Common Problems + Good Solutions

by Admin 2 | Oct 13, 2016 | Dog Health

Your Most Common Pet Issues and Our Most Helpful Supplements Throughout the past 14 years, hundreds if not thousands, of customers have asked us health related questions about their cats and dogs.  And while every pet is unique, the vast majority of questions fall into just a handful of categories.  Check out our most frequently asked questions along with some great supplements that can help!

My dog has been having loose stools/digestive upset, what can I do?
After investigating their primary food (did they just change foods?  Is the food they are currently eating, the right food for them?  Do they have any food sensitivities or allergies?), and making changes if necessary, most dogs will benefit from the following:

• OptaGest – Made locally, Optagest contains prebiotics plus digestive enzymes that can be taken daily to support normal digestion.  Prebiotics work quickly to get your pet’s gut back to a healthy, natural state.  In fact, prebiotics will double your pet’s good bacteria every 20 minutes.  That means, in just 3 hours, 1000 bacteria will become over 5 million!  An added bonus is that OptaGest both prevents and treats Giardia, which can cause ongoing loose stools.
• Canned Pumpkin – Because of it’s high fiber content, pumpkin can help when your dog is suffering from diarrhea.
• Dehydrated Pumpkin – Diggin Your Dog’s Firm Up! contains USA Grown, pesticide free pumpkin and apple.  Simply mix with water and use what you need to help with digestion.  It’s easy to travel with, which makes it perfect for upset tummies while on the road.

My dog has stinky breath.
Struttin Pup carries some great products like Indigenous Dental Bones, Natural Balance Dental Chews and Whimzees Dog Chews that can all help clean your dog’s teeth and freshen breath.  But there’s one product that gets to the root of the problem on bad breath…

• Grin – Poor digestion can be a major factor leading to your pup’s bad breath.  In Clover’s Grin contains prebiotics as well as green tea (which has antibacterial and anti-plaque properties), chlorophyll (to neutralize mouth odors) and Anise (which refreshes your dog’s breath).

My pet is getting older, limping, not as mobile, etc
We’ve had dogs that are 16 and can barely walk due to crippling arthritis; but we’ve also had 6 month old dogs that had surgeries, have hip displaysia, etc.  Young or old, there are some go-to supplements that can help alleviate pain and inflammation.

• Connectin – This is the ONLY joint supplement clinically proven by independent researchers to improve mobility and comfort in an average of 15 days.
• Fish Oil – High doses of Omega-3 Fatty Acids reduce inflammation, which is essential for dogs with arthritis and orthopedic problems.
• Pet Releaf – Scientific studies from Israel – and peer reviewed by their own National Institutes of Health scientists – which has shown that whole plant based CBD oils (such as Pet Releaf manufactures) provide significant relief from pain and inflammatory related issues superior to the relief provided by opiates. And the good news is that the relief is provided with ZERO negative side effects compared to steroid anti-inflammatories or opiate pain killers. Pet Releaf whole plant CBD oil follows the science – organic whole plant CBD oils extracted with NO chemical solvents.

For dogs getting up there in age, whole plant CBD oil has also been shown in extensive clinical studies in Israel to slow the aging process in the brain. The fact that CBD acts as a neuroprotecrtant and holds anti-aging properties is actually part of a patent granted to 3 NIH scientists. One of those scientists, by the way, won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1970. That means our dogs (or even for us human companions that take CBD oil daily) can stay mentally younger much longer if they use a properly made CBD oil daily.

My pet is anxious
• Pet Releaf – In general, anxiety issues for dogs and cats typically can be cast into 2 categories – situational or behavioral. Situational would include things like halloween, fireworks, thunderstorms, big holiday parties, and most travel anxieties. Whole plant CBD oil is wonderful for these situational anxieties – although it is not 100%. Nothing is 100%. Often times, the CBD will allow them to “chill out” or get enough of the anxiety under control that they can function. CBD does this by modulating the hyperactive transmission in the brain.

Behavioral anxieties would include anything instinctual such as separation anxiety for young dogs or dogs who are left alone for long periods, aggressive barking for chihuahuas, nervous/destructive actions from high energy dogs, etc. Behavioral anxieties will also include “learned” anxieties such as fear aggression for rescues that were mistreated.
CBD will not “cure” something instinctual or a learned, behavioral issue. In those cases, we always recommend that a professional trainer be consulted. CBD can help focus the brain in that training, but the professional trainer will be the true solution for those dogs.

My pet is going through chemotherapy, what can I do to help?

• Pet Releaf – Pain, discomfort, and an overall malaise are pretty much a guarantee when a dog goes through chemo. They will often lose most of their appetite as well. This is one of the biggest areas of success for whole plant CBD oil. The CBD will control the pain, turbo boost the remaining immune system, and act as an anti-depressant – which will help increase the dog’s appetite. Further, there is a scientific study from Israel that showed using whole plant CBD in conjunction with chemo actually had a stronger tumor reduction and anti-cancer effect than chemo alone. They also found the cancer relapse rate much lower in the CBD/chemo lab mice. In reality, every mammal (dogs, cats and humans) should be ingesting CBD oil daily to utilize its anti-cancer properties – massive anti-inflammatory and turbo boost to the immune system. Don’t wait for cancer to rear it ugly head – use CBD to hopefully prevent it from ever appearing.

My dog is itchy
Yes, we live in Colorado and it’s dry.  The number one thing we are sure to recommend, if you are feeding a dry food (kibble) diet, is to add some raw food into your pet’s diet.  Dry foods have a dehydrating effect on your pet’s skin since they process out the good oils that contribute to a healthy skin and coat.  You are guaranteed to see a huge difference by making just 25% of your pet’s diet raw food.  Allergies can also play into the problem, so we’ll be sure to look at your dog’s current diet and possibly refer you to Windhorse Advanced Healing, where Catherine can identify and detoxify allergens and pathogens.  Then there are fleas, ticks and other dermatitis’ (in which case, you’ll need to see the vet). In the meantime, these are all things that can help your dog NOW:

• Fish Oil – Just like us, our dogs are often deficient in Omega-3’s.  Fish oil has long been known to help with dogs suffering from allergies (as it reduces inflammation) as well as improve their skin and coat.  Now we know that there are far more benefits to fish oils.  Fish oil is shown to help with heart disease, high cholesterol, renal failure, arthritis, and cancer.
• OptaGest –  What if there are internal factors affecting our pets’ skin & coat health? Internal upsets and imbalances are often reflected externally in itchy spots (sometimes called hot spots), persistent licking and smelly ears. In this case, you’ll want to reach for a digestive aid like OptaGest to restore intestinal balance. OptaGest contains only two ingredients – period: prebiotics and plant-based digestive enzymes. Unlike probiotics which introduce unnatural, foreign bacteria into the body, prebiotics are a superfood for our pets’ unique, native mix of beneficial bacteria. This selective feeding quickly repopulates the intestinal tract with good bacteria that in turn, produce essential nutrients and crowd out any harmful bacteria. Supplementing with digestive enzymes will support efficient digestion, enhanced nutrient uptake and may resolve some food intolerances.
• Dr Angie’s Itchy Dog Solution – Learn why dog’s itch and what you can do about it!  This course will guide you through both alternative and traditional therapies used for itchy dogs.  It’s a must-take course for those of us who have chronically itchy dogs.