I have now been sick for three weeks and counting. (See the post Sick as a Dog.) After seeing numerous specialists and staring at the possibility of some pretty unpleasant diagnoses, I still feel in good spirits about the whole thing.

Why? When I come home from a doctor’s offices, arms bruised from having vials of blood drawn, when I wake up from a nap with chills and fevers, my Louis is there to give me slobbery kisses, comfort me, snuggle with me and generally just be a warm body next to me.

The healing power of pets is not a new concept. According to statistics, a study of 92 patients hospitalized in coronary care units for angina or heart attack found that those who owned pets were more likely to be alive a year later then those who did not. The study found that only 6 percent of patients who owned pets died within one year compared with 28 percent of those who did not own pets (info from holisticonline.com).

Our interactions with other people, even those we love, can often aid in stress reduction. However, human interaction is complex and peppered with expectations and unpredictable outcomes.

Pet therapy is becoming increasingly popular amongst senior citizens, the mentally ill and terminally ill patients. With animals, interaction is simple. They coax out of us mutual nurturing feelings and with our pets, there is no judgement. We can let go of our own hangups as we are unconditionally accepted by our animal friends, resulting in a reduction of loneliness. Anyone who has had the flu or even a minute bout with depression can attest to the lonesome feelings that arise within us when we are suffering. Compare that to those who suffer from serious and chronic health issues!

Pets also induce relaxation. By negating negative emotions, our pets truly have the power to help us heal, as even in the most dire of circumstances, positivity is a proven pathway to wellness.

Technically referred to as Animal Assisted Therapy, dogs can become certified as Therapy Dogs, trained to provide attention and comfort while working in a variety of different environments with people who can benefit.

Dogs can:

• lower blood pressue
• elevate moods
• supply social interaction
• owners of dogs get more exercise then their non dog-owning counterparts

The merit of pet ownership is tremendous, but interaction in a therapeutic setting is also enough to warrant what has become an integral part of many therapeutic programs across the country.

The dogs themselves also benefit! Our furry pals serve a variety of functions in our society, as seeing eye dogs, police dogs, bomb or drug sniffing dogs, herding, search and rescue and more. Working stimulates a dog’s senses and helps to fufill their original and primary function as working human companions.

Dogs are meant to work, by giving them a job, even if its more along the lines of obedience training, agility competition, playing vigorous games of fetch or whatever seems to suit your dog’s personality and breed, enables the dog to fulfill this instinct, resulting in a calmer and more balanced pet.

If your dog’s temperament is suited to being a therapy dog, check out the following links below and don’t hesitate to volunteer.

Everybody wins!

Valentine’s dog toy available at www.sassydog.com

Bookmark It

The day before Christmas, I was in my first car accident. It was really not a big deal in the scheme of things, just superficial damage to my car and the car I hit (it was totally my fault), and thankfully, nobody was hurt.

The couple whose car I hit were on their way to a family Christmas party, and pretty peeved about the unplanned delay. Louis was with me (as per usual), he was safely belted in, but he seemed pretty jarred from the thud of the accident.

After we all calmed down, and I apologized profusely through tears, we exchanged information and began making the obligatory calls, the police (so I could get my ticket), our insurance companies, etc. While on the phone with my insurance company, Progressive, an extremely kind woman was taking down the information she needed for them claim when Louis let out a few whimpers from inside my car.”Is that your dog?” she asked. “Yes, he was buckled in and he is just a little scared,” I answered.

Then, the most unexpected thing happened. The woman on the other end of the line asked me to check my dog for injuries, as Progressive had recently added coverage for their customer’s pets. I checked Louis out and said he seemed fine and the woman let me know that if he or I showed signs of injury later and either of us needed to seek medical care, I should let the insurance company know as my policy covered us both.

As Lou is my soul-pup, my heart, my very hairy baby, I felt so very validated that my car insurance seemed to see it the same way! According to Progressive’s website, pets are indeed a part of our families and deserve collision coverage like we have. An article on MSNBC states, the Progressive benefit has been in place since Sept. 6, and it’s still too soon to determine if the company’s undetermined cost of offering it will be offset by better sales, Progressive spokeswoman Leah Knapp said.

