Recommended Wellness Products
These are products I have researched, like, and use myself, so wanted to share the recommendations with you.
Some I have at the Live Events, but do not usually sell directly online.
For Anxious Pets:
I would like to offer a few products that I personally have
found to be helpful in caring for my own dogs’ anxieties through the
years. My goal at home was always to take advantage of natural sensory
experiences to help my furry ones find a zen place of calm. With that
in mind I tried to be ever-mindful to incorporate soothing smells,
sounds, touch, sights and tastes…..
Dog Appeasing Pheromone (D.A.P.)
Pheromones are natural chemicals within animals that affect animal
behavior. Female dogs naturally produce a calming and tranquilizing
pheromone 3 to 5 days after they give birth to their puppies. This dog
appeasing pheromone is responsible for giving the newborn puppies the
message of constant security, safety, and reassurance. To use dog
appeasing pheromone therapeutically, synthetic pheromones by a dog via a
spray or diffuser to produce a calming effect on one part of the brain
that is connected to the dog’s emotion and memory (the limbic system).
This, in turn, helps shift behavior.
This natural mild tranquilizer for dogs is helpful in times of
anxiety and stress. Through mimicking this scent, we help give our dogs
the feeling of care and reassurance passed by a mother to her puppies.
DAP for Dogs
( cat version )
Pet Essential Oils
Essential oils are to a plant as blood is to a person. They are
its life force It is imperative that every living organism have a way
to take in nourishment and clean out built up toxins in order to
maintain balance, also known as homeostasis. A “pure” oil still
contains this quantum energy, or chi, by way of careful harvesting,
distilling, and packaging.
Oils magnify the energy of your intention. Thoughts have energy
and each step further (as with using essential oils) shifts the
frequency further – from want, to hope, to belief, to knowing, to
living. Smell (olfactory) affects the brain’s limbic system which is
the seat of emotion and memory. The sense of smell is even more
developed in animals than people.
Essential oils can be used in different ways – such as inhalation,
ingestion and topically. Depending on the oil and the animal, some are
used “neat” (straight oil) and sometimes used with a carrier oil (such
as vegetable, almond, coconut, olive, jojoba, etc). It is important to
look on the oil’s bottle to go by each’s specific directions. With
essential oils, a little goes a long way. If you are ever uncertain,
dilute and start with the lowest effective amount. (See education on
essential oils for mixing ratios and safety.) Also, when first using
any new oil, watch your animal’s reactions to see which they like best.
Learn about essential oils
purchase essential oils
Music: Through A Dog’s Ear
The music of Through a Dog’s Ear is based on the psycho-acoustic
research (study of the effect of sound and music on the nervous system)
of Dr. Alfred Tomatis who discovered that sound acts as a “nutrient for
the nervous system”.
These recordings are designed to support a dog’s compromised immune
or nervous system function. When these systems are stressed, a common
response is to limit the amount of auditory or visual stimulation we
allow into our system. However, these “nutrients” of sound are needed
most when life energy is at a low level. The intricacies of
conventional music can be overstimulating for a dog’s depleted system to
take. Fortunately, the psychoacoustic theory behind Through a Dog’s
Ear music is intentionally selected, arranged and recorded to provide
easeful auditory assimilation of simple sounds to facilitate relaxation
Rescue Remedy for Pets
RESCUE Remedy® Pet is an alcohol free variation of the original
stress relieving formula. It can be used to create a calming effect in a
stressful situation, or when your pet needs help overcoming emotional
or behavioral problems. It contains a blend of 5 of the 38 Bach®
Original Flower Remedies, developed by Dr. Edward Bach, that help your
pet cope with different emotional aspects of stressful situations:
– Rock Rose for terror and panic
– Impatiens for irritation and impatience
– Clematis for inattentiveness and lack of interest
– Star of Bethlehem for shock or trauma
– Cherry Plum for a lack of self-control
It can be easily administered by placing 4 drops in your pet’s food,
water bowl or on a treat. Common uses include separation anxiety, fear
of loud noises, travel anxiety, visits to the groomer or vet, and
adapting to new surroundings.
Anxiety Pressure Wraps
A safe, drug-free way of helping with generalized anxiety,
situationally specific fear, and over-excitement by applying gentle
constant pressure to the animal’s body. These can be acquired
exaggerated responses to stimuli due to past experiences. First
studied by Dr. Temple Grandin, “controlled pressure” therapy helps
alleviate anxiety through calming sensory receptors, which then helps
decrease heartrate, allowing relaxation. When the animal receives this
new information, its awareness and focus can change, resulting in the
animal “letting go” of the old responses and allowing them to relax.
The constant gentle pressure of being wrapped gives the dog a feeling of
safety and comfort.
