Pet Nutrition

Pet Nutrition

Over the last decade or so vets have seen a rise in the number of health problems in our pets. Whether it be pet obesity, digestive upsets, skin issues or liver and kidney disease, it is important to ensure that the diet you feed your pet is suitable for them. The following articles will assist you in making the right decisions for your pet.

Feeding Your Dog - Species Specific for Better Health

Dogs are carnivores but can be omnivorous and whilst they require a predominantly fresh meat diet, vegetables, pasta and rice are also important but only in small portions. Nutrition plays an extremely important role in maintaining your dog’s health and well being.

The prominent canine teeth at the front of the mouth are designed to fasten on to their victim during the hunt, to bring the victim to the ground. The incisors, which are the small chisel-shaped teeth at the front of the mouth, are designed for stripping small tags of meat from bones. The pre-molars behind the canines are cutting teeth, and the powerful molars at the back of the mouth are adapted to apply maximum crushing and severing forces to large bones and for cutting flesh.

The skull shape and adaptation also reflect this role. Large temporal muscles for strong jaw action are located on either side of the head. The jaw is adapted as a powerful lever. The teeth are deeply rooted and angled to stand the forces required. If you consider the wolf when they attack prey the animals are consumed in their entirety: meat, skin, fur, bones,intestines, every part of the animal.

Dogs are well adapted to consume a fresh meat diet, however the size of the dog will determine the way the meat should be prepared. The best meat is beef or chicken purchased from the meat section (human quality) at the supermarket or preferably your local butcher or the market. A small dog will require the meat to be chopped in pieces that are not too large, but if you consider the species, even though domesticated, the meat size should encourage them to use their natural feeding strategies to achieve the best digestion of nutrients provided.

It is feasible to expect that a large dog can be fed large pieces of meat without presenting any difficulties at all. Small bones for small dogs and larger bones for larger dogs is recommended at least 2-3 times per week this will keep your dogs teeth in good condition. Do not cook the bones!

I think it is essential to provide some pasta and rice with vegetables at least once or twice per week. When you cook pasta, rice or vegetables prepare enough to feed your dog as well, even raw vegetables are excellent. This means that you are not cooking especially for him or her.

It is also essential to provide PetArk Daily for your mature dog and PetArk Puppy and Kitten for your puppy every day without fail. Feeding either of these supplements will provide a balanced level of daily nutrients along with your dogs natural diet. PetArk Daily or PetArk Puppy and Kitten will also assist with overall health and well being, improve skin and coat condition enormously, assist in maintaining and boosting the immune system and improve digestion of food. The PetArk formulas will also assist with the control of fleas and worms, by maintaining the highest health and using herbs such as peppermint and garlic at regulated levels.

Try to avoid processed food and dry food for your dog these are not recommended and can also be very expensive to feed, but most importantly they are not designed for your individual dog. Every animal is bio-chemically unique so it is sensible to always take this into consideration when deciding what to feed your dog. Prepared foods (or fast foods) are often high in fats, salt and other additives. The above-recommended diet will also reduce bad breath and reduce the smell of feces. Always provide fresh water for your dogs.

Tissue Salts Re-establish Balance by Antoinette Foster Dip. Nut.

Don’t get tissue salts confused with that granulated white stuff on your table. Biochemical tissue salts, or cell salts, are mineral salts that exist in the cells and play a critical role in cellular metabolism. PetArk Australia uses these mineral salts in most of their formulas, a long with specific organic herbs, amino acids, vitamins and trace elements.

The idea that health could be disturbed by an imbalance in the mineral salts, and corrected by restoring that balance, evolved gradually over the 19th century along with the development of chemistry and cellular biology. A German homeopath, Dr Schuessler, took this idea much further. He wrote his first article in 1873 on his theory of the importance of balancing the 12 major tissue salts of the body. Previous to his work, little had been done with the promising knowledge of the chemical composition of the human body. Dr Schuessler spent a substantial amount time studying the effects of the disproportion in individual tissue or cell salts due to improper metabolism. If this balance is disturbed, there can be a change in the state of immunity and resistance to microbes. He also studied and catalogued various symptoms that can result from any cell salt deficiencies.

The salts are not involved directly in the production of energy in the cell. However, in their capacity to regulate cellular functions, they contribute to the oxidation of various food substances. The regular changes in the cell are dependent on a natural concentration of these inorganic elements. What has also been revealed is that the structure and growth of a particular type of cell, such as a nerve cell, is determined by the particular mineral salt involved. The same holds true for the cell’s functioning, which is equally dependent on the presence of a particular mineral salt.

The salts are administered clinically in very small doses and are prepared in a way similar to homeopathic remedies. They have the advantage of being absorbed through the mouth rather than the stomach and of being in a form that can be directly transported to and used by the cells needing them.

Dr Schuessler’s 12 tissue cell/salts and their medicinal action are listed below.

Calc fluor is important in the elastic fibres of the body (skin, muscles and blood vessels) and for the surface of bones and teeth.

Calc phos is a major constituent of bones and teeth. It is very useful in childhood conditions such as "growing pains" by helping to ease the bone pain until the deeper cause can be treated homeopathically.

Calc sulph is needed where there is suppuration (pus formation) such as with wounds slow to heal, boils, ulcers, abscesses and acne.

Ferrum phos is very helpful in the early stages of a cold or viral infection, when it is difficult to get clear symptoms on which homeopathic remedies to prescribe.

Kali mur helps in any condition with thick white discharge and in thickening of the blood.

Kali phos is a great nutrient for the nerves and brain and helps with brain-fog, irritability, timidity and muscular debility associated with nerve weakness (usually after an acute illness).

Kali sulph helps to carry oxygen to the cells and is useful in circulatory problems and inflammations. It also helps in skin problems and where discharges are yellow.

Magnesium phos is excellent as an anti-spasmodic and helps in such situations as menstrual cramps.

Natrum mur is used when there is a disturbance of the water metabolism, such as in excessive dryness or edema. It works to distribute water in the body.

Natrum phos is used where there is an excess of acid and where the bile is important (colic, jaundice, gastric problems). It works to create water.

Natrum sulph, like Natrum phos and Natrum mur, regulates the quantity of water in the system. It helps where there is a greenish discharge.

Silicea is indicated in all cases of slow pus formation. It helps to ripen an abscess and promote discharge, such as in resolving boils or tooth abscesses.

PetArk Australia PL has used mineral tissue salts since the company first began and used in conjunction with other specific nutrients PetArk formulas deliver their promise, effective, safe, natural and extremely low dose rates making PetArk one of the most economical formulas on the market for your pet.