“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” Albert Einstein

Some people assume that the standard chemical/synthetic version will always be the best option. I hear this often, “yeah, I wanted to use a natural option, but I wanted to be sure it fixed the problem so I used XYZ.”

Being in the field I am in, I look back to nature often. Whether to question why something is happening or to determine the next best step. I have trusted natural choices in my own pets for the past several years and they are the healthiest pets I’ve ever had.  This isn't a coincidence. Their good health is by design, not by chance.

When do natural options fall through?

When we’re throwing a bunch of natural things at a problem because we heard it could help.

When natural options are used in this way, you don’t get your desired end result. This would be like trying to hammer a nail into a board, yet you are throwing random objects in the dark and hoping one of these objects hammer the nail in.

Just like with standard options, you need to be specific with natural options. Just because you searched “Dr. Google,” doesn’t mean it is the right choice. If you’re not sure where to go with selecting a natural option, you need to find a professional who is. This can change the above analogy from something frustrating to turning on the lights and using the hammer.

Does “tried and true,” or more well-known make it a better option?

Not all the time. A lot of standard options may help the problem, but they usually come along with side effects. Additionally, many go against the normal processes of the body to achieve their results.

 If my dog has a health crisis or traumatic event, like breaking their leg, I would not waste a single moment thinking of a natural treatment. I’m going to get them into their vet as soon as possible to get checked out and treated.

While I love natural options, you have to be smart and use common sense when deciding these things. It’s always a good thing to know of an animal hospital nearby to help you with any acute condition that may pop up.

Where can you find a professional that can provide natural options with your pet?

Depending on your pet’s circumstance, you can look through the following directories:

Holistic DVMs: http://www.ahvma.org/find-a-holistic-veterinarian/
Certified Animal Chiropractors: http://www.AVCAdoctors.com and http://www.IVCA.de
Animal Naturopaths: http://www.animalnaturopathy.org/practitioners/
Veterinary Acupuncture: http://www.aava.org/ and https://www.ivas.org/ 
​Animal Acupressure and Massage: http://nbcaam.org/ 

A question to leave you with…

Many people turn to natural options after they have exhausted all traditional options with little to no results. 

I want to leave you with this thought: as long as your pet is not in an emergency or acute situation why not try something natural first? 

Just remember to be sure you have professional support to help you in this area.  This will help to make sure what you are doing for your pet is appropriate and will help you reach your end goal.

Choosing a Pest Preventative

When it comes to choosing a preventative for your dog, the truth is there is no 100% guaranteed preventative, whether harsh chemical types or natural types.

With traditional harsh chemical types, you are basically applying a pesticide to your pet, strong enough to kill pests like fleas and ticks, but low grade enough to not cause an acute reaction or death in your dog, although sadly there is evidence of that happening in sensitive dogs.

Have you read the boxes of the traditional preventatives? Simply google an ingredient and you’ll quickly learn how harmful it is. It also says not to touch these substances with your bare hands, yet you are applying them directly to your dog and these chemicals are absorbed through their coat and skin. (Did you know fur actually enhances the absorption of anything applied to your dog?) You are also as coming into contact with them every time you pet your dog. Most of these chemicals also stay on longer than 30 days. The reason they are applied every 30 days is because it is easier for the pet owner to remember is get into a routine of doing, not because your pet automatically “loses protection” after 30 days.

With that in mind, I choose the types of protection that will not cause any harm to my pet or anyone coming into contact with my pet. Similar to the traditional types, there are a variety of natural types to choose from. They simply are not as well known as traditional types because most vets and other pet health professionals are not taught about them during their schooling. They have more important things to learn about in their 4 years of schooling like acute health issues and saving lives.

The good news is, I have researched countless hours on this topic ever since first entering the animal health world. I have only used these natural options on my own pets for over the past 10 years. Additionally, I run a well-established animal chiropractic practice and constantly ask or hear reviews of flea and tick preventatives from clients, many of which are holistically minded when it comes to their pets health.

I am going to outline the best of the most natural and safe methods I have found below. These methods are in no particular order and tend to be very effective for fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes.


