Bonne Anne!
From: Dr Andrew Jones
Author: Veterinary Secrets Revealed
Website: https://shop.veterinarysecrets.com
Re: Bonne Anne!
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Bonne anne.
Which means Happy New Year in French.
Last night my family celebrated New Years with some friends of ours from Quebec.
There were fiddlers. Lots of dancing, some howling dogs (Lewis likes the fiddle), and some tired children at midnight.
All in all it was a great time, and I was able to recall some of my high school french.
We are planning a quiet day, with a dog walk later on involving Lewis and my neighbors dog Pearl.
As you contemplate what to accomplish in 2007, I suggest that you reflect on the BIG PLUSSES of owning a pet!
Here are some of the MANY benefits of owning a pet..
-?? Pet ownership helps us cope with stress
A study of breast cancer patients conducted at the University of
Warwick in England found that pets can provide valuable support for
women coping with cancer. Researchers found that in addition to
tactile comfort, pets provided a relationship that, unlike many human
relationships, was unaffected by the presence of a serious illness.
The ASPCA is currently studying the value of the human-animal bond
during times of tragedy, by investigating how family pets impacted
people’s lives during and after the events of September 11, 2001.
-?? Pet owners enhance family life
Psychological studies have found that most pet owners view their pets
as enhancing the quality of family life by minimizing tension between
family members and by enhancing their owners’ compassion for living
things. One survey of U.S. families found that pets were of great
importance during personal or family illness, death of friends and
family members or a family crisis.
-?? Pet owners have lower blood pressure
It has long been known that the act of stroking a pet can reduce
blood pressure. But a study at the State University of New York at
Buffalo found that the beneficial effects continue even when the pet
is not present. The study, which looked at a group of stockbrokers
with hypertension, concluded that just owning a pet can help lower
blood pressure -and keep it lower, even in stressful settings.
-?? Pet owners have lower blood cholesterol levels
A study of more than 5,400 people conducted by Australia’s Baker
Medical Research Institute found that pet owners had not only lower
blood pressure, but also lower levels of blood cholesterol and
triglycerides in comparison to the non-pet owners, reducing the risk
of heart disease.
-?? Pet owners have a higher survival rate after serious illness
Two studies have found that heart attack patients who owned the pets
were significantly more likely to be alive a year after they were
discharged from the hospital than those who didn’t. What’s more, a
study conducted at City Hospital in New York found that the presence
of a pet affected survival rate even more than having a spouse or
friends. Patients in hospitals or nursing homes who have regular
visits from their pets have shown to be more receptive to treatment.
The need to care for their pet gives them reason to recover and the
will to live.
-?? Pet owners have fewer doctors’ visits
Two studies have found that heart attack patients who owned the pets
were significantly more likely to be alive a year after they were
discharged from the hospital than those who didn’t. What’s more, a
study conducted at City Hospital in New York found that the presence
of a pet affected survival rate even more than having a spouse or
friends. Patients in hospitals or nursing homes who have regular
visits from their pets have shown to be more receptive to treatment.
The need to care for their pet gives them reason to recover and the
will to live.
-?? Pet ownership reduces loneliness
People who live alone find that having pets reduces feelings of
loneliness. According to researchers, this occurs because the pet
provides companionship, but also because the pet becomes a topic for
conservation with other people, increasing social interactions. Pet
therapy programs at nursing homes are credited with enabling patients
to reach out beyond their own pain and isolation and start caring
about the world around them again
-?? Pet ownership fights depression
A study of AIDS patients conducted by UCLA, in 1999 found that pets
provide a level of companionship that helped the patients cope with
the stress of their illness. The study looked at more than 1,800
patients and found that those who did not have a pet were more than
twice as likely to report symptoms of depression. And scientists in
South Africa have conducted research that shows that a pet can serve
as an anti-depressant, increasing the release of endorphins and other
hormones tied to pleasure.
-?? Pet ownership aids childhood development
Studies have linked family ownership of a pet with high self-esteem
in young children and greater cognitive development. In addition,
children with pets at home score significantly higher on empathy and
pro-social scales than non-pet owners.
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P.S. As we rush through 2007, I am trying to remember to Slow down..take time out with your pet and be grateful..
The more I read and learn about the benefits of pets, the more I am amazed.
My pets definitely improve the quality of my life..let them improve yours.
P.P.S. Plan on improving the quality of your pet’s health with my new multimedia course… check it out at: shop.veterinarysecrets.com/preview.html
It’s Your Pet- Heal Them At Home!
Best Wishes
Dr Andrew Jones
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Dr. Jones, I have read you ebook and listened to certain videos on obesity in cats. I have a 15# cat, Zoe. I have taken her off of dry food and she has settled on Wellness grain free beef and chicken pate. A 3 oz. Can I’d 94 kcals. She started eating 2 cans a day and I’ve gotten her down to 1 3/4 cans. She is still not losing any weight even after a few months of eating this food. I know it’s not the highest protein food, but it’s what she’ll eat. I also get her to jump from different heights with a small amount of dry food. She tired easily, but she does it. She’s 10 years old. I’m so worried about diabetes. I have no confidence in my vet. She only put her on Royal Canin rx weight management food, which is nothing but garbage and I won’t feed it to her. Any suggestions. I also just ordered your supplement for her so maybe that will help.
