Colostrum: It’s good for our best friends too!
from an article by: Henry Pasternak D.V.M.
Dr Henry Pasternak practices integrative veterinary medicine at Highlands Veterinary Hospital in Pacific Palisades California. He combines both modern western medicines with the best of holistic or complementary medicine to achieve a high degree of success with chronic degenerative disorders. He has successfully treated many cases in which specialists recommended euthanasia, or where they said they were unable to treat the animal.
I believe in integrative medicine. Some people are under the impression that you can’t use holistic treatment alongside western medicine and I maintain that is simply not true. I think western treatment, like antibiotics are better for acute problems, and I believe holistic treatments are much more effective with chronic conditions. I have been using colostrum in my business for a number of years. I have had dramatic success with it in a variety of conditions – ranging from autoimmune disorders, to skin conditions, to cancers. Our colostrum has been proven to work as effectively on all mammals tested. Our colostrum is an effective use on all kinds of our pet and zoological animals.
One patient that comes to mind is a two-year-old cat named Crystal. She has a history of asthma attacks that necessitated cortisone injections. The owner sought me out in an effort to reduce or eliminate the use of cortisone and its many harmful side effects. When Crystal was presented to me, she appeared to me of poor flesh with a dry and flaky hair coat. I immediately put Crystal on a natural cat food diet and colostrum. I asked the owner to return in two weeks for further evaluation. When Crystal returned, I noticed a more playful and active cat. With a noticeable improvement in both lung function and hair coat. Crystal continued to improve over time and no longer needed administrations of corticosteroids.
Another dramatic case was a five year-old Labrador named Jake. Every year in the spring and summer, Jake was plagued with allergies that caused intense itching. The owner was diligent by making certain to eliminate flea infestation. When I first saw Jake, he was missing patches of hair throughout his body, and seemed to have a lot of skin irritation. I immediately put Jake on a raw food diet, along with the colostrum and short-term antibiotics for his staphylococcus infection. When I saw Jake three weeks later, his itching had decreased by (at my estimate) 75%. I instructed the owner to continue the natural raw food diet and colostrum and to return in two weeks. When Jake returned, I notice that his coat was growing in nicely. He seemed much happier, and his pruritis (itching) had decreased by 95%. Jake was on his way to a complete and uneventful healing. He has no longer needed antihistamines or corticosteroids.
A third successful case is that of an eight-year old Siamese-mix cat named Sheba. She had an auto immune disease called plasmacytic stomatitis. The symptoms of this disease are chiefly painful, inflamed and infected gums. Stomatitis is most prevalent among purebred felines, especially Siamese. Sheba had a compromising immune system, and antibiotics and steroids brought only temporary symptomatic relief. When Sheba came to see me, she was emaciated with dry, flaky, and dull hair coat. Her mouth was extremely painful to the touch. I immediately put her on a natural raw diet and colostrum, with instructions to return in one month. When Sheba returned for a recheck, she had gained weight and had much nicer hair coat and less painful gums. Sheba continued to improve with out the use of antibiotics or steroids. I use colostrum in my practice mainly to modulate imbalances in the immune system. Although it hasn’t yet been proven, I believe that colostrum may possibly help rebalance the helper-T-cells. Helper-T-cells are one of many types of immune cells in the category of white blood cells called lymphocytes. There are several types of helper-T-cells but the ones that colostrum seems to support are the helper T-1 and T-1 1 cells. There needs to be more research in this area, but it seems there may be some components of colostrum that help to regulate these key immune components.
From the results I have seen in my practice, I think colostrum is beneficial for anyone dealing with pet conditions such as allergies, asthma, skin problems, cancer, autoimmune disorders- and basically any problem relating to supporting and balancing the animal immune system. For cats, I suggest one capsule a day. For dogs, dosage should depend on there size. Under 25 lbs., I suggest one capsule a day. Two capsules can be used up to 75 lbs., and three or four capsules a day can be used over 75 lbs. I usually recommend sprinkling the colostrum powder on the animal’s food. If you have purchased colostrum in powder form, assume a capsule to be roughly equivalent to one half teaspoon. Many dogs will swallow a whole capsule in their food. Many cats will drink the powder in their water or sprinkled on their food. Basically use whatever works!
