Pet owners are increasingly aware of alternative therapies for treatment of their pets' chronic illnesses, yet when they ask their traditional veterinarian about the use of those treatments, they are often told "Don't bother", "It doesn't work", or "We have medications that will solve the problem". Why are they so averse to non-traditional therapies?
For the most part, the real reason is lack of knowledge. Veterinarians are trained as scientists; they are trained to look for "evidence-based medicine", meaning there are double-blind trials testing the treatment against a placebo to show there is a significant difference in response to treatment versus non-treatment. There is very little scientific information available using double-blind trials in alternative medicine, unfortunately. Running trials can be very expensive. When running trials with animals, there can also be many, many variables.
In order to perform a legitimate trial, many animals of the same breed, fed the same food, living in the exact same conditions, would need to be tested. As many of you are aware if you follow my blogs and posts, food can have a major impact on overall health. If some animals were fed a whole food diet, while others were fed poor quality kibble, the results would be totally different between the groups.
Veterinarians have been trained to shun "anecdotal evidence", even when the evidence is overwhelming. Could it be that big pharma and big pet food have contributed to this mindset?
When Myra was being treated by her oncologist (I loved her; she was trained in acupuncture), I asked her thoughts regarding vaccinations and use of chemical parasite preventatives in pets being treated with chemotherapy. Now remember, this is an oncologist trained in alternative therapies; she told me the veterinary oncology groups put out statements that pets undergoing chemotherapy should continue to be vaccinated and also be treated with monthly heartworm, flea, and tick preventatives. That blew my mind. I don't care whether you are traditional or alternative in your medical mindset - how can it possibly make any sense to add toxic chemicals to a body already struggling to fight a devastating disease?
Unfortunately, many in traditional fields believe toxic chemicals are the only way to treat disease. After all, chemotherapy drugs are toxic to the body. They are killing diseased AND HEALTHY cells. While the pharmaceutical companies and traditional oncologists would like us to believe we are winning the war against cancer, the truth is that we are failing miserably. Your dog has a 50:50 chance of developing cancer in his or her lifetime. Staggering statistic.
While there are no guaranteed methods to prevent or cure cancer, there are certainly ways to increase the odds of resisting this disease. Feed healthy, non-GMO. fresh, whole food diets. Add high quality supplements to decrease inflammation in the body. Reduce use of chemicals on the animals and exposure to environmental chemicals. Say no to unnecessary vaccinations.
Supplements I use for my animals:
- CoQ10 - antioxidant to decrease inflammation and help protect against cancer
- CBD Oil - decrease inflammation and help protect against cancer; stimulates cancer-killing cells, enhances the effect of conventional cancer therapy
- Wellness Formula - deer velvet for restoration and regeneration of healthy cells, green lipped mussel for joint health, colostrum for immune support, algae for circulation
- Mushroom supplement - protect nerve function, antioxidant; increase the production of cancer-fighting alpha interferon, reduce inflammation throughout the body, improve the ability to produce and utilize vitamin D.
- Omega 3 fatty acids - decrease inflammation and help protect against cancer; a number of studies have demonstrated that omega 3's prevent the growth and development of some tumors. They also improve the immune system.
- New Zealand Deer Velvet Oral Drops - maintain dental health to decrease infection and inflammation throughout the body
- Whole food diets - Yin & Yang Nutrition for Dogs: Maximizing Health With Whole Foods, Not Drugs
- Natural flea and tick prevention using essential oils instead of chemicals
- Vitamin D3 - protects against cancer; researchers analyzed the relationship between dogs’ vitamin D levels and the prevalence of cancer and found that dogs with a vitamin D level below 40 ng/ml were 3.9 times more likely to have cancer
