Three Simple Sure Fire Strategies to Optimize Your Pet’s Health

By Dr. Karen Becker

Preventative medicine is not only important for us humans, but equally important for keeping our pets with us for as long as possible. You have to “create your pet’s health” proactively throughout his life, rather than waiting for pathology to happen and then struggling to reverse it.

By the time disease shows up, the damage has been done.

I am an integrative veterinary practitioner for dogs, cats, and exotic and wild animals. My practice incorporates nutrition, herbs, homeopathy and acupuncture. Being a huge advocate for preventative medicine, one of the biggest misconceptions people have is that their animals are visions of health until disease occurs.

So often I hear, “My pet was healthy until she got cancer.”

But disease doesn’t just come out of nowhere. It occurs because your pet’s body cannot function optimally, which leads to biochemical changes, which leads to structural changes, which leads to pathologic tissue changes, which leads to an ugly diagnosis you don’t want.

Being proactive with your pet’s health is your best way to prevent an eventual battle with a major illness.

The Three Pillars of Health

Regardless of what kind of animal you have, there are three important aspects to your pet’s well being. I call them “The Three Pillars of Health.”

The Three Pillars of Health came into existence in my practice 10 years ago, in an attempt to make sure I was incorporating all the important facets of healing, in every 40-minute appointment, which is always a challenge.

The Three Pillars of Heath are:

1. Species-appropriate nutrition: Each animal must consume a diet that is biologically appropriate for that species.

2. A sound, resilient body (frame and organs): Muscle tone should be good; body weight should be optimal; teeth and should be healthy; heart, lungs, kidneys, liver and other organs should be working efficiently.

3. A balanced, functional immune system: The immune system should be able to protect the animal from pathogens, yet not be overactive, leading to things like allergies and autoimmune disease. The key here is balance.

Must All Three Pillars Be Addressed?

I’ve found that no matter what specific medical condition a pet is being brought in for, if I don’t address all three of these pillars, total health cannot occur.