I have been giving my 10 year old, 100 lb. female golden retreiver 4 oz. of Flor-Essence twice a day since mid December in a fight against lymphoma, Stage 3A.  However, I noticed the literature in the last box of Flor-Essence I bought Feb. 15th, 2002 no longer includes directions for giving the tea to your pet. Have there been any harmful discoveries I should know about? Vet said she is progressing fine and just keep up what we have been doing. But I am concerned whether one could over "tea" their pet?

Thank You

Jan replies...

Hi Susan,

Nothing has changed. I would not reduce the dose. I agree with your vet. Don't worry about it unless she has trouble, like diarrhea. Then reduce the dose. Animals, at least dogs and cats, appear to be very tolerant of essiac and also pretty responsive to it.

First of all, you have a great site. My beloved dog, "my child", has cancer so I went on the internet and came across your website. I was delighted to see that there were other alternatives in treating cancer.

I brewed my own tea with EssiacŪ that I found at a natural foods store. The directions said to boil ten minutes and then leave it on stove (burners off, of course) overnight for 12 hours. Is this acceptable or do you need to put it in refrigerator?

Also, I have purchased: Red Clover caps, IP-6, Milk Thistle, and Grape Seed Extract. Should I base his dose on a human one? He weighs 95 pounds. Is there anything else I can try giving him too?

Thanks,
Amy

Jan replies...

Hi Amy,

Thank you for the compliment. I am so sorry to hear about your baby. Do you know what kind of cancer he has? How old is he, and what are you feeding him?

I don't leave essiac out overnight, most people do because the directions say to do that. After 10-12 hours, the reheating to boiling point (then shut off stove and get tea bottled as soon as possible) kills any bacteria that may have grown during long steep.

I would give him, at the very least, the human dose. If I have to do it again, I will double the dose. Rene Caisse said "more is not better", but readers having the best results with cats gave them relatively big doses. I don't think there are any absolute cures, not yet anyway... but one can live with certain conditions, sometimes for a long time.

Inositol is usually given with IP-6. You might try giving him the "flax seed oil and cottage cheese" remedy -- 2 tablespoons flax seed oil blended with 1/4 cup cottage cheese, split in two doses per day, before regular meal. Mix with his food if he won't eat it separately.

I would also use a supplement called AOX/PLX, you can read about it at this address: http://www.biomednutrition.com/AOX_PLX/aox_plx.html.

I sure wish you good luck with him,

I have a 10 year old Rottie who has just been diagonsed with Oral Melanoma, which in turn has traveled into her lymphnodes. There are no cures or surgeries that I can do. I have placed her on a diet that Canines in Crisis gave me. I am seriously thinking of 714X as an alternative. I also want to know if Essiac is something that I should be giving her. If so, how much? She is 29 kg which is 64 pounds. If any one has had any success with anything, please let me know -- dog is absolutly full of energy, happy and beautiful, I cannot bear to loose her.

Jan replies...

Hi Dawn,

I am very sorry about your girl. I would sure give her essiac, one ounce or more twice a day. You might also want to see if you can find a holistic vet near you who might have some other ideas. Perhaps they could look into 714X for you.

The essiac tea will make her feel better and might help her live longer. You could also try cottage cheese and flax seed oil (see PetFAQ for more information about it). I am not familiar with the "Canines in Crisis" diet, please tell me more about it.

It is maybe the hardest thing about our dogs that they can't live as long as we do. One thing you might want to consider in regard to peculiar and expensive cancer therapies is this; with our pets, as hard as this is to accept, we beat cancer if they live long enough to die of something else first. It is worth treasuring every day with them and keeping them as comfortable as possible for as long as possible, and then let them go with grace when they are in too much pain. It is the last gift you get to give them and that is going to be true whether they die of cancer or something else.

So think seriously about that before investing a lot of money in a therapy like 714X. While I am no fan of conventional medicine, especially when it comes to cancer, there are a lot of expensive and strange alternative treatments out there to be wary of.

Jan

I have an Alaskan malamute with a tumour mass laying on the right side of her heart causing fluid retention in her face, neck and belly. She has been on essiac for 5 months. At first the tea, now E-caps. I am also using Bloodroot, 4 drops 3x day to rid her of the tumour. Her prognosis was that she would die within weeks. This was 6 months ago. My question is about essiac and the Bloodroot. Is it possible to irradicate the tumour using bloodroot at this dose and does the tincture come in a glycerin base? I am currently using Bloodroot tincture in an alchol base, which is all I can find. Thanks for any info you can give me on this. Time is of most importance because of the fluid buildup. Dara

Jan replies...

Hi Dara, I am sorry about your girl. It sounds like you have done well with her though.

Have you had a vet examine her to see if the tumor has changed? Has the fluid retention been going on for a long time? Is there something they could perscribe to reduce the fluid buildup? How long have you been giving her the caps? We have always recommended not using them, but I have gotten two messages in the last 24 hours from people using the caps who seem to be getting good results. These are the first two messages I have ever gotten like that. So maybe we should reconsider that. How much are you giving her? What does she weigh? Have you been giving her the bloodroot all along?

I don't know enough about bloodroot to give you an opinion about it, but it sounds like too much might be dangerous. The dose you are using is small, though, compared to the recommendation below. It should be all right, although it might not be enough to affect the tumor. Maybe you could find a holistic vet to ask, a list of them is at www.ahvma.org/states_and_directory/directory.html. I don't think it will hurt her that it is extracted in alcohol. Some things won't extract in glycerine. Grieve says it tastes really bad.

