I have always known that dogs are smart but there is another characteristic that is deeply seeded in the canine soul – compassion.

I know no other animal than a dog to jump to the rescue of his friends so selflessly and without thinking twice if their life is in danger.

My dog  Skai regularly jumps to my rescue when I am swimming despite the fact that he much prefers a pasture to the ocean.   I have seen dogs grieving their best friends,  I have seen them protecting or saving  children and I have  also heard of stories where a dog ran to get help when their friends were injured.

As I am thinking of all the different situations,  I can’t  help myself  thinking that dogs are in fact the most evolved life form on this planet.   They without  a doubt are the masters  in showing us what love and compassion really is as you can see from the videos bellow.

All I  want to do today is to say one big  thank you to those dogs and humans who care… and make the lives of others safer and better.

With gratitude,

Dr. Peter Dobias, DVM

Hi everyone,

many of you have been following the story of Indiana, the dog of our client Karen from Toronto.  Several weeks back, Karen was told by her local vet to put Indiana down. Even a panel of 5 veterinary specialists thought that Indy must had had cancer metastases since he was diagnosed with organ lymphoma 18 months ago. To their surprise they found nothing and  Karen kindly shared her story with us.  If she didn’t go with the voice of her heart, Indy would not be alive.

If  you have not read the original article,  click here first before you go on reading the lines below.  Otherwise, here is the update:

Does it happen to you that each month or week has a certain theme? It seems that the Universe decides what the lesson should be and then serves us ample opportunities to learn and grow.

This week, the lesson is about following our heart.

Some of you may know that in addition to teaching about disease and cancer prevention, doing webinars and developing innovative supplements and natural care products; I still like to consult with a handful of clients to keep in touch with medicine and healing.

One of the common situations I see is that my new or even established clients who live out side of Vancouver need to use the services of my conventional colleagues.  

I believe that 99% of vets have the intention of helping their patients, however even then the recommendations given can arise from a personal point of view.

Today, I would like to share a story with you that I hope will encourage you to go with your heart whenever you are making the “life or death” decision.  Initially, I thought I would ask my client Karen, if it was ok if I shared her story with you and then I thought of asking her to share her story with you directly. She kindly agreed.

My name is Karen and I belong to a Golden Retriever named Indiana.  Our journey together has always been an adventure.About a year and a half, Indiana was diagnosed with oral cancer.  My conventional vet who practices outside of Toronto told me that Indiana had a few weeks, maybe a few months left to live. 

I remember the feeling of my heart melting and sinking to the floor.  It was suggested that I consult with an Oncologist who recommended starting steroid treatments right away. I had experienced first hand the side effects of pharmaceutical drugs and the toll they take on the body and decided to search for an alternative for Indiana.  I followed my heart.  I declined chemotherapy and other drugs.  It was then that Dr. Peter Dobias entered our lives.  For the next 18 months I have followed Peter’s recommendations and despite the odds, Indiana has remained healthy and happy.

Recently, Indiana fell during one of our daily walks on a nearby trail. His front leg got caught on some brush and he fell hard onto his chin, front leg and stomach.  The impact was so hard, I felt like I had the wind knocked out of me.First he appeared to be fine but the next morning I noticed his lower eyelid drooping and could see the third eyelid covering most of his eye.  I called my local vet and made an urgent appointment to bring Indiana in.  The vet felt that the eye issue was not related to the fall and that perhaps he just had grass seed or a particle irritating his eye.  Upon looking through Indiana’s file, he asked me if he had really been diagnosed with cancer a year and a half ago or if it was a typo. He appeared to be truly surprised. He then recommended steroid drops for Indiana’s eye however, in my heart, I didn’t think the diagnosis was correct.  

I decided to call Peter and when I described the symptoms, he wanted to know what we had done in the last few days.  I told him about Indiana’s fall, and he suggested that Indiana had “Horner’s Syndrome caused by an a nerve injury.  We discussed Indiana’s treatment plan, and agreed to talk again in a few days.

As it happens, the following day, the extend of Indiana’s injuries were far more obvious. He was lame on his left hind leg and I could tell he was in pain.  I consulted again with Peter and we agreed that there is a possibility of a more severe back injury and my local vet should examine that Indiana.

This time, I  saw another associate. She reviewed his file and stopped at the entry about his cancer diagnosis.  The next few minutes that took place in the exam room, completely caught me off guard. I was told that most likely Indiana’s cancer had spread which caused Indiana falling and that Horner’s Syndrome was misdiagnosed.  I was then suggested euthanasia.  My heart sunk for a moment and then it roared.  I couldn’t believe what heard.  In my heart I knew that this was not Indiana’s time to go. I was not ready to give up on Indiana based on an assumption, not a fact.

