The biggest hoax of the 20th century

Dear Dr. Fox: In your reply to a letter concerning animal food in a recent column, you asked: "Do you buy organically certified food, which contains more nutrients than conventional meat, poultry, vegetables and cereals?"

I would like very much to see scientific documentation for this statement. Could you please send me reprints of the scientific journal articles with this type of documentation? If you do not have the articles, please provide me with this type of documentation so I can find the data myself. Thank you for your consideration.

-- A.O., Silver Spring, Md.

Dear A.O.: The petrochemical, pharmaceutical and agribusiness industrial complexes play into our fears, insisting that without using artificial fertilizers, pesticides and hybrid/genetically engineered seeds, millions will starve. This is, arguably, the biggest hoax of the 20th century that is finally being seen for what it is. What pesticides and genetically engineered crops are doing to the environment would be seen as crimes against nature and humanity by a more informed society.

Supporting organic, sustainable and humane farming practices is an ethical imperative. For details, visit my Web site, www.doctormwfox.org.

Dear Dr. Fox: I've adopted a 3-year-old small terrier, and she is all terror. Maxine is terrified of sudden noises, traveling in the car and is spooked around strangers. She has not improved much over the two months we've had her. Any advice would be appreciated.

-- R.E., Washington, D.C.

Dear R.E.: Good for you for choosing to adopt a mature dog. Too many people go for just the puppies, wanting something cute from the animal shelter.

You should call the shelter for background information, her former owners and why she was put up for adoption or destruction. This may help you modify her fear and paranoia through appropriate training/behavioral therapy. You may want to consider help from an animal-behavior consultant referred by your veterinarian.

Before opting for Valium or Xanax, put your dog on a natural, whole-food diet free of artificial dyes and chemical food additives.

Ask your veterinarian to provide you with a supply of dog-appeasing pheromone, which has helped other dogs suffering from emotional problems similar to your little terrier. Spraying the interior of the car with lavender oil may help calm her.

Car sickness can be alleviated by hiding a little ginger in a treat or by soaking a few drops of ginger oil in a cloth you hang in the car. Even inhaling the ginger can help alleviate motion sickness.

Dear Dr. Fox: I have a 1-year-old, very affectionate, red tabby, flat-faced Persian who was purchased from a breeder when he was 6-1/2 months old. He is neutered but not declawed. I was told he would probably be a large cat, as his mother was quite large. He weighed a bit over 6 pounds when I first brought him home. Now, at 14 months, he weighs more than 11 pounds, is roly-poly, flops around and sprawls fat-belly-up (he loves to have that blubber belly rubbed). He also plays like a whirlwind. But he is always hungry. I can't determine if he's still growing or if he's just a glutton.

We visited our vet about this and were advised to keep his weight down by switching from Science Diet Nature's Best dry food to Science Diet Light and keep him on the Natural Choice moist (about 1/2 packet a day). We did so and, in one week, he lost 1/2 a pound, was listless, stopped playing and ignored his food. I felt that much loss in one week was too much, so I began mixing the two dry foods together but giving him less.

He eats everything in sight and begs for more. He is underfoot whenever he hears me in the kitchen. He just seems constantly hungry. If I ignore him (which is rather hard to do), he will go back to whatever he was doing.

I don't want him to be obese and vulnerable to heart, diabetes or thyroid problems. I would certainly welcome some insight and suggestions.

-- B.A.T., Reston, Va.

Dear B.A.T.: Your letter is important for many cat owners who face a similar problem. Cats who are constantly hungry (often because the weight-reduction diet they have been placed on is deficient in essential nutrients) are at risk from a variety of serious health problems. The high cereal content of her present diet is absurd.

My home-prepared cat-food recipe would be a good first step to transition your cat from what she is being fed now to the kind of raw food diet advocated by feline specialist Elizabeth Hodgkins in her book "Your Cat" (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007).

To order Dr. Michael W. Fox's newsletter, Animal Doctor, on providing the best care for your animal companion, send a check or money order for $2 and a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope to Newsletter, P.O. Box 167, Wickliffe, OH 44092. Send your questions to Dr. Fox in care of this newspaper. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.