Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats

This book is amazing. If you have read my other reviews, pardon the repetitive nature of this one and skip to the bottom.I have a beautiful dog family whom I love very much and have always tried to give them the very best care available. I took the Vet's advice as gospel and never let them have any table scraps, always sticking strictly to the Kirkland brand kibble (as the Dr. ordered) and only treats specifically produced for dogs. I was constantly assured (by numerous vets, as inevitably whenever any injury or illness occurred it was outside of regular business hours and so we were forced to take them to emergency clinics) that this was the way to ensure optimal health and the longest lifespan for my sweet babies.The first time I considered straying from this path was about a year ago when a fellow student gave a presentation on the RAW food diet for dogs. I was very intrigued and looked into it a bit, but was reassured by our primary Vet that it was unnecessary and being an insanely busy student at the time, I accepted his advice and set the idea on the back burner. It wasn't until we decided to breed our oldest daughter (yes, I refer, quite seriously, to my dogs as my children) that I became fully aware of the immense benefits of cooking & preparing meals for your furry loved ones. I wanted to ensure a healthy, smooth, pregnancy & labor and after considerable research, I decided on three books to help me make the switch. "The Holistic Dog Book" by Denise Flaim, "The Whole Pet Diet" by Andi Brown, and this one. From everything I read, Dr. Pitcairn was the way to go but I always think it's good to have a few different perspectives on something so that you can create a plan that is best for you. I have been overwhelmed by these books and I highly recommend purchasing them together as they make great companions for each other."Natural Health for Dogs & Cats" is a large volume, full of pretty much everything you need to know to raise healthy, happy four-legged family members. The book is split into two parts, "Natural Health for Pets" and a "Quick Reference" section. Part One takes you through every aspect of pet health from pregnancy, to birth, to infancy and every stage beyond. This section also contains recipes specifically for each of these life stages as well as a "Healthy Powder" to ensure that your pets are receiving all the proper nutrients in order to live long, healthy lives. Part Two is a reference guide to every scenario you might want to investigate further without reading through the entire text when you are pressed for time. It's basically an A-Z list of different health issues one might encounter with their pets and how to treat them. This was very helpful in determining the best diet to feed our pregnant girl to ensure she had a healthy, successful pregnancy. There are also chapters on how to make the switch, creating a healthy environment, and holistic & alternative remedies for your pets. We have four dogs and we began to make the switch from kibble to food, immediately upon receiving these books in the mail. I have never been happier and they have never been healthier! (They're pretty stoked about the good food too) We began implementing dietary changes only a little over two weeks ago and I have already seen incredible improvements! Their coats have never been so lush, shiny, and soft! And our handsome boy, who has had skin conditions since we rescued him (and we've tried several Vet-recommended treatments, including shots of steroids, to no avail) has started to put on needed weight that we could never attain no matter what we did, and his skin has almost completely cleared up! And I know this is only the beginning of our amazing new journey to a healthy, happy family! I am so grateful to have these excellent resources in my home!If you are looking to make the switch, this is the perfect starting point! And if not, you should reconsider :) When it's all said & done, we are actually spending less money on food and it is so easy to prepare right alongside our own meals, and the reward of truly healthy pups, is beyond anything I could have imagined!

Dr. Pitcairn's New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats (3rd Ed.)With all the great reviews, I found myself purchasing this book. Even though I need more of these types of books like I need a hole in my head, I was still curious. I actually didn't expect to get much out of this book, but my curiosity was mainly for buying for friends and family "pet parents".The first 6 chapters are based on nutrition and diet mainly. These are pretty good and have generally useful information. Personally, I wasn't too fond of the recipes, since they seem rather dependant on the use of several supplements. I prefer to balance as much as possible through whole foods and supplement only as needed and recommended (by our holistic vet) for my huskies' individual concerns. Otherwise, the recipes provide several variations for the meat, vegetable and grain sources. Some of the ingredients used like corn based foods, soy products and some grains are ones I wouldn't use. Yet, this too could be altered. Many of the recipes (for both dogs and cats) contain less than 50% protein...vegetarian recipes, in particular, but also throughout the book. For many dogs, this should be alright (depending on concerns); yet especially with cats, I'd be leery with serving a diet that low in protein. Some awesome recipes included are for kitten and puppy formulas (comparable to "mother's milk") & these will come in handy for orphaned/rejected kittens & puppies or when "mother" can't produce enough milk. Chapter 6, on helping your pet make the switch, gives some useful tips on the transition as well.The rest of part one (chapters 7-15) and part two (Quick Reference), I found to be the most interesting. In particular, I especially liked the information on natural alternatives for common household cleaning products, natural grooming & creating a healthy environment. --This literally inspired me to go out and buy houseplants. There is also useful information for the new pet owner from choosing the right pet to caring for the sick animal and several things in between. The Quick Reference section includes many common ailments and diseases along with treatment options and tips. Other areas include resources for Emergencies/First Aid, Homeopathic remedies (and schedules), normal vital signs (for both dogs and cats) and some recipes for snacks & treats.This is a good bulky, yet informative reference book, but for the newly turning holistic and/or new pet owner "who also desire to home-prepare their pets' foods", I'd also recommend a simpler read like Barker's Grub  Barker's Grub : Easy, Wholesome Home-Cooking for Dogs  and/or Raw Dog Food  Raw Dog Food: Make It Easy for You and Your Dog  to go along with it.

Practical, safe, natural, smart pet care. Do your pet a favor and find out why cancer rates and allergies are sky-high and life expectancies have gone down. Then opt for practices that will reverse those. I can’t say enough about this nook. I wish every animal owner would read it.

This book was first published over 20 years ago and is now revised. This is written from experience in veterinary practice and stands well as a balancer to the raw feeding arguments and wolf feeding ideas. It does reflect a US concern with the degraded nutritional quality of US grown meat etc which means Dr Pitcairn favours cooking to feeding raw but the nutritional information and recipes are good and well tested. I wish I had bought a hard copy rather than e-book as I intend to keep referring to it.

Arrived on time, I haven’t read it all yet but what I have read so far is very interesting.

Book was informative to a degree. I would suggest anyone reading this have a good grounding first. Found the recipes a bit fiddly in this book.

This book is brilliant

exactly as it says