photo credit: kindofadraag

Excerpt From HealthyPet Newsletter Dr Jane Bicks:

This month I would like to touch on the immune system because it is very important to your companion animal’s health and longevity. You probably know that a strong immune system is essential, but what is it and how does it work?

The immune system is made up of a complex and integrated arrangement of organs, tissues, white blood cells and antibodies. The system works by protecting the body from potentially harmful bacteria, microbes, viruses, toxins and parasites … fighting disease, infections and various pathogens. Although I could go on and on talking about this highly complex system, I would like to highlight two vital aspects of the immune system: antioxidants and the G.A.L.T.
best dog food, Supplements and Healthy Treats,

Antioxidants are the most commonly discussed nutrients in relation to the immune system because they protect the body by destroying harmful substances known as free radicals. Free radicals are formed inside the body as a by-product of metabolism and also in response to environmental elements, like exposure to ultraviolet light, air pollution, etc. In order to support healthy immune function, it is vital that your pet gets enough antioxidants to disarm harmful free radicals.

Fruits, vegetables and grasses are full of powerful antioxidants. Actually, I believe that Life’s Abundance Premium Health Food was one of the first brands to include antioxidants from whole foods. Dogs and cats need antioxidants from a wide variety of foods, including squash, zucchini, rice germ, flax seed meal, herbs, liver, and natural vitamin E. You can give your dog apples, pears and other fruits. Fresh veggies work well for dogs and occasionally for cats. I have a cat that carries raw string beans in her mouth and howls as though it is something important, and eventually eats most of it.

Another critical part of the immune system is found in the intestines or the Gut Associated Lymphoid Tissue (G.A.L.T.), which communicates with the immune cells located throughout the body. In some respects, the G.A.L.T. is the first line of defense in the body. That’s why Life’s Abundance foods and other HealthyPetNet products contain a special fiber and mix of friendly bacteria to support intestinal health.

We all want the very best for our beloved animals. We should feel fortunate to live in a time when breakthroughs in medical research help us to help them live longer and happier lives. Thanks to the solid research we now have regarding immune and GI health, we are pleased to bring you a truly superior line of food, treat and supplement products for your companion animals. To better health for all dogs and cats!

Dr. Jane Bicks

photo credit: phobexyz

January is traditionally a time when people pay more attention to their bodies, intentionally eat fewer calories and make healthier food choices.

This is also a great time to develop better habits for your canine companion. Just like in humans, obesity is rampant in America’s pet population. When dogs carry too much weight they place an extra strain on all their organs, and they can be at an increased risk for diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure and pancreatitis. Unsurprisingly, excess weight gain can interfere with a pet’s quality of life and actually shorten their life span.

Life’s Abundance Weight-Loss Formula
is veterinarian-formulated to help
your dog lose weight and maintain optimum health.

Fortunately, dogs respond very well to simple weight-loss programs. By increasing your pet’s exercise and reducing the amount of calories he or she eats, you can help reduce your pet’s weight and the risk of health problems associated with obesity.

But how do you determine whether or not your dog is overweight? And, if your dog is overweight, what can you do about it? In this short video, Dr. Sarah shows you how to learn if your dog is carrying too much weight, and gives advice on how to help your dog shed unwanted pounds.

Do you really know what’s in your pet’s food?
Watch the “onsite Video”

An excerpt from HealthyPetNet Newsletter. I am proud to be a HealthyPetNet Rep…  Read on from Dr Jane Bicks!

I’ve spent a lifetime working to educate our customers and the public to become aware of one simple notion – that nutrition is the foundation of life.

In my years formulating products at HealthyPetNet, I’ve done my utmost to create foods, supplements and treats that help to establish and maintain this groundwork for vitality and better health.

As a holistic veterinarian, my nutritional philosophy differs from those of some competing pet food manufacturers. To understand my mindset, and why I feel so strongly that Life’s Abundance foods help to fulfill what I view as our greatest responsibility as pet parents, I’d like to share some basic information for context.

Our companion animals depend on us to provide for their every need; so, in a sense, making sure that they get the nutrition they need to not only live but to thrive is perhaps our greatest responsibility as pet parents. The food you choose to feed your beloved pet needs to supply much-needed proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and other crucial nutrients. These vital ingredients will help them grow when they are young and to maintain health through their hopefully long adult years.

