Last month’s aromatherapy article (“Aromatherapy for Dogs“) introduced therapeutic shampoos, spritzes, and massage oils. If you and your dog tried any of the wonderful products recommended there, you may be ready to buy some essential oils and try your own custom blending for maximum effects.
Welcome to canine aromatherapy. According to Kristen Leigh Bell, author of Holistic Aromatherapy for Animals, “It’s hard to imagine a condition that can’t be prevented, treated, improved, or even cured with the help of essential oils.”
Bell mentions dozens of health problems that have resolved with the help of aromatherapy, from allergies to anxiety, bad breath to burns. It’s a fascinating branch of holistic medicine.
Essential oils, the foundation of aromatherapy, are the volatile substances of aromatic plants. They are collected, usually by steam distillation, from leaves, blossoms, fruit, stems, roots, or seeds. The water that accompanies an essential oil during distillation is called a hydrosol or flower water. Hydrosols contain trace amounts of essential oil and are themselves therapeutic. Other production methods include solvent extraction (a solvent removes essential oil from plant material and is then itself removed), expression (pressing citrus fruit), enfleurage (essential oils are absorbed by fat for use in creams), and gas extraction (room-temperature carbon dioxide or low-temperature tetrafluoroethane gas extracts the essential oil and is then removed). Each method has something to recommend it for a specific plant or type of plant.
However they are collected, essential oils are highly concentrated. To produce one pound of essential oil requires 50 pounds of eucalyptus, 150 pounds of lavender, 400 pounds of sage, or 2,000 pounds of rose petals. No wonder they’re expensive!
It’s not the fragrance that imparts the medicinal or active properties of aromatic essential oils but the chemicals they contain. Essential oils can contain antibacterial monoterpene alcohols or phenylpropanes, stimulating monoterpene hydrocarbons, calming esters or aldehydes, irritating phenols, stimulating ketones, anti-inflammatory sequiterpene alcohols, antiallergenic sesquiterpene hydrocarbons, and expectorant oxides.
Plants are complex chemical factories, and a single plant may contain several types of chemicals. In addition, each chemical category may have several different effects. Aromatherapy is a modern healing art, and the therapeutic quality of essential oils are still being discovered. In other words, aromatherapy is a complex subject that deserves careful study and expert guidance.
Start with Lavender
What essential oil should you start with? Everyone’s favorite is lavender, Lavandula angustifolia, a powerful disinfectant, deodorizer, and skin regenerator. It helps stop itching and has psychological benefits; it’s both calming and uplifting. Lavender is one of the few essential oils that can safely be used “neat” or undiluted, though dilution is recommended for most pet applications.
Here are a dozen things to do with a therapeutic-quality lavender essential oil:
1) Diffuse it in the room with an electric nebulizing diffuser (available from aromatherapy supply companies).
2) Add 10 to 20 drops to a small spray bottle of water and spritz it around the room. Be careful to avoid wood or plastic surfaces and your dog’s eyes.
3) Place a drop on your dog’s collar, scarf, or bedding.
4) Place two drops in your hand, rub your palms together, and gently run your hands through your dog’s coat.
5) Add 15 to 20 drops to 8 ounces (one cup) of unscented natural shampoo, or add a drop to shampoo as you bathe your dog.
6) Add two to five drops to a gallon of final rinse water and shake well before applying (avoid eye area).
7) Place a single drop on any insect or spider bite or sting to neutralize its venom (avoid eye area; dilute before applying near mucous membranes).
8) Add 12 to 15 drops to one tablespoon jojoba, hazelnut, or sweet almond oil for a calming massage blend.
9) Place a drop on a dog biscuit for fresher breath.
10) Add 15 to 20 drops to a half-cup of unrefined sea salt, mix well, and store in a tightly closed jar. To make a skin-soothing spray or rinse for cuts or abrasions, dilute one tablespoon of the salt in a half-cup of warm water.
11) Mix one teaspoon vegetable glycerine (available in health food stores) with one teaspoon vodka. Add 15 drops lavender essential oil, and add two ounces (four tablespoons) distilled or spring water to make a soothing first-aid wipe, ear cleaner, or wound rinse. Saturate a cotton pad, mist from a spray bottle, or apply directly to cuts or scrapes.
12) To remove fleas while conditioning your dog’s coat, wrap several layers of gauze or cheesecloth around a slicker or wire brush, leaving an inch or more of bristles uncovered. Soak the brush in a bowl of warm water to which you have added 10 to 12 drops of lavender essential oil, and brush the dog. Rinse and repeat frequently, removing hair, fleas, and eggs.
You can also blend lavender with other essential oils for a limitless variety of applications. Bell’s favorites for pet use are listed in the sidebar “Top 20 Essential Oils for Use With Pets.” “With these oils,” she says, “you can address a variety of common ailments: treat wounds; clean ears; stop itching; calm and soothe; deodorize; and repel fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes.”
Let Your Dog Pick an Essential Oil
Colorado aromatherapist Frances Fitzgerald Cleveland does more than consider which essential oils will work; she lets canine patients make the final selection.
“For any condition, there are several essential oils that would help,” says Cleveland. “For example, a dog who suddenly becomes afraid of loud noises and needs a calming oil would be helped by lavender, rose, violet leaf, basil, Roman chamomile, yarrow, or vetiver. But before giving her anything, let her smell each oil. I usually do this by offering the cap. If she runs to the other side of the room or turns her head away, that’s not the right oil to use. Don’t force it on her. Wait for her to find an oil she’s interested in, that she wants to smell more of. She may even try to lick the cap.”
Once you’ve found an essential oil that will treat the problem and that agrees with your dog, Cleveland suggests blending it with an easily digested vegetable oil, such as cold-pressed safflower oil. “Fill a five-millilter bottle (which holds about one teaspoon) with the vegetable oil and add three to five drops of the essential oil. Now put a few drops on your fingertips and offer your hand to her. She might lick it off your fingers. Then apply a couple of drops to her paws and to a bandana scarf tied around her neck.
“It’s fascinating to watch how these animals respond,” Cleveland continues. “I’ve seen it work with my own animals and with clients’ animals, and I’ve had an opportunity to work with orangutans and gorillas at the Denver Zoo. For all animals, but especially those who have been abused or who have never had an opportunity to make their own decisions in life, this approach is exciting because they get to choose, they get to say yes or no. Listening to what your dog has to say is important, plus it’s a great way to bond. You’re not doing anything threatening, you’re doing something helpful and healing, and the animals respond.”
Essential Oil Blending Secrets
Selection in hand, you can blend a massage oil, coat spray, or other product that your dog will readily accept.
Essential oils can be diluted in vegetable carrier oils, preferably organic and cold-pressed, such as apricot kernel, coconut, hazelnut, jojoba, olive, sesame, sweet almond, or sunflower oil. The general rule for canine use is to mix one teaspoon carrier oil with three to five drops essential oil or one tablespoon (½ ounce) carrier oil with 10 to 15 drops essential oil. Use standard measuring spoons, not tableware, to measure carrier oils; use an eyedropper or a bottle’s built-in dispenser to measure drops. There are about 20 drops in 1 milliliter (ml), 15 drops in ¼ teaspoon, and 60 drops in a teaspoon of most essential oils.
Essential oils can be mixed with water, but they will not dissolve. One way to dissolve essential oils in water is to add them to a small amount of grain alcohol, vodka, sulfated castor oil (also called Turkey red castor oil), vegetable glycerin, or any combination of these ingredients. Then add water, herb tea, aloe vera juice, hydrosol, or other liquid.
Because essential oils don’t dissolve in water, they can’t be rinsed away. If a drop of essential oil ever lands where it shouldn’t, such as in your eye – or worse, your dog’s eye – use a generous amount of carrier oil to remove it. Always keep vegetable oil and paper towels or soft cloths on hand for this type of emergency.
-CJ Puotinen is author of The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care (Keats/McGraw-Hill) and Natural Remedies for Dogs and Cats (Gramercy/Random House). She wrote the foreword for Kristen Leigh Bell’s Holistic Aromatherapy for Animals.
The dog respiratory system or any respiratory system functions rather miraculously. Vital for life, critical for the health of the whole body, it’s one of the major ways the dog’s body unites his external environment with his inner milieu. As a primary site of contact with the outer world, the lungs are susceptible to diseases that can be caused by any airborne germ, irritant, or toxin that happens to be floating around.
Holistic practitioners understand that respiratory symptoms can be an indication of disease or a sign of healing – the key is differentiating between the two. Some alternative and complementary medicines have proven to be beneficial for many respiratory conditions, especially mild diseases and those that have become chronic.
Architecture of respiration
In addition to the nose, larynx, and pharynx (which were discussed in detail in “Know the Nose,” WDJ November 2004), the respiratory system consists of the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, alveoli, and the parenchymal tissue of the lungs.
From the trachea to the alveoli, a map of the lungs would look like a tree – each branch dividing into many, ever-smaller branches until the end point of several million alveoli is reached. Each alveoli is a round receptacle where gas exchange occurs via contact of the inspired air with blood across an extremely thin layer of tissue surrounding the alveolar capillaries.
The respiratory system performs several functions. Its most important utility is to act as a gas exchange: it delivers oxygen for distribution to the body, and removes carbon dioxide produced by living cells. In addition, the respiratory system filters out particulate matter, maintains the body’s acid-base balance, acts as a blood reservoir, protects its own delicate airways by warming and humidifying inhaled air, and is active in producing substances that initiate the immune system response. The upper airways also provide for the sense of smell and play a role in temperature regulation in panting animals.
Normal respiratory rates vary, depend-ing on the size of the dog, from 10 to 30 breaths per minute; larger dogs have slower rates. Panting – a rapid, open-mouthed, and shallow breathing pattern – is a normal canine reaction, brought on by exercise and/or the need to cool the body.
In the healthy animal, particulate matter and the small amounts of mucus that are normally generated are removed by cilia (minute hairs that line the trachea and bronchi) and coughed up or swallowed. Many microorganisms live in the normally healthy respiratory system; their pathogenicity is held in check by local and systematic immune factors.
According to Western medical practitioners, disease of the respiratory system occurs when irritants greatly increase the amount of mucus produced (in excess of what the animal can expel naturally), when the immune system allows for attachment and growth of pathogenic microorganisms, or when local cells are stimulated to become malignant (from excess exposure to carcinogenic toxins, for example).
Alternative view
Traditional healers have long respected the healing power of correct breathing, and their ways of thinking about the respiratory system reflect this understanding.
For many cultures the breath is equivalent to the Qi (pronounced “chee” and often spelled chi) or Prana (vital force) that circulates throughout the body and gives it life and vitality. From this view, respiratory disease may be considered the result of a weakened protective Qi – from a deficiency of Lung Qi production or dissemination.
In most Eastern cultures (and some other cultures) considerable attention is paid to helping people stay healthy by teaching them proper breathing methods – through various forms of meditation, postures (yoga asanas), and active or passive exercises meant to enhance proper breathing.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine the lungs are thought to regulate the Qi of the entire body; a disharmony of the lungs can produce deficient Qi or stagnant Qi anywhere in the body.
The Chinese herbal mixture “Jade Screen” – which includes astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus) – and acupressure points are often used by traditional Chinese medical practitioners to strengthen both Lung and protective Qi. These practitioners also credit the lungs with helping to move moisture through the body. Disharmonies of the lungs’ water-moving function, they say, can result in urinary dysfunction, edema (especially in the upper body), or problems with perspiration. A dog with robust lung health will have a bright, shiny coat and will be resistant to developing colds, persistent coughs, and other aggravating illnesses.
Signs of disease
Any kind of practitioner would recognize coughing as a first sign of respiratory dis-ease. A sudden onset of coughing may be a dramatic indicator of serious disease – pneumonia, secondary symptoms of other viral diseases such as distemper, or lung tumors – or not-so-serious disease, such as common colds or kennel cough.
There are also more subtle signs to watch for, and since some of these signs may be related to either heart or lung problems, it is important to differentiate between the two. Exercise intolerance is the most prominent of these signs. A dog will demonstrate this by lagging back during her daily walks; wheezing, gasping, and straining for air when she is forced to exercise, when she climbs a flight of stairs, or jumps up on your bed; and she may tend to sit in an elbows-out posture. Exercise intolerance and the accompanying signs listed above are the classic symptoms of heart disease, and whenever they are seen, it is time for a visit to the veterinarian.
The same symptoms as those seen with heart disease, however, may also be a sign of aging. Some experts believe that the respiratory system declines in efficiency by up to 50 percent over a lifetime. Bronchial passages constrict, fibrous tissue in lungs increases, and the functional capacity of the alveoli is reduced. In addition, many dogs, over the years, have been exposed to lung damage caused by inhaled allergens, foreign bodies, and microorganisms – all of which can decrease functional lung capacity.
Your dog should visit his vet at least once a year for an annual physical – perhaps twice a year after he’s reached about seven years of age. Use a veterinarian who takes the time to put a stethoscope to the dog’s heart and chest to listen for abnormal sounds. If there is some question about the functional capacity of your dog’s heart or lungs, further testing such as radiographs or an EKG may be indicated.
My own feeling is that the annual physical is absolutely necessary, to monitor how the dog is doing on a yearly basis. Please note that an annual vaccine is absolutely unnecessary, although this is the reason many vets give for seeing your dog every year. In my opinion, it is time for those of us in the veterinary profession to concentrate on the annual physical exam rather than on selling vaccines.
Kennel cough and colds
The two most common afflictions of the respiratory system are the “common cold” and kennel cough. Both of these ailments are usually instigated by any of a number of viruses, often followed by secondary bacterial invasion. The severity of the symptoms varies widely, but in most “colds” they are mild and include wheezing, coughing, reluctance to move, and perhaps a mild fever.
Kennel cough (a.k.a. infectious tracheobronchitis), on the other hand, can produce symptoms that appear extreme, with a dry, hacking cough accompanied by frequent, intense gagging. I’ve had caretakers rush their kennel-coughing dog in to see me, thinking he has a bone caught in his throat. Despite its appearance, a typical case of kennel cough is not life-threatening, and it tends to run its course in a few days to a week or so. But it is a disease that is frustrating for pet and caretaker alike.
Kennel cough results from inflammation of the upper airways. The instigating pathogen may be any number of irritants, viruses, or other microorganisms, or the bacteria Bordetella bronchiseptica may act as a primary pathogen. The prominent clinical sign is paroxysms of a harsh, dry cough, which may be followed by retching and gagging. The cough is easily induced by gentle pressure applied to the larynx or trachea.
Kennel cough should be expected whenever the characteristic cough suddenly develops 5 to 10 days after exposure to other dogs – especially to dogs from a kennel (especially a shelter) environment. Usually the symptoms diminish during the first five days, but the disease may persist for up to 10-20 days. Kennel cough is almost always more annoying (to dog and her caretaker) than it is a serious event.
