Recently, I was contacted by Liz Hardy who is the author of "The Chemo-Free Cat". It's a book about natural treatment options for cats with cancer and her own journey of fighting feline cancer with her cat, Moofy. Liz is a doctor, but she is not veterinarian. She's compiled her research and experience with the fight against feline cancer in her book.
Liz's story was something I could relate to with my own cat, so I decided to give The Chemo-Free Cat a read. For some "cat guardians" as Liz likes to refer to cat parents, traditional veterinary medicine may not be the desired or right path. Whatever the reason behind this, The Chemo-Free Cat has some very interesting ideas for treating feline cancer with natural methods.
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| Dr. Liz and Moofy. |
Of course, I believe that any sort of treatment should be discussed with your veterinarian first. The ideas in this book are nice to have if you want to look at all of your options. And they can be done in addition to most traditional feline cancer treatments.
I was intrigued with the chapters in the book that talked about long-distance Reiki healing, animal communication, and Bioptron Light Therapy. I don't know a lot about these forms of healing, and was happy to learn more about them. Of course, these methods of feline cancer treatment do invite skepticism for most people. But it's nice to read someone's experiences with them.
I also learned about Animal Naturopaths which I confess I have never heard of before. To me, they seem like a sort of Holistic Veterinarian.
Throughout the book, I do sense a bit of discontent with Liz's overall thoughts on traditional veterinary medicine and treatment methods for feline cancer as well as a repeated dismal opinion of dry cat foods. The book also promotes a raw or home-cooked diet, although there is no mention of dietary supplements or actual recipes that will meet all requirements for a cat's needs. The Chemo-Free Cat does express the importance of a natural diet to help fight feline cancer.
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| Kitty Kitty Meow Meow |
If you have a cat with cancer and are looking for some alternative treatment options, I think The Chemo-Free Cat is worth a read. It supplies readers with good advice on shopping for supplemental products, talks about treatment methods you may have never heard of before, and if nothing else it's nice to be able to relate to someone facing a similar problem to yours. Support is very important when dealing with such a horrible diagnosis.
For more information about The Chemo-Free Cat, you can visit the Meow Cancer Clinic. You can purchase this book HERE. You can also follow Dr. Liz Hardy's blog.
I'm also happy to announce that Dr. Liz Hardy is offering one of our readers a free copy of The Chemo-Free Cat. Since the book is an e-book, our friends from all over the world are welcome to join this giveaway! The giveaway ends on May 22nd at midnight CST. To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter form below with as many options as you like. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
We received a copy of The Chemo-Free Cat at no charge in exchange for a fair and honest review. We also received compensation for our time reading and reviewing the book. All thoughts expressed here are our own and truthful.
Interesting! I have three kitties so I would love to read this book and learn different way in case the worst should ever happen :/
ReplyDeleteღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
Such a hard subject. One of our cats suffered from cancer, it's truly terrible to deal with.
ReplyDeletemaybe sometimes new ways can help to understand and to fight against that big bad C. And it's important to be prepared. Thanks for a great review, I hope we all together will find a cure once.
ReplyDeleteMe too easy :)
DeleteSounds interesting
ReplyDeleteThere were kitties before me with cancer and it truely is most evil.
ReplyDeleteI have had two cats pass from cancer, and yes, diet plays an important roll. Cancer feeds off the glucose in the body and the more glucose is there, the faster it grows.. Dry food more often than not causes high glucose levels in a cat, and most cats who are diagnosed diabetic are on dry food.. but you put them on a diet low in plant based ingredients, and their high glucose levels disappear..
ReplyDeleteI agree Connie. I do notice that many diabetic cats I've met were fed a dry diet. Diet is definitely an important factor for cancer and overall health.
DeleteThanks for the thoughtful review, Ann! Basically I've written the resource I wish I could find when Moofy was first diagnosed - and I really wanted to share our experiences with some of the weird and wonderful treatments that people might not think of trying... :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you Liz! This is a great resource for cat guardians of cancer kitties. No matter which treatment path they choose, I think this offers a lot of great suggestions.
DeleteMy cat, Stray was diagnosed with cancer about three years ago. She successfully completed chemo treatment, but the day after Easter she went for dental surgery to remove an infected tooth that was most likely caused by the chemo. She ended up passing away during the surgery- the cancer may have been returning which could have made her heart weaker and not be able to handle the anesthesia. I definitely wish I could have done more research on alternative methods to chemo. I'm not sure if it would have helped her live any longer- but I miss her dearly.
ReplyDeleteWell thanks for sharing your story Jenn... it's unfortunate to hear about her passing with the dental procedure. Things do happen though.
DeleteSo sorry to hear about Stray, Jenn; you obviously did a lot for her, as chemo can be quite a commitment. My cat Moofy can't have surgery or chemo so alternative treatments are our Plan B. It's such a tricky disease to manage, and we're talking about important family members here, of course...
