April 2005
The Anatomy of the Canine Kidney
Subscribers Only Bone health is reliant upon healthy kidneys in at least two ways. First, vitamin D is necessary for the utilization of calcium, and the activated form of vitamin D is produced in the kidney. Second, normal kidneys excrete phosphorous; chronic renal failure may lead to excessive retention of phosphorous, which in turn causes an imbalance between calcium and phosphorous.
Assistance Dogs
Have you ever watched an assistance dog work? On the campus of the Virginia university where I attended graduate school, I often crossed paths with a student who used a wheelchair, accompanied by her assistance dog, a lovely Golden Retriever. They went to classes, visited the snack bars and cafeteria, hung out in the student lounges, and hoofed it all around campus together.
Hydrosols Used in Canine Aromatherapy
Subscribers Only Most essential oils used in aroma-therapy are obtained by steam distillation, at the end of which a small amount of essential oil is extracted from a large amount of water. But that isn’t just any water, for the liquid that condenses after steam drives volatile material from blossoms, stems, leaves, fruit, roots, or seeds is itself an aromatic substance with significant healing properties.
Teaching Your Dog To Greet People Without Jumping
Subscribers Only Week 2 of my Peaceable Paws Good Manners class, I ask the question, “How many of your dogs jump up on people?” Generally at least 80 percent of the dog owners in class raise their hands. “Why do they jump up?” I ask. I usually get at least one incorrect answer of “Dominance!” but most of my students realize their dogs jump up for attention. And because much of the time the behavior is successful, it’s a challenging one to extinguish.
Pet Food Conpanies On Trial
Subscribers Only There are all sorts of other laboratory research studies conducted by the larger pet food manufacturers that push the envelope of “humaneness.” Some companies perform (or order a “contract lab” to perform) studies that call for a disease or health problem to be induced in a population of test dogs, such as a damaged kidney or cardiac problem. Then various nutritional approaches to improving the condition are tried. Some of these tests also require euthanasia and postmortem studies of the dogs; feeding trials and metabolic studies do not.
Pets and PETA
Subscribers Only by Nancy Kerns Criticizing an organization that accomplishes good things on behalf of beings with no resources with which to help themselves – why would I want to do that? Actually, I hadn’t meant to – yet. In the February issue, I mentioned that it had come to my attention that someone in the pet food industry was spreading a rumor that WDJ and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) were somehow in alliance.…
