Remedy for Bloat & Stop and Chew Your Bones!

Hello peeps! Its Apollo Boy here. As you guys know, bloat is a very serious condition for dogs. It can kill so quickly that dogs who bloat when they are alone can be found dead by their owners when they return home.

Kola had experienced bloat before, and M rushed him to the hospital. We were quite disappointed at the conventional treatment actually. The vet told us that Kola would be put on drip and monitored to see if the bloat goes away. They'll administer painkillers and antibiotics as needed. And if the situation called for (meaning the stomach twists), they'll operate on him. (St Kola: Thank God I don't have to go through that again.. but that's cause i'm already dead isn't it?)

We were pretty shocked at the treatment, but since we aren't educated in veterinary science, what did we have to say?

Anyway, remember Auntie J from the land of far far away? She recommended M a product called Parvaid.

Its main purpose is to treat Parvovirus actually, but since parvovirus attacks the gastro-intestinal tract, parvaid can do wonders for vomitting, diarrhea, fever, dehydration and of course, bloat, just to name a few.

This is an all-natural product made of organic herbs, and the best part of it is.... IT WORKS! M gave Candy 10 drops of Parvaid for every 15mins she was bloated and she started burping till she was no longer bloated.

M brought Candy and the box of Parvaid to Dr Hsu the next day and it turned out that Candy was bloated because she gulped in alot of air. Dr Hsu agreed that she was no longer bloated and the Parvaid was probably the reason the bloat went down.

More bloat info: http://www.globalspan.net/bloat.htm

Parvaid info: http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/parvaid.html

Ok, the reason Candy gulped in alot of air was because she was holding her pee pee in the whole night (about 13 hours) and probably got stressed. We found out later, it was because that stupid bitch (Candy: HEY!) didn't chew on the chicken bones long enough and swallowed them. The bones ended up being stuck in her rectum because it was too painful for her to pass it out. Thankfully, Dr Hsu managed to pull the bones out and Candy was fine after that.

So remember peeps, please make sure your poochies chew on their bones long enough and not just swallow! We learnt a very big lesson this time. M feels so guilty Candy went through all that pain because she didn't supervise enough. =(

AVA to Revise Quarantine Import Requirements for Cats & Dogs

We are extremely happy! Finally someone cares about us cats and dogs.

Well, AVA is revising their quarantine import requirements so those of us who want to import furkids from ethical breeders can do so even better!

(But the down side is overseas puppymills can also send their pups over here better =( We hope to battle this issue soon!)

Anyways.. Read http://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2009/sps/SGP/09_1464_00_e.pdf

We'll continue to summarize it.. if we feel like it. (no, we have not forgotten our vaccination article.)

Nutro Cat Food Recalled - Singapore

Dear Kitty pawrents and friends,

Nutro Cat Food has just been recalled by AVA. Please STOP feeding Nutro to your cats immediately!

The news article is below as we're afraid the link may be broken in future.

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Taken from: Straits Times, http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_381120.html?vgnmr=1 Cat food recalled By Serene Luo

CAT food under the Nutro brand of products has been recalled by the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority here.

Mars Petcare, the parent company, had earlier this week announced a voluntary recall of the products in the United States, due to excessive zinc levels and under-supplements of potassium.

It said there had been a production error by one of its US-based premix suppliers.

The two affected mixes are: Nutro Natural Choice Complete Care Dry Cat Foods and Nutro Max Cat Dry Foods.

The two mixes come in 28 different product varieties, and have 'best before' dates of between May 12, 2010 and August 22, 2010.

Pet owners who have bought the products are advised to stop giving their cats the food immediately, and should monitor their cats for symptoms such as lack of appetite, weight loss, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Should their cats show such symptoms, the owners are advised to take them to a veterinarian for medical treatment.

The AVA is also working with supermarkets and pet stores to pull the products from shelves, a spokesman said.

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List of Pet Foods Recalled: http://www.ava.gov.sg/NR/rdonlyres/6E2A85C7-1551-4AE7-B73E-841AE6C3317D/24062/RecallofNutroCatFood.doc

Afterthoughts by The 5 Rascals:

See! Many kibble companies claim their product to be 100% nutritionally balanced, and to be fed for life. This is exactly how nutritionally balanced they are.

Granted that the food we eat (though researched as thoroughly as we can) may NOT be 100% nutritionally balanced, at least we know the food we eat, prepared in our very own kitchen, is SAFE.

Gentle Buddy Boy for Adoption

Buddy boy is up for adoption again =( We hope he'll find a forever home now..

