During the past decade, conventional veterinary surgery has made great strides in helping dogs lead more comfortable and fuller lives. But an ancient therapy – acupressure – nicely augments the more modern medical practice and increases its benefits.
Oak, a Golden Retriever puppy, is a good example of how one of the newer surgical procedures benefited and extended his life, and how acupressure improved the surgery’s effectiveness.
As in many service dog breeding programs, Oak was bred for one particular trait: his temperament. In this case, Oak and his Golden Retriever littermates were bred to be calm, easygoing, highly social, and trainable. When breeding for a single trait, often the health of an animal is compromised in other ways. Unfortunately, every puppy in the litter had orthopedic problems and none were able to fulfill their intended mission of being a service dog.
By the time Oak was 10 months old, it was clear that he had severe hip dysplasia. Radiographs confirmed that there was literally no hip socket on his right side.
After consulting with three veterinary surgeons, it was decided that the best course of action was a triple pelvic osteotomy (TPO), where the hip is reformed to create a socket. This procedure was considered experimental 10 years ago when Oak was much in need of it. Today, it is a common surgery for hip dysplasia.
Traditional Chinese Medicine for Post-Op Healing
Immediately following the surgical procedure, Oak received an acupressure session specifically for post-operative issues to support him in his recovery. Acupressure, like acupuncture, is based on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The intent of Oak’s acupressure sessions was to bring more chi (pronounced “chee” and also seen as Qi or Ki), the life-promoting energy that the ancient Chinese saw as essential for all life; and increase “Blood” flow, to optimize the healing process while maintaining the body’s energetic balance.
In TCM, “Blood” is not only the nutrient-rich, red fluid that flows through our veins; it is more broadly defined as fluids that nourish and moisten the body’s organs, bones, and other tissues.
Tallgrass Animal Acupressure Institute
According to TCM, there are energetic pathways (called meridians) where chi and Blood flow through the canine body. Along these meridians there are specific points, or acupoints, where we can apply pressure and actually influence the flow of chi, Blood, and other body fluids. When there is an interruption or blockage of chi along the meridian, acupoints are used to restore the natural harmonious flow of chi and Blood so that the body can heal itself.
From a Chinese Medicine perspective, any surgical procedure represents an insult or injury to the body that disrupts the flow of chi and Blood. To support the animal’s healing process, we select acupoints that can:
• Help with pain management; • Clear the effects of anesthesia; • Minimize the building of scar tissue; • Reduce swelling and collection of body fluids; and, • Enhance the circulation of chi and Blood to ensure the removal of toxins and provide nourishment to the injured area.
Canine Acupressure Points for Post-Surgical Healing
Tallgrass Animal Acupressure Institute
POINT
FUNCTION & LOCATION
BL 17
Improves Blood and chi circulation. Lateral to the caudal border of the spinous process of the 7th thoracic vertebrae.
BL 60
“Aspirin Point” relieves pain in the body. Located at the thinnest part of the hock, lateral aspect.
LI 14
Relieves pain, promotes circulation of protective chi and Blood. Benefits the immune system. Located at webbing of dewclaw.
ST 36
Promotes chi and Blood flow and benefits the immune system. Located just lateral to the tibial crest.
SP 6
Promotes Blood and chi circulation. Located about three inches above the tip of the medial malleolus.
LIV 3
Helps remove toxins, regulates and tonifies Liver Blood. Found between the 1st and 2nd metatarsal bones.
Recovering from the Triple Pelvic Osteotomy
Oak’s acupressure sessions began within an hour after surgery, while he was still under the influence of the anesthesia. For the first four days, he received a session every 24 hours. For the following two weeks he had an acupressure session every third day.
A week after his extensive TPO surgery, Oak went back to the surgeon for a check-up. As he walked down the hall and into the examination room, the surgeon, while watching him walk asked, “Is Oak here for his month check? He is walking very well.”
Within a week, Oak had gone from being in extreme pain and almost completely immobilized to being able to walk comfortably and evenly on both flat terrain and up and down stairs. Thanks to his basic good health and acupressure sessions, Oak’s rapid recovery took the surgeon by surprise.
Because of the advancements in conventional medicine and the powerful healing capacity of TCM, Oak, now 10 years old, is still able to jump into the back of an SUV, run up and down hills, play with buddies, and swim in ponds.
My Golden Retriever’s Acupressure Session
Start by finding a comfortable location for both you and your dog. Take a few even breaths in and out while thinking about how you want to help your dog.
Rest one hand on the dog’s shoulder. Using the heel of your other hand, place it at the top of his head and gently stroke down his neck, just off the midline. (For smaller dogs, use your index and second fingers to stroke down the dogs neck.) Staying just to the side of the dog’s spine, continue to trace the path of the Bladder Meridian (see illustration, next page), going toward his tail and over his rump, then down the outside of his hind leg to the tip of his outside toe.
Repeat this intentional stroking procedure three times on each side of the dog following the Bladder Meridian. In the illustration (right), note that the meridian is located on both sides of the spine, so you should work on both sides of the dog.
Begin working on the points by resting one hand on your dog wherever it feels comfortable; this is your anchor hand. You can move it whenever you need to for comfort. You can use either the thumb or two-finger technique to perform the point work, depending on which is more comfortable for you and your dog.
• Thumb technique: Place the fleshy tip of your thumb directly on the acupressure point at a 90-degree angle and hold the point gently but with intent. Count to 30 before moving to the next acupoint.
• Two-finger technique: Put your middle finger on top of your index finger and then place your index finger at approximately a 90-degree angle to the point. Gently, but with intentional firmness, apply pressure directly on the acupoint and count to 30; then move to the next acupoint. The two-finger technique tends to work best for smaller animals and in places where it is difficult to reach.
Once you have finished stimulating the acupressure points on one side of your dog, be sure to hold the points on the other side. Doing both sides will ensure a balanced and more complete treatment.
Observe your dog’s reaction to the work on the points. “Energy releases” mean your session is working. Healthy energy releases include yawning, deep breathing, muscle twitches, release of air, deeper relaxation, licking, and softening of the eye. If your dog is overly reactive to a particular point or exhibits a pain reaction, skip it, and try that point again at a later session.
Complete your acupressure session by resting your hand comfortably on your dog’s shoulder just the way you did when starting the treatment. Place the heel of your other hand, or index and middle fingers, just off the midline of the top of his head and stoke down the Bladder Meridian: down his neck, over his back to his hindquarters, keeping your hand to the side of his spine, and down the outside of his leg to his outer toe. Your opposite hand can lightly trail along the same path as the working hand.
Repeat this procedure three times on each side of your dog. It can take 24 hours for the effects of an acupressure treatment to be fully experienced.
Amy Snow and Nancy Zidonis are the authors of The Well-Connected Dog: A Guide to Canine Acupressure, Acu-Cat: A Guide to Feline Acupressure, and Equine Acupressure: A Working Manual. They founded Tallgrass Animal Acupressure Institute, which offers a practitioner certificate program and training programs worldwide, plus books, meridian charts, and videos.
By Randy Kidd, DVM, PhD This has become a nation of fat people – and fat dogs. Once again our dogs are mirroring us, no matter how bad that picture looks. It has been estimated that (depending on the survey and the way “obese” and “overweight” are defined) from about 25 percent to more than half of dogs seen by veterinarians are overweight or obese, and many practitioners feel that even these numbers grossly underestimate the true extent of the problem. For more perspective we can refer to numbers from a medical database maintained by Banfield, The Pet Hospital (a chain of 500-plus veterinary hospitals). Its data indicate that of the 3.5 million animals seen in the chain’s hospitals each year, almost 83 percent are categorized as exceeding their recommended weights. More worrisome, the obesity trend seems to be accelerating in recent years, much as it has in humans. The percentage of heavy dogs seen at Banfield increased from 49 percent to 83 percent from 1999 to 2004. The problem of defining obesity in dogs stems in part from the wide variance that exists in “normal” weights for different breeds. Most fat experts define an “overweight” dog as being 10 to 15 percent above the ideal weight for the breed; an animal is obese when he weighs 15 to 25 percent or more than the breed’s ideal weight. Another way to look at obesity is to look at it structurally rather than limit its definition to a set weight standard. Under this guideline, obesity can be defined as an increase in body weight beyond the limitation of its skeletal and physical requirements, resulting from an accumulation of excess body fat.
Whatever the definition and true statistics are for overweight and obese dogs, obesity is the most common nutritional disorder in dogs, and many practitioners feel it is today’s number one health danger for dogs. According to existing statistical evidence, the increased incidence of obesity (in both dogs and humans) has dramatically risen only over the past 10 years or so. Obesity is a, well, growing problem without an end in sight. And for fat people and fat dogs, this is not a good sign. It is interesting to note that it is not just dogs and their people that are overweight; overweight and obese cats are also a concern, and the Banfield survey mentioned above found that many exotic pets – birds, ferrets, and rabbits – are overweight too, again with the percentages of overweight animals increasing over the past few years. Being fat is not healthy Obesity in dogs may be associated with the following diseases: hypothyroidism, hyperadrenocorticism, diabetes mellitus, non-allergic skin conditions, arthritis, and lameness. Increased weight puts added stress on bones and the ligaments and tendons of joints, making them more susceptible to traumatic injury. Fat dogs don’t ambulate as well; they become couch potatoes, resulting in “stuck” joints that cause the dog to want to lie about even more – a cycle that ultimately leads to a painfully immobile animal. The immune system is compromised when an animal is overweight, making him more susceptible to infections and autoimmune diseases. Being overweight adversely affects the intricate balance of many, if not all, the body’s hormonal systems, resulting in any number of hormonally related diseases. Being overweight also adversely affects the skin; overweight animals typically have dull, lusterless skin that is in turn more susceptible to disease processes. No matter how you look at it, the obese animal has a poorer quality of life than his trimmer counterpart. He also actually has a shorter life. Purina Pet Institute’s 14-year study showed that dogs who ate 25 percent less food than their well-fed counterparts in the study lived longer – on average 13.5 years, compared to the average age of death of 12.2 years for their chubbier trial mates. In addition, the less-stuffed dogs had fewer signs of aging (grey muzzles, etc.) and a much lower incidence of hip dysplasia than did the overfed dogs. My dog, fat?! Determining this may take more than a good long look at the dog. In the first place, folks who are overweight tend not to see the fat in front of their eyes. Many studies have shown that most overweight folks don’t realize they are carrying excess baggage, and other studies indicate that folks who are overweight also tend to have overweight pets – and they don’t recognize the added pounds in either themselves or their pets. Another problem is that dog breeds have so many distinct body types it is often difficult to see through the normal body type into the fat of the matter. There is help, however, and it comes in two forms: a body condition score, developed by Purina, and the availability of an unbiased opinion. The body condition score (BCS) is a chart that provides a numerical ranking from 1/emaciated to 5/obese for dogs and cats. (1 = emaciated; 2 = thin; 3 = moderate; 4 = stout; 5 = obese.) The chart is easily accessible on the Internet, and it comes complete with examples of how the typical animal within each ranking would appear. Most veterinary clinics also have a copy of the chart for easy viewing. The best way to use the chart is to first compare your dog to the chart and then use your hands to feel for body condition. A fit dog should have an indented waist and the waist line should tuck-up slightly behind the ribs. (Remember that some breed standards may vary somewhat from this ideal.) Dogs tend to put on fat over their shoulders, ribs, and hips and around the tail head. You should be able to feel individual ribs and the space between each rib, and the shoulder blades, hips, and tail head should be readily palpable. Since folks tend not to notice just how fat they or their animals are, it’s probably a good idea to get an unbiased opinion – check with your vet, and ask for an honest fat appraisal. One caveat here: It may be best to have a thin and fit vet do the evaluating; out-of-shape vets might also tend to overlook fatness in their patients, and they will almost certainly minimize the importance of exercise for overall health. There are also several newer ways to evaluate the fatness of your dog that may prove to be more valid than the more subjective BCS. Leptin is a peptide hormone synthesized and secreted primarily by fatty tissue. Increased plasma levels of leptin correlates with body fat, probably better than either body weight or the BCS. There is now a simple blood assay for leptin that may prove useful for quantitative obesity assessment in small animals. Other methods of assessing body fat that are more hi-tech (and usually more expensive) include ultrasonography, bioelectric impedance (determines the amount of various body fluids as well as measuring leanness); DEXA scan (Dual Energy X-ray Absortiometry – determines bone mineral content and density, muscle mass, and percent of body fat), and the D2O dilution method (deuterium oxide dilution – determines total body water, a measurement of body fat). How obesity happens In dogs (and their people) obesity has become a health problem of epidemic proportions. The solution to the problem of fat dogs can actually be reduced to a simple equation (more exercise; fewer calories). But there are many instigating factors associated with obesity. A truly holistic approach to keeping your dog’s weight within its ideal range will consider these, along with an exercise program and a diet that provides the requisite number of calories for the amount of “work” the dog does. Specialists in bariatric medicine – the study of overweight, its causes, prevention, and treatment – feel that obesity may have numerous causes that can loosely be categorized into: environmental, behavioral, available foods, and biological components. So far, bariatric medicine is primarily a human specialty (one could predict that the specialty will soon develop in veterinary medicine), but many of its methods can, by extension, be applied to animals. In fact, some of the work that is used to help define and treat human obesity was originally done on laboratory animals, including dogs. There are at least two potential obesity-causing components of the environmental factors to consider: the dog’s social environment and his physical environment. The number one cause of obesity in our dogs is humans. “Over-love” is an important part of why our dogs are overeating; we want to make them happy! They beg, and we reinforce the behavior (making it more likely to happen again) by feeding them. The more they beg, the more we feed them, the more they beg – and the weight goes on. Giving our dogs treats – often as we wolf down a fatty, carb-loaded, nutritionally empty treat ourselves – has become an American way of life. There’s another social aspect to overeating: often, in multiple dog families, the presence of other dogs encourages some of them to overeat. Apparently the social aspect of being in a “pack” of dogs creates the competitive desire to wolf down the available food before the other dogs can get their fair share. A dog’s social environment is also an important consideration for how much he will weigh as an adult. Every practitioner will tell you that the fat dog often has a fat person at the other end of the leash. The way we humans have adapted our physical environment is also involved in our pet’s propensity to be fat. In a few short decades we have moved from a mostly rural population to a society where most of us live in cities or suburbs. Back when I started veterinary practice, the greatest majority of the dogs who visited my practice could be considered “free range” dogs – they were country dogs with several acres to roam over, or they had an in-town backyard to play in that would be considered huge by today’s standards. Today’s dogs are often enormous dogs, kept in small apartments, and their backyard “playground” is the size of a postage stamp. Further, the art of walking and chatting with the neighbors has been lost – and along with it, the evening walkabout that once upon a time gave the family dog some time to stretch out, run around, and rub noses with the other neighborhood dogs. Our own sedentary lifestyle and the way we have sardined ourselves into a living environment surrounded by concrete has made it difficult for us to help our dogs get the amount of daily exercise they need. Recent surveys show that even when folks know full well that they are overweight, that their dogs are overweight, and that exercise is the answer to the problem, they still will not take the time to walk their dogs the 150 minutes per week that is considered the minimal time necessary for maintaining body condition. There’s more: One theory says that pollutants in the air may be partly responsible for obesity. Organochlorines are fat-soluble chemicals that are almost ubiquitous in today’s environment – they are a continuing contaminant in our air, coming from a variety of sources including the outgassing of plastics (such as polychlorinated biphenyls, PCBs) and pesticides such as chlordane, aldrin, endrin, dioxin, dieldrin, and DDT/DDE. Their presence may be related to a biochemical process that results in weight gain in animals.