Hi Judy, here’s an article from Dr. Jones:
Just as with people, feline obesity is most often linked to excessive food intake or not enough physical activity. Attempts to cut back on calories alone often result in failed weight loss or weight regain in both people and their pets.
So how do you encourage your cat to get more exercise?
Researchers from the University of Illinois interested in finding a method to maintain healthy body weight in cats, looked at a previously suggested claim that increased meal frequency could help to increase overall physical activity.
The idea is to feed cats the appropriate amount of food needed to maintain a healthy body weight, but to offer it in more frequent, smaller meals throughout the day.
Animal sciences researcher Kelly Swanson and his lab at U of I determined that both increasing the frequency of meals fed per day, as well as offering meals that contained added dietary water – “neither method involved decreasing the overall amount of daily food intake – did promote more physical activity among the cats in the study.
“It all comes down to energy in and energy out. It’s very simple on paper, but it’s not that easy in real life, especially in a household where there is more than one pet. That can be difficult, but I think these two strategies are very practical ideas that people can use,” Swanson said.
During the two-part study, the researchers evaluated the activity of the cats between meals using activity collar monitors. In the first experiment, the cats were divided among four rooms and were given dry kibble meals four times per day, two times per day, one time per day, and in the fourth room, were fed a random number of meals per day. The overall amount of food fed to each cat in each room per day was the same; feeding frequency varied.
In the second experiment, the cats were divided among two rooms and were fed twice per day with a 70 percent hydrated diet, using similar amounts of dry kibble used in the first experiment to maintain body weight. Water was added to the kibble an hour before each meal time, Swanson explained.
The cats were placed in their individual cages only during mealtimes so that the researchers could accurately monitor their food intake. During the activity monitoring times, the cats had limited interaction with people.
The researchers evaluated the cats’ food anticipatory activity (FAA), which included the activity of each cat two hours before meals were given. During the dry kibble experiment, they noticed that the cats were much more active during those anticipatory times, especially those fed four meals per day and those given meals at random times.
“If they know they are going to get fed, that’s when they are really active, if they can anticipate it,” Swanson said.
The cats showed an even greater spike in physical activity in the second experiment when they were fed meals with the added water. However, Swanson said the biggest difference in peak activity times with this group occurred in the periods after they had eaten. He added that the researchers had not determined why this was, though factors such as increased use of the litter box, for example, could have come into play.
“I think veterinarians will be interested in this information because it gives them evidence to be able to recommend something to pet owners that could help with feline obesity and diabetes,” Swanson said. “When cats are allowed to feed ad libitum, it’s difficult to prevent obesity. It is important to identify the right diet. Many owners are accustomed to dumping a pile of food out for multiple cats, just once per day.
“The owner does have an active role in helping with weight management,” he added.
Owners often overfeed their cats, assuming that the small amount of food needed isn’t going to fill their cat or dog. “Because most pet foods are so digestible and nutrient dense, owners see that small bowl of food and think there’s no way they can survive on that but they can,” Swanson said.
The key is figuring out how much food is needed to maintain your cat’s healthy body weight.
“It is tricky because labels on pet food provide ranges for how much should be fed. If you’re feeding a cat, that food is supplied to thousands of cats with different metabolism. Some are spayed or neutered, and ages are different,” Swanson explained.
Adding water to dry food, or using wet canned food, may provide a greater gut fill to pets. Swanson also said once the dry kibble absorbs the water, it does look like “more” to the owner, perhaps alleviating the fear that the pet is not eating enough.
He added that rotating between dry kibble meals and wet or canned food could also help in maintaining body weight. Recognizing that the lifestyle of pet owners may not allow for regulating multiple feedings per day, Swanson said if a pet owner could even go from offering only one meal per day to two, it could possibly promote more physical activity.
“With cats, one of the tricky things is that few people can walk their cats. We haven’t done studies looking at what happens if you are just in the room with the cat more often and how active you can encourage your cat to be by playing with it. There could be other strategies. From a diet perspective, this is something that is relatively simple,” he said.
Hi try these
Ground chicken/turkey – 454 grams (1 pound)
Liver, beef – 138 grams (1/3 pound)
Fish oil – 4 grams (4 1000-mg fish oil caps)
Calcium carbonate -3.3 grams (5 Tums with calcium)
Ultimate Feline Health Formula -2 scoops (cats)
OR:
Salt substitute (potassium chloride) -1.9 grams (1/3 tsp)
Adult multivitamin – 1 tablet
Taurine – 500mg 1 tablet
Cook the ground chicken and drain the fat. Cook the liver and dice or finely chop into small pieces. Pulverize the calcium carbonate and vitamin/mineral tablets. Mix the vegetable oil, fish oil (break open capsules) and supplements, and then add the cooked ground chicken and liver. Mix well, cover and refrigerate.
Feed approximately one-quarter of this mixture each day to a 10 pound cat. Palatability will be increased if the daily portion is heated to approximately body temperature (Caution: when using microwave, avoid “hot spots,” which can burn the mouth).
Simpler Cancer Diet (if your pet is unwilling to eat the above recipe):
50% chicken/fish
50% mixed vegetables
1/2 tsp of fish oil per 10 lbs
1 scoop of Ultimate Feline Health Formula per 1 cup of food