food, as well. Thank goodness you recommended a raw diet for my boy. He’s healthier than ever, as a result.

  11. popply on June 24, 2013 at 8:46 am

    i agree about the words to try out on our vets. i have found that by doing just that, my traditional vet and i have created a true partnership when it comes to my pets’ care. i would like to say i’ve opened his mind a bit, too.

    • Will Falconer, DVM on June 24, 2013 at 8:56 am

      I’m glad that’s worked for you, Popply. All too often, clients feels pressured to say yea or nay right on the spot, in front of Dr. WhiteCoat. So rarely it’s an emergency, that this decision can often wait to be made.
      Then, you can discuss it with your pack, read more about it, decide in a peaceful state of mind.

  12. Dr Mary Traverse on June 24, 2013 at 8:10 am

    Great article on the horrors that are out there for our critters. These corporate connections to creating and then treating the resulting disease need to be brought to public attention. It’s been happening to us for some time—-now the poor animals are catching up. One example in the human realm is the Astra Zeneca company, manufacturer of agricultural chemicals (a certain cause of breast cancer), also makers of tamoxifen, the breast cancer drug, and more recently, a line of cancer treatment centers. Isn’t that just one neat package?

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