Hawaii

Healing Through Dogs

Some people look at it as dog behavior that drives them crazy.  Some people look at it like the dog needs some training.  Some people look at it like why can’t I just have a good dog that can go everywhere with me instead of this dog that I have to watch out for bad behavior all the time?

Dog Training with Maui Aloha | Healing

I call it time to start understanding how to heal your feelings and your needs by learning a better way to communicate.  Dogs are the very best place to start that kind of healing.  They really don’t judge,  they don’t really expect, they just are there to live with you, in the moment, whatever you are going through.

And sometimes what you are going through is the fact that you aren’t communicating with yourself, and therefore you aren’t communicating with anyone else really including your dog, and it makes you irritated.  It makes you feel on edge.  It makes you have anxiety.  Sometimes even what might be a full on anxiety attack takes over in what should have been a real simple thing to get through.  Something you actually do every day, but still every single day you get this feeling.

Anxiety or Stress Imagine What It Must Be Like to Be a Dog Who Can’t Explain It

If you know what I’m describing then imagine those same feelings and reactions to those feelings in your dog.

And now do you see why this thing that could be called fear aggression or separation anxiety or unexplained outbursts is really about not knowing how to communicate?  It is about not knowing how to fulfill needs due to assumptions.

Is it bad dog behavior or is it learning how to communicate and understand?   Is it the dog just needs some training or is it that we need someone to hear us too, and when we are listened to the joyfear life turns to the joyful life.

The dog who is living the joyfear life can also quickly learn to live the joyful life.

If you have questions or want help with your dog I am here.

Jt Clough lives in Maui, Hawaii and practices health, happiness, natural remedies and training for dogs and their people.  Her uncanny way of communication with both dogs and people is healing and her training is effective physically and emotionally. Her work at ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance is for people looking to live healthier and happier lives through their dogs and her passion for it has helped so many to find and do that thing they’ve been talking about or wishing to happen for so long. She is a dog whisperer for our best friends and studies natural dog remedies, nutrition and communication. Her latest publications are Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes and 5K Training Guide | Running with Dogs.

Maui Beach Dogs and Walking on Sunshine

What is your favorite thing to do with your dog on Maui?

There are so many things dogs can do on an island like Maui. This past weekend I went with a small group of two other dogs and their people on an outing.  A beach romp for the dogs, then off to a trail that led to the coolest blow holes by the ocean. Way cool stuff. And yes, we all were literally walking on sunshine.

Dogs Bring Out the Best In People

The fun part about it was the dogs and the fact that each of their people had spent enough time with their own dog that off leash recall was no problem. The dogs got to be dogs while maintaining good behavior and the people got to do their thing too, which mostly revolved around how much fun the dogs were having! It got everybody out to play.

And we all need to PLAY MORE!

Off Leash Recall

So how to you get your dog to come back to you no matter what?

It really comes down to repetition…. and knowing how your dog thinks and learns.  Repetition means time spent doing it over and over again. How dogs think and learn…… well, that’s where I excel in working with people. It s a concept that slips by easily because we are such multi-taskers as people.

Stay with the task each and every time and recall will become automatic.  Don’t try to call your dog to you from too far away when you start getting serious about teaching a solid “come here” every single time.  Take the time to get your dog to come to you from 3-7 feet away from you over and over and over again, before you even try to use the concept for 10, 20 or 30 feet.

When one starts understanding the fact that dogs learn in pictures rather than logic a whole new world opens up.   The new and fun things make having a dog as part of your own family the best thing in the whole wide world every single day and practicing fundamentals becomes fun, not daunting.

Upcoming Maui Dog Events

Poi Dog Contest Sept 2

Bring the family for an afternoon of fun by watching or entering your dog in the Poi Doggie Contest. This event offers a variety of canine-centric contest categories with prizes (for poi dogs only – nonpedigree, not purebred). Categories to be judged are: Best Dressed, Best Howl, Best Trick, Dog-Owner Look-Alike, Most Mixed Up and Stellar Senior (enter one category only for each dog; entry fee is $10 for contestants)

Cooking for Dogs Sept 29

Our dogs are dying way too early and we are finally bringing our dogs into the age of fitness and health as we people are realizing the best way to feel real good and to live our lives as long as possible enjoying each and everyday is through what we feed ourselves. Food truly is a drug. It can be good or bad.

