The "Cult" of Homeopathy

(Contributed by Dr. Jessica Levy)

On January 10th, I attended the first session in a 10-session Acute Homeopathy course at the Northwestern Academy of Homeopathy. It's so nice to go back to school. The new classroom is spacious and airy, and it was great to see some old friends and meet some new ones. Homeopathy creates an instant camaraderie amongst its adherents.

Which kind of makes it sound like a cult. And, if I were going to start my own cult (and don't think I haven't considered this option), homeopathy would definitely have to be one of our fundamentals. There is nothing quite like it.

Just this week, I had a client whose dog had been diagnosed with heart failure. The internal medicine specialist who had seen the dog started it on medications, but when I called the client that evening for an update, the dog was still not doing any better. From the owner's description, I was able to suggest a remedy that they could get at their local grocery store. By morning, the dog was doing much better and was eating.

I love it.

As a cult, homeopathy invites freedom of expression and interpretation. In any given practitioner - client relationship, a different remedy and different method of dispensing might be effective. This is why, in my mind, homeopathy resembles quantum physics. You can't take the observer - the homeopath - out of the equation.

Sometimes You Shouldn't Wait And See

(Contributed by Lori Whitwam)

My 10-year-old Great Pyrenees/Labrador mix, Ozark, has a mass on his spleen. And in a very strange way, I almost feel lucky.

What? How can someone who adores her big, gentle dog feel lucky that he has something abnormal growing inside him? It’s because I’m so glad that I paid attention to my instincts, listened to my dog, and found out what was wrong much, much earlier than I otherwise would have.

Let me explain.

I tend to be a non-worrier. At this point in my life, and after as many years as I’ve worked in veterinary hospitals, I’ve had a lot of dogs, and I’ve seen countless others. I’ve seen all manner of trauma, as well as chronic and acute illness. I’ve gotten very good at “wait and see.” Whereas some owners are vigilant to the point of scheduling an “emergency” appointment every time their dog sneezes or has soft stool, I tend to wait it out. In truth, many minor things do resolve on their own.

A little over three years ago, I lost my precious “heart dog,” a 12-year-old golden retriever named Ripley, to hemangiosarcoma. He’d been panting more and more over the preceding month, but…

Granted, hemangiosarcoma is nasty, fast-moving, and nearly impossible to catch in its early stages. But should I have listened to my instincts a little more?

With Ozark, it was nothing obvious or overly alarming. He seemed a bit more subdued than usual, but he’s a very mellow dog in general. He needed to go out twice during the night on Saturday, but that happens with dogs sometimes. He always eats snow, but he seemed to be eating it more. He threw up once on Tuesday. Dogs do that. There was no one thing to which I could point and say, “Hey, something is seriously wrong.” But I know my dogs, and my gut was telling me that there was more to it than his subtle symptoms might indicate.

I brought him to work on Wednesday, and his blood work was just a bit off. There were definite signs that his immune system was working on something. We took x-rays, and the mass on his spleen was evident. I immediately panicked, because since I lost Ripley to hemangiosarcoma, anything in my dog that doesn’t belong there is especially terrifying.

Today the ultrasound specialist came and took a good look at what was going on in Ozark’s innards. Given the situation, we got the best possible news. Yes, he has a baseball-sized mass on his spleen. But it appears to be very localized and contained, and there is no evidence of abnormalities in his other organs. It is almost certainly not hemangiosarcoma.

I am always reluctant to subject any of my dogs to surgery. I want to do the least-invasive thing, and keep treatments as natural as possible. But since Ozark is otherwise very sound, with no other underlying health issues, I’ve decided to go ahead and have the spleen removed and the mass biopsied. This will take place on Tuesday, January 19.

