Margaret Auld-Louie of Optimum Choices will be offering 10 minute mini
canine massage sessions for $5 at the annual Furry Scurry in Washington
Park, Denver. Russell Louie will be demonstrating the benefits of our
holistic whole food product for pets,
BioPreparation. We will be joined by Cindy Lloyd of
Natural
Pet, LLC, who offers anesthesia-free teeth cleaning services at area
vet offices. For more information, see
www.ddfl.org.
Are vaccinations beneficial or dangerous for our pets? This is a controversial
topic. On the one hand, we're told that our dogs and cats should get yearly
shots or we're not taking proper care of them. Most veterinarians send out
yearly reminders to bring our pets in for their annual vaccinations. So we feel
we're taking good care of our pets by doing this. But did you know that there is
no scientifically proven reason to give pets annual vaccinations? Instead, it is
done because of "historical precedent" or, in other words, "that's the way it's
always been done". Since we are not vets at Optimum Choices, we would not
presume to give you advice on how often or what to vaccinate your pets for.
Instead, we will report on what veterinarians are saying about this topic and
encourage you to do further research and make up your own mind on this issue.
Dr. Martin Goldstein, DVM, a leading holistic veterinarian,
states "I think
that vaccines, justly credited as the tamers of disease epidemics, are
nevertheless the leading killers of dogs and cats in America today." Dr.
Goldstein, a columnist for
Animal Wellness
Magazine, is the author of
The Nature of Animal Healing, where he devotes a whole chapter to the
problems caused by vaccines. He has been in practice since the 1970's,
specializing in holistic treatment of cancer, though he deals with all diseases.
He feels that over vaccination, along with poor diet, environmental toxins, and
drugs contribute to the epidemic of cancer and other degenerative diseases that
our pets are experiencing now. Most holistic vets are in agreement that while
certain core vaccines are important for puppies and kittens, giving yearly
vaccines throughout an animal's life causes more harm than good and is
unnecessary. Other than the rabies vaccine, which is mandated by law, most
holistic vets will not recommend annual booster vaccines after an animal has
had their initial shots when young.
Even conventional vets are starting to change their recommendations, as studies
come out from veterinary schools showing that vaccines' effectiveness can last
for many years. The premier vaccine researcher in the country is Dr. Ronald
Schultz, DVM, Professor and Chair, Department of Pathobiological Sciences,
School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison. He states
"Annual revaccination provides no benefit and may increase the risk for adverse
reactions. The percentage of vaccinated animals (those vaccinated only as
puppies) protected from clinical disease after challenge with canine distemper
virus, canine parvovirus and canine adenovirus in the study was greater than
95%" (in "Current & Future Canine & Feline Vaccination Programs," Vet Med
3: No. 3, 233-254, 1998). Also, he has stated "when there is no interference
from maternal immunity, immunized puppies are protected for life, just as
children are". Dr. Schultz has more than 45 years of experience in the field of
immunology and has been a driving force behind many of the recent changes in
vaccine recommendations made by the American Animal Hospital Association and
other organizations. The new recommendations are for vaccinations every 3 years,
though vaccine expert Dr. Jean Dodds, DVM acknowledges that they are much more
modest than they need to be (every 3 years is unnecessarily frequent). She
states that "we don't want to appear too radical here". Unfortunately, your vet
may not be up on the latest recommendations and still recommend yearly vaccines,
so if you are concerned about over vaccination of your pet, you may need to
educate your vet or if they won't listen to you, change vets.
Dr. Goldstein also states that annual booster vaccines are unnecessary and
redundant. But, he argues, redundancy is not the problem. He states that "giving
too many vaccines makes pets sick". His concern with vaccines is not just the
immediate bad reactions that some animals have to vaccines but the long-term
effects on an animal's overall health. His concern is that the way vaccines are
delivered to the body is unnatural, since few diseases enter the body by
injection. "Where is there a dog or cat in nature who's exposed to seven or
eight diseases at the same time by injection?" he asks. "The immune system isn't
designed to withstand that onslaught". Intranasal (in the nose) vaccines can
cause their own problems, such as sinusitis and nasal cancer. Homeopathic
doctors and veterinarians, such as
Dr. Richard Pitcairn, DVM, have a term for the chronic problems caused by
vaccination--they call it vaccinosis. They feel that vaccines, while preventing
an immediate acute illness, may lead to a long-term chronic form of the disease
that accounts for up to 80% of the illnesses that vets treat. Dr. Goldstein has
seen so many cases in his practice of animals getting sick soon after annual
vaccines that he no longer feels it is "coincidence" but that there must be a
correlation between the two. In my own experience, I remember a colleague's dog
getting a skin problem after vaccination for Giardia, which the vet stated must
be "coincidence".