Clearly this is a strategy to get an edge in the highly competitive car insurance market. If this becomes a successful strategy, other insurance companies may adopt the policy. There are over 150 million pets in the U.S., and Americans spend over $40 billion on their pets annually, according to a recent Insurance Information Institute study. Given that, it does seem a natural extension of our coverage, especially since pets traveling with their families is becoming more and more commonplace.

Pet Injury Coverage - Get to Know Progressive

Visit progressive.com for additional information on car insurance.

Bookmark It

Welcome to the new “CupOFdog.com” website (formerly “The Canine Bark“).

If you love dogs you’ll love CupOFdog!

Enjoy

Bookmark It

As we choose pet food for our companions, we look at the label for guidance, for content information and for the balance of nutrients that are necessary for our pet’s diet.

The label we see on dog foods stating that they are ‘complete and balanced’ may make the consumer feel as though they are doing the best for their pet.

In order to be labeled as a complete and balanced diet, the feed must meet standards established by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). The food is determined to be complete and balanced by undergoing a nutrient profile analysis or by passing a feeding trial. The established standards include recommendations on the content of the food regarding fat soluble vitamins, fat, water soluble vitamins, protein and the mineral content of the pet food.

According to Dr. Ian Billinghurst’s book, Give Your Dog a Bone, the current legal standards for the nutritional makeup of pet food are such that “It is possible to produce a pet food based on shoe leather, sump oil, coal and water which is analyzed will be found to meet the legal requirements necessary for it to be sold as pet food,” (Billinghurst, pg. 40.)

Dr. Billinghurst’s assertation is not only disturbing, it shows the danger of trusting the government organizations whose goals are to establish feed standards for our pets.

The United States Food and Drug Administration has released a regulation on pet food in the wake of the recall crisis.

Click here to read it in its entirety.

To summarize, the regulation calls for “pet foods, like human foods, be pure and wholesome, contain no harmful or deleterious substances.”

Instead, much of the scrap material from the human food industry is being used for pet foods. How can the leftovers determined not for use in human grade products live up to the FDA’s claim that pet food should be pure and wholesome?

Back to the pet food label - the ingredients listed at the top are the ‘heaviest’ ingredients, meaning that these are the ingredients that comprise the largest percentage of the feed.

If those ingredients are biologically inappropriate (items like meat by-product meal, corn, soybean meal and animal fat often top the ingredients list), you can imagine the internal damage we are doing to our companions.

Look for foods that have ingredients that are wholesome, biologically appropriate, human grade and organic. Born Free USA - Animal Protection Institute has assembled a ‘how to’ guide in selecting commercial pet foods. I advise all pet owners to click here, read the article and adhere to higher standards then that which the United States government organizations claim as complete and balanced nutrition.

image of Dr. Billighurst via www.drianbillinghurst.com, image of pet food via Born Free USA, United with Animal Protection Institute.

Bookmark It

A Brief History of Westminster

According the the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show website, the name ‘Westminster’ stems from a long gone New York Hotel by the same name, where a group of affluent dog enthusiasts gathered for drinks at the hotel bar and shared stories of their sporting dog’s accomplishments. The Westminster Kennel Club, was then established with the aim of increasing interest in dogs, improving breeds and the club sought to hold an annual dog show in New York City.

Why so much interest in Westminster? According to David Frei, the voice of the kennel club for the past 19 years, “The basic answer is, Westminster is great dog show. It’s all the greatest dogs in the same place at the same time, and that’s the only time that happens every year.”Of course, there are those who feel that dog shows are exorbitant contests for dogs who would likely be more content performing the duties for which they were originally bred. Like any sport, there are also egos and greedy participants to contend with who certainly do not have the dog’s best interest at heart.

