Cancer in our pets - how to prevent?

[Mackhopp]

After reading several threads in the Pet Forum, I was struck by how many of our pets have cancer.

As a new dog owner, I'm trying to do my best w/r to Lexi's health, and to hopefully prevent disease.

One thing that I can see making a big difference would be what the pets eat. I've looked at lots of different foods, and short of feeding the BARF diet (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food or Bones And Raw Food), I've been feeding her Orijen dry food. Orijen Pet Foods: About ORIJEN:

As a biologist in research, I'm always looking to see if I can do better. But I'm not a nutritionist, nor am I a veterinarian.

So I'm interested in hearing what others do or have learned about preventing cancer in their pets - because while our pets are only here with us for a relatively short time, it's a good ride while it lasts, and it's up to us to make it as comfortable as possible.

Any thoughts?

[RedSHED]

Our neighbors do lots of chemical things to their lawn. They lose a pet every 3-4 years.
We do not. Our lawn shows it too, but we've not lost a pet in 12 years.

Coincidence? Possibly, but you have to wonder.

[overlander63]

There are ecologically friendly lawn sprays, that way your pet won't get sick from it.
I have learned a pet's diet is important, a dog is an omnivore, and a cat is a carnivore, so feeding your cat veggies is probably not conducive to their good health. As far as pet food, stick with good name-brand pet food formulated for your dog or cat's size, age, and breed. Science Diet and Eukanuba are both good choices. No one knows what is in the El Cheapo pet food, so stay f away from it.

[juel]

If we could find a way to prevent cancer in our beloved pets, wouldn't that be wonderful news for the human cancer patients. Having bred and shown dogs for more years than I care to admit, I have tried many things to keep my friends healthy. One thing I have always been concerned with is the quality (or lack thereof) of the commercial dog foods available. With the recent China wheat gluten scare I think we can all see than even foods "made in America" are not "American". Still can't figure out why the world's leading wheat producing country has to import wheat. Corporate greed comes to mind. I have fed Bil-Jac frozen food, made from chicken here in America for a long time. I have also made my own food from chicken livers, potatoes and other ingredients if a dog had allergy problems. I never feed anything that is colored or swells when liquid is added. I try to stay away from foods with soy or corn as the main ingredient. One fact that I know is that Great Danes live approximately 5 years here in the States; however, in Europe they often live to 10 or 12 years. Breeders in Europe make their own kibble. That really got me to thinking about what I fed my show dogs. Please remember that just because a Vet sells it, doesn't make it a good food. I agree about the lawn chemicals also. Not worth it with the pets, not worth it with humans either. No dog dips, or flea baths either. They are worthless. The Frontline or Advantage products are your best choice. They do not enter the bloodstream of the pet or the applier. They enter the fat layer under the skin of the animal. If you must spray the lawn, keep the animals off until it's very dry. Don't keep spraying it if the first time doesn't work. Spray outside your fence line.

[byamcaravanner]

Best way to have a cancer free pet is to get one that is genetically diverse. Considering the relatively short life span of our pets, it's very unlikely that environmental exposure would be the cause of cancer.

Maybe we should all buy turtles

[87MH]

Originally Posted by Macfrodge

After reading several threads in the Pet Forum, I was struck by how many of our pets have cancer.
.....So I'm interested in hearing what others do or have learned about preventing cancer in their pets - because while our pets are only here with us for a relatively short time, it's a good ride while it lasts, and it's up to us to make it as comfortable as possible.

Any thoughts?

Natural foods for sure.....

I've been feeding natural to my pack since they were pups and I stand by feeding natural AND homeopathic vets. "Regular" vets certainly have figured in their prospering also, but be aware there ARE alternatives. The difference feeding "natural" has made to some of the dogs I have fostered is stunning. Several of the "converts" I know have stated that the difference it makes to the well being of their dogs is remarkable. Most (and immediate) noticeable is the difference it makes to coats, "hot spots", itching, and overall level of activity.