Dr. Goldstein suspects vaccines of causing many different problems in animals,
far more than most vets recognize yet. He speculates that in cats the distemper vaccine has led to
the increased incidence of hyperthyroidism. Holistic cat expert
Dr. Jean Hofve, DVM
points out that the feline distemper vaccine is grown in feline kidney cells and
recent research shows that kittens develop autoantibodies to their own kidney
tissue after being vaccinated for distemper. Almost all older cats these days
develop chronic renal failure (CRF) and many die of it. Could we be causing
this, at least in part, with annual distemper vaccines? I personally lost two
cats to this at age 17, after several years with CRF, and they had both been
vaccinated annually for much of their lives. My remaining cat, who is now 17,
did not have regular annual vaccines and does not suffer from CRF yet.
Based on his
many years of clinical experience treating cancer, Dr. Goldstein is now
convinced that over vaccination is a major factor causing cancer. Clients would
call him in a panic because cancer had recurred even though the owner stuck with
the new diet and supplements. Upon questioning, Dr. Goldstein would hear
responses such as "our local veterinarian told us just two weeks ago how great
our dog was doing when we brought him in for his annual vaccines". What is
proven in relation to cancer is that some vaccines can cause "vaccine induced fibrosarcomas" or
tumors. Vaccines that used to be given between the shoulder blades are now
administered in the legs so that if a tumor appears, the leg can be amputated.
One vaccine can be put in one leg and one in another. However, after a while,
you run out of appendages. Dr. Hofve states "I guess the FIV vaccine will have
to be given in the tail, the next most likely appendage to lop off in the event
of cancer".
One unfortunate aspect of vaccination is that we may be required to show proof
of "current vaccinations" (generally meaning annual) to take our pets anywhere
outside our home such as a kennel, hotel, dog park, doggie daycare, dog race,
airplane, etc. So even if we work with a holistic vet that doesn't recommend
annual vaccinations, that doggie daycare you want to use does require it.
Virtually all facilities for dogs require current vaccination for bordetella or
kennel cough. According to Dr. Goldstein, the vaccination for it is probably
ineffective, may even cause kennel cough and is immunosuppressive. And he
states, bordetella "is a mild condition, hardly life-endangering".
Unfortunately, I have yet to find a kennel or daycare that does not require
vaccination every 6 months for bordetella.
Vaccinations can be particularly stressful for elderly animals. The
Cat Care Society in
Lakewood, Colorado, which approaches health care for cats fairly conventionally,
is now suggesting that people stop vaccinating cats after age 10, since it is
probably unnecessary at that point, particularly for indoor cats, and is too stressful. Dr. Goldstein
illustrates the problem of vaccinating elderly animals when he tells of a couple
that took their elderly 19 year old cat to a kennel for boarding so they could
take a much needed vacation. The kennel was inflexible and required "current vaccinations" so
they brought their cat up to date on all vaccines with a FRVC+E shot and when
they picked up their cat two weeks later, it was nearly dead. He states
that vaccinating this elderly cat is "as if a one-hundred-year-old woman had
planned a two-week stay at a seaside hotel, only to learn that before she
checked in, her doctor would have to vaccinate her for chicken pox, smallpox,
polio, and flu--at the same time!". He adds, since the diseases pets are
vaccinated for rarely occur in older animals, the vaccines are not even
necessary. He explains that in veterinary school a teacher discussed a case of a
dog with distemper that was eight and a half years old and this was the only dog
the teacher had ever seen over the age of eight with it. Yet, dogs of twelve to
sixteen years old are routinely given vaccines for distemper.
What about alternatives to annual vaccination, such as titer testing and nosodes?
These areas are just as controversial as vaccines. Titer testing means drawing
blood and measuring the antibodies for a specific disease. The problem with it
is that it only measures one aspect of immunity so a low titer does not
necessarily mean lack of immunity to a disease. However, if you are concerned
about your pet's immunity to a disease, it can be a useful tool. The use of
nosodes means using homeopathic dilutions of a disease for protection against
it. This sounds like a good idea but its effectiveness is not proven and vets
who do classical homeopathy feel that it can be suppressive to the immune
system, unless the animal already has the disease when given the nosode. Nosodes
are non-toxic, since they are an energetic medicine, but their long-term effects
on the immune system are unknown.
