Questions

How do I control fleas holistically?

Parisitism is a disease of sick bodies in general. A vibrant young dog getting fed a homemade diet with lots of antioxidant vitamins does not tend to get many fleas. You may even notice that only one animal in the house tends to get all the fleas. This is because he is the sickest one. Many times, fleas are brought in by cats that go outside.

Did you know?

Recent evidence from FDA tests shows drugs used to kill animals are winding up in commercial pet food.
Please read the Allman Report documents below:

Fleas live on your pet only five percent of the time. They live in the environment ninety-five percent of the time. This is why flea baths or sprays on the animal or even collars are fairly ineffective. Spraying cats with chemicals has killed cats so please be careful. Focus on the environment is most important. Fleas live in carpets, floors, sofas, dog beds, and lawns.

Very few natural alternatives kill the fleas like chemicals. Sometimes Advantage or a similar topical product is the best way to get an infestation under control. I just recommend using these topical products once or twice. They all do impact your pet's liver. Fleas die when they come to get a poisoned blood meal. However, many pets do just fine receiving these topical flea products once in a while. No animal should suffer with fleas in this day in age.

Borax-like desiccation agents like Fleago, Fleabusters, etc. are a very effective way to safely kill all life cycles of the flea, not by poisoning them but instead by drying them out. You must remove houseplants and animals, vacuum and sprinkle and sweep the drying powder into the carpets or floors. Leave it down for five days and vacuum again. Throw out the vacuum cleaner bag.

Prevention is best way to manage fleas. The summer and fall are their peak seasons. Vacuuming and cleaning all linens very thoroughly every week is all you really would need to do. This includes inside sofas and all upholstery. Most of us are not that diligent. Hardwood floors are not safe! Fleas can live just fine in the small cracks.

Fleas can be prevented by using citrus peel sprays or shampoos and especially by improving the diet. Dr. Pitcarin's healthy powder or my vitamin powder mix is a great prevention because it makes the animal healthier overall. Click here for the recipe.

Casey

Casey is an Australian Shepherd
with epileptic seizures
and an arthritic hip.

Altogether over the years, she has had three gold bead implant surgeries.

Two to help the seizures and one for the hips. She still comes every two months for acupuncture too. Her seizures were a weekly and even daily nuisance and now she seizures once every six to ten weeks, with less intense and shorter episodes.

Epileptics are often worse in the Spring and Casey is no exception.

Bella

Bella is a nine year-old
English bulldog who still
acts like a puppy!

Like many bulldogs, she has had ligament problems and subsequent arthritis (which occurs with or without surgery) in both knees as well as allergies.

We used NAET to figure out which foods she is not allergic to and with regular monthly acupuncture as well as herbs, she enjoys a symptom free life!

The raw food controversy?

Clients read about the BARF or other raw food diets that are supposed to really help animals have more energy and overcome disease. Then often ask: Why do their pets occasionally get sick when switched over?

Instead of blaming the individual foods, holistic practitioners look at the health of your pet. Very few dogs that eat commercial pet food every day of their lives, can instantly be healthy on raw foods. Their bodies have been weakened; their flora or bacteria and their enzymes have been directed at how to best break down dog food. It takes weeks or months to retrain the body, to formulate the right enzymes, to rebuild healthy intestinal lining in order to break down raw foods.

I usually recommend that animals get switched to a home cooked diet first, then to raw if possible. This step-by-step process virtually eliminates nasty trips to the emergency clinic. Dogs on home-prepared foods should not vomit or have diarrhea.

I recommend raw meats or organs, cooked, soaked or sprouted grains and raw, pureed veggies for animals. I recommend turkey backs; chicken necks, ox tails or raw beef knuckle bones once to twice a week. This gives the intestinal tract time to "heal" between bone sessions. The amount of bones depends on each animal. Some old dogs cannot tolerate them often while younger animals can tolerate them and thrive on them every day. Some animals do well on grains; others do best on gluten free grains like millet, amaranth and quinoa; while others do best on potato. I tend not to recommend too much meat because I think a diet too high in phosphorus can strain the kidneys and liver. The most common mistake is not feeding enough calcium to balance out this phosphorus. Meat contains no calcium!