Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (46 page)

My path in searching for other ways of healing started, and continued, precisely because I came to see the limitations of this approach. Yes, the drug could stop the symptoms—for a while. But it often did not seem to really cure the patient. They would still not feel really well or would have fewer, but chronic, symptoms, sometimes later developing other problems as bad or worse than the first ones.

Another characteristic of allopathic medicine is the technique of looking at the patient “in pieces.” Take Benny, for example. Benny was a cute little fox terrier with an excitable nature. When he had his first seizure, it was thought he may have been poisoned. When they recurred, he was put on an anti-epileptic drug. This did make the seizures go away, but Benny spent more time lying about and sleeping. As the months went by, he began losing hair in patches and getting an oily feel to his coat. Another diagnosis was made, of “hypothyroidism,” meaning that his thyroid gland was underactive. He began to take a drug that replaced what was not being produced, and Benny did become perkier and his coat got somewhat better. But now he was on two drugs—the anti-epileptic drug and the thyroid hormone—and he was expected to stay on these the rest of his life.

Things went along fairly well for a couple of years, until he started having trouble with the stairs. Instead of a bouncy little guy, he had to come up the stairs slowly and carefully. He was clearly stiff. Further evaluation with x-rays resulted in the diagnosis of “spondylitis,” meaning, basically, an arthritis-like condition of the spinal vertebrae. So he went on an anti-inflammatory drug and a painkiller. Now he was on four drugs, and though Nancy, Benny’s person, did not exactly ask her veterinarian about the expected outcome, it was assumed he would be on these four drugs the rest of his life.

This little story brings out two points. One is that these health problems were being dealt with one by one, as if they were not connected to each other. After all, how could a problem with his brain (seizures) have anything to do with the thyroid gland? How could being hypothyroid make him have arthritis of his spine? I think it fair to say that most veterinarians would tell their client that these were “unrelated problems.”

This is an example of seeing the patient in fragments. It is part of allopathic medicine to have this view. It makes dealing with things easier if you can just handle them one at a time.

T
HE
H
OLISTIC
P
ERSPECTIVE

The holistic view differs with both these assumptions. It is understood that a succession of health problems are connected to each other. Why? Because only
one
individual is affected by these symptoms. The assumption is made that the animal is one individual intimately connected at all levels and, as with any complicated process, if one aspect is out of balance, this can throw off another area that is seemingly unrelated. So in Benny’s case here’s how I see it: The health problem that began as a seizure was an expression of a deeper disorder that was not cured by using a sleepy drug that made his brain run slower. With time, another expression of this disorder showed itself—the thyroid problem—which was also not cured by using a replacement drug. It did not fix the thyroid, just provided a synthetic form of the natural hormone. That he developed arthritis in some form was a further development of this same trouble.

The seizures, the underactive thyroid, the patchy hair loss and greasy coat, and the arthritis of the spine
are all the same disease
from beginning to end
. The holistic perspective will not divide these up into different diagnostic categories separate from each other. This becomes even clearer if instead of “holistic” we spell it “wholistic.”

“So,” you say, “my vet is holistic, yet gives me a diagnosis for each health problem, just like you describe.” Yes, this is common. Many veterinarians who are holistic in their perspective will still talk this way because they think you, as the client, are expecting this kind of language. Nonetheless, the holistic practitioner will understand the connection between these conditions in the linked way we are discussing here. That this is significant will be made clearer when we talk about holistic therapies.

Earlier we talked about how in the allopathic perspective, symptoms were to be
countered
with treatment. Holistic medicine is different here as well. Most practitioners with a holistic perspective, including myself, take the view that
symptoms represent the action
of the individual’s life force
. In creating symptoms, the life force is doing its best to throw off the disturbance through, say, diarrhea, vomiting, coughing, sneezing, pus formation, and the like. Accordingly, we as practitioners try to work
with
the action of the symptoms, gently helping the body in its attempt to restore harmony. In other words, we do not attempt to suppress the symptom, but rather to help the body complete what it is trying to do. We also consider emotional and mental factors in health, carefully observing fluctuations at these levels and often advising changes that will promote greater internal harmony.

We are not denying the importance of physical factors. Certainly there are virulent microorganisms and environmental assaults of all kinds to consider. But it is important to realize that individuals who are exposed equally to these factors
vary tremendously in
their resistance
. Have you ever noticed, for example, how there can be several animals in the same household, all on the same diet and exposed to the same environment, yet one of them seems to have all the fleas or to always pick up every infectious disease that comes along? What we are acknowledging with the holistic perspective is that the strength of the defense mechanism is the most important factor in susceptibility to disease of any sort. By defense mechanism, I mean not just the physical responses described by immunologists, but also the state of the total individual, encompassing mental and emotional qualities, as well as the subtle fields of energy of the life force.

Let me recap it like this: The individual animal is a whole organism, not parts patched together. When healthy and balanced, everything moves along smoothly and there are no symptoms. However, when injured or exposed to an infectious organism, the
whole patient
responds, and this response includes the production of symptoms. These symptoms (even inflammation or pain) are
expressions of the healing process the body is going through.

A C
ONTRASTING
E
XAMPLE

Let’s use an example that will make the difference between the two medical perspectives more clear. Imagine, if you will, that you cut your arm and it bled for a while. Don’t you fully expect the wound to heal? Don’t you also know that the healing will take a while? The usual stages are 1) bleeding, 2) clotting, 3) the wound contracting, 4) a scab forming, 5) new skin growing in under the scab, 6) the scab coming off, 7) fresh, more fragile, healed skin underneath, and 8) the new skin becoming tougher, until it is like your other skin. Typically, this whole process will take a number of days, possibly a couple of weeks. Isn’t it obvious that all of these stages are necessary for healing to occur?

