An interesting article about Veterinarians using scare tactics to push owners away from feeding their pets a healthy raw diet.
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2014/09/08/5-anti-raw-food-tactics.aspx?e_cid=20140908Z1_PetsNL_art_1&utm_source=petnl&utm_medium=email&utm_content=art1&utm_campaign=20140908Z1&et_cid=DM56986&et_rid=652178346
Monday, September 8, 2014
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Guide To Feeding Wild Meats:
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| Picture Taken from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hiepes-bodegon_aves_y_liebre.jpg |
Commercially
raised meats found in grocery stores undergo strict regulations that make fresh
meat edible. This is why we, and our carnivores, can eat the meat without having
to freeze it first and not fear getting an unwanted parasite.
However,
wild meat cannot be eaten safely without freezing it solid for the appropriate amount
of time to kill off all harmful parasites.
Wild game:
Wild game
must be frozen solid for 3-4 weeks. There will be a link under Resources with a list of different meat you can feed.
* It’s not
advised to feed a carnivore to other carnivores.
Fish:
Wild-caught salmonids and Pacific
Northwest Fish should be frozen for 3-4 weeks to kill off parasites and also
eliminate Salmon Poisoning.
Other Fish should
be frozen solid for 1-2 weeks.
* Fish
should be frozen as fresh as possible and fed frozen. Unlike meat, fish does
not age well and can make your pet sick when it begins to get old. Scombroid Fish Poisoning is caused by
inappropriate refrigeration. After you pet is finished with its meal but has
not eaten all the fish, put it back into the freezer (not the fridge) to eliminate
this problem.
Healthy Fish to Feed:
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| Picture taken from http://www.groundtruthtrekking.org/Graphics/MercuryFoodChain.html |
Not all fish are the best to fed as some are lower
in omega 3’s and have higher mercury levels. The link below shows you a chart
that will help identify the healthiest fish to feed your pet.
* Eliminate the option of cod liver oil. For
humans, it’s okay, but for our pets, it is high in vitamin A and raw fed dogs get
the correct amount from the liver they consume. They do not need more of it
because of the risk of vitamin A toxicity.
Remember, feeding fish is not the most
important part of your carnivore’s diet. For variety and omega 3’s it is fine,
but red meat should be your main focus.
Resources:
Friday, August 8, 2014
Declawing: The Consequences And Why You Should Never Declaw your Cat
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| Picture property of www.all-creatures.org. |
Decalwing is a common
practise in North America and one that is unnecessary, painful, and damaging to your cat physically and
emotionally.
Declawing is the
procedure of amputating the first joint of each toe on the cat’s paw; this
includes claw, bones, nerves, joint capsule, collateral ligaments and the extensor/flexor
tendons (Becker, 2011). This is a huge
problem for cats because not only is it painful for the cat, but also because claws
are extremely important for cats. Cats are digitigrades which means they walk
on their toes not the soles of their feet (Becker,
2011). Most mammals use the soles of feet, walking from heel to toe (Becker, 2011). In addition, they use
their claws to engage in natural behaviour that positively stimulated them
mentally.
Decalwing is not
harmless, it is very detrimental to the cat and many countries have banned the procedure.
The link below is a list of those countries.
Cats have claws
for multiple reasons:
-
Marking
territory
-
Stretching
their muscles
-
Balance
-
Protection
against predators
-
Nail
trimming
-
Exercise
-
Hunting
Declawing cats
is an inhumane procedure that leads to a whole host of problems physically and
in the cat’s personality.
Physical
Consequences that can be caused by declawing:
-
Chronic
small bone arthritis (Becker, 2011)
-
Lameness (Declawing Cats: Far Worse Than a Manicure, 2014)
-
Back
pain (Declawing Cats: Far Worse Than a Manicure,
2014)
-
Tissue
necrosis (Declawing Cats: Far Worse Than a
Manicure, 2014)
-
Degenerative
joint disease (Becker, 2011): imagine walking on in high heels without ever being
able to take them off. The pressure on the middle phalanx is not designed to
solely support the weight of the cat when walking or running.
-
Neuralgia (Becker, 2011)
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| Picture property of www.all-creatures.org. |
Emotional Consequences
that can be caused by declawing:
-
Aggression
-
Feelings
of stress and anxiety
-
Biting
behaviour cause by the insecurity of lacking their primary form of defence
-
Urinating
outside of the litter box to mark their territory on things they can no longer scratch; this behaviour is serious and difficult to break once
it becomes habitual for the cat. Cat urine is extremely potent and nearly
impossible to remove completely from furniture and floors.
