Myth Busting for Our Pets: “Natural” Does NOT Equal Safe

Marty and Laura bust out on myths around “natural” products for our pets, whether they are useful, safe or actually hazardous.

“All the eucalyptus and citronella and lavender and whatever it is that you want to spray on your dog is not going to actually successfully prevent external parasites,” Laura asked.

“They may help a little bit,” Marty said, “but don’t forget just because it says natural doesn’t mean safe because there’s a lot of things that are natural that aren’t safe. Chocolate’s natural, it’s not safe for your dog. There are lots of things that we can put on our dogs or in our dogs that simply aren’t safe.

“Somewhere in the early ‘90s, ivermectin came to market as Heart Guard and it’s still on the market as Heart Guard and then there are some other newer ones that have come along that are in similar drug classes. Ivermectin was a mold found in the soil in Japan… So I think that’s pretty natural. It’s a mold from the soil. It’s not like somebody made this up in a laboratory. Now, of course they’ve synthesized it, but essentially that’s what it is. So, if you’re looking for something natural, ivermectin is great.

“The diseases that fleas carry, that ticks carry, heartworm, intestinal parasites, all of those are really bad diseases. If you’re looking at, well, you know, could I be OK if my dog got heartworm disease? Well, most dogs live through heartworm disease, but it’s thousands and thousands of dollars and it’s really hard in the dog.”

The Marty & Laura Show is produced by Pure Dog Talk Inc., with sound design and editing by Premium Audio Services.