Pat -what you say is so true. I had a cat and a dog as a child. No jabs - never even occurred to us. No-one ever thought of worms or fleas and the only visit to the vet that I remember was when the cat was neutered. There were no pet carriers. My Mum took the cat on the bus in a large shopping bag with a towel on the bottom and the zip undone enough for him to breathe!. I also remember her cooking tripe and melts (whatever that was) and stinking the house out. All the dogs I remember were fit and healthy apart from a neighbour's dog who got distemper. That really upset me at the time as she was a beautiful dog but thinking of dogs I've known in the last ten or fifteen years there are just so many that have had cancer, skin problems, auto immune problems, not to mention skeletal injuries like cruciate problems and arthritis. A friend of mine has just lost her third dog to cancer in twenty years. And I'm sure it's no coincidence that she does everything by the book - the best kibble, never misses the annual booster, monthly flea treatment and six monthly worming. It's so sad that she thinks she's doing the very best for her dogs and won't even listen to anyone who doesn't think like her marvellous vet.
Hopefully as more people do listen and take the time to learn, things will come full circle.
And of course it's not just dogs who were healthier in the old days but people as well!

I'll agree with that Pat. Seems the boom in vets went side by side with processed dog foods and the new vaccination regime. When I had my first dogs they were vaccinated for distemper - once - and that was it. Never any yearly boosters and no flea treatment other than a bath!! Oh and they were fed on raw leg of beef too!!! Cheap in those days.

I remember my dad taking our family dog, when he would get into a fight, coming home with his insides hanging out. My dad would put the dog up on the workbench and poke things back inside, sew him up, and let him in the house a few days to heal. The dog lived a good life to be 20 years old.
My first dogs as an adult, didn't go to the vet much. We did grandma's home remedys on them for most things. They ate what I could afford to buy them, and they all lived to 18 and 19 years old.
In my golden years now, my pets would get the better dog food, I treated them for all the things they say they need, made sure they got shots and have done all I thought I should. Now both of my dogs spend a lot of time at the vet being treated for all kinds of diseases and conditions. I have to wonder if all the junk we have done now days is not what is making them sick

"Convenience food" as Earl Mendall calls commercial pet food didn't
come on the market until the 1950's, so you should be able to find
tons of info.
Yearly vaccines or repeated vaccines are new also.
When I worked for a vet I asked her what was up with all the cancer
and allergies in dogs. Her reply was "Overvaccination and Commercial
Pet Food".
Down on the farm when dogs were fed table scraps (lamb and rice
etc.) and were vaccinated once if at all they lived longer and with
less medical problems according to this vet.
I do believe that but I also wonder about things like prostrate
cancer. Is there really an increase or can we just detect it better
now?
It is fairly unusual for a dog to live to be 25 these days but
supposedly not back in the old days (before 1950, ha!)
Tracy B Ann
www.zenpaws.com
"The Politics of Dogs"
www.radiofreenashville.org

I am not old enough to remember a lot of the old days but...I grew up with a puppy/dog and we were quite 'poor' at that time. We did not do vaccines (maybe one set) and did not boost them. I also even then (over 25 yrs. ago) was feeding raw hamburger to my dogs food as I had read somewhere it was 'good' for dog...geez..wonder where I read that back then! I spent most of my younger years (10-15 yr.old) at the library reading EVERY dog book and encyclopedia I would find on dogs....)

My dogs growing up were all in good condition, never had any health issues. (thankfully!) When I went to collage 15 years ago, I took my dog (rough collie) with me. I couldn't afford dog food (he lived on campus with the dean of men)so, I worked in the kitchen and fed him all the food the students threw out (there was a LOT of good food). COncentrated on the veggies and meat. He did wonderuful.

I remember when my one of my dogs caught kennel cough at an obedience trial. I lived in Saskatoon and thus phoned the vet college and gave the symptoms. Vet said, kennel cough, don't worry about it and don't treat it. (no antibiotics)....IF I felt it necessary I could give him people cough medicine. VEt also said my other dog would likly get it but again not to worry. Both did get it and were fine with no treatment. I am shocked now, at how many vets/owners insist on antibiotics for kennel cough....

