1. 15 Comment(s)

2. By J. Highbarger, DVM on Aug 23, 2008 | Reply

   For your information the active ingredient in Comfortis has been used as an Organic pesticide for years in our country (just see latest issue of mother earth news). It comes form a natural source and is not synthetic. I would expect that of all the avalable pest control agents out there to bash (eg. permethrins) this would not be the one you would choose to take on. Comfortis will save thousands of pets lives in this country, and as a veterinarian myself, I’ve seen the benefits first hand. I think it’s irresponsible to suggest that diet and the pets immune system are the only things that the fleas care about. Believe me, I live in Florida where fleas could care less about those things…they’re ready to eat whatever pet is unprotected. By spreading such unsubstantiated statements you do nothing but perpetuate the kind of mind set that will allow pets to suffer needlessly from fleas, flea allergy and deadly flea associated anemia.

3. By Shadrach on Aug 23, 2008 | Reply

   Hello Dr. Highbarger,

   Thank you for commenting in support of another drug.

   For the record, I stand by my comments in the blog post…or rather my dog’s comments. He’s living proof of not needing these drugs.

   If you read the entire post above you’d know that Dr. Blake is the one who wrote this, and that he is also a veterinarian like yourself who also who lives in an area where fleas are a problem – for dogs & cats who don’t have a good immune system.

   Why don’t you contact him and have this discussion with him…or would you rather just write here in support of another pharma drug?

   The amount of suffering that has been thrust upon all the pets in this country with all the pesticides we call “prevention medicines”, and the overvaccinating alone should be enough for you to consider how much suffering all these drugs, chemicals and pesticides have caused in the lives of many, many pets. Shall I rally all the pet owners whose pets have suffered as result of drugs like these so you can see whereof I speak?

   Dr. Blake has chosen to take the high road and teach pet owners how to protect and care for their pets naturally the way God and nature intended rather than supporting the overuse of drugs and pesticides.

   The word “organic” has been so overused and of course it only has to be about 5 % organic to be called “organic” in many products. I don’t care if I lived in your area, I’d never use a product like this. And that is my right and choice, as it is any other pet owner.

   You can choose to still use it and sell it but I’d not call NOT using it causing suffering, oh quite the contrary.

   Dr. Kim Bloomer

4. By Caroleigh on Sep 9, 2008 | Reply

   I am thoroughly confused…. We have 2 dogs – a 9 lb., 9 month old poodle pup and a 10 lb, 3 1/2 yr. old poodle / chihuahua – MUCH loved and cared for family members. Recently, I have been reading and studying holistic veterinary care. We have always fed our dogs well, but now we feed them very well and give them only filtered water. I am sold on the overvaccination issue – no more vaccines for my dogs w/out titers first that indicate a need. But I am still conflicted on heartworm / flea prevention. My vet recommends Comfortis and feels it is very safe, and he feels STRONGLY that Interceptor is safe and necessary. The holistic vet book I read most recently, by Dr. Marty Goldstein, was written in 1999 and does not discuss the active ingredients in Comfortis or Interceptor. My dogs have taken both drugs and we have not seen any side effects. Any thoughts?? Thank you -

5. By Shadrach on Sep 9, 2008 | Reply

   Hi Caroleigh,

   These are good questions. Not every animal is going to show immediate reactions. Most will show up over time and you won’t even associate the illnesses with the use of this sort of drug. Of course veterinarians think it is okay because after all this is what they are taught to use.

   In the book by Dr. Marty Goldstein you refer to above, The Nature of Animal Healing, I will quote what he wrote there on page 6 The body’s immune system is the best defense, far better than man-made drugs.. He goes on to say on page 7 …But we find that 95 percent of the cases we take on can be treated alternatively. That includes healthy pets, whom we put on our special regimen of good food and dietary supplements to prevent their health from deteriorating. And it applies almost without exception to pets with common irritations – fleas, flaky skin, allergies, colitis – who are conventionally treated with drugs and chemicals that can do more harm than good.

