Every Working Dog handler knows that "Failure to Thrive" and "Hip Dysplasia" are big issues for Shepherds. But do you know why? These are genetic weaknesses. The primary suspects are- pollution (air, water, soil) and a fast food diet.
According to The Royal Society of Medicine of Great Britain- Fully 90% of all chronic disease is caused by an unhealthy intestinal system! Rescue areas can be loaded with airborne pollutants. Often times, their effect shows up long after any immediate connection can be made. Water contaminants can include everything from, chemical spills (transmission and engine coolant are particularly toxic in small amounts) to bacteria from unseen decaying carcasses. Commercial Dog Food Is Fast Food. Convenience has a high price. Canned or dry dog foods are little more than empty calories, which are very difficult to process.
Although they satisfy hunger, empty calories do nothing to support vitality. Food digestion is a time sensitive process. Empty calories remain in the intestinal tract too long, where they putrefy, causing foul gas; at the same time they become a breeding ground for bacteria and pathogens. Dry dog foods are extruded under extreme heat, destroying any nutritional value they might have had. Although you will not find it among the ingredients, recycled restaurant grease is sprayed on dry dog foods as a flavor enhancer.
Yet frying temperatures chemically alters oils, making them carcinogenic! Open bags of dry food attract bugs and rodents who deposit eggs and leave toxic droppings. Canned meats contain diseased meat that is unfit for human consumption. It is cooked at high temperatures to kill the pathogens, also destroying any nutritional value. Chlorinated Water.
Not only does chlorine kill pathogens and bacteria in the water, it kills the good bacteria in you dogs gut. Untreated water soon becomes stagnant. Water puddles are likely to contain engine coolant residues (carcinogenic), bug larvae, and pathogens. It is bad enough when the family dog gets sick, but when a K9 is out of action, lives may be at stake. When a dogs GI tract is upset, they instinctively know that eating grass and dirt will settle it.
Alas, allowing them to do this could actually make matters worse! Why? Today, soil and grass is contaminated with pesticides, insecticides, inorganic fertilizers, chlorine and chemical runoff. No wonder dogs are genetically weaker, and sicker than at any time in history. But once you remove the risks you can prevent your dogs from getting sick. But what about dogs that are already sick and genetically weak? Most K9 Disease is Reversible! The steps to restore (or maintain) health are relatively simple, and far less costly than vet visits, medications, or health insurance! GI disorders develop when your dogs GI tract is out of balance.
Medications treat symptoms instead of the actual cause. This is a case where the treatment needs a remedy! The intestinal wall is the gatekeeper. This is where blood dumps the waste products and picks up the nutrients to feed your dogs body. Once the intestinal wall is inflamed, the nutritient/waste exchange is compromised. Having no way out, waste products recirculate throughout the body causing toxic buildup.
Until the inflammation is addressed, the benefits of improved diet, SBOs, or medications will be negligible! Herbal anti-inflammatories are natural alternatives to prednisone. Chronic inflammation leads to immune system breakdown. Working dogs are often placed into highly stressed environments.
The best way to restore and maintain K9 balance is by first using an herbal anti-inflammatory, quickly followed by incorporating SBOs, along with a healthy diet, and unchlorinated water. No matter what age they are when you start, you will soon see improvements in mental and physical performance.
The author of this article is Stephen Becker, a principal in Vitality Science, a company dedicated to natural alternatives to restore and maintain pet health.