I then called  Peter who suggested that Indiana should undergo further examination by a neurologist. The following day, a neurologist, an orthopedic surgeon and several interns examined Indiana.   They all came to the same conclusion that a battery of tests were required to confirm their assumption that cancer had spread throughout Indiana’s body.  They felt that since he was diagnosed with cancer 1 ½ earlier, his body is likely to be full of metastasis.

I would love to say that I was strong and confident the full 11 hours that we spent at the Ontario Veterinary College, but really, I was a mess. My emotions and mind were so strong that I could hear the voice of my heart only faintly.  It was telling me to keep going and not give up. The x-ray of Indiana’s lungs showed clear, “no signs of any nodules”.  His blood work in their words was “pristine”; the orthopedic consult was “unremarkable”, the needle aspirations of his lymph nodes showed “no signs of cancer” nor did the abdominal ultrasound.

After 11 hours of diagnostic tests, Indiana’s diagnosis of “Horner’s Syndrome” was confirmed and so was the lumbar spine injury that caused the hind leg lameness.  I was ecstatic and I could not shake off the feeling the specialists seemed bewildered and almost disappointed that they did not find cancer as they expected. I know that Indiana is not out of the woods and that we have to give him some time to recover from his fall.  All I want to say is, whenever your dog is given a death sentence, go with the voice of your heart, seek a second opinion and do not make a rushed decision.

If I did, my bellowed Indiana would not be sleeping on the bed beside me. He would have been dead.

When it comes to cancer, do not allow anyone to give your dog an expiry date.  As you can see, cancer doesn’t need to be a death sentence and you don’t have to use toxic chemo and radiation to treat it. All I know is that we need to learn more about natural ways of cancer treatment and prevention, the more pets will be able to live healthy, long and happy lives.

We need to collect more funds to conduct more independent studies that are not under the control of the drug companies that want to sell us drugs. We need to learn how to prevent and treat cancer naturally.

Sincerely Yours,

Karen Brady, 

Toronto, ON, Canada

_______________

Karen and Indiana’s story that took place in September 2011 is  a real wake up call. The  sooner we do more research the sooner we will be able to use more natural and gentler cancer treatments. Indiana has been taking natural preparation  that appear to be effective and as you can see exceed the conventional veterinary expectations.  I believe that we  can do better than chemo and radiation but need to do more research drug companies are unlikely to conduct research of inexpensive natural treatment methods.

We need your help.  Please join us on October 15, 2011 at the launch of Healing Foundation to raise funds for independent cancer research. 

With gratitude,

Dr. Peter Dobias

Purchase your tickets here. 

The note said: “Peter,  watch this video!”   So I did  and I can’t  resist  to share this  incredible story with you.  Be prepared and have tissue ready.

First, I was rather  upset over her quite rude comment. Her ignorance and lack of tact amazed me. Then I started to feel sorry for her because I knew that she was missing out on one of the most amazing gifts that humans ever got.  The miracle of dogs.

Just yesterday, I came across this amazing documentary and  remembered Cathleen’s comments. I decided to send her the link and also write this blog.

This documentary shows that dogs are truly unique and they have evolved along side humans like no other species on this planet.  Some scientist say that if there were no dogs,  humans would be still hunters and gatherers and the evolution of our  civilization  would be halted to a standstill.

Recent research shows that dogs, despite their similarity to wolves,  are very different in the way they understand humans. They are able to read our face and emotions, they are compassionate and willing to risk their lives for us which no other animal would do. Dogs can learn up to 300 words and even comprehend a picture of an object and then select the same from a pile  on the floor. Dogs are  the only species that can respond to pointing. I took this completely for granted and didn’t know that even chimpanzees couldn’t do this.

This documentary also shows, how dogs were selected and domesticated thanks to the dedication and 50 year long experiment of  a Russian scientist in Siberia.

You will also see  how dogs can  help us gain a unique insight into some of the most challenging diseases in humans and possibly  even help in finding a cancer cure.

I have been saying this for a while but this film only confirms that dogs are a true gift to humans and without a doubt the very very best friends. I hope you enjoy this 55 minute video and share it with others.

An if you ever have someone to yell at you in the park to get your dog a leash or tell you that they don’t like dogs, just tell them  how much they are missing out on. They certainly  deserve our respect, care and love because they have been selflessly “serving” us for thousands of years.

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PART 6

“I started feeding raw to my 2 dogs 10 years ago. One a 7 year old basset had just quit eating. We could find nothing wrong with her other than she would not eat. At the same time our then 8 year old blue heeler/shepard cross had become extremely aggressive and we were thinking we would be putting both dogs down. Thankfully a friend of a friend suggested we try a raw diet.

