178 of 181 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book for better diet and health of dogs and cats!, February 4, 2006
This review is from: Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (Paperback)
You may see some of my other reviews about human health and nutrition, but this is perhaps THE book that prompted me to learn more about MY diet.
Here's what I liked about the book:
Dr. Pitcairn has a long career in the vetinarian industry. I enjoyed reading about his holistic approach to pet health and diet--treating the root cause, not the symptoms. I like the fact that Dr. Pitcairn chose to think outside the box, so to speak, and look for alternatives early in his career when he found that his patients did not always respond to drugs. Also, the recipes are excellent for ensuring a truly healthy diet.
I can't think of anything that I did not like about the book.
My story:
I still remember the first time anyone had EVER mentioned to me that dog food is not good for dogs. My husband and I were adding a dog to our family and was going through an interview process with the breeder. She knew that we already have an older dog and she ask about his diet. This was two years ago, and by then, our older dog (11 years old at the time) had lost most of his teeth, and we had (reluctantly) taken him off his kibble diet. When we started feeding him more "table scraps" we noticed some incredible improvements. His coat looked better than it had in his 11 years, he was also very "peppy" and seemed to be overall in great health and spirits. All during his life he had ALWAYS suffered from weird ailments like skin disorders, hot spots, clogged anal glands, dry flaky skin, nasal allergies, etc. I can not count how many times this dog had been on drugs like cortisone and prednisone and bathed in "hypo-allergenic oatmeal-based shampoos". During my interview with this dog breeder, I did not share with her what my dog had been through, I just said, "...he has lost most of his teeth, and no longer eats kibble". This is when she told me that I shouldn't feed him kibble, and I should not feed the new little one kibble either!
This got me curious and I started doing my own research about dog food and was absolutely HORRIFIED to learn the ingredients used to make dog food. How can an entire industry (vetinarians) give such harmful advise?!?! I was and still am outraged at all the people along the way who always advised me to keep my dog on kibble. And I had heard it from so many sources for so many years that I figured they must be right! The day I learned what kibble has in it, my husband and I started cooking for our dogs. There's been some ups and downs during the last two years, learning what to feed and what not to feed, but overall I believe that both dogs are much healthier and my husband and I definately have peace of mind knowing exactly what they are eating! Oh, and all those skin ailments and allergies that the older dog suffered from for 11 years?...not a SINGLE episode in the past two years!
I found this book to be very helpful in understanding what dogs need to be healthy. I learned that generally speaking, we were doing most things right. We did make some changes in the supplements based on Dr. Pitcairn's recommendations and we replaced the white rice we had been feeding with oatmeal--which both dogs seem to like. But overall, a lot of his recommendations were very similar to the advise we received from the breeder.
The older dog is now 13 years old and was diagnosed with Inflammatory Brain Disease about 2 months ago. We are obviously very devastated and I believe whole-heartedly that this brain disease was brought on by the poor diet and also the "top-spot" flea poison he had been on all his life. I found out AFTER his diagnosis that top-spot has been linked to this disease...as this is the same way the poison kills the fleas--it attacks their nervous system!--we had treated him with Frontline just four days before he became ill and was carried to UC Davis Vetinary Teaching Hospital.
Whether you decide to buy this book or not, I strongly advise you to do your own research about your pet's diet and decide for yourself. Some would say that cooking/preparing meals for their pets is a hassle, but this is the least you can do for all the benefits you will get from your healthier pet--not to mention the money you'll save from not taking your dog to the vet all the time to treat symptoms of a poor diet!
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118 of 121 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review from Kim Bloomer, Owner of Aspenbloom Pet Care, August 22, 2005
This review is from: Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (Paperback)
I recently obtained Dr. Pitcairn's book and found it to be a wonderful, easy to implement and understand book on natural care for dogs and cats. Dr. Pitcairn provides concise information on dogs and cats from what to feed, to training, and even about how to choose a dog breed for your lifestyle. This book also has lots of natural prevention remedies included and how to PREVENT pesky problems like fleas and ticks from invading your home and your pets.
One of the things I educate pet owners on is prevention being the key and that is done through a strong immune system by feeding and supplementing properly. I always tell them that once your pet is diseased you'll need to see a veterinarian and then undo the illness and disease if you can, then build your pet back up. Dr. Pitcairn shares a lot about prevention and that thrilled me! That is the answer and key to keeping our pets healthy.
He shares about natural feeding which is another big issue I like to tackle with pet owners. He even includes grooming. This is a must have book for any dog or cat owner who wants to approach their pet care naturally and preventatively. Excellent book!
Kim Bloomer
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75 of 78 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Comprehensive on diet & health, May 4, 2006
This review is from: Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (Paperback)
I'd reviewed the 2nd edition version when I was looking into a more natural diet for my puppies on the advice of my holistic vet. In fact I was using the diet until my youngest started gaining weight and they were worried that the grains were causing the weight gain. I switched to raw meat and pureed veggies instead. Turns out that she was low thyroid.
The diets are still heavy on grains. Great for the majority of dogs I'm sure. The upside is that there are nutritional analysis of all the diets included so you know why you're including each of the components. There are also special diets included for allergies, weight loss and gain.
I also like the information on various health issues and vaccinosis that is included.
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