The organochlorine (OC) theory basically works like this: Obese animals have higher concentrations of OCs in their bodies. With weight loss, the blood concentration of OC increases as they are released from fatty tissue. An increased blood OC level has been associated with reduced fat oxidation, reduced resting metabolic rate, and reduced skeletal muscle oxidative capacity (reduction in the muscle’s ability to work and use up calories) – all these effects may be due to a decreased effectiveness of the thyroid gland. The end result is that as the animal loses weight, he releases OCs from fat reserves into the blood, which decreases his ability to metabolize carbohydrates effectively … which ultimately allows the weight that he has lost to return as weight gain. All this spells yet another reason to avoid pesticides whenever possible, and to avoid plastics if possible – for example, use glass or stainless steel feeding and watering bowls instead of plastic ones. Lots of contributors For eons the canine species roamed the forests and fields, hunting and scavenging for whatever morsel of food they could find. Being a carnivore is hard work, sometimes exciting in the extreme, and it takes a certain amount of skill to fill one’s belly with any regularity. For our pets, all that is gone now; the only effort and skill required is the ability to find the food dish. And the food dish is mostly filled with processed carbohydrates, not the meaty proteins a dog’s digestive system is adapted for. And so, our obese dogs have reason to blame the foods they eat for some of their problems. Many commercial pet foods, over the years, have increased dietary fat levels and improved the palatability of their foods. Most commercial foods simply contain too little meat-derived protein, too many grain-based carbohydrates, and too much fat. Fat adds to a food’s palatability and, in the case of kibble, is sprayed onto the extruded food so the dog will eat it. Just as their human counterparts, dogs vary widely in their level of physical activity and in the amount of food they want to eat each day. Since these behaviors are innate, the best we can do is to notice them and then offer compensatory actions to counteract their tendency to create an overweight dog. For instance, most Border Collies will probably not need to be encouraged to exercise more; they tend to be hyperactive enough. A pooch who wants to sleep all day, however, may need a little encouragement to get into his daily walk. You may be able to appease the dog who is a perpetual beggar by feeding him very small amounts of food several times a day, being sure that the total amount of food stays within the recommended amount of calories for the dog’s ideal weight. Again, like their human counterpoints, dogs have a wide range of resting metabolic rates. Those with a high metabolic rate can seemingly eat anything and everything and never get fat; the animal saddled with a low metabolic rate can literally look at food and get fat. The key is to recognize these differences and to compensate for the dog with the low metabolic rate by limiting his daily food intake and being certain he is getting enough exercise. • Spaying and neutering: Both of these two operations have an effect on the animal’s potential for future weight gain. Information (from Ohio State University) indicates that when an animal is spayed or neutered, his or her energy needs decrease by about 25 percent. Other factors that add to a spayed or neutered animal’s propensity for weight gain include: a) lack of roaming – males, especially, don’t roam as much after neutering; b) no expenditure of energy for reproduction, gestation, and lactation; and c) perhaps the most important, an owner who has demonstrated his devotion to the dog by having him or her neutered or spayed; owners who care may also be the type who simply must feed a begging dog treats throughout the day. The bottom line here is that spayed or neutered animals will not get fat just because they lack their gonads. True, they will likely need fewer calories, after the surgery – but so long as they are fed foods that provide them with some caloric reduction, and so long as they continue to exercise adequately, they will not gain weight. • The genetic hypothesis: Some breeds of dogs, including Labradors, Golden Retrievers, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Cairn Terriers, Basset Hounds, Shetland Sheepdogs, Dachshunds, and Beagles tend to be more prone to obesity. While the genetic hypothesis has merit, not all dogs with genetic susceptibility to obesity become overweight, and any individual of any breed of dog or mutt will become obese if he is fed too much for the energy he expends. It should also be noted that in humans there have been several gene-loci identified as associated with obesity, and each of these loci has in turn several additional, associated genes that have been identified as contributing to the overall propensity for the individual to be obese. In other words, genes may be important, but trying to find the one that is the contributor to obesity is like searching for one particular flake of Parmesan in the spaghetti sauce. • Age: As an animal ages, his metabolism slows, and often creaky joints and the simple lack of a burning desire to chase all things interesting can lead to a diminished expenditure of calories. The result can be a gradual increase in weight – unless we watch the calories and decrease them as the animal ages. • Stress: Chronic stress can have a huge impact on a dog’s weight. Stress causes the adrenals to secrete excess amounts of glucocorticoids that alter glucose metabolism, which (via a complex of enzymatic and hormonal reactions) ultimately leads to an accumulation of body fat. In addition, stress can lead to alterations in the homeostatic systems of the body to the extent that other diseases occur. • Diseases: It’s been estimated that diseases account for less than five percent of the total number of cases of obesity in humans, and a like percentage probably occurs in dogs. In reality, it is often impossible to determine which comes first: the disease causing the obesity, or the obesity precipitating the disease. Diseases that may be associated with obesity in dogs include: hypothyroidism, Cushing’s (hyperadrenocorticism), diabetes, insulinoma (tumor of the insulin-secreting cells of the pancreas), and diseases of the pituitary. The “cure” As you’d expect whenever you have a disease process that counts so many patients, there are a plethora of “cures” for obesity on the market. Seemingly, humans will try anything – from crazy diet plans, to stapling their stomachs, to filling themselves with non-nutrients to create a sense of satiety. Drugs abound: drugs to increase metabolism (amphetamines and others); drugs to stop the absorption of fats; drugs to fool the brain into thinking the belly is full or into thinking its caloric needs have been met, and on and on. None of these high-tech solutions to obesity have worked long-term in humans or animals – unless the intervention is coupled with long-term social and behavioral modification and most importantly unless an adequate amount of weekly exercise (approximately 150 minutes per week) is included in the program. There are several diet foods available in today’s marketplace, and these often combine a lowered amount of carbohydrate, low fat (5 to 8 percent dry matter basis), and a food source with increased levels of fiber (10 to 25 percent dry matter basis). A reducing diet should begin with a goal that recognizes the animal’s ideal weight compared to the standard for its breed or type. A program of gradual weight reduction – somewhere between 3 to 5 percent of body weight per week initially and about 1 percent of body weight per week as the dog nears ideal weight. The amount of weekly weight loss to shoot for will depend on the current weight of the animal, his age, and general health. To achieve this weight reduction, the diet should provide enough food to meet about 50 to 70 percent of the requirements for the animal’s ideal or normal weight. Instead of one or two daily meals, small meals may be fed frequently during the day, and snacks and table foods should be eliminated entirely. The burden of resisting a constantly begging dog can be lessened by feeding small amounts (1 tablespoon or so) several times a day and carefully monitoring future food allotments once the desired body weight is attained. It may be best to have a veterinarian monitor the animal’s progress on a monthly basis – again because folks are often too close to their animals to see that they are overweight, and it can be difficult for many of us to create an environment of tough love. One study, for example, showed that caretakers who were allowed to institute a diet program on their own were unsuccessful (probably too many treats given to the begging dogs on the side); whereas the same diet, monitored by a veterinarian, produced the expected weight loss during the time frame of the trial. There is evidence that acupuncture may be effective for helping to reduce weight. Acupuncture is evidently extensively used to aid weight reduction in China; it operates by enhancing the digestive system, thus making nutrients more bioavailable and quenching the desire to overeat. Remember, too, that acupuncture and chiropractic will help keep your dog’s joints “oiled,” and thus make it easier for him to get out and about every day. Some herbs have also shown some promise for helping an animal reduce its weight – when they are combined with a long-term program of behavioral modification and exercise. Due to the recent interest in an easy-fix for fatness, the list of weight-reducing herbs has become endless, but some of the following may be helpful: aloe vera, astragalus, chickweed, dandelion, fennel, fenugreek, green tea, plantain or psyllium, red pepper, and Siberian ginseng. Check with an experienced herbalist for dosages and methods of use for these herbs. One of the more promising of the weight-loss supplements for dogs appears to be DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), although its popularity for weight reduction in dogs has come as the result of one study only. Animals in this study were fed a high-fiber, low fat diet, with half of them receiving high doses of DHEA. All dogs on the study lost weight, but the dogs fed DHEA lost almost twice as much – 10 percent vs 5.5 percent. Several years ago DHEA was a popular human supplement, used as the cure-all for aging, among other things, but it went out of favor when it was discovered it also had some adverse side effects. So, to my way of thinking, the jury’s not yet out on DHEA for dogs; check with your holistic vet. Simple, if you can do it Today’s sophisticated science often overwhelms common sense and rational thinking, and thus we have come up with a variety of reasons to explain why our dogs (and ourselves) are getting progressively fatter. While some of these explanations can be used to help prevent obesity in predisposed animals, most don’t offer us much more than an excuse for feeding our dogs unhealthy foods or for not exercising adequately. The real answer to the problem is to feed fewer calories, especially empty calories, and to exercise more. Couple this with an environment that values fitness and a life-style that enhances playful interaction with other critters (four-legged and two-legged) and you have all the prescription you and your dog need for staying fit and trim. -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.
For some time, biologists have been aware of and studied an organism called Wolbachia that lives symbiotically inside heartworms. But recently, study of this microscopic creature has given researchers new ideas about how to combat its host (the heartworm) to benefit its host, the dog.