My Top 5 Choices For Natural Preventatives (in no particular order)

1- Wondercide

Wondercide is a product that I stumbled upon and became very impressed with. It has become a favorite of mine. They have an entire line of products made with organic cedar oil as well as therapeutic grade essential oils. The oils are properly steam distilled and fractionated, then diluted with a hydrated silica carrier oil.

They have sprays that you can mist on your dog's coat that come in cedar, cedar+lemongrass, and cedar+rosemary. If you aren’t sure which to get, cedar+lemongrass has the best reviews. I have found that many people like the fresh, uplifting smell of lemongrass. I have found a little goes a long way, so these sprays should last you a while. 

These sprays come in 16oz and larger sizes as well as 1oz sizes that they have listed for trial. I have found these small sizes also work great for on-the-go. If you have a 16oz or larger, you can always refill your 1oz sprays. The 1oz trial sizes also come in a 3 pack so you can keep them in multiple places.

If you are looking for a safe product for inside your home or outside in your garden or yard, they carry products for that as well. These can be used as a preventative and for outbreaks. Applying is easy (be sure to read the description if you need to purchase a compression or hose end sprayer which is also available on their site). I try and spray my yard about every month late spring-fall, but usually it ends up being a bit longer. Your yard will smell like cedar for a few days, but I have found, as well as clients, that it works well. It also deters more pests than just fleas and ticks. I thought for sure I'd see some ticks since I now back up to a retention pond with all sorts of critters in it, but have yet to see one and I'm sure I have this product to thank.

They carry additional products for outbreaks as well as shampoo bars for flea and ticks and regular shampoo bars (that have amazing reviews) and other natural pet products. 

I’m really excited for this company which started after the owner had a devastating adverse reaction in her shepherd mix, Luna, after applying standard flea and tick control. After learning the shocking truths about flea and tick control and researching about everything on pesticides, she knew there had to be safer methods. She left her work and chose to develop her own company with both effective and safe products, Wondercide. It’s sad that her dog had to suffer from the traditional methods, but from owner Stephanie Boone’s action taken, at least now countless other dogs can hear her story and choose a better option from the start.

2- Young Living Essential Oils

Since many of my clients already use essential oils, I thought it would be a good method to start with as you may already have some of these. If choosing to use essential oils on your pet, you want to ensure that they are therapeutic grade. This means they are distilled properly and do not contain adulterants. Young Living oils are the only oils I recommend. If following any of the below, it is speaking strictly of Young Living oils. Do not use aromatic grade found at health food stores.

Single Oils: Lavender, Purification, or Cedarwood
These can be applied in any of the following ways:
• Fill a small (preferably metal or glass/about 4 oz) spray bottle with distilled water, a squirt of witch hazel, and add 15 drops. Mist over coat, avoid eyes and mouth.
• Place a few drops on your hand then rub behind the head and on the neck. You can also apply further down the back if you wish. 
• Place a few drops on your dog's collar.

The neat thing about purification essential oil is that it is a blend. One of the ingredients is citronella, which is great at repelling mosquitoes. I am usually a mosquito magnet, but not with this oil on.

Adding to convenience, a bottle of oil can easily be slipped into a purse or pocket. I have carried purification in my purse to outdoor events and at dusk, I have applied (neat) to my ankles, wrists, and upper sternum areas. It has a pleasant smell, better than standard bug sprays,

Like us, dogs can have a preference when it comes to oils. My dogs love cedarwood, they are okay with purification, however, my border collie hates lavender. Try introducing the oil with the cap on first for them to sniff. If they are ok with that, introduce with the cap off. If they are ok with that, then apply.

It is normal for some dogs to roll around and rub after oils are applied. I have one dog who chooses to sniff the oils applied on her and another that likes to roll around on the carpet or her bed, somewhat similar to how she would roll or rub on these things after getting a bath.

If you like recipes, another option with oils is to make a blend to repel pests.