Other diseases of the respiratory system
Pneumonia is inflammation of the lungs with consolidation (hardening) of the tissues, and this inflammation can be from any number of sources – viral, bacterial, fungal, trauma-induced, or as the consequence of an allergic reaction. Oftentimes the initial stimulus for inflammation comes from airborne toxins – cigarette smoke, city smog, fumes from household cleansers, and outgassing from numerous sources such plastic food dishes or the formaldehyde found in household insulation, new carpets, and furniture.
Pneumonia is not a common malady in dogs, and when it occurs, the symptoms may vary from mild to extreme; in severe cases the disease can be life-threatening. If your dog has extreme difficulty breathing, or if he has stopped eating and is very reluctant to move, it’s time to see the vet. Antibiotics and supplemental oxygen can be lifesaving at this stage.
Likewise, neither asthma nor emphy-sema are common problems in dogs, although they do occasionally occur. Asthma is a condition that causes recurrent bouts of wheezing and respiratory distress due to constriction of the bronchi, and is often allergy-induced. Emphysema is an abnormal accumulation of air in the spaces between the alveoli of the lungs. Both conditions can be difficult to diagnose correctly, often requiring radiographs to determine the extent of damage.
Any dog who demonstrates periodic bouts of respiratory distress or who has had a chronic problem with breathing should be taken to a veterinary hospital for further evaluation. Holistic veterinarians (including me) have had excellent success treating asthma using acupuncture, coupled with immune-system boosters and other herbs to aid breathing.
Trauma that causes tissue damage and/or bleeding into the lungs can also be a cause of respiratory distress. The typical lung trauma case goes something like this: The dog arrives at the emergency clinic in respiratory distress. The owner reports that the dog had been out running loose for a while and he returned like this – a sudden onset. These dogs have often been hit by a car, and the major damage has been internal, to the lungs or diaphragm. Again, whenever your dog is in extreme respiratory distress, it is time to visit your vet.
Respiratory involvement can come secondarily, from other sources in the body, such as an extension of gingivitis from the mouth, diabetes (which lowers resistance to disease), and other infections such as distemper, parainfluenza, or adenovirus. The most common source of secondary respiratory problems, however, comes from the heart.
Cardiac insufficiency, whatever the cause, can cause a decrease in respiratory efficiency, and the clinical signs of coughing, wheezing, and exercise intolerance. Heart conditions, including heartworm infection, need to be differentiated from primary lung involvement, and your vet’s stethoscope is the first step here, perhaps followed up with X-rays and other tests.
Lung tumors can be either primary (originating in the lung tissues) or secondary (metastasizing from other parts of the body and lodging in the lung tissues). Both of these can create nasty tumors that are difficult to treat, whatever method you choose to use. My experience with these is that if there is anything that can help them, it will be classical homeopathic remedies. Since it is thought that many lung tumors are instigated by contact with airborne toxins, it’s important that we do all we can to eliminate them from our own and our dog’s environment.
Care of the respiratory system
Oxygen is the most lung-friendly nutrient available for man or beast. Make sure your dog’s lungs (and outlying tissues) are adequately supplied with oxygen, by taking – at minimum – a daily 20- to 30-minute walk at an easy trot pace (the pace where you can carry on a normal conversation with your dog so passersby will think you are crazy).
I also think that a daily anaerobic romp – sprinting to retrieve a ball, for example – helps to expand the functional capacity of the lungs. Be sure to have your dog’s heart and lungs evaluated by a vet before you begin a new exercise program.
The second most important thing to do for the health of your dog’s lungs is to eliminate all the toxins you possibly can. Many of the commonly found air pollutants cause irritation to the airways of the lungs and this irritation stimulates mucus production. The mucus in turn stimulates coughing. Other irritants cause the smooth muscles to constrict around the alveoli, eventually causing asthma or emphysema. Finally, many of the air pollutants are known carcinogens; persistent contact with them is a disaster waiting to happen.
While exploring ways to eliminate air pollutants is beyond the scope of this article, it is definitely a topic for you and your family to explore. As a first step, though, make sure your (and your dog’s) house and living environment have adequate ventilation.
The next (and final) step to assuring respiratory health is to energize the immune system. Proper diet, limited stress, along with vitamins A, C, and E and other antioxidants such as the culinary herbs and Coenzyme Q10 are all beneficial to the immune system. Herbs that are directly beneficial for the immune system include echinacea and astragalus. Check with your holistic vet for correct dosages of these supplements and herbs.
Alternative medicines for respiratory conditions
There are two important things to remember about alternative medicines and the respiratory system:
1) In Western medicine, it is often impossible to treat a condition without knowing the cause; in most alternative medicines (Chinese medicine and homeopathy in particular), the treatment is always for the condition itself, regardless of the cause.
2) Holistic treatments begin with the realization that most respiratory infections are really signs of the body’s healthy effort to expel toxicity – via mucus from the nose, sneezing, puffy red eyes with mucus-like secretions, and coughing and phlegm.
While the Western medicine man will focus intensely on diagnostic procedures to try to determine a specific diagnosis, the alternative practitioner observes symptoms as they occur and treats accordingly. And, whereas the Western practitioner’s treatments are often aimed toward palliation of symptoms (easing the cough, for example), the alternative practitioner understands that respiratory symptoms may be a good sign that the body is responding in a healing manner.
• Herbs. There are several herbs that may be beneficial for treating respiratory conditions. The following have been used to treat the symptoms seen with respiratory disease. Herbal dosages and method of delivery vary with the needs of the animal; check with your herbal practitioner.
Herbs that enhance the immune system include echinacea (Echinacea spp.), astrag-alus (Astragalus membranaceus), Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus).
Herbs with antibiotic activity (for lung infections) include Oregon grape root (Mahonia aquifolium), goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), and echinacea. Herbs for bronchial congestion include oregano (Origanum vulgare), bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), and ginger (Zingiber officinale).
Herbs for acute bronchitis include marshmallow (Althaea officinalis), cinnamon (Cinnamonum camphora), turmeric (Curcuma domestica), echinacea, fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), and peppermint (Mentha piperita).
To ease coughing, try the following herbs: marshmallow, pleurisy root (Asclepias tuberose), oats (Avena sativa), calendula (Calendula officinalis), licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra), peppermint, elder (Sambuscus nigra), thyme, coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara), and mullein (Verbascum thapsus).
My own preference has been to use licorice root to ease the cough (and for its adaptogenic qualities), echinacea for its immune-stimulating properties, and Oregon grape root for its infection-fighting abilities. I then consider adding other herbs as the symptoms indicate.
• Massage may prove beneficial in preventing and treating respiratory diseases. Dogs can become very anxious whenever their breathing is difficult or restricted, and anxiety tends to constrict breathing. A whole-body massage may be relaxing enough to help produce more normal breathing patterns.
• Acupuncture is one of the best ways to treat respiratory disease, and it has been shown to be especially helpful for treating asthmatic patients. Acupuncture points along the Lung and Large Intestine Meridian are the primary points to use, with additional points possibly located along the Spleen, Kidney, and/or other Meridians, depending on the symptoms.
When treating a wet cough, in addition to herbs for bronchial conditions and coughing (see the herbal section, above), your veterinary acupuncturist will consider removing “dampness” from the lungs by needling the Spleen-6 and Kidney-3 acupressure points, while also enhancing the immune system by stimulating Large Intestine-11. You can use acupressure on the same spots (ask your acupuncturist to show you their locations). Use moderate pressure over the spots for several minutes, or until your dog seems to be uncomfortable with the pressure. Don’t continue past that point!
The Lung and Large Intestine Meridians (the paired Meridians that are associated with lungs and respiratory function) run on either side of the dog’s forearm; to stimulate points along this meridian, massage up and down the forearm beginning at the shoulders and extending down to the dew claw and first digit of the paws.
Each Organ system, in the Traditional Chinese Medicine way of thinking, has an emotional component attached to it. Sadness and grief are related to the lungs, and an excess of sadness or grief may weaken Lung Qi.
• Flower essences can be very helpful for treating emotional disturbances, and if your dog has problems with lung disease, especially if the problems are persistent or recurring, think about the possibility of sadness or grief as contributing factors. Consider flower essences whenever there is the potential for your dog to be sad or grieving, such as when a human member of the family leaves through divorce, or a four-footed companion who has lived with the family passes on.
When your dog seems to be grieving, try the flower essence remedies Star of Bethlehem, pine, and/or wild rose. If she seems to be extremely gloomy and utterly sad, try mustard or wild rose. If the sadness is the result of homesickness (from a recent move, for example) try honeysuckle and clematis. Walnut is an excellent remedy anytime there has been a transition in the family – a family member suddenly leaving, for example, or after moving from one house to another.
Flower essences can be used singly, or up to five remedies can be combined and used together. Remedies are typically diluted. Use several drops per ounce of spring water, and a few drops of this dilution can then be given orally, a few drops added to the dog’s water, or the diluted solution can be placed in a misting bottle and spritzed over the dog’s body. (See “Flower Power,” March 1999, for more information about flower essence remedies.)
• Homeopathic remedies. There are literally dozens of homeopathic remedies that have been shown to be helpful for treating all sorts of respiratory illnesses, again depending on the symptoms observed. Examples include:
• For a dry, spasmodic cough: Belladonna, Bryonia, Stannum
• For coughing and difficult breathing: Arsenicum alb., Kali carb., Lycopodium, Phosphorous
• For asthmatic breathing: Apis, Sulphur, Lobelia inflata
• For cases of “heart cough”: Naja, Prunus v., Spongia
-Dr. Randy Kidd earned his DVM degree from Ohio State University and his PhD in Pathology/Clinical Pathology from Kansas State University. A past president of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, he’s author of Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Dog Care and Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Cat Care.
If your dog’s tail suddenly starts lying limply or stops wagging in wag-worthy situations, she may have limber tail syndrome—a temporary but uncomfortable condition that affects the muscles near the base of the tail. While it typically occurs after overexertion, exposure to cold, or long periods of confinement, the exact cause is unknown. Though it can look alarming, limber tail typically resolves within a few days to a week with rest and supportive care. Understanding the causes, symptoms, and treatment options can help owners recognize the condition quickly, ease their dog’s discomfort, and prevent future flare-ups.
What Does Limber Tail Syndrome Look Like?
One day last summer, Lucky, my normally exuberant mixed-breed dog, returned with my husband from an off-leash hike exhibiting little of her boundless energy. She made a beeline for her bed, so we joked that she was out of condition; she’d had knee surgery six months earlier and we assumed she hadn’t fully regained her stamina.
But as the hours ticked by and she continued to show little interest in moving, we got concerned. She changed positions very gingerly and seemed to have a hard time sitting and lying down. Worse, we couldn’t even coax a single happy tail thump from a dog who usually wielded that appendage with abandon. She looked at us with sad eyes and drooping ears, telegraphing that something wasn’t right.
I started worrying about all the possible things that could have happened. Did she eat something foul on the trail? Had she re-injured her knee? She was eating and drinking, and her temperature was normal, but clearly this was not a healthy animal. An emergency examination was in order.
Our veterinarian examined her from stem to stern, and it was in that latter area she spotted the problem. “I think she has a sprained tail,” she opined. “It should heal on its own within a week, but if she seems really tender, you can give her an anti-inflammatory.”
Sure enough, within four days Lucky’s drooping and strangely silent tail regained both its loft and its wag. Still, I was surprised that in the years I’ve written about dogs I’d never heard of a sprained tail. It turns out that the malady is well known among trainers and handlers of certain dog breeds, and while “sprain” is something of a misnomer, the affliction has a formal name: limber tail syndrome.
The Limber Tail Syndrome Look Like
You might suspect your dog has limber tail syndrome if:
The tail is somewhat or completely limp.
Your dog has difficulty sitting or standing.
There was no obvious injury (i.e., a slamming door or an errant foot) to the tail.
It occurs soon after extreme activity, prolonged transport, a swim in cold water, or a sudden climate change.
His vital signs are good and he’s still eating and drinking normally, despite the floppy tail.
The tail shows gradual improvement over a few days.
To view a video of a dog with limber tail,see Youtube.
What is Limber Tail Syndrome?
Limber tail syndrome seems to be caused by muscle injury possibly brought on by overexertion, says Janet Steiss, DVM, PhD, PT. Steiss is an associate professor at Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and coauthor of the 1999 study on limber tail that pinpointed the nature of the muscle damage. Researchers used electromyography (EMG), imaging, and tissue testing on dogs affected with limber tail and concluded that the coccygeal muscles near the base of the tail had sustained damage.
The muscle injury of limber tail is characterized by a markedly limp tail, which can manifest in several different ways.
“You can see varying degrees of severity,” says Dr. Steiss. “The tail can be mildly affected, with the dog holding the tail below horizontal, or severely affected, hanging straight down and looking like a wet noodle, or anything in between.”
In some dogs, the tail may stick out a couple of inches before drooping; others may exhibit raised hair near the base of the tail as a result of swelling. Depending on the severity of the injury and the dog’s tolerance to pain, some animals – like Lucky – may have difficulty sitting or lying down. And many dogs reduce or eliminate wagging entirely, probably due to soreness.
Limber tail can occur in any dog with an undocked tail, but certain breeds, especially pointing and retrieving dogs, seem particularly susceptible to it. Among these breeds are Labrador, Golden, and Flat-Coated Retrievers; English Pointers and Setters; Beagles; and Foxhounds. Both sexes and all ages can be affected. Other common names for the condition are “cold tail” or “swimmer’s tail” (especially among Retrievers, who often exhibit symptoms after swimming in frigid water). It is also sometimes called “limp tail,” “rudder tail,” “broken tail,” or even “dead tail.”
The condition resolves over the course of a few days or a week and usually leaves no aftereffects. According to Dr. Steiss, there is anecdotal evidence that administering anti-inflammatory drugs early in the onset can help shorten the duration of the episode, but no veterinary studies have yet confirmed this.
What Causes Limber Tail Syndrome?
The exact cause is unknown, but according to Dr. Steiss, there are a few different factors that seem to be linked to limber tail. Overexertion seems to be a common precursor, especially if an animal is thrown into excessive exercise when he or she is not in good condition (as in Lucky’s case).
“For example, if hunting dogs have been sitting around all summer and then in the fall, the owner takes them out for a full (weekend of hunting), by Sunday night suddenly a dog may show signs of limber tail,” she says. “The dog otherwise is healthy but has been exercising to the point where those tail muscles get overworked.”
Another risk factor is prolonged confinement, such as dogs being transported in crates over long distances. If competition dogs are driven overnight to a field trial and don’t have a few breaks outside the crate while they’re on the road, says Dr. Steiss, they may arrive at their destination with limber tail.