Dogs have been hooked on a processed only diet for years. We’ve been lead down the road to believe it is the only way.

You are what your eat is not only true for you but your dog too.

Find out how real food can help with itching, scratching and licking issue as well as provide a diet that leaves your dog vibrant and living the good life for as long as possible. $10 for you and your dog!

Location TBA.  Join my Inbox to get updates on cooking for dogs classes.

Jt Clough lives in Maui, Hawaii and practices health, happiness, natural remedies for dogs and dog training. Her work at ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance is for people looking to live healthier and happier lives through their dogs and her passion for it has helped so many to find and do that thing they’ve been talking about or wishing to happen for so long. She is a dog whisperer for our best friends and studies natural dog remedies, nutrition and communication. Her latest publications are Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes and 5K Training Guide | Running with Dogs.

Home Cooked Dog Food

The latest round of dog food recalls left many whirling about what to do as a good dog food choice, considering many premium dog foods were on that list.  Most dog owners have come to believe the only thing to feed their dog is kibble.

When one really stops to think about it, dog food recalls aside, feeding only kibble may not be the healthiest diet for dogs. We’ve learned through our own diets that processed food has gotten us to obesity, diabetes, thyroid problems and a host of other unhealthy situations.

Yet, the thought that we feed our dogs an all processed diet and wonder why diabetes, cancer and obesity are on the rise to the tune of nearly 50% of our dogs has seriously been overlooked.

Dogs Need Nourishment Too

Dog nutrition has been sold to us by the media for the last couple of decades as “balanced” through kibble. In fact it has been sold to us so hard that most people actually believe the essential vitamins and minerals dogs need can only be attained through kibble.

It is true that dogs do have vitamin and mineral requirements but surely with a bit of balance in real food the notion that they can’t get the right nutrition without eating kibble is a little crazy really. We have been sold the notion to the point we believe and our dogs are suffering over it.

Time to get a little education on what to feed your dog to get real nutrition. It’s time our dog’s get something healthier than the McDoggie diets they have been existing on, that have actually been detrimental to their long term health.

What Vitamins and Minerals Dogs Need

*vetinfo.com list these essentials

Vitamins

Vitamin A– for maintaining healthy hair, skin, eyes, muscles, nerves and ovaries.

Vitamin C– for maintaining a healthy urinary tract.

Vitamin B- complex– for maintaining normal growth and energy levels.

Vitamin D– for proper nerve and bone formation and muscle function.

Vitamin E– for proper cell respiration, fat metabolism and hormone production.

Vitamin K– for maintaining normal blood functions, like clotting.

Minerals

Calcium and phosphorous– for healthy bone growth, blood coagulation, muscle contraction, and nerve impulse transmission.

Copper–for proper formation of bone, tissue, and cells.

Fatty acids–for proper function of body organs and control of allergies and inflammation.

Glucosamine and Chondroitin– for maintenance of healthy joints.

Iodine– for proper metabolism and thyroid function.

Iron– for proper function of red blood cells which transport oxygen.

Magnesium– for proper vitamin, mineral and enzyme use, bone development, and protein production.

Potassium– for maintaining healthy muscles and nerves, and proper fluid balance.

Selenium– for protection of cells as an antioxidant.

Sodium and chloride– working separately or together, as sodium chloride, for proper fluid balance, transfer of nutrients, elimination of cell waste.

Zinc– for maintaining healthy hair and skin.

Vitamins and minerals are essential for good health and as the trend goes for whole food and juicing for people, it only makes sense that our dogs would be much better off absorbing their vitamins and minerals from real food as well.

Homemade dog food doesn’t have to be a difficult thing. In fact it can not only become quite easy but is pretty much guaranteed to spur you to a better diet for yourself.

Making the Switch to Real Food for Your Dog

If you want to make the switch to better food and better health for your dog do it just like you would any new change for yourself.

Gradually.  Studies prove you have a way higher rate of success with gradual change, like 2 or 3 good meals a week instead of none.  Don’t try to suddenly switch to all their meals are homemade. You are sure to fail and give up.

You don’t have to take on becoming a doggie gourmet cook overnight. Nor do you have to cook for your dog every single day.

Start by getting an education on the good nutrition for your dog and begin making a few recipes while adding to your knowledge about how to best get the right vitamins and minerals to your dog.