DIY Blend in a small glass spray bottle: 3oz distilled water, squirt of witch hazel, 5 drops peppermint, 10 drops purification, 5 drops lavender, 5 drops cedarwood. Even though it is already in the purification blend, sometimes I also like to add a few extra drops of lemongrass as well.

3- Garlic

Contrary to some pet information sites, garlic is not toxic to dogs as long as you are not feeding 50 cloves in one sitting. The reason that some say garlic is toxic is because it is closely related to and in the same genus as onions. However, onions are slightly different in their make up and are in fact toxic to dogs and can lead to hemolytic anemia, garlic will not as long as it isn’t an unusually high amount as mentioned above. 

The actual toxic amount is 5g of garlic per 1kg of a dog’s body weight. Using this, in a dog weighing 20kg (so about 44lbs), 100g of garlic will be toxic leading to Heinz body anemia. 100g is roughly a quarter of a pound of garlic (0.2205lbs to be exact)…. a lot! That’s about 3 full heads of garlic.

Fresh, raw garlic cloves contain a compound called allin and an enzyme called alliinase. When a fresh clove is crushed or smashed, these come into contact with each other and allicin is formed. Allicin is where garlic gets most of its therapeutic or health benefits from.

When it comes to garlic as a pest preventative, you have some options:

The only garlic in supplement form that I have found to work well via talking to my clients is Springtime’s Bug Off Garlic. Garlic pills that you would find in a pharmacy or health food store are not manufactured properly to have the benefits you need to repel pests. They could also be harmful to your pet. If using a garlic supplement, Springtime’s Bug Off is the only one I recommend.

You can also give fresh smashed garlic. If giving fresh garlic, it can get tricky. Dogs typically don’t readily eat garlic. You may need to hide it in some food. You can easily make a slit in a piece of meat and feed it or inside some ground food as well. I have a dog who loves fetch, so I say, “readyyyy…” and show that I’m throwing her something and she catches it and gulps it before she knows what she just ate.

A fresh smashed clove (large dog) or fresh half clove (small dog) of garlic typically can yield effective results while also being safe for your pet.

Garlic repels fleas and ticks because it slightly changes the dog’s odor making the seem like an unsuitable host. If we as humans eat garlic, it comes out as sweat. A dog's ability to sweat is not the same as ours. The only place dogs can sweat is through the pads of their feet, so instead the garlic comes out with the natural oil produced on their coat, which can take a bit of time to build up, so if you are planning to go out to a wooded area, you want to give the garlic a chance to do that beforehand.

Remember, since it is on their coat, if you give your dog a bath, that they will need to rebuild the garlic “aroma” in the oil of their coat again. When I say aroma, you won’t be able to smell the garlic, but nearby pests will.


4- Organic Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)

Another method you can use is a 50/50 dilution of ACV and water. Shake and mist over your dog’s coat, avoiding the eyes. You can do this on a regular basis or before and after activities like going out on a hike or in a prairie. 

It also works well as a rinse after bathing. If your dog is infested with fleas, lathering them up and allowing the lather to sit for a couple minutes drowns the fleas and then getting any possible stragglers with ACV helps, usually better than medicated baths.


5- Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth

Food grade DE is a fine powder. This naturally occurring substance is mined from old lake beds. It's composed of fossilized remains of microscopic shells created by one celled plants called Diatoms that have fossilized over millennia in old fresh water lake zones. As time has passed, these fossilized remains have accumulated and formed huge silica deposits. When mined and ground into powder it becomes diatomaceous earth.

Rather than having a chemical reaction like most insecticides, food grade DE has a mechanical reaction breaking down their exoskeleton’s waxy coating and dehydrating the insect from the outside. It works with anything with an exoskeleton, so beyond fleas and ticks, it has well-known uses with ants, cockroaches, and more. However, as long as it is “food grade” and not inhaled, it is not harmful to mammals.

You can apply food grade DE to your dog's coat. If you have an empty cleaned out spice jar, it works well to allow for an even application. Be careful around the eyes, nose, and mouth. Just like with any powder, this can irritate those areas and can be irritating to the air pathways if inhaled.

