A unique look at what’s happening in research and its implications for pets.
As explained in last week’s blog, determinism is the belief that any subject can be best understood by understanding its parts. When determinism is applied to nutrition you get the kind of silly statements that veterinary nutritionists and pet food manufacturers make all the time. These experts will tell you that it is not the […]
Most homeopathic remedies are very dilute. In fact any homeopathic remedy of 24X or 12C potency and above has been diluted to the point that statistically speaking, not even one particle of the original substance remains. Herein lies the major complaint about homeopathy. We are all very familiar with the pharmacological, linear, dose-response curve. A […]
There is a common notion that dogs are omnivores. And, the bottom line is that they are omnivores. Of course that’s because they have no choice but to eat what we feed them. This is typically processed kibble containing at least 30% carbohydrates. Think about this; if we captured all the polar bears in the […]
A sustainable foods-oriented, consumer advocacy organization, The Cornucopia Institute, recently released a scathing report on commercial pet foods. Of course, most of what they found will not be shocking to the readers of this blog. It is interesting to have such a group back up many of my concerns and come up with a few […]
Carrageenan is an ingredient of canned pet diets used to thicken, stabilize, and emulsify the food. It is used in many canned pet foods basically to improve the appearance and texture. There is absolutely no nutritional value to this ingredient. Carrageenan is actually a group of compounds extracted from various species of red seaweed. As […]
Vaccine research from the November 15th Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association confirms what I wrote about here. Small dogs are more likely to suffer adverse reactions to vaccines than larger dogs. The current study gives more specifics. It turns out dogs who weigh less than 10 lbs are 7 times more likely to […]
When I lecture to veterinarians (and especially veterinary students) about raw food for pets I often get the question, “Where’s the research?” The push for “Evidence-Based Medicine” strongly resonates with many veterinarians, especially those with little real-world experience. They tend to think that unless there is a validating study, the idea must be wrong. The […]
Vitamin D (the sunshine vitamin) is a critical nutrient. It regulates the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the bowel and is involved with its mobilization from bone. It works with other hormones to balance the calcium levels in the body. Too little vitamin D is associated with many problems discussed below. Too much Vitamin […]
A recent study found that children who were given antibiotics were more likely to be overweight. The more antibiotics the kids got, the fatter they got. If this is true for people then it is most likely true for pets as well. But what’s the connection between taking antibiotics and weight gain? I can answer […]
Most veterinarians are out of touch. That’s the conclusion of a new study. Recently, a consumer research company looked at over 2 million conversations about pet care that appeared in online forums, on blogs, and on Facebook in 2014. They found that for veterinarians, “preventive care” was all about vaccines, spay/neuter, and parasite control. Meanwhile, […]