Wolbachia is a genus of rickettsial organisms, a microorganism positioned somewhere between viruses and true bacteria. Like viruses, they grow only in living cells, but like bacteria, they are vulnerable to antibiotics. Bacteria in the Rickettsia genus are carried as intracellular parasites inside a number of what we have always thought of as tiny parasites (such as ticks, fleas, and lice). Rocky Mountain spotted fever is a disease caused by a rickettsial organism carried inside ticks.
Recent studies indicate some of the adverse effects of both heartworm infection and heartworm treatment, including inflammation, embolism, and allergic reaction, may actually be due to the presence of Wolbachia inside the heartworms, in addition to the heartworms themselves. Researchers have learned that treating a heartworm-infected dog with doxycycline for 30 days to kill the Wolbachia parasite weakens the heartworms and makes them unable to reproduce, and greatly reduces the chance of adverse reaction during heartworm treatment.
The takeaway message? Any dog that is currently infected with heartworms should be treated with doxycycline for 30 days. If the infected dog will be treated with Immiticide (fast-kill method), it is best to give the doxycycline prior to beginning Immiticide treatment. This should make the treatment much safer, by greatly reducing the potential for embolism and allergic reaction to the death of the worms. There may also be benefit in continuing to give doxycycline during treatment.
Doxycycline should also be given to dogs that are being treated with monthly Heartgard (slow-kill method) or any type of alternative heartworm treatment method, as it will weaken the heartworms, prevent them from reproducing, and reduce the chance of adverse effects caused by the heartworm infection itself, and by the worms dying.
It appears unlikely that the Wolbachia parasite persists in the body after the heartworms have been cleared, though researchers do not know for certain at this time. To be safe, it may be best to give doxycycline for 30 days to any dogs that have completed heartworm treatment in the past, to clear any possible remaining Wolbachia.
Because Wolbachia is a rickettsial organism, similar to those that cause tick disease, it may be advisable to use the higher dose of doxycycline that is recommended for treatment of tick disease, which is 10 mg/kg, twice a day.
Veterinarians may contact Merial, the manufacturer of Immiticide, for more information on this topic. For updates, see www.dogaware.com/heartworm.html.
Thanks for including Safe Pain Relief in your May 2006 issue, about our study on arthritic dogs being treated with DGP (Dog-Gone Pain). As American BioSciences DGP product manager, I have personally spoken to many of your subscribers since the article appeared and am amazed, but not surprised, at how knowledgeable they are.
I would like the opportunity to respond to some of the letters you published in the June 2006 issue. I certainly appreciate caution when choosing a product that has a proprietary blend of ingredients. However, it can be very difficult for natural health product manufacturers to protect their formulations from copycat products. We use the designation proprietary blend on our label to keep our formulation confidential. We realize the importance for veterinarians to have complete knowledge of the ingredients, therefore all DGP ingredients are, and always have been, divulged to licensed vets or healthcare professionals who agree to maintain confidentiality.
Further, while there is substantial evidence (including results reported in the May issue) that DGP is safe and effective, American BioSciences has always prided itself on the science behind its products. With that said we are in the process of designing a much larger study to be conducted in a university setting. When this study is complete, you and your readers will be the first to know the results.
Stephanie Johnson,
American BioSciences
Blauvelt, NY
———-
I have been a subscriber to WDJ for more years than I can remember and have anticipated every issue. Your information and advice support my conviction that conventional medicines are in general unsafe and to be used only over the short term when there is no alternative.
My Lab-mix companion, Rebecca, almost 12 years old, has had ligament and joint problems. We endured two TPLOs on her hind legs and the subsequent removal of the plate in one. Though she is a happy dog and doing well, I often wonder just how much discomfort she is really in due to her slowed activity patterns and resulting limp when she overextends her enthusiasm with people and other dogs. Consequently your article on DGP immediately caught my attention. The glucosamine, MSM, Omega 3, and tumeric, in addition to other supplements that she has taken for many years, have helped but not totally alleviated her discomfort.
I placed an order for DGP through The Harmony Company. On the same day the product arrived I saw the follow-up letters you printed in the June issue. I usually eschew canine products for the reasons outlined questionable research, lack of precise ingredients, failure to adjust formulas in light of new information.
I immediately called American BioSciences and spoke to the product manager for DGP, Stephanie Johnson. I was impressed by her enthusiasm and the substance of her support. The thought of someone suggesting that DGP could work because it contains an undisclosed NSAID when in fact so much care went into the quality and production of the product without the opportunity of counterargument in the same issue was quite disturbing. It would have been nice to hear her argument before pushing my panic button. We wondered how many people will not use DGP when it could help without calling her as I did.
We spent a lot of time on the phone, and went over all the other supplements that I give Rebecca. On Johnsons advice I am going to discontinue, for the time being, glucosamine, MSM, and vitamin C because of the anticoagulant compounding of these supplements with DGP. Johnsons concern speaks volumes.
One thing more. Evidence-based medicine is often a chimera tainted with ego, politics, and economic concerns. Ill take homegrown anytime. I hope you are not in your room too long.
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Writing this column is always the last thing I do before sending an issue of WDJ to press. At this moment, I’m 24 hours away from taking my desk apart and loading it and my computer – the very last things in my former home and home-based office – into my car for the trip north to my new home-based office. With my attention (and family!) scattered all over the state, please forgive the news-dispatch style of this installment.
• You may start to see products on pet store shelves boasting a new label that looks like this:
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Companies whose products we have tested and/or reviewed favorably have long lobbied for a way to publicize those good reviews – and to distinguish themselves from companies who tell consumers, falsely, that something is WDJ-approved. We’ve developed an official “seal of approval” that recipients of our positive reviews can use to promote their products. Only this seal is the real deal; if it doesn’t look like this, check your back issues.
• We love you, Chicago! For the third year in a row, the Chicago Tribune has named WDJ to its list of Top 50 Magazines. “In ranking the magazines every year, we consider whether they’re interesting, whether they have great journalism, but most importantly, whether they are successful in fulfilling their mission and accomplish what they set out to do,” said Tim Bannon, editor of Chicago Tribune’s Tempo section. We’re so pleased to be counted among publications that meet that description.
• Check out the New York Times article “Modern Love: What Shamu Taught Me About a Happy Marriage,” published on June 25 (and available online at www.nytimes.com). It’s an excerpt from author Amy Sutherland’s new book, Kicked, Bitten and Scratched: Life and Lessons at the Premier School for Exotic Animal Trainers. In it, Sutherland discusses training her husband with modern behavior-altering techniques such as ignoring unwanted behavior and rewarding desired behavior – something, ahem! – that WDJ has been talking about for more than nine years. Glad to see the rest of the world catching up!
• There are some terrific articles in this issue. In our recent interview with Dr. Susan Wynn (“Building Credibility,” June 2006), the holistic veterinarian mentioned that she was very excited about recent studies touting the benefits of probiotics for dogs. In “Probing Probiotics,” CJ Puotinen offers a detailed guide to the uses and types of probiotics for dogs. Two articles on varying treatments for treating wounds and surgical incisions may come in handy this summer for many active dogs and their concerned owners. Pat Miller teaches us how men and women can work together best to train the family dog. And Dr. Randy Kidd offers compelling reasons to do what you already know you need to do: get out there and walk your dog more frequently and longer. Enjoy!
The San Francisco Bay Area, where Ive lived for the past 10-plus years, just might be the center of the holistic dog-care world. You are more likely to see dogs being walked wearing head halters or front-clip harnesses than choke chains. People trade information about the best holistic veterinarians in the area not just clues on how to find the only one in a five-county area. The pet supply stores carry a dozen different brands of top-quality dog foods, and raw frozen diets, too. Most of the health foods stores have pet care sections. Positive puppy socialization classes and daycare facilities abound.
Things are about to get interesting for me, since Im sort of moving back in time in terms of dog training and care. This month, right after I ship this issue to the printer, Im packing up both my home and my home-based office of WDJ and moving 150 miles to the north and east. Oroville is a small northern California town said to contain about 13,000 people; I suspect they have to reach pretty far outside the city limits to come up with a total that high.
My dad lives about 15 miles out of town, and Im looking forward to being close to him. Im also really looking forward to life in a much quieter town. Quieter, at least, except for the barking dogs! Thats going to take some getting used to (and I suspect I may get involved in a community dog-care education project).
Where I live now, many of my neighbors have a dog; some have two. All of the dogs in my immediate neighborhood spend most of their times indoors when they are not being walked or hanging out with their owners in the yard. But in Oroville, Ive noticed, there are many dogs who seem to live outdoors full time, in yards and chained to trees or porches. Lots of yards contain several dogs and lots of dogs arent contained in any way, shape, or form at all! Ive never before been in a town where you can spot several loose dogs in any given hour. On one memorable walk, as we scoped out available real estate, my husband and I were confronted on a sidewalk outside a school by a huge, growling, collarless St. Bernard, who was being egged on by a tiny, greasy, collarless Chihuahua-mix. As I said before, its going to be interesting.
Ill still spend a lot of time in the Bay Area; so many of WDJs models (canine and human) and friends are here. And I couldnt do what I do without the regular help and support of my holistic vet (Dr. Jenny Taylor, of Creature Comfort Holistic Veterinary Center) and famed positive trainer Sandi Thompson, who has taught thousands of puppy training classes in the Berkeley area.
Please note WDJs new editorial office addresses (PO Box 1349, Oroville, CA 95965 and 1655 Robinson Street, Oroville, CA 95965). This is the place to send letters to the editor (me!), questions about articles, and product information and samples. As always, inquiries about subscriptions (such as magazines not received, problems with payments, gift subscriptions) should be directed to the subscription services department. Questions about WDJs website, online access, and back issues should be directed to our customer service department in Connecticut.
Ten years ago, my dog Piglet woke me in the middle of the night, trembling violently and utterly terrified. It took me hours to track the source of her panic to a barely audible high-pitched beep that sounded once every two minutes, coming from a smoke alarm’s low battery indicator.
Thus began Piglet’s long history of noise phobias. Below is the story of my struggle to help her cope with these phobias and, eventually, generalized anxiety disorder. While I would urge anyone dealing with anxiety issues to first try natural methods of treatment, it is important to know there are medications that can offer your dog quality of life that may not be obtainable in any other way.
A brief history
For years, Piglet reacted only to high-pitched beeping noises, such as cell phones, pagers, the microwave oven, the theme from The Twilight Zone, etc. I tried many natural treatments, including T-Touch, an Anxiety Wrap, melatonin, flower remedies, dog appeasing pheromone (DAP) diffusers, counter-conditioning (scary noise = treat), and just about everything else I heard of that can help dogs with anxiety and phobias. Several of these helped a little, but none solved the problem. We dealt with her issues mostly by trying to avoid “scary noises,” including giving up some of my favorite TV shows!
Piglet was normally a confident dog, cautious with people but not fearful, comfortable with other dogs, eager to explore new places. When she was frightened by beeping sounds, she would pant, pace, tremble, try to hide, dig compulsively both indoors and out (to the point of making her nails bleed), and come to me for attention and comfort, though comforting her did not help. I knew enough not to reinforce her attention-seeking behaviors, but I did try various things, such as distracting her with clicker training (which would work only as long as I could keep it up, then she would go right back to her fearful behaviors), giving long, slow strokes, just putting my arm around her, sitting with her while completely ignoring her; nothing made any difference.
As we could avoid “scary noises” most of the time, her anxiety attacks were not frequent and she was able to live with her phobias pretty well.
This began to change three years ago, when my next-door neighbors completely rebuilt their house. We were out for a walk one day, soon after construction had started, when a stump digger close to us backfired loudly just as we were passing. After that, Piglet became reactive to all of the construction sounds from next door, which gradually generalized to any loud noise she heard while on our walks.
Sounds that had never before bothered her, such as lawnmowers, leaf blowers, loud trucks, and even the sound of other dogs barking, now frightened her. Most of our walks were spent trying to avoid these noises, and when she did hear them, she wanted to turn around and go home.
Eventually, Piglet was startled on a walk by a loud chirping noise from a ground squirrel. After that, she began waking at dawn, reacting to the sound of birds in my yard. Soon she was spending most of the night awake, pacing, panting, unable to rest and pawing at me to get up as well. Her noise phobias had escalated to generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Neither of us could live like this. We had to find something to help.
Types of anxiety medications
There are several types of anti-anxiety medications (anxiolytics). Benzodiazepines are fast-acting and can be used on an as-needed basis, or combined with longer-acting drugs for a quicker response and when a little more help is needed. Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and azapirones must be given continuously, and require several weeks to reach full effectiveness. Dogs with frequent or severe anxiety will benefit from these longer-acting drugs to decrease overall anxiety and reactivity.
