Current News

Safe pet food available

While no food for pets or people can be guaranteed 100% safe in today's world, some foods are safer than others. After the pet food recall, pet owners are questioning what they can safely feed their pet. If you cannot do a home-cooked or raw meat diet, we suggest you visit your local natural pet supply store for suggestions on brands to purchase. If you don't have a store near you or you would like home-delivered food, we suggest Life's Abundance pet food from HealthyPetNet. Their food is made with human-quality ingredients from U.S. sources, with strict quality control measures. The dry kibble foods are free of wheat and corn. We particularly like their Instinctive Choice canned cat food which is high in protein and totally free of grains. For more information, go here: HealthyPetNet. (only available for shipping within the U.S., Independent Field Representative)

Hurricane Katrina cat still available

It is now May and no one has stepped forward yet to adopt this sweet kitty that lost its home in July. Won't you consider opening your heart to a Katrina animal? Cajun was rescued from a shelter in Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina, brought to Denver in September 2005 and quickly found a home. He thought he had his forever home, but the owner's situation changed and he became available again in July 2006 (through no fault of his own). He has no behavioral or health issues. Click here for more details.

Oil of the month

by Russell Louie

JuvaFlex

15 ml (#3375, $36.75/$42.55/$48.36)

• Do you have general fatigue and a loss of energy and/or appetite?
• Are you suffering from itching, dermatitis, or hives?
• Do you have unsettled sleep patterns often waking up around 3:00 AM?
• Do you have hayfever or seasonal allergies?
• Are you suffering from stress or depression, excessive alcohol consumption, taking drugs such as tranquilizers, sleeping pills, anti-inflammatories and anti-histamines?
• Do you have addictions to tobacco, caffeine, drugs, alcohol, and sugar?

Instead of taking a drug, herb, homeopath or supplement that just gets rid of (suppresses) the symptoms, why not try a more holistic approach? All of the above symptoms could be caused by the build up of unfiltered toxins in the blood and the liver could be in a weakened state. In traditional Chinese medicine, the time between 1:00 – 3:00 AM is the peak time our bodies use to filter the blood through the liver. A weak or congested liver means the body has to struggle and work harder to purify our blood (thereby causing one to wake up around 3:00 AM). Many food and chemical dependencies, such as addictions to tobacco, caffeine, drugs, alcohol, and sugar may originate in the liver. Fortunately, we have many therapeutic essential oil solutions.

Research has shown that helichrysum dilates the liver ducts and facilitates the release of toxins and poisons from the system. Other single oils to help the liver detoxify are German chamomile, Roman chamomile, sage, geranium, and rosemary. An excellent blend to help break addictions to substances such as coffee, alcohol, drugs, and tobacco is JuvaFlex. For a simple good night’s sleep due to all the above symptoms you might try applying some of the above oils to the liver area (just below the ribs on the right side) before going to bed or when you wake up around 3:00 AM. I have used JuvaFlex this season to lessen the symptoms of hay fever. During the spring, I usually wake up with my nose stuffed up. This spring I have never had my nasal passages totally blocked upon waking.

JuvaFlex Indications

Supports liver and lymphatic detoxification. Anger and hate are stored in the liver, creating toxicity and leading to sickness and disease. JuvaFlex helps break addictions to coffee, alcohol, drugs, and tobacco.

Ingredients

• Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) improves bile flow from the liver. It is antispasmodic and improves liver, pancreas, and kidneys function.
• Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is antiseptic and antimicrobial. It balances the endocrine system.
• Roman Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile) is anti-inflammatory and expels toxins from the liver. Strengthens liver function.
• Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) is antiseptic and stimulating to the circulatory system. Increases bile flow and hepatocyte function.
• Helichrysum (Helichrysum italicum) regenerates tissue and improves circulation. It stimulates liver cell function and removes plaque from the veins and arteries.
• Blue Tansy (Tanacetum annuum) helps cleanse the liver and lymphatic system. It is anti-inflammatory.

