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Copyright 2006, Belvoir Media Group, LLC THE WHOLE DOG JOURNAL |

June 2006

The Whole Dog JournalVOLUME 9NUMBER 6

TM

FEATURES

A monthly guide to natural dog care and training

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

2 Editors Note22 Updates and Letters From Readers24 Product and Expert Resources

3 Stress SignalsLearn to recognize signs of (and thenreduce) your dogs stress to improve hishealth and behavior.

6 Building CredibilityAn interview with Susan Wynn, a scientificholistic veterinarian.

9 Dont Leave Home Without ItArnica is fantastic for treating your dogsactivity-related strains and bruises.

10 A New LookHow to teach your dog to look to you

(literally!) for direction when things geta little hairy.

13 Willard WaterSome dog owners swear by this simplesubstance as a treatment for just aboutanything.

$5.95

Making watereven wetter . . .page 13

Maintaining that look. . . page 10

16 Paean to the PancreasThis organ plays a vital rolein digestion and diabetes

prevention. Why this dog maybe in trouble. . . page 16

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2|JUNE 2006 Copyright 2006, Belvoir Media Group, LLC

EDITORS NOTEEDITORS NOTE

What, now even our dogs are allstressed out? Is this something wereally need to worry about? Or justyuppy puppy pseudo-angst?

That probably would havebeen my reaction if, a decade or so ago, I hadread an article about signs of stress in dogs.Today, though, I get it. Trained to recognizethe telltale body language and behavior of on-edge dogs by WDJs professional trainercontributors, I now see stressed-out dogs just

about everywhere I go.When I first read Pat Millers article on this

topic (Stress Signals, facing page), I couldplainly picture a number of dogs in my ownlife who regularly exhibited certain stress sig-nals. There was my parents mixed-breed,Andy, who would stop in his tracks and seem-ingly idly scratch his ears with a hind foot ifany of our voices sounded angry or loud. Mydarling Border Collie, Rupert, used to flick histongue out and lick his nose constantly aroundstrangers and especially small children.

Carly belongs to a family I know well. Its

become a tradition for me to take a photo-graphic portrait of their sons every Christmas,and Carly is required to be in the pictures, too.Weve always thought it was funny that Carlyalways yawns repeatedly and deeply every timewe make her sit for these portraits. In fact, wesave and collect these comical yawning shotsfrom year to year. Is it the sitting still, beingcalled (to make eye contact with the camera)without being allowed to move, the noise ofthe camera? Whateverit is, I nowrealize some-thing about the experience is stressful for her,and her yawning helps relieve that anxiety.

A few times a year, I dog-sit Paws, a high-

BY NANCY KERNS

Seek and You May FindIts obvious, once you know what to look for.

octane yellow Lab, when his family goes onvacation.At seven years old, Paws still acts likean uncouth puppy. Hes so frantic and whinesso loudly that its quite unpleasant to take himanywhere. I recently brought him to a do-it-yourself dog bathing facility, where he whinedso constantly and at such a high volumethroughout his bath that I half expected a roundof applause from the other customers when weleft.Also,while he can take treats from my handwith the greatest of delicacy and care at home,

when we work on his training out in the world,he snaps and grabs at them, often biting myfingers by mistake. But now I get it. His hyper-activity and whining are not just misbehavior;they are signs that he is incredibly stressed andoverwhelmed when he does get taken out.

Pat gives a number of good reasons for usto pay attention to our dogs stress signals (biteprevention is one very compelling rationale).

Less dramatic but just as tragic is the factthat dogs, like all other mammals (humans in-cluded), have a difficult time learning andretaining what they have learned when they are

stressed. Numerous studies with a wide vari-ety of species have shown that increased levelsof cortisol (a potent hormone released duringstress) impair the brains ability to process and

store information.Understanding this

will certainly give memore patience withPaws. It will also changethe way Ill work withhim in the future, so hecan relax and retain hislessons after all

these years.

MISSION STATEMENT: WDJs mission is to provide dog guardians with in-depth information oneffective holistic healthcare methods and successful nonviolent training. The methods we discusswill endeavor to do no harm to dogs; we do not advocate perpetrating even minor transgressions inthe name of greater good. We intend our articles to enable readers to immediately apply trainingand healthcare techniques to their own dogs with visible and enjoyable success. All topics shouldcontribute to improving the dogs health and vitality, and deepening the canine/human bond. Aboveall, we wish to contribute information that will enable consumers to make kind, healthy, and in-formed decisions about caring for their own dogs.

THE WHOLE DOGJOURNAL (ISSN #1097-5322) is published mon-thly by Belvoir MediaGroup, LLC, 800 Con-necticut Avenue, Nor-

walk, CT 06854-1631. Robert En-glander, Chairman and CEO; TimothyH. Cole, Executive Vice President,Editorial Director; Philip L. Penny,

Chief Operating Officer; Greg King,Executive Vice President, MarketingDirector; Marvin Cweibel, Senior VicePresident, Marketing Operations; RonGoldberg, Chief Financial Officer; TomCanfield, Vice President, Circulation;Michael N. Pollet, Senior VicePresident, General Counsel. Period-icals postage paid at Norwalk, CT andat additional mailing offices. Copyright2006, Belvoir Media Group, LLC. Allrights reserved. Reproduction inwhole or in part is strictly prohibited.Printed in U.S.A. Revenue Canada GSTAccount #128044658. Canada Pub-lishing Agreement Number #40016479.

THE WHOLE DOG JOURNAL makesevery effort to provide information ondog health, care, and treatment thatis authoritative, reliable, and practical.It is not intended, however, to replacediagnosis or treatment from a vet-erinarian or other qualified dogprofessional. THE WHOLE DOGJOURNAL does not assume any legalresponsibility. Readers should alwaysconsult qualified healthcare providersfor specific diagnosis and treatment.

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BY PAT MILLER

Stress Signals

R

Learn to recognize signs of (and then reduce) your dogs stress.

ecently, there was a video clip of atwo-legged dog making the e-mailrounds. Faith, a gold-colored Labmix, is missing her front legs due toa congenital deformity. Several

people sent me the clip with their commentsabout how wonderful it was that the dogcould walk and hop around on her two hindlegs and lead a relatively normal life.

I watched the clip a number of times, andfound the footage more disturbing than up-

lifting. I was concerned that every personwho sent me the clip thought Faith lookedhappy. I wondered if we were watchingentirely different videos! What Isaw was adog who was noticeably stressed in almostevery bit of the footage, with the exceptionof a few seconds showing Faith lying underthe covers in bed with her owner.

I suspect that the people who sent methe video saw the heartwarming miracle of adog who survived against all odds. I saw a

dog who was stress-panting, ears pinned

against her head, eyes large, anxious when-ever her owner walked away from her, andavoiding contact when admiring membersof the public reached out to touch her. Whywas there such a huge difference betweenour interpretations of the dogs behavior?

Please note: Im not saying Faith ap-pears to be on the verge of biting someone,or has any tendency at all toward aggres-sion. But she certainly does appear stressed at least when shes been filmed.

Many of the folks who sent Faiths clipto me are above-average dog people. They

read WDJ, frequent good training e-maillists, and read the right books. Ifthey misseda package of behaviors that signaled to methat Faith was not calm and relaxed, its notsurprising that so many average (and worse)dog owners are fairly poor at recognizingsigns of stress.

The smart, aware owner is always on thealert for signs that her dog is stressed, soshe can alleviate tension when it occurs.Those whose dogs are easily stressed often

BEHAVIOR

become hypervigilant, watching closely fo

tiny signs that presage more obvious stressrelated behaviors, in order to forestall thoseunpleasant reactions.

If more owners were aware of the subtlesigns of stress, fewer dogs would bite. Thawould be a very good thing.

Why de-stressing helpsThere are many reasons why its importanto pay attention to stress indicators, including the following:

I Stress is a universalunderlying cause o

aggression.I Stress can have a negative impact on thedogs health.

I The dogs ability to learn is impairedwhen she is stressed.

I Dogs respond poorly to cues whenstressed.

I Negative classical conditioning can occur as a result of stress.

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The Whole Dog Journal

WHAT YOU CAN DO . . .

Observe your dog closely and

make a list of the behaviors he

manifests when stressed. Watch

for those subtle ones!

Study the list to determine

which stressors you can remove

from your dogs environment.

Create a plan to change his

association from negative to

positive with as many of the

stressors as possible.

Watch other dogs you come

across and make note of their

signs of stress to improve your

stress observation skills.

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Its difficult to seein black and white, but what looksa bit like an icicle drooping out othis little dogs mouth is, in fact, a long rope of drool. He had planted himself by thegate of a dog park and was clearly ready to leave, although his owner hadnt noticed

BEHAVIOR

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For all of these reasons, and more, itsworthwhile to monitor your dog for signsof stress, and take appropriate stepsto makehis life a little easier.

Signs of stressListed below are some stress behaviors thatare often overlooked. With each behavior,the appropriate immediate course of action

for you is to identify the stressor(s) and fig-ure out how to decrease the intensity of thatstressful stimulus. In many cases this canbe accomplished by increasing the distancebetween your dog and the stressor, be it achild, another dog, a noisy street sweeper,a person in uniform, men with beards . . .

