Winter Wellness for Dogs

Hi, this is Rita Hogan, and welcome to the Dogs Are Individuals podcast. I'm a clinical canine herbalist, and I've been practicing for over 20 years. This podcast is all about your dog through an herbal lens. So let's get to it and dive right in.

Hi, everyone. We are here today to talk about winter. And it is about, I would say the middle of January right now, January 22nd, while I'm recording this. And we're in knee deep in winter, and it's important to look at certain aspects of winter care for ourselves and our dogs. So we're going to talk about that today. But first, I do want to thank my sponsor, Adored Beast Apothecary, for taking care of us here on the podcast, allowing us to have this wonderful information. Adored Beast Apothecary is a wonderful, wonderful herbal and homeopathic company that also provides nutraceuticals. You can see them@adoredbeast.com and they have provided us with a 15% off coupon. And it's all Canadian capitals and all one word. Herbs rock. Because they do, right? They. Herbs rock. Okay, so let's get into it. Winter. What do you do in winter? Why should you care about winter? Winter starts at the winter solstice, and that's around December 21st. And winter's energy moves into the kidneys and down towards the bladder. And the kidneys rule the wintertime. And whatever rules the kidneys also is associated with the musculoskeletal system. So you're going to see dogs that have a lot of issues with movement in the wintertime. UTIs, bladder infections, having a hard time regulating their urine output or starting to leak in the wintertime. These things, not that they're normal, but they're normal for this season, so you need to keep an eye out for them. And according to traditional Chinese medicine, the time of the kidney and bladder is about 3:00pm to 7:00pm okay, 3:00pm to 7:00pm and make sure that you're making up for daylight savings time. You want to go with that with standard time. Okay. Standard time. I like to really start out the season with a chiropractic adjustment. And it's not too late. It really helps make sure that your dog's energy is flowing. We get a lot of stagnancy in the winter things. You know, we're not moving like we should. A lot of injuries in the wintertime, and energy is flowing through the body and the spine needs to be aligned as much as it can be. So again, issues of winter. We've got incontinence Right. We've got incontinence, incontinence, difficulty laying down, getting back up again, lots of groaning. That's kind of the sound of the wintertime for dogs. Back pain, definitely groaning associated with the kidney, I want to be clear about that. And dogs can get bladder infections like dark discharges from the ears. The kidneys open up to the ear. So have everything on hand that you need for an ear infection. Right. Just be prepared. And then again, we have bone weakness. A lot of osteosarcomas are diagnosed in the wintertime. Some dogs can drool excessively anytime. Like you look at, through the body, look like, look at dampness in the wintertime, excess fluids pouring out. And then there's arthritis, diarrhea, and with stagnancy comes constipation. The diet should really be more warming in the winter. So a lot of dogs that are warm can tolerate more warming proteins, especially you know, during this wintertime when it's cool and then we, you know, we move into spring, which we'll deal with later on the podcast. But yeah, you can feed your dog warmer proteins and see how they tolerate it. And depending on how old your dog is, you know, some dogs carry a little too much heat when they get older. And so I think feeding those heating proteins can be very individual. So check your dog and how they're feeling if you do add more warming proteins into their diet. Now, dogs that are cool to cold, we need extra warmth, you know, lamb and venison, wild salmon. And while I'm on the topic of salmon, you need to be really careful where you are sourcing your salmon and what kind of salmon you're feeding your dogs because there is a lot of farmed salmon out there and it is fatty and it is not good. They're very stressed out animals when they're grown in captivity. So you really want to make sure that your fish is wild, wild caught. And you'll see like eco sees and different type of sustainability, kind of like made up marketing ploys for farm salmon. So just be careful out there. Read your labels. Read your labels. Very important. Reading labels is one of the best things that you can do for your animal and for yourself to keep things out of your body that you do not want, that you might just ordinarily just glance at it. And I mean, I know that my partner brought in some salmon that she loves and there it is, sodium nitrate in there and then another salmon that she really loved from her hometown in Minnesota and it's farmed. So read labels. Read labels. Read labels. So I do want to make a note about lamb. In my opinion, lamb should remain in the wintertime unless you are using a specific food regimen to balance, like to balance out an imbalance. So like to cure an imbalance, it is very, very, very warming. It's extremely warming protein and can contribute to inflammation and an overabundance of heat in the body. It's wonderful for after surgeries, convalescence hospice. Especially good for dogs that are cold or have false heat. Very good. So fish like mackerel are great for dogs that get cold easily, but not for dogs with any type of UTI issues that are common in the wintertime because mackerel is quite damp. I would use a substitute for that for sure, like whitefish or something less fatty if your dog has UTI issues. So for those of you that add like beans into your diet, in your dog's diet or your diet, make sure that