A place to discuss natural treatment of parasites

Beekissed

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I saw this forum doesn't have many posts on it and not much activity, which saddens me. I'm a big fan of using natural means to maintain health when at all possible, especially for animals. Lately I've been exploring the same methods for my dogs, though I've used natural methods on them down through the years I've never fully committed to using only these methods for their fleas.

I've noticed the dogs HATE the chemical flea treatments that go on their backs...Jake will duck and try to get away from me when I place them here and try to roll afterwards. They don't have a strong odor, so he's not afraid of the odor....he also tries to avoid consuming the worm paste and this dog will eat most anything. I think it's natural that the animal doesn't prefer to eat something he knows is poisonous and not just to the parasites, but to him as well.

I've been doing some research on such things as heartworm and found some interesting articles that make perfect sense to me:

http://thewholedog.org/heartworm.html

Dr Jeffery Levy, feels as I do about the importance of treating the dog, not the heartworm.(emphasis is mine)
"The objective of treating a dog with heartworm should NOT be to get rid of the heartworm. You're not treating the heartworm, you're treating the dog... It makes a lot more sense to measure the treatment by looking at the dog's quality of life. So, he is positive for heartworm. The fact is, heartworms have been around forever and dogs and heartworms have been coexisting for all eternity. It's actually a relatively recent phenomenon that dogs are dying from heartworm. Heartworm is not, by any means, the death penalty it's made out to be. The dogs that die from heartworm are the dogs that are being vaccinated, fed processed pet food and are being treated with suppressive drugs for every little thing that comes along"."

Did you catch that? This is so vitally important to note. Please re-read that last sentence above again.

I know this is a touchy subject, as many like to think that their vet is always right and that the method you have chosen to keep your dog's health is the most intelligent choice or you wouldn't have chosen it.....but most of the time I think folks just go with the flow of popular opinion and what they are told is best by the person selling the meds for it, and do no real research into the why of things and possible, more healthy, alternatives to a hand full of drugs. That is true for human healthcare as well. No offense is meant by this post, it's for information purposes and for those wishing to prevent illness rather than treat it, but do it in such a way that our animals don't have to be poisoned in the method.

I'm not saying vaccines and pills are bad things, they do a lot of good in this world and are necessary to some for many reasons, but for something as simple as prevention of illness, in dog and in human, it pays to explore the options a little deeper and see where we can prevent illness from ever occurring with more natural methods, as sometimes when drugs are used as a first option they actually create more problems than they prevented or cured.

Studies done on pumpkin seeds, ginger root, etc. have shown surprising results compared to traditional dewormer meds.

http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/a...xima-pumpkin-seeds-carica-papaya-papaya-seeds

A little info about using ginger root for heartworm:

http://www.yankee-shelties.com/ginger-for-heartworm-preventative.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3668217

A list of herbs for anthelmintic purposes:

http://www.motherherbs.com/anthelmintic.html

This year I'm going to refrain from dripping poison on the dog's backs as a first resort...I'm going to explore clay and sulfur powder mix to smother and possibly desiccate the fleas. I see no real change after using the flea treatments anyway, so I think they are more for my peace of mind than anything else...they don't yield much at all in results, so why am I buying them and using them? Because of public opinion, mostly. The public thinks they work, so I must agree...but I don't. So why am I continuing in this practice?


I'm not going to worm at all~I usually worm once in the spring, once in the fall, just as a matter of course and not because I actually see eggs in the stool....again, because "they" say it's the smart thing to do. I'm going to stop that simply because I don't see worms in the stool and the dogs show fine condition all the while, so why go through these motions? I'm going to feed them ginger root, pumpkins seeds, garlic and such instead. At least these won't be adding poison to their diet and they love eating them.

I'm going to let them manage their own worms also, by chewing on those grasses that work much like folks claim DE does~the grasses that have very sharp edges, that do not break down in digestion, but pass through the bowels cutting up any worms residing there. Dogs, cats, foxes, coyotes, wolves...all of them chew on those grasses in the spring and they aren't doing it because of a sudden grass craving, it's to naturally rid themselves of worms.

Same for chickens...I've never had worms in my flocks with the exception of one bird received from elsewhere and killed soon after~she had tapeworm~and I do believe it was because she was being raised in a coop with cement floors and had no access to the outdoors. What I do find in my flocks are small intestines clean of any worms and the occasional gizzard holding those tough, razor edged grasses that the carnivores have chosen to ingest. With all the tender greens here to be had, finding those saw tooth blades in the gizzards was at first surprising....but then it finally dawned on me. The birds too know how to rid themselves of worms and, if given the chance, they do so very well as I have never fed my flock any chemical dewormers.