Learning to add the right things to your dog’s diet can come over time as well.  *Join My Inbox if you’d like to get easy super food and supplement ideas using the very ingredients you would use while cooking your own food.

Home made Dog Food Tip

Calcium is a much needed mineral in a dog’s diet. The first thing we people think of as a calcium additive is milk. But guess what? It’s certainly not the best way to get calcium and feeding your dog loads of milk is not a good idea. Find out more about why milk is not a good source of calcium here: Healthy Alter Ego Milk

Here are two answers to adding calcium to your dog’s diet.

• Parsley

• Eggshells

Give your dog coconut oil every day! You can find recipes with coconut oil in Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes

• Anti bacterial

• Anti parasitic

• Anti inflammatory

Build your Dog Food Recipes and Health Dog Food Knowledge Base

If you’d like to get recipes and learn more about how to feed your dog for nourishment and health sign up for my ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance

Expect to get free dog food cooking recipes, notices on my dog food cooking classes, information on natural remedies for healing dogs and other good things for dogs periodically.

Please feel free to e-mail me with your questions and I’d love to hear if you have problems with itching, scratching and licking with your dog. Answer these three questions and I’ll be sure to get you the remedy report I’m working on right now.

As always, Mahalo for being a Maui Dog Remedies reader and take some time to have fun with your dog today!

Jt Clough lives in Maui, Hawaii and practices health, happiness, natural remedies and training for dogs and their people.  Her uncanny way of communication with both dogs and people is healing and her training is effective physically and emotionally. Her work at ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance is for people looking to live healthier and happier lives through their dogs and her passion for it has helped so many to find and do that thing they’ve been talking about or wishing to happen for so long. She is a dog whisperer for our best friends and studies natural dog remedies, nutrition and communication. Her latest publications are Treading for Dogs DVD, Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes and 5K Training Guide | Running with Dogs.

 

On Being Nice

“She was nice to me so I made something nice for her.”  ~Lucy Hanson

Oh the lessons we learn from children and dogs!  Hoku, a dog who came to my dog training retreat to work on some confidence spent a little time with my favorite little girl Lucy.  Lucy is only 5 years old but has the soul of a wise women.  Listen to her story about Hoku and apply it to who ever you are with today.

On Being Nice First ~ Just Like the Dog Wags Just Because

How many times has someone done something nice to you and you didn’t take the time to do something nice back?  Or how many times have you thought about doing something nice and that’s where it stopped.  You just thought about it.
This includes your dog’s ability to make you smile with the authentic joy of just seeing you come home, no matter what mood you arrive on the scene wearing.

Dogs give us great joy in their ability to except each day as it is and truly revel in moments of joy.  Take note and emulate the behavior. It will reward you greatly.

On Sharing with Others

Pay it forward.  As we receive blessings, of any kind, share those with others. That is the best “return on investment ” we can have.  Love and kindness are the biggest investment.  Do something good for someone, everyday, and the rewards will be much better than any interest rate on a bank account, and amazingly enough this will bring you the abundance you’ve desperately been trying to acquire.

Big Island Dog Beach Shack

This week at Big Island Dog Beach Shack at the Alii Gardens Marketplace Kailua, Kona Hawaii I’m offering a free dog food cooking class.  Our dogs are part of our family and their health and longevity become part of our own joy. *note sign up even if you aren’t in Hawaii, there will be video teaching true nourishment for dogs for you too!

For too long we’ve been excepting big dollar marketing in the dog world as absolute truth.  We’ve been told we MUST feed our dogs kibble because it contains the correct vitamins and minerals for a dog’s well being.  Never mind that there is no other nourishment in the processed food that many times comes from road kill, diseased animals and a whole lot of “meal” products from corn to we’re not sure what it is!  Even a premium dog food is processed, processed, processed and takes a toll over time on the liver.

Adding the right vitamins and minerals is really easy and real food is way more nourishing than any McDoggie kibble diet.

Sign up for my Dog Food Cooking Class and find out how to add things like calcium and omegas and coconut oil to your dog’s real food diet.

Do something nice for your dog since your dog is nice to you everyday!

Stop the itching, scratching, licking madness and increase the years your dog has with you.  Everyone will wag more!

*By the way, I’m VERY interested in your dog’s struggles with itching, scratching, licking, ear troubles, any of that.  Answer these three questions specific to your dog and I’ll send you information on how to best treat your dog using natural remedies.  Or tell me your story in the comments below!