Ahhh the good old days! I first began owning/showing/breeding dogs back in the mid 60's and even then the dogs were a lot healthier than they are today. Vet's were "around" if you needed them but not to the extent that they are now. My one experience with a Vet back then was not a happy one, after my Cocker Spaniel bitch contracted distemper and the Vet gave her up as hopeless, he did not even want to bother trying to do anything. I cured that bitch using NR methods and took her back to that same Vet 2 weeks later and he was astounded to see a dog that was a picture of health!
Back then commercial foods were only just coming onto the market but 99% of people still fed their dogs on table scraps, meat, bones etc...and were hardly ever vaccinated for anything. On the whole I would definitely say dogs were a LOT healthier back then than they are today.
Fortunately for my dogs I have continued to feed them a RAW diet and use natural means to mend any problems that MAY occur, and they have not been vaccinated for over 25yrs and have never been sick.:);)

I remember growing up in South Africa in the 50s. My father had the number one obedience trained German Shepherd/Alsatian in the country.

She was never vaccinated and never went to "the vet." She had healthy
pups, ate a pot of cooked table scraps with all sorts of delicious smelling things (I used to want her food too!!) and raw, meaty bones from the friendly local butcher. My dad sometimes gave her raw eggs, so her coat was thick and shiny. She was loving and restful, looking after my Mom and me when Pa went on business trips.

As with allopathic human treatment, I see a frightening downward spiral in health since the introduction of vaccinations, and all the other nasties that are well known to this list, in both humans and
our beloved, amazing animals

We are Raw Fed/Vaccine free X 21+ years! Will never go back to kibble & vaccines! The proof is in the pudding! We are now 3rd & some 4th generation raw fed/vaccine free Shelties & loving it!
Cheers/Barb
Behaven Shelties

Wel, I just lost my girl of only 6 years to osteosarcoma. Her last almost 2 years of her life she got raw food...and was not vaccinated after the age of 3. But she was a purebred. So, no matter what I would of changed...I think her genetics were working against her. The 3 I have know are mixed. I stopped vaccinating a few years ago. They got their rabies, and DHLPP at least once...that is enough I think. We live out in the country, they are couch potatoes though...but I don't worry too much about the rabies being up to date since they are out in the country and away from people. They were getting raw...but honestly...I can't afford it. They are all well over 100 lbs a piece. I fed them raw for almost 2 years..and surprised my husband didn't divorce me. They are on Solid Gold. It is a good food. They also get cottage cheese, lots of yogurt, fruits, veggies, salmon, mackeral. So, they are getting the "scraps" too.
I wish there wasn't such a push to vaccinate....I think pets would be around longer. I also wish that pet food manufacturers took more pride into what goes into our beloved family members diets.

State Coordinator Kansas/Wyoming
Friends of Rescued Mastiffs
www.mastiffrescue.org
www.theanimalrescuesite.com FEED A DOG FOR FREE!

All I can remember are dogs running free and living to a very good age. There never seemed to be any problems and most seemed to eat leftover scraps and sometimes scraps of meat from the butchers. I feel we are moving backwards through time, not forwards.

besides the raw food diets and the latest news on vaccinosis (even vets are changing their protocol in spite of losing money) a wonderful book helped my understanding a great deal: The Nature of Animal Healing : The Definitive Holistic Medicine Guide to Caring for Your Dog and Cat (Paperback)
by Martin Goldstein D.V.M..

On Long Island, there was an epidemic of dog cancers....this vet sought an answer, and echos much of what has already been said here: with the advent of kibble and vaccinations, cancer has shortened the lives of our best friends....

this is a great posting place....it's great to read what others are saying....