So, this post is an encouragement to others wanting to move in the same direction...back to nature, as God has not left these animals without defense against disease and parasites if we would just let them have access to what they need to avoid it and stop putting poison on their skin and in their mouths.
 

Mama Dee

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New to this site and was intrested in finding natrual repellents for my goats.
I have used garlic for my cats and dogs for years as a mosquito/flea/tick repellent. I just sprinkle a little in their food. I've been told I am poisoning them but my 9 yr old it still puppy like and the vet is very happy with her healthwise. He said I obviously got the "dosage" spot on.
I just don't know if I can use garlic with my goats. Will it make the milk taste like garlic? (We joke that the meat goat will be pre-seasoned).
Any thoughts?
 

MasAhora

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Great topic. I am trying to grow more herbs and plants, I've found some interesting information on http://www.fresheggsdaily.com/
I experimented on my old dog who went downhill after the huge move from rural Australia to rural Paraguay 18 months ago -she's 16yrs old, has various tumours, cloudy eyes, poor hearing etc. However after a few months on a natural diet her, tumours are present but reduced, her eyes cleared up and she is an old dog living a happy comfortable life. I cook her food every 2 or 3 days, its 70% veges (mixed colour veges, I try to have 4 or 5 colours) with some oregano, garlic, tumeric, black pepper, chilli, lean meat and a little brown rice in one large pot all together.

In the past I have found diluted eucalyptus oil or tea tree oil can be great to add to the rinse after a dog is shampooed (also as a rinse for any bedding/sleeping area). Both seem to deter a lot of pests, but too strong both can be irritants. (Unfortunately I mostly relied on flea and tick chemicals due to the paralysis tick where we used to live)

My best guess is that the more natural and balanced the diet, the less sensitivity animals have to flea bites etc so skin rashes are less likely when the odd one does appear and perhaps their blood just isn't that tasty anymore.
 

Prairie Fleur

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New to this site and was intrested in finding natrual repellents for my goats.
I have used garlic for my cats and dogs for years as a mosquito/flea/tick repellent. I just sprinkle a little in their food. I've been told I am poisoning them but my 9 yr old it still puppy like and the vet is very happy with her healthwise. He said I obviously got the "dosage" spot on.
I just don't know if I can use garlic with my goats. Will it make the milk taste like garlic? (We joke that the meat goat will be pre-seasoned).
Any thoughts?
To my knowledge garlic should be fine for the goats as well. If they're milk goats it will most likely show up in the taste of their milk. Meat goats I don't think you'll notice anything. Have any of you ever checked out Molly's Herbals? I have used some of her natural dewormers.
Due to my own health I have to be very careful with any chemicals used on our farm and animals. I'd love to see more discussion on this topic!
 

Sara Ranch

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Old thread but it's a topic I am very much into.

My ranch is organic - don't do the poisons here. Use as many natural things as possible to keep the animals in good health.

Garlic for goats - sprinkled on their food or give chopped up fresh?
 

RoahT

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No, I've never done before and after decals before. But the main parasites we have in Colorado cause anemia, and both the guy I have gotten sheep from and I have done the FAMACHA test before and after and the garlic and cayenne work really great. I will say that the cases I have done it on have only been a FAMACHA score of as bad as 3 or so, so if you had a worse case of parasites it might not work, you might need a not so natural dewormer. If you are using garlic and cayenne, definitely be consistent and give a good amount of you can every day at least once a day. Of course, that's sometimes difficult as most animals don't consider garlic and cayenne very appetizing!:lol:;)
 
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goatboy1973

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I saw this forum doesn't have many posts on it and not much activity, which saddens me. I'm a big fan of using natural means to maintain health when at all possible, especially for animals. Lately I've been exploring the same methods for my dogs, though I've used natural methods on them down through the years I've never fully committed to using only these methods for their fleas.

I've noticed the dogs HATE the chemical flea treatments that go on their backs...Jake will duck and try to get away from me when I place them here and try to roll afterwards. They don't have a strong odor, so he's not afraid of the odor....he also tries to avoid consuming the worm paste and this dog will eat most anything. I think it's natural that the animal doesn't prefer to eat something he knows is poisonous and not just to the parasites, but to him as well.