Uncomfortable climates, such as cold and wet weather, or exposure to cold water may also trigger limber tail. Retrievers seem particularly prone to exhibiting symptoms after a swimming workout, and some, says Dr. Steiss, are so sensitive to temperature that they show signs of limber tail after being bathed in cold water.
Limber Tail Syndrome: A Tricky Diagnosis
For an owner, the sight of a normally active tail hanging lifelessly can be alarming. After all, dogs’ tails are barometers of both mood and health, and a tail carried low and motionless could indicate anything from nervousness to serious illness. Limber tail syndrome has been around for a long time, but it isn’t very common and many veterinarians – especially those who don’t work regularly with hunting or retrieving dogs – aren’t familiar with it. Consequently, a variety of diagnoses can be given.
Is Limber Tail Syndrome a Sprained Dog Tail?
Limber tail can be mistaken for an indication of a disorder of the prostate gland or anal glands; a caudal spine injury; a broken tail; or even spinal cord disease. The all-purpose phrase “sprained tail” might also be used.
Ben Character, DVM, a consulting veterinarian in Eutaw, Alabama, and a member of the American Canine Sports Medicine Association, specializes in sporting dogs. He’s seen plenty of cases of limber tail but doesn’t call it a sprain.
“Sprain is a bad word for it because a sprain indicates a joint and problems with the ligaments surrounding a joint,” Dr. Character explains. “As far as we know, this is all muscular.”
” ‘Sprained tail’ is kind of a catchall, non-specific phrase that simply means something’s wrong with the tail,” agrees Dr. Steiss. “The tail has all kinds of joints because it has many tiny vertebrae, but sprain isn’t the correct term here.”
How can an owner tell if limber tail is the cause of a dog’s discomfort? Look to the circumstances surrounding the onset of the droopy tail, suggests Dr. Steiss, especially if any of the risk factors were present.
“Limber tail has an acute onset. It is not a condition where the tail gets progressively weaker,” she says. “Instead, it is an acute inflammation. Typically, the tail is suddenly limp and the dog may seem to have pain near the base of the tail. Over the next three to four days, the dog slowly recovers to the point where by four to seven days he’s usually back to normal.”
Dr. Character says it’s a tough clinical call to make. “In order to really diagnose limber tail, you’d have to do electromy-opathy (of the tissue) or do radiography to examine the inflammation, and a general practitioner just won’t be able to do that.”
Effects of Limber Tail
While an episode of limber tail can be unsettling for an owner, it doesn’t hamper most dogs’ ability to function normally.
“For your average hunting dog, it probably won’t make a difference,” says Dr. Character. “The tail is involved in balance when they run, but how much that’s going to knock them off their game . . . it may not be enough to notice.”
However, competition dogs can be sidelined: “Athletic dogs competing in field trials will not be able to compete when the tail doesn’t have its normal motion, since the condition will be obvious to the judges,” says Dr. Steiss.
Limber tail doesn’t recur with any regularity among dogs that have already experienced one episode, according to Dr. Steiss: “In the majority of cases it happens once and doesn’t happen again,” she says. “But there are a few dogs where, if put into the same situation, it happens more than once.”
That was the case with Hannah, a Lab/Pit Bull mix owned by Miriam Carr, a dog care specialist in Richmond, California. Carr operates a dog-exercise business, PawTreks, specializing in off-leash outings. Often, Carr’s trips include swimming opportunities for her clients’ dogs. Her own dogs, of course, get to participate in every outing. “Hannah was very active – she went to the park every single day – so she was in great condition,” says Carr.
After Hannah suffered several incidents of limber tail, however, Carr had to limit the dog’s participation in the activities that seemed to trigger the limber tail incidents. “When Hannah swam with other dogs she was more competitive and would swim harder to get to the ball first, and that sort of set off the problem with her tail,” says Carr. “When we finally realized that was the problem, we wouldn’t let her swim with groups of dogs.”
It was smart management on Carr’s part. In rare cases, a dog’s tail can be permanently affected by recurrent episodes, says Dr. Steiss. “A few can injure the muscle so severely that the tail may not be straight again. Probably, there’s been a significant loss of muscle fibers plus scar tissue build-up in the tails in those dogs,” she explains.
Limber Tail Syndrome Treatment and Care
Check with your vet to rule out any other possible ailments.
Rest your dog.
Ask your vet if an anti-inflammatory medication may be appropriate for the first 24 hours. (See “Administer With Care” for more information and warnings about anti-inflammatory use.)
Gradually return your dog to activity.
Try to determine what factors seemed to cause the limber tail and avoid them in the future.
Do More Dogs Have Limber Tail Now Than in the Past?
Before 1990, limber tail wasn’t often recognized outside hunting- and sporting-dog circles. But in 1994, Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine launched a canine sports-medicine program and researchers (including Dr. Steiss) decided to take a closer look at the tail disorder after talking to owners and trainers in the region.
“These trainers were saying, ‘Hey, this is a problem. We see it frequently, and nobody really knows what it is,'” says Dr. Steiss, who had a special interest in muscle disease and was intrigued by the strange injury. Although it seemed uncommon in the dog population as a whole, it sprang up with regularity among Pointers in the area. In one instance, an Alabama kennel discovered that 10 of its 120 adult English Pointers had been affected with limber tail in one morning.
In 1997, Steiss and her colleagues began an epidemiological study (believed to be the first) of sporting dogs in the southeastern United States. A total of 3,066 dogs were included in the study, two-thirds of which were used for hunting. The survey yielded information about the characteristics of limber tail in 83 dogs. The publication of the study results made more vets aware of the syndrome, so it’s not clear whether the perceived rise in the number of limber-tail cases is due to improved diagnosis or an actual increase in occurrence.
“It’s definitely being recognized more often, (but) we hope it is happening less frequently in sporting dogs as trainers become aware of the specific risk factors,” says Dr. Steiss, who is also entertaining another explanation for the increased frequency. “One thought I had is that in recent years more people are being becoming physically active and they may want to include their dogs in jogging, hiking, and other strenuous activities. It is possible that we may see more dogs coming down with this disorder, or other athletic-related disorders, simply because they’re participating in more physical activities with their owners.”
Life for Dogs After Limber Tail Syndrome
According to Dr. Steiss, researchers don’t believe there’s any underlying pathology to the muscles in afflicted dogs, nor is there any suggestion that a propensity for limber tail is genetic. As noted, while some breeds may be more prone to it – most likely due to their higher activity levels – any dog with a full tail is susceptible.
If your dog develops limber tail, treatment should include at least a few days of rest. Depending on the advice of your veterinarian, you may also administer an anti-inflammatory in the first 24 hours, under the direction of a vet. There is no evidence that anti-inflammatories speed healing, but some owners say they’ve noticed faster improvement when the medications are part of the mix.
Owners should also consider what activities their dogs were engaged in prior to the onset of the condition. Limber tail will show up quite soon after the triggering event, usually within hours or overnight. If you can isolate what it was that brought on the condition, whether it was a over-long off-leash hike or a swim in cold water, you can avoid repeating the situation.
Finally, ease your dog into any intense activity to slowly improve his condition. Many cases occur when a dog is a couch potato in the off-season and then plunges back into hunting or training full time.
As for Lucky, we haven’t seen a recurrence, but we also committed ourselves to gradually increasing her activity until her physical strength matched the demands of her workouts. Her tail is once again thumping away at full speed – and we aim to keep it that way.
Aromatherapy. Ten years ago, few people in the U.S. knew what it was, much less its canine applications. Today, hundreds of pet products contain essential oils or have “aromatherapy” on their labels. However, many people only associate aromatherapy with strongly scented candles or perfumed air sprays.
“That’s recreational aromatherapy,” says Kristen Leigh Bell, whose book Holistic Aromatherapy for Animals was published two years ago. “What Americans are just beginning to learn is that aromatherapy is actually a branch of medicine. In fact, in France, where the healing effects of essential oils were first documented, only licensed medical doctors can practice aromatherapy.”
Aromatherapy utilizes essential oils and their byproducts, most of which are produced by the steam distillation of a plant’s seeds, blossoms, fruit, leaves, stems, or roots. Ironically, while the term implies that fragrance plays an important role in the healing process, a plant’s aroma has less to do with the therapeutic properties of its essential oil than the oil’s small molecular size (which easily penetrates body tissues) and unique pharmacological properties.
There are essential oils with antibacterial, antiviral, and/or antiseptic effects. Some have a calming influence; others are stimulating. There are essential oils that improve circulation, act as a diuretic, repel fleas and ticks, improve digestion, reduce inflammation, relieve congestion, elevate one’s mood, stimulate hair growth, prevent motion sickness, enhance immunity, improve focus and concentration, speed wound healing, improve endocrine function, or facilitate detoxification – and, because the chemistry of plants is so complex, they may do several of these things at once. Truly, the emphasis in the term “aromatherapy” should be on “therapy.”
Innovations in Pet Aromatherapy
Essential oils can be sprayed into the air, applied to a pet’s bedding or clothing, or diluted and applied to the fur or skin. Because aromatherapy is such a complex subject, having experts design products for us is a time-saving convenience. Some large corporations make aromatherapy products for dogs, but the most interesting developments are coming from small manufacturers.
One is Cathy Franklin, a cosmetologist in Visalia, California, who came to aromatherapy by way of a perfume blending workshop. Her training included a year-long diploma course at the Michael Scholes School for Aromatic Studies, where she learned about canine applications for essential oils from Joan Clark, who was then Scholes’ partner.
Cathy’s Pet Potions line, which debuted in 2003 at the opening of a dog park, includes four mist products, a shampoo, a dry shampoo, and a conditioner. “The dogs loved them,” says Franklin. “We couldn’t keep them out of our booth. They kept jumping on the table and climbing under it.”
Rather than use emulsifying agents, Franklin sells essential oil blends in small glass bottles accompanied by larger spray bottles. A dog owner puts an ounce of pure water in one of the large spray bottles, adds three to five drops of essential oil, and shakes the bottle before spritzing. “I want to keep the sprays as pure and organic as possible without adding anything that might cause irritation,” says Franklin. “Another way to use the blends, which is what I prefer, is to place a drop or two on your hands and run your fingers through the dog’s hair. This works very well, and it’s ideal for dogs who don’t like sprays or misters.”
Franklin uses organic essential oils in all her products. “Essential oils are like fruits and vegetables in that their quality is graded, and I always buy the highest,” she says.
Tara Fleming in Reedley, California, swears by Cathy’s Pet Potions Relaxation Oil. “I use it on myself and my dogs before we compete,” she says. “It helped relax my young German Shepherd at her first agility trial, and she finished her title in one day!”
Joan Clark, Franklin’s teacher, became interested in aromatherapy for animals in 1990 when Mattie, her two-year-old Cocker Spaniel, became disabled. Clark had studied aromatherapy for humans in the 1980s with a series of internationally known instructors, including Marcel Lavabre, Michael Scholes, and Daniel Penoel. When Lavabre and Scholes went into business in California, Clark joined them, and for 13 years, trained students from around the world at the Michael Scholes School for Aromatic Studies. But it wasn’t until her own dog suffered a serious injury that she considered adapting her knowledge for pets.
“A little kid sat on Mattie and broke her back,” explains Clark. “The vet recommended that I put her down. Instead, for six months I slept on the floor with Mattie, massaged her, gave her flower essences, got her off pain medication, and carried her on walks so she could relieve herself and enjoy being outside. The time she seemed happiest was in a nearby park where she rolled in a bed of wild peppermint. One day when we came home from the park, I set her down and she stood on her own. That’s when I began to appreciate the natural pain relievers in peppermint, and it was the start of Mattie’s dramatic recovery.”
For Mattie, Clark blended peppermint essential oil with jojoba and other ingredients in a massage oil; this later became Clark’s first canine product. Mattie lived to be 14, and was lively and active to the end.
Today, Clark runs Palais Aromaetica, an herb and aromatherapy business in Lawrence, Kansas, with over 40 products in its Pet Aromaetica line. Clark says she uses plants and essential oils that help correct common imbalances such as problems with the immune system, arthritis, allergies, hot spots, fleas, and ticks, or emotional issues such as anxiety, depression, hyperactivity, or a lack of mental focus. She also offers nontoxic products for cleaning everything in the house, including pet bedding, plus products for tooth cleaning and grooming. “We try to address every aspect of the animal’s life. It’s a holistic apothecary approach,” she says.
Paying for Quality Oils
Faith Thanas is another experienced aromatherapist who developed a canine division of her product line after her dogs experienced health problems. The project started in 1994, just after she completed an aromatherapy certification course, when she and her family (including two dogs and two cats) moved from New England to the Virgin Islands.
“Put northern animals in a tropical climate and all kinds of things happen,” Thanas says. In no time, her Bichon Frise developed flea allergies, a lick granuloma, and hot spots. To relieve these symptoms, Thanas started making her own formulas, and the dog’s brilliant white fur grew back quickly.
After four years in the Virgin Islands, during which she became an expert on all types of fungal infections, insect bites, and injuries, Thanas and her family returned to Massachusetts. One of her dreams was to sell her products in pet supply catalogs and through as many distributors as possible. To help make this possible, she recruited eight veterinarians in three states to test the products at their clinics.
The tests went well, and the result is AromaDog, a division of Silk Road Oils. Thanas says her AromaDog blends are sold in Japan, Canada, and the U.S., including through the KV Veterinary Supply catalog. “Chill Out is our number one seller. It’s a spray mist containing sweet marjoram, lavender, Roman chamomile, and other ingredients that you spray in the air. It calms hyperactive dogs, alleviates separation anxiety, and helps reduce chronic barking and even thunder phobia. Rescue group and veterinarians use it around their cages and in their waiting rooms, and groomers report that it helps dogs relax and stay calm even when things get hectic,” Thanas says.
Guardians should be forewarned that, just like supplements and herbs, the best aromatherapy products are not inexpensive. But as Thanas points out, “High-quality aromatherapy products save a lot of money in the long run. Despite what people may think when they see AromaDog products for the first time, ours is a serious company in a serious business. Even our colognes are immune system stimulants. As consumers and veterinarians, including conventional veterinarians, become familiar with our products, they realize that there’s a lot more to aromatherapy than a pretty smell.”
Let the Dog Pick Her Own Oil
For Littleton, Colorado, aromatherapist Frances Fitzgerald Cleveland, the most important part of a canine aromatherapy treatment is letting the dog choose his or her own essential oils. Like all of the aroma-therapists interviewed for this article, Cleveland offers private consultations and custom blending through her business, Frog Works. After learning about a dog’s case, she selects a handful of essential oils and sends them to the dog’s owner, with instructions explaining how to offer them so the dog can demonstrate his or her preference.
A five-year-old Standard Poodle named Beatrice was one of the many beneficiaries of this system. While playing in the Boston Arboretum with other dogs in 2003, Beatrice broke her calcaneal (hock) bone. The multiple fractures required pins inside and outside the leg for six weeks and the wearing of a cast for another four weeks.