As a child of the 1950's I remeber our White German Shepherd Snow being fed table scraps and raw bones from the butcher. He was healthy, great tempered and long lived. My dogs eat raw now for the last six years, and haven't been vaccinated for several years. My 8 1/2 year old Curly Coat has Mast Cell Cancer and is under treatment with a Homeopathic Vet and is doing terrific. I will believe to my dying day that was a result of my vaccinating him in 2004 against my better judgement so he could continue his work as a therapy dog. His cancer was discovered eight months later. I will NEVER vaccinate any dog or cat I have or will have in the future. I have a 17+ DSH who I adopted at 5 from the shelter and came updated with vaccines. I have never vaccinated him again. He is almost 18 years of age, and has the energy and good health of a cat half his age.
Susan

hi, just to share, in my honeymoon my wife and me were to small island in the north coast of my country called Isla Grande.

There is a small quaint town, it's sorrounded by beautiful beaches and palm trees, emerald green waters, sun, warm breeze with a taste to salt, it is a paradise.

The native people here is poor, so there is not enough money to waste in a thing like a dog, therefore there is not money to spend in vets, vaccination, kibbles or any "civilized" care for a dog. Dogs are
treated like dogs.

In spite of this, dogs there are healthy, strong,large, long-lived, happy, have shiny coats and almost they never get sick.

Those dogs are fed on table scraps only, so the rest of the food is provided by the generous hand of Nature, fresh fish and crab from the sea.

At sunset, they may be seen come along a bunch of kids going thru the beach to an old wharf where kids and dogs dive in.

Ulices
http://www.lobourbano.com

When I was a child my dad had a chow-mix that he kept chained to a dog house at night. We children played with her often and she adored my father and followed him everywhere. Once she even climbed a tall ladder onto the roof of our house after my dad. Our next door neighbor kept chickens and was always accusing my dad's dog of killing them. My dad said it was impossible since she was mostly kept chained in her own yard. A few months after this long-time neighbor moved away my dad decided to build our dog a new dog house and when he moved the old one he found a feather bed inside fit for a king....! She had indeed been killing the neighbor's chickens and devouring them inside her dog house..... by the way she lived to be 20 years old and died in her sleep one night

Thank you for this wonderful site and shared memories. I was raised to always take my animals to the vet and felt like a "failure" as a pet owner if i didnt get them in on time. Over time and many animals and heartbreaks....i lost my trust in the vet, and began to see the corolation between the side effects of rx causing their death. Heartbroken, i found myself with remaining animals and not wanting to get their required shots or medications. But, that made me feel like i was irresponsible and unloving towards my beloved pets. I applaud God who made these animals so strong, and the strength of those of this generation who have discerned the pitfalls of many deceptions.I want to join your insite and be done with shots and rx, and with the help of the puter and people like you i will grow and learn to do the best for my remaining animals...thank you all for your experiences shared here. A difficult question but necessary....when an animal is at deaths door, we are taught to put him out of his misery by having them "put to sleep". Thru the years i have both endured with them and felt them jump out of their body to their new heavenly one.....and also been humbled, exhausted, and at the point of extream distress by their "systems shutting down" and run them to the vet to relieve us both. Either way i feel the unbearable pain of feeling so inadaquit(sp) for this task. It leaves me asking them and God for forgiveness for not knowing how to best help them thru their last hours. What is the comfort for them and for us that is normal and natural. How did dogs pass on when there were no vets to hurry them off to? How does one in heartbreak and pain lovingly tend to them . Thank you for your wisdom about this.

