Pampered Pooch?
By: Hope LaMonica, LMT

Dog Massage Benefits:

• Relieves Pain From Arthritis, Hip Dysplasia, Luxating Patella, and Other Ailments

• Alleviates Stress Caused by Separation Anxiety, Vet and Groomer Visits, Prior Abuse,  and Loss of Another Pet

• Loosens Tight Muscles from Playing, Training, and Practicing Agility

• Prepares Body For Surgery and Cuts Recovery Time Post Surgery

• Increases Circulation and Lymphatic Drainage to Improve Overall Health

I have been practicing veterinary medicine for twenty seven-years. About fourteen years ago I had become very disappointed and frustrated with the results I was getting in my patients. The training I had received in school and continuing education did not provide me with the tools to cure disease. I thought it was just myself initially. Maybe I hadn't been paying attention in school. I must have missed out on some important lectures or courses. But I soon discovered that no one else was curing diseases with our medical training. We were treating symptoms and making them, “disappear”, only to have these symptoms come back again in a short time. We were not addressing the root cause of the symptoms. 

Then I began a journey in alternative therapies and it became abundantly clear that nutrition was the most important therapy or modality that anyone could do to improve their pet's health as well as their own. I think it is ludicrous that nutrition is considered an alternative therapy, but let's forget semantics and make the best of the situation. In veterinary school I was taught a lot about medicine and surgery, but unfortunately very little information was given about nutrition and twenty-seven years later I am sorry to say not much has changed.

Today I believe a balanced raw food diet is the only way to feed our pet companions though I did not always think that way. I believe good nutrition is the foundation for good health. Over the years I continue to ask pet owners, “What did dogs and cats eat before we were here?” Many times I do not get answers, but my hope is to stimulate people to think about the question. Ignore all the advertising and put away what everyone else tells you. In fact I want you to doubt what I am telling you now and try to prove me wrong. Conduct your own research and get the facts. When I have clients pursue this course of action, I see that people discover the truth for themselves. As they say the truth will set you free, but in this case it will make you and your pet healthy.