How To Empower Yourself In Pet Health Issues

I like to research many issues pertaining to everyday pet health issues. I have done this for years. The lifestyle factors we include in our dogs’ lives can greatly affect how healthy they remain and for how long they are with us, so its always been a priority..

I know the general public loves to blame the breeder for everything that comes down the pike that negatively affects their dog’s health. But I would ask you to consider how much more the things they are exposed to over the next 10 – 15 years, the food fed or the toxins administered to the dog regularly without a second thought, may also have an effect.

But The Experts Said…

I was a registered nurse for 40 years. I always told my patients that they are their own best advocate. Whatever the doctor tells them needs to be fully comprehended so they can give informed consent to the treatment. It is the doctor’s responsibility to make sure the patient understands everything about a particular health situation. It is no different with dogs.

I have also said for many years, “trust no one, not even me.” Take everyone’s opinion, do a little research of your own and come to your own conclusions. Use. Your. Brain. It may be fine to shrug and leave all the decisions to “the experts” when it comes to a car or dishwasher. At worst, you probably will only lose money. But to use the same approach when it comes to a living creature, can be much more catastrophic. You won’t have all the answers needed for the lifetime of the dog but expanding your knowledge is always possible.

Navigate Common Issues Of Pet Health

The pet health experts aren’t always nefarious, but maybe just a tad careless. As an example: more dogs are now being diagnosed with copper toxicity. It is becoming known among the veterinary community that the commercial dog food (read: “I only feed the best food to my dog”) has either increased the amount of copper in the dog food or are using a more bio-available copper. That increases the amount in the dog’s system, to the animal’s detriment.

How about too much Vitamin D causing kidney failure, leading to death? I give you both Nestle Purina and Hills Pet Nutrition (aka “the experts”) recalling food due to just that situation. Read about it here.

These are the situations that the establishment choose to ignore when arguing against things like a home made diet. Make it at home and you’ll kill your dog. Trust us they say. You know nothing.

Just One More Voice

My personal approach to raising dogs is to be the first responder to any changes in health. While I rely on my general vet for his expertise in lots of matters, and occasionally a specialist, if I can figure out what is going on and handle things at home, I do that. I don’t go to the doctor for a hangnail and I don’t go to a vet for a simple case of one time diarrhea.

If I did, the answers I was getting from the vet have to make sense to me. Because of that willlingness to handle things at home first, I’ve collected a lot of information that may be of interest to you. (Or not, in which case, you’ve saved yourself a lot of time, LOL)

Everyone has their own comfort level. Remember “knowledge is power” and the flip side, “a little knowledge is dangerous”, so you do you. If any of the pages on pet health issues assist you in finding the information you need to care for your dog, I’m glad I helped. As a last caveat, remember I’m not a vet and I don’t play one on TV. The information I share here is for educational purposes only and not a substitute for veterinary care. Sharing this information will hopefully encourage more dog owners to feel that, yes, they are smart enough to figure out how to take care of their dogs.

Topics On Pet Health Issues To Get You Started

As I write on different health issues related to caring for dogs, I’ll add links below:

Yankee Coton de Tulears

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