Take a look at how robust dogs were prior to World War II (the feeding of "prepared" foods did not start until the late 40's).

I know for a fact that Shelties and Papillons (my breeds) have a fertility problem - maybe inbreeding - but I think that diet is a far more improtant problem. You have to ask yourself "what is the difference of canine health between the period before 1950 and the period after?".

I think the answer to that is diet. Packaged food as compared to freshly prepared food.

The primary suppliers of prepared food are most concerned with a diet that will support good growth and activity - and permit the producers to maintain a healthy profit margin - and not necessarily the best food to promote optimum overall quality of life for the animal.

I have no problems with the packaged food producers, they are providing a service for which they are paid (a lot like the worlds's oldest profession). I do, however, have a problem with the toxins and preservatives that are put into the prepared food to prevent them from becoming rancid. Long term exposure and ingestion of even minute amounts of these powerful chemicals has to have an adverse affect.


Several opinions are stated in this thread:
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f239...een-13463.html

Feeding canines only the cheapest packaged dry food is a bit like humans who prefer to comprise their diet entirely of Ho-Ho's for breakfast, Big Mac's for lunch, and Pizza with an ice cream chaser for dinner - those human live, maybe even happily, but probably not for long.

[Lumatic]

Check out a herbal combination called Essiac. I use it and it seems to help my immune system. There are several suppliers some more expensive than others. Comes in raw, powder, liquid and capsules. I use the powder as a tea. It's definitely an acquired taste. I know it is also used with canines, which is what my wife often calls me.

[Stefrobrts]

I am extremely sceptical about the homeopthic concoctions people try to pass off as helpful to dogs. Most homeopathic remedys are made of the 'essences' of herbals, which means they are in a dilution that is so minescule as for there to be no actual ingredient involved. For example, I recently read an article where a naturopathic vet recommended 'rescue remedy' be used on the way to the vet (both on the dog AND the owner!) to calm them both down. If you do a little research you quickly find that 'rescue remedy' has 'flower essentials' which is essentially nothing - but it is a 50:50 mix of water and brandy. So the active ingredient would have to be brandy! I was appalled that a vet would recommend you waste your time to give your dog a squirt of brandy when you should be taking them directly to a real vet as soon as possible - and to take one for yourself too.

Naturopthic remedys can make you waste your time and money doing things that are only a placebo, when you should be relying on solid scientificly evaluated evidence to make decisions on you or your pets health. Whenever I hear about people touting 'chinese' or 'eastern' medicine I turn on my BS detector. Things like arranging your energy flow by sticking pins in you just don't even make sense to me. I saw another article where a naturopathic vet explained 'bloat' was caused by "a liver/stomach disharmony" which could be adjusted with acupuncture! Do they teach that in vet school?! Those theorys have no scientific reasoning behind how they work, they just make people feel good. That's called a placebo, and if it makes you feel better that's one thing, but your pet doesn't know it's a placebo, so how much can it do for him?

As for all the dogs with cancer, back when I was a kid, dogs didn't get the kind of vet treatment they do today, so it is no surprise so many have been diagnosed. We are lucky that there are such fantastic treatment options that have filtered down from the human world also.

Obviously you want to feed your dog the best diet you can, but when I was a kid our dogs lived to a ripe old age on Alpo (and how good could that nasty stuff have been). I have spoke to several vets about the raw food diet and all of them recommended strongly against it. They all recommended going with a high quality kibble, and that is what they do for their own dogs. Don't you think they'd use all their knowledge and access to research to take care of their own family members first?

I think there is so much conflicting information around it is almost overwhelming to try and sort it out logically, and there is a huge weight on us from wanting to do the very best for our pets. They don't live long enough in the best of circumstances, we want to give them the best opportunity to live the longest they can. Every pet owner feels that pressure if they love their dog. But it also leaves us open to having to make decisions we are not really qualified for, not being nutritionists, chemists, or vets ourselves.