When it comes to DE, storage is important. It is also known as a deodorizer, so it will absorb things around it. Air tight packaging is important.

*Be sure your DE is food grade, NOT pool filter grade. Pool filter grade is toxic to your pet.*


Checking Your Dog(s)

It’s recommended to regularly brush and check your pets head to toe for signs of fleas and ticks throughout spring to fall. The sooner you catch a tick or flea on your dog, the quicker action you can take.

If you suspect fleas, brush your dog on a light colored towel for easier inspection. You may also notice what looks like dirt, usually close to their rear just above their tail. This is called “flea dirt,” and is actually flea feces. If you put it in rubbing alcohol or water, it will turn red when dissolved.

If your dog is biting at a certain area, check to be sure there isn’t a tick where they are biting. Feel the area for a small bump and if you find one, spread their fur for closer inspection.

If I feel any tiny bumps on my patients, especially in the summer time, I will look closer to be sure it is not a tick or something else they need to see their vet about.


Safe Tick Removal

Never squeeze, pull out a tick, or any other method where you can not ensure that you will remove the entire tick. This can cause the tick to secrete more saliva into your dog or even leave parts behind embedded in your dog’s skin.

My dogs have never had ticks, but I still keep these methods on hand, just in case, and my clients who have used these methods say they work great.

YL Essential Oil:
One drop of purification young living essential oil on a tick will cause it to remove its head from under the animalʼs skin. Once it does that, you can safely remove it. 

Tick Keys:
Tick Keys can safely remove the entire tick from the body and are
sold at most pet supply stores. They can easily be attached to a keychain 


Safe Flea Removal from Pet

Use a natural shampoo, such as Young Living’s Animal Scents (main oil in shampoo is citronella). Let the shampoo sit on your dog for a couple minutes, drowning the fleas.

Next, do a rinse with Organic Apple Cider Vinegar (avoid eyes). 

After the final rinse, mist a 50/50 dilution of ACV (with water) onto your pets coat. 

After the coat is dry, apply a few drops of purification essential oil. Apply the drops into the palms of your hands and begin spreading the oil on the back of head and sides of neck. 


Keeping Pests in Your Yard Under Control

Every living creature in our world has a purpose and without each one doing their part, there would be consequences, however, there are things you can do to keep what we see as “pests” down to a minimum.

The simplest is to care for your lawn and garden regularly. Keep your grass mowed short, weeds pulled, bushes trimmed, try to avoid standing water. Unkept lawns are ideal breeding grounds for pests.

Wondercide has lawn and garden sprays that utilize cedar oil for fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, and more.

Food grade diatomaceous earth can be sprinkled on your lawn, however, it usually needs to be done several times through spring and summer. I have never used it on my complete lawn, however, I like to use food grade DE in the crevices in front of the outside of doors. It tends to work as a barrier.

Nematodes are microscopic roundworms that eat flea larvae, and pretty fast at that, and can be applied with a hose sprayer. It’s recommended to apply when it is partly cloudy or overcast. They do not do well in full, direct sunlight and probably won’t be as effective. Many garden supply stores carry them.

There are some other natural options out there that many times use garlic, cedar oil, rosemary, peppermint, lemongrass, and more. If you find a natural product, don’t simply take the name or description as is, flip the product over and check the label. See if you notice any red flag ingredients. If you are unsure, many times googling, “ingredient name and dogs” will give you some information on whether it is toxic or not. If the product does not disclose their ingredients, I do not recommend using it.

Many of the standard commercial lawn sprays available or done by a professional are very toxic. If you are thinking about using one, be sure to do your research and check ingredients. Once it is applied, it will stay on your lawn for some time which can adversely effect your dog (and children) out in the yard. They are also one of the several common reasons for itchy feet, hot spots, unexplained vomiting, allergies and tear stains in dogs. I highly recommend avoiding if you can.


“What if the inside of my home is crawling with fleas?!”

First, be sure the inside of your home is clean and tidy.

Apply food grade diatomaceous earth to infested floors (try a test spot first to be sure your carpet will be ok), let it sit for a little bit, and then vacuum it up. Be sure to use vacuum attachments to get into crevices. Be sure to empty the contents of your vacuum and get it outside asap.