We still have no idea if the mass is benign or malignant, but even a benign growth can rupture (especially on the spleen, which is a vascular-rich organ) and the dog will quickly die of internal bleeding. It feels like a time bomb. Of course, if it is malignant, it will grow and spread. So we’ll remove the spleen, and if the mass turns out to be malignant, we will ultrasound again in a few months and see if we can detect any signs of metastasis to other organs. If it is benign, the splenectomy may be curative.

I’m still pretty scared. My dog has a tumor, and he’s going to have major abdominal surgery. That’s never good. Yet I’m glad I listened to that little voice that was telling me that something was “off.” I didn’t put it down as “Oh, he’s getting old,” or “He’s just feeling down with all the cold weather,” or “He must’ve eaten something that didn’t agree with him.” Something in his energy and demeanor, combined with his minor symptoms, and my deep knowledge of him told me it was something more.

It took me a while to arrive at my point, but here it is. Many people are hesitant to schedule an appointment for their pets when they start to feel that way. They don’t want to be a bother. They don’t want the doctor to think they’re over-reacting. They don’t want anyone to think they’re being paranoid or “one of those kinds of pet owners.” They are reluctant to spend the money. If you are one of those people… get over it! Nobody knows your pet better than you do. If something is telling you that something isn’t right, call your vet. Get an appointment. And go!

No, every time your pet vomits is not an emergency. Every time he has a bit of diarrhea it is not a symptom of serious illness. But when small things begin to add up, and you sense that something is wrong, don’t let anyone tell you to stop worrying and wait and see what happens.

Sure, sometimes it will turn out to be nothing. But sometimes it will turn out to be something, and the sooner you know what that something is, the more options you will have and the better chances you have of a successful treatment.

Truth In Advertising?

(Contributed by Dr. Jessica Levy)

Veterinary medicine has its quackbusters, just like human medicine. One of the veterinary news magazines has been publishing a series of articles by the quackbusters' current mouthpiece. Let's call her NR.

NR has written several long, rambling, nonsensical articles about various topics in alternative medicine. Honestly, this woman is such a poor writer; I don't know how she gets published. One of her recent statements was along the lines of how to tell the difference between a legitimate drug and a suspicious and bogus natural supplement. What's the difference? According to NR, the natural supplement will be represented solely by testimonials, as opposed to the drug, which is scientifically proven.

How many drug ads have you seen on TV lately?

Terry Gross interviewed Jane Lynch on National Public Radio's Fresh Air. Ms. Lynch mentioned that she had done a bit of commercial acting. Terry asked her which commercials she was in, to which Ms. Lynch replied, "Oh, I was the Nexium Lady." And the worst part was that everyone she met thought she actually had gastric reflux disease.

These drug ads? They are not real. They are "testimonials," except those everyman-looking people telling us, "I've had asthma for thirteen years," or "My COPD really used to slow me down," or "Now I'm Claritin clear" are actors. They are not the real people with the conditions that are being sold.

The Chantix ad features Lisa, a plain everywoman, with "Lisa is not an actor" on the bottom of the screen. This ad is fraudulent. Do you really think Lisa said, "Oh great pharmaceutical company, your drug is so wonderful, I will be happy to appear on national TV and tell everyone about it, and you don't have to pay me a dime!" Hell, no. I'm sure there is something in Lisa's contract that states "You Are Not An Actor," and Lisa signed it. There. See? She's NOT an actor.

Those are testimonials. And they're carefully crafted and directed... and they're fake.

My Dogs Can (And Do) Eat Nearly Anything

(Contributed by Lori Whitwam)

My dogs have Garbage Gut. And I couldn't be happier.

Sounds awful, doesn't it? But it's just an informal phrase that describes a dog who can eat nearly anything and not get digestive upset.

We've all been through it. The dog gets in the trash or snatches something from the counter, or we give them what we think is a "special treat," only to spend the next three days dealing with vomiting, diarrhea, or both. As disgusting and frustrating as that is, that's the mild end of the "dietary indiscretion" spectrum. Some dogs wind up with pancreatitis from the rich, fatty content of what they've eaten, and that can be life-threatening. (And not to mention expensive!)