   TWO veterinarians above and me, a veterinary naturopath, telling you that these drugs can do more harm than good. Go to http://www.dogsadversereactions.com and see for yourself what some pets have suffered as a result of all these drugs. Wolves and coyotes certainly do not get their daily, weekly or monthly dose of these drugs and they do fine, dying most often from injuries or starvation. They are nearly identical to our dogs in their molecular makeup just so you understand why I said that.

   Here are a couple of good articles for you to read:
   http://dogged.typepad.com/doggedblog/2004/11/of_carnivores_o.html
   http://www.thewholedog.org/heartworm.html

   Ultimately you have to decide what you will do based upon what you are comfortable with. However, just because my “vet says” isn’t enough reason for me to do something – I am the owner therefore I make the decisions. Right or wrong, good or bad, it is my decision to be in control of my health and that of my pets. And to run with my decision.

   I’ll leave you with some shows to go listen to and some very good quotes:
   When we give government the power to make medical decisions for us, we, in essence, accept that the state owns our bodies. ~U.S. Representative Ron Paul, MD

   An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation nor does truth become error because no one will see it. ~ Mahatma Ghandi

   Condemnation without investigation is the height of ignorance. ~ Albert Einstein

   Info on helping your dogs be pest-free naturally:
   http://www.animaltalknaturally.com/2008/06/15/helping-pets-be-pest-free-naturally-show-169/
   http://www.animaltalknaturally.com/2007/01/16/eliminating-those-pesky-pests-show-74/

   Dr. Kim & Shadrach

6. By Caroleigh on Sep 9, 2008 | Reply

   Thank you for your response. “Not every animal is going to show immediate reactions. Most will show up over time and you won’t even associate the illnesses with the use of this sort of drug.” That is, of course, my concern and the reason I am questioning in an attempt to make an informed decision regarding the use of flea and heartworm preventative drugs. I have not decided to give my dogs these meds “just because my vet says”; but, rather, am attempting to consider divergant sources of information – his advice, and the known risks to my dogs from heartworms and fleas, and the holistic care info I’ve read here and elsewhere that advises against drug treatment. I understand and agree that a strong immune system and premium diet are the #1 most important line of defense for pets – my dogs are there, absolutely. I just wondered if the active ingredients in Comfortis and/or Interceptor may be safer than the specific drugs Dr. Goldstein discussed in his book (1999). I take it you believe they are not. Thank you. My vet, Dr. Khalsa, disagrees. He says they are much improved from what was available years ago and are the safest medical alternatives today. However, I do not feel good about giving my dogs any insecticides and would prefer not to – I am leaning toward that decision re: Comfortis. Our dogs live inside, although we walk and play with them outside every day. I believe their risk of heartworm is probably minimal, and so will most likey end heartworm preventative, as well. We live in East TN, where the fleas are bountiful almost year round and my daughter is highly allergic to their bites. I am just trying to be responsible and gather as much information as necessary to answer my questions. Thank you for the links – I will continue to read and learn. Natural pest-prevention would be the ideal solution for my dilemma.

7. By Shadrach on Sep 10, 2008 | Reply

   Hi Caroleigh,

   I applaud all you are doing in researching and learning so you can decide what is best for your dogs.

   I think what you are doing is very admirable and very responsible because you are taking the action to learn and then decide for your dogs what is best.

   You are correct that I am not in favor of these type of drugs at all. They are pesticides and no matter what veterinarians tell me or say I can’t believe any amount of pesticide ingested is “safe” – and no matter what the FDA says either. Lots of drugs they’ve labeled as “safe” have killed, repeatedly. And improved? Again I’d disagree with your vet because how can any pesticide be improved or considered safe? I just will never agree with that as is my right and yours also.

   Sadly, he will never agree with me unless he takes the path holistic vets such as Dr. Blake and Dr. Goldstein have above.

   No I’d rather do this the way nature intended for myself and my dogs. My dog has never been on these drugs and he has never contracted heartworm. Never had fleas. Never had ticks. Never.

