Healthy Immune System

Another good read is the online housepetmagazine.com It is packed with good information. This was my favorite read by: Dr. Shawn Messonnier, DVM "Maintaining a Healthy Immune System"

While supplements can be used in times of illness, maintaining a healthy immune system is important in decreasing the incidence and severity of disease. Follow the following tips to keep your pet as healthy as possible:

1. Feed the most natural diet possible. Learn to read a pet food label and avoid foods with chemical preservatives (BHT, BHA, ethoxyquin) and animal and plant by-products that can damage a pet's immune system and do not help maintain health as much as foods with natural preservatives and no by-products. When possible, prepare and feed a homemade diet (using on of the recipes in The Natural Health Bible for Dogs & Cats) to ensure that your pet is eating the healthiest food possible.

2. Minimize vaccines. Most pets do not need annual "shots." A simple blood test called a titer test can determine which vaccines you pet needs.

3. Minimize chemicals. I prefer not to use chemical flea prevention products unless absolutely needed. Monthly heartworm medication is preferred over the 6 month injectable heartworm preventive.

4. Administer whole food vitamin and mineral supplements, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids to maintain a healthy body.

5. Administer choline supplementation to prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease (cognitive disorder) in dogs and cats 10 years of age and older."