So,
given all these concerns about vaccinations, how do you decide what to do with
your pet? We would suggest finding a holistic vet you are comfortable with and
consulting with them. Most holistic vets have a protocol of a few "core"
vaccines they feel are necessary, rather than the large number of vaccines given
these days by conventional vets. They generally will give these core vaccines
once or twice as a puppy/kitten, depending on their age, or give them once to an
adult animal of unknown vaccination status (such as a shelter animal). To reduce
stress on the immune system, they generally give vaccinations singly, rather
than the combinations of 3, 5 or even more vaccines given at once by
conventional vets. They generally try to wait until 6 months or older to give
the rabies vaccine. After that, they may recommend titer testing periodically to
check the status of your pet's immunity and may revaccinate if titers are low.
Also, they will likely recommend readministration of the rabies vaccine as
required by law in your community. The vaccine protocols tend to vary from vet
to vet so you need to find a vet you feel comfortable working with and educate
yourself about vaccinations. Dr. Goldstein's book
The Nature of Animal Healing has an excellent chapter on vaccinations. Also,
there is a great deal of information available on the Internet, although you
will have to be discerning as to whether the information is accurate. You can
even find discussion groups on the Internet (such as on Yahoo Groups) about the
problems with vaccinations. Below are a few sites with more information.
Several dog breeders have successfully raised generations of dogs with minimal
or no vaccinations. Here is the website of one such breeder:
Article by dog breeder
Journey Books & Gifts
1050 S. Wadsworth, Lakewood, CO
Do you have an unsolvable problem at work? Are you
unsuccessfully trying to change careers or make a mid-life transition? Have you
started your own business but have not manifested your dreams yet? Get rid of
all these blocks and be in the Universal flow by practicing the Tao in business.
A tennis player can be good with just a forehand. But a master tennis player
also has a good backhand. Those who aren't at least exposed to or consider the
Tao (or some other Eastern philosophy) are playing the game of life without a
backhand. Join us in becoming a master of life by learning how to use the Tao in
your business and personal lives. Come learn with others how to use the Tao to
live in harmony with the Universe.
Instructor: Russell has been an esoteric student for
over 20 years. In addition to Alice A. Bailey (D.K., the Tibetan), he also is a
student and teacher of the Chinese Taoist philosophy. He combines his Eastern
Oriental heritage with his Western scientific mind into a perfect synthesis of
practical everyday wisdom. He has taught Tao classes at Colorado Free University
and the Creative Light Center. Come learn how you can use the Taoist teachings
to make life flow easier in both your personal and professional lives.
Registration: For more information on this class, contact
Russell Louie. To register, call Journey Books at (303) 239-0382. Journey Books is located at 1050 S. Wadsworth, Lakewood, CO
in the Villa South Shopping Mall at Mississippi (NE corner).
$33 by June 18, $39 thereafter. Price includes lunch, pre-registration
required.
Improve and maintain your pet’s health naturally! This workshop will show pet
owners how they can play an active role in extending the life expectancy of
their pets through optimum nutrition and complementary wellness therapies. We
will focus on optimum nutrition for our pets, which is the foundation of good
health. We will also touch on some of the many natural options for pet owners including aromatherapy,
chiropractic, acupuncture, canine massage, Reiki and Bach flower essences. Participants are invited to bring their pet food package labels for a
free analysis and to receive suggestions for diet modifications.
Add Years to Your Pet’s Life will cover topics on how to:
Design an optimum nutrition program for your pets
Avoid the dangers of today’s pet fast food diets (dry kibble)
Learn why holistic vets recommend raw diets
Options for feeding a raw diet--homemade and prepackaged
Where to find super premium pet foods
Properly read pet food package labels
Boost your pet’s immune system with superfoods
Find holistic vets and other animal practitioners
Improve your pet’s health with complementary modalities
Since the 1950s, life expectancies of our pets have dramatically decreased
and our pets are now commonly suffering from the degenerative diseases of humans
such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and kidney disease. Due to
mainstream commercial brand pet food diets that have significantly decreased in
nutritional value and have become far removed from what Mother Nature intended
our pets to eat, pet owners are faced with new challenges in making sure their
pets are receiving the best nutrition possible. Optimum Choices teaches pet
nutrition from the perspective of what Mother Nature designed our pets to eat,
not what popular pet food manufacturers promote.