“Just three days before the accident, she achieved her Excellent Agility title,” says her owner, Shelley Brauer. “The surgeon doubted that she would ever again have enough range of motion to jump properly.”
A friend in New Mexico saw a newspaper article about Cleveland’s aromatherapy work with animals at the Denver Zoo and sent it to Brauer. “I wanted to help Beatrice heal both physically and emotionally,” says Brauer. “In addition to being badly injured, she developed separation anxiety and seemed terrified to be left alone with that apparatus on her leg.” Cleveland’s aromatherapy sounded like something that could complement the conventional medical treatment that Beatrice was receiving.
After a consultation with Beatrice’s owner, Cleveland determined which essential oils would work best for Beatrice and sent seven diluted oils for her consideration: peppermint, sweet marjoram, rose otto, violet leaf, yarrow, neroli, and grapefruit. After ignoring all of them for days, Beatrice began to show an interest in violet leaf. When Brauer put a drop on her hand, Beatrice licked it. “She lets us know that she wants her aromatherapy massage session by going into the room where the bottles are kept and looking at them,” Brauer says. “As her recovery has progressed, she has also become interested in rose otto, which helps her deal with emotional stress.”
Seven months after the accident, Beatrice’s surgeon examined her hock’s range of motion and called it “amazing.” She recently won two blue ribbons in an agility competition.
Diluting Essential Oils for Dogs
Canadian aromatherapist and canine massage therapist Teresa Mazzella began blending products for dogs when her two young Boxers developed allergies, sensitive skin, pyoderma, and other ailments. Based in Leamington, Ontario, her AngelScent product line is growing fast, and its best-sellers are grooming sprays: “Bug Me Not” for repelling insects, “Canine Calm” for relaxation, and “Relief Cream” for sore muscles and arthritis.
“The most important advice I can offer,” says Mazzella, “is to dilute, dilute, dilute. It’s a mistake to assume that essential oils can be used on dogs the same way they are used on humans. And because dogs come in so many sizes, it’s important to dilute essential oils even more for small dogs and puppies. I make blends for dogs over 30 pounds and more dilute blends for dogs under 30 pounds as well as for very young dogs. Essential oils are concentrated, so tiny amounts of therapeutic-quality oils are highly effective.”
Proof is in the Effectiveness
Before blending products for dogs at Happy Tails Canine Spa in Los Angeles, Lorna Paxton worked in the human health and beauty industry doing marketing and product development. “Knowing about manufacturing standards and ingredient information has helped a lot,” she says. To learn about essential oils, Paxton studied at the Pacific Institute of Aromatherapy.
“One of our most popular products is Calming Aromatherapy Spritzer,” she says. “It’s a detangling leave-in conditioner with chamomile and lavender that has a relaxing effect on dogs, even if they’re excited about traveling in the car or distracted by a trip to the vet. If you apply it before giving your dog a bath, her coat will be easier to brush out after, or you can apply it after bathing for improved conditioning. It can also be sprayed onto mats and tangles for effortless brushing.”
In addition to their essential oils, Paxton’s grooming products contain Ordenone, a water-based compound that binds with and removes the mercaptans, amines, sulfides, and acids in awful-smelling organic compounds, neutralizing even the worst doggy odors at their source.
With her marketing background, Paxton focuses as much on her products’ appear-ance as their ingredients. “It’s important that a product look good, smell good, be easy to use, and contain carefully thought-out ingredients that are themselves organically produced or of the highest quality. But it’s most important that the product work effectively,” she says.
Getting the Purest Oils
Sometimes people turn to aromatherapy products for what isn’t in them. Manufacturers of pet products are not required to disclose their ingredients, so many list only a few appealing ingredients, omitting the synthetic or lower-cost constituents. The makers of the best aromatherapy products use just a small number of select ingredients – and proudly disclose each and every one of them.
“I encourage everyone to ask more questions of manufacturers,” says Sevi Kay, founder of Mundo LLC, in Millersville, Maryland. Mundo makes aromatherapy sprays, shampoos, and conditioners. “I want people to insist that manufacturers disclose what’s in a product. Manufacturers who use the highest quality ingredients and are proud of their training and expertise should be willing to share this information.”
Full disclosure was exactly what Lori Moreland was looking for when she was searching for a product for her four-month-old Newfoundland puppy, Magic. Not long after she received the last of her puppy vaccines, Magic broke out in a fit of blisters, sores, flaking, hair loss, and itching. As the owner of a pet supply store/salon, Pet Empawrium in Arvada, Colorado, Moreland had access to a variety of shampoos but found that none of them helped – in fact, they made the conditions worse.
As she searched for products that could help relieve Magic’s discomfort, Moreland focused on those that were pure and free of potentially harmful chemicals. It was then that she realized that her salon’s “natural” shampoos contained unnatural detergents, foaming agents, and unnamed “proprietary ingredients.” Even though she was a retailer of these products, none of the manufacturers would reveal what was in them.
“That’s when I got to know Sevi Kay and her Mundo line of shampoos,” says Moreland. “Sevi fully disclosed all the ingredients in her products. I tried the lavender just two days after Magic’s last irritating bath, and the results were astonishing. The itching ceased immediately, and within days, a year’s worth of sores were healing and new fur was growing where she had been bald.”
Moreland has continued to use Mundo’s products on Magic, to great effect. “Magic’s coat is now as thick, black, and shiny as any I have ever seen. I still bathe her every one to two weeks, depending on her swim schedule, but her coat is never dried out or flakey. The sores have been gone for almost a year,” says Moreland.
Pure, high-quality products like the ones discussed in this article are effective in helping dogs like Magic heal, and in not causing adverse reactions. This combination can be key for dogs with chemical sensitivities.
Therapeutic Dog Grooming
San Francisco resident Sharon Mueller founded Spa Dog Botanicals with help from aromatherapist Andrea Warren, who manufactures several aromatherapy product lines in Kansas. Mueller and Warren spent eight months designing, developing, and testing ingredients and blends before introducing 15 Spa Dog grooming products that have specific therapeutic uses. Each product’s blend of essential oils determines its overall effects. Spa Dog’s most popular product is “Smell Sweet Soothing Ear Care,” a blend of distilled water, aloe vera, vitamin E, organic cider vinegar, and essential oils that help soothe, heal, and prevent ear infections. Several products are age-specific.
“For example, we use a lot of warming blends for older dogs to help lift their spirits and keep them moving,” says Mueller. “We use antiviral blends for puppies and younger dogs, and for active adult dogs, we emphasize calming oils, like lavender and chamomile. We sell age-related products as kits, so it’s easy to start with the right combination of shampoos, soaps, ear cleaners, and sprays.”
Spa Dog’s products contain only natural ingredients and essential oils – nothing synthetic, says Warren. Additionally, some (but not all) of the ingredients are organic. The soap base is an olive oil soap; Spa Dog uses no sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS).
-CJ Puotinen is author of The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care and Natural Remedies for Dogs and Cats. She has also authored books about human health including Natural Relief from Aches and Pains.
1. Start with a thorough veterinary examination, to make sure your dog does not have a medical excuse for her incontinence.
2. Invest in a large enough crate, X-pen, or baby gates to confine your dog to a safe zone when she is not being supervised.
3. Don’t let your “supervision” get lax. No exceptions.
4. On a regular schedule, take your dog to the area where you want her to eliminate. When she goes, praise and reward her copiously.
5. Do not punish your dog for “accidents.” No exceptions.
Meet “Mollie,” a three-and-a-half-year-old terrier who lives in Aptos, California. (Her name has been changed to protect the guilty!) Mollie is a great dog, except for one not-so-small issue: Mollie is not housetrained. She does not know when or where she is supposed to go. Left to her own devices, Mollie would eliminate in the living room, the bedroom, on top of a pile of clean laundry, and, yes, even in her own crate.
Mollie’s housetraining issues, however extreme, are easily explained. The first several years of Mollie’s life were spent in a poorly run breeding kennel. She was not only never formally housetrained, but also forced to urinate and defecate regularly in her living space. In addition, Mollie also developed an infection that made it impossible for her to hold it, even when she was crated.
By the time she came to live in her current home, her lack of inhibition was cemented, and housetraining has been her number one problem behavior.
Mollie is not a bad dog; in all other ways she is a wonderful companion! And she is not alone in her problem; many adult dogs are not fully housetrained. Fortunately, there is hope for Mollie and other dogs like her. Adult dogs, even dogs whose histories have stacked the odds against them, can learn an appropriate place and time to go!
Understanding Remedial House Training for Dogs
Of course, not all dogs with housetraining problems come from kennels or shelters. Adult dogs can have a variety of explanations for their housetraining failures. Even dogs who have been in stable homes since puppyhood can have trouble with housetraining.
Some of the most common reasons that dogs fail to learn when and where to eliminate include:
• Having a medical problem. If you have a dog that was reliably housetrained and suddenly has housetraining problems, consider the possibility of a medical issue. Infections, certain illnesses, and some medications can all contribute to house-soiling.
• Not truly understanding the “house” rules. For example, a dog may understand that he needs to go outside and will do so when he has free access (such as a doggy door), but not understand that he needs to hold it when he does not have free access.
• Not having generalized the rules from one place to another. A dog may have been house-trained in a previous home, but not know the same rules apply in a new home. Or, a dog may know to go outside at his house, but not understand that he also needs to go outside when visiting a friend’s house or staying in a hotel.
• Being asked to “hold it” for too long. Some dogs can easily go all day without eliminating. For other dogs, holding it all day is very difficult or even impossible. This can be especially true for dogs who are small, young, elderly, or who have a medical problem.
• Having learned that eliminating in their living space is acceptable.Like Mollie, dogs that have spent much of their lives in kennels often lose their natural inhibition about eliminating where they eat and sleep. In addition, dogs with a history of “accidents” in the home because of an illness, poor management, or other factors may simply learn that it is less stressful to go inside than to try to “hold it.”
Is It a Housetraining Problem? Or Something Else?
When talking about housetraining for adult dogs, it’s important to understand that not all house soiling is a housetraining problem. Other physical and behavior issues can contribute to or cause a dog to eliminate in the house. If you suspect your dog may have any of these issues, please consult with a behavior counselor or qualified trainer.
Submissive or excitement urination. Dogs who leak urine during greetings, when meeting new people, when you first come home, or during play may be exhibiting submissive or excitement urination. This is a confidence issue (and is often outgrown as a young dog matures), not a housetraining issue!
Marking. When we think about territory marking, most of us think only about male dogs. But male and female dogs can mark territory with both urine and feces, outside and indoors.
Separation anxiety. Dogs suffering from separation anxiety may eliminate shortly after you leave your home, often within just a few minutes. (If you are not sure the accidents are happening shortly after you leave, try returning home after a half hour to find out.) Consult with a behavior professional to help you resolve your dog’s separation anxiety.
Fears and phobias. Thunderstorms, fireworks, and other fear-inducing noises can cause some dogs to urinate or defecate in the home.
Health issues. Any onset of house-soiling behavior in a previously housetrained dog, urination during sleep, or other loss of bladder and bowel control should be evaluated by a veterinarian. Urinary tract infections, certain illnesses, and some medications can contribute to house-soiling problems.
How to Teach Your Dog Where to “Go”
Housetraining is not a single behavior. Rather, it is a whole series of interrelated behaviors.
For a dog to be fully housetrained, he needs to understand where he should go as well as where he shouldn’t. He needs to learn to “hold it” (sometimes for hours) until he is in an appropriate place. He needs to be able to communicate his need to go in a way his people will understand and respond expediently. And he needs to generalize these behaviors to all indoor (and some outdoor) situations. For any adult dog with a history of housetraining issues, it can also mean unlearning past behaviors.
If this sounds like a lot of learning on your dog’s part (as well as training on your part), don’t despair. These simple steps can help you teach your dog the skills he needs to become a full-fledged, housetrained dog.
First, supervise your dog at all times when he is inside, except when he is crated or otherwise confined. This is the key to success. You must supervise your dog inside your home at all times to prevent accidents. The more consistent you can be, the faster your dog will succeed.
Note that in this case, “supervise” means much more than having your dog with you in the same room. It means keeping your attention focused on the dog so as to prevent any opportunity for the dog to make a mistake, or, at the very least, to be able to interrupt him “midstream” – a good opportunity to rush him outside and then praise him for going in the “right” place (more on this below).
The best way to accomplish this when you are not actually looking at the dog or playing with him, is often referred to as the “umbilical cord” method. If you are watching TV, working on your computer, washing dishes, or otherwise occupied, clip a leash onto your dog’s collar, and tie the other end around your waist or belt loop. It should be long enough to allow him to sit or lay at your feet, but short enough to prevent him from making a move to eliminate without your knowledge.
When you are neither actively watching your dog nor physically linked to him by a short leash, he should be confined, as described below.
Properly Confining Your Dog for House Training
• Confine your dog when you can’t supervise him. When you cannot actively supervise your dog, leave him confined in a crate, X-pen, or other small secure space. Because dogs are not as likely to soil where they eat or sleep, a sleeping area like a crate is ideal.
• If your dog regularly eliminates in his crate or other confined space, and your veterinarian has ruled out all health problems as the cause, try changing your confinement area. If you have been using a crate, for example, change to an X-pen in a different part of the house. Start by feeding your dog in her new confinement space and leaving her alone there for only short periods.
If your dog has been eliminating on her bedding, change the type of bedding you use, too. If she’s been sleeping (and eliminating!) on a blanket, switch to a flat thick bed of newspaper, or a fleece pad. The idea is to create a new “living space” with no former associations for your dog as a place to eliminate. Continue to use the crate as a living space for longer periods until you have established the new confinement area as a living space.
• Set up a routine. You’ve probably heard this before: what goes in on schedule, comes out on schedule. Establish regular feeding, sleeping, and waking times. Take your dog out, at minimum, upon waking, after eating and drinking, before leaving home, immediately after play, when you first arrive home, and before bedtime.
• Teach your dog where to go! This is an important and often overlooked step. Pick a spot that you regularly take your dog to; don’t just put him outside, go with him. When your dog goes in the appropriate spot, immediately reward the behavior with praise and a treat. A dog who is rewarded for going in a specific spot will be more motivated to go in that place and may also begin asking to go to the place (offering the behavior!) because it earns rewards.
• Read your dog’s signals. Look for clues in his behavior that tell you he needs to go outside. Dogs won’t always go to the back door. Some common signs include acting restless, “bugging” you, pacing, and just before the act, circling. But sometimes the behavior is more obscure, so be observant. (One of my dogs licked the cat’s ears when she needed to go outside – a behavior I assume she learned because we always paid attention to her when she paid attention to the cat.)