All of these are prescription medications. It is important that you work closely with your veterinarian, or with a veterinary behaviorist, when using anxiolytic drugs. It is also important to do behavior modification as well, as drugs alone will rarely resolve a severe anxiety problem by themselves, just as behavior modification alone often will not work without drugs. A dog behaviorist (veterinary or otherwise) can help you with this.
Following is a summary of the different types of anti-anxiety drugs, what they are commonly used for, and what you need to know before using them. With the exception of clomipramine, the FDA has not approved the use of these drugs in dogs, as the drug companies have not submitted the necessary research. However, many of these drugs were tested on animals before use in humans, and they have been used off-label by many vets.
I’ve found Plumb’s Veterinary Drug Handbook to have the most current information on drug dosages and interactions. Some of the following is taken from that source, and some from various papers written by noted veterinary behaviorist Dr. Karen Overall and other veterinarians.
Benzodiazepines (BZs)
Benzodiazepines are fast-acting drugs that can be used on an as-needed basis for dogs that need periodic help with anxiety, such as those afraid of thunder or fireworks. They can also be used in combination with TCAs or SSRIs when first starting treatment to hasten the effects, or on an ongoing basis, either regularly or as needed to prevent or lessen acute anxiety episodes. For example, one might use a benzodiazepine with tricyclic antidepressants for a dog suffering from separation anxiety with a panic component.
The effects of BZs do not last very long, usually only a few hours. When used continuously, they are addictive (create physical dependency).
Benzodiazepines commonly used with dogs include alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), and diazepam (Valium). These drugs are used to treat anxiety, noise phobias (including thunder phobia), panic attacks, and separation anxiety. They should be used with caution in fear-aggressive dogs, as they may lower fear-based inhibition and increase the likelihood of the dog biting.
Their safety range is very wide, and they can be combined with most other medications, including TCAs and SSRIs, as well as with pain medications such as tramadol. They can also be used together (with dosage of each reduced). As with all anti-anxiety medications, you should start with a low dose and increase only as needed. “The key to treatment for noise phobias and panic is to give the benzodiazepines early and often,” says Dr. Overall.
Alprazolam is Dr. Overall’s drug of choice for dogs with storm and noise phobias and dogs who panic. It takes effect very quickly, within 20 minutes of being given, and does not tend to cause sedation. Alprazolam has some effect if given after the dog becomes anxious, but it works far better if given ahead of time. For dogs with thunder phobia, it should be given whenever a storm is expected, rather than waiting until it arrives, though more can be given at that time, if needed. The recommended dosage range is quite wide, with the highest dose being 10 times the lowest dose.
Clonazepam is used less frequently than alprazolam, as it takes a little longer to be effective, but it is also longer-lasting. There are two recommended dosage levels for clonazepam: one for seizure control, and one for anxiety. It is important to be aware of this, as the dosage for seizure control is much higher than that used for anxiety. I was reassured to realize how high a dose could be given without being dangerous.
Diazepam is more sedating than the other drugs in this class, and may have less anxiolytic effect, so it is generally not recommended for anxiety. It is the shortest-acting of this drug class in dogs, and does not take effect as quickly.
In Piglet’s case, benzodiazepines were a lifesaver. I found an article by Dr. Overall that discussed the use of alprazolam for noise phobias (see “References” sidebar). I started Piglet at 0.25 mg (0.017 mg/kg), but that had little effect, so I went to 0.50 mg (0.03 mg/kg), which did help. I started by giving Piglet this dosage of alprazolam whenever she would wake me up, which was generally a couple of hours after we went to sleep. She would usually settle down within an hour after getting the medication. It helped, but wasn’t enough.
My vet then suggested that I give an increased dosage of alprazolam at bedtime, before Piglet became anxious. Rather than giving her 0.5 mg (barely enough to help) after she had awakened me with her anxious behavior, I began giving her 1 mg (0.07 mg/kg) at bedtime. This made a huge difference. The alprazolam did not sedate Piglet; it just relaxed her enough to be able to sleep, without anxiety waking her up during the night. By giving it to her before she became anxious, she was able to sleep through most of the night.
After consulting with a veterinary behaviorist, I started giving Piglet 1 mg alprazolam every eight hours, to try to prevent her from becoming anxious. Her anxiety was under control, but she seemed to be on something of a roller coaster, becoming more reactive each hour after the alprazolam was given. I generally had to get up once during the night to give her a dose, as it was too short-acting for her to be able to make it all the way through the night without waking and becoming anxious.
I decided to switch to clonazepam, as its effects last longer. Because the recommended dosage range of clonazepam for anxiety in dogs is similar to that for alprazolam, I tried giving Piglet the same dosage (1 mg), but quickly found out that was not enough. I increased the dosage to 2 mg (0.13 mg/kg), still well within the recommended range. I gave this amount twice a day, at bedtime and after breakfast. With clonazepam, Piglet was able to sleep through the whole night.
Azapirones
There is only one drug in this class used with dogs: buspirone (BuSpar). Buspirone is used to treat cats for inappropriate urination, but is now also being used to treat dogs for phobias and other anxiety disorders, including fear aggression, especially if accompanied by signs of poor socialization. It is not helpful for panic disorders, but is effective for more generalized anxiety.
Because buspirone has few side effects and does not cause sedation, it is an excellent first choice for treating dogs with aggression or anxiety that is not too severe. It must be given continuously for at least four to six weeks in order to determine whether or not it will help. Again, it’s best to start at a low dose and increase if needed. Buspirone can be combined with TCAs or SSRIs, though it is questionable whether this helps or not.
I learned about buspirone from Amy Cook, a dog trainer in Oakland, California, who has a special interest in fearful dogs. Amy has dealt with fear and anxiety in many dogs, including two of her own, and has learned a lot about the medications used for treatment.
Buspirone helped a number of Amy’s clients, as well as the dog of a colleague that had developed noise phobias and was unable to continue her flyball participation because of it. That dog responded wonderfully to Buspirone and was able to return to her flyball team with the help of this medication.
We started Piglet on a low dose (10 mg, or 0.7 mg/kg) twice a day for a month, and then increased to 15 mg (1 mg/kg) twice a day for another month. Unfortunately, it did not help, and I weaned her off it.
Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs)
Tricyclic antidepressants are used with dogs to treat anxiety, panic, phobias, and obsessive compulsive disorders, such as shadow chasing and lick granulomas. They are also used to treat aggression that is caused by underlying anxiety.
The tricyclic antidepressants most commonly used with dogs are amitriptyline (Elavil) and clomipramine (Clomicalm). The general recommendation is to start with a low dose, then increase every two weeks as needed. These drugs do not take effect immediately, and several weeks’ treatment may be needed before their effectiveness can be fully ascertained.
The most common side effect of TCAs is sedation. Anorexia (loss of appetite) is also common, but usually goes away after a few days. Giving with food and dividing the dosage between meals may decrease gastric side effects.
My own vet prefers to use amitriptyline as a first choice when treating anxiety, not because it’s the most effective drug, but because it is inexpensive and he feels it is safer than clomipramine.
Amitriptyline’s most common side effects are dry mouth and sedation. It is well suited to dogs with relatively mild anxiety disorders, including anxiety-related aggression and submissive urination. It is not useful for compulsive disorders.
Amitriptyline can relieve chronic pain, and also has some action as an antihistamine.
Clomipramine is best suited for situations involving anxiety, including separation anxiety, as opposed to reactivity. Clomi-pramine is also very effective at treating compulsive disorders.
TCAs can cause bone marrow suppression. It’s important to do blood work a couple of weeks after starting this drug (as well as before, for older dogs), then monitor every six months to a year thereafter.
I tried giving Piglet amitriptyline for her noise phobia before she developed generalized anxiety disorder. With my veterinarian’s guidance, I started Piglet on 25 mg (1.7 mg/kg) twice a day, then increased it to a very high dosage of 25 mg three times a day after a month.
Piglet tolerated the drug very well, and she did not have problems with sedation or other side effects. However, as time went on, I noticed no improvement in her behavior, even after we increased the dose, so I weaned her off it.
After Piglet’s anxiety worsened, my vet and I decided to try clomipramine (Clomi-calm). We started at 20 mg (1.3 mg/kg) twice a day. After two weeks, I increased to 25 mg (1.7 mg/kg) twice a day. Again, Piglet tolerated it well; she had no stomach upset, and her blood work was normal after two weeks. She was on clomipramine for a total of only three weeks before I began weaning her off, as I did not feel it was helping, but in retrospect, I realize that she got much worse when I weaned her off the drug. It is very important not to give up too soon when giving TCAs or SSRIs.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
SSRIs are antidepressants and anxiolytics, used to treat aggression, separation anxiety, generalized anxiety, panic disorders, and obsessive-compulsive behaviors. SSRIs are stronger, more effective, and longer-acting than TCAs, and may take longer to fully assess their effects. They are considered safer than TCAs, but they can have side effects, including gastric upset and sedation.
It is important to do blood work before starting, especially for older dogs, and monitor periodically after that. SSRIs can be combined with TCAs using low-end doses of each, which may help them take effect faster and lessen the chances of side effects.
Fluoxetine (Prozac) is the most commonly used SSRI with dogs, and has the longest half-life in people. Others include sertraline (Zoloft) and paroxetine (Paxil), all with similar potential side effects, though paroxetine is more difficult to wean off and may have a shorter half-life, leading to more variation in its effects.
The usual methodology is to start with a low dosage, and then increase if no improvement is seen after three to four weeks. Treatment must continue for at least six to eight weeks before you can know for sure whether it helps.
Fluoxetine is used to treat aggression, obsessive-compulsive disorders, separation anxiety, and panic and avoidance disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder. Fluoxetine works well for conditions involving reactivity, including some forms of aggression. Paroxetine is used to treat depression, social anxiety, and agitation associated with depression. Sertraline is useful particularly for generalized anxiety and panic disorder.
After consulting with the veterinary behaviorist, we started Piglet on fluoxetine, at a low dose of 10 mg (0.7 mg/kg) once a day, and then increased to 15 mg (1 mg/kg) after two weeks.
Piglet did have some loss of appetite with this medication. Fortunately, after about a week, this problem went away. It also seemed to sedate her for the first couple of days, but she was normal after that. Her blood work was fine when we rechecked it a couple of weeks after starting the drug.
The fluoxetine helped, but I still felt that she was on edge and overly reactive.
I decided to make one further change and switch her to sertraline instead of fluoxetine. Sertraline is long-acting, similar to fluoxetine, which is desirable. I did discover that it is much more expensive, as there was no generic available (a generic version is expected to be released sometime in 2006). We started Piglet on a once-a-day dose of 25 mg (1.67 mg/kg).
Other factors influencing anxiety: chronic pain
Shortly after switching her to sertraline, Piglet underwent surgery to remove a broken carnassial (the largest tooth in the mouth), as well as a small tumor I had discovered between her toes. Because many medications can be dangerous to combine with SSRIs or TCAs, I had to be careful what pain medication was used.
I wanted to use tramadol, an effective prescription pain reliever, but had seen warnings about combining it with SSRIs, due to the risk of serotonin syndrome, though I later learned that this could be done with caution.
Instead, my vet suggested using Buprenex (buprenorphine), which is put into the cheek pouch and absorbed through the mucosal membranes (this works very well with cats; they don’t really know how well it works for dogs).
After she recovered from surgery, Piglet’s anxiety level reduced. In fact, she became almost normal again. I believe that she must have been experiencing some chronic pain that lowered her anxiety threshold. Although I know for certain that the tooth had just broken, it’s possible it was cracked and painful for a while before it was removed; she had stopped being an avid chewer some time before that, although my vet could find nothing wrong with her teeth. I also think that the small tumor in her foot may have been bothering her for a long time, though I was unaware of it.
For the next few months after the surgery, Piglet did not have a single anxiety attack. She had a few minor episodes, where she became restless, with some pacing and attention-seeking behaviors, but no panting, trying to hide, waking me up at night, etc. These episodes did not last very long, usually only about 20 to 30 minutes, before she was able to settle down again. At this time, I was giving her sertraline (25 mg once a day) and clonazepam (2 mg, twice a day).
Setback
Suddenly, Piglet became progressively worse over several days, culminating in a full-blown anxiety attack; I don’t know what caused it. I first suspected a defective batch of clonazepam, which I had just refilled, but when I switched to the name-brand Klonopin, she continued to have problems.