Now consider this alternative. You start with the same cut but now take a drug that in a few short hours results in the wound becoming completely healed just like new. Possible? No, of course not. Yes, there are drugs that stop bleeding, take away pain, and prevent infection, but to truly heal, the tissues still have to go through all the healing stages. If the wound is interfered with very much, like using antibiotic ointments, picking off the scab, taking pain killers—it will actually take longer to heal, as these interventions work against the natural healing process.

Realize that we are talking about the healing of a fresh wound in a (presumably) healthy individual. Compare this now to a more chronic condition. Let’s say your dog has arthritis in his rear legs, and he is given a prescription that reduces inflammation and pain. Amazingly,
in just a few hours
, he is markedly improved—running around like a puppy again. Wouldn’t most people tell their friends about the wonderful cure? But think about it. Arthritis is a much slower and more gradual process than a wound. It comes on over months, maybe years, and there is considerable change in the body—thickening of tissues around joints, change in the joint fluid, even distortion of the cartilage and bones. Is it even possible for something like this to heal in a few hours? Or even in the two weeks it takes a wound to heal? Of course not. It takes considerably longer for arthritis like this to naturally heal to as close to normal as possible—literally months, maybe a year.

So what is happening with this fast response brought on by the drug that seems so miraculous? The drug is suppressing the symptoms that the body is producing in its attempts to heal the condition. It is an artificial effect. By blocking the process, it looks like everything is better,
but nothing has been
healed
. We have come to expect this kind of rapid response as one of the miracles of modern allopathic medicine, and it does seem a miracle. The problem is that by blocking symptoms, yet not providing a way for the condition to be healed, the result is a superficial effect that allows the deeper disease to progress over time. This is why you may have had the experience of your
pet getting sicker over time rather than better.

Does this perspective seem novel to you? You may be wondering, “Did you just make all this up?” Actually, science has come up with many ideas that now support this approach.

SUPPORT FROM MODERN PHYSICS

Interestingly, developments in modern physics have offered support for the holistic and vitalist perspectives. When the materialist doctrine became the prevailing view, physicists held the now outdated Newtonian idea that the world is ultimately composed of minute particles, discrete “basic building blocks” of matter, such as electrons, photons, and neutrons. Yet, as modern physicists have searched for increasingly smaller particles in hopes of finding The One Basic Building Block from which the rest are formed, they have not found it. Instead, they arrived at a wholly different view. Matter is not really so solid. In fact, according to Fritjof Capra in
The Tao of Physics
, “Particles are merely local condensations of the field; concentrations of energy which come and go, thereby losing their individual character and dissolving into the underlying field.” To put it differently, it is an illusion to try to analyze things as though they were separate entities or parts, for all phenomena are manifestations of a whole field of energy that underlies its manifestation.

One of the important implications of this fundamental breakthrough of understanding in physics is that the fragmented, specialized, particulate approach to knowledge that typifies most of science (including medicine) is erroneous at its very root. We must learn to see problems in relation to the whole and not become lost in the divisions of our artificial labels and definitions.

Evolving into this new way of perceiving is not easy. It has taken me years to get where I am now. And I still feel like a beginner in many ways. But I do think a holistic approach is essential if we really want to aim for optimal health and well-being for both ourselves and our animal companions, and I do believe that it is the movement toward holistic therapies that will provide the answer for our most troublesome diseases.

HOW TO PUT THIS INTO PRACTICE

Let’s say that this theory makes good sense to you. But your next thought may be, “How can this help my sick pet?”

With many simple conditions, all that is really needed to help an animal get well is to provide a supportive environment, some commonsense care, and a little time. Nature does the job, either with us or in spite of us. But if recurrent or chronic disease or weakness afflicts your animal, a return to health will most likely require major lifestyle changes, as well as specific therapeutic measures, alternative methods to the usual approach.
In this approach we will consider the whole animal.

Start with the diet. Is it fresh and natural, or is it highly processed and of inferior quality? Will it support health? Next, consider the environment. Is it peaceful and wholesome or stressful and polluted? Is there adequate sunlight, fresh air, and uncontaminated water? Does the animal have a comfortable, secure, and quiet place to rest? Is the sanitation good? Does the animal receive regular and proper grooming and exercise, or is it unkempt and sedentary?

Now take a look at relationships. Does the animal have plenty of friendly and happy companionship, either with people or with other animals? Or is it often neglected, bored, and frustrated? Are your mental attitudes toward its problem supportive and positive? Or do you broadcast anxiety, worry, and fear? How is it expected to behave? Is it made to be a guard dog, for instance, when its personality rebels at this task? Is there any animal or person in its environment who threatens its well-being or wishes it harm? Did the animal lose someone or something dear to it when the problem began?

Granted, it’s not always easy to unravel the problem or to change some circumstances. Still, it helps if you begin to think this way. Rather than focusing your thinking on just physical causes, consider
all
the influences—physical, psychological, environmental—that impact your animal.

If in doubt, start with the natural feeding program outlined earlier, make sure your pet gets regular affection, exercise, and grooming, and then see what problems, if any, remain. If a wholesome physical and emotional environment is not enough to restore it to health, then the problem may be more entrenched, involving an imbalance at a deep level. In that case there are several drugless, holistic therapies that can help to rebalance the body’s energies and effectively stimulate healing. Remember, this is the approach we want to use.