Chronic Disease Leads Pet Illness

Reprinted with permission from Dr. Will Falconer

The latest “top diseases” lists have come out for 2025 for pets. These lists are generated from pet insurance data, so are very likely representative of reality in the trenches, whether or not your animal is insured. What the latest article points out that past ones seemingly failed to notice: the bulk of these vet visits were due to chronic disease.

It refers to those diseases that last a long time, often a lifetime, as opposed to acute disease, which is short lived and expected to resolve in a couple days or less. In dogs, 6 of the top 10 diseases listed were chronic. In cats, it’s seven.

Still Reigning Champion: Skin (and Ears)

In the dogs, that #1 spot last year (and for the past 15 years) hasn’t changed: it’s The Itch. We’ve got decades of data spelling it out: allergic disease showing up in skin and/or ears is the #1 reason dogs see veterinarians.

Ears either shared that spot some years or often came in second. But, it’s really the same “immune confusion” disease. Wild overreaction to normal things, aka allergies to:

• A flea bite

• A bite of chicken

• Grasses, trees, pollen, etc.

Or, worse, not allergies, but attack on self, aka autoimmune disease, now rampant in kids and not uncommon in dogs.

• Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (immune destruction of red blood cells)

• Autoimmune thrombocytopenia (immune attack on the cells needed to clot blood)

• Both of these, the commonest, have a 50:50 chance of survival.

A Worrisome New Contender: GI Disease

In vet school in the late 1970’s, we learned about a chronic version of this, but I never saw a case in 40 years of practice, both conventional initially and homeopathic for the remainder. Now, it’s getting write ups in vet journals as a vexingly common illness in your pets. And the insurers are seeing it in their payouts. Reminder (or revelation if this is new to you): both Ayurveda and TCM have recognized forever that “disease begins in the gut.”

So, Why All the Chronic Disease?

First, it’s important to recognize none of this “fell out of the sky” and landed on your pet. I hope that’s obvious. No, this disease is entirely man made. You won’t find wolves, coyotes, bobcats or cheetahs with allergies, autoimmune disease or chronic digestive issues. They, like all of us, can be beset by acute illness. But again, that’s entirely different, and beatable. If there’s acute parvo or distemper in wild canines, the strong survive and the weak die off, making the species fitter.

We’ve said, “Dying of infectious disease? Unacceptable! We’ll vaccinate it all away.” And therein lies a clue, one that points to a premise I’ve carried for decades to explain what I saw in practice and in the vet literature: Man made “prevention” largely gets the blame for our chronic disease epidemic.

“Prevention” Risk Ranking

I rank those interventions from deepest acting/hardest to change to easiest:

1. Vaccination

2. Poisons for all pests

3. Highly over processed toxic food, aka kibble

In other words, you can change crappy food out for fresh (ideally raw) and see positive changes in a couple weeks. Easy peasy.

You can stop poisoning fleas and ticks, and heartworm, and give detox a chance, and it’ll take longer, but it’ll still respond from your efforts, given time.

But if you vaccinate?

The effects of that, especially if you get the usual combo wombo vaccines repeatedly, can last a lifetime.

Common Signposts of Prevention Gone Wrong

The Itch has to be looked at with a special lens, as it rarely shows up immediately.

Somewhat oddly, it frequently starts about a month after a round of shots, often the “puppy series” that can start with the breeder.

You’ll find it in vet records or your bills. In for a “wellness visit” (oh, please) and next month, you’re back looking for help with The Itch.

See kidney failure there at #3 in cats?

There’s a long standing reason for this being so common in this sensitive species, and it’s right there in published vet research.

Autoimmune attacks on cat kidneys or dog red blood cells are also borne out by science.

I reference all of those in one of my cornerstone articles, Vaccination as a Cause of Illness. Well worth your time to explore.

The Nasties Elsewhere

Oh, there are the less avoidable ones, like toxic food ingredients, water, and air of course, but even these can be minimized.

If you’re looking for raw meat to make your own balanced raw diet, find those local ranchers who raise their animals on pasture. Or visit small butchers who process deer, goats, or rabbits. Buy organic as much as you can to avoid glyphosate and other herbicides and pesticides.  Water purifiers have become easier and more efficient as have air purifiers for the house.

Dr. WhiteCoat Can’t Cure Chronic Disease

That’s his dirty little secret.

It’s always been true and shows no greater likelihood now of changing than it did back in the days of blood letting or swallowing mercury.

Net result: your animal (or child) become a “patient for life.”

You end up continually throwing money down a hole, while things go from bad to worse as increasingly powerful but ineffective drugs are prescribed.

Homeopathy, in the hands of a qualified, trained professional, can cure the chronics, but it’s not a quick fix. And it’s never DIY, unlike acute disease treatment.

It’s Up to You Now

So, bottom line: you have to take charge, largely in prevention.

If what’s offered as prevention is causing the bulk of chronic disease, and that’s incurable and costly in conventional medicine, you have to call the shots for your innocents.

There are lots of articles on Vital Animal and a number of courses to help you.

Others have done it before you and even starting with baby steps, you can get there.

Start with Vitamin N

Already have a vaccinated pet?

Being pushed for more vaccines, as if duration of immunity is a lost concept?

Bring out the Vitamin N: “NO, thank you!” You’ll have veterinary immunologists on your side.

If you’re feeling less bold and confident on the spot, try this instead: “Thanks for your recommendation, doctor, but we’re going to study more about this first. We’ll get back to you if we opt to go this route for Sadie.”

Your efforts to avoid the chronic crud will be well rewarded, how ever you pull it off.

Chronic disease is a path you want to avoid as much as possible.