If possible, remove the stressor fromyour dogs environment entirely. For ex-ample, if hes stressed by harsh verbalcorrections, shock collars, and NASCARraces on TV, you can probably simply stopexposing him to them. For stressors that

cant be eliminated, a long-term programof counter-conditioning and desensitizationcan change the dogs association with astressor from negative to positive, remov-ing one more trigger for stress signals andpossible aggression. (See Touch Me,Touch Me Not, August 2004, to learn howto carry out a counter-conditioning and de-sensitization program.)

I Anorexia: Stress causes the appetite toshut down. A dog who wont eat moderateto high-value treats may just be distracted

or simply not hungry, but this is more oftenan indicator of stress.

I Appeasement/deference signals:

These dont always indicatestress.Appease-ment and deference are important everydaycommunication tools for keeping peace insocial hierarchies, and are often presentedin calm, stress-free interactions.

Appeasement and/or deference signalsaregenerally offered by a lower-ranking dog

to a higher-ranking member in a social groupto promote the tranquility of the group andthe safety of the lower-ranking member.When offered in conjunction with other be-haviors, they can be an indicator of stressas well. Appeasement and deference signalsinclude:

Slow movement: Lower-ranking dog

appears to be moving in slow motion. Lip licking: Lower-ranking dog licks at

the mouth of the higher-ranking mem-ber of the social group.

Sitting/lying down/exposing under-side: Lower-ranking dog offerssubmission by lowering body posture,exposing vulnerable parts.

Turning head away, averting eyes:Lower-ranking dog avoids eye contact,exposes neck.

I Avoidance: Dog turns away, shutsdown, evades handlers touch and treats.

I Brow ridges: Furrows or muscle ridgesappear in dogs forehead and around eyes.

I Digestive disturbances: Vomiting anddiarrhea canbe a sign of illness, orof stress;the digestive system reacts strongly to stress.Carsickness is often a stress reaction.

I Displacement behaviors: These are be-haviors performed in an effort to resolve an

internal stress conflict for the dog, and arenot related to hierarchy. They may be ob-served in a dog who is stressed and inisolation (for example, a dog left alone inan exam room in a veterinary hospital), dif-ferentiating them from behaviors related torelationship or hierarchy.

Displacement behaviors include:

Blinking (eyes blink at a rate that isfaster than normal).

Chattering teeth.

Nose licking (dogs tongue flicks outonce or multiple times).

Scratching.

Shaking off(as if wet, but dog is dry).

Yawning.

I Drooling or foaming: This may be anindication of stress or a response to thepresence of food, or an indication of a mouthinjury.

I Excessive grooming: Dog may lick orchew paws, legs, flank, tail, and genital ar-eas, even to the point of self-mutilation.

I Hyperactivity: Frantic behavior or justrestless pacing, sometimes misinterpretedas ignoring or blowing off owner.

I Immune system disorders: Long-termstress weakens the immune system. Immunerelated problems can improve if dogs over-all levels of stress are reduced.

I Lack of attention/focus: The brain hasdifficulty processing information whenstressed.

I Leaning/clinging: The stressed dogseeks contact with human as reassurance.

I Lowered body posture: Slinking or

acting guilty or sneaky (all misinterpre-tations of dog body language) can beindicators of stress.

I Mouthing: Willingness to use mouth onhuman skin can be puppy exploration oradult poor manners, but can also be an ex-pression of stress, ranging from gentlenibbling (flea biting), to hard taking oftreats, to painfully hard mouthing, snapping,or biting.

Cody: Trembling, vomiting. Carly:Yawning atphoto shoots. Dog at park: Foaming at the mouth.

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I Obsessive-compulsive disorders:

Theseinclude imaginary fly-snapping, light-and shadow-chasing, tail-chasing, pica (eat-ing nonfood objects), flank-sucking,self-mutilation, and more. While OCDsprobably have a genetic component, thebehavior itself is usually triggered by stress.

I Panting: Rapid shallow or heavy

breathing normal if the dog is warm orhas just been exercising but can be a signof stress in the dog who is not physicallyexerting himself or is over-warm.

I Stiff movement: Tension can cause anoticeable stiffness in leg, body, and tailmovements.

I Stretching: To release stress-relatedtension in muscles, many dogs performelaborate, deep stretches (may also occurafter sleeping).

I Sweaty paws: Damp footprints can beseen on floors, exam tables, or rubber mats.

I Trembling: May be due to stress (orcold!).

I Whining: This high-pitched vocaliza-tion, irritating to most humans, is anindication of stress. While some may inter-pret it as excitement, a dog who is excitedto the point of whining is also stressed.

I Yawning.

Without Provocation

Almost every Dog Mauls Toddler headline is followed by an article that includes,among other things, these two phrases:

1. The dog was always good with children, and,

2. The bite was unprovoked.

Both statements make me cringe. Most people whothink their dogs are good with children dont realizethat their dogs only tolerate children the dogs are actu-ally stressed in the presence of children, at least to somedegree. These dogs usually show low level signs of stressthat would warn an observant owner that they really dontthink little humans are all that great after all. Dogs who are truly good with chil-dren adore them; they dont just tolerate them. They are delighted to see children,and, with wriggling body, wagging tail, and squinty eyes, cant wait to go see them.Anything less than this joyful response is mere tolerance.

With the very rare exception of idiopathic aggression aggression for whichthere is no discernible cause every bite is provoked from the dogs perspective.We, as humans, may feel the bite wasnt justified or appropriate, but rest assured thedog felt justified in biting. In many case, the provocation is pretty apparent from thearticle: the dog was kept on a chain; the dog had a litter of puppies; the toddler wasleft outside in the backyard with a dog who had just been fed. In each case, the dogwas stressed beyond his or her ability to control his bite.

Raise your stress awareness. Examine news reports about dog attacks to see ifyou can identify the possible stressors and provocation in each incident. Then besure to protect your own dog from those potential bite-causing circumstances.

As I reread this list, I find myself making

note of my own dogs signs of stress, pastand present. I recall the time my dearlymissed Pomeranian, Dusty, was earning thethird leg of his Companion Dog degree. AsI released him from the three-minute LongDown, I noticed tiny, sweaty pawprints onthe rubber show-ring mats where his littlepaws had rested. Only in that moment didrealize how stressful that exercise must havebeen for him.

Our sound-sensitive Corgi, Lucytrembles violently with the approach of athunderstorm, long before I can hear thedistant booming, while Tucker, our Cattle

Dog-mix, just comes and leans against me also well before I can hear the storm. Withdogs like those two, who needs weatherforecasters? Dubhy, our dog-reactive Scottynormally takes treats with exceptionagentleness except when hes stressed inthe presence of another dog. Then its fin-gers beware!

Even we humans succumb to the natu-ral biological need to use body language toexpress and relieve stress. I used to showhunters and jumpers (horses). Every time Isat on my horse outside the over-fences

classes waiting for my turn to compete, Iwould be afflicted with the uncontrollableneedto yawn and yawn and yawn. Onlyrecently did I realize why. Stress! It affectus all.

A portrait of three stress cases, from left to right. Paws is whining. Cooper isstress-panting, even though its not hot. Rupert keeps licking his nose.

Pat Miller, CPDT,is WDJs Training Editor

Miller lives in Hagerstown, Maryland, sit

of her Peaceable Paws training center. Fo

book purchasing or contact information

see Resources, page 24.

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related. To me, they are simply moleculesthat our bodies understand. I really enjoyworking with them.

I understand you have a strong bias toward

the use of whole herbs.

Every herbalist does. Thats what herbalmedicine is. Its the scientists who want totake a single molecule out and study it to

death, and thats fine, if it turns out to besafe and effective. But to me its inefficient.We understand how the whole herbs work.We have an empirical database thats 2,000years old, in many cases. So why arent westudying whole herbs?

Where do you start with a new patient, when

the dog is a mess ?

I change the diet.

To what?

To something different! Obviously, itsan individual thing, but if they have beenon lamb andrice, I suggest switching to fishand potato. We look at what the dog hasbeen fed, and feed him something else.Sometimes I suggest changing the form ofthe diet. If its commercial, try homemade.If its homemade people dont want to hearthis! try a commercial diet.

There are data out there suggesting thatthe overwhelming majority of publishedrecipesthat claim to provide a complete andbalanced diet are not they are actually de-ficient.And these are recipes in some of ourfavorite authors books! Often, I put my

patients on a more reliable source of a com-plete and balanced diet and see whathappens. People dont want to hear that, butit helps sometimes.

So, you might suggest that someone who is

using a homemade diet try a commercial

frozen raw diet instead?

Sometimes, I suggest a kibble. I like thecomplete and balanced raw frozen diets, sothat could work as well, but if the dog hasalready been on something like that, and stilllooks a mess, sometimesyou have to change

the form completely.

In WDJ, I try to tell dog owners to improve

their dogs diets, no matter what they are

feeding. Of course, some people are already

feeding their dogs the ultimate raw, grass-

fed, home-prepared diet . ..

But you are making judgments aboutwhat constitutes an improvement, and Idont think we know enough about nutri-tion to do that. Ive seen too many dogs on

a good, supposedly balanced homemadediet improve when they were putbackon kibble. Im not smart enough toknow why some improve. I thinkits a pretty artificial system to saywe know this is better than that;to me, the dog is the only onequalified to tell us what is best the dog tells us. And we just have

to keep trying things until we findsomething that works for him.I do have some biases, of

course! My big thing is variety.A lot of people, I think, when the y rea dyour kibble issue (dry dog food reviews),go Okay, this isthe one. You are very care-ful to not say This one is the best, butsomehow they make those determinations.And my whole thing is, No, there isnt justone best food. Youve got to try a lot ofthings.