Much Aloha to you and your dog.

Jt Clough lives on the Big Island, Hawaii, and practices health, happiness and natural remedies.  Her work at ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance is for people looking to live healthier and happier lives through their dogs and her passion for it has helped so many to find and do that thing they’ve been talking about/wishing to happen for so long.  She is a dog whisperer for our best friends and studies natural dog remedies, nutrition and communication.

 

Big Island Dog Beach Shack

July 5, 2012 Big Island Dog Beach Shack opened up!

Me and my dog Zelda opened up our dog training + natural remedies + dog themed jewelry store in Kailua Kona Hawaii at the Alii Gardens Marketplace.

We’ve been working on our remedies from our tropical home and connecting with people online and that’s been great. In fact I look forward to more of that. But Zelda and me needed to find a place where we could meet more dogs and their people… so here it is and we can’t wait for you to come and see us.

This month we’ve got a Dog Food Cooking Class on July 21. Come and check it out. More details on that later or, come join our inbox at ReVIBE | Dogs + Joy + Vibrance and get all the details.

Big Island Dog Beach Shack

Come kickstart your health and fitness program with K9 Cross Fitness or have some fun at a dog friendly marketplace in Kailua Kona with Dog Trick Training.

Come see our dog themed jewelry by Hawaii artist Barbara Hanson.

Come meet Zelda being her beautiful Weimaraner self as my partner at the store.

We’ll be happy to give you all kinds of tips on itching, scratching and licking and how dogs just want to be nourished with some good home made food and little coconut oil to top it off!

Aloha sandy wags,

Zelda & Jt

What You Seed Is What You Get

South Kona Green Market

My dog Zelda and I have been spending our Sundays at the South Kona Green Market. We are finding not only do we get to get our organic pumpkin noni coconut oil dog treats to other dogs who need it for itching, scratching and licking, but the experience of abundance with those that are becoming our friends who also have their goods at the market is more than a wonderful experience.

We’ve got some awesome Kona Coffee hand picked, sun dried and from our own home here on the Big Island of Hawaii as well.  And the dog themed jewelry by Barbara Hanson is the classy stuff dog ladies search for!  You can get it on Etsy if you don’t get to live or visit the Big Island!

The real impact of The Green Market came for me this week with observing and interacting with the people who were next me. They were a young couple with a 15 month old baby. They were selling plants, greens and vegetables from their organic farm.

Early on in the day people were buying their great looking plants and vegetables. They sold more than they thought they would all day in the first couple of hours. They were giving things away too. In abundance.

I believe that is why it was all coming back to them.

The guy’s name is Mason. He is tan and kissed by the sun, he is content, he is engaging. He had his family around him. He is inventive and full of knowledge.

For instance when they arrived and began to put up their pop up tent, like everyone has at the market, he realized he had no top to it packed with him. Only three sides. His plants were starting to wilt. He needed shade. So, he used some small pieces of rope he had with him and made a top with the 3 sides.

The way of thinking that has become the normal would have made this problem into a disaster. It would have been having to leave to go get the top and miss the morning customers.

A Different Perspective

It is what I am growing to love about many of the people I meet on the Big Island. Creative, inventive, and an attitude of abundance which usually is not about the kind of car you drive or the size of your home, or the number of clothes you have in your closet.

Mason, love the name because I’m really obsessed with Mason jars these days and the practicality to re-use for storage as well as glassware. We use them as our coffee mugs! Anyway, Mason was also full of huge knowledge he shared freely. He gardens and makes it simple. And he gets the most of food for his family and for the community around him.

He taught me parsley has huge calcium content. I did not know that and it’s one of those things that both women in their midlife years need good sources of, as well as dogs need in a whole food based diet.

There was a lot more tips and tidbits like beets and spirulina have huge iron in them. Some things I knew already, but the reminder is always helpful in a world where food can be so easily marketed to look good so we buy it, but may not have the nourishment we need in it.

Such great information. Good news for those taking care of adrenal and thyroid issues too.

Seed Positive Thoughts and Success will Bloom for You

The other thing I noticed was how the family interacted. They were having fun together the whole time. They were helping one another while they let their kid be a kid and taught her things at the same time. They exuded that they had enough, that they were happy, that they were living in abundance.

Another concept I’ve not lived around all that long. Our society is one where we don’t have enough, we need more money, we need more things, we need something else to be successful, to be happy.

