Dogs And Cancer: Part 1 - My Two Cents

I love dogs…big ones, little ones…in between. And not just my dogs, but ALL dogs. What I don’t love is the overwhelming need for rescues. The dogs are plenty, the workers are few. It is unfortunate that many dogs that end up in shelters are sick. This puts an extra strain on shelters, a burden on rescues, and a sad reality that most of these dogs are put down because they’re ‘sick’. The funds are just not there to truly help these loving creatures.
I believe my love for dogs is evident in the articles I post on this blog. I have a sincere desire to help ‘special needs’ dogs. I seem to be drawn to them…I want to make them well. I don’t want some ‘band-aid cover-up’…I want to dig and find the reason….why…why is this dog having problems? Most of it, I’m sure is nutrition related…then there’s environment….and so many other elements that make up the whole web of the issue. It’s a commitment to finding the cause, and a workable solution. Disease issues caught early enough are, in my opinion, fixable. What does that involve besides commitment? Consistency. It cannot be a ‘hit or miss’ approach. My first step is a diet review. If that is unknown, then it is necessary to start with those foods that will help build the immune system…as that is most likely why the dog got sick or got a disease or a skin issue in the first place.
This will be my first of many articles I will post regarding dogs and cancer, as I see it to be a growing issue in the canine environment. I am preparing to begin advanced studies in canine nutrition, and as I come across new information that I’ll learn…I will make that available. My human nutrition background and the additional that I learned through personal trainer certification will also come into play. I am certain there is a nutrition-disease connection. I’ve not encountered a dog, personally suffering from cancer. But I know this would be a terrible situation for a dog owner to be in. What do you do? Where do you start? I hope I can help. I have an extensive background, and I believe it will prove useful. What are you as a pet owner willing to do if you find out your dog has some form of cancer? What can you afford financially? What can you do physically? I can guarantee, it will involve more than pouring a bowl of kibble. In fact, it could be that bowl of kibble that got the dog into the situation in the first place. That’s what you have to get to the bottom of.
Quality supplementation and kibble (not ‘junk‘ food), environmental adjustments (I.e. reducing dog stress), exercise, or perhaps lack of, all these factors and more will enter in. You must be pro-active…don’t wait around thinking it’ll improve on it’s own…it won’t. I realize it is just about as overwhelming to understanding nutrition for dogs as it is for people. It can be confusing. What are some of these ingredients in this food? What does my dog really need and why? I hope through numerous articles, research and study I will help you to sort through it all and to be able to give you reliable answers to questions you may have. Is it a 100% guarantee? No…I don’t think anything is. And just as in humans, one thing doesn’t work for everybody. Sometimes ‘adjustments’ are necessary. If it doesn’t work, try something else…there’s options. It can be a point of no return if cancer is caught too late. I cannot stress enough that prevention is key. It is much less complicated to not get cancer in the first place, than it is to treat it after it’s set in. However, it is not always a death sentence. But it is a journey…one that will require attention, extra care and unconditional support, patience and dedication on the part of the caregiver. I hope you feel it’s worth it…I do.