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Home Remedies

There are lots of good reasons to investigate all forms of therapy and treatments from conventional veterinarian medicine, to herbal remedies, to homeopathic veterinarian therapy to chiropractic therapy.
All of these approaches to your shih tzu's health are important and have their place. One should never negate the others. Always, if in doubt, consult your regular veterinarian. I do.
The following represent some of the things I have found to be very effective. I will not include conventional veterinarian medicine here as that is better handled by a vet. I do tend to lean towards herbal remedies whenever possible for several reasons:

  • Reliable information on herbs and their uses is readily available.
  • Herbs are generally inexpensive and easily obtained
  • Herbs are easily added to a dog's diet, and so are easier to administer
  • Herbs are generally the basis for many chemical drugs and often are as effective

Please note that I will be adding to this section . Please check back -- or if there are any topics you would like to see listed, please e-mail me at linda@baloghshih-tzus.com  and suggest them.

Eyes

For irritation and routine cleaning many people use a commercial saline solution but this generally results in the dog's eyes being puffy and stuck shut the next morning. I have also noticed that there seems to be more chance of this treatment resulting in minor corneal abrasions too. I won't use a saline solution in my dogs' eyes.

Boric Acid

If I feel I must flush with something, I use a Boric Acid solution. Boric Acid can be purchased at any drug store, is very inexpensive and highly effective. The mixed solution (about 1tsp. to a pint of sterile water), yields an antiseptic wash which is equally effective in flushing out open wounds as it is in flushing out eyes. Despite it's name, it's a very gentle solution.

Cod Liver Oil

Strange as it may sound, one drop of Cod Liver Oil in the lower lid of the eye is a highly effective way to gently lift out whatever is in the eye. The oil acts as a lubricant and surrounds the grit, sand etc, away from the cornea and out of the eye area. Cod liver oil is high in Vitamin A which, if there is corneal abrasion, speeds the healing of the cornea. Using this treatment, we have never had a dog's eyes puffy or stuck shut the next morning unless there is additional bite injury to the area.

In a pinch, olive oil is a reasonable substitute for cod liver oil, although it won't have the same amounts of Vitamin A.

Open Wounds and Bites

The single most important thing about open wounds and bites is to ensure that you get the wound clean. If the wound is clean, it can heal. If the wound is clean, you run far less risk of it becoming infected. 

Boric Acid

Boric acid, despite it's name, mixes up into a very gentle, highly effective antiseptic wash. You can purchase Boric Acid in any drugstore and it's very inexpensive. Boric Acid comes in powdered form, and you can mix it up as per the directions on the bottle with distilled water. (1tsp to 1/2 pint of hot water, cooled and kept in a covered jar - it lasts for several weeks). Blot the hair under the eyes dry with a tissue then comb the hair down towards the nose.

In order to help healing, I make up a very simple ointment that contains goldenseal and myrrh. The ointment is quite simple to make and has several benefits. The ingredients are all "fit for human consumption" which means that if your dog licks off the ointment, it won't hurt him/her. Goldenseal, a natural antibiotic which works with the immune system [unlike chemical antibiotics which destroy the body's antibodies] is as effective internally as it is externally. Myrrh is another substance that actually helps the body heal and it too is effective both internally as well as externally.

I apply the ointment [which is kept in the refrigerator] as often as I think necessary. The ointment will help to keep dust and dirt out of the wound while it's healing. It also helps combat any infection that might want to set in.

If you are interested in the recipe for the ointment, press here .

Willow Bark

For all pain and swellings and fevers I use Willow Bark. Willow bark contains salic acid, and was the natural source that led to the isolation of ASA and our modern aspirin. Unlike aspirin, however, Willow Bark doesn't upset the stomach, and the dogs actually seem to like it's flavor.

Willow bark has a pleasant woody fragrance and is highly effective at reducing pain, reducing swelling and reducing fever in animals and people. The dosage is less problematic as well since you can use a pinch or more depending upon the size of your dog.
Willow bark can be obtained quite inexpensively in either cut herb or powdered form from most good health food stores.