I think the solution is to have a partnership with a great vet you feel you can really trust, feed the best quality food you can afford, and keep up on their medical care and checkups to catch things early. Avoid unnecessary chemical exposures, get lots of exercise, and give lots of love. Enjoy your dog and try not to worry!

[cameront120]

I wish I knew the answers to preventing this disease. All I can do is feed my boys the best food I can. I don't feed raw, but they do get a high quality kibble.

I also agree with keeping chemicals away from you lawn and yard. North America's obsession with a green lawn is disconcerting. Such a waste of resources, especially water. The small patch of lawn I have does not get watered except for rainfall. I let it go dormant during the summer. Sure it's brown, dry and ugly, but it's harmless to my dogs. The uneducated think it's dead and are amazed to see it bounce back with the fall rains.

[overlander63]

Another factor I didn't mention in my earlier post, many cities now have reclaimed water system available for lawn watering. If you use reclaimed water on your lawn, it would be a very good idea to keep them off it. While it isn't exactly the "before" contents of the sewer system, it also hasn't been purified for drinking.

[Lumatic]

Originally Posted by Stefrobrts

I am extremely sceptical about the homeopthic concoctions people try to pass off as helpful to dogs. Most homeopathic remedys are made of the 'essences' of herbals, which means they are in a dilution that is so minescule as for there to be no actual ingredient involved.

Generally I agree. Herbal stuff has it's share of scams however:
Essiac has worked for me and others I know, some of whom use it on pets.
G,et the raw ingredients not an extract or tincture. I forget all the ingredients but you can find them on line. I do remember there are 7 including sheep sorrel, slippery elm, rhubbarb. You can spend a lot for it, but if you buy in bulk it's real cheap.

There are specific testimonial about curing cancer. I don't know about that but I feel better with it. I guess the bottom line is anything that tastes that bad has got to be good and after uning it for years I'm still as honery as ever.

[Mackhopp]

The pesticides and herbicides used on lawns have a huge environmental impact - I shudder when I see people using chemicals with abandon. We know of a cottager with great expanses of lawn leading down to the waterfront who regularly douses the lawn, even next to the water, with herbicides. With abandon. Makes me very angry.

But with respect to animals, environmental chemicals most likely do play a very important role in their health - pets may only live 10 or so years, but they age at a very accelerated rate as compared with humans, so cancers do show up, just as in humans.

As for pet food, I was struck by the lack of awareness many of my pet-owning friends had w/r to the food they buy for their pooches/kitties. I asked them to look at the ingredients - most of these supermarket brands had cheap filler grains as the first ingredient, as well as by-product meal. That just doesn't make good health sense in my opinion.

Dogs and cats are not humans, so why would we feed them tons of carbohydrates as their main food? Their digestive systems are simply not made to handle that sort of bulk.

Take Iams as an example. Most people (that I've spoken with) have a positive opinion on the brand. The first 4 ingredients on the puppy dry food are Chicken, Corn Meal, Chicken By-Product Meal, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum. Now, the Chicken is good. But the next 3 are not. Cheap fillers and by-product meal (blech).

As well, keeping in mind the China scare, there are many other ingredients present in pet food solely for economic savings (of course, the same could be said for much of the processed food out there for people).

I know pets are with us for only 10+ years or so but we ought to do what we can when they're young and healthy to keep them healthy, both for emotional reasons as well as financial reasons!

[cameront120]

I can't feed anything with grain (including oats) to my two, they both react badly to it. Ear infections and allergic reactions, etc.

[Stefrobrts]

It's a good idea to have at least a passing knowledge of what's in your dog's food. Some supermarket brands do not have meat or meat by-products in teh first three or four ingredients!

The dogs we had when I was a kid probably did so well on Alpo because it was just straight canned horsemeat. I remember it being disgusting, but it was probably not such a bad diet for a dog!

[05ModPod]

Lots of great info here....

I had the same questions when we lost two Goldens in a row at age 8 to cancer!!!

