Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats

Comment: This is a good book to have in one's library although it seemed like the areas of interest I had specifically when I purchased this book were not included. It still is a good reference book.

Comment: I bought 3 of these after Dr Pitcairn's name kept appearing as I researched holistic pet care information (I gave one to my son and one to a close friend who have dogs). I have been feeding a raw diet to my 2 dogs and 3 cats for over 2 years now, and have been an advocate against frequent vaccinations for my pets for quite some time. I have read about and donated to the "Rabies Challenge Fund" after having a cherished family dog die of acute Kidney failure from getting the Lyme Vaccine. This book has confirmed everything I have researched myself, as well as what my own personel feelings have been (I work as an Advanced Practice Nurse in the healthcare industry). Some of it may be a little technical and seem hard to grasp, but the information and recipies are wonderful! I do not cook any of the meat I give my pets and they are in wonderful health. I have found it to be invaluable in helping my 12 1/2 year old Dalmation who has some arthritis and plan on using the advice and remedies on my new puppy whose breed could have a disposition to Hip Dysplasia. For those of you who may be non-believers, I ask you if you would do to your children what you are doing to your pets- chemicals, additives, booster vaccines every year? This book explains many things which make perfect sense. I will use it as a resource everyday. I have ordered 2 more to give to friends!

Comment: Good book with some great ideas. I will say that even though some holistic and natural ways of taking care of your pet is a great idea it is not always the right way to go. My Boxer puppy Sturgeon came home with kennel cough, we first tried antibiotics and then gave the ways of this book a try. But the results were not what we had hoped for. We ended up going back to modern medicine after a 3 weeks of natural remedy only to see him gradually go back to his bad kennel cough days. Great ideas and philosophy but not a final cure.

Comment: This is a good book. Easy to read. The only issue I have at ALL is that the recipes in it are very grain-heavy. I don't have dogs that do well with grains in their diet due to allergies. The 'Healthy Powder' recipe has yeast in it, which also contributes to allergies. (Though he does say he has heard of this issue before, he has 'not seen it' in his practice).
He does not strongly advocate feeding raw bones, & instead relies on calcium supplements to balance out the meat in the recipes. He makes a good point as to why he leans that way, but I do not agree & feel feeding the bones is more natural... skipping the bones & relying on cooked bone powder or eggshells then deprives your animals from the many minerals & health benefits of raw bones. Not to mention it is just way too much work for a busy dog owner to put together many items in a recipe & then portion it all out. He does provide nutritional info on all the recipes which is a plus. A good book for someone first starting out on raw feeding & more natural health care for their animals.

Comment: I love the approach taken in this book- the examples are clear and follow common sense. I have always had an interest in holistic/ natural medicine, but hate the way it is described sometimes. in several books I've read the authors make holistic medicine sound like hocus pocus.

Even though I've always been relatively careful about what I eat, this book has opened my eyes and made me more careful of what I buy and eat myself.

Our dog had terrible skin problems when she was a puppy- constantly scratching to the point of bleeding. We stopped feeding her kibble and started feeding her a similar diet to what is described in this book and within a few weeks everything changed- She never scratches anymore and her coat is shiny and healthy. Her muscle tone is great as well. I read this book after starting our pup on a home made diet and used it as a guide. It has been very helpful and i would absolutely recommend it!