Variety is especially important in pup-pies. Its clear that were seeingmore allergyand immune-mediated disease in dogs. Itsnow documented in people, too, where itwasnt so much, say, 10 years ago. In myopinion, one of the biggest contributors tothis is the fact that many people put theirdogs on one diet for the dogs entire life.Often, eventually, the dog develops an al-lergy to the ingredients in that food.

The immune system learns by being ex-posed to a lot of variety, so I think withpuppies in particular we have to start peopleout right and say Use variety; dont pick

just one food.

Im also now recommending that peoplegive probiotics for the first six months. Thedata in people are really interesting.Probiotics are kind of my new thing.

There are a couple of really interestingstudies where they gave probiotics to infantswho came from families with a predisposi-tion to developing atopic dermatitis eczema. In this study, they gave one groupformula and another [group received] for-mula plus probiotic. There was a 50 percentreduction in the incidence of atopy in theinfants fed the probiotics. To me, those are

stunning numbers coming from a large clini-cal trial. They followed the babies out forfour years and they still didnt develop al-lergy as much. Thats such a discovery.

I think we need to teach people from thebeginning about the hygiene hypothesis:dont be too clean, dont be too fast to putyour puppy on antibiotics for just a coupleof little papules, give them a variety of di-ets. Thats what holistic medicine is, ofcourse: prevention.

So youre not a diet purist?

Actually, I have a reputationas being anti-raw.

But you are not actually anti

raw . . .

No! Im not anti-raw! Bubecause I have told somepeople they should put their

dogs on a commercial dietsome of the diehardraw advocates canstand me. Ive been

kicked off some of the raw feeding listsbecause I wont make some kind of state-ment that Im exclusively for raw feeding.

Heres the thing: If your dog is not do-ing well on a home-prepared, raw diet, youneed to do something different! I see manypeople ignoring evidence that is in front oftheir very eyes, because they believe sostrongly that what they are doing with thediet is the best even if their dog looksand feels awful. If it works for your dog, ifhe looks great, raw feeding is fabulous. Buif you come in to my clinic and you are using a raw feeding plan and your dog doesnlook good, I might tell you to change. Thadoesnt mean I am anti-raw.

Frequently, the dog is having a hard timebecause hes allergic to something in thediet, but because the client is so convincedthey are doing the right thing by feeding ahome-prepared, raw diet, they sometimesdont consider that the dog might be allergic to something in the food. Ive had

patients whose raw-fed dogs had horribleskin conditions, and they spentyears tryinghomeopathy and all sorts of other stuffwhen the problem was in the diet all alongThats upsetting to me.

They couldnt see the forest for the trees.

Right.Heres another problem that seems to

arise more frequently among the raw feed-ers: When we do decide to put a dog withsigns of allergy on an elimination diet, weoften find there isnt anything the dog hasn

eaten that we can use for the eliminationtrial. Because so many raw feeders are suchadvocates of feeding variety andbecauseso many pet food companies now offernovel proteins like duck, rabbit, and venison we often find ourselves with nothingto use for an elimination diet.

Ive had to send clients off to get kangaroo or alligator from Omas Pride (a frozenraw food maker) to use in an eliminationdiet, because the client had at some time or

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BY GREGORY TILFORD

Dont Leave Home Without It

H

Arnica is fantastic for treating activity-related strains and bruises.

es fearless. Reckless. Senseless?Or perhaps my Australian CattleDog, Cedar, is just accident-prone.Yesterday he slammed head firstinto a door jam during rough play

with my Shepherd-mix, Willow. Today hedid a nose dive off a five-foot embankmentin pursuit of his favorite all-natural dog toy:a pine cone. As always, he retrieved thecone, chewed it into a slobbery clump offibrous goo, and dropped it at my feet. On

his trot back I noticed he was limping, hold-ing his front leg off the ground.

I palpate his shoulder and leg, ignoringthe anticipated snarls and growls that heinvariably produces with any unsolicitedphysical manipulation. Mobility seems fine,no tenderness upon touch, I cannot find anyevidence of a fracture. It appears that he hassuffered a minor sprain.

As always I immediately reach for mytrusty little vial of homeopathic arnica 30C.The diminutive, white sugar pill is easy tofeed just a quick drop from the vial cap

into his mouth and first aid is done.In about 30 minutes Cedars limp is

barely noticeable. Could the arnica reallywork that quickly? Or is it just that his in-

jury is less serious than I thought? I honestlydont know nor do I care because mylittle boy is feeling better. Plus, there is noharm in exercising precaution with a harm-less, yet potentially effective homeopathic

remedy. In anhour or so Illg iv e a n ot h erpill, and checkhis leg for swelling, but for now it seemsthat my reckless little dog got off easy again.

Indeed, arnica is an amazing first aidremedy. I use it for myself as well as mydogs, and I would never venture anywherewithout it.

Awesome herbPreparations made from the bright yellow,daisy-like flowers of arnica have been usedfor centuries as an effective herbal medi-cine. Often used by professional athletes inthe form of gels, liniments, or oil infusions,arnica is massaged into the site of sprains,bruises, or other closed-tissue injuries.

Its contributions to the healing processcan be dramatic and almost immediate; theherb acts to quickly dilate peripheral capil-laries and lymph ducts. This results inincreased circulation and drainage of tissues

that are engorged with fluids as a result ofinjury. The healing process is acceleratedby the improved flow of lymph, blood, andplatelets in and out of the affected area.

Topical preparations of arnica are espe-cially valuable for treatment of horses andotherlarge animals that aresubjected to rig-orous exercise. Arnica gels or oils can beused on dogs, but measures must be takento prohibit dogs from licking it off, as prepa-rations of this plant can be toxic if takeninternally. This is especially true if any in-ternal bleeding or inflammation is present.

And, because arnica stimulates blood flowin tissues where it is directly applied, itshould never be used to treat open wounds.Nor should herbal preparations of arnica beapplied prior to a surgical procedure.

Homeopathic arnicaThe rules of safe and effective use of ho-meopathic arnica are quite different.

Comparing an herbal preparation of ar-nica with its homeopathic counterpart is

HERBAL MEDICINE

almost like comparing apples with thesmell of apple blossoms.

Homeopathic arnica is madewith such dilute concentrations that scientific analysiof the finished product can

notdetect any physical presence of the herbitself; only the energies of the plant re-main. Instead of working directly uponphysical structures of the body through di-rect chemical interactions (as concentrated

herbal preparations do), homeopathicarnicaworks by stimulating the healing process asub-physical, bioenergetic levels. Thetheory is that only a few molecules of theplant are needed to trigger a positive re-sponse by the recipient body.

Sound far-fetched? Just wait till you useit and see the results!

I use Arnica Montana 30C a prepa-ration that is 3,000 times more dilute thanthe herbal tincture from which it is madeHomeopathic arnica is readily availablethrough health food retailers and comes in

a variety of potencies.Homeopathic arnica is very safe andcan

be used as a first line of treatment for virtually any type of closed injury. I keep a bottleof the tiny sugar pills with me wherever Igo for my dogs and myself. When a twistsprain, or overextension of a leg results in alimp, I just slip one tiny little pill (smallerthan a peppercorn) into my dogs mouth andwait 30 minutes for a result. If no resultsoccur, I repeat the dose one more time. Inmany cases, thats all thats needed.

Like any medicine, homeopathic arnica

may not work for everybody. And if yoususpect a bone fracture or other serious in-jury, get your pup to a vet.

TM

I



Look for arnica products in your

local health food store.

Keep homeopathic arnica on

hand wherever you go with your

dog. Administer for any bruise or

strain.

I

HERBAL MEDICINE

Greg Tilford is a well-known expert on

herbal medicine for animals. An interna

tional lecturer and teacher of veterinarian

and pet owners alike, Greg has authored

or co-authored four books on herbs, includ

ing All You Ever Wanted to Know AbouHerbs for Pets (Bowie Press, 1999).

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BY MARDI RICHMOND

A New Look

W

How to teach your dog to look to you (literally!) for direction.

TRAINING

hen I first saw Laney, she wasacross the parking lot from theagility class I was teaching.Laney was a spinning, barkingmass of black and white dog.

Whenever the dogs in my class moved,Laney would leap in the air and start spin-ning and barking again. Her person, BonnieVogt, looked confused and distressed.

I had no idea what I was getting myselfinto, Vogt told me at a later date. Shed

met Laney just a few days earlier at a dogcamp. Laney was attending the camp withher foster person and Vogt took a fancy tothe young dog. The attraction was obvious;Laney was athletic, smart, driven, and ea-ger to please. It wasnt until Vogt broughtLaney home and took her to observe theagility class that Vogt discovered Laneyssomewhat crazier side.

Laney is certainly not alone in her higharousal behavior. Many dogs have some-thing that gets them really worked-up skateboards, cats, and bicycles are common.

For Laney, it can be anything that moves,including cars, balls, or dogs running anagility course.

Look is a behavior that can help you

the street and a skateboarder comes aroundthe corner. As soon as your dog notices theskateboarder, instead of barking and lung-ing, he looks at you and keeps looking untilthe skateboarder is past and you give therelease signal. You lavish your dog with fan-tastic treats, praise, or attention until theskateboarder is past.