After months of research it boils down to 3 things

Food
Stop feeding the junk that is sold in the grocery stores - and if you are not a nutricianist be very careful about feeding home made diets - they may be nutritional - but if not set up properly the nutrients may not be released properly for the dog/cat.

Vaccination Schedules....
Stop filling your pet with toxins - research the vaccines that you are giving and the all in ones, the multiples, as well as the schedule if you have young pets - SPREAD them OUT!!!!! you do not have to follow the VETS schedule - it pounds a puppies immune system when it is not needed - let their immune system build with the natural transfer from the mother. Research the types of vaccines you are giving - for example Leptosporosis - for years we gave this to our dogs - and when the details are identified the strains that are vaccined are not even found in the are where we live and never have been. they have done more research in this area but the likelyhood is so minimal.

Testing your dog - blood test for heart worm - 2-3 times a year can prevent you from loading the dog with toxins all year long with the heart worm pill. ( high mosquito areas you should make your decision accordingly).

Spay - when they are older - not younger - allow the natural hormones to develop and do their job with the long bones and build healthy strong skeletal structure - when you spay too early - the hormone that stouts the dogs bones does not cut in (around 1 year) this means the long bones continue to grow - causing all sorts of issues with hips and bones/joint problems.
Have you ever noticed the large breed dogs that have been bread are "shorter"??? and stockier.

Environment
Allergies - a lot of our pets have terrible allergies - their immune systems are terrible and weak and allow for so much of the human environment to impact on them.....

Molds and Yeast are huge - some you can not do anything about - but if you are aware that your dog has allergies then you can at least control the environment a bit better....like cleansing tepid baths to remove the allergens on a regular basis - no soap or shampoo just a weekly rinse - winter and summer!

Assist the itchy dog with benedryl - so that they do not scratch too much and then break the skin down and then you run into a whole other ball game of medications and visits to the vet.

PICK a good vet and make them listen to YOU not the other way around. It is YOUR pet you live with them - the saying do not take no for an answer goes a long way in the proper treatment of your pet. Most of the work a vet does is guess work - and a process of elimination. Yes of course a lot of the symptoms are very common and of course the area where you live will have certain epidemics that the Vet will be aware of...But don't just settle for something said - if your gut feeling tells you something else.

Even if the final outcome is still not the greatest - be heard by your Vet - they are looking after your FAMILY member!!!

Pay attention to your pet - weekly grooming, clipping, cleaning etc and feeling the dog/cat from head to toe - note all new/changes in any lumps - mark them on a diagram to monitor - know their routines - watch their ears, eyes and mouth for infections, notice different smells, or dander on the coat or dullness, excessive hair loss from normal shedding, brightness of eyes, playfull or sleeping alot, grumpy or irritated - and know them inside out as if it were your "child". You will have a huge jump on health issues when they show early signs of poor health. Dogs especially are so resiliant and many times it is too late by the time the symptoms appear.

Research the cancer symptoms and know them well and compare to your pets daily health.

Keep logs or records.

But most importantly LOVE your Pet

[rettoc625]

I think there are many reasons -

We do generally take better care of our pets now a days. We don't let them roam freely and do get routine veterinary care so we find illness early enough to cure it. Because our pets live longer, like all of us, they are exposed to more environmental factors that can cause cancer. The veterinary field now has board certified specialists in oncology and radiology and can use the same treatments and technology we expect for our own human care. We pet owners are more willing to pay the thousands of dollars that it costs for such treatment. Our pets are considered members of the family and of course we don't neglect family.

Diet is a major factor in disease. You are what you eat. Same with our pets. Research into human disease is conducted on dogs first, then humans. Specific nutritional guidelines for dogs have only been available since the mid 80's, and just recently updated in 2006. Unlike the Food Pyramid published so freely by the FDA, most pet owners don't have easy access to the pet nutrition guidelines. Pet food manufacturers generally develop nutritionally sound food, but companies are also trying to maximize the financial bottom line and produce that product inexpensively. An incomplete proteirn from grains and legumes is much cheaper than high quality protein from meat and dairy sources.