Fleas

If you live near grass, your dog is exposed to fleas. And while fleas have always been considered an itchy nuisance there is more danger to your dogs from fleas than just the irritation.
Some dogs are allergic to flea bites and dogs can get tape worms from ingesting the fleas that they might ingest when they are using their mouths to scratch.
If you  happen to have an immediate problem, then there are a few things you need to do.
The first thing to do if your dog has been exposed to a large number of fleas is to bathe the dog thus drowning the fleas. If you don't have flea shampoo on hand  you  then don't worry about it, hot soapy water does a good job of getting rid of the fleas on the dog at the moment.
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Pregnancy

Caring for the pregnant bitch isn't as difficult as one might think. Basically you want your pregnant bitch to be healthy so that when the whelping came she will be in proper shape for delivery.
This means that you want your bitch's activity level to stay high -- and you don't want to overfeed her. The only thing that overfeeding will accomplish is that the puppies she is carrying will be fatter -- which translates into more difficulty in delivering them. Once the puppies are born, you will want to have food down for the mother all the time. She gets to eat as much as she likes during the nursing stage of motherhood.
You will however want to feed her differently -- albeit the same amounts. You will want to increase her protein levels -- but make sure that this protein isn't from soya as soya protein has been linked with eclampsia in nursing bitches. [Eclampsia is a condition that is brought about when the puppies are nursing. The mother's calcium levels drop to such dangerous levels that she will begin to convulse and it can be, at worse, fatal. At best you will have to feed the puppies by hand.]
You will also want to ensure that the pregnant bitch is getting increased levels of calcium. The rule of thumb is that the puppies come first so that whatever you feed your bitch, the puppies will get first and the mothers system will get after. By increasing the vitamin supplementation for the pregnant bitch, you will ensure that both the puppies and the mother will get sufficient to retain good health.

Raspberry Leaves

One of the most beneficial supplements that you can add to your bitch's diet is raspberry leaves. Whether in herb or in powder form, this is one of the most important of all the herbs for pregnancy. Be very sure, however, that you don't use "raspberry tea" as this tea doesn't contain the raspberry leaves at all.

 Raspberry leaves help the strengthen uterine walls, helps reduce labor pain, ease delivery and generally helps to expel afterbirths. [Retention of afterbirth can cause serious infections in the mother.]

 Raspberry leaves also contain Vitamin C [which will help build strong bones in the puppies and keep mom's bones strong], calcium as well as Vitamins A, B, D, E, G and H, manganese, phosphorus and is rich in iron. Raspberry leaves enrich colostrum in the bitch's milk and consumption after delivery will help reduce uterine swelling and reduce post partum bleeding.
This herb is also recommended for pregnant women for all the same reasons, and is a wonderful herb for children suffering from colds, diarrhea, colic or fevers at any stage. Raspberry leaves will help in the vomiting of a weak child. It is a wonderful herb to have around the house at all times.
For people, steep the raspberry leaves in boiled water for 10 to 15 minutes to make a tea. Drink the tea at least twice a day.

Calcium

Despite raspberry leaves having calcium,  I add calcium supplements to my pregnant bitches' food as well. The form of calcium I use is either bone meal [this is the refined bone meal sold for people in health and drug stores] or crushed egg shells.
It's a simple matter to rinse out the egg shells from your morning eggs and put them in a coffee grinder to turn them into a fine powder. This is an inexpensive and highly effective means of adding calcium to your dog's diet.
People who use commercial food sometimes switch their pregnant bitch to puppy food during her gestation. This is fine, just be sure not to give her larger portions. Again, you don't want too-fat puppies that are difficult for the mother to deliver -- you just want a healthy mother who can deliver and enjoy her puppies.


Hot Spots

Hot Spots happen more often than not on a broken or rough coated dog who, for one reason or another, is exposed to more heat or humidity than his/her system likes.

Some people maintain that they are the result of an allergy -- generally to fleas. I don't know how valid this is. I do know that in order to keep a hot spot from getting too severe, you must take immediate action.

If possible, clip the fur shorter so that heat/humidity isn't trapped under the outer coat. Then, to help with the itching, add Vitamin C which is a natural antihistamine to help control the irritation. Add essential fatty acids to the dog's diet. You can go to your vet and pay a lot of money for Omega 3 EFA's -- or you can go to the drug store and pick up cod liver oil which is Omega 3 EFA's. Salmon oil is also good. If you want to take into account the full spectrum of EFA's , both the Omega 3 and the Omega 6, then you should visit your health food store. They should have something suitable.
If the hot spot is oozing, then apply powdered goldenseal or a mixture of goldenseal and myrrh. This will help dry the area out and heal at the same time. Don't worry if your dog licks at this powder. It won't hurt him/her and will even help her heal if taken internally. I have found, however, that dog's don't like the taste of this all by itself, so it actually can be a deterrent to licking of the area.
If the area is scabby and dry, apply the goldenseal/myrrh ointment that you make yourself or that you have purchased in a health food store. You can also use an antibiotic ointment that you get in the drug store, but be aware that the base for those ointments is petroleum based and not necessarily good for your dog to ingest.

Feel free to file for your personal reference.

 

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