How does a dog develop Garbage Gut? It's not an overnight process, by any means. Taking a dog who has been fed the same variety of processed kibble for years and suddenly giving them a lot of new foods is asking for the very digestive upset you're trying to avoid. Go slowly, introducing only one new thing at a time.

The key to having a dog with a hardy dietary constitution is variety. (Let me say that again: Variety!) We used to be told that it was best to find one brand of food, in a single variety such as chicken or lamb, that seemed to agree with our dogs' digestion... and stick with it.

There are several problems with that. First of all... boring. Even if you love Eggplant Parmesan more than any other food on the planet, do you want to eat it every single day for the rest of your life? Second, there is no one food that any of us, canine or human, can eat that will provide perfect, lifelong nutrition. Third, even if your dog never has a problem as the result of the processed kibble you've chosen (unlikely), sooner or later he is going to eat something he shouldn't. Chicken thawing on the counter. Steak bones in the trash. The semi-decomposed mole he finds behind the shed. He's a dog. He'll find it.

And then you have problems.

At Whole Health Veterinary, we strongly advocate a raw food diet. If convenience or expense are an issue (though feeding raw is no more expensive or difficult than feeding a premium grain-free kibble if you put some thought and planning into it), we recommend at least 50% raw food. But unless your dog has serious allergies to multiple grains or proteins, the other part of the equation is variety.

Let's take a look at what I feed my dogs. Ozark is a 10-year-old Great Pyrenees/Labrador mix, Darwin is a 5-year-old Golden Retriever, and Brody is a 4-year-old Great Pyrenees. That's nearly 300 pounds of dog. They are fed about 75% raw food and 25% premium grain-free dry food. They have healthy skin and soft, abundant coats. They have small, solid stool, and they don't have chronic ear or anal gland problems. Their teeth are beautiful.

For the grain-free dry, they get either Wellness Core (Ocean or Original), Fromm's Surf & Turf, Merrick Before Grain (chicken or buffalo), or Nature's Variety Instinct (chicken, rabbit, or duck).

Their raw food, when I "make my own," might include a mixture of whatever I find at the grocery store. Raw chicken parts (including necks, backs, wings, etc.), liver, ground turkey, ground beef or bison, gizzards, cottage cheese, yogurt, dark leafy greens, sweet potato, cranberry, carrot, whole egg... use your imagination!

But I don't cook for myself, so I don't make my own raw food that often. I prefer to rely on the prepared frozen or dehydrated raw diets. We use Nature's Variety (chicken, lamb, beef, rabbit, buffalo), Primal (duck, pheasant), or Bravo (chicken, turkey, or lamb) as far as raw frozen foods are concerned. The dehydrated raw by Honest Kitchen or Sojos are also big hits. Honest Kitchen Force, Embark, and Keen are often used, or the Sojos Complete.

These raw foods usually get a sprinkling of one of the kibbles, and any supplements the dogs might be taking, such as joint support.

I never offer the same raw or dry food/variety two bags or packages in a row. Today it might be Honest Kitchen Embark with a sprinkle of Fromm's Surf & Turf. When that's gone, it might be Sojos Complete with a bit of Wellness Core Ocean.

I don't give a lot of treats. I like the Stella & Chewy's Carnivore Crunch (beef, duck, or chicken), or the Stella & Chewy's freeze dried "steaks" in different varieties. Treats from your own table are okay, as long as they're not too fatty or heavily seasoned (yes, salt is a seasoning), and are not too frequent. Since I know I'm feeding my dogs very, very well, I find it easier to make my food "mine," and off limits other than an occasional special treat. It doesn't stop them from breathing hot doggy breath on my knee while I'm eating, but with three big, drooly dogs, I'd never get to eat any of my own meals if I start sharing.

