A Path With Paws

My friend Rose just emailed to let me know that she still has openings in her Level 1 Reiki class offered on September 11 and 12th. Rose is an incredible reiki practitioner and has worked on three of my cats, one of my dogs and me. I always was a little skeptical about reiki before meeting Rose, not because I didn’t believe in energy work but because I had meet some practitioners who I wouldn’t want anywhere near me or my patients. Rose changed my mind about all of that.

When my cat, Ziggy, was dying last year her treatments were the only thing that made him feel better and she got us through a very difficult time with him. My animals love her work and it makes a large difference in how they feel. I could not recommend anyone better to learn this art from. Reiki is an incredible gift to be able to give your loved ones, both animal and human.

Here is the link to the class description, Reiki level 1.

Did you know that one out of seven dachshunds will become paralyzed in their lifetime? That many older dogs and cats suffer from strokes and vestibular disease in their old age? That seizures are so common in some breeds that they can affect 15-20% of the breed?

Neurologic problems are quite common in our companion animals and are some of the most expensive and frustrating problems to deal with. Often times the only way to diagnose these problems is with a MRI, which can cost $1000 and requires your animal to be under anesthesia. Many times in older animals the risk of anesthesia to too great and these problems go undiagnosed.

I am often surprised that veterinarians do not offer alternative options for working with these neurologic problems. Many times the only things western medicine can offer are expensive surgeries, a lifetime of drugs, or steroids with their many side effects.

For example, traditionally a course of treatment for paralysis, back pain or paresis in a dachshund would include steroids, months of cage only confinement and possibly an expensive surgery. While surgery is a good option in some cases, especially if there is no deep pain, it has it’s own set of risks including that sometimes it does not solve the problem and can actually make things worse.

But there are other options out there!

Let’s talk about the dachshunds first! I love working with dachshunds!

They are some of the best responders to acupuncture out there. In fact I have never worked with a dachshund who did not respond to acupuncture. And they really seem to understand that you are helping them. I have been able to work with dachshunds who were completely paralyzed and with acupuncture and herbs have had them back to walking in as little as three acupuncture treatments! Wow!

OK just to be realistic, most take longer than that but the majority can be gotten back on there feet as long as they still have deep pain. Meaning that if you squeeze a back toe really hard with a surgical hemostat they can feel it. On average I would say it takes four to six months of weekly treatments.

Of course it’s not all dachshunds and I have worked with other animals with paralysis including cats and all breeds of dogs. Of these others, I would say about 90% have had a positive response. That’s still pretty good!

Even better is if I can get these animals with paralysis to hydrotherapy. Swimming helps keep the muscles working well while we are getting the nerves to work again and helps keep the muscle mass from wasting away. Dachshunds and other dogs can be amazing little swimmers and it gives these animals a way to move on there own if they can’t support their weight on land.

Unfortunately for cats this is not an option as you can well imagine!

I often work with Wellsprings in Seattle, Washington but there are more and more hydrotherapy clinics opening up around the world.

I can’t tell you how rewarding it is to be able to work with these amazing creatures to help their body to heal and to see them be able to walk again.

Here are some wonderful resources on disabled pets

• Handicapped Pets is a great site for disabled pet supplies and runs the best forums for people with special needs animals. I have had some time to hang out and participate on these forums and these folks not only are super educated on the options out there for working with these animals but have amazing stories about their own very loved handicapped companions. It is a great place to go for education and for support from others going through the same thing.
• One of the dogs I treat has his own blog. Buddy’s blog is a great place to check out the story of a very cool little dachshund and one of my favorite patients.

Soon to come neurologic problems in older animals and seizure disorder.

As gunshots rang out, he fell from his horse bleeding from where the bullet had entered his chest. As blood ran from the wound, he could feel his life slowly slipping away. Images of his small daughter and wife, who were both far away, ran through his mind.

Quickly he reached for the vial, opening it to swallow the small red pill within and then taking the powder beneath it he quickly poured it in to the fresh wound. His breathing started to return to normal and he felt like he would be able to make it off the battlefield to find help. There was still some bleeding from the wound but no longer enough to take his life.

Sound like something from a fantasy movie? Surprisingly it isn’t.

Yunnan Baiyao is a special formula know to every Chinese herbalist. It was developed in 1902 in China and has been an important remedy ever since. The formula is owned by the Chinese government and the secret of what exactly is in the magic red pill is highly guarded. It is rumored that it is made from gallstones cultivated in very special cows among other things but even the workers in the factories do not know exactly what is in it.

I have used Yunnan Baiyao a number of times and been highly impressed with how well it works.