In addition, try to anticipate your dog’s needs. Does he always need to go outside immediately after waking? When someone comes to the door? After playing?
• When accidents happen, don’t punish! If you actually catch your dog in the act – and I mean midstream, not one second after – it’s okay to interrupt with a clap or noise and then rush the dog outside. Be sure to reward your dog when he finishes up outside. If you discover the act afterward, even immediately afterward, don’t punish your dog. It really won’t help, and could set back the process by making your dog afraid to go in front of you. Simply clean up the accident well with an enzyme neutralizing cleaner. (See “Housetraining Puppies” for a review of the best enzyme-based cleaning agents.)
• Gradually expand the “safe” zone. Once you have established a routine wherein your dog is supervised or confined, goes outside on a schedule, and avoids accidents for a month or longer, begin cautiously increasing your dog’s freedom. For example, if your dog’s confined space is a small X-pen in the kitchen, you might begin by expanding the size of the pen. Once he proves himself reliable in the slightly larger space, leave him confined to the kitchen.
Gradually increase his space until he is reliable within your entire home. If problems arise (remember that mistakes are part of the learning process), simply back up to the last reliable step and take it slower. Taking it too slowly is much better than rushing the process, especially with a dog that has a history of housetraining issues.
Patience Pays Off
The most frequent question I have been asked about house-training an adult dog (and puppies, too) is, “How long will it take?” The answer is, “It depends.” It depends on the dog, the situation, and you. There is no magic formula or specific amount of time.
I have noticed that often people want it to take a lot less time than is realistic. (I think we’ve all heard stories of the dog that was housetrained in a week and wish that could be our dog.) Think about all of the steps the dog needs to learn – to go in a specific place, to hold it for a period of time, to ask when he needs to go out, to apply these rules to all inside areas. Be patient! This is a lot for a dog to learn. Plan on a few months at minimum, and a year or more for a dog with a longer history of housetraining issues.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to deal with your dog actually eliminating in the house for months! Remember the first two steps: supervise and confine. With diligence, you can establish a routine that will help you avoid most accidents within a few weeks, if not sooner.
Remember Mollie? After a few short months, Mollie was 100 percent reliable in her X-pen (remember, this is a dog who would eliminate in her crate!) and when supervised by her people. She’s still not ready to be left unsupervised (and with her history, it may take longer than most for her to be ready), but Mollie is certainly well on her way to becoming fully housetrained. Patience does pay off!
Mardi Richmond is a writer and trainer who lives in Santa Cruz, California, with two wonderful dogs and one human partner. She is the coauthor of Ruffing It: The Complete Guide to Camping with Dogs.
Pokey and I are on the floor, man and beast in a playful tussle. I poke, scratch, pull, and tug on the genial Lab-mix, using my fingers and arms. I fake a left jab and poke him with my right hand. His only recourse is to duck and jump, first in retreat, then, with lips drawn in a mock snarl, pouncing on me and mouthing my hands and shirt. Fortunately, Pokey came from a family of nine puppies, cared for by seven home-schooled kids, so he was well socialized as a puppy and knows how to mouth-play without biting too hard.
A dog’s mouth is his most intimate connection to the outside world, his gateway for primary contact. He uses his mouth for sustenance, investigation, and communication. He uses his jaws as a tool; they can carry, crush, slice, gnaw, grind, or, as in Pokey’s case, gently grab and render my “superior” hands helpless.
The mouth is also the beginning point for the dog’s harvest of life-sustaining nutrients. The initial identification of immune-stimulating substances contained in whatever the dog ingests starts in the mouth. The tonsils, lying deep in the mouth, are a prominent site of lymph tissue, and the mouth is lined with other lymphoid elements – all of which transport immune-sensing information to the rest of the body.
It is important to keep this “gateway” function of the mouth in mind as we consider how to best deliver remedies to enhance the innate immune system’s ability to respond. Herbs that contact the mouth’s lymphoid tissues (that is, herbal remedies not encased within capsules) have the advantage of stimulating this early alert, immune-enhancing lymphoid tissue.
But from the perspective of a veterinarian, a dog’s mouth is mostly a primary site of disease. Periodontitis (inflammation of the tissues surrounding a tooth) and dental calculus (an accumulation of mineral salts on teeth) are respectively the number one and number two problems seen in dogs over seven years of age. Periodontal disease is present in an estimated 50 to 80 percent of all dogs.
Furthermore, there is evidence that periodontitis also predisposes animals to a number of diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and even respiratory disease. At least one (human) study has indicated that poor oral health is a stronger predictor of heart disease than markers such as fibrino-gen (a clotting factor and indicator of inflammation), low HDL (good) cholesterol, or high triglycerides.
In addition, endotoxins have been isolated from calculus residues on the teeth of dogs, and there is anecdotal evidence (perhaps related to the endotoxins) that dental disease may also be responsible for (or at least increase the likelihood of) other chronic diseases such as arthritis.
Unfortunately, when it comes to pointing the finger at who or what is to be blamed for much of our pets’ dental problems, “We have met the enemy, and they are us.” We have created at least a two-fold problem.
First, we have bred dogs for cuteness; many of the toy breeds have jaws too small to accommodate all their teeth. This forces teeth to grow abnormally and the resulting misalignments and malocclusions create foci for future calculus buildup. Second, our commercial foods don’t provide the tooth-cleansing effects of pulling meat and other soft tissues off raw bones, as well as time-consuming gnawing on raw hide and bones.
The canine mouth
The dog’s teeth and gums are the most important considerations in the mouth, both because the incidence of disease of the teeth and gums is so high, and because their influence on overall health and disease is so profound. However, I’ll briefly mention other structures of the oral cavity and oropharynx (an ill-defined area that includes the posterior part of the oral cavity and the pharynx) and give a brief list of potential problems that may occur in them.
The oral cavity is an open-ended tube that functions in prehension (the act of seizing or grasping), mastication (chewing), fluid intake, taste, and swallowing.
The relative size of the dewlap and amount of flesh associated with a dog’s lips are characteristic of the individual breed. Facial expressions are controlled by the lip muscles,which are innervated by the facial nerve. Several cranial nerves innervate the dog’s fleshy and highly active tongue, providing muscular control and sensory innervation from the taste buds – round, prominent structures on the posterior portion of the upper surface of the tongue.
Salivary glands open into the oral cavity; saliva provides an acid medium along with bacterial-fighting substances that help to keep any disease process from proliferating in the mouth.
The palate forms the dorsal roof of the oral cavity, separating it from the nasal cavity. The caudal (rear-most) part of the palate is the soft palate, a mobile structure that functions during swallowing to restrict access of the food bolus into the nasal area. The epiglottis is a cartilaginous structure that moves to open the trachea (wind pipe) during inspiration; during swallowing, the epiglottis moves to restrict the opening to the trachea.
The palatine tonsils are elliptically-shaped lymph nodes lying on the lateral walls of the oropharynx within crypts formed by folds of the pharyngeal wall. In the dog they are normally visible, and in puppies they may stand out of their crypts.
The right and left condyles (rounded projections on a bone) of the mandible (lower jaw) articulates with the temporal bone of the skull at the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Omnivorous animals classically have a large condyle that permits up and down and lateral movement. In the carnivorous dog, which has smaller condyles with only limited lateral movement, the TMJ is limited largely to hinge-like movements.
Canine dental structures
A dog’s deciduous (baby) teeth erupt between two weeks and eight weeks after birth. From two to six months of age, the baby teeth shed as the permanent or adult teeth erupt. Eruption time varies according to breed; the larger the breed, the earlier the eruption sequence. Dogs seldom show signs related to teething; the most frequent problem encountered is retained deciduous teeth. Retained baby teeth need to be removed to prevent buildup of calculus on them, and anesthesia may be required for the process.
Eruption and full growth of the crown of all the permanent teeth is complete in most dogs by 10 to 12 months; however, the tooth roots (especially of the canine tooth) may not be fully developed until as late as 30 months of age. (This is a consideration if a young dog fractures a tooth.)
Most dogs exhibit a so-called “scissor bite” wherein the maxillary (upper) canine tooth (“fang”) fits behind the mandibular (lower) canine tooth, and this lower canine fits between the upper canine and the upper lateral incisor (front teeth). Breed selection, however, has resulted in major variations in normal occlusion in the dog. Maloccluded teeth (teeth that don’t align properly into the scissor bite) are relatively common in toy breeds and in dogs with pronounced over- or under-bites. Dogs with malocclusion are more prone to calculus buildup.
The dental unit consists of the teeth and their supporting tissues, the periodontium. The latter consists of the gingiva (gums), the supporting bony portion of the tooth’s root structures, and the periodontal ligament.
The teeth vary in size, shape, and number of roots, depending upon location and function. A tooth consists of a mass of dentin surrounding the innermost pulpal tissues. The root portion of the dentin is covered with cementum; the crown portion with enamel. Enamel provides resistance to wear and protects underlying dentinal tissue from damage or caries (cavities). Penetration or removal of the enamel exposes the nerve endings located in the dentin.
Around the circumference of each tooth is a one- to two-millimeter deep gingival sulcus (groove or furrow) between the gingiva and enamel surface of the tooth. The sulcus is the site where food particles and other debris most frequently accumulate, leading to inflammation of the gums and eventual calculus buildup.
Diseases of the mouth
Dental calculus buildup and the resultant peridontitis is the most significant disease condition of the mouth, both in terms of numbers and potential for severe long-term disease; this process is dealt with below. Other diseases of the oral cavity include:
• Stomatitis – Infections anywhere within the oral cavity. These can be caused by any number of microorganisms and are often induced by trauma or injuries.
• Glossitis – Infection of the tongue. Also commonly due to injuries, ingestion of caustics, licking sharp objects, or biting into electrical cords.
• Ulcers – These can occur anywhere in the mouth, but they are more common on the gums opposite heavy accumulations of calculus. They are often related to an immune deficiency, so treatment should include herbs or other alternative medicines to restore balance to the immune system.
• Hyperplasia of the gingiva – Most commonly due to periodontal disease. (See also epulis.)
• Epulis – A nonspecific term applied to benign, tumor-like masses of the gingiva. These may occur in any animal, but some breeds (Boxers, for example) seem to have a high incidence, indicating the possibility of genetic involvement.
• Lip-fold dermatitis – Inflammation at the fold of lips, between the upper and lower lips. This condition is oftentimes secondary to periodontal inflammation, but may also be due to toxic materials leaching out of plastic food and water dishes. Switch to glass, porcelain, or stainless steel dishes.
• Neoplasia – Cancers of the mouth can be aggressive, but initially they are difficult to differentiate from the benign epulis. If you see a growth in the mouth, get an accurate diagnosis via a biopsy, fast.
• Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) problems – The joint may be subluxated, a condition that may be exacerbated by calculus buildup. The pain of subluxation can lead to symptoms similar to those of oral disease – refusal to eat, slobbering, painful to the touch, etc. If your dog exhibits these signs, consider having a veterinary chiropractor check him out; deep massage often returns the TMJ to normal function (providing the calculus has been removed).
• Secondary conditions – Oral lesions may occur as a secondary problem, related to diseases such as uremia and diabetes.
Treating oral diseases
Conventional treatment for most of these diseases consists of antibiotics, possibly along with glucocorticoids and/or antihist-amines. My experience would indicate that alternate therapies almost always work as well as, or better than, any conventional treatment I once used.
I think the most important component for oral health (after teeth cleaning) is the immune system. Consider herbs (such as echinacea) and other herbal medicines, which can be used internally to enhance the whole body immune system, or they can be used as a tea or tincture as a mouthwash. (See herbal section below).
Nutritional support is almost as important. Add therapeutic levels (check with your holistic vet for correct dosages) of vitamins A, C, and E, and herbal and other antioxidants such as coenzyme Q10, thyme, goldenseal, or myrrh. Acupuncture and/or homeopathy can be added if necessary; I have both to be helpful when treating oral cancers.
Periodontal disease
Periodontal disease is the general term used to denote diseases of the periodontium, and it includes gingivitis, periodontitis, and periodontal abscess. Periodontal disease is by far the most common oral disease found in all species and is arguably the most common disease condition seen in small animal practice. As previously mentioned, it is found in 50-80 percent of all dogs and its incidence approaches 95 percent in animals over two years of age. The severity of periodontal disease correlates with the quantity of plaque and calculus present on the teeth as well as with the age of the animal.
Plaque is a soft colorless coating found on tooth surfaces, from the crown extending deep down into the sulcus. Plaque is not readily seen by the naked eye unless it is either naturally stained by dietary constituents or is extremely thick. It can, however, be demonstrated by plaque-disclosing dyes.
Contrary to popular belief, plaque is not a food residue. Its formation begins with adhesion of bacteria onto a thin film of an acidic glycoprotein that precipitates from the saliva onto the enamel surfaces of the teeth. Unless it is removed, plaque formation is extensive after a day or two – further reason for daily brushings.
The accumulation of plaque is enhanced by the presence of surface irregularities, the most common of which is calculus. Brushing with a stiff-bristled toothbrush can scratch the tooth’s surfaces, and scratches may occur when metal scrapers are used to remove calculus – thus the importance of dental polishing after every dental cleaning procedure.
Calculus is a mass of calcium salts precipitated from saliva. Calculus is easily seen and appears as varying amounts of off-white, yellow, or brown crusty material on the teeth – often concentrated at the tooth-gingival interface. Calculus acts as a focal point that attracts and retains plaque, a characteristic that is even more important in the creation of disease than is its function as a mechanical irritant. It has also been shown that endotoxins from the bacteria found in plaque may be found in calculus.
Calculus is not seen to any great degree in animals younger than nine months of age.
Gingivitis is inflammation of the gingiva or gum. The first noticeable sign of gingivitis is a noticeably darker red color where the tooth meets the gum line. This early inflammation may lead to excessive growth of the gingiva, and as the gingiva grows, it tends to move away from its once-firm contact with the tooth. A blunt-tipped probe into the sulcus is diagnostic; the probe will normally penetrate one to three millimeters. Any deeper penetration indicates gingivitis. For most dogs, a complete oral examination, including probing the sulcus of all teeth, requires anesthesia or at least sedation.
The treatment for gingivitis is the removal of bacterial plaque from the surfaces of the teeth (tooth brushing) on a consistent basis. Conventional treatments might include chlorhexidine gluconate which, when applied to teeth, effectively treats established gingivitis; other antibiotics such as clindamycin, tetracycline, and metronidazole have also been used for treatment. However, plaque and gingivitis rapidly return when treatment is discontinued, and all these products carry with them the usual concerns about antibiotic use. We cannot expect any long-term results without consistent tooth brushing.