Alternatives to
Declawing:
-
Start
training the kitten at a young age where they are allowed and not allowed to scratch.
In addition, train them at a young age to accept their nails being trimmed. Always use positive reinforcement when
doing this!
-
Different
materials and types of posts or pads can make a difference. Find a cat
scratcher that appeals to your cat and place multiple in different areas of the
house. The more scratching posts, the more likely they with not seek out your furniture.
(My cat ignores tall scratching posts; he loves and engages frequently in the
flat, cardboard, scratching posts.) *Some cats
may lose
interest in old, tattered, scratching posts; replace them when this happens or they will search for other things to scratch.*
-
Cut
the cat’s nail regularly so it does not need to seek something else to trim
them.
-
There are commercially available nail caps for
cats. I’m not familiar with anyone ever using these, nor do I know if they are
effective. If scratching is a problem that is not being solved by any of
the solutions above, it may be a consideration for extreme cases.
Resources:
http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/cats/tips/declawing.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YLDQMvskH8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YLDQMvskH8
Bibliography:
Declawing Cats: Far Worse Than a
Manicure. (2014, May 12). Retrieved July 24, 2014, from Humane Society:
http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/cats/tips/declawing.html
Becker, K. (2011, November 15). Declawing:
Why You Should Never Subject Your Cat to This Torturous Procedure.
Retrieved July 24, 2014, from Healthy Pets:
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/11/15/declawing-torture-cats.aspx
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Monday, July 14, 2014
Before and After Raw Feeding
Wow, this is incredible! Only 11
weeks difference from the first picture and the second on a Prey Model Raw Diet. Amazing, isn’t it? Thank you Jessica, for
allowing me to share such wonderful success with your raw fed dog. Beautiful teeth to match a beautiful dog.
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Over Vaccinations: Why You Don’t Need Boosters
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| Picture taken from http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaccine#mediaviewer/File:Smallpox_vaccine.jpg |
Today is not a
topic between core or non-core vaccines. I will write about
the difference and importance of those in another post.
In my personal
opinion, I truly believe there is a place for vaccines. They are important for
the safety of our pets as they help in the attempt to minimize and eradicate the
threat of lethal viruses. Without them, the cases of sick or dying pets’ would
be much greater, just as the cases of sick or dying humans would be greater around the world. Vaccines are effective; it is why we use them. They are the
reason smallpox has been eradicated worldwide.
However, over vaccination (administering booster
vaccines) is an issue that is occurring in vet offices needlessly. When your
pet is young, they undergo a series of vaccine shots, this series is important
to complete. Young animals have not had the time to develop their immune system
and this leaves them vulnerable to lethal viruses which is why introducing microbes
of the dead viruses in a way they cannot actually contract it, is a smart and effective
way to protect your pet.
As said above,
it is important to complete these series of shots; giving one shot of each
vaccine is not enough to guarantee immunity against the virus you wish to
protect against. Because the body’s immune system is young and not developed,
it must learn and match the appropriate T cell with the virus to build immunity
within the body. This is why completing the series of shots is needed,; after
one shot, the body does not always ‘take’ fully to the vaccine leaving your pet
still vulnerable to potentially contract the virus.
After the puppy
or kitten series are complete, your pet is immunized. Many of these have an average
immunity duration of 5 to 7 years or more. Within those years, if your pet’s body is
challenged with the any of the virus’s you immunized against, then the
antibodies in the blood will increase again which allows your pet to have more
years of immunization against the viruses. In many cases, your pets will be
immunized for life without ever having to give “booster” vaccines. If the
average duration of vaccinations are 5-7+ years, than it makes absolutely no
sense to vaccinate (boost) the animal every year.
Some people like
to titer their pets every year or every other year after the completing their series
of puppy or kitten vaccinations. Titers tests the level of antibodies in the
blood at that given time. It does not test for T memory cells that help the B
cells create antibodies.
*I would like to note that just because a pet’s titer
count is low, it does not mean the pet has low immunity. That just means the
animal’s body has not been challenged recently causing the antibody count in
the blood to reduce over time.
If the pet were to be challenged recently before
you did the titer, that same low titer would no longer be low anymore because
the memory T cells have recognized the virus and alerted the B cells to start
producing more antibodies in the blood to kill the virus before you even knew
you dog or cat was ever sick with the virus again. That increase in antibodies
in the blood will give you a higher titer count. This same process goes for
humans.
This
is why I truly feel boosters are not needed and can be more harmful than beneficial
for you pets. I've listed resources below that help explain immunology,
titers, vaccine protocols, and even the risk of over vaccinations.
Resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwMYpTYsNZM
(series of videos that explain immunology)
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