Providing Your Animals With Safe Alternatives with Deb Gwynn

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In a time where young pets are being routinely diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses, more people are turning to holistic medicine and herbs for solutions. Despite homeopathy having centuries-old roots, herbalists and those who use alternative treatments for pets have become modern-day pioneers. One of these pioneers, Deb Gwynn, has dedicated her life to helping pets live healthy lives holistically.

“The pharmaceutical industry is failing us because there is no quality of life and no longevity – so to me, there is only one way to go,” says Gwynn. “Go natural.”

Gwynn, founder of Glacier Peak Holistics, has been at the forefront of the movement to go natural and has spent more than 20 years seeking safe, healthy alternative treatments for animals. She has been part of the shift toward encouraging healthy diets for animals and is known for creating a ground-breaking treatment for inflammation with herbs and minerals.

“Slowly but surely, people are finally seeing that, maybe the first place to look [when a pet is diagnosed with something] should be food, nutrition, alternative, and adjunct therapies that come from the earth and not from a petri dish,” says Gwynn.

Herbal Healing and Humble Beginnings

When Gwynn first began herbal healing, she owned a store that specialized in nutrition for pets and their people. She had several gallons of different herbs in her apothecary and knew that she could heal animals with what nature had provided – starting with a horse. Her horse had an issue called the “scratches” – essentially a fungus around the ankles which makes the legs become scabby and sore. Using 50 percent intellect and 50 percent intuition, she made a formula to help the horse. Within four days, the horse was back to great health and had pink skin and scabs falling off.

“It was amazing,” says Gwynn. “People had been trying to heal that particular issue with no luck for years.”

Thrilled with the success, Gwynn knew that this could help dogs and cats suffering from inflammation as well. So, she started selling it in her store. Suddenly, people from around the country were asking for it because animals were finding relief. She knew that it was time to sell her store and go into the healing business full throttle.

“The product was Inflapotion,” says Gwynn. “It’s been on the market ever since – it has changed so many dog’s lives and given them a quality of life. It helps them be puppies again. It is a systemic anti-inflammatory. Dogs, when they get older, can’t get up or walk up the stairs, but with this, people tell me their dog is like a puppy again. You see them come back to life because the inflammation has gone down.”

Mother Nature’s Medicine

One of the most important things for every pet parent to understand is the relationship between diet and inflammation. To help pet parents find the root of their specific pet’s issues, Gwynn’s company offers the Pet Wellness Life Stress Scan. Using the FDA approved method of bio feedback from hair and saliva, the test finds what is triggering sensitivities that are going on with the animal at the time that the sample was taken.

“We only look for what is stressing this body right now,” says Gwynn. “It can be foods or something else. For instance, starchy root vegetables like potatoes are used in kibble. Dogs don’t have amylase in their mouth, which is the key enzyme that breaks down starch. So, starch pools in the stomach and becomes the perfect environment to grow yeast. Once that happens, the immune system is triggered, and everything starts to fire off. Then it looks like the dog is allergic to a variety of things — but once you know the stressor you can eliminate it and get the animal back to balance. It doesn’t mean that will always be a trigger, just that something is out of balance that we have to get back.”

Diet is an oft ignored cause of many pet issues. If a pet is not on a raw diet, they may be more prone to yeast issues, allergies, and other inflammatory problems. It may seem overwhelming to switch to a healthier diet, but if we can feed ourselves on a budget, then we can feed our dogs. The idea that dogs need “dog food” is a myth, which Gwynn is passionate about disproving.

“Back in the 1950s, someone in marketing came up with the idea that you should never change your dog’s food or given them human food – and people bought it hook line and sinker,” says Gwynn. “And dogs have been paying for it ever since.”

If you must buy kibble, there are a few things to do. Read the label to make sure that the first ingredient is real meat and not meat meal. Feed enzymes in addition to the kibble and throw in some salad or some fresh food on top of kibble every day. You can also add Daily Defense, which is a full spectrum nutrition that can go directly onto a pet’s food to help them no matter what their diet.

“If someone says they just can just do one thing, we recommend getting the yeast under control with probiotics and gut flora in control, then deal with everything else,” says Gwynn.

Can you trust natural medicine?

Gwynn is used to skepticism when it comes to herbal healing, but the proof is in how your pet feels.

“When people ask for proof or research, I say that herbs have been used for thousands of years and were our first medicine,” says Gwynn. “Herbs have also been used as food, and herbalists say ‘let your medicine be your food and your food be your medicine’ – which is what is happening here. Animals in the wild know exactly what to eat.”

Understanding natural remedies does not have to be as cryptic as it seems. In fact, if you pay attention, nature will tell you what to do.

“Nature has a way of telling us what is safe with shapes,” says Gwynn. “For example, a wild yam is shaped like a woman’s body, and it is used for treating women’s issues. There are things like walnuts, which are shaped like a brain and which are the best brain food you can eat.”

With the right diet and herbal remedies, Gwynn hopes that pet parents will trust their, and their pet’s instincts and will be able to live long and healthy lives. Additionally, just like CBD, the herbal remedies Gwynn makes are safe for human consumption and are perfectly safe to use in conjunction with CBD Dog Health products.

To learn more about Glacier Peak Holistics, visit www.glacierpeakholistics.com. To learn more about CBD for dogs, visit www.angelaardolino.com.

About Angela Ardolino
Angela Ardolino is passionate about animals and has dedicated her life to providing all-natural relief to pets of all ages and breeds. Ardolino has worked with animals for over 20 years and operates Fire Flake Farm, a rescue farm in Lutz, FL. A medical cannabis expert, Ardolino holds a degree in the therapeutic uses of cannabis from the University of Vermont School of Medicine and is the founder of CBD Dog Health. Combining her background in broadcast journalism and her passion for pets, Ardolino is the host of a pet-centric podcast, “It’s a Dog’s Life” on Cannabis Radio. Additionally, she is the owner of Beautify the Beast, a natural pet salon and spa. Ardolino has five dogs and up to 10 residing on her farm who she is fostering or boarding. Visit www.AngelaArdolino.com and www.CBDDogHealth.com to learn more.

About Deb Gwynn

Deb Gwynn is the Pack Leader of Glacier Peak Holistics. Glacier Peak is dedicated to the health and wellness of your canine, feline, and equine companions. Each product in the Glacier Peak Holistics family has been crafted to support the health and well-being of your four-footed friends and to ensure their best quality of life, without compromising longevity.