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Status: For Adoption

Breed: Mixed Breed (He is quite big in size, weighing almost 35kg. Despite his size, he is very gentle)

Name: Buddy

Age: 3 years

Gender: Male

Spayed/Neutered: Yes

Reason for Being Given Up: Owner faced with family problem

Good with Children: Yes, very patient and gentle with small kids (Owner has a baby and 2 toddlers, and Buddy always allow them to snatch his toys, lie on him and even ride on him)

Good with Dogs: Yes

Good with other animals: Yes, he always run up to neighbor’s home to play with their rabbit.

Dog's Temperament: Very Tame, Sweet Temperament, Obedient, Gentle, not barkish and very patient

Dog's Problems: Had his tail docked off when he was found as a puppy (because someone tied a rubberband ard his tail) and when found, needs to be amputated. He is scared of having his nails cut.

More Information:
Buddy had been up for adoption a few times- not because he is aggressive, not because he is disobedient, and definitely not because he is hard to teach. In fact, he is a very gentle giant who is tame, obedient and takes in very well to dogs and small kids (look at his video and you will realize how tame and patient he is with kids, even small kids). The only thing that is not right would be his fate. He had been rehomed a few times not because the owners want to get rid of him, but because of all the circumstances happening at home which eventually does not allow them to keep Buddy.


Living a life of a roller coaster, having ups and downs, Buddy is still living his life with a smile. After searching for so long, Buddy boy thought he had finally found a forever home with his current owner. But sometimes unfortunate things just happen, as his owner is having some problem with the family and is forced to put buddy up for adoption.

Buddy is a big dog with a big heart. He is a giant but with a heart of gold. He is patient, obedient, tame and loyal. He will just give in his all to love you, and all he is asking for is someone to promise to take care and love him till his very last breath. Look beyond the surface and you will find something so special about him that is worthy for you to have him. He didn’t have a choice to live his life like this, but you have a choice that will make a difference to him by letting him be part of your life to bring you joy and laughter for many years to come.

Buddy still have many good years to come. To have him with you, I can assure you that he will bring you joy for as long as he live – only laughter, no sadness.


Ideal Owner: Someone who can see beyond his size, and appreciate his sweet lovely temperament and willing to love and take good care of him for the rest of his life

Ideal Home: Family with lots of love for him

Member putting up this adoption notice: Rescuer

Contact: 90600810

Adoption Fee: NIL

Go to http://pirateandbuddy.blogspot.com/2009/05/gentle-giant-looking-for-home.html to see more pictures and a video of Buddy playing with children.

Hydrosols and their many uses

Auntie A always wondered what M uses as our ear cleaner.. It smells so good, and not exaggerating, you can smell it from 3metres when she cleans our ears!

M uses a blend of hydrosols to clean our ears. Apollo had a series of recurring ear infections previously, and it was so bad he would cry when M cleaned his ears. Now his ears are perfectly fine, and not to mention - great smelling!

Suzanne Catty mentioned in her book "Hydrosols: the next aromatherapy" that "hydrosols are the condensate water coproduced during the steam or hydro-distillation of plant material for aromatherapeutic purposes."

"Hydrosols contain all of the plant in every drop," Catty says, thus the water-soluble liquid is one of the most recognized substances in healing.

What you have to know though, is that not everything is a hydrosol, or what some people call "floral water".

Some products which are passed off as hydrosols, are actually diluted hydrosols with artificial fragrance and coloring added! These products will not only NOT promote healing and benefit you & your furkid, they might cause allergies!

Others are simply few drops of essential oils added into water. Both types of products lack the healing properties and benefits of the true hydrosol.

Hydrosols can be used for a number of things, not only ear cleaning. It is a great toner for you humans, and can be sprayed on skin problem areas for us dogs as well. M uses hydrosols on her own hair, and sprays them on us for the fragrance as well as the healing properties. Imagine your dog smelling nice and having great benefits from the hydrosols all at the same time!

Our favourite hydrosols are rose, lavender, tea tree and chamomile. We have essential oils at home too, and will talk about them the next time.

Colloidal Silver, the "Wonder Water"!

Wonder Water is what M's friend calls Colloidal Silver.. It may very well be true.

*There isn't a pic of Colloidal Silver here because M simply CANT take a nice picture of the bottle*

CS is a natural antibiotic and can be used for any viral, bacterial or fungal problem. It also can be drank or sprayed on skin problem areas and even the EYES! M loves to spray CS on MY EYES or on Bubble, a Shih Tzu who has a very bad eye problem.