I'll be really interested to read that. Haven't had a dog for over 30
years, but when I was a kid we fed our dogs table scraps, and not so
much dog food. They did get vacc'd but in those days the didn't have as
much of the combination vaccinations like they do now, and they didn't
get those constant frequent boosters. I don't remember what the dog food
was. I'd be interested to know from anyone who remembers if dog and cat
foods were then as full of fillers, carbs, and junk as they are now. I
remember my mother used to feed them liver once in a while (just sort of
rinsed in boiling water, not cooked). All lived to very old ages.
I don't remember more.
sol

My husband and I went to visit my aunt and uncle who are in their late
80's and we went out to dinner. My aunt is very sharp mentally. She
has a large family, lots of grandkids, great grandkids, pets. She
thinks I'm odd to have no children so she politely asks about our
dogs. Somehow I get to expounding about dog health and the rather
recent phenomenon of natural rearing etc.
I notice my aunt is very quiet looking at her plate, and I feel
foolish and realize that I've blabbed on and on, about a topic she has
no interest in. In a minute she looks at me and says: "When we were
kids, everybody had pets! Lots of dogs! Everybody fed them table
scraps and we'd give them the bones from the butcher. I never heard
of a sick dog back then! We never knew what a Vet was!"

~Betty King

Going back almost 40 years, My husband, myself, my 3 children and my first collie lived in a suburb of Toronto. We fed the dog nothing but kibble because that was what dogs ate. "Dog food", About 3 times a year he would get really sick with the runs. My vet always said he was garbaging. I knew better because he ate only dog food. My in-laws owned a horse farm about 40 minutes north west of us. We visited almost weekly. My mother in law always sent table scraps down to the barns were the dogs were. They ate the scraps, manure, and had a field day of treats when the blacksmith came. They also hunted. They dug holes in the manure pile to sleep if it was very cold. Their teeth sparkled, their coats were fabulous, their bodies were lean and very well muscled. I thought it must be the country air. I did yearly shots, only fed kibble, My dog had horrible teeth, breath that could stop a train and just an OK coat and not a great body. My second collie was different. I partially l
istened to my breeder. I could have been feeding raw no vaccs for 35 years now if I did listen. Too bad I thought she was out of her mind.
PS My dogs have those sparkling teeth, great coats and well muscled bodies now.
Janice Starr
www.starkennel.com
Portuguese Water Dogs & Lagotto Romagnolo
Paws-itively Raw Foods
Paws-itively Charming (K9 Italian Charms)
Distributor Arctic Vigor (K9 omega 3/6 EFAs)

We got our second family dog around 1952 - no smirks from the younger end! - and I remember she was fed on Lassie - a tinned concoction, plus table scraps and the odd RMB. She didn't fare well at all, and we lost her when she was around 7 yrs to an under-active thyroid, which caused weight gain, strain on heart etc. That was really sad, as in those days vets had no treatment for it. I remember the vet making umpteen house calls, and when she had to be PTS the vet never sent a final bill. She was a cocker BC cross - bought from Lewis's pet dept. in Manchester!
The first family dog, in residence before I was ever thought of, and my guardian angel as soon as I arrived, was a fox terrier, bought from a local breeder. He was a "wartime" dog for the first part of his life. No such thing as commercial manure. He ate what the family ate. Brown bread was dried in the oven for him to act as a biscuit. He was around ten when he died, but he had contracted distemper, and was nursed through it by Dad - Rabbit stew in copious amounts I remember. He never saw a vet. I suppose at that time vets were very thin on the ground, so if he had a medical problem he was treated with whatever we would treat ourselves with. Neither dog was ever vaccinated - were vaccines around then???

When the second dog died, my parents were so devastated that they never had another dog, so I had to wait until I had a family of my own, and circumstances that would allow, but I've now had dogs in my own right for thirty years - and never a can of dog food to be seen - wonder how I manage???

I came across a very interesting website and when I read the following paragraph immediately thought of this journal, so hope it's ok to post it here:

Many of the world’s foremost holistic veterinarians, including Dr. Christina Chambreau, Dr. Russell Swift, Dr. Charles Loops, and Dr. Richard Pitcairn, agree that commercial pet food and excessive vaccination are behind the many chronic diseases being dealt with today in veterinary medicine, the likes of which were never seen before routine vaccinations and commercial pet food became the norm. Dr. Pitcairn, a renowned holistic veterinarian who specializes in homeopathy, has said, “If I may venture to make a prediction, it is that 50-100 years from now, people will look back at the practice of introducing disease into people and animals for the purpose of preventing these same diseases as foolishness, a foolishness similar to that of the practice of bloodletting and the use of toxic doses of mercury in the treatment of disease.”

