February 23rd, 2003, PreciousPets Newsletter - ENJOY! http://www.preciouspets.org DID YOU KNOW... The maximum life span of our dogs & cats is estimated to be about 25 to 30 years & yet the average pet lives only approximately 13 to 14 years? ...NUTRITION IS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR ! ***In This Issue*** *How do I find a good Reiki practitioner? - Series Articles *Pet Tip - 'Babies' Need Attention & Stability Too! *This Weeks Special - Dog & Cat Daily Nutritional Systems - Over 20% Off *Bladder Stones and Crystals *Bree's All Natural Recipe Corner - Vitamin Rich Meal For Felines *The Miracle of Grape Seed Extract in Your Pet's Food *Introducing all natural foods to your pet *Newsletter Archives **************************************************************** How do I find a good Reiki practitioner? Ok, you’ve decided to treat little Fido or Fluffy to a Reiki session. How can you be sure that you find a good Reiki practitioner? How do you know that it’s really Reiki that they are doing, and not just trying to take you and your pet for a ride? The answer is simple: do your homework. The easiest way to find any alternative practitioner is by word of mouth. Ask around, and chances are that you will find someone who has either had a Reiki treatment, or who has studied it. Another excellent reference tool is the Internet. Each of the 50 states has its own licensing board that handles every profession from hairdressers to doctors. Many alternative modalities are not yet licensed by the state, but this is a good place to start your research. Most alternative practices have professional associations and informative websites; these provide valuable information on finding practitioners and on the therapy itself. Most of all, go with your gut, and ask a lot of questions. Ask about a practitioner’s training, and see if the answer you receive sounds like the training described in the professional association’s website. Ask about fees in advance. Don’t be afraid to explain that you are new to this field and are wondering if the practitioner has a policy of a free introductory session or demonstration. I can’t guarantee that the answer will be “yes,” since individual practitioners may be in different phases of building up their practices, but most reputable Reiki practitioners will at least point you in the right direction. Coming Next Week: Tales of Nicky Nutjob and the Bach Flower Essences About the author: Debra Jeanne Snyder is an independent, traditional Reiki Master/Teacher in the Usui System of Natural Healing. She is the owner of The Reiki Place, a private practice offering Reiki treatments and instruction, and information about spiritual and holistic health. You may reach her at TheReikiPlace@aol.com for questions and appointments. Please note: We are legally required to say that the advice, products, philosophies and assertions discussed in this column are offered for your consideration only. If your pet is ill, has a suspected or diagnosed medical condition; you are urged to seek the appropriate veterinary treatment, rendered by a duly licensed veterinarian. The opinions expressed by the author of this column do not take the place of, nor are offered as, a substitute for timely and appropriate veterinary care.” **************************************************************** PET TIP - 'Babies' Need Attention & Stability Too! Consider what's going on in your life before buying a new puppy or kitten. If you are getting married, divorcing, starting a new job or having a baby, don't get a new pet just now. Young pets need a stable environment and lots of attention. Wait until you can provide that. **************************************************************** THIS WEEK'S SPECIAL - Dog & Cat Daily Nutritional Systems - Over 20% Off!!! Today, most of us try to eat right and take a daily supplement to get all nutrients necessary to avoid disease and ensure good health. The same is true for our pets. A high quality diet rich in protein and other essential nutrients is vital to good health. Life's Abundance Premium Health Foods provide a solid daily nutritional foundation for your pet. However, every pet is different and requires one or more additional nutrients to stay healthy. That's why Dr. Jane Bicks formulated the second half of the Daily Nutritional System, our Advanced Daily Supplement with Phytonutrient Power. This formula provides your pet with the additional nutrients necessary for good health plus powerful plant nutrients to support a healthy defense system. http://www.preciouspets.org/coupon.htm **************************************************************** Bladder Stones and Crystals Urine leaves the bladder through a tube called the urethra, which isn't much wider than a piece of thread. Urine is mainly water, so it passes through without a hitch - except when pets have bladder stones. These jagged accumulations of minerals can scrape the urethra on their way through, causing excruciating pain. What are the signs of bladder stones? Your pet is straining to urinate, with little or nothing coming out or is urinating more often. You might find blood in the urine, or he/she is urinating in inappropriate places. Please keep in mind that these symptoms may also indicate an entirely different health condition, so it is best to get your pet to your veterinarian as soon as possible, just to make sure. Where do these stones comes from? There are two likely sources: one being hereditary and the other coming from a poor quality diet. There are two kinds of bladder stones. One kind tends to form in urine that is acidic and the other may form when urine is alkaline. Each type of stone may require different treatments, so again, it is important to see your vet to find out which kind your pet has. Surgery is often needed to remove large stones. In many cases, you can use natural remedies, or a high quality pet food, to keep them from coming back. Here is what holistic veterinarians advise: * Put meat on the menu - Commercial pet foods typically get most of their calories and protein from grains, which make the urine alkaline--an environment the encourages some types of stones to form. Giving pets more meat tends to acidify the urine and helps dissolve certain types of crystals. * Feed your pet less often - Frequent feedings can be a problem. Right after eating, many parts of the body become more alkaline, which can promote the crystallization of stones. Feeding pets no more than once or twice a day will keep