What we like about CS is that it does not sting at all! We dogs and M have tried it on our wounds and it really does not sting, and promotes healing.

Steve Barwick, a renowned natural health journalist, thinks of CS as "the world's most powerful natural antibiotic!"

His blog would be a useful read:

http://colloidalsilversecrets.blogspot.com

And the article on Colloidal Silver and Pets:

http://colloidalsilversecrets.blogspot.com/2008/02/pets-and-colloidal-silver.html

Our Blog is Featured!

The Greyhound Companions of New Mexico (GCNM) has featured our blog in their bi-seasonal newsletter!

We didn't expect our blog to be featured because we did the Greyhound Stories (see below) but it was a pleasant surprise when Judy Paulsen, President of the GCNM emailed us. All that's said, we're just happy to help the greyhounds.

Their newsletter touches on many Greyhound issues from racing to rescue to health issues and even features (ones like ours and even more!)

Anyway, here's what they wrote about The 5 Rascals.

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Singapore Animal Welfare Advocate Blogs for Greyhounds

The plight of the racing greyhound reaches around the world and a visit to http://the5rascals.blogspot.com/2009/01/about-greyhound-racing-adoption-and.html is proof of this! Singaporean, Nicole Han has never been to the United States, but she is well aware of the crisis surrounding the American racing greyhound.

Sensitive to issues related to animals in general, Nicole even blogs about saving the whale shark! But you can tell her heart is with the greyhounds by the extent of research she has done. Greyhound Companions of New Mexico is prominently featured in her blog as well as other greyhound welfare groups working to end the suffering of the racing greyhound. Visit Nicole’s blog for a concise review of greyhound information she has accumulated from various reputable sources.

Thanks, Nicole, for partnering with us to educate the public on the plight of the racing greyhound.

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To read the entire GCNM newsletter, go to:
GCNM Newsletter Spring & Summer 2009

Read the two stories we did on greyhounds:
http://the5rascals.blogspot.com/2009/01/ban-greyhound-racing.html
http://the5rascals.blogspot.com/2009/01/about-greyhound-racing-adoption-and.html

Whale Sharks may not be brought in to Singapore

Hurray!

Resorts World Sentosa will be considering an alternative plan to exhibiting whale sharks in their to-be oceanarium (which will be the largest in the world).

Although it is reported by AFP (http://travel.asiaone.com/Travel/News/Story/A1Story20090516-141880.html) that:

The park however said its move was not due to pressure by the seven animal welfare groups which have launched an online petition that has gathered more than 9,000 signatures.

"The MLP team does not take its responsibilities to both conservation and Singapore lightly and as such, we spent the past two years doing much groundwork," it said in a statement to AFP.

"We strongly believe that our action must be governed by the conservation of this species rather than what is dictated by fleeting public opinion."

We don't really care, as long as the interests of the whale sharks are protected.

Hopefully, the government will approve the change made in the proposal.

To find out more about why we do not want the whale sharks in captivity, read:

http://the5rascals.blogspot.com/2009/03/save-whale-sharks.html

The Truth About Vaccinations

We do NOT get vaccinated. Not now, not ever.

Vaccinations are highly recommended by many vets in Singapore (and other parts of the world too). They work by introducing a weakened form of the disease you are being vaccinated against (eg. rabies). Thereafter, the body will produce antibodies to fight this weakened 'disease' and this response will prepare the body for the real McCoy in a limited timeframe (usually 1-3 years).

However what most vets do not tell you is that by vaccinating, there is a chance that you/your furkid will contract the disease vaccinated against.

Our Dr E said so himself when explaining vaccinations to M.

Also, Dr Pitcairn has mentioned in his book (Dr Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats):

"Besides the possibility that they [vaccinations] may not work, vaccines might also cause an acute disease or a chronic health problem."

This is especially true when the immune system is already not at its best (eg. when sick, weak, stressed, too young, or when the dog's immune system has been surpressed by previous disease or drug therapy (including steroids & anti-biotics)).

So, what our family recommends is to save your money and buy more foodies for your furbies! NATURAL foodies please!

PS: its 3am now and we cant think straight, thus this article is not completed yet.

Credits: Dr Pitcairn

FDA Confirms Investigating Nutro, Reasons not to feed Natural REBUTTED!

Hello furbies and hoomans. This is a piece of news we read from DoggieSite and would like to share with all of you.