The above post by Sehbrina was taken from the following website :

http://www.celestialpets.com/articles/dog%20and%20cat%20care,%20naturally.htm

Dr Pitcairn is an Immunologist, which explains his PhD.

I was raised in the country(uk) and my father reared and trained gun dogs,labs & springers,but we also had mottley terriers. no pet food,no vets and although there were times when it was hard to decide whether to fatten the pigs with the left overs or to feed the dogs,my fathers answer was to take a gun dog and the terriers out to shoot pigeons for them and along with ferrets,get rabbits for them.My dad would throw the pigeons to the dogs whole,and only chop into two the rabbits for the smaller dogs.
no skinning or gutting and a couple of them would be for the kitchen,which i loved to "help" him gut and skin.I can still do it today!I now live in London (by choice,odd I know)and have two crossbreeds,the oldest from battersea,a collie cross.He arrived sickly,with red diarrhea,green manking skin allergy,conjunctivitis,red ooze in his ears,a poor coat and he'd chewed his tail to pieces.He was only 9 months old and had been vaccinated 4 times,"just to be safe"and had been "treated" 3 times for kennel cough. They said that he wasn't thriving,was not for re-homing but would be going to a respite centre to see if he could recover and be rehomed later.
I refused to leave the place without him.
I de-innoculated him with homeopathic thuja and treated all his problems homeopathically and topically with oils etc.Fed him naturally though cooked for the first 6 months withb the addition of raw meaty bones which were hard to get at first but now my local butcher gives all his bones away free to any one who wants them (my influence I'm proud to say).My dog is now 10, fit flea and worm free,never goes to the vet,his teeth are white,his coat is soft and his breath sweet.The cost of feeding him and his 8 year old son is on average £1 per day! not per dog but for 2 dogs! I dont understand why people say they cant afford to feed a dog "naturally" it costs next to nothing.and the health benefits are obvious.The vet and welfare and petfood industries sicken me as so many people are int

I have really enjoyed reading each and every mail on here. What sensible, interesting and thought provoking replies.:)

I grew up in the fifties too; our dog - a cocker/springer spaniel cross - was fed scraps, tripe, mince, veg, and bones. He wandered around our village with us and the other children, swam in the local burn, visited an elderly lady every morning for a biscuit (a tea biscuit, she said), and well into his teens, would jump over the gate to our house. No vaccinations, no worming, nothing. I see dogs now which look old and slow at half his age. We must have been doing something right.

I recieved my English Bull Terrier, aged five from the rescue.She had sores on herlegs that had destroyed the fur follicles, sores on her nose plane.Her ears were so painful that she screamed when the vet looked in them. She vomited every night. Her stools were mucoid. I got some advice about "RAW" feeding. She is almost nine now--and in good health. No sores, healthy ears, good appetite for her raw diet,firm stools.No vet trips.

I'm only 27 and was not alive in the 50s to know that Vets did not exist up till then and never thought twice about it. I've been brainwashed just like the rest of them. Very interesting to hear about a prior generation's experiences :) Thank you!

I was born in 1947.. and had my very one dog at 7 in 1955.. I started breeding dosg as my father and his father and his father did since the 1800's. I bred dogs in Germany, London, the USA and now here in northern Thailand. I discovered the Thai Ridgeback Dog in 1994 here in Thailand. I traveled through 32 states between 1995 and 2000 showing off the beauty of the TRD. Now I reside with all my TRD in ChiangMai Thailand. I was in the pet supply business for over 25 years and have always been self employed. I sold all kinds of dogs foods and have read all sorts of stories about the first dog food companies. James Spratt an American living in London was the first creator of what we called "kibble" dog food today way back in the 1860's..It was done for all the English dogs that were used in the "hunts" that was popular back then. Then later in the 1940's after WWII the bag food processed foods became the norm all across the world.. I prefer the old way of feed the dogs.. the BONE DIET..
Raw foods and yes.. less vacines and less processed foods the better. also one day a week to "fast" them at least one to two days a week.. Wild dogs do not eat everyday..only when they are hungry..

