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With hundreds of trendy herb products lining the shelves of pet shops and health food stores these days, it is easy to forget that many of the most useful herbal remedies for pets are already in the kitchen. Chamomile is just one example. One of the safest and most versatile herbal pet remedies around, chamomile has a broad range of scientifically proven uses.

Beef hides and hooves, pig ears and snouts – Do you know which of these animal products are good for your dog, and which are dangerous? Walk down the right aisle in any pet supply store and you can't miss them: row upon row, bin upon bin of preserved and processed animal parts, all intended for your dog's chewing pleasure. First, there are the rawhide products – perhaps the least visually objectionable stuff on display. Most pet stores carry many varieties of rawhide chews, including flat discs, round rolls, twisted and braided chews, and fanciful items such as rawhide footballs and food bowls.

Frequently, we hear things about dog food companies that would curl your hair. And rarely, if ever, can we print anything we hear, because much of it is unverifiable and perhaps even untrue – lies made up or part-truths distorted by unhappy consumers or unscrupulous competitors. We take this stuff with a grain of salt.

Take a look at those household cleaners under your sink and in your laundry room. Many of them list a plethora of toxic ingredients including petroleum distillates, mineral spirits, formaldehyde, and others that have been proven carcinogenic and mutagenetic. As concerned consumers we can try to purchase safe and healthy products for our pets, but it is not always easy. Many products on the market today are considered proprietary and closely guard their formulas as trade secrets, making it impossible for us to judge their contents. Homemade cleaning products can keep your house perfectly clean for less money – and at a lower cost to the health of your canine and human family.

When parvo strikes, it moves fast. Infected dogs may appear to be in perfect health one day and violently ill the next. Emergency veterinary care is expensive, and unless dogs are diagnosed and treated early, many die from this serious disease. However, reactions to parvovirus vary widely – both among dogs and their human caretakers. In a world in which parvovirus is ubiquitous – it is literally everywhere except environments that have been sterilized – parvo kills some dogs and leaves others unscathed.

Today, spot-on flea products are advertised in every sort of media available to animal guardians and veterinarians, and are touted as safe and effective. However, the safety record of these products is not as spotless as the manufacturers would make us believe. After all, they contain pesticides, which are poisons, and they also contain toxic ingredients that are not disclosed to consumers – or even veterinarians – without applying through the Freedom of Information Act. The danger presented by these products is apparent in the hundreds of incident reports that sit in the Environmental Protection Agency's files – not to mention the manufacturer's own animal laboratory studies.

Good holistic health care fulfills the needs of the whole animal being, physically, mentally, and emotionally. A sound, well balanced diet (along with fresh, clean water), appropriate exercise, and proper behavioral education just about covers the bases. Or does it? Health is individual. Many people consider their animals to be healthy as long as they aren't sick, but to me, a healthy dog is happy and expressive, exuding resilience. Whether our animal companion denotes health with a gleaming eye, a flashing coat, and an athletic leap for a Frisbee, or a half cocked ear, sly grin, and thumping tail from the Barcalounger, we can best ascertain the level of our friends' health by observing over time what's normal for each unique individual.

Choosing the right food for your dog is an important task, with both short-and long-term consequences. Many veterinarians have come to believe that the best foods for a dog are those that are closest to his ancestral diet: raw meat, in all different cuts and varieties, and a sprinkling of herbal or vegetable matter. But for many of us, providing that kind of diet is inconvenient, time-consuming and expensive. So, for those of us who have gotten used to the ease of feeding dried dog food out of a bag, WDJ can help you become an informed consumer.

Manufacturers of deworming products have gone out of their way to let us know that, left unchecked, these pesky parasites can plague dogs that are in poor health, rob them of nutrition, attack vital organs, and cause unthriftyness, illness, and even death. If a dog's health is poor and he is hosting an uncontested parasite population, all sorts of bad things can happen. It is important to protect our dogs from parasites, but as it turns out, protection largely follows as a result of building the dog's overall health. Toxic dewormers may be unnecessary to dislodge what few worms a strong and healthy animal might have.

When a specific dietary supplement is given to an individual (canine or human) who previously lacked the nutrients or chemicals offered by the supplement, or whose body required a higher dose than was previously available, miraculous improvements in health, appearance, and attitude can indeed take place. But most people have no idea whether they are lacking something before they add it to their own or their dog’s diet!

So, you're leaving town for a few days. What ARE you going to do with Fido? Experts agree that the best situation for your dog's health and happiness would be to have someone stay in your home, maintaining the dog's regular diet and exercise, and preserving his comfort and sense of security, but this is not always possible. And while we know people who haven't taken a dog-less vacation for the life of their dogs, we think this is a little extreme.

We adopted our rescue dog about a year ago. She had been a stray, and at the time we adopted her the vet thought she was about ten months old. Ever since we’ve had her she has had the same symptoms – she doesn’t seem to be able to properly digest her food. She is ravenously hungry all the time. She will eat unlimited amounts of anything – fruits, vegetables, yogurt, bread, anything she can get her paws on. And her stools are not normal; she has about four bowel movements per day, and they get progressively softer throughout the day.