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Title: FDA Confirms Probe of NUTRO Pet Food Deaths, Illnesses

By Lisa Wade McCormick
ConsumerAffairs.com
Copyright 2009 © All Rights Reserved

The lead:

April 20, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has confirmed that the agency is investigating NUTRO pet food, following a series of unexplained illnesses and deaths. Consumers have been complaining for more than two years that their pets have become ill after eating NUTRO products; many have recovered when they were switched to other foods. The company has steadfastly denied that its food is to blame.

Please read the entire article @
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/04/nutro_foia.html
especially if you are feeding your furbie killer crap in a bag commercial pet food!!


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Auntie J from the land of far far away has warned us about consuming Nutro pet foods before but we were already on BARF and thus was not worried for ourselves. However, we worry for all the other millions of pets world wide that are still eating killer kibble!

We are really SURPRISED to hear that the investigation has JUST been CONFIRMED. The charge if any, will come probably much much later. Meanwhile, many pets may still fall sick =(


M can never stress enough, the importance of feeding NATURAL foods. Foods prepared in your own kitchen. Foods you can eat yourself. Although we eat raw food, we understand that some people may feel squeamish about it (Apollo: I dont! Its the best thing since.... tennis balls and bread), home cooked foods will do as well. At the VERY LEAST, you KNOW WHAT IS IN YOUR FOOD.

Reasons not to feed Natural - REBUTTED!

Lets tackle some of the excuses reasons why people do not want to feed natural foods but feed crappy killer kibble instead, or feed PARTIAL natural only.

Reason No 1: Home cooked food/BARF?!?! But I cant ensure that the diet will be 100% balanced! I rather feed kibble.

Solution: In our very honest opinion, we would rather an UNBALANCED NATURAL DIET rather than kibble which may kill us. Besides, look at all the rubbish in kibble. Salt, by-products preservatives, food coloring.... Is that ensuring 100% balanced nutrition? Puh-lease. What my M gives me is way better. Besides M did alot of research before embarking on the BARF diet. If my lazy lazy M can do it, so can anyone.

Reason No 2: I give partial HCF/BARF and partial commercial rubbish. That way i wont be afraid if I cant balance the diet because the commercial crap will be balanced.

Solution: Absolute rubbish. The BEST way to ensure a balanced diet is to feed ALL NATURAL.

Reason No 3: My pup is still very young! She wont be suitable to eat HCF/BARF at such a tender age. Wait till she's older.

Solution: Excuse me, we dogs plus our ancestors wolves have been eating all NATURAL foods since the day God created us. Kibble was only created about 50 plus years ago. Kibble is the un-natural diet that we were not meant to eat at all.

Reason No 4: I've got no time!

Solution: We dogs are your kids too. Just like your baby. Please tell me if you will feed your baby commercial food and NEVER home cooked for the rest of its life. Having cute furkids like us to shower love on you requires commitment.

Besides, have you got no time to relax? No time to sleep? No time to bathe? No time to eat? EXCUSES! Time can ALWAYS be found if YOU MAKE IT.

You can simply buy frozen meats once every month (or even every 2 months) then pack and freeze so every meal all you have to do is take out 1 serving (that you already packed) and defrost it. How hard is that? You can even defrost it in the fridge the night before!

For home cooked meals, you can even cook once a week and freeze the rest of the meal IF you really really have no time.

Reason No 5: I cant afford it! Look at the food bills your M has to pay!

Solution: If my M who works part time can afford it, you can! Okok, I know. You got housing bills, car bills, electricity bills, fine dining bills, buy Hugo Boss bills yada yada.

Frankly, natural feeding costs only just as much if not LESSER than commercial.

Our food bills are expensive cos M always buys free-range and organic whenever possible, even then it is cheaper than what we cost on a commercial crap diet.

Our commercial food bill was at $380/month for Apollo and I only! It was cause we were so fussy that M had to buy a very expensive wet food, as well as supplements for our skin problem.

NOW, our food bill is $300/month including occasional organic and quite a substantial bit of free range organs/bones/meats!

This is already on the high side although not as high as The Natural PawPals who feeds an ALL ORGANIC diet. Their M is not earning 10k/month as well but she does give them the best she can.

It usually costs only $30/month to feed a small dog and $100-$150 a month to feed a big dog. Just know where to go and get your meat. Dont be lazy and get from supermarkets. Tekka has pretty good bargains from what everyone tell us.

Natural is GOOD and CHEAP now. What other excuses have you got? Bring it on in our comments page. We would appreciate it very much.