I spent another couple of months trying different things. I took her off Metacam (a prescription arthritis pain reliever), thinking that it might be upsetting her stomach, but that didn’t help. I put her back on Metacam and added tramadol, in case pain was still contributing to her anxiety, but that also did not help. She was not as bad as she had been originally, but she was still having full-blown anxiety attacks periodically, and was on edge most of the time.
After discussion with my veterinarian and veterinary behaviorist, we increased Piglet’s clonazepam to 3 mg (0.2 mg/kg), on the high end of the range for anxiety, but still well below the dosage used for seizures. This helped some, but not enough.
I finally decided to increase her SSRIs, though both my vet and the veterinary behaviorist were concerned with this. Because fluoxetine (Prozac) is considered to be two-and-a-half times as effective as sertraline (Zoloft) at the same dosage level in humans, but the dosage ranges given for dogs are similar, I twice tried to switch Piglet from sertraline to fluoxetine, but both times she got much worse and I switched her back. I then increased her sertraline dosage from 25 mg to 37.5 mg (2.5 mg/kg) once a day. Within a few days, she was back to normal.
That was over three months ago, and she has continued to do great since. On the rare occasion that she starts showing signs of anxiety, or if I have to leave her alone for too long, I give her melatonin (3 mg) plus a very small dose of alprazolam (0.25 mg). I am in the process of very slowly reducing her clonazepam dosage (it is addictive, so I am making only small changes every two weeks), and she is continuing to do well with the reduced dosage.
Don’t stop too soon
In hindsight, I believe that the SSRIs (fluoxetine and sertraline) and the TCAs (particularly clomipramine) helped more than I realized at first. Because they must be given for a few weeks before they reach full effectiveness, and because Piglet needed the addition of benzodiazepines, which are quicker-acting, I discounted the effect of the other medications.
I no longer question the impact of these slower-acting drugs. I would encourage anyone who tries TCAs, SSRIs, or buspirone to not give up too soon, keep using them for at least one to two months and preferably longer, before deciding that they’re not working and trying something else. If needed, you can combine them with the quicker-acting benzodiazepines to get some relief while waiting for the other drugs to take effect.
Piglet enjoys her walks and explores new places again, and no longer avoids areas where she might hear loud noises. Although they still disturb her a little, she doesn’t try to head for home when she hears them. She sleeps through the night peacefully and is relaxed during the day, even playful again. She is more interested in everything. It’s a small miracle, at her age (she is now 14), to see such improvement.
Although only the benzodiazepines are physically addictive, it is important to wean off all anti-anxiety medications slowly, reducing dosage gradually every one to two weeks, rather than stopping abruptly. Stopping SSRIs and TCAs too quickly can result in symptoms returning. Stopping benzodiazepines too quickly can lead to seizures; they must be weaned slowly as they create physical dependence.
Final (I hope!) notes
Piglet’s current drug regimen consists of sertraline (37.5 mg/day) and clonazepam (2 mg twice a day, and decreasing).
I have learned that when you find medications that work, you need to continue to give them for some time. A dog must be treated with SSRIs or TCAs for a minimum of three to five weeks before you are able to assess the effects; then, you must maintain treatment until all the dog’s symptoms are gone or are at the same low, consistent level, for at least another one to two months. Treatment should be continued after that for at least as long as it took to achieve that level, before even beginning to think about weaning them off. Total length of treatment should be a minimum of four to six months.
One of the mistakes I made was always trying to give the minimal drugs possible; every time I would see improvement, I would try to reduce the amount of drugs she was getting, and then she would get worse again. I have learned that it takes time to overcome anxiety disorders; they do not go away overnight.
If needed, I am prepared to keep Piglet on these drugs for the rest of her life. She is tolerating them well, with no side effects and continued normal blood work, and the improvement in her quality of life is so dramatic that I no longer fear having her on them. I have come to realize that there is no harm in relying on drugs when they are needed.
In hindsight, I wish I had tried using alprazolam for our walks when Piglet’s reaction to outside noises first escalated; I think she would not have gotten so bad if I had treated the problem early. I would never recommend anxiety drugs as a first choice, before trying to address anxiety with natural methods, but when a dog’s quality of life is at stake, the drugs can perform miracles. They have given Piglet back her life, and for that I am grateful.
-Mary Straus does research on canine health and nutrition topics as an avocation. She is the owner of the www.DogAware.com website. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with Piglet.
Teddy’s owners were distraught as they explained to me on the phone why they had called. Their veterinarian had told them that their nine-week-old Golden Retriever puppy was “dominant aggressive” because he was biting their hands. He had advised them to alpha-roll the pup every time he tried to bite or otherwise challenge their authority. They’d been following the vet’s instructions for a week, and Teddy’s aggression was getting seriously worse. They feared they would have to euthanize their pup. We made an emergency same-day appointment for a behavior consultation.
I found Teddy to be a somewhat assertive puppy, who enjoyed actively exploring the world with his mouth, as normal puppies do.
Like many assertive, excitable pups, Teddy also got increasingly aroused when his owners protested his needle-sharp-toothed explorations on their skin. The more they protested, the more excited (and mouthier) he got. Hence the veterinarian’s all-too-common misdiagnosis of “dominance aggression” and his woefully inappropriate prescription of alpha-rolling the pup to put him in his place.
Rolling the dice
The alpha-roll consists of physically rolling a dog onto his side or back and holding him there until he stops resisting or struggling, supposedly submitting to your superior authority.
Popularized by the monks of New Skete in their dog-training books (such as How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend) in the 1980s, the technique is a truly unfortunate and dangerous interpretation of a normal canine social behavior. When approached by a higher-status dog, a lower-ranking member of the pack may first avert and lower his head and shoulders, then voluntarily lie down on the ground and perhaps roll onto his side or back as an appeasement or deference gesture. Typically, when an appeasement gesture is used, the higher-ranking canine has no need to assert himself by forcibly flattening the lower-ranking dog to the ground; the subordinate is already there!
Job Michael Evans, one of the New Skete monks responsible for writing “How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend,” later left the order, and subsequently stated he regretted including the now-controversial technique in the book. While he didn’t go as far as to say the alpha roll was ineffective or inappropriate, he did say he felt it wasn’t safe for use by the general public.
Modern behavior professionals who are well-educated in the science of behavior and learning go much further, denouncing the risky technique along with other methods based in faulty dominance theory.
The most obvious negative consequence of techniques that encourage owners to physically overpower and intimidate their canine companions is the possibility of scaring or coercing the dog into defending himself. He reacts aggressively in return, angering or frightening his owner, who often responds by escalating his own level of violence. Before you know it, the relationship between the two is seriously, sometimes irreparably, damaged.
Despite compelling evidence that physical intimidation does more harm than good, some trainers today (indeed, some very high-profile ones) are stubbornly attached to the forced roll-over, cloaking it in new-age terms and turning a blind eye to the damage done to relationships between dogs and their humans in the process.
Questions of appropriateness aside, it takes someone skilled in handling dogs to be able to alpha-roll a dog without significant risk to human safety – which is at least in part why one television show where the technique is frequently used includes a “Don’t try this at home”-style disclaimer. It’s also why trainers who employ methods such as the alpha roll talk about being bitten as “part of the job,” while those who use more appropriate, nonconfrontational approaches are more likely to keep their skins intact.
Canine as a second language
Again, the alpha roll is supposed to mimic the behavior of the “top dog” in a pack, and send the message, “I’m the boss of you!” But one huge error in alpha-roll logic is the belief that we can successfully pretend to be dogs in our interactions with our canine companions. Dogs know we’re not dogs, and any attempt on our part to mimic their language is doomed to failure.
Dogs are masters at speaking and reading canine body language. Their communications to each other are often subtle and nuanced, a furry ballet designed to keep peace in the pack. Our efforts to use canine body communications are oafish in comparison – and I imagine that our dogs are alternately amused, confused, nonplussed, and terrified by our clumsy attempts to speak their language.
Violence occurs between dogs within established social groups when the communication system breaks down; it’s a sign of an unhealthy pack relationship. Ethology studies from the 1970s and 1980s suggest that canine social structure holds together because appeasement behaviors are offered by subordinate members, not because higher-ranking members aggressively demand subservience. Instead, successful pack leaders were observed to calmly control the good stuff – an approach frequently suggested by today’s modern, positive trainers as a much safer, more appropriate, and effective method for creating a harmonious mixed-species social group.
In her book, Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Small Animals, Dr. Karen Overall agrees, stating, “The behavior of the lower status individuals, not the higher ranking one, is what determines the relative hierarchical rank. Truly high-ranking animals are tolerant of lower-ranking ones.”
Methods that encourage dogs to offer deference behaviors, and then reward them for it, are a much closer approximation of actual pack behavior – and easier for us to emulate successfully – than any application of force. Use biscuits (training treats), not (alpha) rolls!
Establishing leadership
The Monks, and others like them, didn’t have it all wrong. It is important that your dog perceive his humans as higher-ranking member of your collective multi-species social group. It is far better, safer, and ultimately more effective, however, to accomplish this through offered deference rather than forced dominance.
In his text, Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Volume Two: Etiology and Assessment of Behavior Problems, Steven R. Lindsay, a dog behavior consultant in Philadelphia, says, “A wise lupine leader avoids unnecessary dominance contests and assertions of authority.”
Lindsay also cites a 1988 study (E. Fonberg, “Dominance and Aggression”), noting that dominance that is established without resorting to aggression appears to be more stable than dominance that is maintained by constant vigilance and displays of strength.
There is a multitude of ways to establish appropriate social hierarchy without resorting to aggression. No, you don’t have to go through all doorways first, nor do you have to eat before your dog does. You can simply wait for and/or encourage your dog to offer deference behaviors in order to make good stuff happen, while at the same time you make sure that pushy behavior doesn’t result in him getting good stuff.
Your dog’s driving ambition in life is to get good stuff. Some owners and trainers express concern that teaching the dog that he can get you to click! and give him a treat by offering certain behaviors elevates his status because he’s controlling you. In reality, a dog’s psychological response to deference behaviors appears to so hardwired that if a dog repeatedly performs them, he becomes deferent. It’s not just a role he’s playing, like an actor. If he does deference, he is deferent. He can’t help it.
Deference behaviors you can use to your relationship advantage include:
• Wait at the door. Dog sits and waits to go through a door, even a wide open one, until you give him permission to move forward (good stuff = go out and have fun).
• Wait for your dinner. Dog sits and waits to eat his meal until you give him permission to eat (good stuff = eat food!).
• Wait to get in car. Dogs sits and waits outside car while door is opened, hatchback is lifted, or tailgate lowered, until you give him permission to jump in (good stuff = go somewhere in the car and have fun).
• Wait to get out of the car. Dog sits and waits in vehicle while car door is opened, hatchback is lifted, or tailgate lowered, until you give him permission to jump out (good stuff = get out of car and have fun).
• Wait to get out of kennel, crate, or exercise pen. (Good stuff = get out of kennel, crate, or pen and get attention and have fun.)
• Sit for your leash. Dog sits calmly to go out for a walk while leash is attached to collar (good stuff = go for walk).
• Ask to be petted. Dog sits and waits politely at your feet to be petted rather than jumping up, pawing, or nudging you for attention (good stuff = petting and attention).
• Ask for permission to jump on sofa or bed. Dog sits and waits to be invited onto furniture instead of jumping up uninvited (good stuff = lying on soft, comfortable surface and getting attention).
In each case, the dog learns to offer deference behavior in order to get the desired “good stuff” result. Appropriate (deference) behavior moves him closer to his goal; inappropriate behavior makes the good stuff go away (see “Oops, You Lose!” below).
Happy endings
That phone call from Teddy’s owners came almost 10 years ago, early in my career as a professional behavior consultant. Although I had handled many aggressive dogs during the 20 years I worked at the Marin Humane Society, I had not yet worked with a lot of aggression-modification cases professionally. I agreed to see Teddy, with the understanding that I would refer him to someone more experienced if I felt I wasn’t capable of handling his case.
He turned out to be one of the simplest aggression cases I’ve ever worked with. He just needed his people to stop frightening him with their unpredictable eruptions of violence so he could stop having to defend himself.
We began training with clicks and treats. Teddy loved the clicker game, and caught on very quickly to the concept that a “click!” equals “treat” – and even better, that he could make the click! happen by offering one of a growing list of desirable behaviors. We used a tether to restrain Teddy during training so if he did do inappropriate mouthing we could simply say “Oops!” and step out of reach of his nasty-sharp baby teeth.