the urine more acidic, so that stones are less likely to form. * Provide plenty of water - Pets that don't drink alot of water don't urinate very often, which means that bacteria and debris in the bladder aren't flushed out as often as they should be. Of course, dogs and cats won't drink more water just because you want them to. The easiest way to get more fluids in their bodies is to add water or low-salt broth to their food. Make their food soupy! * Give a natural diuretic - There are a number of herbs, such as corn silk and parsley, that act as natural diuretics and help remove fluids from the body. This can be helpful for pets with bladder stones because the extra urine produced by the kidneys can help flush away debris. You can give one cornsilk capsule for every 20 pounds of weight. When giving fresh parsley, just add it to your pet's food. Pets under 15 pounds can take one-half to one teaspoon of fresh chopped parsley a day. Pets 15 to 50 pounds can take one or two teaspoons, and larger pets can have one-half to one tablespoon. * Given them ascorbic acid - The most common form of vitamin C is ascorbic acid, which acidifies the urine and helps dissolve and prevent some kinds of stones. The most preferable form of Vitamin C is Ester C, which is much easier on the tummy! Pets under 15 pounds can be given between 250 and 500 milligrams. Pets 15 to 50 pounds can take 500 milligrams twice and day, and larger dogs can take 1,000 milligrams twice a day. Since Vitamin C can cause diarrhea, you may have to cut back the dose until you find an amount that your pet can tolerate! Again, if you suspect your pet may have bladder stones or crystals, seek the advice of your veterinarian immediately. This newsletter is NOT a substitute for medical advice, which only a veterinarian can provide! **************************************************************** BREE'S ALL NATURAL RECIPE CORNER - DO IT YOURSELF RECIPES! Know EXACTLY what you're feeding your pet...start making his or her treats yourself TODAY! Vitamin Rich Meal For Felines (also great for canines...simply 'times' the ingredients for the size of your dog) 1/3 C Cottage cheese 2 tb Bisquick 1 tb Chopped liver 1 tb Corn oil 1 Dash iodized salt Mix all together for 1-2 delicious cat servings. REMEMBER to either refrigerate or freeze all natural treats to avoid spoilage and insect infestation. These recipes are not written in stone...feel free to adjust the ingredients to meet your pet's needs. **************************************************************** The Miracle of Grape Seed Extract in Your Pet's Food Antioxidants defend us against dangerous free radicals which can destroy cell membranes and damage DNA. Free radicals are continually being produced by your pet’s body as part of its normal aging process. Your pet is also exposed to external sources such as second-hand smoke, pesticides, pollution, excess sunlight, which also produce free radicals. Scientists believe that free radicals may be a root cause of more than 60 chronic and degenerative diseases, including certain types of cancer, cataracts, arthritis and heart disease, as well as the aging process itself. Activin(TM) is a powerful antioxidant derived from grape seed extract. More than 60 research presentations, publications and abstracts have reported on the exciting health benefits of ActiVin(TM). Studies prove Activin(TM) contains some of the most powerful antioxidants yet discovered ... far more potent than vitamins C, E and beta-carotene! Activin(TM) is extracted from premium quality red grape seeds by a patented water extraction process. This patented process ensures the extract contains a greater amount and a wider range of the NATURAL antioxidant properties from this important ingredient. Most other grape seed extracts use potentially dangerous chemicals which can leave residues and strip away many of the nutrients that the ActiVin(TM) process retains. Not only is Activin(TM) safe and healthful to consume, it’s environmentally friendly to produce. No toxic chemicals are flushed down the drain and unlike pycnogynol, no trees are cut down for their bark. Activin(TM) is an ingredient found in all of Life's Abundance dog and cat food formulas! Read all about it at: http://www.healthypetnet.com/preciouspets **************************************************************** Introducing all natural foods to your pet Because all natural foods are concentrated for better nutrition, palatability and digestibility, you will actually feed from 20% - 40% less than other foods. Because this food is so different from the majority of pet foods on the market, we recommend that you introduce it to your pets slowly, especially for cats. The introduction process can be scheduled anywhere from 7 to 10 days, and is done with your pet's current food! So please, don't throw the old food out when your new food arrives! It may very well 'backfire' on you! Complete instructions and what to do if you pet does get loose stools can be found on the following page: http://www.preciouspets.org/introduce.htm **************************************************************** Newsletter archives can be viewed here: http://www.preciouspets.org/newsletters.htm **************************************************************** I hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, and that you're looking forward to the next issue. If you have an article you'd like to submit or would like to be a regular columnist, please let me know at . If you find our newsletters interesting and informative, please forward them on to all your pet-loving friends, family, co-workers & neighbors. Wishing you a super week! Bree PreciousPets.org Owner/Editor http://www.preciouspets.org Voice/Fax - 609-771-3778 **************************************************************** ABOUT OUR NEWSLETTER: You are receiving this newsletter because your e-mail address has been subscribed, either because you are a PreciousPets.org customer, a monthly contestant, a visitor to our site, an affiliate OR you or a friend has subscribed you because they care about you and your pet. The main focus of these newsletters is pet health and nutrition. **************************************************************** To subscribe to Precious Pets: http://www.preciouspets.org/newsletters.htm Previous newsletters (complete archives) can be viewed at: http://www.preciouspets.org/newsletters.htm Your email address will NEVER be sold, rented, or given away. I take my privacy policy extremely serious!