they're soaked overnight and rinsed. Lentils can be fed along with azuki beans in the winter. They are good for the kidney. And we're talking about very small amounts, very small amounts, like a teaspoon for a small dog, a tablespoon for a medium dog, maybe 2 tablespoons for a large dog. So very small amount of beans or legumes, veggies for the wintertime. Your root vegetables are excellent. Squash, pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, beans, beet, cabbage, cauliflower, parsnips, brussels sprouts, broccoli. You can all exchange those in the winter time. Just keep rotating, rotating, rotating. If you're feeding potato, make sure it's organic. And I love those heritage potatoes that are blue that add those type of phytonutrients, those type of phytonutrients to the diet. Fruits, apples, organic apples, cranberries. Sometimes you can get some frozen blueberries in there, but I like to keep my blueberries in season. But you can feed them all year round if you feed them in moderation. And, you know, that goes for everything, you know, feed in moderation. Don't feed the same thing every single day if you can help it, unless your dog's on a specific diet. Okay, so even with commercial feeding, you can get variety. You know, don't buy a ton of one type of food again, unless your dog is on a specific diet to address something. Try to find things that you can rotate, rotate, rotate for variety. I make meatloaves for my dogs and you can get a bit creative. Dr. Judy Morgan has some great recipes in her books. The BK Pets have come out with the modern Pet Parent Handbook. They have some great different varieties and ideas in that book. Get your copy. They just. They just published that book. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I'm gonna be going out on the road with them and speaking on their book tour, so I'm looking forward to that. With the meatloaf, I don't wholly cook it. I brown it. And it's nice to add dried herbs to the loaf, too. Or, you know, you can make crock pot meals. Make sure you're adding digestive enzymes to all cooked food. But it's nice to add herbs to those crock pot meals and cook them nice and slowly. I would avoid things like white rice. And you could do organic brown rice. Very small amounts. Again, very small amounts. If your dog has specific kidney issues, that brown rice has an affinity towards the kidney. It's pretty much the only time of year that I would advise giving brown rice to your dog. Everything in moderation. Remember, if you are an oat giver to your dog, make sure that they are organic because. And even if you see that little signal that says non gmo, you know, it's really unfortunate that we have to deal with GMOs. I wish they were gone and I wish glyphosate was not on this planet. But I can tell you oats are saturated in glyphosate. When most people do testing on conventional oats, it is through the roof. And if you get your oats from someone that's growing them organically, they don't need to be certified organic. But just make sure you're asking questions of the companies that you get oats from, and if they don't know, then don't use them. That's my advice to you there. Okay. So I think that in the wintertime, herbs can make a real difference. And I use a lot of tinctures during the winter where, when I can't get fresh herbs, I use dried herbs when they are viable from, like, someone. Well, my own dried herbs or companies like Mountain Rose Herbs or Oshala Farms. I actually am working this year to start carrying a bunch of dried herbs. I'm working with Oshala Farms and a couple other suppliers to get good, reliable, fresh, viable herbs here at Canine Herbalists. So look forward to that. So a couple of herbs that I love, and this one you can grow in your window in the wintertime, and it has affinity towards the kidneys. It's parsley. Parsley tea makes an excellent kind of gravy over winter. Meatloaf. It Is a nice gravy for your. You can mix it with mushrooms, different types of mushrooms. Make a kind of like, you know, not a thickened gravy, but a liquid gravy. You can even cook those mushrooms down. Use one of those hand mixers. The little like, I don't know, they're tall and you squeeze them and they have this nasty little blade that goes around and you can kind of puree anything. Stick mixer I think they're called. Anyways, take that and grind up those mushrooms. It will thicken the water. And you can use mushrooms and parsley to pour over your, your dog's food in the wintertime. Love, love, love that. Then you can use nettles, nettle infusions, nettle tincture. You know, for nettle tincture, it's a small amount. It's, you know, a couple of drops. So if you have a dog under 5 pounds, it's one drop. You know, if you have a dog 10 to 15 pounds or from 5 to 10 pounds, it can be one to two drops. From, you know, 10 to 25 pounds, three to four drops. And then, you know, you just kind of go up there every £20 or so and you can do that and split those drops up, divide them in two during the day, put them in your dog's food if you're just using support. Or you can make a tea out of dried nettles. Love that. You can add it to your gravy if you want. Another herb that I use in wintertime is astralagus. It is a good kidney tonic. It supports the immune system. I use tincture, but you can also use dried astragus root. Goldenrod is good for the kidneys. Gotu kola plant. Holy basil, Ashwagandha, elderberry, which is sambucus nigra or sambucus candidensis. Really great for late wintertime. Late winter. Immune tonic using the dried berries. Or you can purchase that already made, but you can take like 12 ounces of water to like 1 ounce of dried berries and then cook that down on simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes. And