If your dog still has digestive problems, we can look at adding a probiotic or other enteric support to the diet. But the truth is that a dog who is transitioned to a varied diet (especially raw) has a much stronger digestive constitution. He won't be as likely to become ill if (when!) he finds an entire, delicious, vulnerable, unguarded pizza in the kitchen. He is also getting a broad range of nutrients, adding to his overall wellness.

And - honestly! - it makes feeding them a lot more fun... for both of you!

Free Vet Advice - Click Here!

(Contributed by Dr. Jessica Levy)

Double-digit unemployment. Gotta love it!

The number of people calling for free vet advice is increasing along with the unemployment figures. My staff regularly tries to explain to people why it's just not a good idea for us to give free advice about sick pets over the phone. It's like calling the pediatrician's office, refusing to bring your sick child in (you can't afford it, he doesn't travel well, or you just live too far away), but demanding to speak to one of the doctors because you only have a couple of questions about your child's condition.

I don't think it's appropriate for me to give you a whole lot of information about how I would treat your sick pet without even being able to see it, examine it, and review its previous medical records. So many people helpfully say at this juncture, "I can send you the records, and then you can just tell me what you think!"

No. Here's what I think. Pick a veterinarian. Pay them for their services, including a good, thorough physical exam, and follow their recommendations. If things don't work out, let them know, ask them for different solutions, whatever.

Your veterinarian truly cares about your pet. Okay, that's a wild generalization, but most of us do. We care if our treatments work, we care about whether our patients are getting better or not, we lie awake at night wondering if we did the right thing, or if we did all we could have.

When you call just to get some quick advice about your critically ill pet that you feel you cannot afford to have seen, you are putting your vet out of business. Then who ya gonna call?

Vaccine Crazy

(Contributed by Dr. Jessica Levy)

As I go along in practice, I am becoming more and more anti-vaccine. It amazes me how often I see animals that have been diagnosed with some dread condition - cancer, lupus, Cushing's disease, diabetes, chronic renal failure - who are then vaccinated, because they are "due." As if all is well. As if the immunity provoked by vaccines magically wears off by the assigned "expiration date." As if, when sick with a chronic or immune mediated condition (allergies, urinary tract infections, hypothyroidism, epilepsy), the immune system is not already busy/messed up/dysfunctional, and therefore may not respond at all or may respond unpredictably to the vaccines.

Then there are the "shot clinics" where unsuspecting pet owners can get their pets vaccinated for cheap. Why? Because there's no physical exam, people! That's right; your pet is getting vaccines without anybody looking at it first to make sure it is healthy enough to tolerate vaccination! What a bargain!

This is the whole point of the twice-yearly exams that we do at our hospital - to evaluate the health of your pet, to determine if any adjustments in care are necessary, and to truly act preventatively, rather than giving a bunch of vaccines and then lying to pet owners and telling them "these will keep your pet healthy!" No, they won't. Because that's not what vaccines are for. Vaccines are meant to provoke the immune system into developing immunity - sometimes very limited immunity - to very specific disease organisms. Some vaccines are better at this task than others, and that's a whole different topic.

Why do most veterinarians persist in this regrettable practice? Because of a lack of perceived harm. In other words, vaccines might prevent disease and don't cause any damage, so why not? Plus it gets the pet in the door every year for that all important physical exam. My approach is that my clients are not stupid. They easily understand the value of the physical exam and the potential harm of vaccination, and are quite capable of making the right choice.

A Bright Spot In Every Day

One of the reasons it's so much fun to come to work! The office is always full of animals. There are usually at least 3-4 dogs, and the clinic cats come and go as well. This clip is practice manager Lori's 10 year old Great Pyrenees mix, Ozark, playing with Dr. White's 5 month old Mini Australian Shepherd puppy, Murphy. This will go on all day! It makes it really hard to be in a bad mood when you're surrounded by this much cuteness!

(Ozark and Murphy take a break to pose for a picture. If it's possible for them to be any cuter, we can't figure out how!)