Most pet foods are made based upon formulas that, at least in purely technical terms, fulfill the generally accepted nutritional requirements, which are then labeled “complete” or “balanced diets”. Shockingly, some of these pet foods use unsavory sources for their “nutrients”, including diseased cattle and animals killed in automobile accidents (aka “roadkill”) including deer, opossums, birds and perhaps most disturbingly, dogs and cats. Of course, you won’t find any of these upsetting sources listed on any labels.

Over the years I’ve seen hundreds of undernourished puppies and kittens – whose ears, skin and intestinal tracts are in various stages of decline – all of whom ate regularly. I’ve also seen far too many middle-aged cats and dogs on these diets pass general examinations but lack energy, have dull eyes, have disagreeable temperaments, experience urinary tract issues, and suffer with skin and coat conditions.

On the positive side, I’ve also witnessed dogs and cats responding positively when they eat a diet with wholesome foods and high levels of nutrients, having the effect of improving health and shoring up immune systems. Creating Life’s Abundance Premium Health Food has been one of the great pleasures of my life, and that feeling is reinforced every time I read testimonials from customers who are overjoyed by the difference our original formulas have made in their pets’ lives.

Before I reveal more about the philosophy behind the original formulas of Life’s Abundance, I want to address a growing epidemic in America … obesity in companion animals. It’s not uncommon for pets who consume poor-quality foods to be overweight, especially when they are free-fed. These poor creatures are literally starving for the nutrients their bodies require, and so they eat and eat and eat. Because they’re eating the same food every day, without the nutrition they need to thrive, they pack on pounds, and probably feel miserable, too. That’s exactly why, in addition to my original Life’s Abundance formulas (one for dogs and one for cats), I created Weight-Loss Formula … to help dogs trim unwanted pounds and maintain a healthy weight, as naturally as possible.

I know from my professional experiences that for any food to deliver the nutrients necessary to support optimal health, it must be formulated based upon different standards. As my professional peers will tell you, I have extremely high standards when it comes to the foods we feed our dearest companions. These higher standards must take into account the actual physiology of dogs and cats in addition to accepted nutritional requirements.

Just like humans, dogs and cats are complex organisms. At HealthyPetNet, we believe that a pet’s food must nourish every part of their bodies. That’s why we’ve included such a broad spectrum of nutrients, where every ingredient is selected to enhance specific parts of the body. The resulting balance of ingredients is combined in a very particular way, which becomes our premium formula – each ingredient working with the others to fulfill the myriad needs of dogs and cats. And believe me, there are numerous needs to fill!

When formulating Life’s Abundance, I selected ingredients to support all of the important bodily structures and functions. Explaining all of the elements of these three formulas would be so extensive, it would fill up a book! So, to illustrate the amount of work that goes into formulation, I want to highlight one problem area and how Life’s Abundance Premium Health Food for Puppies & Adult Dogs addresses it. In this post, I want to touch on skin and coat health, since biting and scratching are among the top reasons pet parents take their companion animals to the vet.

Protein is crucial for skin and coat health – especially for puppies and seniors – so I selected highly-digestible, superior-quality proteins, putting in exactly the amounts that both young and old require for optimal skin and coat health. We also added flaxseed meal because it includes proteins that meats don’t have and antioxidants which the skin needs for optimal health. Not only that, but flaxseed meal contains a nice mixture of B vitamins and oil.

We added omega-3 fatty acids (from fish oil), as numerous studies have shown it’s essential to skin health. As well as addressing the direct requirements of skin and coat, we included ingredients to help support the immune system, a must for the healthiest possible skin.

Life’s Abundance also features a proprietary blend of vitamins and minerals , which includes easily-absorbed minerals that work to improve the effectiveness of antioxidants (for instance, the skin attracts zinc, making zinc a great “delivery vehicle” of antioxidants). And since one of the largest immune organs is located in the gut (GALT), several ingredients were selected to provide nourishment for this important immune organ.

I hope that you can see the importance of building a food based on the physiology of our precious companions. I truly believe that Life’s Abundance represents the ultimate pet food, with all the ingredients necessary to help your companion animals live long, healthy and happy lives.
For all of you already feeding Life’s Abundance, I thank you for being responsible pet parents, and for being agents of positive change in the lives of your companion animals.

