Lily will be 1 year in a month. I saw little drops of blood
on the floor. Oops....Lily is in heat. I had pads all ready
for the occasion but now I don't know where I put them.
I think everyone knows I'm 87 and I can't recall a time when we didn't have a dog or
dogs. When I was young, dogs always lived to see their 20's and never were ill with
any of the diseases dogs can suffer from now.
As I was examining Lily to make sure it was her season, my mind wandered back
to our dogs that seemed so much healthier. What could it be that made the difference?
For one thing, dogs were not spayed, neutered or vaccinated. I can't even remember
a small animal vet in our town. Nor do I recall ever seeing commercial dog food.
Dogs just ate the same food we ate.
I will also interject here, that I never heard of people having cancer or all those
diseases of the organs until perhaps in the 60's or 70's. But this is a dog story, not
a people story.
I looked up a lot of vids by Vets on YT and there seemed to be a sharp division of
opinions about the above dog subjects. I'm in agreement with the vets who say,
"Do not spay or neuter. Or each year you hold off adds another year to your dog's
life. All the medical info is on YT but it appears that if the sex hormones are
removed, the adrenals will still produce a small amount of sex hormones but
those little buttons soon become over-taxed and many kinds of diseases can
take over the pet's body.
One informative video by a Dr. Becker, states that in Canada the vets can do
a tubal ligation, that is far better for the dog but unfortunately US Vets are
not even taught this as an option.
Then there's the dog food. I've never understood how a dog could live on
those hard little nuggets that lack enzymes, so I've always made my own
dog food. I've never given them processed food because I don't own a
can opener. LOL I wouldn't eat those things so why would I give it to my dog.
There are a few things I have to conform to because of laws but I pretty
much raise my dogs as we did back in the 30's.
I realize many people have to give their pets the commercial pet food but
it would add to their nutrition to mix in a raw egg each day, some meat
scraps, some kelp and a shot of wild salmon oil. I know..... I read that vets'
say, "Don't give your dog table scraps, but trust this old broad, the dog would
love it and love you too.
Now I gotta look for those pads. Where did I put
them? That's what 87 will do for you. Haha
Interesting. I Don't expect to own another dog, but if I did, now I would think more about what food I'd give him.
ReplyDeleteMy old age has taught me that food is important to every living thing. Even my trees need good nutrition, especially the fruit trees so they can give
Deleteme my good nutrition. My chickens need all organic food so I can have
my gorgeous organic eggs. Life can be soooo simple without all the chemicals and gmo's.
Yeah, all that vaccination crap can go pffft away. They proved up here that after the first ones it is usually useless to get more because the first ones are still in their system. Just comes back to $$. Never knew that about spay or neuter. Cats though, male ones, yeah, neuter, as their spray is nasty as can be. I feed the dogs at the table all the time. Cats too, those that can eat it. Cassie and Orlin have waaaaay too many allergies. And Orlin is a pain in the arse when it comes to food. Loves baked goods though lol steals them off the counter.
ReplyDeletePat
DeleteWhy Orlin, you little snipper, stealing goodies right off the counter.
I didn't think cats liked sugar. lol Cat's are usually such picky eaters.
It's always follow the money for just about everything. Vets gotta get
their share too to pay back all those student loans. Spay, neuter and
vaccinate every cat and dog in sight. ka-ching, ka-ching
I also think over breeding is a culprit that weakens their immune system and accentuates breed weaknesses. I wish I were as careful as you with the food. My dogs do live into their late teens with commercial food with no grains. I use salmon oil in Callie's food so at least I do something right. It really makes her coat silky.
ReplyDeletePatti
DeleteLate teens is a long life for a dog these days. I give Lil a tiny bit of kibbles in with her food so she will eat it if someone else ever has to feed her, as I know no one else would fuss over her the way I do. When she broke my hand, she went to a ranch for a while and kibbles was all she got to eat. So it's good to let the pets eat a wide variety.
I don't know much about dog breeding but growing up in a very small town, I've seen results of human inbreeding, a subject that is better swept under the rug. Haha
Yes, salmon oil is so great for a dog's coat but don't spill it on your clothes. LOL
Never thought of that! On the farm, our dogs and cats ate what we ate. How long they lived, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteThanks for checking my blog today. The pix thing betrayed me, so I went in to fix it. Hope it is working now!
Susan
DeleteThey probably lived a very long time.
Sometimes it seems like those electronic devices are just out to get us.
I think that people who oppose, or postpone, getting dogs neutered are projecting.
ReplyDeleteSnowbrush
DeleteCould be ......but projecting what?
Poor Lily, I used to hate those sanitary pads and I bet she does too. At least she won't need them every single month for forty years.
ReplyDeleteI remember giving our dog table scraps as well as his canned and dry food, also egg and a beef shin bone every fortnight.
Angel doesn't get table scraps, he won't eat them, but he gets raw beef whenever I have a steak and he licks the bowl after my icecream. His canned and dry food is grain free. It costs more but keeping him healthy now is far better than hefty vet bills later.
River
DeleteMe too, but think of the alternative? My last cat (age 18) died about a year ago..... actually early for a cat. She was a picky eater but I prepared her food too, and finally that was all she would eat. I can imagine Angel licking the ice cream bowl. Ha
Pets and animals have a purpose. Coffee is on
ReplyDeleteDora
DeleteThey are the best therapy for humans.
I think you are awesome and 87 is just a number. You have far too much spunk to be 87;) I like learning new things from you. I think it has something to do with the pesticides and preservatives they use these days that could possibly cause more diseases. We also give our dogs scraps every now and then, but we do give canned dog food, as well as homemade dog meals too. Plus, we have a bowl of dry dog pellets around the house, just in case they get peckish. I definitely believe in spoiling my dogs. They are my best friends, so its the least I can do for them. Besides, I want their lives to be as happy as possible. We have two special needs dogs that does have to go to the vet regularly, but I think they are worth it;)
ReplyDeleteMures
DeleteAlways nice to get a comment from you, as you are so positive and delightful. I didn't know you have dogs and some special needs dogs. Perhaps you have posted about them but I have never read it if you have.
Dogs are wonderful for therapy and it's like having a person around when one lives alone. My Cody dog died almost a year ago and I looked and looked for an older dog but dogs are really scarce around here. I also signed up with the shelters in all the surrounding towns and no one ever called me. One of the workers said they have about 100 dog seekers for every dog available. So I settle on a puppy.....not good for my age.
But we are learning together and I want her well-trained so if she lives beyong me, she would be welcomed in any home.
Bless you for taking on special needs dogs. I always knew you are a special person.
I'm sure you put those pads right where you will know where they are, right? Isn't getting older fun?
ReplyDelete