Featuring an interview with holistic vet Dr. Richard Pitcairn
Click picture to order directly from us on the web or call: 303-271-1649
or toll-free 866-305-2306
This month we feature a DVD rather than book. After reading the
excellent review of this DVD in the Spring 2005 issue of
The Bark magazine (page
27), I jumped at the chance to evaluate it. I was not disappointed. This very
professionally done film presents a compelling look at the importance of
nutrition to our dogs' health and options for improving their health through
home cooked and raw diets. The producer, Pamela Berger, was inspired to create
this film when her own dog died suddenly of cancer at a young age. Since Pamela
is a professional television producer, the film is entertaining, humorous and
dramatic, rather than the typical educational video that can be a chore to
watch. This film is always interesting and engaging, while presenting a
persuasive case for feeding dogs home cooked or raw food rather than commercial
dog food. Rather than lay out a specific diet to follow for your dog, the film
presents numerous options. Pamela explains: "I hoped to present the information
in such a way as to just get people thinking, to really just get dogs off of dog
food. It's really the most important because if people start thinking about it,
they'll do the research and hopefully, find out what works best for their dog.
Since I'm not a vet or nutritionist, I didn't approach this as a how-to film,
but more a reasons-why film."
The 48-minute film contains 18 vignettes on dog nutrition,
starting and ending with the story of Master Dog Chef, Micki Voisard. Micki
recovered her own health from cancer by changing her diet and then was inspired
to improve her dogs' health as well through nutrition, since they were also
dying from cancer. She now runs a business teaching people how to cook healthy
diets for their dogs and is the author of Becoming the Chef Your Dog Thinks
Your Are. An interesting vignette shows how people feed their dogs in Italy,
which is mainly table scraps or home-cooked meals, illustrating that the
American culture of feeding commercial dog food is not the only way to go. Other
vignettes show stories of dogs that have recovered their health through dietary
changes. There is a particularly funny vignette on dog poop but I don't want to
spoil your fun by telling you about it before you see it.
A lengthy interview with Dr. Richard Pitcairn, DVM is
interspersed throughout the segments, which will be enjoyed by anyone wanting
more scientific verification for dietary change. He debunks ideas such as
bacteria in raw meat being dangerous for dogs. Additionally, there are 23 more
minutes of interview with him in the bonus materials. Dr. Pitcairn is the
pioneering holistic veterinarian who wrote Dr.
Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats, soon to be
released in a third edition, and he has trained over 300 veterinarians in
homeopathy. This film is Dr. Pitcairn's first on camera interview in 23 years
and it is a treat to hear the wisdom from his many years of practice. (He had
avoided interviews in the past because his practice was too busy but has
recently quit practice to write and train other vets.)
This film is so well done and the information in it so important
to the health of dogs that I wish it could be shown on TV, to reach millions of
dog owners. Since that has not happened (not yet, anyway), we offer the DVD
through Optimum Choices on our website or
by phone. You can also order it direct from Pamela Berger at
Interdependent Pictures. The
DVD comes in an environmentally-friendly cardboard case, rather than the
standard plastic DVD case.
Nothing on this website has been evaluated by the FDA. This information
is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Please
see a qualified healthcare practitioner for any disease or illness.
Based on his
many years of clinical experience treating cancer, Dr. Goldstein is now
convinced that over vaccination is a major factor causing cancer. Clients would
call him in a panic because cancer had recurred even though the owner stuck with
the new diet and supplements. Upon questioning, Dr. Goldstein would hear
responses such as "our local veterinarian told us just two weeks ago how great
our dog was doing when we brought him in for his annual vaccines". What is
proven in relation to cancer is that some vaccines can cause "vaccine induced fibrosarcomas" or
tumors. Vaccines that used to be given between the shoulder blades are now
administered in the legs so that if a tumor appears, the leg can be amputated.
One vaccine can be put in one leg and one in another. However, after a while,
you run out of appendages. Dr. Hofve states "I guess the FIV vaccine will have
to be given in the tail, the next most likely appendage to lop off in the event
of cancer". 