Teaching and reinforcing the Look cancertainly help a dog behave better in the

presence of his triggers. But there is anadded benefit for dogs whose reactive be-havior is also motivated by uncertainty orfear. Generously rewarding the Look mayalso result in counter-conditioning the scarything, so that it becomes less scary.

Steps to training the LookThe key to being able to effectively useLook to help manage a dog who getsworked-up around dogs, skateboards, cars,cats, or anything else, is to train the behav-ior thoroughly before youever use it around

the things that make the dog lose it. Hereare the steps for building a strong and reli-able Look.

I Step one: Similar to Leave it

The first step is to teach your dog to leavesomething alone that he or she wants.

To begin, arm yourself with a handfulof super delicious treats (such as freshcooked chicken) and some rather boringtreats (such as ordinary kibble). Put a bor-

manage your dogs response in these situa-tions. It is an especially useful behavior for

dogs whose excitement is triggered, at least

in part, by movement, a prey drive, or the

desire to fetch or herd.Look can be part of an overall pro-

gram to help your doglearn to behave betterin the presence of those things that makeher crazy.

It really works, says Vogt. Today,

Laney can walk politely down busy streets(with cars rushing by), past moving dogs,and even ignore skateboards. Vogt acknowl-edges that Laneys success at overcomingher crazies began with the Look.

There is a lot to itLook is a combination behavior. It is morethan the Leave it or Off. It is more thanthe ever-popular watch me. It involves thedog breaking eye contact with the arousingobject, person, or animal (whatever triggersthe dogs manic behavior); turning his head

away from that trigger; making eye contactwith you; and holding that eye contact untilyou give a release signal. This is a behaviorthat a dog can do while sitting still or mov-ing, on leash or off. The Look is mosteffective when the dog learns to do all ofthis as soon as he notices the thing thatmakes him crazy without you asking!

With a dog who gets overexcited whenhe sees skateboarders, for example, theLook works like this: You are walking down

TM

I



If your dog becomes aggressive

or is fearful around other dogs,

use counter-conditioning and

desensitization to improve his

emotional response to them.

However, if he becomes hard to

restrain out of excitement he

really wants to go play or run

with the other dogs teach him

the Look behavior described

here.

I

Before: As soon as Lilo spots the geese

grazing on a lawn about 200 feet away,she becomes fixated and starts pullinghard toward them.

TRAINING

After: Lilo has learned that looking away

from thegeeseand at Sandis face is highlyrewarding. She offers the Look fasterthan Sandi can deliver the treats!

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Copyright 2006, Belvoir Media Group, LLC THE WHOLE DOG JOURNAL | 1

ing treat in your left hand. Have the supergood treats in a pouch, behind your back,on a table, or in some other way close athand but not available to your dog.

Present the boring treat to your dog in aclosed fist (so he or she can smell it, butcant get to it). Allow your dog to lick, sniff,and try to get to the treat.The momentyourdog backs or looks away from your closedhand a tiny bit, mark the behavior (with theword Yes! or the click! of a clicker, forexample), and give your dog one of the top-quality treats from your other hand. Be verypatient; some dogs will lick and mouth yourhand for several minutes before they backoff the first time.

Repeat several times until your dog im-mediately backs away from the treat.

Move the boring treat to your right handand repeat the exercise.

I Step two: Make eye contact

The second step to the Look behavior isteaching your dog to make eye contact withyou when he backs off of the treat.

Practice the step one exercise until youare confident your dog will immediatelyback away from a closed hand holding atreat. Now, when he backs away, instead ofclicking or saying Yes! immediately, waitfor him toglance up atyourface.Thenclick!or say Yes! and give your dog one of thesuper-delicious treats. Once again, be pa-tient. At first, your dog will not know thatyou have raised the criteria for a reward.

She may go back to the hand and sniff andlick some more. Wait. The moment shelooks at you to figure out what you want,click! and give her a terrific treat.

Practice this several times with the bor-ing treat in each hand. Dont worry if yourdog is not staring into your eyes; just look-ing up at your face is enough.

Please note: Some dogs are not comfort-able making or holding eye contact withpeople and have not learned that it is a re-

warding behavior. For these dogs, lookingat your face can be a little more difficult. Ifyou have not already taught your dog thatmaking eye contact with you is a valuableand rewarding behavior, practice it sepa-rately from this exercise. Try taking a treatand bringing it up to your eye. When yourdog follows the treat and looks at your face,click!or say Yes! and reward with a treat.

I Step three: Put it on cue

At this point, your dog will probably startoffering you the look without you asking;this is great! In the long run, you will wantto continue reinforcing the offered or auto-matic look. (See step six, below, for moreon the automatic look.) But teaching yourdog to respond to the Look cue when youask can also be helpful.

You are ready to put the behavior on cueonce your dog has the idea of looking awayfrom the treat and into your eyes. Immedi-ately before you present the fist with theboring treat, say Look! After he associates the word with the action, you canpresent the fist first, then say, Look!

A fun and added benefit of using theword look instead of something more

common like leave it or off is that it isan easy word to slip into normal sentencesThink how impressed your neighbors wilbe when you can walk down the sidewalkand say toyourdog,Nowdont even LOOKat that kitty, and he whips his head aroundand pays attention to you instead of the cat

I Step four: Make it more difficult

Once your dog can easily look away from atemptation and hold eye contact with youfor about 10 seconds, raise your criteria intwo ways: increase the length of time yourdog holds eye contact, and increase the leveof temptation offered by thething he is supposed to be resisting.

Start this latter process by having yourdog resist the temptation of very attractivetreats, by having himlook away from treatsinan openpalm, orby havinghim look awayfrom a treat on the floor. You can work withdifferent items,too. Practice with boring ob

jects (such as a hat or towel) and graduallybuild up to more exciting objects (like his

At first, Lilo licked Sandis closed fist,trying to get the treat inside. When shestopped trying, Sandi immediately clickeda clicker and rewarded the dog.

When Sandi waited a moment before sherewarded Lilo for backing away from thetreat, Lilo looked at her (Hey! Wheresmy treat?). Click! and treat for the look.

For some dogs, the thing that makes them crazy is other dogs. Using an operantconditioning technique like training the Look is effective if your is triggeredbecause he is overexcited or frustrated (for example, when he sees dogs running orchasing balls and he cannot join the game).

Using the Look or another operant behavior is also an option for dogs who arefearful or upset around other dogs. Rewarding the Look with liberal amounts ofextra-special treats (such as fresh roast beef) in the presence of other dogs can havethe side effect of helping your dog feel better about those other dogs.

For dogs who are fearful or upset around other dogs, however, using desensi-tization and classical counter-conditioning is another good (and sometimes the best)choice. In brief, counter-conditioning is when you start a flow of treats or other goodthings as soon as your dog notices another dog, and stop the treats as soon as the

other dog disappears. Desensitization is exposing your dog to another at a subthresholdlevel far enough away so that your dog notices the other dog, but is not upset.When your dog is comfortable with the presence of the other dog at that distance,you gradually decrease the distance between them, attaining a comfort level at eachnew distance before proceeding further.

These techniques work together to change the dogs emotional response, so hewill be less likely to be reactive. In addition, when using counter-conditioningtechniques, a skilled trainer in a carefully controlled environment can often jumpstart the automatic Look in a few repetitions. (For more information, see ClassicalConditioning, June 2001 and Nuclear Reactors, November 2003.)

When to Use Look, and When Not to

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favorite toy or a ball). Practice with thingsyour dog would normally want to investi-gate, such as trees hed like to sniff whenyou are on walks. For your dog to get reallygood, you may need to practice with asmany as 30 or more different items.

Increase the length of time your dogneedsto hold eyecontact, too.At first, markthe desired behavior with a click! or Yes!

and give him a treat for just glancing at yourface, then for holding it for a half a second,then a whole second, then two seconds, etc.Work up to a minute or longer.

Practice each of these increasingly de-manding criteria separately. If you work onthe length of time, use a boring treat in aclosed fist. If you work on a more difficultobject (like a better treat in an open palm),click at first for simply looking away, thenfor making eye contact, and then for hold-ing the eye contact. Then put them togetherand practice with more difficult objects forlonger periods of time.

At this point, start varying the rewards,giving less interesting treats for easier re-sponses, and better treats for more difficultresponses. Note: Do not yet practice withthe thing that makes your dog crazy!

I Step five: Vary locations, positions

Practice in different locations and with yourdog in different positions, by setting uppractice sessions in new places. Also prac-tice with various levels of distraction.Again,start with the easier distractions and thenmake it more difficult.

Practice with your dog in different po-sitions, too: in front of you, next to you, oneither side, standing, sitting, or walking.

Practice both on leash and off leash. Atfirst, do off-leash practice with items thatare easier to resist or with some type ofsafety in place (like a screen over the top

of a bowl) so that your dog cannot get thetreats or toys you are practicing with.

Try setting up a Look course whereyou have multiple items such as treats, toys,and odd objects set around your yard or thepark. Include people and other dogs, too.Walk your dog past and around each ob-

ject, person, or animal.

