A busy march...just a few of our visitors...

No Chocolate!!

NO CHOCOLATE!!

At Nurturing by Nature we want to promote responsible pet owners and with the Easter bank holiday just upon us we thought that it would be an important time to highlight the dangers of chocolate.

I’m not going to lie we (the humans) at Nurturing by Nature love a bar of chocolate and a chocolate digestive spends less time in the biscuit tin than it takes to say chocolate digestive. However we are different in some ways to our four legged friends and however much chocolate may be unhealthy for us it is not that dangerous. Resulting in us putting on a few extra pounds. With dogs, chocolate is highly toxic and in the most sever of cases can be fatal.

It is even more import to be aware of the dangers at this time of year when chocolate tends to be more readily available in most households.

“So you’re in the kitchen making a cup of tea when all you can hear is a commotion coming from the front room. You walk into the front room and all you can see is a scattering of silver foil and half eaten cardboard packaging boxes. Boris (the collie) laying in his bed looking super proud of himself and there are no chocolate eggs to be seen.”

Boris must have had the chocolate!

Some of the visible signs that may occur within the hours after the event are;

·       Vomiting

·       Excessive drinking

·       Restlessness

·       Salivation

·       Excitability and hyperactivity

In severe cases;

·       Diarrhea

·       Urinary incontinence

·       Convulsions

·       Muscle rigidity

·       Circulatory failure may occur

The effects of Chocolate to the health of our four legged friends are really quite serious and should not to be treated lightly!

It is also worth noting that many muffins, biscuits and cakes can also contain traces of chocolate and although they may only contain a small trace of chocolate, they should also be treated with caution.

At Nurturing by Nature we want to encourage everyone to really get to know your animals and promote being responsible pet owners. Whilst we do not intend to scare you it is important to understand just how dangerous chocolate can be. If any of our four legged friends manage to help themselves to our chocolate snacks over the holiday period please don’t hesitate to seek Veterinary advice.

 

A Vet, The Power of Nature & A good Diet (warning... slightly gruesome photo of what WAS and is NO longer the problem!!):

Boris the Black Labrador was suffering from what the Vet called 'wet eczema', he was very smelly, had recently rolled in Fox Poo and the only other change was the washing powder his hu'mum' was using.

Boris had been to the vet and was prescribed antibiotics and a steroid cream that his owner was not so keen on using so she asked us if we could send her some more natural remedies to help this situation.

"yes please I would love some Neem shampoo and any other supplements you can think of that would help. He seems really fed up this afternoon and his stomach is making strange gurgling noises - could that be the antibiotics, do you think? Catherine suggested getting some live yoghurt unless you have a supplement you think would be better?"

Boris' first aid kit from NbN consisted of:
Aloe Vera and Bee Propalis Cream - Aloe Vera is the best thing for healing skin and Bee Propalis is a natural antibiotic created by Bees.
PhytoPet Pet Aloe Gel - Aloe For healing, An internal Aloe Gel to add to his food.
Red Neem Mite Shampoo - Diluted in warm water and applied all over the Dog, repeat every three days for at least 3 applications.
Neem Pet Soothe Lotion - Apply to inflamed area twice daily.
Dorwest Mixed Vegetable Tablets - Additional anti-inflammatory measures.
Dorwest Garlic & Fenugreek Tablets - Garlic to help combat infections and skin irritations, Fenugreek is an anti-inflammatory and detoxifying herb.

This was the photo of Boris' ear once he'd been to the vets and they had shaved the affected area, he was also on some antibiotics and steroid cream.

We think that as a result of the rolling in the Fox Poo he had picked up a little Mange and this was what was causing the unpleasant odour and nasty pustules that were forming on his head.

Here is the email we received from Boris' Hu'mum' a week or so later:

"Hi Emma,
Just got back from the Vet and I'm delighted to report that he has signed boris off and is delighted with his progress. So hurrah for you and your mum! It was funny as I didn't let on until the end that we'd taken him off the cortisone cream. He looked horrified when I told him he was on nothing but neem shampoo, cream and a jolly good diet with supplements. He asked if he'd had an upset stomach and recommended if he did to starve him. I said he had and I'd done nothing of the sort but kept him on his usual diet of carcasses and fed him live goats yoghurt. You should have seen his face! He is not a barf fan but it was v funny as he had to admit he looked great!
All down to you guys, thank you! "

Obviously, we certainly recommend a visit to the vet for any problems with your pet, but there are also more natural approaches to common ailments and in Boris' case we found the natural remedies combined with veterinary knowledge worked a treat!
 

Emma

We've moved over to the blog for the caption fun as I don't want Facebook to remove us!

Caption time:

Skye's eye view - Weight Control...

