FIND A HOLISTIC VETERINARIAN
Veterinarians are not all pimps for the drug and petrochemical-pharmaceutical industrial complex as some critics contend, promoting and insisting on annual booster vaccinations to their dog and cat owner- client-victims; selling costly, broad-spectrum anti-parasite, anti-flea and tick drugs only too often when there is no need, making the risks outweigh the benefits to the animals and their clients; selling manufactured dog and cat foods to healthy animals that subsequently develop various illnesses from these foods And then they add insult to injury by prescribing corticosteroid drugs when animals develop allergic reactions to insect bites and food ingredients, further impairing their already compromised immune systems, and causing diseases like Cushing’s disease, Addison’s disease, diabetes, and chronic cystitis.
Holistic veterinarians first advise their clients on proper nutrition, knowing that dogs and cats generally have fewer fleas and allergies when they are well nourished: And far less sacrcoptic and demodectic mange, for with the toxic pesticide ivermectin is widely used to treat. This can be fatal for Collie-type dogs, but in small doses is safe and the only proven way to prevent heart worm infestation transmitted from dog to dog by infected mosquitoes.
They do not routinely promote profitable manufactured ‘prescription’ diets that are often nutritionally inadequate, for various canine and feline maladies such as obesity, diabetes, cystitis, and nephritis.
The best medicine is prevention, and a holistic approach to companion animal health in this 21st century calls for a revision of vaccination protocols, of feeding highly processed commercial pet foods, and of over-medicating, especially with so-called preventive medications like those sold to keep fleas and ticks at bay, when there are effective, and much cheaper alternatives available that pose far less risk to animals' health, and to the environment.
The Hippocratic oath that human doctors are expected to follow is to do no harm, and the same holds true for animal doctors. But the advice and administrations of the best of them is of little avail when their clients are not mindful, informed, and responsible care-givers to their animal companions. I appeal to all pet owners to resist the temptation to buy over-the- counter and mail-order anti-flea and tick, and worming medicines, and other animal drugs. You should not look for short-cuts and quick fixes in dealing with these and other pests, parasites and animal health problems.
For further information, contact a holistic veterinarian in your area. A searchable list can be found at http://www.ahvma.org. Veterinarians wishing to learn more are encouraged to become members of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association at http://www.ahvma.org.