You can leave a light dusting of food grade diatomaceous earth in heavily infested areas as well as in areas that your dog is often, such as their bed.

Safe Essential Oil Flea Bomb:
• Get all of your animals out of the house
• Diffuse oregano, black pepper, and peppermint together. 
• Air out the house and then diffuse purification and ocotea. 

These methods have actually been found to work better than the standard poisonous flea bombs with an exterminator... and are a lot safer!


Use Common Sense

The methods listed above are tried and true by myself as well as many of my clients. Whatever methods you decide, be sure you are applying properly and use common sense, for example, you would not want to spray apple cider vinegar over your dog's eyes or apply essential oils close to eyes or other body orifices. 

I’m sure there are some other natural flea and tick products out there. There may be some that are just as effective and safe as the ones I have listed above. However, if you decide to use a product you find on your own, please remember to do your research, check the ingredients, and see if there are any side effects associated with these products.


Decide What works Best For You and Your Pets

This guide is simply listing options to choose from, it is not recommended to do every method on this list at once. Even though these are natural, safer options, your dog could get overwhelmed by doing too many at once, especially when choosing topical applications.  Choose only one topical application at a time. If you would like to try different methods, you can rotate month to month. Find out what works best for you.


Being Healthy and Pest Free is the Way to Be!

No matter what method you use, there are no 100% guaranteed protections. I’ve actually noticed in my clinic that the dogs getting the traditional preventatives more often get fleas and ticks. The options above are safer ways to protect your pet than traditional harsh chemical pesticide containing treatments. Making sure your dog is at their healthiest goes a long way too. Also, be sure your pet is tested for heartworm and tick born illness regularly.

I hope this guide was beneficial for you and that it helps you choose a safer, natural preventative for your pet’s health and wellbeing.


Links to Natural Methods, In Order of their Mention:

Young Living Therapeutic Grade essential oils: http://youngliving.org/vitchiro
Wondercide: http://wondercide.go2cloud.org/SHP
Springtime Inc Bug Off Garlic: https://www.springtimeinc.com/ 
Organic Apple Cider Vinegar: http://amzn.to/1VKbaYG 
Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth: http://amzn.to/1NpB6pt 
Tick Key: http://amzn.to/1NpAy2O 

Please note: I gain a small commission on each of these links (except for Springtime Inc). The reason I have chosen to affiliate with these products is from my own research, education, personal use, and client feedback. If this guide was beneficial for you, I hope that you will help support my work of researching over the past several years and subsequently writing this free guide for your use by following these links, if you choose to purchase any products mentioned. Thank you!

This is an interview with Julie and her great dane, Charles.
Charles had some health issues such as chronic skin infections and ear infections that were not resolving despite trying many different things. His coat was thin, falling out, had some patches of hair loss, dull and flaky.
Julie decided to do a consult with Roaring for Raw last year and I asked her if she would be so kind to talk about her experience on video. If Charles could talk, I think he'd tell you how much he loves his new food too!

"My dog has X-Y-Z and can't handle a raw diet." I've heard this several times lately. Does that statement have any credibility behind it? I would like to explore that today.

I started feeding my dogs a raw diet about five years ago to help them maintain their good health, and it did so much more than that. It turned them into vibrant dogs who have been truly thriving ever since. 

However, what happens when a dog needs to REGAIN their health? If they have allergies, GI abnormalities, an autoimmune condition, or even cancer? Would it be wise time to start a raw diet then? Those unfamiliar with a raw diet usually will say, no, "they can't handle it," "it's too rich,"  "it has bacteria," etc. I believe, and I've observed it myself in many dogs, that there is never a more crucial time to begin a raw diet.

If I ever question what I should do, I think back to what comes naturally. A kibble diet is not close to anything that we'd find in nature. It is processed and rendered so much and at high temperatures that the proteins become denatured and carbohydrates become caramelized. All live nutrients are killed, and some additionally produce carcinogens from the heating process (1). This product looks and tastes so far from a food source that pet food manufacturers have to develop flavor sprays to put on the kibble after it is made to make a dog readily eat it (2). Does this sound like anything that will help your dog's body heal? Does this sound like anything they are physiologically meant to handle?