The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, with its two day live telecast offers millions of viewers an opportunity for dog enthusiasts to learn about American Kennel Club recognized breeds and their origins. The club also uses this opportunity to educate about responsible dog ownership.That said, it is still a competition. Every dog who is ruled worthy to compete at Westminster has already earned numerous championship titles. For those who participate in dog showing, it is far more then a hobby, it is a lifestyle.

So, Is Your Dog Westminster Material?

First and foremost, dogs who are intended for showing are bred by serious breeders who have AKC registered dogs, most likely champions from past shows. In hopes of producing the next generation of champions, this lineage can play a large role in the potential of a litter.

Show dogs are kept ‘intact’ meaning they are not spayed or neutered so that as they earn championship titles, male dogs with prestige can be put up for stud and champion bitches can whelp more champions.

Breeding show dogs is truly a non profit endeavor and a labor of love, as the time, energy and cost of care it takes to produce champion purebred dogs far outweighs the fee a breeder will get when selling a puppy. More then likely, breeders financially find themselves ‘in the red’ when they are serious about improving the breed standard.

Show dogs must be socialized from an early age so that they are not overwhelmed by unfamiliar circumstances, loud noises and other distractions they would prevent success in the show ring.

They must be groomed to perfection, showcasing their conformation to the breed standard and have the personality that shines in a show ring. Dogs bred from championship lineage do not always have what it takes to make it to Westminster, but that’s why so many enthusiasts love them as pets or compete in agility or obedience trials rather then traditional dog shows.

Showing The Mixed Breed

As dogs in shelters need homes, those who rescue them often still wish to participate in the social scene of dog shows. Just because she isn’t purebred, doesn’t mean he isn’t show quality!

To the right, see Libby, the most beautiful Schnauzer/ Shih Tzu mix, owned by my dear friend, Rachelle. Nobody better tell us Libby isn’t show quality!

Various organizations, supporting these pet owners have established clubs, shows and trials for your unique dog. Two major clubs that are involved in promoting the showing of mixed breeds are:

Westminster Kennel Club Ad, Westminster Hotel and Westminster show ring images via www.westminsterkennelclub.org

Image of Libby via Rachelle Campell

Bookmark It

Today, Februrary 7, 2008 a United States federal grand jury handed down indictments relating to last years pet food recall. According to prosecutors, two Chinese businessman, top executives at a U.S. company are being charged in connection to the tainted pet foods which were responsible for illness and death of pets across the country. The indictments are a result of the investigation that took place in the wake of 2007’s pet food recall.

According to the prosecutors, the toxic wheat gluten was not labeled for use as a raw material for food when it was shipped to the United States, thereby avoiding inspection. The accused are being incriminated over the claim that approximately 800 metric tons of wheat gluten containing the chemical melamine was imported, falsely labeled and then distributed to pet food manufacturers resulting in death and illness of thousands of pets.

Researchers have found melamine and related compounds to cause kidney failure in animals fed products containing contaminated wheat gluten. Until the recent food recalls, it was not routine to monitor for melamine, possibly because of the previously assumed low toxicity of the chemical or the expense of detection.

It is my hope, that those responsible for this tragedy will be disciplined to the full extent that the law allows; warning companies, nationally and internationally, of the consequences of endangering lives through compromising the quality of products used for feed.

For the complete story on the companies involved and the people being faced with the indictments, please visit cnn.com for the complete story.

Image via Haute Diggety Dog, available for purchase at www.trixieandpeanut.com.

Bookmark It

In some devastating news from overseas, Cpl. Dustin Lee, a 20 year old Marine serving in Iraq was killed in a mortar attack. Beside him, Lex, an 8-year-old bomb-sniffing German Shepherd refused to leave his handler, Lee, after the attack, though Lex himself was gravely injured in the attack.

Although some shrapnel still remains in Lex’s body, he has since recovered from his wounds. Cpl. Lee’s father lobbied to adopt the dog, so that Lex could live out his life with Lee’s family as a retired Marine K9. On December 13, 2007 Lex was released from duty to live with Lee’s family. Lex’s release marks the first time the Marines have released a dog before retirement age (10 years of age).

