Expert: Dr. Christina Chambreau - 6/11/2009

Question
My cat has a bladder infection and the vet put her on an antibiotic.  This gave
her diarrhea.  She had one solid poop the day before I had to take her back to
the vet because the antibiotic was not working.  She prescribed a different
one and when I mentioned the diarrhea she wasn't concerned due to the one
solid poop the morning before.  My cat has now had diarrhea for more than a
week as well as very noticeable gas when having diarrhea. (she is so upset
with it she won't use her litterbox either.)  I have been giving her yoghurt for
two days now plus her usual kibble.  She eats fine, drinks fine.  No lethargy,
very happy easy going 1.5 year old mix.  Could the diarrha be a side effect
and should  I just wait it out until she is done the medication?  It seems quite
annoying that one thing leads to another leads to another and having to pay
just to have the vet tell me to give her flora will not be good.  Is there a
something else I could try ? I've heard fasting may be bad for them but I have
heard of flora products instead.  I don't want to take her back because she
has already been so otfen recently without any results yet and only things
getting worse for her.
Thank you. Sam and Roxie

Answer
When I only had my conventional veterinary training, I would often be very frustrated by problems like this that just seemed to snowball. You will be so much happier taking the approach described below. 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. Your goal is to get at the deeper energetic imbalance so she does not get bladder problems or diarrhea problems. Even though I do not live in your country, I know that every country has holistic healers for people and animals. Search them out and look for your country's traditional healing methods. Depending on your Province, there are many healers or you can work with me by phone.  
Since the dirarrhea is probably due to the antibiotics, you can try these until you stop the antibiotics or find a healer.

   Rescue Remedy (health food store) - one drop in a separate water bowl and a drop on each meal. Put 4 drops in one ounce of water and give it several more times during the day. Good to decrease stress in general. Maybe stress caused the bladder problem.
   Vitamin C - 500 mg twice a day to help acidify the urine.
   Tinkle tonic from Animals' Apawthecary (order at www.ChristinaChambreau.com/products.php - animal essentials)good to have on hand for any future baldder problems and you could stop the antibiotics if on this.
   Happy Tummy from Spirit Essences (order at Www.Christinachambreau.com/products.php) Flower essences are totally safe.
   Herbal peppermint or Mullein, Marshmallow root
    (1 teaspoon in 1 C hot water, stir till cool). Give a teaspoon as needed.
   Mitomax, a great new probiotic that is excellent for soft stools (order at www.ChristinaChambreau.com/products.php)


Please go to my web site and sign up for the soon to appear newsletter - www.ChristinaChambreau.com. On the products page, there are many great supplements which you may or may not be able to order in your country, though most will ship to Canada.

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. Many of these can be learned about on line and use your body, mind and spirit, so can be used in any country or area.

First, some basic health care information that applies to cats the world over.
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.  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. 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 May in an e-book version and my mid summer 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.  Briefly, 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). 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). 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.

3. Vaccinate the least. Many bladder problems seem to be a result of being sensitive to vaccines. In my opinion, vaccines have caused more harm to animals than anything else we have done. 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, and rabies is viral, so also lasts a lifetime, so I recommend just a few baby shots. 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 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. Chemicals in foods can cause allergic type reactions. 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. Unfortunately, US companies send many toxic chemicals to other countries, so you may need to be extra careful and vigilant in your country.

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 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. Search out your traditional healing practices. Every country has native healing approaches that have stood the test of time.

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.


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. There are good ones and great ones, and a few homeopathic veterinarians will consult by 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 - there aremany Canadian listings.
2. Homeopath (these can often help you by phone or email  if no other holistic practitioners are nearby that you like): www.theAVH.org
3. Chiropractor - www.animalchiropractic.org
4. Wide range of other treatments: www.AHVMA.org, American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association

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. This would include only vaccinating when young except for legally required Rabies (Do you get measles, mumps and polio every year of your life?  Did you know the package inserts say to only vaccinate healthy animals?) and exploring feeding fresh foods, not processed. What is best for you to eat – junky processed foods, or locally grown, fresh foods? Also, you can learn Reiki (which can take the "bad" out of vaccines and any needed drugs, or even make food healthier), massage, HTA, TTouch, flower essence therapy, aromatherapy, and many more things you can do to help heal your animals. 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 nutrition, 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 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://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

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.