Alternatives to Vaccinating Dogs

There is becoming a worry among dog owners that vaccinating their dogs every year is not healthy for them.  Is it safe, what is in the vaccinations and is it really necessary?

In Australia, at present it is very difficult to be involved in dog sports of any kind and kennel your dog without an up to date vaccination certificate.   Now if vaccinating your dog is only upsetting his/her health then how can you get around this problem and still be able to play sports and go on holidays.

In Europe and America it has been proven that the majority of dogs will keep their puppy vaccinations for life and a special blood test called a titre test can be conducted and this information provided as proof of immunity to sports clubs and kennels.  Although not commonly available in Australia, it is possible to have it done and we need to push our vets to provide us with this service, for the sake of our lovely animals.

Read about Judes’ dogs vaccination reaction and how we helped her with quick action using our Heal with Ease Homeopathic Remedies.

Daily we treat dogs with symptoms of vaccinosis – they aren’t all the same, sometimes it is immediate and you can relate it exactly to the vaccination, other symptoms will come up over weeks/months and range from skin itches, digestive problems, anger issues, lethargy to generally being unwell.

Following is a copy of an email received by us from Marlene in South Australia regarding how she had this titre test done for her German Shepherd, Kaiser after a serious reaction to his vaccinations.kaiser

In 2008 Kaiser was vaccinated with a booster for Distemper, Parvo, etc. (C5).  He had an extremely bad reaction, which lead to me researching the effects of vaccinating dogs.  He lost all the pigmentation from his lips and gums, became depressed and his coat became dry and brittle.

In 2009, when I was notified that he was due for his vaccination, I chose to convince the vet. who does not believe in this, to perform titre testing.  The results came back from the Colorado State University via IDEXX Laboratories as:

Canine Distemper Virus antibody SN titre    :    1:128
Canine Parvovirus antibody HI titre              :    1:256.

I was horrified after my personal research to find out what the repercussions of over-vaccinating can be, and I do not want to subject Kaiser to any more toxins as I am convinced that, had I chosen to have him re-vaccinated in 2009, he would not have survived.

If you feel your dog has suffered an adverse reaction to vaccination, order our detox remedy today and start them on the road to better health.

Order your detox remedy today.

Options

Natural Treatment for Cushings Disease

Aussie’s owners first contacted us in early January with the following email:

aussie

We were reading your testimonial for Minnie with Cushings disease, and it would appear our 14½ year old female blue/red cattle cross is also suffering from Cushings disease. She’s been through the wars a bit lately with a mast cell tumour surgically removed from her chest in November, 2008, and two more from her side in December, 2009. She’s also had an issue with skin itching forever too.

We were wondering if you may have specific recommendations for her.

Her history is pretty simple. She’s a blue/red cattle dog cross (de-sexed at 6 months) (we suspect there’s other breeds in there too). She’s had a flea allergy, and skin irritations that have appeared at different times of the year.

At about 5 years old she had a cruciate ligament injury to the left rear, which was never operated on. The vet’s advice was to see if she handled it (which she did) until about the age of 10, where we found she was a bit arthritic, and started her on rimadyl when required. In the last couple of years, we’ve used Previcox (half a tablet per day when any pain noticed)

In November 2008 she had a mast cell tumour (about the size of a cricket ball) removed from her chest, and then in December, 2009 she had another two removed from her side.

She’s now on a cartrophen injection once a month, and we also give her Previcox at about half a tablet per day when needed. Often we run quite a while between giving her these (when she’s not displaying any symptoms of pain).

She’s a bit finicky with food at the moment, but by mixing things up a bit, she’s still eating enough.

She’s prone to scratching and the latest thing is plucking her tail. She was a bit itchy on her sides from being shaved for the most recent operation, and we used a small singlet to prevent her from scratching her stitches. She plucked her tail (one of the attached photos) probably because she couldn’t scratch her side. Previously, we’ve used Cortavance spray applied topically to help with the scratching. At the moment, we’re using Cort-Hex anti-inflammatory antibacterial cream on her tail.