A raw diet has all the nutrients, untouched, alive, and balanced, just as their bodies are designed to recognize and handle them. As for bacteria, your dog's stomach has a pH of about 1 to deal with any bacteria in the food. They have a short digestive tract that is meant to quickly digest and eliminate foods that go rancid quickly. As for "being rich," the only thing it is rich in compared to kibble is nutrients. For those of us who feed raw, we also know that our dogs will utilize most of the nutrients from this diet simply by observing their small stool size compared to the stool of a kibble fed dog.

Take this example, about a lab named Nigel, who had developed hemangiosarcoma of his spleen. A hemangiosarcoma is typically known as a silent killer in dogs that is usually found when it is too late. This was the case with Nigel. He suddenly became extremely weak and displayed labored breathing. The vet didn’t have any options, the tumor was too large and had progressed too far. Nigel wasn’t going to make it past that week. The owner and I decided to work together with a last ditch effort to try and help Nigel. We switched him over to a prey model raw diet immediately. By the end of the week, he made a turnaround and continued to improve. We almost couldn't believe our eyes. You couldn't tell he had cancer. He spent the next eight months with his owner with a quality life, swimming in the pond, going on walks, playing, doing everything he loved with the people he loved. After the eight months, Nigel started to show signs of his cancer with some weight loss and lethargy, and the owner decided it was time. They had a nice last moment together, and he was thankful for the last several months he had with Nigel that both of us know wouldn't have been possible with his raw diet.

It is so much easier to maintain health than to regain it. The best time to start a raw diet is when your dog is healthy. The most crucial time is when they are ill so that they have plenty of beneficial nutrients to support the healing processes of their body. Every decision we make about food comes down to this: food can fuel health, or it can fuel disease. The nutrient rich building blocks of a raw diet or the nutrient dead rendered product of a kibble diet... which one supports health and which one supports disease? Thinking through each diet and the physiology of our dogs, the answer is simple.

Sources:
1 http://www.thewholedog.org/artkibble.html
2 http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-03/chemistry-kibble 

If you have watched my welcome video on my website, you'll know that back when I first started out as a health professional for animals, I began doing massive amounts of research on finding the BEST kibble for my dog and cat patients. (I know, I know, all you long term raw feeders are laughing at that statement. I do too now.) That research led to the complete opposite... wanting to have nothing to do with kibble.

I'd like to share a conversation that happened in my clinic recently:

"If you had to, what kibble would you feed your dogs?"
"I would never feed kibble to my dogs."
"But if you HAD to, no other choice."
"That's not a real life situation; there's always other choices."
"Ok... thennn... if it was the END of the WORLD...?!?"
"If it was the end of the world and my dogs and I were still alive but ran out of food, I'd have to turn into a hunter/gatherer to survive, so my dogs would get REALLY fresh raw then! Certainly kibble processing plants would be unable to run at that time."

I'm not sure my client was happy with my answer!

She feeds raw and was asking for someone else. I'm pretty sure she knew I wouldn't budge, but still tried.

This isn't the first time a conversation like this has occurred. People want an answer, but it's not going to happen from me. Why? I made a decision a while back that I want the best for my patients, and that means taking myself completely out of the kibble world, as I feel it would be a disservice on my part to lead people to the "best" of the worst foods for their pet. 

There are plenty of other pet resources out there who would gladly give a kibble recommendation to those looking for it. If a client needs that answer, I am positive they can find it elsewhere - no problem. I will not take part for any consequences from feeding such food.
​
Keep in mind, besides being a carnivore nutrition consultant, I am also an animal chiropractor.  Do I have chiropractic patients that are not on raw? Yes. They are seeking my chiropractic services, not nutrition. Does diet come up? Yes. I explain my views and why, how it benefits dogs and cats, what I feed my dogs, etc., but as the owner of their pet, they make the final decision. I never would force anything on my clients, whether food, harnesses, toys, etc. It's my job to share my knowledge; it's their job to be their pet's best advocate and decide what to do with it.