Clinical signs
There are several symptoms that may lead to the diagnosis of a problem in the dog’s mouth, including a change in eating habits, pawing at the mouth, abnormal salivation, oral hypersensitivity, facial swelling, draining tracts, obvious blood or bloody (or brown-colored) saliva, sneezing and nasal discharge, abnormal behavior (some dogs, especially old and cranky ones, can become even crankier when their teeth hurt), and eye changes (infections around the upper teeth or upper jaw area often cause swellings around the eyes).
Facial swelling is a common symptom of almost any disease of the oral cavity, and a thorough exam of the entire mouth and its structures is indicated whenever a facial swelling is noticed.
While all the above symptoms can be significant, the first and most important tip-off to dental or other oral problems is halitosis (bad breath.) A healthy dog’s breath does not smell bad; anytime your dog’s breath has an off odor, be suspicious of dental or oral problems. (Some digestive or metabolic upsets can cause off odors, but these are less common.)
Plaque is difficult to see without staining aids, but calculus is easy to spot; it’s the chalky or crusty-looking, off-white or brown stuff on the surface of the teeth, and it is often associated with a reddened gum line.
One of the problems with diagnosing tooth conditions is that, oftentimes after an initial painful period, the pain and any other associated symptoms go away but the condition remains. This is a further reason for a complete inspection of all the far reaches of the oral and oropharyngeal cavities.
Holistic dental care
For humans, ideal dental care consists of twice daily tooth brushing, rinsing with a mouthwash, tongue cleaning, irrigation, and the addition of supplements that support oral health. For our dogs, most of these are impossible, so we rely on daily brushing, food supplements that support oral health, at least several times a week chewing on hard food (foods designed to clean teeth and/or bones), and periodic professional cleanings.
• Nutrition – Two aspects of a dog’s diet are very important for maintaining dental and oral health: The dentrifice (cleaning) activity of the diet, and supplements that can help maintain healthy teeth and gums.
Many people promote diets that include raw bone – both in the form of recreational chew bones and in raw bone that is consumed – crediting both the mechanical action of chewing the bones and the nutritional benefit of a fresh, natural calcium supplement. (For more on this topic, see “Bones of Contention,” September 2000 and “Dem Bones,” August 2003.) Others prefer to give their dogs rawhide or other chews for their dentifrice action. (For selection tips, see “What Choosy Chewers Choose,” May 2003.)
There are a number of nutritional supplements that can contribute to oral health. In all cases, check with your holistic veterinarian for proper dosages and for the length of time to continue the doses. All doses depend on the severity of the disease and on the size of the dog. Larger, therapeutic doses may used for the short term; maintenance doses may be given over longer periods.
Vitamins A, C, and E can be given for their antioxidant activity; vitamin C also helps aid healing. Vitamin A can be given at doses from 5,000 to 10,000 IU per day. Vitamin C (crystalline ascorbic acid) can be given from 250 milligrams to several grams daily. Vitamin E can be given from 200 up to 2,000 IU daily. I repeat: Discuss this supplementation with your vet.
Coenzyme Q10 is a potent antioxidant that reduces damage to cells, and has been shown to be especially beneficial for reducing gingival inflammation and periodontal pocket depth in humans. The typical recommended dosage is 0.25 to 1.0 mg per pound of body weight per day.
Bioflavinoids, especially rutin and hesperidin, are required for the formation of collagen, the protein building block for gum tissue, cartilage, and bone. They also play an important role in maintaining a competent immune system. These are available within the formula of some toothpastes, or they may be added to your dog’s diet as a supplement, from 50 to 500 mg daily.
• Herbs – Almost any herb or herbal combination that has antibiotic, vulnerary (wound healing), or astringent activity can be useful in helping to fend off oral disease; the key is to find herbs with a taste your dog doesn’t hate. I look at herbal teas as a mouthwash substitute for dogs. It’s true you can’t get a dog to swoosh the fluid around in the mouth and then spit it out. But if we use teas that can be swallowed, just the contact of the tea with the oral cavity and teeth can be beneficial.
Green tea is known to be especially beneficial for preventing oral and dental problems. (In humans green tea has been shown to help prevent cavities, and there is some evidence that it may reverse the progress of oral cancers.) First, try the brewed green tea, straight, in your dog’s water dish. If he rejects that, try adding a little meat broth as flavoring.
For drinking teas, also consider calendula (Calendula officinalis), chamomile (Anthemus nobile or Matricaria chamomilla), thyme (Thymus vulgaris), and yarrow (Achillea millefolium). Any of these will help prevent oral disease, and chances are good that your dog will eventually begin to like their taste.
For treatment of oral lesions, a strong herbal tea or tincture can be simply squirted into the mouth. Or you can make a slurry (some herbal product, boiled with a small amount of water, just enough to make into a slurry) and apply it directly to the lesions.
Herbs to consider for treatment include barberry (Berberis vulgaris), red root (Ceanothus americanus), agrimony (Agrimonia eupatoria), myrrh (Commiphora myrha), and goldenseal (Hydrastis can-adensis). Unfortunately, many of these herbs are not especially tasty.
• Acupuncture – Acupuncture can be an effective means of treating some oral disease. Most of the treatment protocols call for treating through the Large Intestine, Stomach, and Small Intestine meridians, with points along the Conception Vessel and Governing Vessel also commonly included.
• Homeopathy – Many homeopathic remedies are used for tooth problems, but most of these are related to specific types of tooth pain that only someone who can speak can describe. Fragaria (wood-strawberry) is a special case remedy that has been used by some homeopaths to help enhance the removal of and to prevent the buildup of calculus – always with the caveat that the only true way to prevent calculus is to keep plaque off the teeth.
Some homeopathic vets report that they have seen calculus disappear in animals when they use a constitutional remedy for other conditions. I have not personally witnessed this, but I have treated animals that were able to go much longer between professional cleanings while we were using the dog’s constitutional remedy – after we had initially cleaned the teeth.
However, I have had reasonably good success using homeopathy for treating oral cancers. By that I mean that the rare successes I have had almost all came from homeopathic treatments – always relying on finding the animal’s constitutional remedy. (For more on homeopathy, see “Tiny Doses, Huge Effects,” June 2000.)
-Dr. Randy Kidd earned his DVM degree from Ohio State University and his Ph.D. in Pathology/Clinical Pathology from Kansas State University. A past president of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, he’s author of Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Dog Care and Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Cat Care.
– Attend an event where freestyle will be demonstrated so you can see for yourself how much fun the participants – human AND canine – have with the sport.
– Buy a book or videotape that teaches you some of the basics, so you can start introducing some moves to your dog.
– Join a freestyle training club for advice, support, inspiration, and further education.
– Consider the sport even if you or your dog are less than athletic; even individuals in wheelchairs can participate! And many older enthusiasts find it irresistible.
Dance fever is sweeping through the canine community. Dogs are spinning and twirling to country western, rock ‘n roll, movie theme songs, and more. What’s driving these dogs (and their handlers!) to move to the beat? It’s none other than the tail wagging sport of canine musical freestyle.
Musical freestyle is a choreographed routine performed by handlers and their dogs. A relatively new addition to the dog sport world, freestyle came onto the scene less than 20 years ago. According to a few sources, freestyle seemed to pop up simultaneously in several countries, the way dog sports often do.
Today, freestyle is an established sport today, but it continues to evolve and grow. The sport’s early beginnings may have been rooted in formal heeling. But musical freestyle has moved beyond heeling routines into a true crowd-pleasing performance sport that incorporates a variety of trick-like movements such as spinning, backing up, weaving through legs, and jumping over arms.
Freestyle is About Relationships!
We’ve all seen a couple on the dance floor that rivet an audience. When partners dance – really dance! – it isn’t just the footwork or the fancy moves that fascinate; it’s their connection, chemistry, and relationship. In musical freestyle, where the dance partners are dog and handler, the relationship and the chemistry are also key.
“I first saw freestyle on TV, watching a performance of Mary Ray and her Border Collies from England. I was moved to tears,” says Nacina Dawn, a freestyle enthusiast from Valley Ford, California. Dawn says that the relationship aspect is what first drew her to the sport. Dawn was so inspired by the bond she witnessed between Ray and her dogs that she had to try freestyle. Today, Dawn dances with her seven-year-old Golden Retriever, Candy, and chairs the Gold Coast Freestyle Guild, a division of the Canine Freestyle Federation (CFF).
Kris Hurley, a freestyler from Edmond, Oklahoma, agrees. “I think the most wonderful thing about freestyle is the relationship it builds between you and your dog,” she says. “The next best thing might be the relationship between you and other freestylers!”
Hurley, who has participated in musical freestyle since 1996, is a founding member of the Musical Dog Sport Association (MDSA), an organization that promotes the sport. She also teaches through Freestyle Dogs of Oklahoma, and dances with her three dogs, Maggie, Nellie, and Roxie.
Unlike other dog sports, where the course or expected performance is essentially the same for each team, the focus of freestyle is the individuality of routines. Each team determines the music, moves, and interactions that will highlight the physical ability and personality of each team member. This aspect of freestyle readily lends itself to building on both the dog and the handler’s strengths – and thus on strengthening their relationship.
While the relationship-building aspect of freestyle is part of what makes it so attractive, the obvious joy – and just plain fun – of dancing with your dog cannot be overlooked.
“Although I participate in conformation and agility, my dogs and I have found canine freestyle to be the most joyous!” says Dawn. She explains that while the focus of freestyle is the bond, there is simply a large dose of “let’s have FUN!” thrown into the mix.
Any Dog Can Freestyle
So far, we’ve got a relationship-building sport that is a whole lot of fun. Is there more reason to take a closer look at this sport? Definitely!
“I think the flexibility of freestyle results in the sport having a little something for everyone,” says Hurley. For example, Hurley began musical freestyle when her dog, Maggie, was already nine years old.
“Maggie had stopped really enjoying obedience, and although she liked agility, the running and jumping were difficult for her,” says Hurley. “She seemed to like the change that freestyle offered – more fun, less stress.”
Now, at an amazing 17 years of age, Maggie is still doing freestyle demos and loving it. “She’s not as quick or precise as she once was, but there is a spring in her step and a sparkle in her eye when she’s doing her routine that just makes me smile. I think freestyle has enabled her to maintain physical strength and flexibility, which has helped her as she enjoys her senior years.”
Dawn agrees and points to two of her freestyle colleagues as examples. “Judy Gamet, of dogscandance.com, dances with an 11-year-old rescue Rottweiler who has one artificial hip and one severely dysplastic hip,” says Dawn. “Margine Webb dances with her 14-year-old Chesapeake Bay Retriever who is deaf and has arthritis. Freestyle has conditioned them and increased their strength, flexibility, agility, and confidence.”
But freestyle isn’t just for older dogs or dogs with disabilities, either. Hurley does both competitions and demonstrations with her four-year-old Pug-mix, Roxie, and her eight-year-old Toy Manchester Terrier, Nellie. Dawn has earned a beginner’s freestyle title with Candy. Plus, freestyle has some distinct advantages for puppies and younger dogs.
“Freestyle can be a great activity to teach the dogs to ‘learn how to learn,'” says Hurley. “Many puppies don’t have the attention span for the precision required in obedience, or shouldn’t be really jumping until after they grow. But you can train many of the freestyle behaviors at a very young age. Learning the process of learning is a skill that will carry over into whatever other activities they may want to do as an older dog – in addition to freestyle.”
Hurley also points out that the same flexibility applies to the human side of the team. “I have a student in one of my classes who is 70 years old and is training a dog for the first time. Again, because freestyle routines can be tailored to the participants’ physical characteristics, any age, shape, size, speed, or skill can be successful in freestyle. While there may be certain moves that a dog or handler can’t do, it would not preclude them from participating in freestyle.”
Dance Illusions
Both Dawn and Hurley also assured me that the people involved in freestyle don’t have to be able to “dance,” at least not in the traditional sense, to participate in this sport. As someone who is investigating freestyle as a potential new activity for my slightly senior dogs, this has been my biggest concern!
“Although a sense of musicality can be helpful, I definitely don’t feel that being a good dancer is a requirement. It’s all about presenting an illusion of dance,” says Hurley. She explains that by adding simple gestures that match the feeling of the music, the teams appear to be dancing though there is not a formal dance step anywhere in the routine.
For example, thumbs hooked through belt-loops with a small hitch-step to a country song, or a quick head-snap and hands clapped above the head to start a tango, create the illusion of dance.
According to Hurley, one of the philosophies that MDSA promotes is that the music selected should match the natural rhythm of both the dog and the handler. “When the music selected is a good match, the team almost naturally moves in time with the music,” says Hurley.
Dawn agrees, noting that the various freestyle organizations put different emphasis on the handler movements.
“CFF does not require an athletic ‘dance’ performance by the handler,” she says. “Handlers showcase all of the beautiful qualities and strengths their dogs possess. For example, a friend of mine who no longer is able to compete in other dog sports due to an injury, stands in one area and ‘conducts’ her dog in the space around her.”
In the Spotlight
While anyone can enjoy freestyle in their living room, if you have a desire to perform, either through demonstrations or in competition, a sense of showmanship and enjoying the spotlight is very helpful. For some people and dogs, being in the spotlight presents a challenge.
“The biggest challenge I had when starting was Candy’s shyness,” says Dawn. “But with a combination of clicker training and freestyle classes, she now has more confidence and grace than any dog I have ever had. My dogs and I love freestyle for the relaxed, happy, and fun way we can express to the audience our loving relationship.”
Hurley says that another challenge many people face is that freestyle involves two entirely different skill sets – the actual training process and the creative process used to develop a routine.
“Sometimes people who are amazing dog trainers struggle with the creative process – hearing the music, visualizing a routine, etc.,” says Hurley. “And many of the creative people sometimes struggle with the details and structure needed to train the moves. Bringing the two components together can often be the biggest – and most rewarding – challenge.”
Hurley notes that her biggest personal challenge has been getting past the need to have everything perfect in both training and competition. “In training, I’ve tried to change this by focusing on the positives. Clicker training has been a real blessing. It has really changed my way of thinking. I’m not looking for errors, but focusing on the good stuff.”
Moving to the Music
The first step in developing a musical freestyle routine is picking the music. The primary consideration is how well it fits the natural movement of the dog and handler; its rhythm needs to complement the dog’s and the handler’s rhythm, too. The music should also highlight the personality of the team. Music can create a mood that reflects the seriousness, power, or playfulness of the team. Or it can conjure an atmosphere of romance or joy.
“You also must pick a song that you really like,” says Dawn, “because during training and practice, it will be played over and over.”
Uncommon Moves
Once you have a music choice, the moves in a routine are designed to complement the music. The moves used in freestyle can be quite varied, depending on if the routine is being developed for competition, demonstration, or just for fun.
“The only move I consider to be a ‘required’ move is attention,” says Hurley. She defines attention in this context as “being focused and engaged with the handler,” not necessarily the “look straight at me and don’t look away” attention that is often associated with traditional obedience.
