Hey I found out how to post a new thread

This thread is to help us look after our animals using a more gentle and holistic approach.

We have a beautiful brindle Lurcher named Cassie who has a very aggressive osteosarcoma in her front left leg. We were advised by two vets to cut of her leg and hopefully get 4 months for her.

Now I love my fur babies (2 dogs & 5 cats all rescues) and there was no way I was going to allow anyone to traumatise her by taking off her leg until I knew what her options were.

After lots of research I found a homeopathic vet in Glasgow who now works in collaboration with our own vet and Glasgow Vet School to give Cass the best of treatments.

Needless to say she has kept her leg is still walking around with her ears pricked up and a very, very waggy tail.

Looking forward to chatting to everyone about our family of animals

What do homeopathic vets actually do ? Are they able to give conventional treatment too ?

I see holistic vet with my dog who has fits. I decided not to put him on normal meds who have damaging side effects. He is getting drops of remedy and herbal tablets.
He is still having his fits, but is his normal self 1/2 hr after. I read too many horror stories about the side effects for fits to put him through that.

There's a difference between a holistic vet and homeopathy. Homeopathy is largely hocum but holistic treatment can include a range of alternative treatments.

I've no issue with people using whatever kind of treatment they wish on their dogs, but homeopaths giving false hope for life threatening conditions I do not like.

Glad you got a positive result result with your grey, what was it that was used?

Even though my holistic Vet is also a qualified 'normal' vet, any other problems with my dogs I go to my normal Vet.

I am interested in this, I have never really used anything but conventional treatments on my dogs but have over the years become more and more worried about what we pump into them.

We now have three vets in our lives.
1. Our original conventional vet
2. Glasgow vet school - Oncologist and Surgeons
3. Holistic & Homeopathic vet who is also a 25 year qualified conventual vet and see clients and pets for normal (conventual) treatments if they don't need or want the holistic side.

All three vets work & communicate very well together and vets 1 & 2 have had their eye's opened and are learning so much that they are now going off to do their own research on how this is working for Cass.

On the holistic / homeopathic side Cass gets holistic supplements such as natural chemo which targets the cancer not healthy cells, immune building. pain killing supplements, diet advice etc... She is also on three types of homeopathy as i'm willing to try everything and just because I don't know how it works won't stop me using it

I recommend a book to anyone I know who has a dog even if they are not ill as it gives great advice on how to keep you dog healthy and prevent illness. It covers information about inoculations, keeping your dog mentally active as well as physically through to what to feed your dog. Its written by a vet who specialised in dog cancer care and has made a huge difference to the way we look after both of our girls and the cats.

The Dog Cancer Survival Guide by Dr Demian Dressler

It was recommended to us by our Holistic Vet.

Have lost 2 dogs to cancer, and was never given any hope of treatment, just that they needed to be euthanised ASAP.
That might have been the right thing, but I'd be interested in this book. I just wonder if, as with people there are risk factors that could be avoided, diet for example?

Same here. The vet said amputation and chemo, that wasnt a guarantee either. He said once the the dog is showing symptoms it has more than likely spread to the lungs. Our vet advised to PTS, he wouldnt do well as a tripod as he was a really big lad.

I read about a rottie that had osteo and they went down the amputation route, the dog suffered with infections in the wound and was very poorly from the chemo, it died 12 weeks later and the owner regrets putting the dog through all the trauma. That comforts me somehow, our lad didnt suffer for long.

I miss that big goofy boy.

It sounds like Lurchergirls has a really good team around her, hope it all works out for Cass.

Just been looking into this. My beautiful border collie has chronic bronchitis (though a lot of the time you wouldn't know it). She was put on oral steroids which did a real number on her - though I was assured it was a low dose. It seems my vet didn't think it was such an issue as my girl is 13 (though collies typically live till they are 15/16). I've now got her on inhaled steroids which are far safer. My vet wasn't even aware of the treatment - I got the info from a forum poster in the States. This person also recommended the holistic route. The nearest holistic vet is over an hours drive away - which was impossible for us in the hot summer. They are qualified conventional vets too. If I go ahead and register, they contact my vets for the records. So in a way they share the case.
As I understand it they do the full gamut of alternative therapies. Whereas my vet is so far the other way, she even rolled her eyes when I said I was making my own dog food.

Diet is a huge part of Cassie's treatment and we now have both dogs off all carbs as this feeds the cancer and other illness's. They still get treats but they are carb free and they love them

We were also told there was no hope for Cass but after i got over the shock of her diagnosis I hit the computer to find a way to help her. It a long story but so far so good and it has been a hard fight to get all her vets onboard especially the oncologist and surgeon's.

Hi JJ75, we were also told amputation & chemo and if we were lucky she might make it for 4 to 6 months as before it shows up in the leg it has normally spread throughout the body.