At that point we were willing to try anything. Our basset immediately started eating again and slowly put weight back on. Our other dog took to the food right away, though her transformation was a little slower. After only 2 months, there were huge differences in both dogs. The basset was eating,energetic and just happy, The heelerX had calmed down considerably and was no longer acting in an aggressive manner, as she was no longer being poisoned by her food. In the end we had another 7 years with both dogs.

At the ages of 14 (basset) and 15 (heelerX) we said goodbye. Never an easy thing to do, but it was easier knowing we had been able to double the years they spent with us, and they were good years. We now have 4 other mixed breed dogs,  and we feed all of them a raw, natural diet!

Lisa Snyders

If you have a raw dog food story to share, send it to us at contact@peterdobias.com . We would love to hear from you.

Lets look at the cow – a herbivore. It has three fore stomachs and one stomach to digest and ferment plant material, grain and fiber. A horse represents a slight variation of this design. For a horse it would be very hard to run fast with a big fore stomach full of food. Instead, horses have a large colon that also digests and ferments plant material and fiber.

The digestive tract of carnivores is very different. It is shorter, equipped with a smaller but stronger stomach and relatively short intestines. The digestive glands of the stomach and especially pancreas are larger and produce large amounts of protein digestive enzymes. Carnivores do not have the ability to process fiber through fermentation as well as herbivores.

When dogs eat large amounts of fiber, grain and complex carbohydrates, they can’t digest these properly. This makes their feces large with strong odor. The feces from a processed food fed dog is three times larger and if you can’t see it you can definitely smell it.

The above is nature’s clear and strong message. Feed a diet that is species appropriate.

As a veterinarian , I see the consequences of feeding processed, carbohydrate rich foods every day. Obesity, dental problems, premature aging, arthritis, kidney and liver problems, digestive issues and allergies.

How do I know? Often these problems completely disappear or at least improve after feeding the right food.

A story of Randy and Dinara

I met Randy 7 years ago, on the day I adopted 8 week old Skai and he adopted Dinara. We chatted briefly, shared our excitement of our new family members and agreed that every once in a while, we would meet for a walk.

As Dinara and Skai grew, I started seeing the difference. Her coat was duller, not as well colored. Her bones were slighter, her feet were not as strong and the ligaments appeared loose. Skai was fed raw  and Dinara was fed processed food and it was starting  to show. I tried talking to Randy gently, several times but he chose to turn a blind eye to the clear differences. “Her food must be good. It was recommended by a vet,” he replied.

I soon realized that I was not the person to convince Randy. It is never a good idea to give a friend unsolicited advice even though it is well meant.I put the issue aside and hoped for the best.

Three years later, Randy called me victoriously. “Peter, guess what? I talked to a lady at the local magazine store and she told me that raw food  is great for dogs and I have decided to go for it. I see the difference between Skai and Dinara. Skai looks so much better.”

For a moment , I felt like saying: “But I have been trying to tell you for 3 years!” However, I kept quiet.

Since then, Randy has been feeding Dinara fresh food and she is doing well. However, her bone and joint development will never be as strong as if she had started early.

Now I have another challenge; how to convince Randy that natural food is simple, however the main principles have to be followed to get good results.

I secretly hope that the magazine lady to talk to a vet  experienced with natural and raw diet feeding…

The truth is that your  animal friends  can’t  have a  good life without you   being healthy.

That  is  why this blog very much belongs on the holistic animal healing blog.  So many animals  lose their  humans    to cancer and here is  what you  can  do to prevent it.

With gratitude,

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.

2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to  10 times in a person’s lifetime.

3. When the person’s immune system is strong the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.

4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, but also to environmental, food and lifestyle factors.

5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing the diet to eat more adequately and healthy, (4-5 times/day) and by including supplements, it will strengthen the immune system.

6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.

7.Radiation, while destroying cancer cells,  but also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.

9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.

11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

*CANCER CELLS FEED ON:

a. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc . These are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. A better alternative is Bragg’s aminos or sea salt.

b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk, cancer cells are being starved.

c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little other meat, like chicken. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.

d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruit helps put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to

cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at

temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C)..

e. Avoid coffee and black tea which have high caffeine.  Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer fighting properties. Water, it is best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.

12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines becomes putrefied and leads to more toxic buildup.

13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body’s killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.

14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Florescence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body’s own killer cells to destroy cancer cells.. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body’s

normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.

16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

For more on cancer  prevention, read here…

I simply do not like infusing my brain  with the negativity of morning news and prefer  to start my day on a good note.