We’re ready to try homeopathy for her to see if it can make her more comfortable in her older age.

Mark & Leeanne P.,Wishart

We recommended the course of three healing plans for Aussie, plus a Beginners Kit and a bottle of HWE Tonic. The plans will deal with the specific underlying causes of Aussies issues, the Beginners Kit will help us to manage day to day things that come up and the HWE tonic is to rebuild Aussies’ immune system along the way.

Aussies’ owners were happy to go ahead and the first healing plan remedies, Beginners Kit and Tonic were sent a few days later.

Update on 19 March 2010

We have been giving her the tonic at night and tonight is the final part of the treatment. She has been pretty good and has been eating a lot better.

Mostly sleeps through at night. I have had a couple of nights with her wanting to go out.

Sleeps a lot through the day and wakes up in the afternoon and is quite social.

The past couple of days she has been drinking more than she was, mostly when she wakes up at night. She likes to drink out of my pot plant.

Aussie is better now – eating and getting around better, generally feeling better in herself. We must remember she is nearly 15 years of age. Her symptoms of Cushings Disease have settled but we will monitor her closely and a third healing plan will be sent for Aussie in the next few months.

As Cushings Disease is brought on by deep seated poisoning, we have advised Mark & Leeanne to avoid all toxic treatments and reduce chemicals in their home and garden.

Healing Itchy Unhealthy Skin

This case study is about Phoenix a beautiful Chocolate Lab that I had the pleasure of spending a morning with just prior to Christmas 2009.

Phoenix’s mum Robyn purchased a Beginners Kit off us at the Pet Expo held at the showgrounds in April 2008. It wasn’t until October 2008 that we really started working with Robyn, when she made contact with us regarding her concern for Phoenix’s health and skin conditions.

Working with Phoenix has been a learning experience for us. Seeing a young dog which responded so well to the treatments but easily slid backwards when the slightest thing happened. eg. when the local pet shop slipped her some kangaroo meat and she had a serious reaction, when the bats were living in the tree over her yard and she became sick again. It was obvious to us and Robyn that Phoenix was a some level quite toxic from something – anything that pushed her a little would tip her over and make her ill again.

We had her riding along quite well for a while. You can read the testimonial that Robyn wrote for us at that stage by clicking here.  Then Robyn became worried about worming and heartworming Phoenix and although we really felt it wasn’t a good idea (Robyn and us), Robyn found a product the vet thought would cause minimal side effects and within the day of giving her this chemical product, she was sick, her itch and rashes returned.  Robyn tried to return the rest of the product to the vet, but of course they weren’t interested.

Once again we were working to heal Phoenix and this was intensive.  We were determined to clear her up once and for all this time.  Three back to back healing plans followed.  These dealt with emotional, mental and physical issues as well as a two week run on detoxing remedies.  We pushed out rashes, heat, lumps and bumps and there were times when Robyn was worried, emailing us constantly and phoning needing reassurance and support.  We were there with her and for her every step of the way.

On 13th February 2010 Robyn emailed this photo of Phoenix’s beautiful coat.

well-phoenix

Needless to say Robyn and Phoenix are very happy.  But it was a long journey for us all.

We wanted to share this case study with you because it means a lot to us that Robyn believed in us enough to keep going and now the results reassure her that it was worth the effort.

If Robyn had been on the vet chemical rollercoaster, Phoenix would have become sicker and sicker with little chance of full recovery.  Robyn’s vet bills would have made her wonder about the logistics in keeping a high maintenance pet.  It doesn’t need to be like this for anyone.  Homeopathic medicine when used correctly can heal most illness – long and short term, chronic and acute.

Heal with Ease was created by us as animal lovers that want to help others achieve long term good health for their pets.

Contact us today if you are having pet health issues at healwithease@bigpond.com or phone on 0755441711.

Following are some of the photos Robyn sent us of Phoenix throughout her healing:

phoenix phoenixs-tummy

phoenix-legphoenix-foot

Cushings Disease in Dogs

Using a combination of homeopathic and other energy remedies, we have had incredible success in relieving the symptoms of Cushings Disease and all our clients have gone on to live health lives.  Read about some of our clients that we have treated for Cushings Disease.

