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

Last updated on January 28, 2019 By Will Falconer, DVM 104 Comments

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?

Last updated on August 6, 2018 By Will Falconer, DVM 39 Comments

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

Last updated on July 1, 2018 By Will Falconer, DVM 36 Comments

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

Stop Vaccinating Your Seniors, Already!

Last updated on September 1, 2019 By Will Falconer, DVM 28 Comments

One Shot Over the Line, Sweet Jesus

I went through this exact thing with my lab, Chuck, my ❤ dog. He was diagnosed in August 2012 with LP then DM 2 months later. Acupuncture and water therapy gave me 8 months I don’t think I would have had. When he could no longer move his back end without help, I let him go. He was 13. My heart is still broken. –Cindi, in our comments

What Cindi is speaking of is getting her 13 year old vaccinated (he was “due,” according to her vet).

LP? Laryngeal paralysis. Lost his normal voice, and Chuck’s breathing got noisy.

DM? Degenerative myelitis. Basically, paralyzed from the waist down.

I hear variations of this way more often than I’d like.

They make me cringe.

Cringe for your animals getting steamrolled by conventional vets.
Cringe for you, following Dr. WhiteCoat’s instructions and seeing your animal fall apart.
Cringe for my profession who, if they don’t know better, are causing harm.
Cringe even more for my colleagues who DO know better but let the siren song of easy income entice them to vaccine injure your seniors.

Probiotics: Quick Fix for Antibiotic Damage?

Last updated on June 13, 2018 By Will Falconer, DVM 24 Comments

Sound too easy?

I get quite a spectrum of comments on this blog, from the occasional skeptic to a frustrated pet owner who’s getting disrespected by Dr. WhiteCoat, to a handful of drug-enamored folks who aren’t even waiting for the other shoe to drop as they suppress their dog’s symptoms with the latest, greatest from Big Pharma.

But this one caught my eye and got whisked into Evernote, as it’s from a doctor, and it’s dangerously optimistic in an area I have serious concerns about:

The all too common over use of antibiotics.

See what you think:

My dog had erhlichiosis (sic) confirmed on blood test. We gave her doxycycline and she regained use of paralyzed back leg. Just give probiotics and grain free diet to combat the GI effects of meds.

Beep! Beep! Beep!! (the sound of my B.S. detector going off in my head)…
[Read more…] about Probiotics: Quick Fix for Antibiotic Damage?

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

Use Titer Testing Wisely. Save Money and Serious Illness

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

Apoquel and The Danger of Either/Or Thinking