Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts

August 17, 2008

Dogtown redoo, or ale and tail again

By winecountrydog

I'm a Welsh Corgi who drinks beer so that I can relax and sleep without taking much heavy-duty doggie medication. (Lagunitas Dogtown Pale Ale and Mendocino Red Tail Ale are two of my favs.)

Me, Tilin Corgi, feeling yelpy and shakyHumans around the U.S. are going nutz over my being a beer-drinking dog after I paw-wrote about it. Some humans are howlin' more about my drinking than about the underwhelming news from the McCain – Obama campaigns.

I want you to understand that I drink beer for my tail — that being the end where my painful spasms radiate and make my back legs shaky and weak.

First, allow me to quote a certain veterinary professional, whose name I'll be yappy to provide you via email:

The folks who get irate about dogs getting beer, etc., are mad because of the numbnuts that use alcohol to intoxicate their pets for amusement — just to see them staggering around and falling down the stairs. I get pretty mad about that too. Sipping just enough to relax you so you can sleep better is a whole different story — like the difference between someone who enjoys a glass of wine at dinner vs. someone who drinks himself into an early death from liver disease.
This veterinarian also points out that "most medications, and even many vitamins and minerals, are poisons if taken incorrectly." Smart dogs will consult their vets before taking any kind of med or supplement — including beer.

Tell your vet which beer product you're looking to drink. You don't want, for exmple, a stout that's made with real chocolate, toxic to canines. Such is the case with Breakfast Stout from Founders Brewing Co. It's a lovely drink fur humans. But, like many stouts, it's brewed with chocolates and not good fur dogs.

A word to the wise dog should be sufficient here.

A pro-hops southern Oregon herbalist and animal lover reminds us that hops are a nerve tonic for many animals as well as humans. We're experimenting with recipes that use hops to provide nervine benefit.

We see that hops are helpful to horses, too, as Horsetalk NZ writer Robert McDowell explains. Here's a snippet from his "Nerve Tonics" piece.
There is a class of herbs called 'nervines' — herbs that have specific actions on the nervous system. Many of the nervines contain high levels of magnesium phosphate — a mineral that has been found to be very important to the health and well-being of nerves. Different nervines nourish different aspects of the nervous system; the job of the herbalist is to identify the nervine(s) that will suit a particular sort of nervous system.

There are around a dozen nervines that apply to humans, but there are four main nervines — Valerian, Vervain, Chamomile, and Hops — that apply to horses.
I wonder whether hops are in the diet of famous Welsh horse twins Bill and Ben — the world's oldest equine twins.

Welsh equine twins Bill and Ben
You can read about Bill and Ben in the Horsetalk NZ July 2008 piece "Celebrity twins chalk up a quarter century." You can also visit the celebrity duo at Veteran Horse Centre at St Dogmaels, Cardigan, West Wales.

Remember now, if you have serious spasms, take a bit of beer before walkies.

My previous "ale for tail" article is Dogtown days of summer.

August 9, 2008

Music to a cat's ears

I've got cat stuff on the dogbrain 'cuz I've been dreamin' about cats.

My recent nights are restless. I keep wakin' up scratchin' an itch I can't reach. I itch 'cuz I roll in the dust every day. I'm addicted to summer rolling. Dog-ma's so annoyed she's gonna send me to doggy 12 steps.

Anyway, I dreamed I invented a cat toy. I howl a laugh at the thought. Why would I invent a cat toy? . . . My dogbrain works in funny ways.

Too bad I can't remember the dream clearly enough to make the toy. My young Ani Siamese would love to tear it apart and use the stuffing in one of her sculptures. Ani's a Neo-Synthesist artist working in sculpture and watercolor.

Artistic Ani sometimes dances with our dog-ma — who's obviously also cat-ma.

Ani discovered dancing serendipitously. She was cradled in dog-ma's right arm one evening, her paws in the palm of dog-ma's outstretched left hand. Dog-ma stood up and gently rocked Ani to the beat of a bluesy rockabilly tune. I was so surprised Ani didn't tell dog-ma she's crazy and make an escape. Nope. Ani liked it.

Who woulda thunk it? Music to a cat's ears.

Ani and dog-ma danced today to Carolyn Wonderland's "Miss Understood." Adolescent Ani identifies with the song title.

Another sound that's music to this Ani's ears is the whir of a blender. Ani does a solo dance on the counter when she hears it.

my Ani Siamese, lover of prey-model smoothies and veggies - not tomatoes actually
Dog-ma makes cat-a-licious smoothies. The combos vary. But they're always nutritious — based on a "prey model" diet, which include meat, bone, and offal in varying proportions.

Apawlogies to vegan humans, but we dogs and cats are still carnivorous.

If it were up to Ani, she'd eat raw liver by the pound, but dog-ma insists on "prey model" nutritional balance. It's great for dog-ma when she can use Primal Pet Foods raw frozen Chicken Grind 'cuz it's got bone, meat, and offal already ground up extra-fine — 3/16-inch grind — just purrfect for cat smoothies!

Sometimes dog-ma adds Ani's favorite veggies and herbs, too. I recall that Ani likes parsley.

Of course, the best cat herb is also the all-time best cat toy: The mint family herb Nepeta cataria: catnip!

cat-delicious catnip, aka catmint, plants
Catnip is a most exciting cat toy. You don't need to put it in a smoothie. Just sprinkle some nice, organic, locally-grown catnip on an old cat toy or on the floor. The whole floor will turn into a toy!

Why spend a lot of money on a cat toy that's fancier than a cat can appreciate? You humans can't beat the return on investment in catnip. Save your money for highest-quality pet foods. . . . Now, that's music to dog-ma's ears.

July 18, 2008

Sequim 'summer event of the senses'

There's so much blooming lavender in Sequim, Washington, that Google Earth shows a big purple spot where the Olympic Peninsula used to be.

At the annual Sequim Lavender Festival, you can get your own piece of the purple haze.

The 12th annual festival is being held July 18–20, 2008. The Street Fair boasts many freshly-harvested lavender varieties as well as wonderful locally-made lavender products and other herbal products. Nice culinary products include those by Cedarbrook Lavender & Herb Farm. For pet products, check out Moosedreams Lavender Farms' Full Moon Dog and Full Tilt Tabby.

There are art and crafts vendors, music, food booths, and a wine and beer garden. You'll find some other farm crops and goods for sale, too. Find Leeon of Angel Farms lavender and ask him about his goldenseal.

The list of lavender goodies and other wonderful things goes on and on. You might need some of Mike Reichner's lavender-infused coffee to keep you on your nose for the whole weekend.

The Farm Tours will dazzle your senses.

Dog-ma says Sequim's a great place to talk to growers and learn the difference between lavender cultivars. By the time the festival's over, you'll be able to tell a Lavandin from an angustifolia, maybe even a Grosso from a Hidcote . . . if you don't overdo the Deschutes ale or the Olympic Peninsula wines.

Attention, you dogs: You'll have to let your humans do the Street Fair while you hang out at Olympic Gentle Paws' dog-sitting area on 2nd Avenue in Sequim, near the Farm Tours bus stop. If you make your people feel guilty enough about leaving you, they might bring you back some lavender-grilled chicken, salmon, or prawns.

Credit for photos: Sequim Lavender Festival