Warmest wishes,
Dr. Jane Bicks, DVM
HealthyPetNet Product Formulator

Why Choose Life’s Abundance?

Because YOUR dog and cat is worth it!

For the most part, your dog eats the same food every day. That is why carefully choosing a food is so important to your dog’s long-term health.

For nearly a decade, tens of thousands of dogs have been eating and thriving on Life’s Abundance foods. We attribute this success to our painstaking attention to detail. Each ingredient in Life’s Abundance food is carefully chosen to work with all the others to provide your dog with a wholesome, highly-nutritious and perfectly-balanced meal every day, every year … over a long and loving lifetime.

My Nikki….that sunshine looks so good right now.  We are in a cold temperature alert.  Sunshine and warmth; I can almost feel it.

Dr. Jane Bicks, DVM
HealthyPetNet Veterinarian Formulator

For years I’ve been working to persuade countless people to recognize one simple notion – that nutrition is the foundation of life. In my years at HealthyPetNet, I’ve done my utmost to formulate foods and treats that help to establish and maintain this important foundation. Our companion animals depend on us to provide much-needed proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and other crucial nutrients – to help them grow when they are young and to maintain health through their hopefully long adult years.

Many pet foods are made based upon formulas that, at least on paper, fulfill the generally accepted nutritional requirements, which are then labeled “complete” or “balanced diets”. As a veterinarian, my nutritional philosophy differs from that of most pet food manufacturers.

Over the years I’ve seen hundreds of undernourished puppies and kittens, whose ears, skin and intestinal tracts are in various stages of decline. I’ve also witnessed them respond positively to increased consumption of nutrients and whole foods, having the effect of improving their health and shoring up their immune systems. I’ve also seen far too many middle-aged cats and dogs on these diets pass general examinations but lack energy, have dull eyes, are disagreeable, experience urinary tract issues, suffer with skin and coat conditions. I know from these professional experiences that for a food to be truly nutritional, it must be formulated based upon different standards. These higher standards must take into account the actual physiology of dogs and cats in addition to accepted nutritional requirements.

Dogs and cats are complex organisms. At HealthyPetNet, we believe that a pet’s food must address all the many aspects of their bodies and chemistries. That’s why we’ve included such a broad spectrum of nutrients – every ingredient in Life’s Abundance is selected to enhance specific parts of the body. The resulting balance of ingredients is combined in a very particular way, which becomes our holistic formula — each ingredient working with the others to fulfill the needs of every dog and cat.

And believe me, there are many needs to fill! For example, some dogs have skin problems and others do not. It is heartbreaking to see a dog, or cat, scratch excessively and bite, further damaging their skin.

When formulating Life’s Abundance, I selected ingredients to support all of the important bodily structures and functions. However, I would like to touch on skin and coat health since biting and scratching are among the top reasons pet parents take their companion animals to the vet. Protein is crucial – especially for puppies and seniors – so I selected highly-digestible, superior-quality proteins, putting in exactly the amounts that both young and old require for optimal skin and coat health. We also added flaxseed meal because it includes proteins that meats don’t have and antioxidants which the skin needs for optimal health. Not only that, but flaxseed meal contains a nice mixture of B vitamins and oil. We added Omega-3 fatty acids (from fish oil), as numerous studies have shown it’s essential to skin health. As well as addressing the direct requirements of skin and coat, we included ingredients to help enhance the immune system, a must for the healthiest possible skin. Life’s Abundance has numerous vegetables because they contain a wide array of antioxidants. Special easily-absorbed minerals were also added because minerals work to improve the effectiveness of antioxidants (skin just loves zinc). And since one of the largest immune organs is located in the gut (GALT), several ingredients were selected to provide nourishment for this important immune organ.

I hope that you can see the importance of building a food based on the physiology of our precious companions. I truly believe that Life’s Abundance represents the ultimate holistic pet food, with all the ingredients necessary to help companion animals live long, healthy and happy lives.

For all of you already feeding Life’s Abundance, I thank you for being responsible pet parents, and for being agents of positive change in the lives of your companion animals.

Warmest wishes,
Dr. Jane Bicks