In today world all over the world we all tend to over feed out animals as well as ourselves. :) BE HAPPY and give your dog a big hug daily.. My oldest TRD is SAKORN who is now 13 years young.. see them all at www.ThaiDog.com

I too grew up in the UK, born in 1944. We always had dogs and horses. The dogs never knew leashes and all (first a bull terrier, then a mutt, then 2 whippets, then 2 staffies a lurcher and even an Afghan) were taught to go behind the horses on the road and in the countryside.

They never had vaccs. and only saw the vet when they had an injury. I don't remember them ever being sick. The mutt lived to 16, the whippets (brothers) to 16 and 17, the Staffie and the Lurcher 16.

When I was small, in those rationing days, my mother bought horsemeat from local gypsies who used to come round to sell their wares, the rest of the time it was always lights, hearts, etc. from the butcher. My mother always cooked for the dogs and mixed in Winalot.

Now I live in New York City with 4 mini wire Dachshunds. I learned 3 years ago to feed raw and have been doing it ever since. I also use homeopathy exclusively and do my best with positive reinforcement training. The oldest dog I have is only 10, the youngest 3, so we will see how long they last.

Philippa Jordan

I am so excited to see the postings and as sensible reason would have it seems that we as a race sure know how to make things worse in the name of health, especially when it comes to pets. I have been in the animal industry for 27 years and have seen some pretty awful things going on within the industry but the worse is how we, at least in America, misuse vaccines.
I recall my grandfather making up his own dog food every night from scraps, raw meat and veggies. He had a kennel in upper New York State and all his dogs ate that way every day. They ran the farm and hunted on their own; all lived to be 18 and older. Vaccinations were not the norm in the 50's so they were not vaccinated. I remember a hunting dog contracted distemper and he mangaged to nurse the dog through it. He lost his sense of smell and could not be used for hunting but still had a long, healthy life. Makes one wonder!!

I remember the old days during and after WWII. My father was a vet and our dogs were given one distemper shot but after that nothing. They were fed on meat scraped from boiled sheep heads, raw rabbits and table scraps. I cannot recall them ever visiting a vet after my dad died in 1949 apart from having skin stitched up from barbed wire and on two occasions broken bones.

They all lived well into their late teens.

Mind you, these were also the days when we kids only received a small pox and polio vaccination and after that it was "going to tea with friends and neighbours who had scarlet fever, whooping cough, mumps, measles, scarlet fever etc" in order to catch the disease and be protected thereafter. I never did catch mumps.

We swam in filthy rivers filled with scummy mud and cow poos, never needed to wash the fruit and veg(rarely washed our hands when coming in from a day in the fields and gobbling down tea...if we could get away with it which was often) and hardly every got sick. I used to help milk the cows at the local farm when very young and the first thing I did was to squirt a whole glassful direct from the cow - creamy and still warm - before filling the bucket. Cows in those days had normal udders and mastitis was not as common as it is today with our present unfortunate animals whose bags are so distended they can hardly walk. Cows in those days lived to be about 17!!

In a nutshell. I think the immune systems of both animals and humans, in most cases, were not compromised as they are today with the modern emphasis being on chemical protection instead of allowing Nature's protection to work for us.

When I was a kid the goldens I knew routinely lived full lives into their 20's. Now I'm told that 8 is old for most dogs. Part of the difference is that even in Minnesota, dogs did not live indoors. They had well-insulated dog houses, and they spent most if not all of their time outside. I have to think dogs are more sensitive to environmental toxins and being inside is shortening their lives. A relative's golden, who lives outside, is coming up on 22 years now and is as robust and healthy as a young dog. My own australian shepherd is 9 and people think she must be a puppy for all her energy. She spends most of her time outdoors also.