about, I would say an eighth of a cup for every 20 pounds of body weight. And then one specific flower essence. I don't wanna overload you with information, but one specific flower essence that I like for wintertime is olive. The Bach, or some people call it batch olive. It doesn't need to be from Bach. Any type of olive flower essence is wonderful for supporting the kidneys, adrenals and anxiety. I like to mix it with pine Also, it's like crabapple is another good one in the wintertime. Marshmallow flower essence. Nettle flower essence. Love nettle flower essence for so many things. But definitely here in the wintertime. You want to be on the lookout for too much tension in the wintertime. So tension can cause CCL tears dryness in the wintertime. You want to make sure that your dogs are getting enough fluids, they're getting support. If you feel that your dog is really dry, there's a wonderful phytoembryonic therapy called Almond. I carry that in my shop, Almond. It's excellent for dryness. It helps avoid dogs, avoid CCL tears when there is too much tension and dryness. I also like black currant phytoembryonic therapy. Super high in vitamin C and 10 drops of black currant has 1000mg of bioavailable vitamin C. You just want to avoid black currant phytoembryonic therapy when dogs like. I avoid it in dogs that can't handle anything stimulating. So like seizure dogs doesn't mean it'll give your dog a seizure. But I definitely like to avoid stimulants with seizure dogs in general. I think that is about, you know it for winter time. If you have any questions, you can definitely reach us, you know, here at the podcast. Go to Canine Herbalist and go down to the podcast contact and I can answer your questions here on the podcast. That's what that email is for. It is not for a consultation. You can definitely reach out to me via the website for a consultation, but not through the podcast contact. I would appreciate that. Keeping it simple, keeping it organized, Keeping it organized. I do want to mention that my canine herbalism level one course is coming out March 1st. What does that mean? What does that mean? That means that content is going to become available on March 1st and it's a drip style course. You can work at your own pace. I am not teaching it live. Drip style means that when you sign up and when March 1st comes around, you can find modules in the course that you can work on. And then a new module will drop probably every two to four weeks, depending on my schedule. And so it's kind of like watching TV where you have to wait for the new episode, but there'll be, you know, there's enough in the module to keep you busy. The first. Well, on March 1st there's going to be probably two to three modules available and then again they will trickle in from there. That is called a drip course. And again it is A work at your own pace. So once I drip all the content in, all of the content will be there. You have lifetime access to the course. It is definitely my lifetime. I always hear people say lifetime access. Whose lifetime? It's my lifetime. My lifetime access. Hopefully I will be here a long time. At least. I would like probably another 40 years. That would be nice. I could do it. Got a lot to do on this planet. But you never know when your time is up. Enjoy every moment that you have, for sure. Oh, Rita, you're talking, you know, quit talking so down and out. But it's true. We have to let go of our fear of death. It is a natural part of the life cycle. And yeah, I want to live another 40 years for sure. Will I? I don't know. I don't have a crystal ball, but it does. You know, the finite aspect of this life. Right. Really does bring into perspective the need to be present, the need to make the most out of your days, make the most of your time with your animals. You know, again, put down the cell phone when you're with your dogs. You know, put it down when they want attention, when you're playing ball, when you're in the yard, when you're on a walk, put the cell phone down, Be present. Interact with your dog. They love it when you talk to them. Well, Rita, the, you know, my dog doesn't know what I'm saying. Yeah, don't be so sure, you know, don't be so sure. Body language, tone and smell are huge ways of talking without words. So try it on. Try to be present with your dog. Be present to yourself. Be good to yourself. Take time for yourself and eat like your dog. I was listening to a conversation this past week about people who feed their dogs better than they feed themselves. And as much as we want to cheer that on, you know, go dogs. I mean, that's what we're here for. Hello. But we need to eat like our dog, too. We need to eat real food. We need to stop eating processed food. You know, save it for those birthday cakes or wedding cakes or different types of things, you know, that you have once in a while. But make the focus of your meals real, real food. You'd be amazed at how many people, like, literally think that they're eating something foreign. When you put vegetables, real vegetables, yes, carrots and potatoes are vegetables, but that's not all. There is real green vegetables on their plate. They look at you like you are insane. Absolutely insane. And the more vegetables that we can eat as people, the better Our bodies are going to be. Yes, we need to eat energetically. Yes, we need to be mindful of food sensitivities. But vegetables in general change our microbiome. They feed our microbiome. Our microbiome loves a variety of different vegetables, different fruits, different vegetables, different types of foods, whole foods. Our microbiome loves them. And that means that our health will be better. That means that our immune system will be better. Start rotating different mushrooms