Carrier Oil

Sesame seed oil

Application

Apply over liver area, foot Vita Flex points, raindrop-style along spine, or use in compress.

JuvaCleanse is another blend that supports healthy liver function. For any health problems we recommend you see a qualified healthcare practitioner. A serious liver cleanse might be in order.

©2005 Essential Science Publishing. Some of the information in this article is from the Essential Oils Desk Reference, which can be ordered here:
Essential Science Publishing, 1216 South 1580 West, Orem, Utah 84058, (800) 336-6308, www.essentialscience.net.

Click here to order on our Young Living World Essential Oils website. Click on Product Catalog, then pull down the menus Essential Oils/Blends A-M to find JuvaFlex^TM, or call us at (303) 271-1649 or (866) 305-2306 (toll-free).

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Why we are not worried about the pet food recall

When the pet food recall happened, we didn't have to worry about what to feed our pets because we had already weaned them off of pet foods containing grains. The common ingredient in the pet food recall, whether canned or dry kibble, is grains: wheat gluten, rice protein or corn (in South Africa). We used to feed our cats dry kibble pet food, thinking this was an appropriate food for them (after all, the manufacturers say it's "complete and balanced"). After our first two cats died of kidney disease or Chronic Renal Failure (CRF) at age 17, we learned that grains are not an appropriate food for carnivores (meat-eating animals needing 65-95% meat). Dry kibble food must use grain or other carbohydrates to hold it together during processing. At most it contains 50% meat and most brands are less than 30%. Upon learning that, we transitioned our remaining cat, Connie, to a canned and raw food diet free of grains in 2002. When we acquired our dog, Mikki, in 2003, we immediately put her on a canned food diet and then transitioned her to raw food (she had been on dry kibble at the shelter). Even the training treats we give Mikki are free of grains (we buy dried meat treats sold at natural pet stores instead of dog "cookies"). We also feed the neighborhood stray cat, Molly, and she was occasionally given one of the recalled flavors, a Nutro "cuts and gravy" style food. However we had mostly transitioned her to a grain-free higher-quality canned food so we returned the few Nutro packets we had left, which were not within the recall dates. (Having been fed "junk pet food" by the neighbors, it is more difficult to get Molly to eat healthy foods than Connie.)

You may be wondering why you should avoid grain in your pet's diet. After all, home-made diet recipes for pets may include grains such as cooked oatmeal. One reason is that the quality of grains in most commercial pet foods are different than what you would buy and cook for your pet. Typically the good quality grains go into human foods and what is left over gets used in pet food. So the grains in pet food are poorer quality as well as more likely to contain toxic molds, pesticides and man-made contaminants (such as melamine). Also, the plant protein in grains and soy in pet food gets counted towards the total protein of the food, though our pets, as carnivores, can't utilize it. They are designed to get their protein from meat, not plants. The holistic veterinarian and pet food expert Dr. Jean Hofve recommends avoiding all non-meat protein sources. She states that cheap vegetable protein substitutes are inappropriate in the diet of a carnivore and are used by the pet food companies only to increase profit.

It is especially important to avoid grains with cats. They are "obligate carnivores", meaning they must have meat to survive. Their bodies are not designed to digest carbohydrates. Dr. Jean Hofve, calls her website www.LittleBigCat.com, meaning that our domestic cats are the same physiologically as the big wild cats. Cats need 70 to 95 percent meat (protein + fat) in their diet and cannot survive as vegetarians. Domestic cats are descended from the African wild cat, whose natural diet was limited to rodents, birds, eggs, reptiles and insects. Notice that there are no grains or carbs in that list. They got their moisture from their food and not from drinking water, as they lived in the desert. Their prey contains 65 to 75 percent water. Cats do not have a strong thirst drive compared to other mammals so they will not drink water until they are already dehydrated. This wild cat was domesticated by the Egyptians 4,000 years ago to protect their granaries from rodents. The cat was ideally suited to this task, since it did not eat grains.