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting book!
ReplyDeleteGranny is an animal healer too, Ann, and we're only using Homeopathic medicines and Herbs for healing. She has studied Homeopathy and passed with distinction, but she always operates in combine with the vet. We have seen that it gives so much quality time for the animals. Granny's former cat had a tumor and was helped the natural way. And he was living for a few years in good shape. Unfortunantely, like Jenn's story, he had to fix his teeth and died from the anaesthesia :( I think the book is very Pawsome. A good read! Pawkiss :)
ReplyDeleteThis is so encouraging to hear - it's now 10 months since Moofy's diagnosis and we have only gone all-natural. She's in fine form - despite the big fluffy tumor sticking out of her! My understanding is a holistic vet will be able to combine traditional and natural treatments, which sounds pretty awesome to me! :-)
DeleteOh I remember now Binky! I think it's awesome what your Granny knows and how she's able to help animals naturally. But it is too bad about her kitty's death :(
DeleteSounds like an interesting book..........cancer is a scary and sometimes "mysterious" thing. Perhaps the author wanted to at least give some alternative thinking possibilities not involving chemo which can be devastating on its' own. Thanks for the honest review!
ReplyDeleteThat's EXACTLY what I was trying to do with the book, onespoiledcat! You got it in one. If traditional remedies are not going to work for your cat, it's natural to want to do SOMETHING useful to help, without hurting your precious little cat, of course. :-)
ReplyDeleteHaving had chemo myself, I sure wouldn't want any of my animals to go through that. So this book does sound interesting. That was a great review of the book. Take care.
ReplyDeleteHorrible disease,xx Rachel
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for anyone going through cancer with their cat right now. Thankfully, this is not something I am dealing with. I have two cats and they are both healthy. Like you said, I'm sure this book will give cat owners some options to think about. There is rarely a "right" answer. We can only do what we can. Nice to see a book specifically for cats!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a lovely community here! It's true, I wish there was one "right" answer for cat cancer - it would be a lot easier. But I have been surprised and quite delighted that are at least a lot of positive options out there for little furry patients. I KNOW I've helped Moofy - and I don't mind that the hubby rolls his eyes at some of her more "out there" treatments! ;-)
ReplyDeleteIf either my cats or dogs were to come down with a treatable cancer, I think the best treatment could be a combination of traditional medicine and homeopathic type things. I would definitely read a book like this one at that time....sometimes you need to weigh all of your options I think.
ReplyDeleteWe would like to read it to help furrends out. Autumn and Faith both died of cancer because TW couldn’t afford treatment. Autumn was misdiagnosed so they lost precious time. By the time, they took her to another vet, it had spread all over. I know you’re a vet tech but we dislike vets cos they’ve never really helped any of our cats. Alternative is the way to go. And, yes, kibble is very bad for us cats.
ReplyDeleteWell, I had the same problem with KKMM. Don't worry, you don't offend me when you say you dislike vets. I've only been able to work with maybe 2 who were absolutely outstanding at their jobs. My favorites are the ones who know what they are talking about, don't mind the natural stuff sometimes, and actually try to help people save money. That's exactly what my old boss and Shiner and Nibblet's vet does. But I've also had to work with vets that I disliked. So I understand.
DeleteMany years ago, I rescued a mom with 2 kittens in the woods. I was in the middle of a terrible lawsuit and very broke but they ended up staying with me. She got cancer, I begged door to door to Vet's office to get her surgery, finally found someone. It went perfectly, she went into remission or the cancer was not aggressive but several years later it came back. 2nd Surgery, same Vet. I remember it healed perfectly but in about a week she had Metastasized. Her entire belly had growths. I waited that night for the train, went outside and screamed as loud and long as I could while it went by. My own mother never wanted chemo if she got cancer, I would not give it to a cat. I would love the read the book and follow future results.
ReplyDeleteI wish these things has an edit button!
DeleteI have five cats and I had a friend whose cat had cancer. He tried chemo on her and it did not work. I would like to see what this book offers in the way of alternatives.
ReplyDeleteI find this incredibly fascinating. When my Tara was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure and a splenic mass on the very same day, surgery was not an option for the mass because her heart was so weak, and I did not want to put her through chemo. So I sought out various alternative therapies. When she passed away nearly a year later, it was due to her heart, not the cancer. I wish I had had this book then, I think I would have gotten a lot out of it.
ReplyDeleteThese heart-wrenching stories really remind us how tough this disease can be to treat - it can change in an instant. Because my little Moofy couldn't have surgery at all (because of where the tumor is, but also because it would be back within months and I couldn't put her through radical surgery every couple of months) we went all-natural from the start. It's now 10 months since her diagnosis - she still has a big fluffy lump, but is one happy cat, and is loving all the light therapy treatments, special diets and endless attention.
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