Ebonee

Aussie

Minnie

What is Cushing Disease?

Hyperadrenocorticism is one of the most common hormonal disorders in middle-aged to older dogs.photo-of-minnie

The disorder, also known as Cushing’s Disease, is caused by the harmful effects of high cortisol concentrations on many organs in the body.

Cortisol is a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands, which are located near the kidneys.

Most cases of hyperadrenocorticism are caused by enlargement of the adrenal cortex. The enlargement may be caused by tumours of the adrenal gland that produce adrenal hormones (15% of cases) or of the pituitary gland (located in the brain) that produce excessive ACTH, a hormone which stimulates the adrenal gland to produce corticosteroids – this form of the disease is referred to as pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism and accounts for around 85% of cases. The tumours can be benign or malignant (cancerous).

The signs of hyperadrenocorticism can also be produced by the long-term, daily administration of large doses of corticosteroids.

Symptoms that may indicate Cushings Disease:

  • Excessive urination (polyuria)
  • Excessive thirst (polydipsia)
  • Increased appetite
  • Pot-bellied or bloated appearance (pendulous abdomen)
  • Hair loss (alopecia) – usually symmetrical
  • Rough coat
  • Thin, fragile skin
  • Increased skin pigmentation
  • Calcified lumps in the skin
  • Enlarged liver
  • Panting
  • Lethargy
  • Muscle weakness
  • Muscle atrophy
  • Lack of oestrous cycles in intact females
  • Testicular atrophy
  • Facial nerve paralysis
  • Heal with Ease has worked with a number of clients with ‘Cushings Disease’.  Really it is just a label and when working with homeopathy we work with the body as a holistic being taking in all the symptoms, plus any other factors, like environment, emotional and mental stresses like rehoming, surgery, grief.

    If you have a dog with the above symptoms then if you want go to the vet and a diagnosis but it isn’t necessary for the work we do here.  As mentioned above the name is only a label and doesn’t deal with the body in a holistic way, nor does it give a solution to the problem.  Using homeopathic medicine we can assist you to lift the symptoms and the underlying cause of the problem.

    Our Personalised Healing Plans are the best option for animals showing the serious symptoms above.   Please email us at healwithease@bigpond.com and we will answer any questions you may have.

    Retained Placenta in Sheep

    The placenta is the feeding sack that nourishes the foetus during pregnancy and should pass shortly after the birth of the lamb/s.

    It is difficult to determine if the placenta has passed in part or in full because unlike humans, the mother will have eaten this vitamin rich parcel as it comes out.  This is a natural process and although not to humans liking does ensure the mother has enough nutrients to feed her baby in the early stages after birth.

    The passing of the placenta and any other birthing discharge is naturally stimulated by the lamb suckling.  Therefore it is ideal for the lamb to feed as soon as possible after birth.

    We are farmers and breeders of short haired border collies and it has been our practice for the past ten years, since commencing the use of homeopathic medicines to treat the mum as soon after birth with a homeopathic shock remedy which can be found in the Heal with Ease Beginners Kit. This releases shock that the mum may have gone through during birthing and is carried to the baby through her milk to lift their shock as well.

    Approx. 1/2 hour after the shock remedy is administered we give the Retained Placenta remedy in the Heal with Ease Breeders Kit.  Whether there is placenta left behind or not, this remedy will release any birthing bits and will assist with the retraction of the uterus and bringing in the milk.  However if the placenta is still inside and you just don’t know it will be a vital step in saving your ewe.  Now being farmers we are aware that access to stock animals is not as easy as treating a horse or puppies for example.  However if you have stud sheep or only a few you probably have them quiet and nice and handy during lambing.  If you come across a ewe in the paddock that you suspect has retained placenta, keep her in the shade with her baby (if possible) and keep her hydrated and fed.  Use the above remedies as described as soon after finding her as possible.