In the very first session his arousal and biting lessened noticeably. By the time I returned for the second, the mouthing problem was 95 percent resolved, Teddy’s owners were tearfully grateful, and we happily moved on with his basic training.
Since Teddy, I’ve lost count of the number of “aggression” cases I’ve handled where the alpha roll was the clear and present cause of a dog’s increasing aggression. A frightening number of puppy/dog owners are still counseled by their veterinarians, trainers, other animal professionals, and well-intentioned friends to alpha roll their uncooperative canines.
It’s always better to get your dog to voluntarily buy into your desired behaviors than to try to force him. That’s the challenge, the joy, and the excitement of positive training. As the supposedly more intelligent species, we should be able to figure out how to get dogs to want to do what we want, including being deferent to us, without the use of force. Biscuits, not rolls!
-Pat Miller, CPDT, is WDJ’s Training Editor. Miller lives in Hagerstown, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center.
Readers of canine health books and magazines, including this one, can be forgiven for assuming that holistic dog care or natural pet care is a recent breakthrough, something developed during the past two or three decades by a handful of revolutionary veterinarians and researchers.
Not so. Today’s holistic dog care movement began over 70 years ago when Juliette de Bairacli Levy defined “natural rearing.” Now in her 90s and living in Switzerland, Levy holds a place of honor in the history of natural pet care.
Born to a wealthy Jewish family (her father was Turkish, her mother Egyptian) and raised in England with chauffeurs, maids, cooks, and gardeners, Levy knew in childhood that she wanted to be a veterinarian. She attended two universities and was in her final year of veterinary school when she decided that conventional medicine had none of the answers she sought, and she embarked on a lifetime of travel and study with nomadic people, first in England, then around the world.
“I realized that if I wanted to learn the traditional ways of healing and caring for animals, I had to be where people still lived close to the land and close to their flocks,” she says. “From Berbers, Bedouins, nomads, peasants, and gypsies in England, Israel, Greece, Turkey, Mexico, and Austria, I learned herbal knowledge and the simple laws of health and happiness. I never tired of traveling with my Afghan Hounds, always living with and learning from those around me.”
An inexhaustible writer, Levy shared what she learned in letters, travel books, novels, poems, and books about herbs and animals. In the 1930s, she published three canine herbals. The Cure of Canine Distemper described protocols she developed for her highly successful distemper clinic in London. Puppy Rearing by Natural Methods and Medicinal Herbs: Their Use in Canine Ailments were reprinted for a wider audience in London in 1947. All three were soon translated into German and other languages.
Just over 50 years ago, in 1955, she combined these works in The Complete Herbal Book for the Dog. Now in its sixth edition and called The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat, this is the book that brought Levy’s natural rearing philosophy to breeders, trainers, and dog owners throughout the world.
Five Rules of Natural Rearing
Levy’s basic rules of natural rearing for dogs require:
1) a correct natural diet of raw foods;
2) abundant sunlight and fresh air;
3) at least two hours of exercise daily, including plenty of running exercise outside any kennel enclosures;
4) hygienic kenneling, with the use of earth, grass, or gravel runs, never concrete; and
5) herbs, fasting, and other natural methods in place of vaccinations and conventional symptom-suppressing drugs.
Levy’s first rule has gained acceptance over the years. Many holistic veterinarians recommend feeding a home-prepared diet of raw foods, including meat and bones. Some use the diet of wild wolves as a model. Levy and her followers feed a variety of foods, including raw meat, dairy, eggs, minced herbs, and small quantities of fruit, vegetables, powdered seaweed, and grains such as oats soaked overnight in raw goat milk or yogurt.
“I introduced seaweed to the veterinary world when a student in the early ’30s,” she says. “It was scorned then, but now it is very popular worldwide.” She credits kelp and other sea vegetables with giving dark pigment to eyes, noses, and nails, stimulating hair growth, and developing strong bones.
In addition to providing ample quantities of pure water at all times, Levy recommends one meatless day and one fasting day (no food, just water) per week for adult dogs. Where raw bones are concerned, Levy recommends feeding them after the day’s main meal, on a full stomach, so that the bone is cushioned by food, and with a small amount of soaked bran, shredded coconut, or other fiber to help sweep bone fragments from the digestive tract.
All of Levy’s dietary recommendations are accompanied by traditional herbal formulas for everything from daily health maintenance to birthing aids and weaning foods, disinfecting herbs that help protect dogs from harmful viruses, bacteria, and parasites, and herbal first-aid for dozens of conditions and illnesses.
Researchers who study the connection between natural light and the endocrine system agree with Levy’s recommendation that dogs spend as much time as possible outdoors. They blame malillumination, the lack of unfiltered natural light, for a host of chronic illnesses. Glass windows prevent the transmission of full-spectrum natural light, but open windows and doorways provide it.
Daily outdoor exercise, including running and play, does more than burn calories; it stimulates lymph circulation, strengthens bones, improves immunity, and keeps dogs happy as well as healthy.
Levy’s advice about kenneling dogs in close contact with earth or grass rather than concrete is interesting in light of research cited by cell biologist James Oschman, PhD, in his book “Energy Medicine: The Scientific Basis of Bioenergy Therapies.” Dr. Oschman links modern health problems to our insulation from the natural supply of free electrons that reside on the surface of the earth. Barefoot contact with the earth, he says, supplies free electrons in abundance.
As San Diego health researcher Dale Teplitz explains, “Animals know that, and when given a chance they will choose to be in contact with the earth. This barefoot contact can improve sleep, reduce inflammation that causes pain, balance hormones, enhance circulatory and neurological function, and much more.”
As one would expect, Levy has no use for pesticides, weed killers, or other lawn chemicals, and she recommends feeding dogs organically raised and pasture-fed ingredients.
Levy considers vaccinations unnecessary and inappropriate, both because natural methods treat illnesses successfully and because vaccines disrupt the body’s immune system.
“You cannot discount the hundreds of canine distemper cures that Juliette and her students achieved,” says Marina Zacharias, who has studied natural rearing for over 20 years. “And I have witnessed her parvovirus treatments first-hand with great success. When you know that these ailments can be successfully treated with natural methods, it removes the fear that has been instilled in us. I know that in my case she definitely empowered me to take an active and preventive role in my animals’ health care. Our society does not teach you that.
“Juliette encourages you to think for yourself and not blindly follow established methods just because you are told to. Her attitude is rare, especially today. She has witnessed almost an entire century, and through all the technological breakthroughs of modern science, she still advocates natural rearing methods, as they continue to prove themselves effective.”
Fasting for Healing
To most of us, fasting – depriving a dog of food – seems unnatural. Surely the right thing to do is to encourage a dog to eat at every mealtime. But fasting is Levy’s choice of treatment for all animals, including humans, who are ill.
Well-known author and trainer Wendy Volhard learned about fasting and natural rearing 39 years ago when these methods saved her dog’s life and started her on a fascinating new career.
In 1967, Volhard traveled from New York to Germany, where she met 17- and 18-year-old Landseer Newfoundlands. It’s also where she acquired Heidi, an exceptionally healthy young female, as the foundation of her breeding kennel.
“I was in my early 20s then,” says Volhard, “and I wanted to do everything in the most scientific manner. I talked and worked with veterinarians at every opportunity, so I knew the importance of vaccinating every dog for everything and, of course, feeding the finest quality commercial dog food. That was the only way to go.”
But instead of thriving, Heidi declined, and at age five, she was given a month to live. “She had total deterioration,” says Volhard. “Her kidneys, liver, and heart were failing, and she had skeletal problems. Her whole body was falling apart.”
In desperation, Volhard returned to Germany and asked for help. She learned that Heidi’s long-lived, healthy relatives were fed raw, natural foods, nothing out of a box or can, and none were vaccinated. The English breeders she visited on her way home used the same methods, and they gave her as a parting gift Levy’s Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog.
Volhard read the book on her return flight to New York and laughed heartily at Levy’s advice to fast sick animals and build them up with herbs and natural foods. But at home with her dying dog, she thought, “What else can I do?” The finest veterinary medicine wasn’t helping.
Over the strong objections of her husband, who thought Heidi should enjoy a steak every day for whatever time she had left, Volhard fasted the dog for three weeks, feeding her only fluids, honey, and herbs. “I followed Juliette’s guidelines absolutely,” she says. “I had nowhere else to go. And every day that my dog didn’t eat, she got better. At the end of three weeks, we started her on a natural diet, and she regained her strength, recovered completely, got her Utility title, and lived an active, happy life until she died seven years later at age 12.”
At the time, Volhard was a Wall Street Journal reporter, with one foot in the scientific “prove it” community. She decided to compare Levy’s natural rearing diet, with its a-little-of-this-and-a-little-of-that approach, to the National Science Foundation’s nutritional guidelines for dog food, the only scientifically tested pet food standard at the time.
“It took me 12 years and many interviews with experts,” she says. “Then my veterinarian helped with final adjustments, which we made as the result of hundreds of blood tests.”
In 1984 Volhard published her diet, and the book that resulted, Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog, is now in its second edition.
Several years later, she met Levy at a seminar. “I thought, Oh my, if I were in her shoes and met a woman who had taken my work and fiddled with it and then published it, how would I feel? With trepidation, I finally met her, and she said, ‘I’ve been waiting to meet you for years. You’ve done a fabulous job. Thank you for taking my work and carrying on.’ She was incredibly gracious.”
Volhard adjusted the ratio of calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus in Levy’s diet, but she calls the natural rearing philosophy as important and effective today as it was when Levy first proposed it. “Juliette did the very best she could with the knowledge available at the time,” says Volhard. “She did a magnificent job. She is truly the grandmother of the entire holistic dog care and animal care movement. She’s like Adele Davis in the human health food movement. She started it up.”
Herbal Wisdom
Traditional herbal medicine had all but disappeared in the United States when, in the 1960s, a new generation began turning away from conventional therapies and looking for alternatives. Rosemary Gladstar, now one of America’s leading herbalists, was part of that movement.
“Juliette has done amazing things for dogs, cats, and farm animals, but she has also done wonderful things for people,” says Gladstar. “Her early books had an extraordinary influence on herbalists everywhere. She single-handedly rescued a body of knowledge that would otherwise have been lost or ignored, and she put it directly into the hands of her readers.”
As valuable as Levy’s recipes and instructions were to her and other herbalists, Gladstar recalls that it was Levy’s ability to inspire her readers that changed their lives. “There is no doubt about it,” she says. “She sparked and awakened something in me, just as she did in hundreds of others, far more than any other herbalist at the time. I think it was because she was so connected to the earth and to plants, and she was able to transmit and pass on that feeling of connection. Juliette made herbal medicine fully accessible to everyone.”
Gladstar has followed Levy’s nutritional recommendations for all of her dogs, including Deva, a Bernese Mountain Dog.
“Deva came to me with all kinds of problems,” she says. “She had major personality disorders, which I think stemmed in part from her body being so uncomfortable from mange and hot spots. Her coat was in terrible shape, with huge bald areas and weeping eczema. She looked really awful, and she was so unhappy. Deva is now over nine years old, which for a Berner is elderly, and for years her health problems have been about 99 percent gone. She has a wonderful personality and a wonderful life, thanks to natural rearing.”
Gladstar began a correspondence with Levy in the 1970s after reading A Gypsy in New York and Traveler’s Joy. “Though these were not really herb books,” she says, “I loved them and wrote to the author in care of her publisher. To my surprise, she wrote back, and we became pen pals.”
In the 1980s, Gladstar organized an herbal tour that visited Levy in Greece, where she lived on a small island. “I decided then and there that I wanted to bring her to the United States so that people who used medicinal plants and raised their animals with the help of her books would have a chance to meet her.”
Gladstar listed Levy as the keynote speaker at the first International Herb Symposium, which was held in 1988 in Framingham, Massachusetts. “The response was overwhelming,” she says. “We had a huge audience. It was especially exciting for Juliette because this was the first time in her elder years that she was able to see and meet people whose lives had been affected by her books. She started spending more time in the U.S. and in fact lived here for long stretches of time, and her books began to sell again.”
One of Levy’s West Coast disciples was Marina Zacharias, who imported her NR (Natural Rearing) brand of herbal supplements from England and sold her books. By the late 1980s, Levy’s London publisher, Faber & Faber, had run out of The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat but planned not to reprint the book until a sufficient number of orders arrived. The delay could be lengthy, so Zacharias ordered 2,000 copies and kept the book in print.
