How to Care for your Pets Naturally

Wondering where to start to bring your pet into the natural world with you? This is something we are asked quite often here at Barlow Herbal.

If you've called in to Barlow Herbal, chances are you've talked to Michelle! She has spent 15  years as a dog groomer and has applied her herbal & holistic knowledge to the care of dogs and cats. Below is a video she made with Jane, as well as some tips and suggestions for caring for your pet naturally and giving them the best life possible. 

*Scroll to the bottom of this post for a brief overview of this info and a list of our recommended products for pets.

If we were to pick the most important thing for any animal's health, it would be finding the proper diet for your pet. 

Pet food is not regulated as much as people think it is. Did you know that dog food distributors are not required to disclose the use of ingredients sourced from deceased or decomposing animal material and there are no laws that prohibit diseased animal material in pet food?

There are so many options out there and trying to weed through all the ingredients in each brand can be overwhelming. But, just like with people, we believe simple, high quality, whole foods are a great place to start. There are a couple methods of feeding to research and consider:

• B.A.R.F. - Which stands for biologically appropriate raw food, or bones and raw food. 

• P.M.R. -  Which stands for prey model raw diet.

Just like our own food, quality is key to a healthy, thriving life. Most of us here at Barlow Herbal feed our animals a raw food diet. It is never too late to start! While older or pickier pets may not always take to it easily, with time and patience, they can adapt to a healthier and more wholesome diet. It is wonderful to see how much happier, energized and healthy they become with proper nutrition.

Michelle here - "I know what you’re thinking, raw food is outrageously expensive! Well, I would disagree. We spend about half the amount feeding two dogs raw than it would cost to feed our one larger dog kibble. It is a bit more work initially but eventually becomes routine. I would highly recommend researching the best homemade diet for your pet and your particular situation if you want to see your pets thrive!"

The second thing we would recommend is to research vaccines as much as you can.

Another tip from Michelle -

"As somebody who lost a cat to over-vaccination, I tend to avoid or be very cautious with vaccines. I always give the first 3 rounds of vaccines for puppies but I have my veterinarian spread them out more than they normally would. I also wait to give the rabies shot until closer to a year if my county allows this. After the first rounds of vaccines I titer test and only give vaccines if the titer is low."

Third, stop the misuse of antibiotics.

Many veterinarians want to give animals an antibiotic for almost any infection. Make sure it’s a bacteria causing the issue if you decide to go the pharmaceutical route as, many times, it could be a fungus or yeast causing problems and not bacteria. 

We personally use LDM-100 Reduced Alcohol for all of the above.

Michelle says,

" I have a lab that has had chronic ear infections her entire life. At one point, the vet had tried 5-6 different medications over the course of 2 years to try to clear it up but it never fully went away. As soon as the LDM-100 Reduced Alcohol was available I started giving her a small dose for prevention since it is a yeast she tends to develop in her ears and paws. If I see any sign of an ear infection developing, I up the dose to the standard dose. I also add a few drops (4-5 drops) of the original alcohol LDM-100 directly in her ear canal and it typically clears up in a few days."

We also suggest the use of a natural, topical antibiotic ointment instead of harsher topicals. The Luci's Salve was developed specifically for our pets since it contains lavender essential oil that can deter pets from licking the affected area. It hasn’t deterred all dogs since they’ll eat almost anything but it
is not harmful since it is such a small amount. We have found that it clears up a wound much quicker than any other topical we have used.

Remove any environmental toxins or factors that may be affecting your pet negatively.

Remember, they are lower to the ground, their face is literally touching the ground on a regular basis, so applying pesticides and toxic chemicals to your yard or flooring can be a problem. This also goes with pesticides prescribed by your veterinarian. Flea and tick treatments can be harmful to pets as well as some dewormers. The first thing we ask a person when they call about their dog suddenly having seizures is if they had a flea and tick treatment recently. 9 times out of 10 the answer is yes. Fleas and ticks do not like a healthy animal. They want a sick animal that may not scratch and fight the infestation as much. 

"When I lived in Washington state, I used diatomaceous earth as a preventative and treatment on dogs that came into my shop, I did not offer the traditional shampoo treatments. I used essential oils as a deterrent for my own pets and did regular grooming to make sure they didn’t have any beginning infestations. In the 3 years we lived there we never had an issue with fleas or ticks and I hiked with my dog daily." 

As far as internal parasites go, we use Clarkia-100 Reduced Alcohol as a preventative. Here is the dosage chart:

• Dogs and cats up to 20 lbs – 1-2 drops 3x daily
• Dogs up to 40 lbs – 3-4 drops 3x daily
• Dogs up to 60 lbs - 5-6 drops 3x daily
• Dogs up to 90 lbs – 8-10 drops 3x daily
• Dogs over 100 lbs – 10-12 drops 3x daily

* Animals in general tend to be a little more sensitive to supplements (especially cats) so keep the dose low initially and increase gradually until you see the desired results.

We get asked all the time how to use this for pets and it can differ depending on your situation, so here are the 3 situations and how we suggest using the Clarkia-100: 

1. Treating for diagnosed parasites: Use chart above
2. Preventing parasites for an indoor/not very active animal - same dose as above only, 2x daily for 3 weeks maximum.
3. Preventing parasites for a very active dog that is out in the public/wild a lot - same dose as above 1x daily. 

Tip: keep in mind that if your dog is only active for the warmer months and doesn’t get out in the winter then just do the daily dose during those active months and take the winter off. There is no exact formula as everybody’s situation is different.

The final supplement we suggest is our Essiac-20 Reduced Alcohol. This is a potent anti-cancer formula that both people and pets can use for prevention or treatment. 

Here is the dosage schedule for both:

1. Cancer prevention - give them a daily dose 2-3x weekly
2. Cancer treatment - give them a dose 3x daily 

( See dosing guide above)

TL,DR: Here are our tips for natural pet care: 

1. Find a healthy diet for your pet (we suggest raw!).
2. Research vaccines as much as possible. 
3. Stop the misuse of antibiotics.
4. Remove harmful environmental factors/toxins.

Here are products we suggest:

1. Reduced Alcohol LDM-100 (Viral, fungal & bacterial infections.)
2. Reduced Alcohol Clarkia-100 (Parasites and worms)
3. Reduced Alcohol Essiac-20 (Cancer) 
4. Luci's Salve (Bites, wounds, skin infections)

 We have bundled all four of these products together in our Ultimate Pet Bundle. It's a great thing to have on hand, so that when you need it- it's there! 

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at customerservice@barlowherbal.com. We are here to help!

Please remember that we are not veterinarians and this is not meant to be medical advice. All the information in this blog post is for educational purposes only. This information has not been evaluated by the FDA. We are not making any claims about the efficacy of these products. These products and suggestions are not meant to prescribe, diagnose, prevent, treat, cure any disease or replace proper medical care.