I've been doing some research on such things as heartworm and found some interesting articles that make perfect sense to me:

http://thewholedog.org/heartworm.html



I know this is a touchy subject, as many like to think that their vet is always right and that the method you have chosen to keep your dog's health is the most intelligent choice or you wouldn't have chosen it.....but most of the time I think folks just go with the flow of popular opinion and what they are told is best by the person selling the meds for it, and do no real research into the why of things and possible, more healthy, alternatives to a hand full of drugs. That is true for human healthcare as well. No offense is meant by this post, it's for information purposes and for those wishing to prevent illness rather than treat it, but do it in such a way that our animals don't have to be poisoned in the method.

I'm not saying vaccines and pills are bad things, they do a lot of good in this world and are necessary to some for many reasons, but for something as simple as prevention of illness, in dog and in human, it pays to explore the options a little deeper and see where we can prevent illness from ever occurring with more natural methods, as sometimes when drugs are used as a first option they actually create more problems than they prevented or cured.

Studies done on pumpkin seeds, ginger root, etc. have shown surprising results compared to traditional dewormer meds.

http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/a...xima-pumpkin-seeds-carica-papaya-papaya-seeds

A little info about using ginger root for heartworm:

http://www.yankee-shelties.com/ginger-for-heartworm-preventative.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3668217

A list of herbs for anthelmintic purposes:

http://www.motherherbs.com/anthelmintic.html

This year I'm going to refrain from dripping poison on the dog's backs as a first resort...I'm going to explore clay and sulfur powder mix to smother and possibly desiccate the fleas. I see no real change after using the flea treatments anyway, so I think they are more for my peace of mind than anything else...they don't yield much at all in results, so why am I buying them and using them? Because of public opinion, mostly. The public thinks they work, so I must agree...but I don't. So why am I continuing in this practice?


I'm not going to worm at all~I usually worm once in the spring, once in the fall, just as a matter of course and not because I actually see eggs in the stool....again, because "they" say it's the smart thing to do. I'm going to stop that simply because I don't see worms in the stool and the dogs show fine condition all the while, so why go through these motions? I'm going to feed them ginger root, pumpkins seeds, garlic and such instead. At least these won't be adding poison to their diet and they love eating them.

I'm going to let them manage their own worms also, by chewing on those grasses that work much like folks claim DE does~the grasses that have very sharp edges, that do not break down in digestion, but pass through the bowels cutting up any worms residing there. Dogs, cats, foxes, coyotes, wolves...all of them chew on those grasses in the spring and they aren't doing it because of a sudden grass craving, it's to naturally rid themselves of worms.

Same for chickens...I've never had worms in my flocks with the exception of one bird received from elsewhere and killed soon after~she had tapeworm~and I do believe it was because she was being raised in a coop with cement floors and had no access to the outdoors. What I do find in my flocks are small intestines clean of any worms and the occasional gizzard holding those tough, razor edged grasses that the carnivores have chosen to ingest. With all the tender greens here to be had, finding those saw tooth blades in the gizzards was at first surprising....but then it finally dawned on me. The birds too know how to rid themselves of worms and, if given the chance, they do so very well as I have never fed my flock any chemical dewormers.

So, this post is an encouragement to others wanting to move in the same direction...back to nature, as God has not left these animals without defense against disease and parasites if we would just let them have access to what they need to avoid it and stop putting poison on their skin and in their mouths.


We use a combination of natural and commercial deworming treatments. We absolutely do a rotational grazing system which helps with the need for any dewormers in the first place, but we use Copasure copper capsule supplements along with there being walnut leaves, acorns, and lespedeza which have tannins that are natural dewormers. There is also a great deal of cedar and pine saplings which have natural deworming compounds too that our goats absolutely love. If internal parasites are really bad, we opt to use commercial dewormers for goats and off-label dewormers. We are a mostly grass fed operation being as close to organic as possible.
 

Sheepshape

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Just seen this post and wanted to issue a warning about acorns and oak leaves. They are toxic in large amounts to many animals, can kill sheep and cattle, but also have adverse affects on goats, horses, dogs etc. Acorns and oak leaves are toxic to the GI tract, liver and kidneys.

I'm a great believer in natural dewormers, but plants can be the sources of many potent poisons....think belladonna, coca, foxglove etc. Plants are not necessarily the gentle and natural alternative to out-and-out chemicals.

Dryopteris filix-mas (Male fern) is active against tapeworms....but how much is the right dose?

Chicory and plantain are natural wormers in sheep, goats and cattle.....but not all animals like them. Pumpkin is also said to help.

There are proprietary formulations of natural wormers, but they tend to be expensive.
 
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