Here is what it says about Bloodroot in M. Grieve's "A Modern Herbal". First it says POISON and then there is a description of the plant, and then:

Constituents: Alkaloids Sanguinarine, Chelerythrine, Protopine and B. homochelidonine; Sanguinarine forms colourless crystals. Chelerythrine is also colourless and crystalline. Protopine (also found in opium) is one of the most widely diffused of the opium alkaloids. The rhizome also contains red resin and an abundance of starch.

Medicinal Action and Uses: Emetic cathartic expectorant and emmenagogue, and of great value in atonic dyspepsia, asthma, bronchitis and croup. (The taste is so nauseating, that it may cause expectorant action.) Of value in pulmonary consumption, nervous irritation and helpful in lowering high pulse, and in heart disease and weakness and palpitation of heart of great use. For ringworm apply the fluid extract. Also good for torpid liver, scrofula, dysentery. It is applied to fungoid growths, ulcers fleshy excrescences, cancerous affections and as an escharotic. Sanguinaria root is chiefly used as an expectorant for chronic bronchitis and as a local application in chronic eczema, specially when secondary to varicose ulcers. In toxic doses, it causes burning in the stomach, intense thirst, vomiting, faintness vertigo, intense prostration with dimness of eyesight. The root has long been used by the American Indians as a dye for their bodies and clothes and has been used successfully by American and French dyers.

Preparations and Dosages: Fluid extract of Sanguinaria, U.S.P., dose 1 1/2 minims. Tincture of Sanguinaria, U.S.P., 15 minims. Powdered root, 10 to 30 grains. Sanguinarin, 1/4 to 1 grain. Fluid extract, 10 to 30 drops.

I'm sorry I have so many questions and no answers for you. I hope she improves for you.

My 12 1/2 year old schnauzer was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma cancer one year ago. Two sugeries were performed to remove the tumor in her lower abdomenal area. Both times the surgery was not completely successful (I suspect less than stellar vetinary skills, but that is another story). I rejected the chemo/radiation track due to the stresses this would impose at her age. She has been on EsiakŪ capsules for six months now. She is doing very well so far and others would never know she is sick. However, in just discovering your quite knowledgable website, I saw that you did not feel capsules were the course of action to take due to the herbs being soaked in alcohol. I have immediately ordered EsiakŪ Tea Concentrate, 16 oz bottle.

I get so confused concerning the dosage and type of Esiak to administer. How does the administation of Esiak Concentrate differ from the regular tea? How much should I dose a 25 lb. schnauzer? Your advise will be so greatly appreciated, thank you, thank you!

Sincerely,
Rebecca

Jan replies...

Hi Rebecca,

It sounds like some adenocarcinomas are slow and others are fast. So it is hard to tell how well your girl is doing. Following "tradition", you would only give her 1/4 of the human dose recommended but I am not convinced that more is not better.

And I am not sure you should stop using the capsules, since perhaps they are helping her. How much are you giving her of that, compared to the recommended human dose? I would be tempted to give her both the capsules and liquid tea, if she were mine. The best results we have seen in animals have involved large doses of it. There is some risk of it causing bladder or kidney stones, but in the three years I have been running this pet page I have not had a single person say their pet got stones.

Two people have written me (including you) who are using the capsules with what looks like a beneficial effect within the last 24 hours. So I am not sure that our position about the capsules is right. I think the logic sounds good, but if it is working perhaps we are wrong. It certainly would be easier to give capsules on an empty stomach than the tea. At least for me it would.

I would appreciate it if you could tell me more details.

We have a toy poodle that is one year old. She is in good health and I would like to keep it that way. Can essiac liquid be used for well health? She wieghs around 5 pounds. She is rather small and I don't want to do something to make her sick.

Jan replies...

Hello Gloria,

I don't think essiac should be used until you need it. Sheep sorrel is something that you can develop allergies to. I think you ought to save essiac for when you might need it.

The best thing you can do to maintain a young healthy dog is feed a very high quality diet, supplemented with a good digestive enzyme formulation, avoid as many toxins as possible (ie bug sprays, weed killer, fertilizers, toxic dog food) and keep a close eye out for signs of problems. Avoiding overvaccinating is probably a good idea also, especially for such a small dog. A sick animal should not be vaccinated because it is one more thing for the immune system to cope with.

I just wanted to say to all those that have lost a pet that I have lost a dog to cancer many years ago, she was just five years old. But now my cat went today to see the vet, who says it's a strong possibility she's got stomach cancer. Even though my cat is 19, just two months ago she was running around like a kitten and very healthy.

The thought of having to put her down devastates me right to the core of my soul. I just don't know how I'll be able to stop crying. She's my baby, you know? I think I may try the essiac to see if I can lesson any pain she has and maybe give us a little more time with her. Selfish I know, but God help me, I love her so much. How can some people abuse animals when others of us would die for them? They are the very existence of true love. Please write me and let me know how you're dealing with your pet being sick or passed on. It would help greatly. Thank you.

Jan replies...

Hello Lisa,

I am very sorry about your cat. I do think it is possible essiac might help her feel better as long as possible.

The best you can do sometimes is treasure every day you have with your pet, and when it is clear that they can't go on anymore, to let them go. That is the last gift you can give them, to save them a bit of pain at the end. Perhaps other people will write to you after this is posted with some good help. I hope your cat will live awhile longer, she seems already to be very old. When she is someday gone I hope you will be able to start over with another one before too very long. There are so many of them lacking good homes.