Expert: Dr. Christina Chambreau - 12/26/2009

Question
QUESTION: I have a kitten who was one of a litter dropped off at a library.  I believe his about 8 weeks old.  He is very active and eats well, no issues with urination or BM's.  He does get some crusting below his nostrils and am wondering if you can tell me about that.
When should he be neutered and when and which shots should he have?  He is an indoor cat.
What is your view on teeth brushing and if you are an advocate how does one go about it?

Thanks,
Maureen

ANSWER: Thank you so much for taking on an abandoned kitten and to being committed to having him neutered so no more kittens are produced.

When I only had my conventional veterinary training, I thought that one size fit all. I did what the vaccine companies said and what I was taught without thinking if it made sense for each cat or dog. The holistic philosophy has taught me that there is an underlying vibrational imbalance that causes most problems and the healing goal is to resolve that imbalance. At this point he may have some of the early warning signs (see below) even though he seems fine from a conventional viewpoint. I am so glad you asked me, because I can give you the newest and most sensible perspective. I hope you read on. To better understand this perspective, read the first few chapters of Don Hamilton's Homeopathic Care of Cats and Dogs or the few pages in my book, the Healthy Animal's Journal (available at Www.ChristinaChambreau.com).  Now that the multitude of holistic modalities is available, I can tell you to never give up. Try one after the other, and record the changes with each.

Please go to my web site and sign up for the newsletter - www.ChristinaChambreau.com. On the products page, there are many great supplements which may help your animals be healthier.

The crusting beneath his nostrils is probably from a minor upper respiratory problem - like a cold for us. If you were trained in different healing modalities (see below - YOU BE THE HEALER) you could help by using Reiki, T-Touch, HTA, flower essences, supplements, homeopathy and more. Even before you are trained in Reiki, you can ask for this energy healing that cannot hurt and may help (See REIKI, below).
1. Have Reiki done.
2. Feed a raw meat and pureed vegetable diet (see #2 below and lots of books, even inthe library) or purchase a frozen raw diet like aunt Jenni's or Chow NOW. This is the key to health.
3. Give 250 mg Vitamin C twice a day.
4. Find an integrative veterianrian so he can maybe live to the record of 35.

Since he is an indoor cat, when he starts to act macho or when the urine begins to have a stong odor, or when he is 6 to 10 months of age would be best to neuter him

Shots - Read #3 below and lots of good books on vaccines and join the list serve. My recommendation  for now is a single cat distemper shot (not the 4 or 5 in one) now, then repeat at 14 weeks of age, then the Rabies at 16 to 20 weeks, then never any more.

If cats are healthy, they do not get tarter and do not need their teeth brushed (see Early Warning Signs, below). I recommend feeding some chicken wings, legs, backs (bones and all - see #2) and hunks of meat big enough that he needs to be a cat and rip and tear and bone crunch. This will really keep his teeth clean AND strong. If you do need to brush, Anitra Frazier's book the Natural Cat, and many web sites have good pictures.

If you are interested in this approach to better health in general, please read on.
7 KEYS TO HEALTHY ANIMALS
1. Know the current level of health. Most health problems are the result of an underlying energy imbalance.  As we cure animals of "disease", we find that other things we thought were normal go away, so we can use these clues to know that animals are not healthy yet.  Your goal is for your animal to have great energy, no doggy odor, no hairball vomiting, little shedding, a glowing coat and many more. Below is a complete list of these signs (Early Warning Signs of Illness). In young animals, these apparently "normal" problems may be the only indications to start exploring new options for lifestyle or treatment.  Buy the Healthy Animal's Journal (www.HealthyAnimalsJournal.com) so you can see how these early warning symptoms and obvious ill symptoms change over time.  It will be available by October in an e-book version and by Jan 2010 a version for horses will be available.

2. Feed the best. What are the best diets for people or animals -- the most processed or the freshest, most organic?  The best ingredients should be the most consciously raised - local, organic vegetables, free ranging protein sources. Dogs and cats have ripping and tearing teeth, bone crunching teeth, no digestive juices in the mouth, jaws that do not chew, a stomach full of acid where the food sits for 4-12 hours and a very short transit time in the intestines. Dogs and cats do not pull out a knife to de-bone their prey and do not pull out matches to light a fire to cook their meat and vegetables. Therefore the best diet for dogs and cats is raw meat including raw bones, pureed raw and cooked vegetables and a few supplements (Calcium if no bones are eaten is critical). Grains are not good for most animals, but if there are none of the early warning signs (see below) and no illnesses, you can feed some grains, preferably the higher protein ones. Start as young kittens and puppies or at whatever age you read this (Brighthaven.org, a cat sanctuary switches 16 years old and older cats to raw meat diet and some have lived to 27 and 30, and now to 35). Second best is same quality, but cooked.  Even grocery store quality meat and vegetables are much better than most processed foods. Processed foods are an effort for the food industry to use up its waste products except for a few companies with great motives (and even they sometimes get bad or inferior ingredients). Processed foods are also a problem for the environment - they are not sustainable. Every animal needs and wants a different combination at different times in their lives, just as we do. With any food, observe each of your animals for the effect that food has on them. NEVER feed DRY food to cats - even as treats. You can now buy many commercial raw  meat diets. You must research them as well. Ask where the ingredients are raised? Are chemicals used? Are the chickens, beef, pork, etc raised in humane ways, out in the sun to get the Vitamin D in the meat, etc?