For almost five months before the fatal attack Cpl. Lee and Lex were stationed in Falluja. Cpl. Dustin Lee had always had a connection with animals. After joining the Marines, Cpl. Lee, worked training military police dogs. At the base he worked training military K9’s, his skills led Cpl. Lee became the kennel master.

Now Lex is a member of his handler’s family, and they honor and remember Cpl. Lee through his companion, Lex. Let us honor and remember the fallen who serve our country and allow Lex and Cpl. Lee’s relationship to be a continued reminder to all of the unbreakable bond between man and dog, even in the most devastating of circumstances.

Click here to read the full article on CNN.

Image of Cpl. Dustin Lee and Lex via www.cnn.com

Bookmark It

Continuing on the important subject of enzymes in our pet’s diets, I wanted to address the subjects of raw feeding and the benefits for all pets in using an enzyme supplement.

Raw Feeding and Enzymes

Raw feeding is often referred to as a ‘live diet’. This is referring to the fact that added preservatives, cooking and processing pet food destroys and alters nutrients. Raw meat is a chock full of enzymes and amino acids, that, together with a dog’s internal makeup, result in the healthiest companion you can imagine. I recomend the new book by Robert Mueller (of BARFWorld, Inc.), “Living Enzymes: The Best Kept Pet Food Secret” for an in depth analysis on the topic.

Enzyme Supplements

As dogs transition to a raw diet, supplementing with enzymes can assist them as they begin to produce the enzymes needed to digest this new diet. Enzyme supplements enhance the enzymes present in raw diets and enable more complete digestion, prevent gas, bloating and they regulate bowl movements.

For dogs who are eating a commercially prepared diet of kibble, enzyme are a vital supplement since these vital live enzymes are killed during the processing of traditional kibble. All pets, regardless of diet, can benefit from an enzyme supplement to improve absorption and utilization of nutrients.

There are plenty of great supplements on the market, however, I use Prozyme for Louis.

According to the manufacturer:

PROZYME® is a combination of four highly concentrated and purified natural plant-derived enzymes (lipases, amylases, proteases, and cellulases). All ingredients are of human grade quality. PROZYME® is not a drug and will not interfere with any medication or therapy. In fact, PROZYME® will enhance any therapy that your pet is presently receiving and should be used as part of therapy preventive care regimen.

The four main ingredients in Prozyme are:

Lipase is the enzyme to digest fats. Lipase works throughout the digestive process to break down the fats and lipids (fatty acids) in our diet to make them easier to absorb. Fats are the most difficult component of the diet to digest. Fats are also a major source of fuel for the heart muscle. In addition, our body relies on certain essential fatty acids that can only be derived from food.

Amylase is an enzyme found in human saliva and functions primarily as a starch-dissolving enzyme. Amylase is the first enzyme to take starch in our food and break it down into simple sugars which can be more easily absorbed. Starch refers to carbohydrates found in plants (grains). Amylase is the digestive enzyme needed to digest carbohydrates. Carbohydrates in food are an important and immediate source of energy for the body.

Protease is the general term for an enzyme that breaks down proteins. Proteins are molecules that make up much of our living tissue, including our muscles and our internal systemic enzymes. Certain proteins can only be provided through our food. If we have an inadequate means of breaking these down with proteases, we would suffer from what is known as “protein malnutrition”. Much of our body wouldn’t be able to function properly without essential amino acids from absorbable protein.

Cellulase is an enzyme, which breaks down non-digestible fiber found in fruits & vegetables. Many minerals found in the fiber of fruits, vegetables and grains can be absorbed better with the addition of cellulose. Since humans poorly digest cellulose fiber, taking a digestive enzyme product, like Tyme Zyme, is not only necessary, but also vital for good health.

Guess what? Enzyme supplements are not only beneficial for your pet, but for you, his faithful caretaker as well!

