Here is an email that I received the other day that I wanted to share with you.

"Hi, I have a 3 year old Siberian husky who has had chronic diarrhea his entire life. He's had multiple tests done and we've tried lots of products. Nothing has helped. I think he has a very sensitive/weak digestive system. I see your product Plantaeris and wonder if others have had success with it for this type of situation."

Usually diarrhea is a sign of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The causes of IBD are numerous and include parasites, fungi, bacteria, food allergy, and cancer. A lot of times IBD in dogs can be caused by a food allergy, especially to grains. You may want to talk to your vet about trying a whole diet for your dog to rule this out as a cause.

The herbs found in Canine Plantaeris help regulate intestinal function which will be valuable in the healing process. This will not be a cure for the IBD as you will have to figure out the cause of it, but it will help relive the current symptoms.

I recive so many questions about our product ES Clear that I thought it my be interesting to share a little background. ES Clear is made from the origial recipe for Essiac Tea.

In the early 1920s, Rene Caisse, a Canadian nurse, questioned an elderly patient about her scarred but healed breast. She learned that several years earlier a Toronto physician had diagnosed a malignant tumor in the breast and recommended a mastectomy. Instead, the woman took an herbal tea prepared by an Indian neighbor of the Ojibwa or Chippewa tribe. Caisse asked for the formula, which she later modified and thus began her search for a cancer cure, which lasted until her death in 1978 at the age of 90.

She named her herbal remedy Essiac, which is her name spelled backward. The tea, which is said to have cured many patients of various cancers with no adverse side effect. Has been a various times praised, maligned, investigated, ignored, misrepresented and widely copied. Caisse experienced mostly disappointment and frustration from her contacts with the medical establishment and adulation from patients who recovered under her care.

Caisse kept her formula secret, for she feared that it were made public, exploiters would sell Essiac preparations that lacked the original's healing properties and she worried that the formula's simplicity would cause many to reject it out of hand.

In 1977 she was persuaded to give her formula to a Canadian corporation which had physicians on its board of directors and which planed to set up clinical trials that would prove its efficacy. Following approval from the Canadian government at a future date, the Resperin Corporation would market Essiac. Unfortunately, the corporation fell behind in its record keeping, so this goal was never reached.

Still, belief in Essiac remains alive because so many patients improve or recover, or if they die they do so with a clear mind, serene disposition and no need of painkillers.

Thank you to The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care for this brief history.

As my husband and I are urban dwellers we let our dog, Cutter, go out on hikes with a dog walker at least once a week. She takes them up in the mountains and to the beach and sometimes to the river.

Yesterday they had a river adventure roaming in the paths and then down to the water to play. Cutter, who is not a swimmer, entertains himself by playing with the rocks on the beach. He could spend hours rolling them and kicking them, so when the group got to the beach yesterday Cutter went off to play with rocks.

When the walker checked in on Cutter he was rolling in the rocks. At first she didn't think anything of it, but after a while of rolling she walked down for a closer look. Well he had found a big, rotten salmon and was rolling in this new and "wonderful" smell. Cutter is not alone in this quest. Dogs seem to have a fondness for foul, funky smells. There are different theories of dogs trying to mask their sent for hunting and so on, but one thing is for sure he was immensely proud of his new smell.

The walker washed him three times before bringing him home to us, but you could still cut the stench with a knife. We doused him with some doggie perfume but he was still very fishy and smelled like he belonged in a brothel. My husband then took him onto the patio for baths number 4 and 5, but he was still nasty smelling.

Our final effort was an anti skunk bath. When I was looking for a dog lifejacket for Cutter I had seen a recipe for Polecat Perfume on http://www.ruffwear.com/. I had remembered that, because the skunk's spray was not water soluble it was hard to get off. I really don't know much about the make up of rotting fish but knew that the water was not getting the job done.

Well after bath number 6 in Polecat Perfume he was much better. We still can catch a little fishy smell when he cuddles with us but the improvement is incredible. I would defiantly check out this recipe in times of heavy odor problems.