It made me realize I have enough. I have abundance. Once again the lessons of the Big Island are what I was brought here for. I’ve always had these thoughts under it all, but the world wide marketing effect worked on my mind as it does most of us in the Western hemisphere. I have less stuff, by choice, than I have my entire adult life and I feel much more abundant.

How much is enough? What feels like abundance to you?  Please join the discussion on G+

Jt Clough lives on the Big Island, Hawaii, and practices health, happiness and natural remedies.  Her work at ReVIBE is for people looking to live healthier and happier lives and her passion for it has helped so many to find and do that thing they’ve been talking about/wishing to happen for so long.  She is a dog whisperer for our best friends and studies natural dog remedies, nutrition and communication.

Coconut Oil for Dogs (and Their People)

Coconut oil, even coconut oil for dogs, has been wrongly accused by most health care professionals who tell us to stay away from coconut oil and place in the artery clogging, saturated fat category next to animal fat.

How misleading that information has been. We’ve had such an obsession with fat that we’ve gone low fat, no fat, non fat for long enough to find out, it’s screwing up our ability to run well lubricated healthy lives! It’s true for our dogs as well.

The technical reasons why there is a big difference between animal and coconut saturated fat are fat that comes from animals is a long chain triglyceride, and coconut oil is a medium chain triglyceride or MCT. Coconut oil does not turn to trans fatty acids when heated or eaten raw by the way.

The real amazing thing about medium chain fatty acids are the healing properties it exhibits in improving metabolism, thyroid function, promotes weight loss and boosts energy.

Coconut Oil For Dogs

So why do these coconut oil facts apply to dogs too?

Well, like people our dogs diet and exercise habits have suffered over the past few decades. The diet being a huge issue. Think about it, when was the last time your dog ate something real? How many days in a row has your dog eaten a processed to death, coated in preservatives for flavor and shelf life meal?

Hmmm, and we wonder why our dogs are also overweight, getting diabetes, and acquiring thyroid problems?

Bottom line, improve your dog’s health with coconut oil.

7 Reasons to Feed Your Dog Coconut Oil

  1. Coconut oil prevents and treats yeast infections, including candida. The number one reason dogs are itching scratching and licking: candida.
  2. Coconut oil improves overall skin health, and clears up skin conditions. Dogs get flea allergies, contact dermatitis, hot spots, and generally a need to itch from internal candida.
  3. Applied topically to the skin, coconut oil promotes the healing of cuts, wounds, hot spots, bites, and stings.
  4. Coconut oil helps prevent diabetes by regulating and balancing insulin.
  5. Coconut oil promotes normal thyroid function.
  6. Coconut oil prevents infection.
  7. Coconut oil promotes weight reduction and increase energy, which promotes mobility in dogs with arthritis and other joint issues.

Feed your dog coconut oil every day. Start small. 1/2 teaspoon a day will do it. Start small dogs on 1/4 teaspoon per day.  Small dogs can work up to 1-2 teaspoons a day while larger dogs can go 3-4 teaspoons a day depending on the degree of health your dog started with and what you are treating.  Remember, something is better than nothing so a little dab a day is best if that is all you can do.

Looking for coconut oil ideas to add to your dogs diet?

Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes offers recipes which all include coconut oil. The added bonus in health benefits of pumpkin for a dog in each recipe too.

By the way, if this is resonating with you and your dog – you find yourself lacking support and tired of listening to the vet and or doctors suggest benadryl, antibiotics, or really bad dog food they get a kick back from selling/promoting – I just want you to know that I support you.

Subscribe to A Better Life Because of Your Dog and I’ll help however I can. If its healthy and it’s vibrant and brings joy I’d like more of that for you and for me and for our dogs.

Jt Clough practices health, happiness, natural remedies and training for dogs and their people.  Her uncanny way of communication with both dogs and people is healing and her training is effective physically and emotionally. She is has written the 5K Training Guide | Running with Dogs and Pumpkin Dog Food + Treats Recipes and is co-author of Treading for Dogs DVD

 

 

*Disclaimer:  I am not a medical professional – I just study, practice, read, live, breath natural remedies!  I’m not one to follow the normal which doesn’t seem to be working for most these days.  What you’ll read here is based on my research and experience and is not intended to diagnose or prescribe. Have fun, read as much as you can, do your own research and make smart choices for yourself!
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