Pet Lovers

[eddyandme]

RE:  HIGH INCIDENCE OF CANCER IN OUR FURBABIES

Some of us have been trying to figure out why so many of our babies are getting cancer!  I have recently found out that the incidence is now 1 in 2 for dogs (I assume this percentage applies to cats, too).  That means there's a 50% chance of your furbaby getting this dreaded disease. 

If you consider we are all from different areas of the country and/or countries.  Yet, cancer has no boundaries.  We all feed our pets differently, e.g., dry food, 'people food', organic food, etc.  Our environments differ:  city dwellers, suburbanites, and those living in the country.  Some live in warm environments, some cold weatherites, some high above sea-level.  Our water supplies vary throughout.  Yet, the rate of cancer in our babies is rising. The common denominator amongst us, aside from the loving and caring of our furry family members, is that we get them vaccinated as recommended, we give them heartworm and flea/tick prevention in various forms, etc.  Question:  Could this preventative medical care be harming them?  I don't know.  But, I want to find out the probable cause(s).  Therefore, I'm requesting that you join this thread for I believe if we all study up on this subject and discuss our findings and conclusions, united, we can at least reduce the incidence of cancer in our furbabies. 

So, PLEASE, will you join me?!?!  Your help and input will be most highly regarded and soooo BENEFICIAL to all!

One book I was recommended was 'The Nature of Animal Healing" by Martin Goldstein.  SeaMaiden referenced a link (sorry don't know how to transfer over) on my Another Question Pet Insurance thread:  Dawniee also said she'd transfer over info she has on another site there.  Tends2Dogs not only referenced the above-mentioned book but also said Jane Dodds has info on this subject.  (Also, prayers for Quincy and Spike were requested on her thread.)

Let's work together!  United We Stand.....

[fthunt]

I feel your concern - some say lawn treatments may - or do - cause cancer in our pets.  I buy that idea by 50% but I also suspect the flea/tick meds are worse due to the fact that it's applied to the animal's body and if it kills bugs - what's it also doing to our cat/dog?  After all it is poison.

(my first Cocker developed cancer - and possibility this dog has some form of it; just hasn't been a big issue yet)

[eddyandme]

@fthunt

Thank you for your reply.  I agree with your thoughts regarding flea/tick - if it kills bugs, what will it do to our furbabies. 

After losing my girl and realizing so many have experienced the same heartbreak, I really would like to find the link.  I'm sorry for the loss of your first, and hope your current furbaby remains healthy. 

If you have further thoughts in this regard, will be grateful for your input.

[athenian]

I found an interesting statistical study about dog breed size and cancer rates.  There seemed to be a correlation between size and incidence.  We all know that humans have bred dogs to incredibly varied in many respects, one of which is size.  Could we have bred dogs to the point that we turned on, or turned off, a gene related to cancer development or defense?

The trouble is there are just now starting to be studies, and they are mostly here in USA, and concentrate on breeds with a higher prevalence.Thank goodness there are more treatments available now.

[NickNack]

I've thought about following Dr. Jean Dodds' vaccine protocol for a long time.  She recommends puppy vaccines, then vaccines at one year and then titers for distemper and parvo every three years.  She also says to get the rabies vaccine as required by law.  You can easily Google her name and find the specifics to this.

Years ago I had a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel develop throat cancer.  I asked my Vet to call her and see if she thought it could be related to too many vaccines.  She did call her, and Dr. Dodds did not think so at the time.  I don't remember why I thought it could be vaccine related.  This was about 20 years ago. 

I think the next time my dog needs vaccines I'll do titers instead.  They used to cost quite a bit more than vaccines.  I guess they still do.  Heartworm is very prevalent in our area, and it's important to give heartworm preventive meds here.  We need to do it year round where I live.

[colliegirls]

Chemicals, pesticides, etc. Ingesting flea and tick killers cannot be good for any animal. Same reasons we get cancer except dogs and cats don't smoke.

[tends2dogs]

---

@colliegirls wrote:

Chemicals, pesticides, etc. Ingesting flea and tick killers cannot be good for any animal. Same reasons we get cancer except dogs and cats don't smoke.

---

@colliegirls  That is a good point about smoking, however, they pick it up secondhand.  Also, the chemicals put on lawns and gardens are so toxic and when you take into consideration they are much closer to the ground than us and they can bring it in on their feet and then lick it!

[tends2dogs]

In the book above that @eddyandme mentioned, Dr. Goldstein feels that cancer in pets is mainly caused because of 3 factors:  genetics, environoment, and vaccines.  This is a great book with a lot of incite.  Two of the chapters are "Taking on Cancer" and "The Dubious Legacy of Vaccines".   It is a really good read and a resource book I have gone to over and over through the years.  It is the guide I am using for complementing the conventional treatment Quincy is on.

@Nicknack I don't believe that titering is much more $ than vaccines anymore.  Finding a vet to do it may be difficult for some.  One other thing that is so dreadful is the fact that they cocktail so many vaccines together when giving them.  Think of the assault on a poor puppy not to mention full grown dogs that are most likely still protected from their original vaccines.  You can request they be done singularly, but that isn't usually how a vet buys them.  It will most likely cost more.  One last thing, Dr. Goldstein feels they give the first vaccines much too early in a puppy's life.  They are still being protected by the mother's antibodies.  I believe he states 6 months of age to begin.  There is a homeopathic answer to vaccines called nosodes.  Jean Dodds has quite a bit of info on that if anyone is interested.

I am so happy that this conversation has started and hope that more will join in with opinions and ideas.  Stepping out of the "norm" takes a bit more effort.  Using natural lawncare and homecare products, better food and water, natural flea repellants, alternate treatments for allergies and diseases,etc is an option that we can control.  I know to some it is easier to slap on the Frontline or give a steroid or not questioning what the vet is prescribing.  We have to be the voice for these little guys.  Afterall, we suffer when they suffer.  We can all benefit from changes.

[NickNack]

@tends2dogs  I'm glad to know that titering doesn't cost much more than vaccines now.  I know that my Vet will do them.  I'll just have to ask for them next time.

[eddyandme]

@colliegirls

I'm having a portion of the lawn fertilized this year - not 'cause I want to, it's at that point of almost no return.  When talking to the guy before fertilizing, he told me that the chemicals were so low they would not hurt the animals (turkeys and squirrels come over and feed all the time); and, because I was concerned for Shadow-Jaden (he also knew my Jade) he said he would stay a distance away from the play yard - the land is on a hill so anything spread a distance away would not back up.

This, as he stated, has had no affect on the wildlife.  And, if you've ever seen a turkey eat they dip their beaks way down into the ground.  So, I'm thinking this is still at a safe level for them.  And, it also made me think they must have a natural immunity against "harmful agents".  Can one deduct, that we should find a way to stimulate our furbabies' immune systems' to equalize those of the wild.  And, do all the vaccines and meds (heartworm/flea) wreak havoc on a pet's natural immune system, e.g., allergies are a result of an overreaction of our immune system? Guess there's many areas to explore. But until very recently haven't thought of these meds as a "poison" which they are.  Got a lot to learn.  Thanx for your input.