I did some research on line and put her on natural (human) treatment to hold the cancer at bay whilst I searched for a vet to help us. We have changed her protocols quite a few times but for now she is doing well and seems to have stabilised (fingers crossed)

We do have a great team around us but it's been hard work to convince some of the vets to work together and understand that this is what was going to happen.

I'm a therapist & coach so know how to do my research and was not going to take no for an answer, or be intimidated by them They were eventually given an ultimatum help our fur baby get through this with out amputation & chemical chemo or we walk.

They are now actively taking an interest in the holistic side as they can see the difference in Cass.

Yay!! they are waking up to the fact chemicals and surgery are not the only answer and they need to reassess how they work.

I keep reminding them that all pharmaceuticals were discovered & distilled from nature

I'm so sorry you lost your boy, don't know what i will do if this doesn't work for Cass

Our holistic vet is a 3 1/2 hours drive from us so after her initial visit we now do the consolations via Skype Ask them if they can do this for you, they also work closely with our own vet who passes on all her blood test results etc... so they are all up to date to give her the best treatment. It did take a long hard talk with our vet to get them to work with the holistic vet but now they all get on well and share information freely.

There are some great pet foods out there that are healthy (but are expensive), like you, we also make Cassie's food for her (our vet also rolled his eyes!!) but once in awhile she get orijen dry food or Ziwi Peak tinned. There are no carbs in either foods and they are all natural I also get offcuts from the butcher as treats for them.

Hope it all works out for you x

Thank you LG.
I have to watch her kidney values and the vet was more interested in selling me one of their very expensive 'prescription diets' - which turned her poo into hard green pellets So I got some advice off the net and now I make a weeks worth of main meals and freeze them.
She is getting on a bit to start on raw, so I tend to cook minced lamb or bone free chicken thighs, sweet potato, rice, pasta, well cooked broccoli or carrot, occasional liver/organ meat, egg whites. With calcium, B50, salmon oil, Vit E, milk thistle supplements. Topped up with occasional home made yoghurt and manuka honey.
That dog sometimes eats better than me!
After experimenting with various antihistamines (vet's suggestion) she is doing really well on otc generic Cetirizene.
But for breakfast I have been trying out various commercial foods and I like Harringtons - which you can find in some supermarkets and on Amazon.
Edit: Imo it takes strength and resolve to stand up to some of the more 'stuck in their ways' vets. I know someone who was advised to put down a young blind collie she had rescued 'because it would never settle'. That dog settled really well and is healthy and happy - you would hardly know he has no sight.

Haha, our vet said the same to me (dog eats better than most humans) with Cassie conditions the vet thinks raw world be too much for her to handle so we cook all her food but she gets raw treats (to clean her teeth).

Some vets are so set in their ways and to be honest we can't really blame them. If they have a busy practice and don't have time to research new treatments, so it's up to us to advise them and as long as they are willing to learn then there is hope for our furry family.

I did read that good quality British honey is as good as Manuka but unfortunately Cass is not allowed anything sweet or carb laden as it feeds the cancer, so she is on protein & low carb veg. But she does get cottage cheese as an occasional treat which she loves, she is such a spoilt dog

Reading this thread I honestly really don't know what to think......

The majority of alternative therapies for pets (cats and dogs specifically) is generally not too dissimilar to that of humans. Being said its mostly palliative as opposed to offering a chance of a long term cure or fx. No disrespect to you OP but I am deeply shocked as to how you have come to the conclusion carbs feed the cancer, when every living carnivore needs them as part of a balanced diet. I have looked at various journals and also spoken to my own vet and this is not something recommended. I am just astonished at how far fetched this all appears. Our cat has been treated by the best surgeons in the northwest, his diet has been crazy till we finally managed to find something that agrees with him, however not one was holistic alternatives suggested. We have a vet who is exceptionally well read and gifted, he mentioned the case of one animal who got cancer, it was sad it has appeared on the leg, he advised to the owners to put the animal to sleep soon so as to avoid pain. They went the apparent holistic route and sadly the animal died some months later but in pain. Research has shown holistic therapies do littler to ensure the long term survival of an already ill animal (or human for that matter). Please don't think I am verbally assaulting you, as someone who has extensive experience with poorly animals this is very much up in the clouds for me.

Maybe others experiences are different, but I have yet to see any longterm benefits of holistic care.

Where did you get the idea carbs are needed, I have (human) diabetes and carbs are death to me. Never in my life felt better than since I cut the carbs.

Have a dog who is gluten intolerant and when she put a bit of weight on we took her off carbs for a few weeks and again never seen a dog look so healthy. Sadly we ended up putting her back on carbs a bit as it's cheap and bulks out her food. But in principle I think we can all do with out carbs really.