When my husband first moved in with me his cat, Sabutai, was suffering from horrible mouth cancer. One day which he was eating, the tumor in his mouth began to hemorrhage. In a matter of seconds there was blood all over the bathroom and he was just a small cat. Not knowing exactly what to do, I rushed to the medicine cabinet and grabbed one of the little red pills and pushed it down his throat. Within 60 seconds the bleeding had almost completely stopped and he did not hemorrhage again for the rest of his illness.

Another time I was at the vet clinic I used to work at and saw one of my old clients in the waiting room with their older dog, Alki. They quickly explained that they had just found out that Alki had a large tumor on her spleen that was bleeding into her abdomen and that she needed emergency surgery and most likely a blood transfusion. I quickly ran home and grabbed a vial of Yunnan Baiyao and brought it back. We administered the small red pill before she went into surgery and not only did she get through the surgery well and not need a blood transfusion but the surgeon was surprised at how little bleeding there was considering what was happening.

So why don’t we all have a vial of Yunnan Baiyao sitting around for emergencies? I’m not sure. I know I do!

In our family we often use the powder for any kind of cut or wound. It is not only good at stopping the bleeding but helps keep wounds from getting infected and is not painful to apply like many of the wound cleaning agents. It is safe and can be licked and eaten by cats and dogs without worry.

But isn’t it expensive you ask? Guarded by the Chinese government and that effective!

No! Usually you can buy Yunnan Baiyao for about $6.00 for a vial or a package of 16 pills of powder. Both contain one red pill. They even sell it on Amazon.com!

When are the best times to use it?

If an animal is going into surgery, especially if there is concern about excessive bleeding, I recommend giving the powder or capsules of powder for three days before and after the surgery. The little red pill can be given right before surgery but while the animal is still awake. Dosage depends on the size of your animal (except the red pill). Cats usually do better with the powder mixed with a little water in a syringe because the capsules are too larger for them to swallow where dogs usually do better with the capsules unless they are very small.

Yunnan BaiYao can also be used in many of the end stage diseases where surgery is not an option but there is bleeding in the body which can not be controlled. The powder capsules are used for this and the red pill once again only for emergency.

There are also many reports of it clearing up existing infections and can be safely poured directly into wounds. Although if a wound is infected I usually reach for the antibiotics.

Yunnan Bai Yao can safely be used in any cut or wound although deep wounds should be evaluated to see if sutures are needed. Yunnan Bai Yao will actually promote healing and help a wound to close faster.

My good friend Pamela made the news while I was away. Here is the story and news clip, Seattle woman helping feral cats.

Pamela does more to help these feral animals than anyone I know.

It is so nice to see real people doing good work make the news!

By the way Pamela is looking for translators in the Seattle area to help her work with some of the immigrant communities and can always use help socializing and fostering feral kittens. If you can help contact her at feraltrapping (at) gmail (dot) com .

Why do some many of our domesticated animals have floppy ears and spots? Have you ever stopped to wonder why you almost never see these traits in wild animals yet if you look at domesticated cats, dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, horses, cows, and pigs they are very common?

It turns out that these are some of the physical changes that are brought out when animals are selected for domestication in any species. Not only that, but in two or three generations animals can radically change their physical traits and appearance when humans select in this way.

Here is a fascinating article, Clever as a fox, on the domestication of animals and the Dmitri Belyaev fox experiments on domestication.

It’s sad to see our animal companions no longer be able to do the things they once could do as they age and grow older. All older animals have some amount of arthritis although some have many more problems with it. Western medicine has very few options for treating arthritis and uses mostly drugs, to cover the pain. Many times animals are on three different drugs and it still isn’t enough.

In some animals arthritis manifests as weakness caused by the inflammation pushes on the nerves. Many dogs walk around like their feet are asleep, tripping over things, stumbling and no longer having the strength to jump into the car or onto the bed. Unfortunately because they can no longer walk as far or do as much as they used to, their muscles start to atrophy or waste away, causing a vicious cycle. As the weakness increased, they do less, which causes more atrophy from disuse, leading to more weakness and more atrophy and less activity. In the end many of these animals can no longer get up on their own or even take a short walk.

In other animals arthritis will manifest as pain, which can also prevent movement and cause the weakness/atrophy cycle. Many of these animals will become moody and withdrawn and may even snap and bite at their people out of fear of pain. It is so hard to see our friends have so much pain that they no longer want our affection.

In most animals there is a combination of pain and weakness.

Usually dogs suffer more than cats because they carry more weight and are used to daily activity. Also people often don’t notice that their cats are painful because they spend so much time sitting and sleeping

So what do we do for our friends to help them live out their old years happy and pain free?