I

Step six: The automatic lookThe automatic response is part of whatmakes Look a powerful behavior. At vari-ous points while training this, your dog willmost likely offer the look without yourasking. This is GREAT and should be re-warded generously, with the best treatspossible, and with jackpots (rapidly feed-ing 10 or more treats). You want your dogto volunteer the Look any time he is unsureof himself.

Practice this behavior around a varietyof items, some easier and some more diffi-cult to resist. With enough practice, theLook will become one of the things yourdog does when he doesnt know what elseto do! Youll soon find that your dog willautomatically look at you when he spots aformer trigger; notice and reward this!

Trying it in the real worldBe sure your dog is ready to begin practic-ing in the presence of the thing that makesyour dog crazy by testing him with differ-ent objects in different locations first. Makesure he can offer the Look in the presenceof many different triggers, in many loca-

tions, and while in different positions. Youwant him to really understand this behav-ior, and have it well generalized, beforepracticing with the thing that makes yourdog crazy.

To set up your dog for success, arrangeyour practice sessions so that you can con-

When your dog is learning the Look, avoid these mistakes:

1. Do not expect your dog to be able to perform the Look aswell with the thing that makes him crazy as he can with lessdistracting items, people, or animals until hes had a lot ofpractice! It is much more difficult for a dog to do this behavioronce his emotions are engaged.

2. While you do want to avoid having your dog become reac-tive or barking and lunging, do not try to pre-empt your dogsacting out by asking him to Look before your dog notices thearousing animal or object. This can backfire; your dog may ac-

Avoid These Common Mistakes When Training the Looktually learn that the Look is a precursor to the arrival of thething that makes him crazy. (If you say Look! and instead of

looking, your dog scans the horizon for the arousing object oranimal, you may be asking for the look before your dog notices

the trigger!) Instead, ask for the Look only after your dognotices the arousing animal or object. Prevent the worked-upbehavior by creating distance or working at a lower intensity.

3. Once youve started practicing with the things that get yourdog worked-up, continue practicing with less-stimulating ob-

jects so that your dog will not associate the behavior only withdifficult or scary situations.

trol the distance between your dog and histrigger. At first, practice with the thing thatmakes your dog crazy far enough away thatyour dog doesnt actually get worked-up.Practice repeatedly so that your dog auto-matically looks at you every time he seeshis former trigger.

Use the absolute best rewards possible.This is the time to bring out the roast beef,

smelly sardines, or canned chicken.Gradually (over several practice ses-sions or possibly over several weeks ofpractice) move your dog closer and closeruntil he can do the behavior with the thingthat makes him crazy within a few feet.

Continue watching for those offeredLooks. Reward generously and give jack-pots. This helps your dog learn that he candisengage on his own and that you will no-tice and appreciate it!

Look is a great foundationIve seen the Look work wonders with manydogs, including Laney and one of my owndogs. Ive watched dogs with high preydrive learn to ignore cats and squirrels andlook at their handlers instead. Ive knowndogs who would like to chase joggers, skate-boarders, and bicyclists learn to Lookinstead of lunge. Ive watcheddogs who arereactive with other dogs learn to walkthrough groups of strange dogs while look-ing at their person.

Look is a powerful foundation tool formanaging high-arousal problems. When adog can Look reliably when asked andof-

fers the behavior in the face of potentiallyarousing stimuli, he is well on his way tolearning calm behavior in any situation.

Mardi Richmond,MA, CPDT, is a writerand

trainer living in Santa Cruz, California,

with her partner and two wonderful dogs.

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When Dr. Willard accidentally burnedhimself, the only water at hand was a dilutesolution of the sludge-removal formula. Tohis surprise, the treated water immediatelyeliminated his pain and the burn quicklyhealed without scarring. He began to ex-periment on himself and his family, thenasked friends and relatives to try his Cata-lyst Altered Water. Through the 1960s and70s, word spread.

Soon people in South Dakota were us-ing dilute solutions of Willard Water to treaburns, sprains, bruises, and other injuries

They added it to their drinking water, laundry detergent, shampoo, and bath water.Farmers, gardeners, and greenhouse

operators discovered that plants treated withWillard Water needed less fertilizer and hadbetter root structure, stronger stems, higheryields, and more foliage, even duringdrought conditions.

Dr. Willard found that farmers consis-tently reported improvements in cattlewithin three weeks of switching to Willard

BY CJ PUOTINEN

Willard Water

W

Some dog owners swear this substance helps treat anything effectively.

illardWater is one of lifes mys-teries. Most people have neverheard of it. Those who have,tend to use it religiously, eventhough they arent sure what it

is or how it works. They say it improvesdigestion, reduces migraine headaches, re-lieves arthritis, improves skin health, healsburns and wounds without scarring, helpsbalance blood sugar, treats gum disease,supports detoxification, lowers high bloodpressure, alleviates pain, and is helpful inthe treatment of dozens of other conditions,including cancer.

Its manufacturer makes no medicalclaims beyond reporting that Willard Wa-ter may have anti-inflammatory andanalgesic properties, and that free-radicalscavenger tests show it to be a powerful

antioxidant.W ha t h el ps s et

Willard Water apartfrom other won-

der products is

that it was exam-

ined by a Congressional subcommittee onhealth and long-term care in 1980, investi-gated by the 60 Minutes TV program thatsame year, and tested by the U.S. Food andDrug Administration. To date, all evidencehas foundWillard Water to be safe and non-toxic.

While some veterinarians might scoff atthe claims made by Willard Water propo-nents, other holistic practitioners credit theproduct with amazing abilities to heal andbalance. For example, Roger DeHaan,DVM, a holistic veterinarian in Kings Moun-tain, North Carolina, has recommendedWillard Water for his canine patients since1983. He mixes the liquid concentrate withdrinking water for improved hydration andapplies it to cuts, wounds, and other inju-ries. He even adds a small amount (10 cc)of full-strength concentrate to each liter ofLactated Ringers Solution before adminis-tering subcutaneous fluids.

History of the catalystWhat exactly is this stuff? Its ingredients(water, fossilized organics, sodium metasilicate, sulfated castor oil, calcium chlo-ride, and magnesium sulfate) dont soundlike much but their combined action re-defines the behavior of water.

The addition of Willard Water concen-trate to water is said to change watersmolecular structure from a very stable tet-rahedron to a chain of water moleculesattracted by strong electrostatic bonds tovery small electrically charged colloidalparticles. The result, which its inventor

called CatalystAltered Water because it lit-erally alters or changes water, penetrateswhere normal water cant.

Willard Water was developed in the1960s by John Willard, Ph.D., a professorof chemistry at the South Dakota School ofMines.Whileconsulting foran oilcompany,he searched for a way to remove the sludgethat plagued oil wells. He found it in a for-mula he had previously developed toremove soot from Pullman railcars.

ALTERNATIVE M EDIC IN E

TM

I



Get a free sample and try this

versatile product.

Add it to your dogs drinking

water and food; this is said to

result in improved digestion,

behavior, and performance.

Spray it on cuts, abrasions,

sprains, bruises, and other

injuries.

Mix it with your dogs shampoo

for an improved coat. Spray and

brush for between-bath

grooming.

I

When diluted to thelabel instructions, Willard Water isodorless and tasteless, yet some ownerssay their dogs prefer it to plain water.

I

I

ALTERNATIVE M EDIC IN E

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Water. Livestock raised on Willard Watershowed greater resistance to shipping fever,a condition caused by the stress of crowdedtransportation, as well as reduced stressduring weaning, branding, dehorning, andcastration. Those on Willard Water recov-ered faster than control animals.

Pet use

For all animals, Willard Water seems to actas a whole-body tonic. That is, its safe touse in small amounts for long pe-riods of time, during which itapparently helps to bringinto bal-ance all of the bodys systems.

The following doses haveworked well for dogs, but so haveother concentrations. If youreexperimental, try a little less ormore and observe your dogs re-sponse.

For best results, use good-quality fi ltered, bottled, oruncontaminated water from a re-liable source. Reverse-osmosisfiltered water is highly recom-mended. Hard water, whichcontains high concentrations ofminerals, is supposed to interferewith or slow the action of WillardWater.

WillardWatercomes in two forms, darkand clear. I use the dark concentrate, saysDr. DeHaan, because it contains lignite anddozens of important trace minerals.Im con-v in c ed t h at t h os e m in e ra l s m a ke a

difference.One fluid ounce (2 tablespoons) concen-

trate per gallon of water is the strengthrecommended for daily human consumptionas well as for topical application on petsand people. This same strength is a gooddaily drinking water for animals with acuteor chronic health problems or for any ani-mals during hot weather or times of stress.(Note that these recommendations are forClear Willard Water and Dark XLR-8 PlusWillard Water. The greatly diluted DarkXX X product requires 2 times the

amounts listed here.)The recommended maintenance waterfor healthy dogs, cats, cattle, and other ani-mals not under stress is far more dilute, suchas ounce ( tablespoon, or just over 1teaspoon) concentrate per gallon of water.

Use this solution to fill your dogs waterbowl, which should be available at all times.Add it to dry, canned, or raw food. If youinclude grain in your dogs home-prepareddiet, consider soaking it overnight in diluted

Willard Water to improve digestibility. Toincrease the grainsnutritional content, drainthe jar and leave it open and on its side fora day or two. Grind or puree the sproutinggrain before adding to food. Leftover pureedgrain keeps well in the refrigerator forseveral days.

