Celeste Yarnall Dr. - The Complete Guide to Holistic Cat Care: An Illustrated Handbook

AN ILLUSTRATED HANDBOOK

CELESTE YARNALL, PH.D
AND JEAN HOFVE, D.V.M.

QUARRY
BOOKS
BEVERLY MASSACHUSETTS

Herbs and Supplements Antiaging Protocols Raw-Food Preparation

This book is not intended, nor should it be regarded, as veterinary medical advice. Prior to administering any therapeutic course, please consult a doctor of veterinary medicine or a holistic veterinarian. It is their function to diagnose your cats medical problem and suggest a course of therapy.

Because the authors approach to cat care is alternative by definition, many of the ideas expressed herein have not been investigated nor approved by any regulatory agencies. National, state, and local laws vary regarding the application or use of these therapies. Accordingly, the reader should not substitute them for treatment by a doctor of veterinary medicine, but rather may use them in conjunction with veterinary care. Always discuss alternative approaches with your doctor of veterinary medicine before embarking upon them. An increasing number of veterinarians are using alternative therapies, and you may wish to consult one or more of them regarding the treatments they offer. Ultimately, you are fully responsible for the health of your feline companion.

The authors and the publisher expressly disclaim responsibility for any adverse reactions or effects resulting from the use of information contained in the following pages.

All photographs, including outdoor shots, were taken under controlled circumstances, and no animals were harmed in any way for these photographs. The authors recommend that cats not be allowed outdoors without a cat-safe harness and lead, or in a cat-safe, secure pen, enclosure, or carrier.

TO ROMEO

the dearest of all and a part of me forever

The International Cat Associations Supreme Grand
Champion (Alter) Sonhams Romeo of Celestecats, Platinum
(Lilac) Point Tonkinese, first generation raw food-fed cat

CHAPTER 1:
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CAT

CHAPTER 2:
LIVING HARMONIOUSLY WITH YOUR CAT

CHAPTER 3:
THE DANGERS OF CONVENTIONAL THINKING

CHAPTER 4:
NUTRITION AS PREVENTIVE MEDICINE

CHAPTER 5:
NATURAL REMEDIES

CHAPTER 6:
HANDS-ON HEALING

CHAPTER 7:
OTHER HEALING MODALITIES AND ANTIAGING THERAPIES

CHAPTER 8:
SAYING GOOD-BYE TO THE ONES WE LOVE

CONCLUSION:
The Future of Holistic Cat Care

FOREWORD BY JEAN HOFVE, D.V.M.

Now, people who know me will scratch their heads and ask, Dr. Jean is working with a breeder? I might have asked myself the same thing before I got to know a few folks in the cat fancy and spent some time at cat shows. I applaud Celeste and others who are introducing natural rearing to the worldnot just to elite breedersand showing why its the best thing for every cat, whether in the show ring or on the sofa.

As we began this project, Celeste came up with a terrific theme: antiaging for cats. Antiaging is the fastest-growing segment of human medicine, and the basic principles that apply to people for living a longer, healthier life apply to our animal companions. Theyre quite simple in concept: clean environment, good nutrition, satisfying rest, and adequate exercisein other words, the natural lifestyle we evolved to live. But of course, in the modern world, thats all easier said than done. Even the most remote areas on Earth are no longer pristine, and most of us deal daily with stresses and toxins that make natural an impossibly distant goal.

Yet there are certainly ways to combat the forces that are aging usand our catsprematurely. Wholesome nutrition is the cornerstone, because how can the body heal if it doesnt have the right groceries? You can give the most expensive, cutting-edge drug, or hold an ancient Mongolian fire healing ritual, or use any other technique you like, but without those fundamental groceries, healing will be impossible.

Well talk a lot in this book about groceries: the good, the bad, the ugly, and the eeew-get-outta-here. What passes for complete and balanced nutrition in the global pet food industry is fairly horrifying. No matter where you live, the best diet is one you make yourself, with wholesome ingredients from a local trustworthy source. In this book, well help you do just that, in the best and most healthful way. And dont worry if youre not ready to go whole-hog on our program. Even the smallest step you take on that path will help your cat.

One key topic in this book is alternative veterinary medicine. Well present you with dozens of options for preventing and treating diseasein particular, the degenerative diseases of aging. Its always best, of course, to work with a holistic veterinarian rather than randomly trying this or that new therapy, and fortunately many excellent holistic vets these days will consult with you by phone.

Some of the modalities (therapies) we discuss will seem pretty far out there. Nevertheless, there are holistic vets who are using these treatments and getting good enough results to keep using them.

My conventional colleagues would no doubt remind us that no matter how many success stories there are, they dont add up to scientific evidence. However, despite the current strong bias toward evidence-based medicine, the Institute of Medicine, one of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, carried out an extensive review of mainstream techniquesregular medicines, surgeries, and treatmentsand found that up to 20 percent were ineffective and another 21 percent had insufficient evidence to support their use. In other words, the big arguments against alternative medicine can be applied with devastating results to many well-accepted conventional treatments. There is a great deal of science behind modalities such as acupuncture, herbs, nutritional therapy, chiropractic, and even homeopathy.

Conventional medicine and alternative medicine are not mutually exclusive; there are great potential benefits to be gained by combining them. Our purpose in writing about these alternative modalities is to help create a system of integrative veterinary medicinea system that uses the best of conventional and alternative treatments in tailoring an individualized health program for your cat. Certainly, conventional medicine has its place; if your cat has a broken leg, it would be malpractice to prescribe herbs instead of setting the fracture. However, alternative means of pain control, acceleration of healing, and stress management would complement the conventional care.

One vital therapy is attitudeor perhaps, cattitude. The power of prayer has been scientifically studied and documented, but its counterproductive to spend 99 percent of the time fretting and worrying and 1 percent of the time praying because in most cases, that 99 percent is going to carry the day. Instead, every time we think about our cats, our health, our future, or any other situation, lets make sure that those thoughts are positive. Remember, whatever you think about that you want, you get; and whatever you think about that you