Special Care

How We Can Help - Our methods….”allergies”

Over the years we have developed a method for helping our customers with the ever growing issues we have seen developing in the area of dog and cat “allergies”.

Consistently,  people are coming to us with dogs and cats that scratch and lick, break out in hives, can’t “keep their food down”, or generally do not thrive due to compromised immune systems. Most of us refer to these symptoms as “allergy symptoms”.

We also understand that although many animals have compromised immune systems, some “allergy symptoms” may not be “allergies” at all.

When a customer comes to us with concerns that sound like “allergies” we want to be sure we know that dog or cat as an individual before we make a recommendation for any changes to foods, supplements or suggestions for medical attention from a vet.

We will gather individual information concerning the animal’s type, health status, current diet – including supplements and treats- and any other behavioral, situational or environmental concerns the customer may be able to share.

We give our customers a recommendation, within the limits of our knowledge and product base, to help with a nutritional, supplemental or situational change to better their situation.

When a nutritional change seems like the main course of action with a particular dog or cat, we choose a “process of elimination diet”. This is just a simple way to begin looking at what works by eliminating the most likely items in the animal’s diet that may cause an immune system reaction. We then observe the change for a period time.

During that time, as the animal shows, improvement it can be offered additional items one at a time for a period determined by the severity of  it’s typical reaction. As we find more foods that agree with the animal, we are increasing the pool of nutritional resources and the animal’s ability to better regulate it’s own immune system.

Those who need additional help have immune modulating and detoxification support from available supplements that will help the body that is unable to help itself.

While based upon typical reaction and immune response research over the last 10 years,

each choice of diet and supplement is based upon an animal’s individual needs. Food changes can be as simple as increasing quality. They may also be more complex and require limitations of ingredients and additions of supplements, de-toxifiers or digestive aids. In extreme cases a blood test may be able to determine more specific internal imbalances that can be corrected through veterinary assistance.

Our goal is to provide an informed and balanced method for improving the vitality of an animal’s life by using the knowledge and products we have, and continuing to research into new ways to help provide solutions that support good nutrition and long, happy lives.

How we can help….behavior

Although we are not trainers, we do carry, have experience with, and understand the use of many training aids for many types of animals.

We are pleased to be able to suggest and fit many training collars, harnesses and leash choices for dogs, cats and small animal customers.

We are happy to help with the use of deterrents, potty training aids, crates, treats, noise makers, bark collars and safety tools.

We can assist with design choices and enclosure size decisions to help with fish and reptile compatibility, feeding and stress relief.

We can assist with anxiety related behavior modification through safe supplementation and tools for dogs, cats and birds.

We are happy to use our experiences and referrals for many animals related behavior issues including:

Potty training

Crate training

New pet introduction

Basic manners

Compatibility

Small animal handling

Reptile handling

Parrot behavior

Grooming techniques