HI folks, Skye here. Hope you all enjoyed a Good Christmas. Mine was lovely, but a couple weeks prior I suffered a stroke, thankfully not too serious but enough to turn my world topsy turvy! My eyes were moving in different directions, nystagmas, my balance was affected which made walking very difficult and to top it all I had a right head tilt so all in all a very topsy turvy world!  

Luckily for me my Mum took great care of me and medication helped with the nausea. After about a week I began to feel brighter and thankfully by the Festive period I was able to go for my favourite beach walks. Life is now back to normal thankfully.

Weight Control.

Since changing to NbN Summer and I have had a new lease of life, we have lost about 0.75kg of unwanted weight which makes movement easier for Summer with her arthritic toe, and she has been able to leave off her anti-inflammatory medication. I am able to run much faster and don’t get puffed out so easily!

Being overweight brings a multiple of problems, stress on joints and internal organs. Increased chances of diabetes and urinary problems not to mention intolerance to exercise and poor quality of life. Sadly a lot of owners now perceive normal weight to be underweight, overweight to be normal and obesity to be overweight!

A NbN diet contains no added extras unlike a lot of commercial diets. Fed sensibly and with a good exercise regime all canine and feline lives can be more enjoyable and lives extended.

The New Year is a good time to start afresh, feed for the weight you want, not the weight you have… …………!  Ribs and spine should be easily felt and there should be no rolls of excess at the base of the tail or around the neck area.

Some breeds are predisposed to being overweight but really there should be no excuse.

Lets try to reduce those kilos and have a Happy Healthy New Year .

Rearing a litter on Raw Feeding

A letter from a happy customer:
I have just reared my first litter of puppies on a RMB diet. I breed Whippets in a very small way & only have a litter every 2 years or so. 
Mother Wispa is just 2 years old and this is her 1st litter. She had 5 pups - 4 bitches & 1 dog in 1 hour 20 minutes - no problems.
Wispa fed the litter for 8 weeks, usually my whippets give up at 3/4 weeks when I start feeding the pups. She was just so happy popping in to feed them - she always demanded her meal 1st! She produced so much milk and the pups did not pull her around. At 9 weeks she is still in show condition!
I started feed the pups Nurturing by Nature raw chicken mince at about 3 1/2 weeks only giving a couple of feeds in the first week. Easy puppy rearing - less mess to clear up. 
I just fed Nurturing by Nature minced chicken and bone and Nettie's chicken mix trays plus some liver or Ox heart from the supermarket, then chicken carcass when I though the pups were big enough. I remember one morning I gave half a carcass to Wispa & she was determined to take it to her pups - Mother knows best!!
Now most of the pups have gone to their new homes - I am keeping one. I am happy I gave them the best start I could. I sent them off with packs of Nurturing by Nature minced meats - it is up to the new owners now. 

I know what I shall be feeding mine for her life!

Skye's eye View - Chocolate & Christmas

  SKYE’S EYE VIEW

Hullo everyone, let me introduce myself, I am Skye a 12 year old Westie. My Mum, Summer and I all work together. We are so lucky to go to work with our lovely ‘Mum’.  We live an active life, and live in Dorset, a beautiful part of the country & our walks are just amazing.  I have to admit that I am not as speedy as I used to be and Summer, who lost an eye early this year definitely isn’t as fast as she used to be. Squirrels are safer but we still give them a run for their nuts!

With the approach of Christmas shopping and the Festive season I thought it a good idea to remind all you owners how bad Chocolate is for us canines.

Chocolate poisoning can be fatal and the onset of clinical signs usually occur within 24 hours, effects may last as long as 72 hours.

Theobromine is the toxic agent in chocolate and cocoa powder. The therobromine concentration varies with different types of chocolate.

White chocolate is the least concentrated

Drinking chocolate

Milk chocolate

Plain chocolate

Cocoa powder is the most concentrated

Some of the visible signs are vomiting, excessive drinking, restlessness, salivation, excitability and hyperactivity.In severe cases diarrhoea, urinary incontinence and convulsions as well as muscle rigidity and circulatory failure may occur.

Wow not to be treated lightly! Of course foods such as chocolate muffins, biscuits, cakes and Easter eggs are all to be kept out of our reach!!

If any of us manage to help ourselves to Chocolate please seek Veterinary advice, but the best way to prevent any temptation is to keep all cupboards tightly shut.

Other festives foods to keep out of our reach is;

Christmas cake, mince pies, Dundee cake, all containing huge quantities of dried fruit, NOT GOOD FOR US either.

So luckily for your humans you get to keep all the lovely chocolate and not share it with your four legged friends, for our sake!!

Sniffs & Kisses, Skye xxx