In her book, Holistic Guide for aHealthy Dog, Wendy Volhard, another long-

time user of Willard Water, recommendsadding diluted Willard Water to your dogs

drinking water when traveling to keep stresslevels under control.

Taking your own supply of drinkingwater is preferable, she says, but if that isnot possible, use what is available on yourtrip and add 2 tablespoons of diluted Willard

Water to each bowl, so that your dog is notaffected by the change.

Dr. DeHaans only caution is to startslowly. He introduces Willard Water gradu-ally and in small doses, giving small dogs 1to 2 tablespoons of the dilute solution daily,adding it to drinking water or food. Me-dium-sized dogs receive 4 tablespoons perday, and large or giant breeds start with to cup (4 to 6 ounces).

Too much too fast can accelerate thedetoxification response, he explains. Ifyour dog gets diarrhea, ease off a little until

his system catches up. This temporarysymptom is the only adverse side effect Dr.DeHaan has seen while treating thousandsof dogs with Willard Water.

In Priest River, Idaho, Ralph and RitaHuddleston were distressed when theireight-year-old West Highland Terrier,Kramer, stopped acting playful and wasunable to jump on their laps or into his fa-vorite chair. He seemed to suffer from painand a lack of energy.

We ourselves have felt so much bettersince using Willard Water, they say, thatwe decided to give it a try for our littlefriend. His condition disappeared as fast asit began, and Kramer is now his old happyself again. He knows when we are drinkingour Willard Water and sits at our feet beg-ging for a little sip, which we give him outof our hand. Of course, he drinks whatever

he wants from his water dish.Two years ago, JaniceWalters of Belen,New Mexico, noticed that after us-ing Willard Water for a fewmonths, she had more energy andher prescription medicationsseemed to be working better.

She started giving WillardWater to her dogs and cat. Thefirst thing I noticed was they weredrinking more water than usual,she says. The cat has her ownbowl, and the dogs share two half-gallon self-watering bowls.Previously I had to fill those con-tainers every two days. Now itsevery day. The dogs got more en-ergetic, and Vixens coat startedlooking shiny.

Vixen, a Golden Retriever/Shepherd-mix, is now 12, and

Darby, a Lhasa-mix, is 11. Our new dog,Chance, is a two-year-old Boxer-mix, shesays. He keeps the girls busy, and they keepup with him.

Walters, an animal rehabilitation special-ist, is vice-president of a localrescue group.

I recommend Willard Water for everyone,but especially the dogs, she says. Im con-vinced its one of the best things you cangive an animal.

CancerWillard Waters testimonials include manyreports about cancer patients, includingdogs who outlive their prognoses, or, insome cases, completely recover.

Willard Water doesnt cure cancer,says Dr. DeHaan, but it definitely supportsthe cancer patient. It does this in part by

improving digestion and the assimilation ofnutrients, which strengthens immunity.For canine patients with cancer or other

serious illnesses, the recommended concen-tration is the same as the maintenanceamount for humans, 1 fluid ounce (2 table-spoons) concentrate per gallon of water.

Spraying or applying the same dilutionto skin cancers is another support strategy.Diluted Willard Water can be sprayed orapplied to any canine tumor or skin growth

Exceptionally clear-eyed Gus is a 6-year-old Vizsla, ownedby Charles and Kolleen Sunde, of Fargo, North Dakota. Hesreceived Willard Water his whole life.

PHOTO COURTESY OFCLASSIC PHOTOGRAPHY, FARGO, ND

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several times per day. Simply apply thor-oughly and let dry.

Any conventional, complementary, oralternative cancer therapy may work moreefficiently in combination with WillardWater, which seems to improve the effec-tiveness of many prescription drugs,medicinal herbs, and supplements.

Topical applicationTo useWillard Water topically, dilute 1 tea-spoon concentrate in 1 quart water or use 2tablespoons per gallon. Use this solution asa wash or rinse to clean and treat cuts, burns,wounds, or abrasions. Pour it directly onthe affected area or use a spray bottle. Re-peat the application several times per day.

Diluted Willard Water is said to be aseffective in reducing pain in animals as it isin humans. Spray or apply it to sprains,bruises, trauma injuries, arthritic joints, andany area that is swollen or tender.

Wendy Volhard swears by Willard Wa-ter as a hot spot treatment. It dries up theinflamed areas overnight, she says. I alsospray it on cuts to stop the bleeding and oninsect bites to reduce the swelling and irri-tation.

An easy way to treat injured paw padsis to briefly soak the affected foot in a bowlor pan of diluted Willard Water, then let itair-dry.

To create a compress, soak a washclothin the dilute solution and hold it in placefor several minutes, or secure it with awrapped towel or bandage. Repeat the treat-

ment two or three times per day.You can increase theeffectivenessof any

herbal compress or wash by brewing theherbal tea in a dilute solution of WillardWater, or simply add teaspoon Willard

Water concentrate to each pint (2 cups) oftea. You can add teaspoon Willard Waterconcentrate to 1 cup (8 ounces) of anyaromatherapy hydrosol (See Essential In-formation, January 2005) to make thehydrosol more effective. Spray the treatedhydrosol full-strength or add a teaspoon ora tablespoon to your dogs drinking water.

To improve your dogs coat, spray it with

diluted Willard Water or treated hydrosolbefore brushing or grooming. Willard Wa-ter helps prevent dander, freshens the coat,and helps most dogs smell better.

Increase the effectiveness of your dogsshampoo by mixing cup shampoo with 1cup diluted Willard Water. According tousers who reported their results to Dr.Willard, this actually helps calm excitableor nervous show animals.

Use this mixture to scrub, rinse, reap-ply, and rinse again. If you use a conditioner,which may no longer be necessary, mix it atthe same proportions. Finish with a finalrinse of dilute Willard Water solution, anherbal tea made with diluted Willard Wa-ter, or a solution of 1 tablespoon hydrosolin 1 quart diluted Willard Water. A cautionfor humans: Willard Water added to sham-poo, conditioner, or rinse water has strippedcolor from some dyed hair.

To treat any eye condition, spray dilutedWillard Water directly into the dogs eye.Willard Water helps clear up conjunctivitisand other infections, and its an effectivefirst-aid rinse for the removal of debris.Clear Willard Water concentrate is usually

recommended for use in the eyes, but manyusers report excellent results from rinsingor spraying eyes with dark Willard Watersolutions. If desired, add a pinch of unre-fined sea salt to make the solution slightly

salty. Tears are saline, and adding a smalamount of salt makes the solution morecomfortable.

Whenever you brush your dogs teethor give her a tooth-cleaning rope toy to chewon, spray the toothbrush or toy with dilutedWillard Water.

Diluted Willard Water can be used asan ear cleaner, too. Or you can add a few

drops of full-strength concentrate to any liquid ear cleaner. Willard Water helps thesolution reach farther and loosen wax anddebris.

Cleaning greenIn addition to addingWillard Water to shampoos and conditioners, youcan add it to anysoap or cleanser, making housecleaning asafe, pet-friendly activity.

In 1991, shortly before Dr. Willardsdeath at age 84, I corresponded with himabout WillardWaters effect on chlorine. Heconfirmed that extensive laboratory testingproved that small amounts of Willard Wa-ter neutralize or destroy chlorine. In facthe warned against adding Willard Water toany load of laundry using chlorine bleachThe bleach wont work, he said.

In reply to my questions about whetherWillard Water concentrate would help preserve raw milk, he recommended adding 1ounce per gallon. We discovered this withan old Swiss cheese maker. Milk tastesricher and keeps fresh longer. You can dothe same with raw juices.

WillardWater has gone by many names over the years: CatalystAltered Water, CAWWater, Carbonaceous Activated Water, Lig-nite Activated Water, LA Water, Dr. Willards Water, and RealWillard Water.

Three versions of Willard Water are sold today: Clear, DarkXLR-8 Plus, and Dark XXX. The Dark XLR-8 Plus containshigher concentrations of trace minerals and nutrients than theClear concentrate because of its added lignite. DarkXXX WillardWater is less expensive (but costs more to ship) because it isgreatly diluted, requiring 2 times the amounts listed here tomatch the desired concentrations.

Willard Water is sold in plastic bottles. Dr. Willard recom-mended that the concentrate not be stored in glass because itslong-term storage actually weakens glass and causes it to break.

About the productDr. Willard received over 20 patents on Willard Water, then

spent his remaining years fighting patent infringers, includingthose who diluted and repackaged the extract. The original full-strength Willard Water is available from Nutrition Coalition in

Fargo, North Dakota, which has a generous give it a try offerfor new users. To receive a free 4-ounce bottle of Dark XLR-8Plus Willard Water, which makes 4 gallons of diluted WillardWater at the normal strength or 8 gallons at the recommendedpet maintenance strength, pay $5.85 shipping and handling. ClearWillard Water is available at slightly lower prices.

To order any of these special offers, call Nutrition Coalitionat (800) 447-4793 or (218) 236-9783, specify clear or dark,and mention that you read about Willard Water in WDJ.

See Resources, page 24, for more information.

A long-time contributor to WDJ and authoof The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet CareNatural Remedies for Dogs & Cats, andother books, CJ Puotinen lives in New York

with her husband, a Lab, and a tabby cat.

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BY RANDY KIDD, DVM, PHD

Paean to the Pancreas

T

This organ plays a vital role in digestion and in diabetes prevention.