Anyone who has asked me about kibble will tell you that I do not offer support on processed diets because I know processed diets do not allow for optimal health. Sometimes when I explain this, that I feel recommending a processed food is doing them a disservice, they realize that it could be contributing to their dog's problems, that they won't heal as quickly on a processed diet, or that just like if they (the owner) can't be healthy by eating fast food or cereal every meal of each day, their dog couldn't be fully healthy with a processed diet either. From continuing my education into carnivore nutrition and educating on the topic, I have had a lot of clients decide to switch their dog(s) or cat(s) to raw and it makes me REALLY happy to see all the great changes... and they are usually quite happy too!

 These chronic diseases can be anything from allergies, yeast, arthritis, gastrointestinal conditions, and much more.

In a healthy colon, there are about 100-1,000 billion beneficial bacteria per milliliter. Crazy, huh? One of the main functions of the microbiome is immune regulation, and 70-80% of the body's immune cells can be found in the intestinal mucosa.  In today's world many of our pets are eating foods they aren't actually designed to eat, rather, foods that are more convenient for us; and antibiotics get handed out on a regular basis in veterinary offices. These two things alone wreak havoc on the normal gut micro-biome of our pets.

Probiotic literally translates into "pro-life." To understand how The Royal Society of Great Britain can make such a claim regarding chronic disease and micro-biome health, here are some of the functions of probiotics:

•Regulates immune system function
•Helps with nutrient absorption
•Manufactures B vitamins
•Regulates blood cholesterol
•Produces natural antibiotics
•Improves intolerance and sensitivities
•Stimulates anti-oxidant activity
•Inhibits the growth of certain yeast strains
•Removes toxins as waste products
•Helps with energy levels
•Helps regulate hormone levels
•Reduces inflammation

I'm sure after reading the above list, which is certainly not all inclusive of the functions of probiotics, you can now understand why an imbalance in the gut micro-biome or a depleted micro-biome from a processed diet, antibiotics, and prescription drugs can lead to chronic health issues.

Supplementation through live bacteria in food can have a much greater and quicker impact on re-balancing the gut micro-biome. That is where raw green tripe comes in. Raw green tripe is one of the stinkiest foods you can feed, but the benefits greatly outweigh the smell. Dogs LOVE it! The stinkier, the better.... RIGHT?!

Getting past the smell, raw green tripe has an abundance of probiotics as well as digestive enzymes that can help improve your dog or cat's gut micro-biome which helps improve overall health. If your pet is already on a prey model raw diet, ask your supplier if they have tripe. You can also check local pet shops (not the big chains) as many, at least in my area, have started carrying tripe.

I typically feed a meal or two of raw green tripe to my dogs each week. I have clients that will add 1/2-2 tablespoons of ground tripe, depending on their dog or cat's size to each meal, which works too. Some clients have a hard time with the smell. Tripe does have that barnyard-on-a-hot-day smell. If this bothers you, try to get past it for your pet's sake. However, a way to decrease the smell is to freeze small portions of ground tripe in ice cube trays. Just be sure the tray is ONLY used for tripe (or any frozen raw summer goodies you make) and that any house guests know where your actual ice cubes are. For additional dental benefits, some suppliers offer tripe in a "chunk" or "strip" form for dogs to gnaw.  Some will also do a mix of tripe within a ground prey model raw product. There's many options! The more ways you try, the more you'll figure out which way your pet likes best. You'll know if your pet is getting too much tripe if their stools become a little loose. If this happens, decrease the amount. Sometimes when first given tripe, the body will utilize those nutrients to purge toxins from the body, this could cause some loose stool when first introducing this food as well.

Grocery store tripe is typically bleached for human consumption so it does not contain any of the benefits as raw green tripe.