I remember having a dog until he was 15 and the only reason he died was that a neighbours son kicked him in the stomach for fighting with his girlfriends dog and it burst his spleen.
He didnt have vaccinations, my dad was a butcher and he got the scraps from the table, my mum reckoned if it was good enough for us it certainly was good enough for the dog. He jumped a fence once and got impailed on a railings, Dad carried him home, brought him to the vet, got stitched up and came home 2 hours later to recover in the kitchen beside the fire.
He met all of us outside our different schools every day (7 of us) and was free to roam the street, didnt get vaccinated and was never sick.
So do you vaccinate your dog or give him give him the recommended food, or leave him to build up immunities and eat scraps??? There certainly seems to be more tumors etc in dogs now then there was years ago.
Ann:)

Fascinating subject and very close to my heart. Read Wild Health by Cindy Engel all animals inately know what they need to eat to maintain health and I am now working 'one stage beyond' BARF Helping animals in captivity to choose the herbs etc that they need to maintain excelent health and that they no longer have access to.

Brilliant original post and just states what I have been saying for years.
I grew up South of London and went to school on an estate built to house young families over-flowing from London and yes I remember all the dogs being around roaming free, they were how I got my early experience with dogs, they always just followed me home from school. I think My Mum realised what was going on the day I came home with a tortoise and told her it followed me:):):):):)

Thank you for a wonderful website and blog. Dogs are such wonderful companions that it's great to see they lived healthy lives before vets and petfood became the norm.

DUE TO SPAM, ALL POSTS WILL BE APPROVED BEFORE APPEARING ON THIS LIST. YOUR COMMENTS WOULD BE WELCOMED, BUT DO NOT INCLUDE YOUR MAIN EMAIL ADDRESS.

Our Sally-Ben is a "rescue dog", i.e., some other family got rid of her (they said she nipped kids?!) and we were the lucky ones to get her--at a year and a half. She's a Border Collie/terrier mix; has broken off front teeth (from trying to get free of chain in her other family?), retro-sneezed (vaccinations?!) and had very rough fur. Now, after 4 years with us, she is beautifully silky (has cod liver oil and organic flaxseed oil on whole wheat toast daily--as do I).

She has rarely been ill, certainly not been to vet. Only homeopathy as needed but NO conventional meds except obligatory 3-yearly rabies. Has no fleas and rarely a tick, though outside a lot. Great-tempered, very loving, and adores her long walks. Sleeps with us and why not--she is always clean and sweet-smelling. Eats some very high quality kibble, but mainly our veggies and fruits and a bit of raw meat off of whatever I cooked for us. Recently we have been able to give her a daily portion of raw beef scraps ground with entrails from a farm in PA. She now has no more discharge from eyes! Surely ordering direct from farm like this is the way things will become for many people one of these
days!

We love Sally-Ben-Doggie most dearly and are glad to get a chance to write about her. BTW, the only time she was ill in the four year she has shared with us, Dr. Christina Chambreau helped me treat her homeopathically over the phone (I was in a bipolar depression and couldn't rep that flu). She was hit by a bike once but I was able to treat her with homeopathy for that myself.

Only thing we haven't been able to fix are the poor broken teeth. We love her MOST dearly and hope she will live to a ripe old age. Teresa

I remember my grandparents and great grandparents had working dogs that lived until they died of being kicked by cows or killed by varmints. They ranged from collies, rat terriers to hounds. Several lived til near their twenties.

I've lost a American Staffordshire Terrier at 7 to cancer, a pitbull/sharpei cross at 6 to kidney failure and a terrier mix at fourteen to seizures. They had been raised according to the best 'knowledge' of vets and food analysts with all shots, and the best of dog food. This is certainly not fair.

I now have two Jack Russells who are fed raw and only get the legally required rabies vaccine. I'm certainly hoping to extend my beloved pups lives more than my lost ones.