    After lambing on larger mobs it is good practice to bring them through the yards are treat with the shock remedy and the retained placenta remedy to assist with uterus condition and fertility for next joining.

    The Retained Placenta remedy is part of the Heal with Ease Breeders Kit.  We always recommend that Breeders of all animals have the three basic kits – Beginners, Extension and Breeders, thereby giving them a range of remedies to deal with most issues that arise in their animals.

    You can also purchase the Retained Placenta remedy on its own for $50 for 50ml bottle (approx. 350 doses per bottle), plus $5 postage.


    Homeopathic Bone Knit Remedy

    The main action of this remedy is to promote effective healing of fractures.  It should be used in all such cases (along with the shock remedy – with is one of the three remedies in the Heal with Ease Accident remedy in the Beginners Kit) to ensure a complete healing resolution.  It is effective in combating the effects of peri orbital and eye injury (sclera) too.  If you have no Arnica in your first aid kit, the Bone Knit remedy can assume this position for all injuries.

    Also consider this remedy for injuries to cartilages, periosteum with excessive pain.  Painful old injuries.  Pricking, stitching pains remaining after wound is healed.  Irritable stump after operation.  Non-union of fracture.  Penetrating wounds of perineum.  Affects of the joints, arthralgia of knee.  Sarcomatous tumor.

    Although Heal with Ease is predominately an animal website, all remedies are suitable for consumption by humans.

    Purchase your Bone Knit Remedy Today.  We also recommend purchasing the Accident remedy or the full Beginners Kit to support the Bone Knit remedy.

    Options
    Testimonial received by one of our clients after using the Bone Knit remedy:
    Hi Cathy,
    We have had great success with the bone knit. My 96 year old grandmother had a line fracture in the ball of her femur (where it meets the pelvis), which is very serious in older people, causing her a lot of pain. It wasn’t healing at all and doctors were afraid they would have to operate – again very risky at her age. I administered one dose of the boneknit, confident that as a line fracture that there wasn’t the risk of bones fusing incorrectly. Anyway several weeks, maybe a month, later she had the x-ray again and it’s all healed. I put it down to the boneknit because it hadn’t healed at all over many many months, until the remedy was administered.
    I’d used comfrey tincture as a bone-knit with her in the past: when she broke her arm very badly (jogging in her 80s!). Her arm healed in 3 weeks – the doctor was shocked, saying in normal people it would take 6 – he put it down to his good work! But comfrey internally is meant to be toxic (it’s banned in Victoria as an internal remedy), so it’s great to be able to use the homeopathic which carries no such risks.
    Thanks again Cathy, I am deeply appreciative. I love my grandmother so much and an operation at this stage would have been deadly – her last visit to hospital, for a few days of tests only, was catastrophic. So I really feel like I have you to thank that she is with us for a while yet, hopefully a long while.
    Very bests,
    Michelle

    Other uses for this remedy:

    Injuries to the eyes from blunt instrument, blow, knock, etc.

    Eyelids spasmodically close.

    Injuries to face.  Malignant growth of right antrum.

    Ulcer of the stomach.  Pain about navel.

    Backache from wrestling, aggressive motion.  Caries of vertebrae.

    Cold Skin

    Help your Dog Naturally – Retained Placenta in Dogs

    This page provides information on the symptoms, signs and natural homeopathic treatment of retained placenta in bitches.

    What is retained placenta

    jorja-and-her-pups

    The placenta is the feeding sack that nourishes the foetus during pregnancy.  One will pass with each pup during the birthing process and will be consumed by the bitch along with the sack that surrounds each pup.  It is difficult to determine if all the placentas have passed in part or in full because unlike humans, the mother will have eaten this vitamin rich parcel as it comes out.  This is a natural process and although not to humans liking does ensure the mother has enough nutrients to feed her babies in the early stages after birth.

    The passing of the placenta and any other birthing discharge is naturally stimulated by the babies suckling.  Therefore it is ideal for the babies to feed as soon as possible after birth.  If left to themselves they will feed between the birth of each pup.  The suckling from the already born pups will stimulate the contractions that bring on the next pup.  As a result we often see the delivery of subsequent babies come quicker.