Autism researcher Temple Grandin, who herself was an autistic
child, was inspired by how cattle calmed down while being gently
squeezed in a chute when receiving shots. Building on this idea, she
developed what she called a “hug machine”. As stated by Temple Grandin
“When I saw how calm the cattle got from the pressure on their bodies, I
built my own squeeze machine, and it calmed my anxiety the same way.”
The hug machine helped maintain constant pressure and proved to be
effective in soothing the anxiety of autistic people. In this same way, a
pressure wrap is a way to give the maintained pressure and contact that
the dog craves for in times of anxiety.
Slow-Feeding Pet Bowls
When dogs are nervous or agitated it can impact the way they eat –
sometimes avoiding food and sometimes gulping it much too quickly.
Since fast gulping of food or water can result in negative health issues
(regurgitation, bloat), it’s important to find ways to slow down their
rate of intake. These differently shaped bowls encourage that slower
rate of intake for our gulpers, and can offer the distraction of a
different, more positive form of brain stimulation.
Zukes Skinny Bakes
Desensitization training is part of helping to minimize a dog’s
anxieties. Positive rewards are an important piece to that training.
However, we also keep mindful how much we feed our dogs so that they
maintain an optimal weight. I found these to be fantastic because my
dogs loved the taste and crunch, yet I knew each only had 2-5 calories
so I could use them to reward without worry.
Nutritional Supplements:
Just like us, our pets benefit from maximizing nutrition though high
quality foods. For those who need an extra boost for various health
issues, nutritional supplements can be helpful. Check with your
veterinarian first to see if these might be recommended for your pet.
|
Composure by VetriScience: Contains Vitamin B1, L-Theanine and colostrum working synergistically to help calm anxious pets. | |
For Dogs | For Cats |
|
Nordic Natural Pet: Contains Omgega-3 Essential Fatty Acids protective nutrients to help skin, coat, joints, brain, and immune system: | |
small dog/cats: | med/large dog: |
| ( I recommend using a Syringe with bottle adaptor for liquid supplements that don’t include a dropper. ) | |
|
Dasuquin: Contains Glucosamine, Chondroitin, Avocado/Soybean and MSM as chondro-protective nutrients for joint health: | |
For Dogs | For Cats |
For Dogs with Special Needs:
Orthopedic Beds
For dogs who need extra support for their joints due to aging or injury.
Pet Stairs
To ease strain on joints getting up & down from beds and couches.
Pet Slings
This sling is a helpful lifting aid for situations when your pet needs extra assist in movement.
Support Harnesses
Sometimes, due to injury or age, your pet may need assistance
getting up, walking, or navigating stairs. It’s safest for both of you
to use a support harness to do this. You can find harnesses that
support just their back end, just their front end, or both. This allows
them to still utilize the muscles in their strong areas, will allowing
assistance for their weak or sore areas.
Booties
Helps dogs with limb weakness who need help not slipping on floors or injuring their paws if they drag outside on the ground.
Braces
If an animal has an injured joint, such as a torn ACL (knee/stifle
injury) they will need to reduce weight bearing on that area. Depending
on the advice of your vet, if some weight bearing is allowed, a joint
brace can be helpful to give a little extra support and stability. Hero
is a Midwestern company founded by a veterinarian,
orthoptist/prosthetist and amputee who have managed to adapt the design
of human joint braces to pets. Your own veterinarian should be involved
as well.
(For chronic joint instability that just need a little extra support from time to time, you can try a compression wrap.)
Mobility Carts
For more severe, chronic injury resulting in paralysis (or amputation),
a mobility cart can be helpful. Just as a person in that situation
benefits from the use of a wheelchair to maintain functional mobility,
so too can a dog with front or back leg paralysis (or amputation). These
carts will be custom-made for your pet so that the size fits them
perfectly and allows them to regain their own functional mobility. Even
if you live far away, they can work with you to get measurements and
ship it right to you. Eddie was an engineer who began developing these
amazing mobility carts for their own dogs who needed this assistance.
He and his wife Leslie are extremely helpful and can help answer any
questions you may have about it, so don’t hesitate to contact them if
you are considering it.
Pet Loss: Support & Rememberance:
Pet Loss Support Articles
White Rose Pet Memorial Services
Pet Memorial Jewelry:
None of us ever want to think about losing our pets, even though we know
in our hearts their souls stay connected to us forever. Memorial
jewelry and keepsake urns are concrete ways to keep their ashes close to
us throughout the rest of our lives. Block Jewelry is a locally
owned and operated jewelry store in Agawam, Massachusetts. Gary Block
is also soon coming out with his own line of pet memorial jewelry which
will offer breed specific pendants, in addition to the paw, bone and
heart pendants they currently carry.