Louis and I wish everyone happy digestion!

image of Rob Mueller’s book via www.barfworld.com, image and info regarding Prozyme via www.prozymestore.com

Bookmark It

Recently, Louis’ daddy and I encountered one of the biggest relationship hurdles - politics; specifically the 2008 presidential election. Originally from Washington D.C., I spent my formative years entrenched in political issues, lobbyists, vetoes and candidates. I even volunteered with a number of non-for-profits on Capitol Hill.

After moving from D.C., I pretty much shunned the whole political scene in favor of, well, dogs.

My husband is highly political and has been following the primaries with the intensity of a scent hound tracking prey. Last night, after realizing I was so out of the loop, I was unable to hold an intelligent discussion regarding the election with him, I began trolling the internet in search of information.

I stumbled upon a goldmine - www.mypoliticalpet.com. This fantastically funny website offers the ability to ‘register’ your pet to vote, follow issues and compare candidates. You can see Louis’ profile by clicking here. Talk about appealing to a whole new breed of voters!

In addition to relevant political news, the site offers up detailed information on issues that affect American pets and animals. Detailed on the site are the Federal Pet Safety and Protection Act, the Dog and Cat Fur Prohibition Enforcement Act, the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act and the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act. Read all about these issues and more in detail by clicking here.

Its great that imaginative politicos out there are finding ways to appeal to all types of people, finding ways of relating to untapped markets. The quickest way to many people’s heart is through their pets. My Political Pet combines pets and politics while raising funds for animal shelters. The site has been featured in the Miami Herald’s Crazy for Critters blog (click here to read the article).

As animal nutrition is a passion of mine, I am hopeful that pet loving politicos and organizations such as this one will call upon government regulators to raise the standards for pet food manufacturing, requiring the use of human-grade products in pet foods and calling upon the FDA and AAFCO to investigate the reality of their minimal animal feed standards and the impact it is having on the health of our pets.

Finally, in Animal Planet’s blog, Pet Trends with Maggie and Dixie, a recent post details the companion animals of each of the candidates! Click here to see which candidates snuggle up with a pup or two after a long day on the campaign trail.

Now, an informed, registered voter, I am more prepared for election day and am happy to have found a way to relate to the election (and my husband) through my love of dogs!

my political pet logo and political puppy image via mypoliticalpet.com, Dr. Ian Billighurst logo via drianbillinghurst.com

Bookmark It

I have spoken a lot about the necessity of enzymes in a dog’s diet, but haven’t gotten around to explaining what enzymes are, how they work and why they are important. Let me lead off by saying - enzymes can regulate your pup’s poop! Anything that does that is okay in my book!

What Is an Enzyme?

An enzyme is a protein, made up of amino acids, that act as catalysts to speed chemical reactions and processes inside the body. Digestive enzymes, the type I am referring to when writing about canine nutrition, are specifically geared to break down food so that it can be absorbed by the organism that ingested it. Without enzymes, the chemical processes necessary to absorb nutrients would happen very slowly, or not at all. These enzymes are secreted in glands in your dog’s stomach, your dog’s salivary glands, glands in the small intestines and in the pancreas.

How do Enzymes do Their Duty?

There are different types of enzymes and each has a special function and works in its own unique way. Enzymes are crucial to every aspect of an organisms function, as they activate all bodily functions and break down substances and eliminate unwanted chemicals, among other things.

Food is basically a bunch of chemicals that must broken down by the enzymes, which are required to unbind the nutrients, move them throughout the organism so it can make use of them. So, the reaction facilitated by the enzymes is the release of nutrients, unlocking the benefits of all of the vitamins, proteins, hormones and minerals. Enzymes are the instigator for these chemical processes, but on their own, enzymes aren’t going to do anything.

Unlock the full potential of your dog’s diet by looking for ways to incorporate enzymes into your dog’s diet and look forward to The Poop Chronicles Vol. VI, which will discuss supplementing your dogs diet and the potential of enzyme support for BARFers out there.

Louis and I wish everyone happy digestion!

enzyme image via washington.edu

Bookmark It