   The article above I posted on heartworm by my colleague, Dr. Jeannie Thomason, tells you what does happen and how the body responds to heal itself of even a small infestation of heartworms IF the dog’s immune system is strong, they are fed a species raw diet, and are even to some degree supported nutritionally.

   Granted, we’ve messed with the genetics of our dogs long enough with all the improper food & nutrition, overvaccinating, and these drugs to the point that some dogs even if cared for completely naturally may not be as strong as say a 2nd, 3rd or 4th generation raw-fed, non-vaccd, non-drugged dog is and those dogs will need extra help along the way.

   But overall how are we to get them all to that true state of well being if we don’t start now with the dogs we have?

   Again I applaud you and your due diligence in researching for the health of your dogs and your family Caroleigh. You are to be commended!

   Something you can look into using that is a very economical and effective way to help protect your dogs from fleas, ticks, and all sorts of pesky pests is to use FOOD-grade diatomaceous earth (DE). I purchase mine at http://www.bio-alternatives.com My husband and I also use it ourselves internally for internal parasites. You can do the same for your dogs. Externally it can be dusted into their coats.

   It is not a pesticide. Read the site it gives a full description of what DE is and does for you and your pets.

   I hope this helps and I want to cheer you on the path you are traveling! I’d love to see more and more pet owners travel the same path of learning and discovery as our responsibility for our pets and understanding them and their nature is part of being a pet owner.

   Have a tail waggin’ day!
   Dr. Kim & Shadrach

8. By Melissa on Sep 18, 2008 | Reply

   I found this website in attempts to find some relief for my dog Skip, he is a 4yr old JRT and for some reason the fleas just love him so much in fact I had a severe flea infestation last summer. I finally got rid of the fleas in the house (3 months later!) and took Skip to see the vet they recommended Frontline I had been giving it to him for about 7-8 months but eventually it stopped working. I took him to the vet again and they said that his skin was probably immune to the Frontline and that I needed to start him on Advantix. I have been using the Advantix for 5-6 months and it no longer works, not only that but Skip seems to have gotten a skin condition he is RED and itchy I took him to the vet and they gave him a steroid shot and Hydroxyzine 25mg it isn’t working(it has been 1 month) and I know that he is uncomfortable and I don’t know what to do with him. I am afraid to take him to the vet again because I feel they will do something unnessacerily and it won’t help. What can I do about his skin and the fleas that won’t harm him? Please help my Skip.

9. By John on Dec 13, 2008 | Reply

   Speaking as someone who’d rather not overmedicate his dog… saying “higher doses in rats caused scary results” is NOT convincing. (If you eat enough chocolate, you will die. OMG! Chocolate is bad!)

   Just about anything, if you have enough of it, is dangerous (including common foods). And rats are not dogs. Maybe there is a solid argument to made against Comfortis but you’re not making it.

   (I don’t use it, by the way.)

10. By Shadrach on Dec 14, 2008 | Reply

    Well John if you’d READ ALL the info provided here maybe you’d be convinced. I’m not here to convince I’m here to share truth. Like it or not, I’m not a rocket scientist and neither are you. So read and learn.

    And chocolate is deadly for dogs by the way. Possibly you just wanted to comment so your blog would be linked here.

    And Comfortis is a pesticide. So why don’t you use it with your dog? Hmmm?

    Please everyone take up this argument with the veterinarian who wrote this, Dr. Stephen Blake. He’ll probably ignore you though because he was diagnosed many years ago with pesticide toxicity just from using these type drugs on animals.

    He made a choice to no longer prescribe these pesticides that were not only harming the animals it was used on but also himself. I don’t need to make a case here for you John, common sense should speak for itself…apparently there is a shortage of that these days.