TOUR OF THE DOG

he pancreas is an elongated gland,light tan or pinkish in color, nestledalongside the small intestine andadjacent to the stomach. The organis composed of two functionally

separate types of glandular tissue, eachwhich performs a vital and disparate role inthe dogs body.

Digestive functionsExocrine refers to the process of releas-

ing outwardly through a duct, so themajority of pancreatic tissue is known asthe exocrine pancreas, because its secretionsare delivered through the pancreatic ductdirectly into the duodenum (small intestine),where they assist digestion.

The exocrine portion of the pancreascontains grape-like clusters of cells (calledacinar cells), each of which can producemore than 10 different digestive enzymes.Pancreatic enzymes digest proteins, carbo-hydrates, and fats. Enzymes that digestproteins could potentially be harmful to the

ingested. Fatty foods, for example, stimu-late a different enzymatic response than doproteinaceous foods. All enzymatic re-sponse is finally regulated by a feedbackmechanism that produces enzymes whenfood is present and halts the productionwhen the dogs belly is empty and there isno food nearby.

Endocrine functionsEndocrine glands do not have ducts, but

release their secretions directly into thebloodstream and affect the function of spe-cific target organs. The endocrine portionof the pancreas represents a much smallerpercentage of the pancreatic tissue, but itplays an important role as the origin of sev-eral hormones, insulin most notable amongthem.

The endocrine portion of the pancreasis arranged into discrete islands, called theislets of Langerhans. Four different cell

pancreatic cells themselves, so these en-zymes are synthesized and stored untilneeded within the cells as protectivelycoated zymogen granules.

Enzymatic secretions from the acinarcell clusters pass through ducts lined withcells (centroacinar cells) that produce awatery secretion rich in sodium bicarbon-ate; pancreatic secretions thus have a basicpH to neutralize the highly acidic secretionsof the stomach. And since both the pancre-

atic secretions and the bile from the liverempty into the upper portion of the smallintestine, most of digestion occurs there.

The flow of pancreatic juices is stimu-lated by several mechanisms: the sight andsmell of food, distention of the stomach, andrelease of partially digested foods from thestomach into the duodenum.

Each of these mechanisms stimulates therelease of an appropriate enzyme, depend-ing on the quantity and type of food

TOUR OF THE DOG

TM

I



Dont allow your dog to become

overweight. Obese dogs have a

higher risk of pancreatitis and

diabetes.

If your dog has had pancreatitis,

control his food intake, level of

dietary fat, and potential access

to garbage or forbidden foods to

prevent another attack.

If your diabetic dogs blood

sugar levels are not too extreme,

consider trying to control his

diabetes with diet and comple-

mentary therapies.

I

I

There are a lot of clues that this dog may have pancreatic problems, whichmay predispose him to diabetes: he is very overweight and routinely getsinto the garbage and onto counters looking for extra food. Another bad

sign: See all the towels around the water bowl? He drinks a lot.

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types make up these islands of endocrinetissue, and each produces a different hor-mone:

Beta-cells are the most numerous andproduce insulin;

Alpha-cells produce glucagons;

D-cells (sometimes referred to as Delta-cells) produce somatostatin; and

F or PP cells produce pancreaticpolypeptide.

While these hormones have differentfunctions, they are all involved in the con-trol of metabolism, especially glucosemetabolism. Ill discuss each hormone andits function in turn.

Insulin (produced by the Beta-cells) isamazingly similar between species. For ex-ample, cattle, sheep, horses, dogs, andwhales differ only in the amino acids lo-cated at three sites (among a total of 21amino acid sites) along one of the two pro-tein chains that make up insulin. Canineinsulin is similar to human insulin and iden-tical to porcine insulin in its amino acidstructure. (Feline insulin is most similar tobovine insulin.)

The function of insulin in animals is tofacilitate the use of glucose, the primarysource of energy from food. Its net effect isto lower blood concentrations of glucose,fatty acids, and aminoacids, andto promote

intracellular conversion of thesecompoundsto their storage forms (i.e., glycogen fromglucose, triglycerides from fatty acids, andprotein from amino acids). The presence ofinsulin is critical to the movement of glu-cose through the cells outer membrane intothe cell.

Insulin has many target organs and itaffects nearly all cell types throughout thebody, with the liver being an especially im-portant target organ. Glycogen is a storageproduct of glucose metabolism, and insulinpromotes its production in the liver, in fatty

tissues, and in skeletal muscle.Via several mechanisms, insulin pro-motes protein synthesis and inhibits proteindegradation, thus promoting a positive ni-trogen balance throughout the body.Additionally, insulin promotes the synthe-sis of adipose tissue (mature fat) from thefatty acids circulating in the blood.

The primary controlling factor for insu-lin secretion is the concentration of bloodglucose; an increased concentration of

blood glucose initiates the synthesis and re-lease of insulin by the Beta-cells of thepancreatic islets. To a lesser extent, the pres-ence of amino acids and fatty acids in theintestinal tract also stimulates the release ofinsulin. In all, at least a dozen factors influ-ence insulin secretion, ranging from the typeof diet to several hormones, and these allinteract by stimulating or inhibiting produc-

tion to create a whole-body energy balance.Glucagon (produced by theAlpha-cellsof the pancreatic islets) works in harmonywith insulin in the control of glucose me-tabolism. Its main effects are the oppositeof insulin. An increased activity of gluca-gon results in an increase of glucose in theblood.

Somatostatin is produced by the D-cellsof the pancreatic islets andby areas of thegastrointestinal tract and parts of the brain.Somatostatin is an inhibitory hormone, andits main functions in the pancreas are to in-hibit the secretion of insulin, glucagon, andpancreatic polypeptide. (In the gastrointes-tinal tract it decreases nutritive absorptionand digestion and diminishes normal gutmotility and secretory activity. In the brainit inhibits the secretion of growth hormone.)

A protein meal stimulates the produc-tion of pancreatic polypeptide, which isproduced by the F cells of the pancreas.Pancreatic polypeptide inhibits the secre-tion of other pancreatic enzymes andincreases the motility of the gut and thespeed of gastric emptying.

In a healthy pancreas, the pancreatic hor-

mones work togetherto maintain a harmonicand functional balance.

Pancreatic problemsThe disease that results from pancreaticproblems depends on what part of the pan-creas is not working properly. First, letslook at dysfunction arising from the exo-crine pancreas.

I PANCREATITIS

Acute pancreatitis (inflammation of the pan-creas) more commonly affects middle-aged

to older dogs, obese dogs, and female dogs.The cause of pancreatitis is not often known,but localized trauma or the ingestion of afatty meal are often implicated.The diseasemay be mild to severe. Complications mayarise when thestored digestiveenzymes (zy-mogens) are released into the pancreatic andsurrounding tissues where they can causean inflammatory reaction, and in severecases they may begin to digestthe dogs owntissues.

Signs are often nonspecific and varydepending on the severity of the disease. Adog with mild pancreatitis may simply ap-pear to have a belly ache, and mopearound and lose her appetite for a day ortwo. More severe cases may include a sud-den onset of vomiting, loss of appetitedepression, fever, abdominal discomfortand dehydration. Symptoms may be severe

enough to lead to shock and collapse.Diagnosis is not always easy due to thenonspecific symptoms, but blood tests maybe helpful. Serum amylase and lipase or thenewer pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity(PLI) or pancreatic trypsin-like immunoreactivity (TLI) tests may be most usefulRadiographs, ultrasound, and CT scans mayalso be helpful.

Pancreatitis frequently recurs in thosecritters I refer to as garbage hounds dogwho love to get into the household garbagepails and wolf down forbidden foods withglee. The tendency is for each bout of pancreatitis to be more severe than the onebefore; the theory is that these recurrencesof acute pancreatitis due to the repeatedinflammation, immune response, and tissuenecrosis and scarring they create eventu-ally lead to an increased risk for developingdiabetes mellitus.

Treatment is generally nonspecific,varying with the severity of symptoms.A severecase of pancreatitis intense vomiting, painetc. is a medical emergency: See your veas soon as possible. Pain control may benecessary, and intravenous fluids may be in

dicated in cases where shock is a possibilityAfter a course of the disease, the pan-

creas should be rested by restricting foodand water for 4 to 5 days. Particularly fattyfoods should be severely reduced in the dietand measures should be instituted to avoidthe onset of diabetes: prevent obesity, plentyof exercise, and maintain a nonstressfuldog-friendly environment. The dogs longterm prognosis may not be good, dependingon the severity of the lesions suffered bythe pancreas.

I EXOCRINE PANCREATIC INSUFFICIENCYExocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) iscaused by a deficiency of pancreatic digestive enzymes that eventually results inmalnourishment. In dogs it appears moscommonly in German Shepherds.Affectedanimals typically lose weight even thoughthey have a ravenous appetite (these ani-mals will often eat anything they can getheir mouths around). They typically passlarge volumes of semi-formed, greasy fe

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ces (since dietary fats are not being di-gested).

Fecal examination will often confirm theproblem; your vet can check for undigestedfood particles and the presence of enzymesin the feces. Most dogs respond favorablywhen commercially available pancreaticenzyme supplements are added to the diet.However, since pancreatic tissue doesnt re-

generate, treatment will generally belifelong.