• Acupuncture Being an acupuncturist, I always recommend acupuncture first. Of course this is also because I have seen how well it works in the animals I treat. I often find that if I can work with animals when they first have problems, they do so well we only need to treat them every one to three months. Unfortunately most of the animals I see have had problems for a while and their people only learned about acupuncture when they had tried everything that western medicine had to offer. In these animals acupuncture can still work and work well but usually treatments need to be closer together.

  It is so nice to see these animals happy and able to enjoy life again!



• Hydrotherapy is a great option especially in dogs who have muscle atrophy. Unfortunately it cannot be done with cats although Sheila Wells at Wellspings has told me they have worked with rabbits before. Hydrotherapy is done in a small swimming pool and involves massage and physical therapy in the water. I have seen excellent results with hydrotherapy especially combined with acupuncture. Hydrotherapy helps to rebuild muscles, increase range of motion and work out sore and sensitive areas of the body without the impact on the body of exercise on land. My favorite pool is Wellsprings in Seattle Washington. They have a great website with lots of information and photos that I love to refer people to. Click on the link to check it out!



• Herbs
  I have worked with Chinese herbs with many of these arthritic dogs and some cats. The combination of acupuncture and herbs usually helps with pain and movement and helps animals maintain between treatments. Some animals do not do well on Chinese herbs and it is important to work with an herbal practitioner to find the right combination to help your particular animals. I rarely use Chinese herbs in cats because they are very sensitive to them. There are also commercial products available, my favorite is Dog Gone Pain



• Fish oil/ Omega oils
  The Omega 3 Fatty Acids in fish and cod liver oil actually helps decrease arthritic inflammation in dogs (not true for cats although it helps with other things). Adding a little fish oil to the diet can help many animals.
• Glucosamine/MSM/chondroitin
  These supplements help to decrease inflammation and rebuild damaged cartilage. They are often sold in combination. The nice thing about these supplements is that they have few side effects and are very safe. Some animals have a wonderful response to them and some have almost no response. It usually takes a month to six weeks to see if your animal will have a positive response. Adequan, similar to glucosamine is also available in an injectable form and works better in some animals. It is also a lot easier to give to cats who are hard to medicate daily. After the initial series of injections it usually only needs to be given once a month.

Chiropractics
Many animals have subluxations of their spine especially as they age. A good chiropractor can often help with mobility and pain. I have found that chiropractic adjustments work best in animals with a very tight back and more pain then weakness. For my own cat, chiropractic adjustments have worked better than anything else we have tried and have made his life much better. Make sure you find a chiropractor who is used to working with animals and knows animal anatomy.




• Massage/Acupressure
  Massage can help to loosen tight muscles and increase blood circulation. It also can help with pain.We know it works for us, why not for our animal friends. Once again make sure you find a massage practitioner who is certified to work with animals.

  Acupressure works with the acupuncture points and helps decrease pain and relax muscles.

  There are many great books on acupressure and massage for animals. Here are a few
  The Well-Connected Dog: A Guide to Canine Acupressure
  Acu-Cat: A Guide to Feline Acupressure
  The Healing Touch for Dogs: The Proven Massage Program for Dogs, Revised Edition
  The Healing Touch for Cats: The Proven Massage Program for Cats, Revised Edition
  Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs



• Reiki/Bowen/Polarity/Craniosacral and other energy therapies These therapies help stimulate the body to heal and can decrease pain and improve quality of life. Since there is little regulation of these therapies it is important to get a referral before seeing someone. This is especially true of Reiki since there are so many people who practice it. A good practitioner can make a huge difference in an animal’s quality of life.

It is better to do one thing and stick with it than to jump around between therapies. Often times animals will began with me doing acupuncture and herbs and then we will add in other therapies as needed. If I can’t help an animal with acupuncture I will refer them to another practitioner to try something else. Don’t make too many changes all at once in an old animal’s life. Go slowly instead.

Coming soon - Comparing the western arthritis drugs

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

My friend Pamela who traps feral cats in the Seattle area sent me this story. She was contacted by a woman in New York who manages a small feral colony that she was having to move. There was one cat left who she just could not trap. The poor kitty, Patches, was also very sick and suffering. Pamela suggested bringing Patches’ buddy, Checkers, back to the site so she would come to him. Through Pamela’s advise, she was able to catch her and humanely end her suffering. Checkers and the other cat from the feral site are happily in a new home.

