NR Breeder Spotlight

The NR Breeder Spotlight is here to help us get to know each other better and promote our NR Breeders.

We are Spotlighting: Michelle Scott DiHom HD(RHom) of Brielle Reg’d (Standard Poodles)

Hi Michelle, how long have you been raising your dogs “naturally”?

20+ years

How did you get into breeding dogs and have you always raised them naturally?

I was involved with dogs since I was young, caring for and showing our dogs and friends/clients dogs until I was able to find the bitch I wanted to start my line. It was a few years before we changed to a more natural approach.

Tell us about your journey into natural rearing:

My breed, Standard Poodles, were part of a longevity study and the results were showing that on the whole the breed was not living as long as previous generations. It was around that time that we started seeing a lot of autoimmune diseases in the breed. I wasn’t going to sit back and wait for answers – we decided to start experimenting with natural and holistic practices. We’ve never looked back.

What breed(s) do you have now?

Standard Poodle

What health problems are said to be inherent in your breed?

Many autoimmune problems (SA, Addison’s, AIHA, etc.), hip dysplasia, heart problems, degenerative myopathies, cancers, bloat/torsion, etc.

Do you think these so called genetic health problems are influenced by nutrition and /or the environment? If yes, please briefly explain:

Definitely! We’ve seen a difference in skin and coat, temperament, expression of disease, overall quality of health. A client (with a different breed) said all of her dogs declined at 8 years of age, if they survived they would have poor quality of health in their remaining years until death – once she switched to natural rearing they are tending to live into their teens, healthy and vital, until a short period of poor health before death. A marked difference!

Do you use homeopathy, herbs or essential oils when needed by your dogs?

I use homeopathy almost exclusively, with some gemmos, mother tinctures and herbs.

If so, which and for what purposes?

All of them as indicated. Difficult labour, lactation problems, fading puppies, slow growth, problems with dentition, missing testicles, ear infections or any other health problems, and constitutionally

Is there anything special or unique you feed your breeding dogs or that you do with your litters?

I don’t think so? We feed puppies the exact same meal we are feeding the adults, only we grind it first and will add goats milk (ideally fresh and raw). The pregnant girls will get less bone in their meals during the last week or so of their pregnancy (constipation can be a problem postpartum)

Has your faith in NR ever been shaken?

No. I know we’ve made mistakes and we’ve worked on improving our methods. There is always more to learn