into your diet. See how you feel over a couple of months. You're going to feel great. Your skin will look great. Make sure you're drinking nice amounts of filtered water. And if you're. You're using reverse osmosis water, make sure you're adding minerals back in. And all of these things that I'm talking about are wonderful ways to spend the winter. To spend the winter using foods to heal ourselves so that in the spring and summer we don't have such a hard time and we can really propel ourselves into spring and winter for complete health. I love that. I'm actually participating in a mast cell activation jumpstart for the year. I'm learning more about mast cells. I'm looking forward to that. I'm taking a herbalism for trauma course this year. I'm really looking forward to that. Herbalism for PTSD and trauma. I know a lot. However, you can always improve. And learning from other herbalists is one of the best things that you can do to get a variety of, kind of. Of teachings, you know, and when I see, you know, when I learn from someone else, if they're teaching me something that doesn't resonate with me, then, you know, I try it on. I kind of consider all of the sides. And then if I want to keep it, I do and give credit to them when I can. And if I don't agree with them, I just let that part go and keep what I need. You know, just because people practice differently doesn't mean that they're wrong. That is for sure. So I encourage you to seek out other herbalists and see how they are teaching, see what they have to say. I am planning on a lot of courses this year, things coming out, and I want to share my teachings with you, but my teachings does not mean that someone else's teachings are incorrect. I recently had a podcast inquiry about this. And you know, dear Rita, this is what you said and this is what someone else said. We're not going to name any names, but, you know, you have to do what resonates with you. What do you feel is right in your gut. Because dogs are individuals, people are individuals, and plants are individuals. And there's a lot of combinations, more combinations than you can ever, ever count. So. And there's a lot of paths to healing. Not just through herbs, through homeopathy, through energy work, through biofeedback, you know, through yoga, qigong, working out. You know, there's so many ways to remove stagnancy and get organ health improved. And that's the name of the game. Elimination and assimilation, organ health, toxicity, those are all things that we need to deal with. And lymphatic stagnation, those are the keys to health. And there's a lot of ways to get there. I do want to say that if you take my canine herbalism level one course, you will not be disappointed. I guarantee my courses. If you don't love it, I'll give you your money back. I really want to get this information out there for those of that you are waiting for. My book. It will be out most likely November, December of this year. So a while from now. It is unfortunate but my publisher said they were running behind and as a first time book author, I must sit and learn my lesson in patience. I am coming out with an oral health course, most likely next month. I'm excited about this one too. It's going to teach you all about your dog's mouth and how to keep your dog's mouth healthy, how to deal with dentals, my opinion on non anesthesia dentistry recipes, product reviews, you're going to love it and that will be at a very affordable price, probably between 50 and $75. Just want to get that information out there and then again this year after I return from Europe, I most likely will be getting out my tick course so I wanted to bring that to you this spring but that did not work out with life in general. But it is coming out this year and then I'm going to have my mushroom training. Hoping all these things will come out by the end of the year. But don't quote me. Working on it. Working on it. Working on it. Okay, that's it for today. Here is news you can use.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Dogs are Individuals. If you enjoyed this episode episode please.

Leave a review in your podcast app.

And don't forget sharing is caring. So if you love Dogs Are Individuals podcast, share it with your friends and.

Family who love dogs. This will help me so much.

And remember as a listener, I appreciate you much. Thanks to Resonant Media, my podcast production team. This podcast is produced by Drake Peterson and edited by Mike Fry. Any questions? Email the show, go to k9herbalist.com, click podcast contact in the menu and then fill out that form and I'll answer any questions here online. Okay, so thank you so much for.

Listening to this episode of Dogs Are.

Individuals Podcast and I'm going to talk.

To you in our next episode.

The content of this show is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for veterinary care. This podcast doesn't constitute a provider patient relationship. As always, talk to your doctor, veterinarian or healthcare provider first before starting anything new.

And that includes herbs.

I'm not a doctor and I don't treat disease or prescribe anything. I'm a traditional herbalist providing herbal support education only. Regarding any products I may suggest the statements made regarding these products have not.

Not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.

The efficacy of these products has not been confirmed by FDA approved research. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. All information presented here on the podcast is not meant as a substitute or alternative to information from your vet. Please consult your veterinary professional about potential, potential interactions or other possible complications before using any product.