Many people like Pamela have dedicated their lives to helping feral cats with TNR (trap/neuter/release) and food. TNR is the best method of reducing the number of unwanted kittens that end up in the shelters each year and it works! Here is some good information on feral cats and TNR from the ASPCA, Feral Cat FAQ. Also check out Ally Cat Allies’s informative website on feral cats.

Below is the letter Marilyn, the feral trapper from New York, wrote to Pamela:

Thank you so very much for the suggestion about taking Checkers back to Patches in a carrier. I was so upset thinking about it - woke up in middle of night with an asthma attack, but by this morning, just tried to function on “auto pilot”. It looked like rain too, and I had to hurry…. just asked for and starting feeling the guidance from God….what i usually do, but lost sight of it for awhile lately.

Love and Hugs, Marilyn

This week will be light on the postings. I should be back to full posting speed soon!

If your family includes cats or you know someone who lives with cats, please read this. I’m wandering back to the side of western medicine but this is a topic dear to my heart.

When I was working at the shelter I once got a voice mail from a client who had adopted a cat from us who came down with FIP and died. She was calling because she was angry that we had not tested for it and mentioned that her vet was recommending she euthanize her other two cats because they had been exposed and would most certainly come down with it and die. Of course I couldn’t get a hold of her and two of us spent the rest of the day frantically trying to reach her before she killed her two other cats. Luckily we did reach her in time.

FIP or Feline Infectious Peritonitis is one of the most misunderstood diseases in veterinary medicine. It is not contagious but it is a mutation of a contagious disease. It can not be diagnosed in a living cat yet there is a “FIP test”. There is a vaccine but it doesn’t work in most cats and there is some thought that it can actually help to induce FIP.

So let’s start at the beginning.

There is a virus in cats called Feline Coronavirus. This virus usually doesn’t cause illness or if it does just a little diarrhea or intestinal inflammation. It targets only gut cells. It is very common. Up to 80% of cats have been exposed to it and show an antibody titer. In multiple cat households and shelters and catteries up to 100% of cats have been exposed to it.

Sometimes for reasons that we do not know this virus mutates or changes into FIP, kind of like what happened to the Gremlins when they got wet. We think it is related to a weak immune system but we aren’t sure. FIP can attack any cells in the body by working through the white blood cells and it does, causing many symptoms such as a bloated and fluid filled abdomen, diarrhea, vomiting, a fever, lethargy, poor appetite, problems breathing and sometimes brain inflammation. Almost all cats with FIP die.

Occasionally two cats from the same household die of FIP. We used to think one had caught FIP from the other. However recently when researchers have studied where the mutation is in the virus they have found that the mutation will be different in each cat.

What does this mean?

It means that each mutation happened independently within that cat’s body. If they were passing the mutated FIP virus the mutation would be the same in each animal. This means that the FIP virus is not being passed once it mutates and is not contagious.

Why are cats is multiple cat households more likely to get FIP then?

Multiple cat households have a higher rate of coronavirus in them. The more coronavirus shed in a cat’s feces and picked up by other cats, the greater the chance there is for a mutation to FIP.

So how does a vet test for FIP?

There is a titer test called the FIP test. The only problem is that it tests for coronavirus not for FIP. Usually cats with FIP will have a high coronavirus titer but not always. And many cats without FIP will have a high titer. So a positive “FIP test” may point towards a diagnosis of FIP but also may not.

If a cat comes in with fluid in its abdomen which is common in FIP cats, the best test is a protein ratio run on the abdominal fluid. Most vets will also run bloodwork to test protein levels.

A high protein level in abdominal fluid with a low albumin/globulin (two proteins we look at) ratio with a high globulin level on bloodwork, and a high FIP/corona titer (positive FIP test) usually point towards FIP. That is the closest we can come. And many cats with FIP do not have all the above.

So why is there a vaccine if this is not a contagious disease?

The short answer is because we used to think it was. The FIP vaccine will work to prevent coronavirus in about 60-80% of the 20% of cats that have not been exposed to coronavirus ever. Or about 12-16% of cats. It will not work if cats have been exposed to coronavirus. In addition there is some thought that if the cat has coronavirus in its body the vaccine could induce that coronavirus to mutate to FIP. So the vaccine works in 12-16% of cats but may actually induce disease in the ones it doesn’t work for. Hmmm. Not very good odds if you ask me.

There is no good treatment for FIP beyond supportive care and most cats with it will die within a year or often times much less. In multiple cat households cleanliness, especially of litter boxes, can help cut down on the level of coronavirus, which helps prevent FIP.

Here’s some interesting resources on FIP
Wikipedia article on Feline Infectious Peritonitis
FAB on FIP
Cornell Feline Health Center FIP