I sometimes  spend 5 – 10 minutes waking up, reading my friends’  posts on Facebook which is a great  antidote to the  stale and entrenched negativity of TV news.

This morning,   I  found a YouTube video on my niece’s  site.  It shows a Jack Russell  that  was taught to do dozens  of  house  chores. What a dream! Our dogs doing our housework!  I hope that you will laugh as  loud and hard  as  I  did.  From making coffee to putting away laundry,  closing  cabinets and  undressing the owner,  this little dog  is  obviously  passionate about  his job.

What  is the message in this video?

Don’t  forget  to have fun with your dog,  put him or  her to work because dogs love it.

If passion is missing , you may think of  and plan a gradual shift towards something that rocks  your heart and warms your soul. I know it is not easy to change our habits but it is definitely worth it.  That is one of the secrets of health and  longevity for you and your animal friend.

Have  fun watching!

What would it be? Would you work 12 hour days or spend hours in traffic, watching TV or shopping for things that you don’t need?

I invite you to close your eyes and imagine  what would your next  hour, next day or month look  like. Where are you, what are you doing, who are you with?

When I sold my veterinary clinic, people thought it was crazy.  Everyone around me was shocked and asked why I made such a sudden decision.

The answer is simple, I listened to the advice of my dog, Skai

For years, he reluctantly followed me to clinic door hoping that I would change my  mind, turn around and play in the park instead. The truth was I had no time for play.  I was burned out and felt like I was failing. I wanted to teach people how to keep their pets healthy and give them a good life and I could not find balance in my own life.

My dream was  to reach more people, write, teach and engage in a community of likeminded  people with desire to learn more about holistic care, disease prevention and how to save on vet bills.   The problem was, I had no time.

One day, at then end of my 12 hour work shift,  I turned to Skai lying  under my desk and thought, “What  would you, my  dear  friend, want me to do if  anything was possible?

I closed my eyes and floated away into another world.  There I was, inside of  a pitch black box.  I felt the fear and panic of not being able to find the door, trying to push the walls away as they were closing in on me.  Suddenly the box collapsed and I was standing at the top of a huge waterfall.  I was frozen with fear of falling into the depths below.

It felt like I  stood there forever and finally rolled over the edge  – giving up control. Splaaaashhhhh!  I felt the cool water surrounding my body and trying to swim up to  gasp for air.  When I reached the surface and opened my eyes, I could only see light and the blue horizon.  I felt so good.

“Peter,  our computer system is down, can you come and look at  it and the washing machine is leaking, Peter,  there is someone calling with an emergency,  Peter,  can you sign this  check,  Peter,  you have someone holding on the other line..  Peter! Peter! Peter!….”

I was clearly back in my box.

A few months later

My partner Dean and I decided to go for a brief holiday to Maui. It was the first time we were able to take Skai along to Hawaii as they had cancelled the Rabies quarantine and dogs were now allowed.

It was one of the best moments of my life -  running with  Skai on the beach.

Near the end of our trip,  we decided to drive to Hana, a  remote village on the North East end of Maui.  We hiked through a very dense and lush bamboo forest until we reached a magnificent waterfall.  I stood there at the bottom of waterfall with my arms spread, gasping for air  as water rushed over my face.  I   didn’t even notice that Dean took a picture.

The next day, we boarded a Vancouver bound plane.  I opened my laptop and started to browse through our pictures.  There I was standing in the waterfall with Skai  in the forefront, a big smile on his face…

Suddenly, it all connected,  my moment in the clinic, the black  box,  the waterfall, the plunge… and the feeling of freedom ..

I turned to Dean and said:  “ I am selling the clinic.”

2 years later:

I never imagined my life could be so good.  I have opened a small housecall practice in Vancouver and have as many clients as I wish.  I have almost  finished my book on natural food,  I write blogs  and articles and love being part of the fast growing community of holistically oriented animal lovers.

My new company, Dr. Dobias’ Healing Solutions  will be launching an all natural animal supplement  line in a few months.  I also  find enough time to take Skai back to Maui and  run and play with  him on a wild empty stretch of  our favorite beach.

Yes, there is life and challenges to deal with but every day I feel that I am heading in the right direction and feel grateful for the simple gifts of life.

Now when you have  read this story, I ask you to go back to the original question.

What would your animal friend want you to do? Close your eyes, imagine and ay the answer out loud.

Congratulations, you have just  accessed your own subconscious  desire of the life you would love to live.   Do not to throw this opportunity for change away.  Go for it.  Make it happen.  Just don’t forget to take your animal friend along…

Dr. Peter Dobias