Dr Henry Pasternak practices integrative veterinary medicine at Highlands Veterinary Hospital in Pacific Palisades California. He combines both modern western medicines with the best of holistic or complementary medicine to achieve a high degree of success with chronic degenerative disorders. He has successfully treated many cases in which specialists recommended euthanasia, or where they said they were unable to treat the animal.
I believe in integrative medicine. Some people are under the impression that you can’t use holistic treatment alongside western medicine and I maintain that is simply not true. I think western treatment, like antibiotics are better for acute problems, and I believe holistic treatments are much more effective with chronic conditions. I have been using colostrum in my business for a number of years. I have had dramatic success with it in a variety of conditions – ranging from autoimmune disorders, to skin conditions, to cancers. Our colostrum has been proven to work as effectively on all mammals tested. Our colostrum is an effective use on all kinds of our pet and zoological animals.
One patient that comes to mind is a two-year-old cat named Crystal. She has a history of asthma attacks that necessitated cortisone injections. The owner sought me out in an effort to reduce or eliminate the use of cortisone and its many harmful side effects. When Crystal was presented to me, she appeared to me of poor flesh with a dry and flaky hair coat. I immediately put Crystal on a natural cat food diet and colostrum. I asked the owner to return in two weeks for further evaluation. When Crystal returned, I noticed a more playful and active cat. With a noticeable improvement in both lung function and hair coat. Crystal continued to improve over time and no longer needed administrations of corticosteroids.
Another dramatic case was a five year-old Labrador named Jake. Every year in the spring and summer, Jake was plagued with allergies that caused intense itching. The owner was diligent by making certain to eliminate flea infestation. When I first saw Jake, he was missing patches of hair throughout his body, and seemed to have a lot of skin irritation. I immediately put Jake on a raw food diet, along with the colostrum and short-term antibiotics for his staphylococcus infection. When I saw Jake three weeks later, his itching had decreased by (at my estimate) 75%. I instructed the owner to continue the natural raw food diet and colostrum and to return in two weeks. When Jake returned, I notice that his coat was growing in nicely. He seemed much happier, and his pruritis (itching) had decreased by 95%. Jake was on his way to a complete and uneventful healing. He has no longer needed antihistamines or corticosteroids.
A third successful case is that of an eight-year old Siamese-mix cat named Sheba. She had an auto immune disease called plasmacytic stomatitis. The symptoms of this disease are chiefly painful, inflamed and infected gums. Stomatitis is most prevalent among purebred felines, especially Siamese. Sheba had a compromising immune system, and antibiotics and steroids brought only temporary symptomatic relief. When Sheba came to see me, she was emaciated with dry, flaky, and dull hair coat. Her mouth was extremely painful to the touch. I immediately put her on a natural raw diet and colostrum, with instructions to return in one month. When Sheba returned for a recheck, she had gained weight and had much nicer hair coat and less painful gums. Sheba continued to improve with out the use of antibiotics or steroids. I use colostrum in my practice mainly to modulate imbalances in the immune system. Although it hasn’t yet been proven, I believe that colostrum may possibly help rebalance the helper-T-cells. Helper-T-cells are one of many types of immune cells in the category of white blood cells called lymphocytes. There are several types of helper-T-cells but the ones that colostrum seems to support are the helper T-1 and T-1 1 cells. There needs to be more research in this area, but it seems there may be some components of colostrum that help to regulate these key immune components.
From the results I have seen in my practice, I think colostrum is beneficial for anyone dealing with pet conditions such as allergies, asthma, skin problems, cancer, autoimmune disorders- and basically any problem relating to supporting and balancing the animal immune system. For cats, I suggest one capsule a day. For dogs, dosage should depend on there size. Under 25 lbs., I suggest one capsule a day. Two capsules can be used up to 75 lbs., and three or four capsules a day can be used over 75 lbs. I usually recommend sprinkling the colostrum powder on the animal’s food. If you have purchased colostrum in powder form, assume a capsule to be roughly equivalent to one half teaspoon. Many dogs will swallow a whole capsule in their food. Many cats will drink the powder in their water or sprinkled on their food. Basically use whatever works!