I PANCREATIC TUMORS

The most frequent pancreatic tumor is anislet cell carcinoma (insulinoma) derivedfrom the insulin secreting Beta-cells. Thesetumors generally are found in dogs 5 to 12years old; they are frequently hormonallyactive and secrete excessive amounts of in-sulin, causing hypoglycemia.

The resulting symptoms are those asso-ciated with low blood sugar, includingmuscular twitching and weakness, exercisefatigue, mental confusion, changes of tem-perament, and occasionally seizures. Thesymptoms often come andgo, butthey typi-cally become worse and more frequent asthe disease progresses.

Symptoms are easily confused withother primary neurological diseases such asepilepsy or brain tumors. Dogs withinsulinomas typically have abnormally low(< 60 mg/dL) fasting blood glucose. Someveterinarians recommend that any older dogwith neurological signs should have hisblood glucose monitored.

Cancers of the exocrine pancreas arerare, but when they do occur, they can beaggressive and invasive.

Diabetes: The problem of theendocrine pancreasDiabetes is a general term referring to dis-orders characterized by extreme thirst(polydipsia) and excessive urine excretion(polyuria).

The diabetes that most of us arefamiliar with is diabetes mellitus,which comes in several forms (in-

cluding Type I, Type II, and Type III),all of which involve a relative or ab-solute insulin insufficiency. Since itis a condition of the pancreas, diabe-tes mellitus will be discussed here.

Much of the endocrine functionof the pancreas is devoted to theproduction of insulin; 60 to 70percent of the islet cell population areinsulin-secreting Beta-cells. Insulin isthe key factor in the metabolism of

glucose (the energy-creating end-product ofcarbohydrate digestion), but insulin is alsoinvolved in the metabolic pathways of fatsand proteins.

Glucose does not readily penetrate intocells (except for a few tissues such as thebrain, liver, and blood cells); as stated ear-lier, insulin is critical for the movement ofglucose through cell membranes into the

cells. The net effects of insulin are to lowerblood concentrations of glucose, fatty ac-ids, and amino acids, and to promoteintracellularconversion of thesecompoundsto their storage forms (i.e., glycogen fromglucose, triglycerides from fatty acids, andprotein from amino acids).

The most important factor in the con-trol of insulin secretion is the concentrationof blood glucose; it is a positive feedbacksystem in which increased concentrationsof glucose (after a meal, for example) leadto increased secretion of insulin.

Diabetes mellitus is a insulin-deficientcondition where there is either not enoughinsulin produced for the amount of glucosein the blood, or where the insulin that isproduced is notfunctionally normaland thusis not able to produce the required cellularreactions.

Some breeds notably Keeshonds, Pu-lis, Miniature Pinschers, and Cairn Terriers seem to have a genetic predisposition todiabetes, and some, including Poodles,Dachshunds, Miniature Schnauzers, andBeagles, have an increased potential fordeveloping the disease.

I Symptoms: As mentioned earlier, dogswith diabetes are forever thirsty, and as aconsequence they urinate frequently.

The urine from dogs with diabetes mel-litus animals will contain glucose. When thebloodglucose levels exceed about 180 mg/dL, glucose begins to spill over into theurine, where it can be detected by urine dip

sticks or the good old taste test. Ifwe wereliving in past centuries, we would simplydip our finger in the urine and taste it; to-day we have urine dipsticks that measureglucose content. Ancient practitioners alsonoted that bees were attracted to the urinefrom animals with diabetes mellitus.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic and in-sidious disease. Although dogs are hungry

and eat a lot, they lose weight and gradu-ally become weaker. Muscle mass willgradually deteriorate, and the animal willnot want to exercise.

The abnormal utilization of fat for en-ergy may lead to an overproduction ofketones. Affected animals will often havethe typical diabetic fruity-sweet smell ofketones. Note that only some people havethe scent receptors that give them the abil-ity to smell ketones; for others (I am one ofthe others) ketones are a non-aroma. Ke-toacidosis is a severe overproduction ofketones and may cause disorientation, leth-argy, and ultimately collapse. Test strips areavailable to detect the presence of ketonesin the urine.

Many diabetic dogs develop cataracts,and the whitening of the eyes may be thefirst overt sign the caretaker notices.

Affected animals also become more sus-ceptible to recurrent infections; cystitis,bronchitis, and skin problems are common,perhaps due to decreased neutrophil func-tion associated with the excess of sugar inthe blood. The liver, due to increased mo-bilization of body fats, may enlarge, and its

function will be impaired by the fatty accu-mulations.

Human diabetic patients commonly in-cur retinitis and/or blood vascularconditions that may ultimately lead to limbamputations, but fortunately these two con-ditions are not common in diabetic dogs.

I Diagnosis: Diagnosing diabetes melli-tus is based on persistent fastinghyperglycemia (blood glucose levelshigher than normal) and glycosuria(the presence of glucose in the urine).

The normal fasting value for bloodglucose in dogs (and cats) is 75-120mg/dL. Some animals may have atransiently high blood glucose levelas a result of stress (especially cats),and some drugs (glucocorticoids andothers) may elevate blood glucoselevels.

There are two additional tests thatmay be helpful in diagnosis: serumglycosylated hemoglobin and

Diabetes insipidus has nothing to do with blood

sugar, insulin, or the pancreas. The only charac-teristic it shares with diabetes mellitus is that itsvictims experience extreme thirst and urination. Indiabetes insipidus, this is due to the lack of antidi-uretic hormone (ADH), which normally limits theamount of urine made, or by a failure of the kid-neys to respond to ADH. Diabetes insipidus istreated with drugs that reduce the amount of urinemade and/or help the kidneys respond to the ADHthat is present.

DIABETES INSIPIDUS

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fructosamine. These tests rely on the fact

that glucose binds to many proteins in thebody, and the average amount of glucosepresent in the blood over a period of timecan be determined by evaluating its concen-tration on these proteins.

Glycosylated hemoglobin measures theaverage amount of glucose that the hemo-globin in red blood cells (RBCs) wasexposed to over their lifespan, and sincecanine RBCs live for about 120 days, themeasurement gives us a picture of averageblood glucose levels over those past 120days. Fructosamine measures glucose

amounts bound to serum albumins; valuesindicate the average glucose concentrationover the previous 1 to 2 weeks.

For diagnostic confirmation, to judge theseverity of the disease, or (more commonly)to monitor the progress of the therapy be-ing used to control the disease, your vet maywant to do a glucose-tolerance curve, whichis a way to test the animals efficiency in

the removal of an excess of ingested glu-

cose over a short period of time.

I Predisposing factors: Surveys indicatethat extensive pancreatic damage, likelyfrom chronic pancreatitis, causes about 28percent of canine diabetes cases. Environ-mental factors such as feeding of high-fatdiets and allowing the animal to becomeobese are associated with pancreatitis andtherefore are likely to play a role in the de-velopment of diabetes in dogs.

Diabetes diagnosed in a female duringpregnancy or diestrus is comparable to hu-

man gestational diabetes. Interestingly, atleastone (human)study hasshown that sec-ondhand smoke is related to an increasedincidence of diabetes,and other studies havedemonstrated that correct dietary levels ofcalcium and vitamin D (or exposure to ad-equate sunlight) may help prevent diabetes.

While there is not yet any actual pub-lished data that show overt Type II diabetes

occurs in dogs or that obesity is a risk fac

tor for canine diabetes, an open-mindedobservation of the actual animals that havethe disease leads me to believe that at leastsome dogs resemble the human Type II diabetes and that obesity is at least one of thecausative factors involved in the development of the disease in dogs. (See AbouTypes of Diabetes in Dogs, above.)

I Treatment: Successful therapy, no matter the course chosen, will require that thedogs caretakers be willing to undertakelong-term and vigilant monitoring of blood

glucose levels. They should also should endeavor to thoroughly understand how boththe disease and its treatments work, so theywill know, by the symptoms of the dogwhen to change the rate or dosage of themedicines. They must be willing to givedaily insulin injections (if necessary), andbe prepared to deal with a hypoglycemiccrisis if it occurs from an insulin overdose

In humans there are fairly distinct types of diabetes. The mostcommon are Type I diabetes (insulin-dependent diabetes melli-tus or IDDM), and Type II diabetes (non-insulin-dependentdiabetes mellitus or NIDDM). A third type, latent autoimmunediabetes of adults (LADA), occurs as a slowly progressive dis-ease that shows up in middle-aged or older people. About 90

percent of all human cases are Type II; the cases in most dogsmore closely resemble the human Type I or the LADA type.Gestational diabetes (frequently called Type III diabetes)

affects pregnant women (about 4 percent) and other pregnantanimals. Its cause is unknown, but it is likely related to themothers hormone changes and the interactions between thehormones of the mother and the baby that occur during preg-nancy. This type of diabetes generallyresponds to dietary therapy, and it usu-ally goes away after pregnancy.

Type I diabetes is the result of a lackof insulin production due to the destruc-tion of pancreatic Beta-cells; in humansit typically occurs in younger patients;and it is not usually associated with obe-sity. It is not clear what causes Type Idiabetes, but it is likely an autoimmunedisease.

Type II diabetes is typically associ-ated with obesity. Here, a lack ofsufficient insulin is not the problem.However, problems arise because the in-sulin that is produced does not interactwith its target cells properly.

Types of Diabetes and the Need for Insulin in Diabetic DogsHuman patients with Type I diabetes will almost always re-

quire insulin injections, whereas many Type II diabetics can betreated with dietary

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