Like Gladstar, Zacharias organized a large seminar featuring Juliette de Bairacli Levy, this one in Seattle. “People flew in from all over the country,” she says. “They came not only to hear her speak but to actually meet her in person and hear her stories. I think every one of us that day walked away knowing that we had touched history and that we had been very fortunate to meet such a master herbalist and animal advocate.”
Zacharias first read Levy’s book in the mid-1980s when she was preparing to bring home her first show-quality Basset Hound puppy. At the time, she had two mixed-breed toy dogs who seemed to have every possible canine disorder.
“When I read Juliette’s book,” she says, “it was as though someone hit me over the head with a brick. With great certainty I knew this was what I needed to do for my dogs. Her logic regarding natural rearing combined with her clinical experience was impressive. I immediately switched my dogs from Purina chow to raw food and never looked back.”
Zacharias values Levy’s advice because it has stood the test of time. “She will tell you that these methods are not ‘her’ diet and herbal inventions but rather foods and medicinal plants as they have been used for generations and centuries,” she says. “Juliette is an herbal historian.”
Juliette’s Legacy of Holistic Dog Care
When we asked Levy what she would most like to be remembered for, she replied, “My Turkuman Afghan Hounds became famous for their vitality and speed, and I still prize the Time magazine photograph of one of my hounds after he won Best in Show at Westminster, with the simple caption ‘Best hound in all of America.’ I would like to go to my grave or fly to heaven breeding Afghans.
“Another thing I would like to be remembered for is curing canine distemper, which became my specialty. Indeed, the veterinarians of the King of England sent me their important cases to cure during World War II at my distemper clinic in London.
“I would also like to be remembered for curing 3,000 condemned sheep by herbal methods in England in 1947, clearing their diarrhea and other symptoms with green plants and molasses while vast numbers of sheep in neighboring fields received conventional care and died. Saving the sheep remains one of my proudest moments.”
To her fans and friends in the United States and around the world, and especially to their dogs, she sends appreciation and best wishes.
Levy, who lives with her daughter in Switzerland, is still a traveler. As this article went to press Levy was in Germany visiting her remaining Afghan Hound, Malika (Shirini Shades of Velvet), who lives on a friend’s farm. She welcomes e-mail messages, which can be sent to her at info@michaelis.ch, but regrets that she will not be able to send individual replies.
-A long-time contributor to WDJ and author of The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care, Natural Remedies for Dogs & Cats, and other books, CJ Puotinen lives in New York with her husband, a Lab, and a tabby cat.
Mick, a five-year-old Labrador Retriever, has flaky skin and smells more “doggy” than usual.
Katrina, a two-year-old mixed-breed, has goopy eyes and oily fur. She has been eating a lot of grass and vomiting almost every day. Lately her stool has been covered with mucus.
Joe, a 12-year-old Beagle, has a fatty tumor on his right side. He also has a cyst behind his left ear.
All of these individuals share something in common: their bodies are working to push toxins and waste materials out by a natural process called detoxification.
In mainstream medicine the mechanisms of detoxification are often viewed as unpleasant symptoms of illness that need to be remedied. Eye drops are administered for goopy eyes, dandruff shampoos for flaky skin, surgery for removal of cysts, and so forth.
However, when taken into a more holistic perspective, such measures only amount to removal of outward signs of an underlying state of imbalance. Detoxification, as unpleasant as this natural process may appear to the onlooker, is seen as a natural part of the healing process that should be supported, not suppressed.
In essence, the primary goal of the holistic healer is to help the body in its natural abilities to heal itself and remain healthy. Rather than ignore the causes of disease in favor of eliminating only symptoms, as many conventional drug or surgical interventions do, the natural care provider works in concert with the body’s efforts of correcting itself.
Natural detoxification
The body’s detoxification system, being extremely complex and very efficient, has the job of eliminating anything that may be harmful to the body, by whatever means necessary.
Routine detoxification is ordinarily handled by waste removal mechanisms in the digestive tract and liver, the filtering activities of the lymph system, and at immune system levels – where a complex army of antibodies, toxin-scavenging cells, and special chemicals weed out, destroy, and eliminate toxic waste.
However, if any of these systems become overburdened with too much waste or toxic overloads, or are rendered dysfunctional in any way by injury or disease, the body may resort to other, less effective means of elimination. The body will try to push potentially harmful excesses out, any way it can.
If pushed through the skin we see the eruption of rashes, dandruff, an oily coat, or pustules. If the body attempts to push excess waste through mucous membranes we see runny eyes or nose, diarrhea, or mucus discharge at the rectum or urethra.
If these last-ditch efforts fail, the potentially harmful waste compounds that the body is trying to eliminate may accumulate to cause any number of disease problems – ranging from urinary tract disease, dry nose, conjunctivitis, arthritis, chronic allergy and inflammation, skin conditions, to even cancer.
Looking at the big picture
From a holistic perspective, such occurrences bring to mind two questions: First, what may be causing or contributing to the underlying dysfunction or imbalance? Second, what can be done to help the body detoxify and correct itself?
Finding answers to each of these questions begins by simplifying the body’s job of keeping itself clean.
First and foremost, your companion’s food should be comprised of good quality, highly digestible meats and vegetables. The diet should be free of artificial preservatives, colorings, and flavorings. Cheap fillers, such as soy, corn, and grain by-products should be removed from the food dish, as should excess sugar and salt. These ingredients do not serve positive roles in canine nutrition. In fact, they may be contributing, in large part, to the excess waste that is the burden of an already overworked detoxification system.
Second, take a hard, critical look at your dog’s living environment. Toxic lawn chemicals and household cleaners may also be contributing to your companion’s toxicity issues, as might secondhand cigarette smoke, mold and mildew, air pollution, or even potentially allergenic weeds in the backyard. Anything that presents the potential of causing toxic excess in the body should be removed from the scenario, whenever possible.
Digestive enzymes and probiotic supplements should be added to the food, as these will help with digestion and elimination of waste. Green foods, such as spirulina, wheatgrass, or barley grass may also be beneficial, as they are rich with antioxidants and help feed digestive flora that are necessary in the breakdown of waste in the intestine.
To help expedite elimination of waste, fasting may be indicated as well; talk with your holistic vet to find out what type of fasting may be appropriate for your pet.
Provide plenty of clean water
Water is essential in the process of detoxification. Encourage your companion to drink copious amounts of clean, filtered water. Avoid water that contains chlorine, fluoride, chemical residues, harmful bacteria, or parasites (i.e., avoid ditch or stream water).
Depending on circumstances, it may be wise to provide distilled water for a few days. Because distilled water is virtually void of the minerals that are naturally found in most water, it tends to pull minerals, including some metals, and chemicals away from the body before it exits in the form of urine. This can be very beneficial in cases where metal toxicity or chemical poisoning is suspected. However, keep in mind that long-term consumption of distilled water may deplete your companion’s body of some of the trace minerals it needs.
Detoxify with herbs
A variety of herbs may be useful in supporting the detoxification process.
Herbs that strengthen liver functions, such as dandelion root (Taraxacum officinale), nettle leaf (Urtica spp.), yellow dock root (Rumex crispus), Oregon grape root (Mahonia aquifolium), or turmeric (Curcuma longa) may help improve digestion and the body’s abilities to remove toxins from the blood.
Lymphatic herbs, such as red clover (Trifolium pratense), cleavers (Gallium aparine), or red root (Ceanothus velutinous) may help support the lymph system clear toxins from the tissues.
To help with the removal of intestinal mucus and the toxins it collects, ground flax seed, or perhaps a mild dose of senna or another herbal laxative, is in order.
These and many other herbs stand as viable options in support of your companion’s detoxification. To find out which herbs are best for your companion and her needs, consult a veterinary practitioner who is versed in the use of herbal medicines.
Among the many formulas used by holistic vets is Detox Blend by Animals’ Apawthecary. [Editor’s note: This is the company headed by author Greg Tilford.] This is a sweet-tasting liquid combination (in a glycerin base) of dandelion root, burdock root, red clover, licorice, and other herbs that help to safely support the liver in its job of filtering waste from the body.
Most importantly, remember that detoxification is, and should remain, a perfectly natural part of the healing process. Although the circumstances that trigger detoxification may warrant the attention of your veterinarian, the means by which your companion’s body eliminates toxins should be supported, not suppressed. That all begins with cleaning that pup up – from inside out!
1. If symptoms such as hair loss, lethargy, weight loss, and sudden onset of excessive thirst and urination are seen, get the dog to your vet ASAP.
2. Avoid giving your dog corticosteroids for chronic conditions or long-term use. Steroidal drugs are a prime cause of Cushing’s disease.
3. Give licorice root to any dog with Addison’s disease or adrenal fatigue. The herb’s activity actually helps balance the adrenals.
The adrenals are small glands located just forward of the kidneys. They are so small, in fact, they were virtually ignored by early anatomists for centuries. Although small in size, they are extremely important in the overall hormonal balance of the body and its ability to maintain homeostasis.
The adrenal glands also interact with the hypothalamus and pituitary gland; the collaboration of the three glands is known as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis). Their joint activities help control the body’s reactions to stress, whether it is physical or psychological. They also help regulate body processes such as digestion, the immune system, and energy usage.
The adrenals consist of two distinct parts: the outer cortex and the inner medulla. These two areas are entirely different in their function, their cellular structure, and their embryological origin, so it’s odd (at least in terms of our current understanding of the complex gland) that they are “built” into the same structure.
Adrenal Medulla
The center of the adrenal gland, the adrenal medulla, produces two important hormones that are secreted in times of acute and severe stress, in what is known as the “fight or flight” mechanism.
The first, epinephrine (commonly known as adrenaline), plays a central role in short-term stress reactions. It increases the heart rate and force of heart contractions, facilitates blood flow to the muscles and brain, decreases stomach and intestinal activity, and helps with conversion of glycogen to glucose in the liver – all actions that would promote a lifesaving fight or flight.
The second hormone produced by the adrenal medulla is norepinephrine, also known as noradrenaline. Norepinephrine’s primary action is to increase blood pressure.
Adrenal Cortex
Whereas a dog could survive the surgical excision of his adrenal medulla, the adrenal cortex is essential to life. The cortex is divided into three layers or zones. The zona glomerulosa, the outer zone, is responsible for the secretion of mineralocorticoid hormones. The zona fasciculata, the middle and largest zone (about 70 percent of the cortex), is composed of cells that secrete the glucocorticoid hormones. The zona reticularis, the inner zone, is responsible for secretion of sex hormones.
The secretions of the adrenal cortex (and the commercially available drugs that mimic them) are often lumped into one category – corticosteroids, or simply, steroids – but they perform separate functions.
The mineralocorticoids (from the outer, zona glomerulosa) comprise a small portion of the overall mix of corticosteroids in the body, but play an important role. Their principle effect is on the transport of important ions such as sodium and potassium across cell walls. Aldosterone is the most potent mineralocorticoid, and is responsible for accelerating the secretion of potassium and retention of sodium from the tubules of the kidney, which in turn helps maintain the body’s water balance by increasing resorption of water. Sweat glands are also under the control of the ion-pumping action of mineralocorticoids.
A lack of mineralocorticoids ( Addison’s disease) may result in a loss of sodium and retention of potassium, a condition that, in its extreme, may prove to be fatal.
The zona fasciculata, or middle zone of the cortex, secretes two glucocorticoid hormones: cortisol and corticosterone. The glucocorticoids have a wide range of physiological activity in the body, whether they are present as natural hormones or as commercially produced drugs. As prescribed drugs, they are used for a wide variety of diseases and conditions – and are the most overused and abused drugs in the conventional veterinarian’s pharmacy. Most holistic vets, on the other hand, try to limit prescribing of glucocorticoids to an absolute minimum.
Glucocorticoids have an especially profound impact on the immune system and the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. The metabolic action of the glucocorticoids is to enhance the production of glucose (the body’s primary energy sugar from digestion), which results in a tendency toward hyperglycemia (increased blood sugar levels). In addition, glucocorticoids decrease fat production and increase the breakdown of fatty tissues, which results in the release of glycerol and fatty acids, readily available sources of energy.
Glucocorticoids suppress both inflammatory and immunologic responses. By suppressing inflammation, they may inhibit tissue destruction and fibroplasia (scarring). However, glucocorticoids also reduce resistance to bacteria, viruses, and fungi, which in turn favors the spread of infection. And they have a profoundly negative effect on healing.
The third type of hormones originating from the adrenal cortex are the adrenal sex hormones. Secreted in relatively small amounts by the zona reticularis (inner zone of the adrenal cortex), these include progesterone, estrogens, and androgens. The effect of the adrenal sex hormones is usually masked by the hormones from the testes and ovaries, but may take on more significance in the spayed or neutered animal.