3. Vaccinate the least. In my opinion, vaccines have caused more harm to animals than anything else we have done. Do you get measles, mumps and polio every year of your life? Researchers in conventional veterinary medicine agree that we vaccinate too often, in too many combinations, and that this level of vaccination, while preventing epidemics, is harmful to the health of susceptible animals.  On-going studies show that antibodies are high 10 and 16 years later for distemper and Parvo so I recommend just a few baby shots and NO more. While Rabies is also a viral disease, you must follow the law and vaccinate every 3 years. To help prevent damage from the Rabies vaccine, or any others that are accidentally given, do the following. First, learn Reiki (see Below) and hold the vaccine syringe in your hand until the "draw" is gone, then Reiki the injection site once you are in car, then Reiki the whole animals daily until they do not "draw". If you have not yet learned Reiki, use the contacts below to have it done for your animal after the vaccine. For two weeks before and two weeks after, give the totally safe Vaccine Detox, a flower essence from Spirit Essences (get a discount at www.ChristinaChambreau.com/products.php). Then use the Early Warning signs, below, to see if further holistic treatment is needed if any of them appear or worsen. The AVMA, veterinary colleges, AAHA, FPA and other leaders say 3 years is the best for all other vaccines, so certainly do not do yearly for anything (unless there is a Leptospirosis outbreak in your area, then email me for guidance). Please do not let the need to put your dog in a kennel force you to poison your dog with extra vaccines unless it is an emergency. The insert in vaccine packages says “Give only to healthy animals”, so if your animal is ill in any way, or undergoing treatment, they should not be vaccinated. Vaccinated animals often develop many chronic conditions including diabetes, cushings disease, addisons, allergies and even cancer. A wonderful list serve on vaccines, their harm and alternatives is at yahoo groups. To register, go to jstsayno2vaccs-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

4. Use the fewest chemicals, remembering that there are chemicals in vaccines. Each animal is an individual and will respond differently to heartworm, flea and tick preventatives. Some are very sensitive to chemicals used in the yard or the house and in vaccines - they will become profoundly ill. Others will be triggered by these chemicals to just not have full health.  Chemicals in foods can cause allergic type reactions, so again feeding a fresh diet from local ingredients will be best. Healthy yards have lots of weeds. House cleaners can be made from foods and microfibril cloths clean like a charm. Healthy animals never get fleas and ticks

5. Understand how animals become ill and how they heal. First there is an energetic imbalance (they are just not right), then functional (the dog is itchy), then inflamed (skin is red, infected, swollen and hot) and finally tissue changes (thick, black skin). Results of any treatment can be no change, amelioration (current symptoms disappear with no other improvements, then return), suppression (current symptoms disappear and they become more ill) or a cure (everything about the animal to begins to improve, especially the overall energy level.)  
Keeping a journal is critical to determine what treatments are helping problems to become less frequent and less severe. You can stand firm with what you feel is working even if your professional disagrees and change approaches when needed.
Www.HealthyAnimalsJournal.com is a great one to use and e-version will soon be available.  

6. Learn different healing approaches. There are so many different ways to stimulate your healing that you never need to give up trying. Flower essences, essential oils, homeopathy, acupuncture, massage, Reiki and chiropractic are a few. Classes are found through your health food store, by phone or on-line. I teach many classes around the country and my web site lists classes taught by others as well.

7. Select the best healers for each animal's health team. Most people want a veterinarian (preferably integrative) and an energy healer. You decide what needs to be tried next for your animal. When you realize the animal is not improving – seek different care. Use conventional veterinarians for diagnosis and emergency treatment, or if other methods are not working. Again, integrative veterinarians (see below) will be able to do both, and have the philosophical understanding of the vibrational causes of illness.