Tripe is arguably one of the best sources of probiotics and digestive enzymes for our pets and a great addition to their species-appropriate diets. If you have difficulties accessing tripe, another favorite probiotic source of mine are Pet Flora soil based probiotics (note: link says for cats, but it is for cats AND dogs). If you've ever seen your pet nibbling on select pieces of grass, there is a reason for it. They are attempting to get soil-based organisms (SBOs) out of the earth to help balance their micro-biome. However, they usually don't get very much as our soils are depleted of nutrient content they once had. The link above is a probiotic supplement that is cultivated in soil.

If you would like a more cost-friendly, but still high-quality supplement option, many of my patients also take Wholistic Digest All+, which contains live bacteria and is not derived from and does not contain soy, dairy, wheat, or corn.

(As a side note, I often hear people reaching for yogurt or kefir to supplement probiotics. While yogurt and kefir DO contain live bacteria, remember that they both are a dairy source. This greatly outweighs the potential benefits of the probiotics and could actually be contributing to allergies, yeast overgrowth, skin conditions, and ear infections.)

I hope this article was beneficial to you and that you'll consider adding tripe or soil based probiotics to your dog or cat's diet. Do you add tripe already? How does your pet like it and have you seen any benefits?

Dr. Jeannie Thomason and I recently collaborated to make an infographic explaining some of the many ways our dog and cats are, in fact, carnivores. Lolo, my border collie, helped us by being a great model for us to use.

​I hope this helps you better understand the anatomy and physiology of our wonderful canine and feline companions as well as (if you haven't already) help you make the decision to feed your pet what they are designed to eat.

One of the most noticeable changes that I usually hear about with changing a dog to a prey model raw diet is the change in stool. I like to tell people that the "proof is in the poop!" Once a dog has become accustomed to a prey model raw diet, the stool becomes much smaller in size, as the dog is now absorbing and their body is utilizing most of the nutrients of what they are eating. It also has hardly any smell compared to a kibble fed dog's stool and it certainly isn't the soft serve consistency that you'd get stuck on the bottom of your shoe if you step in it!

I made the video below to show exactly that! What prompted me was that I was at a dog event the weekend prior and stepped in a pile of poop that someone didn't clean up. As I felt my foot sink into it, I knew right away, it was NOT from a raw fed dog! Yuck! As my husband came walking up to me I said, "oh man, I stepped in poop, and the poop of a KIBBLE FED dog!" My husband completely understood what I was talking about, other people in the area... not so much! Ha! Maybe the aggravation of cleaning a bunch of mucky poop off of and out of all the tiny crevices of my shoe wasn't totally pointless (you never do realize how detailed your shoe is until THIS happens!) as it sparked the idea to film myself stepping in a prey model raw fed dog's stool!

As I say in the video, if you've ever been in a forest or any preserved natural land, have you ever seen stool from any of the creatures who call that area their home? No! There's a reason we don't have pooper scooper programs cleaning up these areas, and that's because the stool of these inhabitants is crumbling and being absorbed back into the earth, just as nature intended.

Hope you enjoy the video!

Hello and welcome to Roaring for Raw! I'm Dr. Erin O'Connor. I am a certified nutrition consultant through the American Council of Animal Naturopathy and a certified animal chiropractor through the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association. I am based out of the western suburbs of Chicago.

This website, Roaring for Raw, is specifically for carnivore nutrition. The goal of my website is to educate and guide you on how to properly feed a species appropriate raw diet as well as teach you naturopathic principles to achieve and maintain wellness.  This site is not meant to and will not treat, diagnose, or cure any specific illness or condition, rather it will help you assist the natural healing processes of your dog or cat's body.

Maybe you have searched for answers in your pet's health or are frustrated why their current diet is unsuccessful in maintaining wellness. Maybe you have recently made better choices for your own health and no longer want to feed a processed diet with an almost never ending shelf life to your dog or cat. Whatever the reason, if you are looking to improve your dog or cat's diet and health, this is the site for you. It will help you learn how to feed your dog or cat what they were designed to eat and allow you to make informed decisions regarding your pet's health using naturopathic principles.

Check out my offerings on the "consultations" page, and I look forward to working with you!