Synergistic Steroids
As I just explained, all the adrenal “steroids” have specific functions. Complicating the picture is the fact that they also perform some overlapping functions. Their activities are all-pervasive, affecting a multitude of organs in a complex manner. What’s more, dogs may have a wide range of responses to steroids, depending on a number of factors. Practitioners can only guess what any individual dog’s response will be to any dose of steroid they choose to prescribe.
This means that any steroidal drug that is prescribed by a veterinarian with the intention of having one effect may well have other unpredictable and unwanted effects. This is why drugs that are supposedly strictly glucocorticoid in action may well cause a dog to experience excessive thirst and urination (a mineralocorticoid-effect). Because of the functional overlap of these steroids, there is no way to separate their beneficial effects from their potentially harmful ones, no matter how hard the drug companies try to convince us otherwise.
Let’s say, to give an example, that you have chosen to treat your dog’s skin condition with a prescribed steroidal product (likely a glucocorticoid), because it has potent activity as an anti-inflammatory agent. Unfortunately, that same steroid will have an adverse effect on the immune system, slowing your dog’s normal immune response and retarding healing. He may also experience increased thirst and urination.
In addition, glucocorticoid hormones (either naturally produced or from prescribed medications) stimulate the adrenal medulla. There are several potential results of this low-level adrenal stimulation: the increased load on the heart may cause heart failure; the chronic excess blood glucose may lead to diabetes mellitus; and the persistent stimulation of the adrenals may lead to “adrenal fatigue” or ultimately to adrenal failure (Addison’s disease).
Diseases of the Adrenals
There are two major diseases of the adrenal glands. One involves a hypersecretion of the hormones of the gland (Cushing’s disease, or hyperadrenocorticism). The other, Addison’s disease or hypoadreno-corticism, is the result of a hyposecretion.
Cushing’s Disease
Hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing’s) may be the most frequent endocrinopathy in adult to aged dogs. The lesions and clinical signs associated with the disease result primarily from chronic excess of cortisol. Animals can exhibit any number of a wide variety of clinical signs, making proper diagnosis a challenge, even after evaluating a number of appropriate laboratory tests. The disease tends to be insidiously, slowly progressive.
There are three primary ways in-creased cortisol levels can create a “Cushinoid” reaction in dogs: tumors of the pituitary, functional tumors of the adrenals, and long-term administration of cortico-steroids.
Pituitary tumors affect the adrenocorticotropic (ACTH) -containing cells of the pituitary; this form of the disease is referred to as pituitary-dependent hyperadreno-corticism. Functional adrenal tumors are a far less common cause of the disease in dogs; the ratio of pituitary-dependent to primary-adrenal disease is about 80 percent to 20 percent. Many of us in the veterinary business worry that the most common cause of Cushing’s is drug-induced – excessive corticosteroid therapy given over a prolonged period.
Clinical signs of Cushing’s, no matter its primary cause, may include one or most of the following:
• Polyuria (increased frequency of urination), polydipsia (increased thirst), and polyphagia (increased, ravenous hunger).
• Weakening and atrophy of the muscles of the extremities and abdomen, resulting in gradual abdominal enlargement, lordosis (sway back), muscle trembling, and weakness.
• Weight loss. While most dogs appear fat, they may actually lose weight due to the loss of muscle mass.
• Fat deposits in the liver, resulting in diminished liver function.
• Skin lesions are common and are often the most recognizable symptoms of the disease. The skin may thin, or mineral deposits may occur within the skin, especially along the dorsal midline. The dog may also exhibit hair loss in a non-itchy “hormonal pattern” (bilateral and symmetrical hair loss, not patchy as typically seen with allergies, and often associated with thinning of hair and poor regrowth, rather than a complete loss of hair). This hair loss may be concentrated over the body, groin, and flanks, and spare the head and extremities. In chronic hormonal conditions the hair thinning may be associated with a thickening and a black discoloration of the abdominal skin called acanthosis.
• Behavior changes: lethargy, sleep-wake cycle disturbances, panting, and decreased interaction with owners.
A tentative diagnosis may be inferred from the clinical signs, but positive diagnosis requires laboratory confirmation. Differentiating pituitary-dependent from primary-adrenal Cushing’s is impossible without lab tests.
Cushing’s syndrome due to the administration of corticosteroids is easy to diagnose by asking the question: “Is your dog being treated with corticosteroids?” This form of the disease is easy to treat by discontinuing the drug. Note that glucocorticoids come under many brand names, and each type of glucocorticoid drug supposedly has its own specific activities, potency (compared to naturally occurring hormones), onset and duration of action. Also, the mineralocorticoid potential of all of these are affected by the individual animals’ responses to the drug.
A recently described condition called “adrenal hyperplasia-like syndrome,” mimics Cushing’s in the way its symptoms appear, but is likely due to a congenital imbalance in either the dog’s growth hormone or its sex hormones. (All of this offers further evidence for the interconnectedness of all the adrenal/pituitary hormones.) To date this disease has been well defined in a line of Pomeranians, and has also occurred in Samoyeds, Chow Chows, toy Poodles, and Keeshonds.
In most cases, the dog’s clinical signs have led the practitioner to suspect Cushing’s, and initial testing may help to differentiate this from diseases that present in a similar fashion.
Almost any hormonal condition may produce skin lesions similar to the Cushinoid dog, and increased thirst and urination may be due to a variety of diseases such as diabetes mellitus, diabetes insipidus, or renal failure. Also, normally aging animals may have many of the same symptoms as Cushing’s.
After other differential diagnoses have been ruled out, there are several tests available to help ascertain the cause of the syndrome – pituitary-related or adrenal. Your vet may need to run a series of tests to help understand the causal pathway of the disease.
For example, tests are available to evaluate the functional capability of the steroid-secreting cells of the adrenal, to evaluate the effect ACTH has on the secreting ability of the gland, and to measure plasma concentrations of circulating steroids and ACTH under certain conditions. Radiographs, ultrasound, or computerized tomography (CT), or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may also be helpful.
The conventional medical treatment for Cushing’s is aimed at attempting to shut down the excess production of hormones. There are several drugs that are specific for destroying the functional capacity of the particular cells from the area of the pituitary or the zone of the adrenal that is affected. In some cases, surgery may be used to remove the affected cells.
In all cases, the drugs will be effective only against certain cell lines (thus the need to ascertain which cells are the culprits). Furthermore, all drugs that have been used to date have a wicked list of adverse side effects – user beware! Surgery is also a difficult option; cutting into the pituitary that lies on the base of the brain is not an operation for the novice, and tumors of the adrenal tend to be microscopic in size and scattered throughout the gland.
Addison’s Disease
Hypoadrenocorticism, better known as Addison’s disease, is uncommon in young to middle-aged dogs. Unlike Cushing’s, which is a more insidious and chronic disease, Addison’s can have rapid and fatal consequences.
Many of the ongoing symptoms of Addison’s disease are not specific; they are more into the category of the ADR patient (Ain’t Doing Right): slowly progressive loss of body condition, failure to respond to stress, and recurrent episodes of digestive problems (gastroenteritis). The dog may lose weight (often an excessive amount), urinate more frequently, refuse to eat, and suffer bouts of vomiting and/or diarrhea.
As the disease progresses, though, a lack of aldosterone, the principal mineralocorticoid, results in marked changes in blood serum levels of potassium, sodium, and chloride. These alterations in electrolytes may lead to an excess of serum potassium, which then causes a decrease in the dog’s heart rate (bradycardia), and this, in turn, predisposes to weakness or circulatory collapse after even light exercise. The diminished circulation may be severe enough to trigger renal failure.
The condition may progress to complete failure (true Addison’s syndrome), and the dog may collapse. Without treatment, these dogs may die.
Diagnosis is often presumed from the dog’s history and clinical signs, and laboratory results may be used to confirm the condition. Changes may be seen in the blood picture, electrocardiogram (ECG), and sodium:potassium ratio.
An adrenal crisis is an acute medical emergency. The dog will need fluids, emergency doses of glucose and perhaps glucocorticoids, and supportive immediate therapy. Long-term therapy will likely be indicated; you need to consult with your holistic vet for alternatives to the corticoid drugs that will likely be recommended by a conventional vet.
The Pituitary Gland Connection
The pituitary gland is mentioned here because it is a prime regulator of adrenal secretions, as well as providing regulatory functions for many other endocrine glands.
The pituitary is a very small endocrine gland located on the underside of the brain. It is attached to the hypothalamus, a portion of the brain that collects and integrates information from all parts of the body, which is then used to regulate the secretion of hormones produced in the pituitary.
For such a small gland, the pituitary secretes a veritable plethora of hormones, many of which are the prime instigators/initiators for the secretion of other hormones from endocrine glands located in other areas of the body. It is almost as if the pituitary is the on/off switch for many of the body’s hormones.
While the connections between the pituitary and the adrenals are directly evident, the adrenals and their secretions are also secondarily involved in many other glands and functions of the body. For example, DHEA, an androgenic hormone produced by the adrenals, may be involved with obesity and aging. And the functioning capabilities of the thyroid may be indirectly linked to adrenal function. And let’s not forget that all forms of hormones, including those produced by the adrenals, act in the central nervous system as neurotransmitters or neuromodulators – further evidence for the importance of the mind/body link.
Other Adrenal Diseases
Diseases of the inner zone of the cortex, the zona reticularis, are relatively rare. They are generally associated with neoplasia (tumors) and as a rule they create an excess secretion of hormones associated with the specific cells involved with the tumor. Depending on which steroid is secreted in excess, the dog’s sex, and his or her age at onset, the affected animal may exhibit virilism (the development of masculine traits in the female), precocious sexual development, or feminization.
Because the primary hormones secreted by the adrenal medulla (epinephrine and norepinephrine) are related to stress, its primary disease is usually related to a chronic overstimulation, which in turn might create adrenal fatigue and/or lead to other conditions, such as diabetes mellitus or heart failure. One type of tumor of the medulla, the pheochromocytoma, while uncommon, has been occasionally reported. Because the tumor increases the secretion of hormones, its symptoms include increased heart rate, edema, and an enlarged heart.
Alternative Therapies for Conditions of the Adrenals
It should be obvious from the discussion of the adrenals that they are an integral part of a complex of interacting organ systems, all with independent, but overlapping functions. Put all this together and you’ve got a real challenge for trying to select the best therapeutic regime. On the other hand, since they typically work with entire body systems, alternative medicines may offer the best approach to overall and long-term healing.
Note that an Addisonian crisis (see above) is a medical emergency and requires immediate veterinary attention.
A general approach to treatment for either Cushing’s (hyperadrenocorticism) or adrenal fatigue (hypoadrenocorticism) might include the following:
• Discontinue chronic use of glucocorticoids if at all possible. The number one cause of Cushing’s syndrome in dogs is the prolonged use of corticosteroids. Find a good holistic vet to help you slowly wean your dog from steroidal drugs.
• Proper nutrition. Use of a fresh, healthy, balanced diet will assure proper organ system functioning. Natural, fresh foods won’t contain toxins that compromise the functions of organs.
• Minimize life’s stressors. Important components include proper exercise, correct weight for the breed, socialized behavior to live at ease with humans and other animals, and a well-defined place in the hierarchy of the family’s relationship. Most of all, let your dog be a dog.
• Minimize exposure to toxins. Plastics, pesticides, and herbicides have been shown to affect sex hormones. Preservatives and other artificial additives in foods and vaccines may adversely affect hormonal output.
• When indicated, use whole-body therapies. Acupuncture and homeopathy are examples of techniques that, when used properly, offer balance to the whole body.
• Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is specific for the adrenal glands, especially for fortifying them after Addison’s or adrenal fatigue. Since the herb’s activity actually helps balance the adrenals (as well as most other organ systems), I often recommend it for any condition that might stress those glands. Check with a qualified herbalist for dosages and best uses of the herb.
• Finally, avoid the temptation to “chase symptoms.” Conventional medicine is notorious for “take-a-shot-and-run” treatments that address current symptoms and do little for the long-term health of the individual. With diseases of an organ system as complex as the adrenals, this approach may be satisfying for the short term, but may never result in a complete resolution of the disease. Have your holistic vet come up with a long-range plan of action that both of you are comfortable with, and follow the plan until you see some results.
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.
Years ago, I had high hopes for participating in dock diving sport with my now-9-year-old dog, Woody. But it turned out that my high-jumping, strong-swimming dog absolutely hates getting water in his ears!