FIND A HEALER
I strongly recommend finding an integrative veterinarian with whom to work. This is a person trained in many different approaches, including using conventional drugs only when absolutely needed. Working with one can increase the chance that your cherished companion can live a long and healthy life after recovering from this current problem. There are good ones and great ones, and a few homeopathic veterinarians will consult by phone or email. Go to www.VetAdviceLine.com and read the article in the library about selecting and working with a holistic veterinarian. There are other great articles there, as well.
You can go to the web sites for each type of holistic practice and use their referral list to find one near to you:
1. Acupuncture and Chinese medicine: www.IVAS.org & www.TCVM.com
2. Homeopathic veterinarians (these can often help you by phone if no other holistic practitioners are nearby that you like): www.theAVH.org Their conferences are open to lay people, too, and we offer an introductory class before the conference.
3. Chiropractor - www.animalchiropractic.org
4. Wide range of other treatments: www.AHVMA.org, American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association
If you wish to consult with me by telephone, go to my website and read about my practice.

There are also lots of practitioners and approaches that are used by trained people that you can find by searching the Internet.

YOU BE THE HEALER  
I also strongly recommend getting some training in understanding the wide range of approaches to health so you can be in charge of what you choose for treatments for your animals. You can learn Reiki (which can take the "bad" out of vaccines and any needed drugs, or even make food healthier), massage, HTA, TTouch, acupressure, flower essence therapy, aromatherapy, all of which are 100% safe to use for any problems (see REIKI below). There are many more approaches you can do to help heal your animals with some training since they need to be used more carefully - homeopathy, herbal medicine, Chinese herbs. In addition to classes (see below), there are many very good list serves filled with people experienced with not vaccinating and feeding raw meat diets. Go to yahoogroups.com and look for “Just say no 2 vaccs” and “Raw Paws”. As with human health approaches, there are many different opinions, so you need to experiment and see what makes your animals more or less healthy. Keeping a journal can help you decide what is working and what is not working (www.HealthyAnimalsJournal.com).

www.ChristinaChambreau.com has a listing of courses taught by her and others that may help you. I am doing teleseminars and will expand to Webinars in the future. If you want to organize a webinar for me and get people in your area of the country to attend I would love to do that for you. You can do searches online for the many other classes and lectures available. Go to www.theAVH.org for classes every November as part of the annual conference.  People come from around the world for this.

Healthy Animal Update is an emailed newsletter that is occasionally sent out – to sign up – go to www.ChristinaChambreau.com. While there check out classes and products.
Good Health and looking forward to seeing you/hearing you in some of my classes.
Dr. Chambreau


REIKI:
From the book, Healthy Animal's Journal - "Reiki: Personally, I think every person who lives with or works with animals must know at least Level I Reiki. The practitioner places her hands upon the animal (or it can be done from a distance as some animals are too sensitive for direct touch) with the intent for healing to occur. The energy flows through the healer into the animal. This is based on directly applying Chi (energy) to rebalance the energy field so it no longer needs to produce the physical symptoms. It is a very good adjunct to any healing modality, especially to relieve pain and inflammation. It also "takes the bad out of" things. By doing Reiki on smelly water in restaurants I have been able to drink sweet tasting and smelling water. Use Reiki anytime that you must give injections, vaccines, drugs, flea or heartworm drugs, or other substances with potential toxicity. Do you work in a grooming salon, or kennel, or veterinary clinic, or barn or anywhere animals are being seen? Use your Reiki on any treatments to be given and to calm the animals. People have reported getting animals to eat by doing Reiki on their food.  http://www.reiki.org  . Get a free treatment at www.interdimensionalhealing.com. Great information on Reiki - http://www.reikicourse.orgKathleen Prasad is a wonderful teacher and works with my favorite sanctuary and holistic education center, BrightHaven www.brighthaven.org . Kathleen leads a free monthly telechat for anyone trained in Reiki and using it with animals. http://www.animalreikisource.com/. If you cannot find a Reiki Class near you (same class for people and animals as it connects you through an "attunement" to the healing energy of the universe, making you a channel of healing), three groups offer long distance, free, attunements. http://theholisticcare.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=13, http://www.freereikiattunement.com   Another group that offers Reiki attunements, classes and training on-line www.ReikiBlessings.com and animal classes, too www.animalhealers.homestead.com/  A Reiki Class will be part of the PGFFD summer health classes in June in Bowie, www.HomeopathicAnimalCare.org


EARLY WARNING SIGNS OF ILLNESS FOR DOGS AND CATS

1.   Is your companion really healthy?
2.   Can you tell if the treatment you selected is deeply curing?
3.   Can your companion be healthier than you realize?
YES - read on and evaluate your animal for true health.

