Vital Animal § The Natural Path

Unconventional Wisdom For Naturally Healthy Animals

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On The Importance of Thinking Different

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The Value of Making a Ruckus

Thinking different isn’t always easy. But it can be ever so valuable.

A personal story surfaced recently in the midst of opening a course to new students. The memories helped me to remember that, when the going is a bit rocky, the ground is set for change that can have a wide positive impact.

And, we have a choice: to shake things up, challenge the status quo, or keep our mouths shut and stay within the established norm.

I’ll relate my 11th hour mind shift in a bit, to see if perhaps you’ll be inspired to shift your own mind. My 180 turned out to have saved a whole lot of suffering and expense for pets and their people, though I had no idea till years later.

Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of human kind as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or it is nothing at all.

— Helen Keller [Read more…] about On The Importance of Thinking Different

Itchy Skin Update: Still #1 Dog Disease

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Summer’s Here. Itchy Skin Ramps Up (Again).

Itchy skin prompted the most visits of dogs to veterinarians in 2012 and again in 2017.

The 2012 count was true for the prior decade so, as of 2018, this man-made disease has been your most common plague for over 15 years!

The more recent data from Pets Best Insurance add to the “surprising” news from DVM magazine five years earlier.

[Read more…] about Itchy Skin Update: Still #1 Dog Disease

[Updated] Are You Making These 7 Dangerous Mistakes With Titers?

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Use Titer Testing Wisely. Save Money and Serious Illness

Okay, I’ll be honest. I’m worried about your understanding of titer testing. There have been a whole lot of comments on Facebook and elsewhere where I’m seeing I need to help you get more clarity.

Clearly, you are interested in this idea. Bravo!

But you really need to be smart about this if titers are going to serve you.

Misunderstanding them could cost you money.

Or worse: your animal’s health. That’s what brings me here. [Read more…] about [Updated] Are You Making These 7 Dangerous Mistakes With Titers?

6 of 10 People See Only Two Choices for Itchy Skin. Are You One of Them?

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Apoquel and The Danger of Either/Or Thinking

Too many of you seem to be stuck in some variation of this illogic I’m calling “either/or thinking,” from reading your comments in this blog:

I’ve EITHER got to let my dog suffer this horrible itch (skin or ears or both) OR give him these horrible Big Pharma drugs with side effects.

I’m gonna be kind. Itching all the time sucks for both of us. I’m getting him on Apoquel or Cytopoint despite what I’ve read and we’ll just have to see what the outcome is long term. He can’t go on this way!

Part of me screams inside when I read comments like this.

And they are coming a bit too frequently, especially on two popular articles pertaining to itchy skin and the latest, greatest drugs being pushed on you:

Apoquel: Dog Miracle Drug With a Dark Side

Cytopoint: High Tech Answer to Your Itchy Dog?

Here’s just a recent example, from the comments on my Apoquel post, linked above. [Read more…] about 6 of 10 People See Only Two Choices for Itchy Skin. Are You One of Them?

Your Dying Animal: 10 Ways to Help

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Easing the Death Process

Dying Happens. Dogs, cats, horses, humans, bees and bacteria: all who are born will one day die.

Thems the rules down here on the planet.

The Vedas, the timeless wisdom of India, are even more specific:

When a soul incarnates (enters a body), the time of death is predetermined.

That understanding takes a lot of hubris out of caring for the dying!

It’s ultimately not in our hands to extend life (all the cryo madness aside), but you can do many things to make that final transition out of the current body a lot easier.

Here are ten. [Read more…] about Your Dying Animal: 10 Ways to Help