I started adding Chinese herbs to my dogs' diet when Sydney was diagnosed with cancer. The herbs didn't help her because she became very picky about her food. Thankfully, Scout is happy to eat his herbal blends as long as it means he gets to eat.
The following are the herbs I'm giving to Rodrigo and Scout.
WHY I GIVE MY DOGS CHINESE HERBS
Cancer inspired me to start looking into Chinese Herbs and what I learned showed me that Rodrigo would benefit too.
All of the herbs listed above are effective against cancer, specifically lymphoma. They stimulate apoptosis (cell death) in cancer cells. The reason they are great for dogs with canine lymphoma is because they also have anti-inflammatory benefits. Specifically the Si Miao San, which I now add to Rodrigo's diet for his arthritis.
HOW MUCH I GIVE TO MY DOGS
Each herbal blend comes with a dosage recommendation, which I follow for two weeks. If I don't see an improvement, I slightly increase the dosage until I see a difference. In my experience, it takes about a month to figure out the right dosage for each dog.
- Xiao Chai Hu Tang - 1-1/2 tsp, once daily
- Modified Hoxsey with Boneset - 1-1/2 tsp, twice daily
- Si Miao San - 1-1/2 tsp, twice daily
I started each of my dogs at a low dosage and slowly increased the amount to the recommended dosage.
HOW LONG IT TAKES TO WORK
I've read that some dogs show a change immediately. That wasn't my experience. It takes a few weeks for the herbs to show a noticeable impact. With Scout, I believe that the herbs and other supplements kept him in remission for a lot longer than what his oncologist expected.
With Rodrigo, I saw slow changes start after a week on the herbs. He became more active, he was licking his joints less, and this past weekend, he started chasing Apollo, our youngest.
SIDE EFFECTS OF CHINESE HERBS
There could be side effects when using Chinese herbs. For instance, in some dogs, the herbs can cause digestive upset. I haven't seen any noticeable side effects in either of my dogs.
Rodrigo isn't a fan of the herbs so I mix an air-dried organ blend into his food. I get the blend from
Real Dog Box (it's in their Secret Shop for subscribers).
LEARN MORE ABOUT CHINESE HERBS
There are a lot of resources available online. I do the bulk of my reading on a website managed by a veterinarian who produces the herbs and sells them on Etsy:
The website is easy to follow and has a lot of information about pet cancer. The author explains the details of her herbal blends, including which herbs she adds.
I'm working on a more detailed post for
Patreon next week.