I address different topics as they come up with customers throughout the week, but I understand that there are many subjects that I haven’t touched on. I would love to answer your questions or address your current problems here.

Please post your questions for any topics that are still unaddressed here.

Hepatitis interferes with the removal of toxins from the blood, resulting in nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, yellowing of the whites of the eyes, fatty-looking stools, diarrhea containing undigested food, or abdominal swelling.

Milk Thistle is recommended as an herbal therapy in cases of liver problems in dogs and can help manage canine hepatitis. Be sure to also ask your vet about diet changes, digestive enzymes, and glandular therapy as well.

I received a question the other day from a customer who wanted to treat her cat for Squamous Cell Carcinoma with ES Clear. Her cat also has Lymphocytic Plasmacytic Stomatitis.

What ES Clear is doing is boosting the immune system and helping to detoxify the body. It is not specialized to a certain type of cancer. The ES Clear would be useful in this case.

I was not personally familiar with Lymphocytic Plasmacytic Stomatitis, but I did do some light research. From what I read you should not be using an immune system booster in the case of Lymphocytic Plasmacytic Stomatitis. Even though it would help the cancer it would be detrimental overall. ES Clear was not a good product for this cat.

A personal site that I found that that has some basic information and some information links was:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pointe/9352/stomatitis.html

I received a question today from a customer whose dog has very high white blood cell counts and wanted to know if canine Tripsy would help. Her dog is also taking a diabetic medication and antibiotics. Some of the information in my response may prove useful in answering other questions so I though I would share it.

"An unusually high white blood cell count can indicate an infection or a blood disorder such as leukemia. Uses of certain medications, such as corticosteroids, antibiotics or anti-seizure drugs also affect the white blood cell count.

It looks like your vet is trying to rule out infection with the antibiotics. It may be as simple as completing this prescription to reduce the count.

The Tripsy will work to aid the kidneys normal function. It also has antibacterial properties that help if there is any kidney infection present. If it is a kidney infection that is causing the high white blood cell count then Tripsy will help.

You will not have any problems using the Tripsy with you diabetes medication. There would be no drug interaction. You will what to confer with your vet when using the Tripsy though, as the health of the kidneys affects the dose of Lantus that needs to be given. As the kidney health improves her dosage of Lantus may need to be changed."

Today we received a wonderful testimonial for a dog cancer product we sell - ES Clear.

Testimonial is copied from an email I just received.

"IT HAS BEEN A YEAR SINCE STARTING TO USE THIS MED. THE TUMOR TOOK UP MOST OF THE LEFT LUNG OF OUR DOG, WHITNEY. TODAY, THE DOCTOR TOOK ANOTHER XRAY AND THE TUMOR HAS SHRUNK. IT IS ONLY ONE INCH AROUND NOW AND HER LUNGS SOUND GREAT. SHE JUST CELEBRATED."

Congratulations Whitney - we hope things continue to improve. Thanks for trying our products.

Labels: cat_cancer, dog_cancer

On the first reading of Tripsy’s ingredients you will find Stone Root and Breakstone Parsley both of which have mild diuretic properties. You would not think to give this product to a dog with incontinence problems.

It will surprise you to know that you can in fact give your dog Tripsy. Tripsy is a fully balanced supplement. All the ingredients work together to aid the dog’s kidneys and balance his system.

Excessive urination can be a sign of infection or irritation of the kidneys. As dogs do not empty their bladders every time they go out, the remaining urine in conjunction with an infection will make your dog feel that he has to go all the time. Tripsy has anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and antibiotic properties and is well suited to this problem.

Tripsy is a very effective kidney aid and might be right for your dog.

I just got my dog the Big Dog DrinkWell Fountain. It is great! Cutter loves it and is in there all the time. When I get home from work now, he has big eyes that express his urgency to go out for a walk. I drop my stuff off and head out right away now. The machine does not come with any warnings, outside of the electrical stuff, but it should say “Warning to owners: May double the dog walks.”