    We are breeders of short haired border collies and it has been our practice for the past ten years, since commencing the use of homeopathic medicines to treat the mum as soon after birth with a homeopathic shock remedy which can be found in the Heal with Ease Beginners Kit. This releases shock that the mum may have gone through during birthing and is carried to the babies through her milk to lift their shock as well.

    Approx. 1/2 hour after the shock remedy is administered we give the Retained Placenta remedy in the Heal with Ease Breeders Kit.  Whether there is placenta left behind or not, this remedy will release any birthing bits and will assist with the retraction of the uterus and bringing in the milk.  However if the placenta is still inside and you just don’t know it will be a vital step in saving your bitch.

    If you have a bitch that has whelped and you are unsure if she has a retained placenta, the signs you will be seeing will be a general ill health, lethargy, vaginal discharge that lasts more than 48 hours after birthing has finished, lack of interest in pups, loss of appetite.  She will generally be in a bad way and treatment of some sort is required asap.  If surgical intervention occurs you may find it is difficult to get her back in pup.  The homeopathic remedies in the Breeders Pack will help you to lift out the shock of ordeal, cleanse her uterus and increase her fertility for future litters.  When you purchase the Breeders Pack we are here to support you to achieve this goal.

    The Retained Placenta remedy is part of the Heal with Ease Breeders Kit.  We always recommend that Breeders of all animals have the three basic kits – Beginners, Extension and Breeders, thereby giving them a range of remedies to deal with most issues that arise in their animals.

    To read Jorja’s story about using the Retained Placenta remedy and treatment of other post birthing issues click here.

    Retained placenta in horses

    The most obvious sign of a retained placenta is the appearance of a variable portion of the placenta protruding from the vulval opening. Less commonly no placenta may be visible. This either meanstara1 that no part of the placenta has been passed or, more likely, portion of the placenta remains attached. The placenta should initially be tied up in order to prevent touching the hocks. As uterine contraction plays an important role in the release of the fetal membranes it is ideal that the foal feed shortly after birth to stimulate further uterine contractions.

    Unless you are there it is hard to tell if the placenta has been released.  The mare will of course consume the placenta in the process of cleaning up the foal.  If you have your Retained Placenta remedy on hand then give it to the mare anyway.  It won’t do any harm and at the very least will assist with the retraction of the uterus and bringing in the milk.  However if the placenta is still inside and you just don’t know it will be a vital step in saving your mare.

    As a matter of course we always treat the mares with the Retained Placenta remedy as soon as possible after birth.  This remedy stimulates the contractions to help with the expulsion of any remaining placenta.  The remedy also aids the uterus in its efforts to return to usually shape and will also help the mare bring good milk over the following week.

    The Retained Placenta remedy is part of the Heal with Ease Breeders Kit.  We always recommend that Breeders of all animals have the three basic kits – Beginners, Extension and Breeders, thereby giving them a range of remedies to deal with most issues that arise in their animals.

    To read a case study about using the Retained Placenta remedy click here.

    You can also purchase your Retained Placenta remedy here for $50 for a 50ml bottle, plus $5 postage.


    Mastitis in Dogs

    Mastitis mainly occurs shortly after birth as the milk ‘comes in’ and also at time of weaning when one or more glands become swollen, hot and tender to the touch. The milk jorja-and-her-pupsbecomes curdled and yellow after a while and in neglected cases discolouration of the mammary region occurs. The bitch is obviously in pain and discomfort and has an anxious expression.

    As breeders of dogs and farmers we have seen mastitis occur in all range of animals. We recommend for Breeders that they have the three Heal with Ease kits on hand to deal with the range of issues that can come up during and after birth and for treatment of lactating mum and puppies issues.

    The three kits will provide you with a range of remedies to treat mastitis in all animals, not just bitches. Our lead remedy for Mastitis is in our Breeders kit, labelled as such, but other remedies will become invaluable to the breeder during these stressful times. We recommend our Sudden Illness remedy (in the Extension Kit) for the sudden onset of the initial stage to assist with the emotional distress it causes the mother, the Fever remedy (in the Beginners Kit) to ease the swelling and reduce the heat from the teats.