    Dr. Kim

11. By Sue on Mar 16, 2009 | Reply

    Im writing to say how pleased i am to read something where vets are giving there own opinions on drugs and not what they are told to say by the drugs companys. As an owner of 7 dogs and have bred dogs for 30 years, i have had experience with a lot of illnessnes in my animals
    After being very confused and believing that my vets knew everything then finding out that they didnt, i decided to make my own investigations to what we are putting into the animals we love.
    What a shock that was! and after nearly losing a much loved dog through over vaccination i said enough was enough.
    Since i have stopped doing annual boosters the trips to the vets have dropped so much its unbelievable. My vet even says to me when i am in his surgery that he doesent see much of me now. The way i do things now is to feed a fresh meat diet with wholemeal biscuit, puppys have there first innoculations at 10 weeks then 12. They get one booster at a year then no more. If people want to feed complete diets, id tell them to go to the factory see the carcasses that are scraped off the floors and minced up with fur, feathers, feet, beaks and feaces included plus all the drugs that the dead animal has been given. Dont think that the meat for pet food is all nicely prepared because it sure isnt. I wont feed now what i wouldnt eat myself and for me it has worked in the fact that my pets do not get the ear, skin and most other problems they used to get because i took the time to learn for myself that most of the things we are told are the greatest for our dogs are really the oppossit and i really question my vet as to if things are really necessary for the well being of my pets, because they are not gods and mine has admitted to being wrong on a few occassions. I dont get a big problem with fleas now, but if i did i would certainly not give something that goes internally on my animal. new drugs are always hailed as the greatest, but give it a few years and we will see that it is causing all sorts of awful things, and then maybe it will be to late for a few of our loved ones. This site is great wish id found it a long time ago and will pass it on to other friends in the U.K.

12. By Shadrach on Mar 16, 2009 | Reply

    Thank you for your VERY wise and astute comments here Sue. Thank you for sharing and for your input, they are VERY appreciated!

13. By Sue on Mar 17, 2009 | Reply

    I was just wondering if anyone knows why if Comfortis is so safe, the reasons Bayer will not disclose any contraindications to us. Surely if we are expected to use this in our animals the least they could do is publish what we can expect to happen after using it. makes you think a bit doesent it.

14. By D Penfield on Mar 23, 2009 | Reply

    I love how truly committed you all are to the well being of our pets…but at a fee OF COURSE. I went to the link for natural pest control options and of course NOTHING’s free..especially your “commitment to doing “what’s right” for our pets. What was free of course was your damning Comfortis. I’ve only utilized the product for 2 months in a high volume flea area, and I’m not sure I’m “loving it”, however I guess I’ll never know your coveted secret to “natural” flea prevention which is at a price…”naturally”.

15. By Dr. Kim on Mar 24, 2009 | Reply

    It’s interesting how you pay a fortune to big pharma for meds that don’t really protect but in fact poison our pets. But when those of us in natural health offer our products at a great savings both in price AND in health for our pets you have a problem with that. How interesting that we are expected to work for free but you’ll pay thousands of dollars to vets and big pharma only to come to us as a last resort with your savings gone. I find that really interesting how the resentment against us flourishes while we charge so little to keep pets healthy and actually TEACH others how to do the same. We teach them how to make their own natural products from nature and yet you resent that. Instead of being a patsie to push these pesticides on our pets, why don’t you actually really do something that is good and right for the animals instead of coming after practitioners in natural health? Maybe because what we do and teach actually really works and not only for a lot less money but for a lot less suffering on pets.

    Dr. Kim

16. By H Sloan on Mar 24, 2009 | Reply

    D Penfield -

    First and foremost, I have lived in high volume flea areas for the past 2 years. I have never had a problem with fleas and ticks. I have also never used pesticides.

    I do use natural products, as recommended by my natural veterinary team. I have spent a fraction of what Comfortis and the other so-called ‘preventatives’ cost, and had a great deal more success!

    People like Dr. Kim (and her dog Shadrach) make their living off of sharing knowledge.

    Should they not be paid for their expertise, knowledge, experience, education, ect.? I think they should. Or, perhaps you think other field experts, i.e. lawyers should represent clients for free?

    In addition, Dr. Kim shares much of her knowledge with the public at no cost to them, via her radio show, her blog and through her contributions on group discussion sites.

    As for her ’secret to natural flea prevention’?? ITS ALL OVER THIS BLOG! No one is keeping it a secret. Ugh.

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