Friends of Lana

Increasingly, there are many issues and ailments for which conventional veterinary medicine (or allopathy) may not provide all the answers. Especially as age becomes a factor in our pets’ lives, issues such as arthritis take over and we may not always readily know how to tackle something for which there may not be an adequate treatment in allopathy.

Enter alternative therapies, such as Bowen Therapy. In tandem with veterinary visits and conventional diagnoses, such alternate, miraculous therapies really shine.

And while there are a couple of hundred Bowen therapists for humans in the country, Ms Nisha Jaggi has the distinction of being the only Canine Bowen Therapist in all of India. Here, Nisha joins us for a chat as we get to pick her brain to understand Canine Bowen Therapy, which is at the core of her practice as a therapist, and additionally, a little bit about her work and experiences with animal reiki, energy healing, laser therapy and Bach flower remedies.

Getting a furbaby home, especially for the first time, can make for some of the most joyous moments in one's life. Adding a pet into your family is certainly a reason to celebrate - it's one of the most beautiful feelings in the world!

It's unfortunate, then, that so many animals are being abandoned every single day, and this figure is only rising.

What is concerning is that most people at the outset, feel that getting a new pupper is all fun and games. There is almost no due diligence done on what it actually takes to raise an animal the right way.

So we've compiled a handy checklist that every prospective pet parent should mull over. The next time somebody you know is planning to get a new dog home, make sure you share all the following points with them for consideration.

The doorbell rings and the first person to zoom across the door to greet his guests is Mr Igor. He will scan every guest by rubbing himself against them. Few questions will be asked in the form of meows and purrs. The ones under suspicion are nibbled and left with a warning. Only after the security check is done, the person is allowed an entry. Every person who has visited our house would testify to this kind of scrutiny by our purr-master, Igor. Mind you, this is rather difficult for the faint-hearted or non-animal lovers!!

My cat Igor, better known as @igorkooka, turned 4 recently. In human years, he is as old as me now.

I am sorry – this blog post full of itchy, wriggly things is probably going to make your skin crawl but it has an important message. Please don’t skip on flea and tick prevention and worming of your dogs and cats!

Parasites like fleas, ticks and worms may be small but they cause problems quite out of proportion to their size. They mean great discomfort for your pet and can be fatal in some cases. To add to the problems, some of the pests can cause severe illness and even death in humans.