I got the Big Dog fountain because Cutter is a rottie/shepard and the Big Dog is a good size trough for him. It is too big for my cats to drink out of but they sit and watch it. I should really get them one too, because one of my cats has had higher crystal levels before. They do not drink out of the tap thankfully, but they really were interested in Cutters new set up.

I knew Cutter would like it because we have a street fountain a couple of blocks down and he runs to it every time we walk by. The tourists in the area think it is cute and he has had his picture taken several times. I’m afraid that the city puts something in the water though, even if they don’t I’m not too sure how clean the water is. I try to curb the drinking there. Safe to say his DrinkWell fountain is a much better alternative.

The fountain works it many ways. The first is that it provides your pet with a clean and filtered source of water. Especially if you have your pet’s water dish at floor level it always runs the risk of nasty debris falling in it. I am also guilty of feeding my pets tap water while I drink filtered water. With the little charcoal filter, Cutter can drink the same water as I do. The fountain also aerates continuously, moving the water to keep it much fresher than standing bowl water.

It is not just a novelty item for your pet, it never ceases to inspire increased drinking. Many cats and dogs may not drink as much water as they should. This is one reason the urine becomes so concentrated and predisposes some pets to urinary tract disease, constipation or kidney disease. In particular, cats with urinary tract or kidney disease have a critical need for water to support kidney function or prevent crystal formation and obstruction.

I hope to add a picture or video clip of Cutter in one of his marathon drinking sessions in the future.

“My Vet will not support my choice of a natural remedy.” I receive so many comments like this from different customers. They complain of their vets just prescribing them drugs and then shipping them home.

The use of alternative remedies is just now coming into it’s own. Asking your doctor for acupuncture or a tea was unheard of not long ago. When I first went to my new doctor I had a conversation about my hesitancy to take conventional medication and my wish to have more natural treatments. She understood my wishes and told me that she is educated in conventional medicine but she in no way discounts natural remedies. She said that we could work together to decide on a treatment. That was important to me. She is a medical professional, with years of schooling behind her, and I value her knowledge. I also know that I will need to do some work myself to come to the table with alternative choices we can discus together.

Vets are similar to human doctors. They have been educated in conventional medicine. Its not that vets are not open to natural alternatives, they just do not have that background. Do not discount your vet if they prescribe conventional medication without even blinking an eye. They are a necessary wealth of information about your pet’s health. If you go into your vets office armed with your own knowledge and have a talk about your thoughts and opinions, a lot of vets will be able to help you. Some vets will even do some supplementary research on their own to gather more information.

By bringing new options to your vet you are also laying a path for other clients that may follow. Creating a demand for alternative health treatments is a positive step.

I get many different questions regarding Milk Thistle from customers. Due to its liver support, milk thistle is often used anytime a pet becomes ill or toxic. It can be used anytime drugs are given to a pet that could be toxic to the liver, especially chemotherapy, liver disease, heartworm treatment medications and steroid treatments or other conventional treatments that are hard on a pet’s system. Please talk to your vet about milk thistle as a companion treatment.

The question is what is the milk thistle doing?

Milk thistle is one of the few herbs that have no real equivalent in the world of conventional medicine. Milk thistle contains active ingredients called silymarinn. These silymarin appear to function by displacing toxins trying to bind to the liver as well as causing the liver to regenerate more quickly. It may also scavenge free radicals and stabilize liver cell membranes.

Silymarin protects the liver as an antioxidant, by increasing glutathione levels, and by inhibiting the formation of damaging leukotrienes. Silymarin also stimulates the production of new liver cells, replacing the damaged cells.

It is best not to use milk thistle as a daily supplement but rather reserve its use for conditions where the liver is under stress. You do not want your pet’s liver function becoming dependant on it. Long-term use may alter blood liver enzymes and cause depressed liver function unless chronic liver disease is present.

Thank you to the Natural Health Bible for Dogs and Cats for some of the technical information shared here.