Herbal Wisdom for Furry Friends

Hello co-op friends,

While it has been crazy hot recently, I am so happy to see and feel summer time! We had such a cool and wet spring, I am so grateful to have the solstice bring in the warmth that so many of our plants need. I love the southern summers, the sounds of the frogs and bugs, watching the fireflies wake each evening and lift into the trees. Twinkling and mating through the night. I just read that we are most likely the last generation to have lightning bugs. I cannot imagine a summer sky without them. I leave a bit of my yard and garden wild to nurture pollinators and create habitat for these magical creatures. Small things matter, I think. 

July 2025 Health and Body Care Update

So much to share in the land of health and body care! Sadly, we are losing another favorite brand. Health Force Superfoods has recently announced that they are closing shop. Many of us have loved and used their products for years, most popular being their Vitamineral Green product. I am currently searching for a replacement brand, so stay tuned. If you love their products, stock up now. While I hope to get another order in before the final call, I am not sure if they have more product to ship, so what we currently have may be it. Their first product, and one of my favorites, was Green Mush, a pet greens supplement. I have had 6 pets on this supplement over the course of a couple of decades. It includes spirulina, chlorella, nopal, seaweeds, enzymes, nettles, and more. I will definitely be blending my own version of it going forward as I believe that it has helped the health of my pets tremendously. It did not take long, when I first became an herbalist, to start utilizing herbs for my beloved pets. Over the course of my son’s life, we have cared for many dogs and cats, hermit crabs, gerbils, mice, chickens and turtles. My great love is dogs. I so appreciate their companionship and unique personalities. Many in our culture today see felines and canines as part of our family and want them to have long and healthy lives. Using herbs in their daily food is a great way to keep them vibrant. A little history on our pets…

What Did Pets Eat Before Kibble Existed?

Many of todays vets will warn you to never feed your pets “human” food, but instead an option of 3 major brand kibble. I strongly disagree. Most folks forget that Purina and other dog food brands were not around until the 1920’s or thereabout. What did the pets before that eat? Right, human food and what they hunted. Of course the human food of that time was very different from todays options. I would agree that if pet owners eat a lot of fast or processed foods, sure, don’t feed that to your pet. Rates of diabetes and cancers are staggering these days among our pet companions. I would dare to say that most in the health food communities strive for a different diet. Whole grains, local, pasture raised dairy and meats, fresh and organic fruits and vegetables. I think that is what our pets should be eating as well. For years, I have cooked for my pups and they eat mostly what I eat. I do a variation of the BARF diet (bones and raw food). Looking back towards their ancestors…wolves would eat the stomach and intestines of their prey, mainly fermented grains, berries, vegetation, etc. Of course, having no fire, the meat would be consumed raw. When I cook for my dogs, I try to mimic that by cooking grains, vegetables, and fruits in broth, then adding the meats raw at the end. If you are new to this idea of cooking for your pets, I highly recommend Dr. Pitcairn’s book Natural health for Pets. He gives great recipes to make sure your pet food contains the nutrients that your pet needs. One of the best recipes is his healthy pet powder. It is a supplement blend with extra nutrients that your dogs and cats need (I add herbs to it as well).

Healthy Pet Powder

• 2 cups nutritional yeast
• 1 cup lecithin
• ¼ cup kelp powder
• ¼ cup bone meal
• 1 tsp vitamin c powder (I use food based c such as acerola, camu, etc)
• My add ins- freeze dried nettle powder, mushrooms, chamomile, spirulina, etc)

This powder can be added to a good quality kibble or to your homemade food, or even canned food for extra nutrition.

Cook Simple, Nutritious Meals at Home

I know that for some, the thought of cooking for your dogs or cats is overwhelming, but even if you just buy a good quality kibble or wet food, add oils like cod liver, olive, or coconut and a blend like the powder above, you will improve the health of your pets. It just takes a bit of planning and I cook for them what I cook for myself. The ingredients of most pet food is awful, animal byproducts can mean diseased animal parts, roadkill, euthanized animals, rancid animals. I am also not a fan of synthetic vitamins for humans or pets. We are meant to gain nutrients from the foods we eat. I recommend food based vitamins, as our soil is depleted and plants just do not have the nutrients in them that they did 50 or 100 years ago. My goal with myself and my pets is to eat a nutrient dense diet. Whole foods, organic and pasture raised when possible, and adding herbs and superfoods as needed for vitality. I try to feed a diversity of foods, from fish to dandelion greens, rabbit to bone broths, kefir to blueberries. Focusing on diet, I have been lucky enough to have several long lived dogs (15 year +) and cats (17 years+). If you want to learn more about supporting animals with herbs, I recommend Herbs for Pets by G. Tilford and Juliette de Barcali Levy’s herbs for the Dog and Cat. 

Herbal Flea Powder

• 1 cup diatomaceous earth
• ½ cup neem powder
• ½ cup rosemary powder
• ½ cup yarrow powder

Blend together and gently work in to coat. For cats, use as is, for dogs you can add a couple of drops of essential oils such as lemon eucalyptus, citronella, or rose geranium. *Do try to keep dust of this powder to a minimum as diatomaceous earth can irritate the lungs.

Easy Ways to Start Using Herbs for Your Pets

Herbs for our animal friends is a huge subject, there is so much more to explore, I just wanted to give you a few ideas and inspirations if you are interested in pet health. In general, dogs are fairly easy to treat and will tolerate a variety of dietary and herbal additions. Most of the tonic herbs that we use for ourselves are appropriate for dogs. I say this meaning whole herbs, not standardized herbs. Chamomile sprinkled onto their food can help with anxiety and digestive issues (helpful for the July 4 fireworks fears-also add rescue remedy) nettles, raspberry leaf, marshmallow root…all great additions to our pets diet. I have used slippery elm gruel for weaning puppies and for elder dogs for over 20 years. Slippery elm bark is highly nutritive and soothing to the digestive tract. I soak a cup of oats overnight with raw goats milk. In the morning, add 1 tbsp slippery elm powder, a pinch of aniseed, and a tsp. Of honey. Blend and feed. Add more milk if feeding from a bottle to get a good fluid consistency.

I currently have an old man, Bocephus and recently adopted a 10 week old puppy, Sybil. I have fed this to them both as a nutrition boost and to soothe their stomachs. Cats, on the other hand, can be difficult to treat. Essential oils are not appropriate for cats. You can use hydrosols with them, but in moderation. Food wise, it can be tricky to get them to consume new things, but finely mincing some herbs, greens, and fruits can be tried. An herbal pet powder or greens powder is ideal for them. I have found many felines tolerate these well. You can also add small amounts of herb teas to their food or milk. As with people, different animals have different tolerances and tastes, so experiment. I, personally, am not feeding my animals grain free, but I do limit grains and do not include things like chickpeas, soy, most legumes really. Millet, oats, and rice are my go to’s for regular feeding. I recommend adding new foods slowly. See how they tolerate them and use the references above for more guidance. May you and your furry friends have fun and be healthy!

I hope this has been helpful for y’all. Feel free to come in if you have specific pet questions or any herbal questions at all. 

I hope your summer is bountiful in all of the good things!

Melissa

French Broad Food Co-op
828.255.7650
90 Biltmore Ave.
Asheville, NC 28801