    If purchased together the three kits come at a discounted rate of $500, saving $50. The Breeders pack (three kits) comes with twelve months support to get you started into breeding your animals naturally.


    Email us at healwithease@bigpond.com to see how we can best help you.

    Treating Buffalo Fly in Cattle and Horses

    What affect Buffalo Fly has on the animal

    (Information provided by Qld DPI)

    Buffalo fly irritate cattle, interrupting feeding and causing sores especially when infestations are high. Trials in the wet tropics have shown that buffalo fly can reduce beef cattle production by up to 16%. A small parasitic worm (Stephanofilaria spp.) is associated with buffalo fly bites and causes skin lesions. Sores from buffalo fly infestations result in permanent hide damage therefore decreasing the value of the hide. These lesions may also restrict access of stock to the live export trade.

    Dark coated cattle, bulls, older cattle and those in poor condition usually attract the heaviest infestations of fly. Bos indicus cattle seem to carry high numbers but do not appear to be as severely affected as other breeds.

    How Homeopathy is a natural safe solution?

    The DPI states that animals “in poor condition” will attract the most buffalo fly.  We find that cows in calf or lactating to feed their babies will often be a candidate for buffalo flies.  We talk here of cattle however the same is true for horses.  In fact the same is true for all animals when it comes to parasite control.  A strong healthy animal is not a good home for parasites – fleas, ticks, flies, mosquitoes will naturally go to the weaker animals in an area.

    Using the natural healing power of homeopathy we work with building the immune system of the animal.  Ideally you would jump in with the remedy before the season gets too hot thereby avoiding the initial problem.  The homeopathic blend we have created for treating Buffalo fly will assist with the consequences of the bites – the burning and toxins while at the same time building the system to create more immunity in the animal.

    Treatment using the remedy is simply by treating the cattle through the race with the remedy dissolved into a spray bottle or similar.  With horses just 2-3 drops inside the mouth.  Repeat weekly if possible throughout the heat of Summer.  The following year get onto it in mid-late Spring and aim to avoid the problem in the first place.

    Purchase your Buffalo Fly Remedy Today.  Click here to go to our Farm & Horse remedies page.

    Testimonial from Sandy H., Toogoolawah Qld

    My horses have been annoyed by buffalo fly during the day and mosquitos and midges at night. Early in the morning and early in the evening were the worst times with the normhorses all agitated, tails swishing, kicking out and running about.

    I came across the Heal with Ease website while looking for a natural remedy to help my horses with this problem. I don’t like the idea of constantly putting chemicals on my animals to deter insects. I emailed Cathy at Heal with Ease for some information about the buffalo fly remedy and she replied that day.

    I rang Cathy and ordered the buffalo fly remedy and the beginner’s kit and she put them in the mail for me straight away. I received them the next day. As soon as I got the remedy I started dosing my horses per Cathy’s instructions. After two days, two of my horses had a huge reduction in the number of buffalo fly on them and after five days were fly free. My other two horses took a little longer but after ten days now have just a couple of flies each on them. At dusk, when the mosquitos and midges come out, the horses haven’t been showing their normal agitation. I would say that the remedy is helping with that also.

    The remedy is easy to give to my horses. I mix the drops with a little water in a syringe and squirt it into their mouths. After I had given them the first couple of doses I now don’t even need to put a halter on them. I show each horse the syringe; they sniff it, and then open their mouth for me to squirt it in.

    My horses are much happier and are spending more time grazing instead of worrying about insects biting them. Thank you Heal with Ease for a wonderful product and thank you to Cathy for her support and answering my many questions so quickly.

    NB:  It is important to note here that Sandy purchased a Beginners Kit at the same time and the two horses that still had flies were treated using the remedies in the Beginners Kit to assist in returning them to good health, thereby assisting the Buffalo Fly remedy to complete a good healing.