Most health problems are the result of an underlying energy imbalance, made worse from poor diet and vaccination.  They are rarely acute diseases (except injuries). Therefore, you may find that the problem does not clear up as you expect or it recurs. If so, you are dealing with an underlying predisposition to illness, and these clues to underlying ill health will help you select a remedy and monitor the results.  As we cure animals of "disease", we find that certain other "NORMAL" things go away, too.  Do not be satisfied until most of the following symptoms are gone.  In young, apparently healthy animals, these apparently "normal" problems may be the only indications to start treatment. This is only the beginning of a list - as more animals are cured we will find new levels of health. Tracking these is easy when you use the Healthy Animal's Journal by Dr. Christina Chambreau (www.HealthyAnimalsJournal.com)

SKIN: doggy smell; attracts fleas a lot; dry, oily, lack-luster coat;
excessive shedding; not grooming,    ear problems - waxy, oily, itchy, recurrent mites; eye discharge, tearing, or matter in corner of eyes; raised third eyelid; spots appearing on iris; "freckles" appearing on face; whiskers falling out; fragile, thickened, distorted claws that are painful or sensitive to trim.
BEHAVIOR: Fears(of loud noises, thunder, wind, people, animals, life); too timid; too rough or aggressive (even at play); too hard to train; barks too much and too long; suspicious nature; biting    when petted too long; hysteria when restrained; clumsy; indolent; licking or sucking things or people too much; not using litter box or not covering stool.
DIGESTIVE: Bad breath; tarter accumulation; loss of teeth; poor appetite; craving weird things(rubber    bands, plastic, dirt, cat litter, paper, dogs eating dog or cat stools, rocks, sticks...); sensitivity to milk;    thirst - a super healthy cat on non dry food will drink at most once a week; red gum line; vomiting often, even hairballs more than a few times a year; mucous on stools; tendency to diarrhea with least    change of diet; obesity;  anal gland problems; recurrent parasites.
STIFFNESS when getting up, early hip dysplasia; tires easily in hot or cold weather; can no longer jump up on counters, or go up or down steps.
TEMPERATURE: Low grade fevers - Normal for healthy cats and dogs is
100-101.5.
AGE & REPRODUCTION: Should live a long life (Shepards 17 years, Danes 12, cats 24). should be able    conceive easily, deliver normally, and not pass on "genetic breed" problems.












---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks so much!  I'm going to your web site.  My questions are 1.  how does one deal with biting. and 2.  My 15 year old cat is on a special urinary tract diet (Purina) bec. of scarring after catherization for a urinary problem - can't exactly remember.  he is also hyperthyroid and takes 0>5 of methamazole BID.  My vet tells me that the kitten shouldn't have his food and he shouldn't have the kitten's food.  I've temporarily solved the problem by putting the older cat's food in the basement and set up a box with an opening that Dash (kitten) can get into but Eddie (old pal) can't. It's nerve racking and I know Dash will outgrow the temporary fix.  Do you have any recommendations?  The vet said Eddie absolutely can't have kitten food and kitten absolutely can't have his.

Answer
Maureen,
The best way to deal with biting is to ignore it and to anticipate events that create it. Most biting comes from people playing with kittens using their hands, and, of course the kitten will bite. Squirt gun of water can be useful. Discovering the reason is most important for then the best cure can be found. Jackson Galaxy does behavioral consults if you get very stuck. First you could try one of the combination essences at his site. They are 100% safe, so definitely worth a try. For a discount, order them through me at my products page then click on Spirit Essences.

To have your 15 year old make it to 35 (BRightHave had one live to 35 and several to 28 and 30, as well as dealing with the young/old issues, you really would do best to be consulting with a holistic veterinarian. The thyroid problem can sometimes be completely cured (check out the success at www.Brighthaven.org and maybe do a consult with Gail) with holistic approaches like homeopathy, or at least it will not worsen. This is really important.

This issue of diet generates a lot of different opinions, just like with people (vegan, all meat, no dairy, separating food, etc). Re-read what I said in #2 about nutrition, what I say on my web site, then read 2 or 3 of the holistic pet books out there, especially
Real Food for Healthy Dogs and Cats - Becker/Taylor; natural cat - frazier; natural health - pitcairn; Holistic cat care - Yarnell/Hofve. Each will be slightly different but I am sure most will say that when you feed fresh meat and pureed vegetables(10% ish) then special diets are not needed. conventional veterinarians like yours are dealing with processed foods and so have a lot of different opinions because the manufacturers want to sell more food, some of it is not good enough quality/high enough protein for a kitten and the poor quality, cooked, stored proteins may not be good for the older cat with some kidney problems.

To reiterate - if you fed a fresh food diet the kitten and the 15 year old could eat basically the same diet.

Now, remember that I said never ever feed dry food. If you are feeding a "meal" of canned or fresh food you just need to sit down in the room while both eat. I have a brother and sister who are about 6. One is not well and eats more slowly than her brother who would eat her food. I just stand there and give him some catnip, or play with him in another room until she is finished. I bet you are feeding dry and that is why you needed your very clever set up.

It would be so much easier, and super more healthy for them, if you start thinking more for yourself and ignore your conventional veterinarian about diet. Little more work at the beginning while you decide what approach to raw feeding you think makes the most sense, but so worth it for the health of your cats.

Dr. chambreau