The need for focus and attention is in part because it is considered a demonstration of the bond between the handler and dog, but also because it is necessary for the dog to see the handler’s cues within the routine. Hurley notes that “attention” is not really an indication of the true bond between a dog and handler, but rather is a way to present that connection to the audience.
Other movements, however, are commonly incorporated into freestyle routines. Traditional heelwork, for example, is often at the foundation of a dance. Heelwork includes right and left side heeling, turns with the dog in the heel position, and right and left side finishes.
Backing up is another common movement in freestyle routines. Backing can be done with the dog in the right or left side heel position, with the dog in front of the handler, or with the dog backing away from the handler.
Sidestepping or lateral moves are often incorporated. Lateral movements can be done in conjunction with the handler’s movements, in a right or left side heel position. Sidestepping can also be done with the dog moving away from the handler, or with the dog moving in front of the handler.
Circles can be incorporated where the dog circles the handler or another object. Spins, where the dog turns in a 360-degree circle independent of the handler, are also popular in freestyle routines.
Other more advanced moves include a dog weaving between the handler’s legs. This can be done as a figure 8, as a moving weave through the legs, or when a dog simply goes through the handler’s legs. Teams can also incorporate tricks such as rolling over, crawling, or jumping. Distance-work (when a dog does any of these movements away from the handler) is also considered to be advanced.
Hurley emphasizes that you don’t have to do anything that isn’t comfortable for the dog. “If there is a move or type of move that doesn’t work well for my dogs, or that they don’t like, then I don’t have to do them,” says Hurley. This takes the stress and frustration out of training; the pressure to make a dog do something specific is completely removed.
“Quite often, the moves incorporated into the routine are moves the dogs do naturally during play. And because I’m not worrying about something going wrong or or my dog just not getting a certain move at a certain time, I’m more relaxed and we can enjoy the interaction and time working together.”
Showing Off Your Moves
It is important to note that in a freestyle competition, certain movements may be required at each level, depending on the organization. For example, in CFF (the organization Dawn is involved with), a beginning routine is done on-lead, and should include specific elements of heeling, working in front, turns or pivots, and spins or circles.
There are four levels of competition in CFF, and in the most advanced level, the routine is done off-leash and includes distance work, lateral movements, and backing up. All levels can also incorporate movements like weaving through legs, crawling, rolling over, and jumping over arms or legs. Even in competition, however, the required elements allow for a great deal of flexibility and creativity.
Plus, there are quite a few different organizations that promote freestyle, and each has its own unique philosophy. By investigating the different avenues for competition, a team is sure to find a match that will work for them. And for demonstration, exhibition, or “just for fun” freestyle routines, of course, anything goes.
Unexpected Benefits of Musical Freestyle for Dogs
If competing is not your thing, Dawn emphasizes, you can take your dance “on the road” in a variety of other ways. “Thrill your friends, bring cheer to those confined to hospitals or nursing homes, or promote responsible pet guardianship to children at schools,” she suggests.
“Although we enjoy competing, the majority of our performances are ‘dancing for a cause’ such as Northern California Golden Retriever Rescue, animal shelters, humane societies, rescue benefits, and various canine sporting events,” says Dawn. “Candy is also a registered therapy dog through the Delta Pet Partners and performs at hospitals and nursing homes.”
Hurley echoes the sentiment that competition isn’t the only venue for freestyle. “Since I’ve come from a competitive background, freestyle competitions seemed like a logical choice. However, I’m finding that I am beginning to enjoy the demonstrations more than the competitions.
“Freestyle is a great way to show what you can accomplish with positive training methods. And since several of us perform with rescue dogs, it really helps show what great dogs rescues can be,” she adds.
Hurley says she has also performed for community events like the Alzheimer’s Walk and for senior and children’s groups. “You get to have fun with your dog AND make people smile. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
Getting Started in Musical Freestyle
Kris Hurley, freestyle competitor, teacher, and founding member of the Musical Dog Sport Association, suggests that the first step for people interested in musical freestyle is to seek knowledge. “There are so many wonderful resources available to freestylers – e-mail discussion groups, training videos, competition videos, seminars, workshops, and classes. All these resources can really help a team get started,” says Hurley. “Since seminars and classes are becoming popular, some people think they need a class or seminar to get started. I think it is important to remember that many of the top freestylers trained on their own.”
If you haven’t yet seen musical freestyle in action, you might want to visit the Musical Dog Sport Association’s Web site where you can view a short video of Hurley and her dog Maggie performing to “Hang ‘Em High.” The Web site also has videos of other members, including a well-known musical freestyle routine (thanks to e-mail and the Internet), Carolyn Scott and Rookie dancing to “You’re the One That I Want” from the movie, Grease.
Mardi Richmond is a writer and trainer who shares life with her human partner and two wonderful dogs in Santa Cruz, California. She is the co-author of Ruffing It: The Complete Guide to Camping with Dogs.
When I watch our dog, Pokey, nose his way over the prairie and through the woods around our homestead, I sometimes try to imagine what he is smelling. It’s an impossible assignment. The canine sense of smell and his repertoire of scents is, after all, at least hundreds of times and perhaps more than a million times more acute and more expansive than mine.
I watch as he trots ahead, nose just above the grasses, head ever on the swivel, left to right and up to down – air-sniffing, selecting scents, veering to wherever the pleasures of his nose takes him. Suddenly he stops, noses into a clump of grass, snorts, burrows his nose deeper into some fragrance I will never know, an odor that recalls some aromatic memory, perhaps a primitive recollection from even before he was born. He digs into the memory of odor. Digs with his paws for a while, snorts, then decides it is a lingering smell no longer worthy of his work. He rises up, glances my way … and then lifts his leg and marks this location for any who might follow.
The Canine Nose
The dog’s nose consists of a bony nasal cavity that is divided into two separate chambers by a bony and cartilaginous nasal septum. Within each of the cavities are the turbinate bones (conchae) and the paranasal sinuses.
The turbinate bones form into several scrolls of moveable cartilage and bony tissue that is lined with ciliated epithelial cells. The turbinate bones are a veritable maze of structure, and locating a foreign body hidden in their depths can be an extremely frustrating undertaking – a procedure that almost always requires general anesthesia.
The nose opens to the exterior via two external “nares” or nostrils and the ethmoid bone marks the posterior aspect of the nose.
The paranasal sinuses are extensions of the nasal cavity and various diseases or tumors may impair their drainage (especially of the frontal sinuses). When the dog sniffs, there is forced inspiration and the nostrils are dilated. The inspired air is warmed and humidified as it passes through the turbinates, and the mucus layer that lines the air passages serves as a filter to trap bacteria and particulate matter.
The dog collects scents by air-scenting (sniffing volatile oils that are traveling in the air) and sniffing the ground. A dog’s nose is ideally made for sniffing – the outer nares are mobile and allow for expansion on inspiration and contraction to prevent the entry of unwanted objects. When a dog sniffs, he inhales the scented chemicals into his nasal cavities, where they are trapped in mucus and processed by the sensory cells. Expiration forces air out the side of the nares so that its exit doesn’t interfere with odors still in the air or on the ground.
Several cilia extend from each of the sensory cells into the nasal cavity, and each of these cilia contains many scent receptors. After the cell receptors trap the smells, each cell has several (10 to 100) axons that deliver their messages back through the ethmoid bone directly to the olfactory bulb of the brain.
Once in the olfactory bulb, scents are transported to the frontal cortex for recognition as well as to other regions of the brain that include the brain’s centers for emotions, memory, and pleasure. There are many interconnections between all these centers, with the result that a simple smell, detected by a dog, likely has an entire set of meanings, memories, and emotional ties that only that dog can know and interpret.
Much of the deeper work of trying to understand the sense of smell has been done on humans; how do you ask a dog what he feels or remembers when he smells a certain odor? But we do know that dogs have much more surface area within their nasal cavities, and this area is well supplied with sensory cells – estimates of the total number of these cells vary and depend on the breed, but they have been cited as somewhere between 125 million and several times that. (This compares with estimates of human numbers that are in the 5- to 10-million-cell range.)
In addition, the dog has devoted a tremendous amount of his brain tissue to olfactory cells. (Some estimates allocate one-third of the dog’s brain to the chore of scenting.) All this adds up to a canine scenter that has thousands to millions of times the ability of his human counterpart.
We also know that we can use the dog’s incredible sense of smell to benefit mankind in ways we are only beginning to imagine. Today’s working scent dogs are involved in search and rescue (some dogs can follow a trail that is more than a week old), finding cadavers (dogs have even detected drowned people in a depth of 80+ feet of water), detecting explosives, firearms, and drugs, and even scenting tumors in human patients. Early work has begun to use dogs to test the breath of humans – to help diagnose internal diseases before they become evident with other methods.
Jacobson’s Organ
Inside the nasal cavity and opening into the upper part of the mouth is the final piece of the dog’s scent-related puzzle, the remarkable Jacobson’s Organ. Jacobson’s Organ is a “sense of smell” receptor that is actually not receptive to ordinary odors. Rather, the scenting nerve cells of the organ are quite different from those in normal olfactory tissue in that they respond to a range of substances that have large molecules, but often no detectable odor.
The sensory cells of Jacobson’s Organ (which anatomists claim are unlike any other nerve cells) communicate not with the olfactory bulbs and cortex, but with the accessory bulbs and the part of the brain that coordinates mating and other basic emotions. In fact, recent evidence suggests that the two separate but parallel systems of odor detection cooperate in surprising ways to produce novel sensibilities not achievable by either of them on their own.
The primary function of the Organ is to detect pheromones, which then provides both sexes with information as to the availability of the opposite sex for breeding. Additionally the Organ is apparently able to detect other, normally undetectable, odors – odors that may enhance the newborn’s ability to find its own dam, for example. Search and rescue dog handlers notice that many of their dogs lick the air, as if to give additional input into their “scents-ability.”
Animals enhance the sex-detection ability of the Organ with what is called the “flehmen” reaction or “flared face.” When exposed to the urine of an animal in heat, a male will typically throw back his head and raise or curl his upper lip – both of these help to open the entry slits into Jacobson’s Organ.
Horses, deer, and goats are the masters of this reaction, and many dogs can produce a rather pronounced flehmen when the time is right. Interestingly, although just a few years ago it was thought that Jacobson’s Organ did not exist in humans, a recent anatomical study of 400 human subjects confirmed both its presence and the fact that its nervous connections are capable of sending functional messages to the brain. Apparently, as much as some folks would like to deny it, we humans are indeed sexual animals, just like the rest of nature.
For Animals, Smelling is More Than Just Scent
The nose and the sense of smell are vastly expanded by Jacobson’s Organ, but an animal’s ability to smell extends into many other realms as well. Since smelling is hooked into the most primitive areas of an animal’s brain, there is reason to believe that smell is also linked to sensations created long before the animal was actually born.
We know, for example, that animals (and humans) prefer to mingle with the scent of members within their own pack or herd (or, in the case of humans, in their own culture), and horses and dogs can detect the human scent of fear. Also, shortly after birth, mothers are able to pick out their own offspring by smell, and puppies quickly learn the smell of their mother’s milk . . . and before long, the smell of a preferred teat.
We know that certain scents may be linked with memories of past events, and even with positive or negative emotions. The fragrance of cookies baking, for ex-ample, may remind us of the good times we had at grandma’s house, many years ago. Throughout our lifetime, then, the smell of fresh-baked cookies may evoke a positive feeling. It’s not easy to correlate long-lasting emotions to past events in dogs, but it is certainly something to consider when we are dealing with a behavior problem that we can’t explain physically; could it be related to some household odor that was associated with a bad experience in the dog’s past?
In traditional Chinese medicine, the nose – along with the throat and vocal cords – are all considered to be intimately connected to the function of the Lungs. Many nose and throat disorders are therefore treated through the Lung Meridian.
Nose Nutrition
In addition to the normally recommended wholesome diet for dogs, a few nutrients may be especially beneficial for the nose and its ability to smell. Vitamin A seems to be directly involved in the sensory cells’ ability to receive and activate the energy of odorant molecules. Glutamate has been proposed as the olfactory cell neurotransmitter (at least in turtles, toads, and rats). While these may prove to be helpful for smelling (especially in the older dog), no definitive studies have yet been done to ascertain proper dosages (or definite benefits) for dogs.
Remember that, as an animal ages, he loses some or all of his ability to smell. Older animals may need to be tempted to eat, and some seem to find spicy foods more palatable. Try several culinary herbs to see if your dog prefers any of them – most of the culinary herbs are high in nutrients and antioxidant, anti-aging activity.
In my opinion, the best “nutrition” we can give to a dog’s nose is a daily dose of natural odorants, generated from the fields and woodlands out of doors – the perfect way to build up the reserve of sensory cells and brain connections related to smelling.
Disease Etiologies
Viral infection is the most common cause of acute rhinitis or sinusitis in dogs, with canine distemper, adenovirus types 1 and 2, and parainfluenza the most frequently incriminated.
While primary bacterial sinusitis or rhinitis (inflammation of the mucus membranes of the nose – from the Greek “rhis,” meaning nose) is extremely rare in dogs, secondary bacterial infections are a frequent complication of viral infections.
Allergic sinusitis or rhinitis may occur seasonally in association with pollen production, or it may be the result of household and environmental irritants such as cigarette smoke, housedust, mold, irritant gasses, excess or abnormal odors (perfumes and perfumed air fresheners, for example), and exposure to toxic chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides.
If rhinitis becomes chronic, consider a persistent secondary bacterial infection after a viral infection, trauma, or presence of a foreign body, or the possibility of a tumor or fungal infection. Rhinitis or sinusitis may also result when a tooth root abscess extends into the maxillary region.
In the course of a normal smelling adventure, a dog will inhale a variety of foreign bodies, most of which are too small to worry about or are immediately sneezed out. Occasionally a dog may, however, inhale a splinter or a plant awn or some other small particle that remains lodged in the nasal cavity, causing local irritation and infection. Finally, both fungal and neoplastic disease may center in the nasal cavities, generally producing chronic symptoms.
Clinical Signs of Rhinitis
Acute rhinitis is characterized by one or more of the following: nasal discharge, sneezing, pawing at the face, respiratory stertor (snoring or sonorous breathing), open-mouthed breathing, or other signs of inspiratory difficulty. Tearing (lacrimation) and red eyes (conjunctivitis) often accompany upper respiratory inflammation.
There is often a nasal discharge that may be serous (resembling serum or watery in appearance), catarrhal (discharge created by the inflammation of a mucus membrane), purulent (containing pus or white blood cells), or hemorrhagic (bloody), depending on the degree of mucosal damage and on the increased amount of normal (or abnormal) secretions. The amount of discharge may also reflect decreased “grooming” of the nostrils with the tongue when the dog is ill.
