What is food therapy for pets?

The Chinese consider diet to be the most important factor in maintaining health. In fact there were schools of Traditional Chinese Medicine that believed (in a non-emergency situation) that the diet should be corrected first, and if that did not solve the problem, then acupuncture and herbal medicines would be used. After feeding our pets dry corn-based diets (which are energetically hot) for several decades, they have developed a host of diseases or imbalances like diabetes, thyroid disorders, liver disease, heart disease, and tooth and gum issues. Home-made pet food can resolve many of these issues.

The Chinese consider the stomach to be the cooker of a 100 degree soup. For that reason, it is important to use cooked foods instead of raw food diets for dogs and cats. In Chinese food therapy, diets are designed to help balance the system and prevent disease, as well as treat it. A particular food is considered to have an energetic (temperature) property, as well as a function. We use these properties to help design a diet that will allow optimal health. Any home-made pet food needs proper calcium supplementation to maintain health. Part of the initial consultation is devoted to discussing which foods would be best for your pet, as well as discussing how to make home-made dog food and cat food, or selecting commercially available diets.  A referral for home-made foods made specifically for your pet and then frozen for later consumption can be made.

What are the potential benefits of food therapy?

Many clients have said that when they made the switch to home-made pet food from bagged or canned food, their pet’s energy level went up dramatically, skin conditions were alleviated or healed, chronic urinary issues were often resolved, and that their pets generally seemed much happier and excited about eating. Homemade diabetic pet food helps reduce or eliminate the need for insulin. Dr. Ruth’s own boxer mix, Punkin, at 12 years old, dances, jumps up in the air off all 4 feet, and turns 180 degrees on the way to eat her breakfast or supper!

How do I incorporate the new diet?

When changing a pet’s diet, it is important to gradually switch then to a new food over the course of 1 to 2 weeks. Most dogs are absolutely delighted with home-made food, and quickly thin down to a normal body weight. Because dogs are omnivores as we are, we use a combination of protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates from potatoes, rice, or whole grains. A general vitamin supplement is added to provide balanced nutrition.

Cats are an obligate carnivore, which means they really weren’t built to process carbohydrates. This is part of why they are so prone to diabetes. Ideally, cats eat mice and other small mammals, so their diet would be high protein, fat, and a little carbohydrate from what the mouse had eaten. Instead we’ve offered them corn-based diets, which confuse their metabolism and cause obesity as a result. Once cats are accustomed to dry diets, it can be difficult to convert them to better quality food, as most dry diets are sprayed with hydrolyzed oil, making dry food like kitty crack. To convert cats, it is best to start with some high quality canned food, mixed with the current dry food. If that doesn’t work the next step is to convert to a good quality dry, wean off the old dry food, and then start adding in canned food. There are some cats that just won’t come off of dry food, but they may enjoy treats like sardines. Once you have weaned off dry food, then you can try cooked diets or stick with canned foods.