HONEY AS A HOME REMEDY

Is surprising to see how many well trained 'experts'  are dismissive about  complementary and alternative veterinary medicine. Luckily I have several veterinarian friends who  are open minded and encourage home remedies and alternative ways of treating an animal.

Possibly this is partly due to lack of education around holistic remedies. When I first started being a 'medicine woman' 35 years ago I received virtually no training or instruction around complementary veterinary medicine and everything that I know, has been self taught and through instinct and trial,  and used when everything else has failed. 

Luckily these days, many veterinarians are open to alternative medicine and home remedies, but lack of time, and fear of governing bodies not condoning these 'unproven' methods prevents many vets from really utilizing these treatments for their clients. Many of the vets I know are happy to try new things to help a dog get better especially if it works in tandem with conventional medicine.

Let's use the example of something in your kitchen cabinet being used as an alternative to cure an ailment... its not a 'hippy dippy' treatment but one that has proven to work.

Honey. Many people swear by Manuka honey because of its purity but not all of us can or will fork out nearly £10 for a jar of honey to use on the dog, no matter how much we love them. Ordinary honey is just as effective although its best to look for one that isnt a mixture of honeys. 

 

Honey contains many components, and it is very rich in nutrients. Honey is composed of sugars like glucose and fructose and minerals like magnesium, potassium, calcium, sodium chlorine, sulphur, iron and phosphate. It contains vitamins B1, B2, C, B6, B5 and B3 all of which change according to the qualities, along with copper, iodine, and zinc exist in it in small quantities.

Due to its natural anti-inflammatory effect, it will help to heal the wounds more quickly. It also has different phytochemicals--chemicals found in plants and different foods--that kill viruses, bacteria, and fungus making it a good substitute for wound dressings.

Honey is a natural antiseptic. Raw honey, for example, contains small amounts of the same resins found in propolis. Propolis, sometimes called "bee glue," is actually a complex mixture of resins and other substances that honeybees use to seal the hive and make it safe from bacteria and other micro-organisms.

In veterinary medicine,  honey is used for  a multitude of ailments, but for your own pets, good old household honey is the top remedy for wounds, wound healing, upset tummy, eczema, itchy skin, eye infections, coughs, and allergies such as hayfever  caused by grass pollen or house dust.

Honey to heal wounds
Any wound that has been cleaned can have honey applied to it- typically this would be for speeding up closure of an open wound. It goes without saying that putting a bandage over the wound will stop the honey being licked off!

Honey for Cough
I mix one teaspoon of honey with 1 teaspoon of water and give it to a coughing dog via a needle-less syringe or a dropper. It helps to soothe the dog's cough and give it some relief. I can assure you that it works as I give it to my elderly dog who gets a cough when the weather changes.

Honey for allergies and hayfever.
Honey contains very tiny amounts of pollen. These tiny amounts of pollen are not enough to trigger the allergic reaction in your pet when they ingest the local honey. Each time you dose your pet on the honey, he or she begins to build up a tolerance to the pollen. Eventually, your allergic pet is able to tolerate the amount of pollen usually present in the environment.

You can give your dog or cat 1 teaspoon per 10lbs daily. Do this for 7 days to test the effectiveness. Your dog won't spit it out like it would a pill and will happily lick the honey off a spoon or syringe.

So that's your useful tip for the week.......... in the meantime, enjoy this video. We have all been through this scenario many times?!

Until the next blog, have a nice week.

Dawn (")

PICKING UP AFTER YOUR PET

My favourite  daily rant  is "Why don't people pick up when their dog has done a poo on the pavement, in the park or anywhere that is an open space?"  They come to a park, they can see children playing and groups of people sitting on the grass enjoying the open air and still they will walk away from picking up their dog's mess.

Every day I start my day by getting iritated at my many smartly dressed neighbours  near my home, walking their dogs named Augusta and Titus (oh! sorry, thats the names of their children), on the pavements every day and every single time they will look around  furtively and then leave the steaming pile and walk on.  On many occasions I have said "Here, take a bag," pulling one out of my pocket and  handing it to them. You know full well that they will wait for you to turn the corner and then leave it where it, is or worse, hang it on the park railings. And these are supposedly middle class, well brought up, educated people who would be highly offended if you called them  anything else. When challenged they look at you in an astonished way as if to say "You mean I have to pick THAT up? That's what we pay road sweepers for isnt it?"

The situation is even worse in the many open spaces and London parks. You will see all these smart cars disgorging dogs of all sizes who are set free to run around. Of course the first instinct for any dog is to do a dump. What does the owner do? There they stand,  eyes glazed, bellowing into a mobile phone clamped to their ear, totally ignoring the fact that the dog has done its business. And when you interrupt them to point out what the dog is doing or has done, they glare at you for stopping them from having that all important call that had to be made the moment they stepped out of their car. Yes! Im talking about you, the women who shout loudly into their phones or the Range Rover man who is far too posh to pick up, let alone greet his fellow dog owners.  The joggers are the worst, they leave their big dogs running behind, totally oblivious  to the steaming pile they have left for others to tread in.

Listen up Peeps! its not rocket science to come to the  realisation that if you have a dog, it makes good sense to always have a poo bag somewhere on your person. Bins  to dispose of the mess are plentiful. So what is stopping you?  Its no good saying "Well! I always have every good intention but ....."  That's not a good enough reason for being idle and inconsiderate. If you can't afford to buy a bag of dog poo bags, then grab a handful of supermarket bags. They are free and perfect as a means of picking up after your pet.

There is nothing more irritating than to arrive at a beautiful park on a bright, sunny day ready to enjoy a soothing walk with your happy dog and then to step in a pile of doggy poo left by some inconsiderate idiot, too lazy to pick it up and drop it in the bin.

I am not alone in my rant since all responsible dog owners ask the same question "Why don't they ever pick up after them?"

I have now become one of those fearless women who bellow through cupped hands "Oy You, pick up your dog mess. You! yes, you."  They turn around looking incredulous and say "Was that my dog? Oh sorry!" Pretty soon habitual offenders will get fed up of being challenged and will decide to visit the park in the  dead of night or go elsewhere! Good!

There is a rumour that many of the Greater London open spaces will have a new ruling that will give them powers to issue on-the-spot fines to anyone who allows their dog to make a mess if they are caught and reported. No longer can a culprit who is challenged by another dog owner, sarcastically respond with "You just go ahead and take care of your own dog," or "Prove that it was my dog."
The Dog Stasi will have a field day! We will all have our cameras at the ready for catching the persistent offenders. I cant wait!

Of course the maddening thing about all those non-poop- picker -uppers is that they will spoil it for the rest of us who are responsible and considerate. The authorities will get so fed up of complaints that  they will bring in legislation insisting that all dogs have to be on leads.  No longer will it be possible to let your dog have a free range range run.  And for that we can thank the army of bone idle, inconsiderate, selfish oiks who inhabit this earth.

It  would be a  great shame if that were to happen.


And  now for something completely different to make you chuckle, here's a clip that proves you should never jump to conclusions!

            

Have a good week and enjoy any warm days that may come along.

                                                                      Dawn ("")