Sneezing, in an attempt to clear the upper airways of discharge, is seen most frequently in acute rhinitis; as the disease progresses to a more chronic form, the sneezing becomes intermittent. The presence of a foreign body is suggested by frantic sneezing; an acute, one-sided nasal discharge (especially if it is bloody or tinged with blood); and possibly accompanied by pawing at the face or rubbing one side of the face against the ground. Neoplastic or fungal disease is suggested by a chronic nasal discharge that was initially unilateral but becomes bilateral or that changes in character over time (say, from serous to blood-tinged).
Pure sinusitis is not very common in dogs; sinus infections are generally associated with diseases of the nasal cavity. Epistaxis (bloody nose) is a rare occurrence in dogs and may be the result of recent trauma or the presence of a nasal foreign body or tumor.
Conventional Treatment for Nose Problems in Dogs
Since the primary etiologies of rhinitis and sinusitis are viral, supportive therapy may be the only conventional treatment available … and to be fair, most cases of rhinitis and sinusitis will resolve themselves with nothing more than supportive care.
Make sure your dog continues to eat and drink when he’s suffering from any sort of nasal problem; remember that most of a dog’s ability to “taste” food resides in her nose, and if she can’t smell the food, she may not want to eat it. Furthermore, even a mild fever will quickly dehydrate a sick animal, and if you can’t get her to drink at home, consider a trip to the vet for fluids.
Foreign bodies will need to be removed, most often under general anesthetic. Tumors of the nasal cavities can be nasty and will require the full concentration of a holistic veterinarian.
Alternative Therapies
Acupuncture treatments will most often be aimed at enhancing the immune function, and since the nose is connected through the Lungs, will often include treating the Lungs.
The Lung Meridian begins at the forward point of the shoulder and proceeds downward around the upper arm, extending along the medial aspect of the foreleg to end at the medial aspect of the first (inner) phalanx.
To help alleviate conditions involving the nose, massaging both forelegs from the shoulder down to the toes will stimulate all the Lung points and important immune-balancing points (LI-4 and LI-11). In addition, a massage of the neck and upper back, from the base of the head (at the occipital bone) back to the shoulder blades, will stimulate points along the Bladder Meridian that are correlated to the Lungs (Bl-13, at the third intercostal space, is the Lung association point, and Bl-9 at the base of the occipital bone, indicated for headache, neck pain, and nasal congestion).
LI-20, located just lateral to and slightly below the nasal ala (the fleshy part of the nostril), is specific for rhinitis, epistaxis, and facial paralysis. Sometimes stimulation of this point will cause an intense outflow of gunk from the nasal cavities, much like an artificial “nose-blowing.” Most dogs seem to tolerate needles in this point, but I’ve not had much luck trying to stimulate it with a finger (acupressure).
Everyone should learn one particular nose-related acupuncture point, GV-26, the point located on the lip at the center of the nose, just below the fleshy part of the nose. GV-26 is the most important point for acute emergencies such as shock, collapse, heatstroke, cardiac arrest, coma, severe bronchitis, or acute epileptic attacks. If a newborn puppy is not breathing properly or a dog is not recovering from anesthesia, this is the point to stimulate.
If you don’t have acupuncture needles, use whatever sharp object is at hand – a safety pin, knitting needle, your fingernail, whatever is available. For emergencies use strong stimulation – the “hen pecking” technique is appropriate here, rapidly jabbing the sharp object straight into the acu-point, about ¼ to ½ inch into the skin – much like a hen would peck at grain on the ground.
Homeopathic remedies can often be very useful, especially for the acute sinusitis or rhinitis, and the analysis of nasal symptoms can sometimes lead to a remedy that offers a cure for the totality of the patient’s symptoms. The problem is that nasal symptoms can also be extremely confusing in the initial case-taking.
To get some perspective on the magnitude of remedies listed for the nose, using the classical repertory, Kent’s Repertorium Generale, edited by J. Kunzli, there are 24 pages of remedies dealing with the nose alone. If we were to use nasal “discharges” as our key symptom, we would need to wade through almost four pages of remedies, each one applied to one of the 56 descriptive terms used to describe a specific type of discharge.
Additionally, when an animal is being treated with homeopathic remedies, external symptoms may be the last ones to clear up. Nasal symptoms are thus not the most reliable to monitor when you’re trying to decide which direction the case is taking.
Given all this, I still rely heavily on Aconite (30c, three times, the doses given 12 hours apart) when treating almost any acute nasal infection. My approach is to give the aconite at the first signs of rhinitis or sinusitis (or actually, almost any acute disease), wait a few days to monitor results, then (if any more treatment is needed) decide on which remedy to follow up with, depending on the specific signs seen.
Homeopathic remedies have shown some success when treating nasal tumors, and if a tumor is diagnosed in your dog, it is certainly worthwhile to consult with a holistic veterinarian who has experience treating them homeopathically.
Herbal Medicines for Nasal Health in Dogs
Herbs that may be helpful for treating rhinitis and/or sinusitis include a mixture of two or more of the following:
• Elder flower (Sambucus nigra). Has anti-catarrhal effects and is tonifying to mucus membranes
• Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) or Oregon grape root (Berberis aquifolium). Antibacterial and antiviral
• Goldenrod (Solidago virgauria). Anti-inflammatory and anti-catarrhal
• Peppermint (Mentha piperita). Decongestant
• Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). Especially beneficial if the disease has become chronic and is accompanied by fever
• Echinacea (Echinaceaspp.). Aids the immune system
Mix the herbs chosen in equal amounts and brew a mild tea from the mixture. Cool and pour the tea over the dog’s food – about 1/4 cup of tea per 20 pounds of dog, one to three times daily. Alternatively, sprinkle the mixed herbs (fresh or dry) on the dog’s food – about a teaspoon of herbs per 20 pounds of dog, two to three times daily.
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is directly applied through the animal’s ability to sense odors that in turn are directed to various parts of the brain. The effects on the brain centers depends on the flower essence used, and an entire repertory has been developed to help the practitioner and a dog’s caretaker decide which aroma may be beneficial for the condition.
While the development of aromatherapy treatments for animals remain a work in progress, recent studies using electro-encephalograms (EEGs) confirm that at least some of the aromas do affect brain centers just as they are supposed to.
One study in particular shows that rosemary depresses alpha-activity (i.e., acts as a stimulant) and ylang ylang enhances it (providing relaxation) – just as the aromatherapy “textbooks” say they should. In aromatherapy, rosemary is used as a stimulant and ylang ylang is a soothing, relaxing aroma. In addition, one trial demonstrated that kenneled dogs bark less when they are exposed to the soothing aroma of lavender.
Flower Essences
Flower essences can help alleviate any emotional upset that may come along with problems that involve the nose, and there are some essences that may speed up the healing process. Crab apple is good for general detoxification, and cedar may be helpful whenever environmental or chemical toxicants are involved. Salvia supports an immune system under stress.
Dog Noses & Sense of Smell: Summary
The dog’s nose may be his most powerful organ and it is certainly one of the most dynamic of all animal systems, with activities that range from basic smell detection, to sensing fear, to memory, to emotions, to mate- and pack-selection, on to a genetic history carried from one generation to the next. Fortunately, disease doesn’t often waylay its functional capability, and fortunately again, most of the diseases of the nose are easily treated naturally.
What You Can Do
1. A runny nose should always warrant further inspection and monitoring. Consult your holistic veterinarian if symptoms persist.
2. If your dog comes in from a walk outside and has an acute attack of sneezing that doesn’t resolve within 20 minutes or so, take him right to your veterinarian. He probably has inhaled a foxtail or other plant awn, and will need anesthesia to remove it.
Want more cool facts about dogs’ sense of smell? Click here!
Dr. Randy Kidd earned his DVM degree from Ohio State University and his Ph.D. in Pathology/Clinical Pathology from Kansas State University. A past president of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, he’s author of Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Dog Care and Dr. Kidd’s Guide to Herbal Cat Care.
I just completed a private consultation with a client whose under-socialized Australian Shepherd recently bit their 6-year-old daughter in the face, and nipped a friend of their 9-year-old son. I’m cursing a world that allows this to happen.
This well-meaning family adopted Blue from a shelter when he was 16 weeks old. He was “shy,” they said – he hid under a chair in the get-acquainted room when they met him. He had been at the shelter for two months – half his life. According to his paperwork he was the last of a litter of six and was timid when initially assessed.
In fact, all the pups were timid, but he was the worst – which was why he was the last one left when the Petersons went to the shelter to adopt last February. He was the only puppy in the shelter at the time, so they decided to take him despite his shyness. He’d come around, they thought, with love and attention.
Nature versus nurture
What they didn’t know was that at 16 weeks, Blue was reaching the end of a pup’s most important socialization period – the time in his life when he learns what is safe and good, and what is scary. In the wild, the lessons learned during the first few months of a pup’s life are critical to his survival. As he ventures out of his den he learns to be bold where it counts – pouncing on prey, for example – and cautious where prudent. Pups who don’t learn to avoid poisonous snakes, rushing floodwaters, and precipitous cliffs don’t live to pass on their genes!
During this period, puppies who live with humans need to learn that the world is a good and safe place. Their general assumption then becomes that people and other animals, places, and things are okay unless proven otherwise.
In contrast, puppies who are not socialized tend to be suspicious of everything except for a very narrow range of experiences they encounter in their very limited environment – a basement or backyard, for example. The rest of the world terrifies them, and any positive exposures they get later in life must struggle against this early, very strong programming.
A genetically sound pup has a better chance of recovering, at least to some degree, from a poor start in life. A pup who inherited poor genes for temperament and wasn’t well socialized early is often a lost cause – or, at least, a huge challenge for someone who is well-prepared, educated, and equipped to deal with him or her.
The fact that Blue and all his siblings were deemed to be “shy” when they were dropped off at the shelter indicated that they hadn’t received adequate early socialization. Most shelters aren’t ideal environments for remedial socialization, so by the time Blue was finally adopted, he was woefully behind in his “life is good” lessons – the lessons that, once missed, are very difficult (if not impossible) to make up.
The Petersons also didn’t know that if they wanted to try to make up for lost time they had to immediately start super-socializing their new pup. By the time they brought Blue to me he was 11 months old, and the prognosis for successful behavior modification was dismal.
This dog’s future is unknown. The Petersons want to try, and I will certainly try to help them, but they are facing a huge challenge. When children are involved and at risk, the tolerance for error is low and rightly so. I’m hoping to be pleasantly surprised by the outcome of this case.
Every dog is a product of the influence of his genes and his environment. If a pup comes from parents who have very genetically sound temperaments, then the pup can get by with an average amount of socialization – or even less. However, if Mom and Pop are genetically unstable, Pup needs to be ultra-socialized if he is to become a safe and friendly member of society.
The problem is, it’s pretty hard to tell the difference. If you adopt a pup from a shelter, you rarely get to meet the parents. Even if you buy from a breeder, you can’t tell if Mom and Dad are friendly because they’re genetically sound or because they were exceptionally well socialized. How do you know whether to give your new pup average socialization or the ultra package? You don’t.
The answer to this conundrum is to socialize the heck out of every single puppy. Then you don’t risk finding out later that you had a pup who needed an extra boost in the social department – you already gave it to him!
Early socialization
The best socialization programs begin while pups are still with their dams. A good breeder begins handling her pups gently and early, just as their eyes begin to open, giving them a positive association with human touch. As they get a little older (5-6 weeks) they should start meeting more humans – all shapes, colors, ages, and sizes – who feed them treats and pet them gently. The breeder will need to supervise these interactions closely, as rough handling at this stage can have the opposite effect, teaching the pups that humans aren’t safe to be around.
The mother dog’s attitude is important at this stage, too. If she is aggressive toward humans, or even just stressed about her pups being handled, the pups can register her attitude and learn this inappropriate behavior. If Mom is calm and relaxed around humans, pups are more likely to be, too.
By the time a pup is weaned at 7-8 weeks, he should already have a positive worldview programmed into his little puppy brain. When you select your pup from a litter, whether you’re at a breeder’s home or a shelter – or picking one from a box of free puppies on a street corner – choose wisely. Resist the temptation to rescue the pup who hides in the corner. Select, instead, the pup who is outgoing without being overbearing – the one who seems to have a cheerful, “Life is good!” attitude. Otherwise you risk finding yourself in the Peterson’s shoes, with an 11-month-old dog who is biting children in the face.
Okay, you’ve adopted a friendly pup with a sound temperament. Good for you! That doesn’t mean your job is done, however. You must continue your pup’s socialization lessons assiduously until he is 16 weeks old, and then maintain his positive association to the world throughout his life. If you take an 8-week-old well-socialized pup and stick him in your backyard with no outside exposure, the odds are good that you will end up with a problem.
The health dilemma
Puppy owners are often counseled by their veterinarians to keep their baby dogs cloistered safely at home until they are fully immunized at age 4-6 months. Looking at the situation purely from a physical health perspective, this makes good sense. You certainly don’t want to risk exposing your pup to nasty distemper or parvo bugs.
From a mental health perspective, however, it’s horrible advice. You only have two to three more months to give your pup an unshakable faith in the goodness of the world. You cannot afford to wait until those shots are done. During this period, you want to give your pup at least 100 new positive exposures and experiences, to “vaccinate” him against the possibility that he will feel compelled to bite someone, someday (see “100 Exposures In 100 Days” sidebar). It’s not a guarantee against biting, but it’s by far your best chance of ending up with an adult dog who is friendly and safe.
Fear periods
At one time in the last several decades, much ado was made about a pup’s “critical fear periods.” Behaviorists attempted to pinpoint those periods of time in puppyhood during which a “bad experience” would scar a pup’s psyche for life. More recently, we have come to realize that, although pups do seem to go through periods during which they are more fearful than others, that time can vary from one pup to the next. Rather than wrapping your pup in cotton wool for a designated period, it makes more sense to watch him closely and ensure that he has mostly good experiences, especially if he seems to be going through a cautious stage.
Even if something does frighten him, it’s not the end of the world – you can set up a counter-conditioning and desensitization (CC&D) program to restore a positive association with that particular stimulus, and your pup should recover nicely.
Lifetime socialization
Now your pup is 16 weeks old. You’ve reached the end of that magic socialization window, your “100 exposures” list is all checked off, and your pup loves the world. Are you done? Hardly.
Like your training efforts, which continue on into adulthood and throughout your dog’s entire life, you are never done with socialization. You’ve laid a very solid foundation; that’s something to be proud of.
Much of that will be lost, however, if you toss your four-month-old pup into the backyard and cease all exposure. He still needs to meet and greet people, go places with you, and continue to share your world and your experiences, if you want him to continue to be the happy, friendly puppy he is today. And, of course, that’s what you want!
-Pat Miller, CPDT, is WDJ’s Training Editor. She is also author of “The Power of Positive Dog Training,” and “Positive Perspectives: Love Your Dog, Train Your Dog.”
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