And then there is the subject of breeding. Back yard breeders and puppy mills don't follow a breeding program that might limit the supply of animals with a genetic predisposition towards cancer. Certain breeds become more popular if they are seen in the movies or owned by celebrities (think chiwowa and Paris Hilton!) Dogs are breed simply as a commodity to be sold or someone thinks the family dog will be 'unfulfilled' if not allowed to produce one litter.

Most all dogs that live beyond 10 years will develop cancer. It is considered a chronic disease in many dogs. Something that will not be cured, but can be treated and lived with. I guess we and our dogs are lucky to be living today, with the veterinary care and treatments available to treat diseases that caused pooches in the past to be put down.

Some people think I am crazy for spending the money and time to treat my dog's cancer. I know there are many who would like to do the same but lack the financial resources to do so. My heart goes out to them.

Every ten years or so, it seems God gives us another chance to become a better puppy parent.

Mary

[juel]

AH puppy mills...one of my pet peeves. We seem to have a good supply of them here in Oklahoma. Then we have the "Pit Bull" crowd of bubbas also. If you want a good dog, go to a breeder who does testing or go to the shelter and give a stray a second chance. You kinda take your chances at the shelter, but you will be giving an animal the chance to live a good life and give it more time to be on this earth giving you love. I'm rescue poor at my home, not from a shelter but from the clients I serve in a State child abuse prevention program. To many here in the "bible belt" think dominion over means you can do with them as you please. It's heartbreaking at times. Everyone in my family now has a rescued animal or three. Also a note about vaccinations.....most vets are now spacing those first shot out over a longer period to reduce the stress on a young animal's immune system. And, a good vet is a blessing for you and your hairy/furry friends.

[rettoc625]

Until recently I fed Science Diet for sensitive skin. Occassionally I would add 'stuff', eggs, leftover meat, carrots, tomatoes, etc. I 'hang' with alot of dog people and vets in my agility club and classes, they of course all 'know' the 'best' way to feed a dog and many of them choose the BARF method. I have a problem feeding raw meat to anyone! Food spoils too quickly for my mind!

When my older golden developed a tumor I researched everything I could find about how to help him. What veterinary treatments and what I could do at home. I found a home cooked diet that was developed by a noted veterinary oncologist. Before I jumped in and started feeding it to my dog, I asked my vet and oncologist for opinions about it. It was not until they assured me there was some research behind it suggesting it might be helpful, then I decided to make the commitment to cook for my dog. So the one with cancer gets the homecooked with supplemental cottage cheese, pumpkin and vit E. The other guy still eats Science Diet, but gets cottage cheese, flax seed oil, carrots and other goodies.

I also have read some books on canine nutrition and belong to a Yahoo group owned by a canine nutritionist.

As far as herbs, essential oils and 'natural' stuff, I don't go there unless there is independent research by qualified researchers suggesting it might be helpful. Then I ask lots of questions.

Mary

[Relentless]

We just lost a Golden at 10 yrs. to cancer of the spleen. He was never sick a day in his life and got only the best, grain free, food. In the case of Goldens I'm afraid its genetic.

Do the best you can to keep them healthy but know that there are some things you have no control over.

John

[rettoc625]

Originally Posted by Relentless

We just lost a Golden at 10 yrs. to cancer of the spleen. He was never sick a day in his life and got only the best, grain free, food. In the case of Goldens I'm afraid its genetic.

Do the best you can to keep them healthy but know that there are some things you have no control over.

John

I am sorry you lost your pal. Goldens are such wonderful dogs. They hide their troubles until it is too late. That is the sad price paid for being such a popular, family friendly breed. Goldens are just cancer factories. I read that 75% of all goldens will develop cancer.

Spay, neuter and responsible breeding.

Mary