Yet today, most of us feed our cats dry kibble that contain more grains than meat and only averages 10 percent water. Could this be why so many cats get kidney disease or Chronic Renal Failure (CRF)? The new grain-free kibbles are not a solution either since they lack water and the higher protein in them makes them even more dehydrating. And lacking grains, they still have a fattening starch in them such as potato or tapioca starch to hold them together. The epidemic of obesity in our dogs and cats, which can cause many health problems, is yet another reason not to feed our pets grains or other starches (which are fattening to carnivores). Other health problems caused by feeding dry kibble include urinary tract disorders and diabetes. One vet called dry kibble for cats "diabetes in a bag" and holistic vets state that it can often be cured by taking the cat off of dry food.

According to holistic vets, canned food is better for your dog or cat than dry kibble, and home-cooked or raw food is ideal. Since there has been some "cross contamination" of pet foods made on the same equipment as the recalled food, home-prepared food is obviously the safest diet. That way, you know the source of all the ingredients. However, it is important to balance the diet properly. If you just feed your dog or cat what you would feed your child (meat, vegetables, grains), they will not get all the nutrients they need. As carnivores, our dogs and cats need more calcium than us, to balance out the muscle and organ meats. Their wild ancestors ate the entire prey animal, including the bones. So just cooking up chicken and rice for your dog is not going to be adequate. We suggest you consult with a holistic vet and read some of the books on pet nutrition in our Book of the Month section below. We also suggest supplementing with superfoods rich in minerals, such as BioPreparation algae, to help ensure your pet receives all the nutrients their body requires. Steve Brown, raw food expert and founder of Steve's Real Food (a balanced commercial raw food), analyzed several popular home-made raw food diets and found them to be deficient in trace minerals and calcium (article published in the January-March 2007 Journal of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association).

Our cat Connie is now somewhere between 19 and 23 years old and unlike our previous cats, she was free of kidney disease until we gave her Metacam (a pain-relieving drug) a year ago which caused acute kidney failure. As a result, she now has chronic kidney failure requiring daily administration of subcutaneous fluids but her kidney values were normal on her last bloodwork and her appetite is good (cats with kidney failure don't feel like eating). I call her the "energizer bunny" because she just keeps on living and living despite advanced arthritis that limits her mobility and the damage done by the Metacam. She still enjoys eating and purrs when we pet her. We attribute her long and relatively disease-free life to her improved diet the past 5 years and the addition of BioPreparation algae to her diet, as well as minimal vaccines during her lifetime. If we had not fed her kibble in her younger years, which caused her to become obese, she probably would not have developed the severe arthritis she has now. The fact that she is so healthy at her advanced age, despite the arthritis and kidney damage, shows the power of diet to promote health.

To learn more about the optimum diet for dogs and cats read our Holistic Choices e-Book: Optimum nutrition for dogs and cats available here: www.optimumchoices.com/e-books.htm.

Book(s) of the month

To learn more about feeding your dog or cat, we suggest:

The Holistic Animal Handbook by Kate Solisti	Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats by Kymythy Schulze	Raising Cats Naturally: How to Care for Your Cat the Way Nature Intended by Michele T. Bernard	Switching to Raw: A Fresh Food Diet for Dogs that Makes Sense by Susan K. Johnson	Work Wonders: Feed your dog raw meaty bones by Tom Lonsdale, DVM	Eat, drink and wag your tail DVD on dog nutrition	Optimum nutrition for dogs and cats by Margaret Auld-Louie & Russell Louie

Click on the pictures to order online.

Contact us

Click here to give your pet the fountain of youth today!

E-mail

General Information: Russell@OptimumChoices.com
Webmaster: Webmaster@OptimumChoices.com
Newsletter Editor, Margaret Auld-Louie: Editor@OptimumChoices.com

Telephone

303-271-1649
866-305-2306 (toll-free)
Normal office hours are 11:00 AM – 7:00 PM Mountain Time (U.S.). If you would like a return call outside those hours, please specify what days and times are best.

Location (call first for appointment)

416 Plateau Pky
Golden, CO 80403-1533
U.S.A.

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