If we are going to protect canine health and especially, reproductive health, we must turn to nature, starting with the sun. Avoidance of sunlight is a serious misconception which, like those ridiculous low-fat diets that encourage people to eat chemical-laden fake food, has serious side effects on canine reproduction and growth.  This applies to people too!  As an example of how hard it is to get the medical truth before the public, Michael F. Holick, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and physiology at Boston University School of Medicine, and (until 2000) chief of endocrinology, metabolism and nutrition was asked to resign because he advocated moderate exposure to sunlight. The outraged department chair stated for publication, “Dr. Holick’s book is an embarrassment for this institution and an embarrassment for him." Dermatologists have warned about sunlight and ultraviolet light, scaring us to death with fears of melanoma, which of course, creating a huge demand for sunscreen - and cancer screenings.  We don't use sunscreen on our dogs but we affect their health and reproductive ability by keeping them indoors while we work.  "Inside dogs" are our best friends and we are harming them.

Did you ever wonder why puppy mill bitches are good producers?  They either reproduce or they are "history."  Some believe it is genetic, that puppy mill bitches are selected, fall into that horrible life, because their dams had strong reproductive ability and there may be some truth in that.  But their moms were probably kept in rabbit hutch like pens, outdoors, in the blazing heat of summer.  Some are simply covered in winter to keep them from freezing to death.  But by and large, puppy mill producers are spared over-medication, over-vaccination, and sunlight deprivation!

The American Cancer Society states "We do not yet know exactly what causes melanoma …” Well, we know ultraviolet sunlight is necessary for health in both humans and animals. It allows us to manufacture vitamin D, a deficiency of which causes rickets. In dogs, it would look like bad fronts and wobbly rears…. and of course, it would be reflected in lowered reproductive ability.

Okay, now I have your attention. Many pups are born in winter or raised indoors where they receive tons of cuddling and socialization – but virtually no bright sunlight! Now don’t misunderstand, until they are out of the nest, filtered light is more than enough. In fact bright glaring light is the last thing newborns should experience but we seldom think about that either when we keep them in the kitchen…. In nature all felines and canines are born in a darkened place and it also decrees that they stay in a den, under the house, or at the back of the barn until such time as they are old enough to explore.

Then blinking, they toddle out into the sunlight, just when they need it to compliment the rich calcium and other minerals they are getting. That grows strong bones (and joints) and ensures maximum development at just the right rate, instead of too much too soon due to being supplemented with products that promise maximum growth and, well, you get the idea.

Cancer is on the rise in dogs as well as humans. If you read my columns, you are aware of the link between “manufactured” food (laced with chemicals and preservatives) and serious health problems, including cancer. What we now know is that vitamin D may also help prevent a variety of cancers! Could that explain the higher cancer rate among pampered pet and show dogs? Could it be that they spend more time indoors than the street mutt or hunting dog?

With over 3,500 PubMed articles on the topic, the National Institute of Health has stated that "laboratory, animal, and epidemiologic evidence suggest that vitamin D may be protective against some cancers” and subsequent dietary surveys associated a higher calcium and vitamin D intake with a lower incidence of colon cancer. Vitamin D from natural sunlight may also help protect against prostate cancer, not rare in dogs.

Dr. Holick is a leader in such research with over 200 PubMed articles on the topic of vitamin D, relating it to the prevention of cancers, type 1 diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis." Even so, sunlight's beneficial biological effect seems to have been lost to modern medicine and those who keep animals in artificial conditions.

I have written about light deprivation many times and okay, most of you were bored to death but a few actually said that you don’t wear sunglasses as much, or you quit drawing the drapes on your house dogs during the day, or like a couple of northerners reported, you’re using those natural spectrum light bulbs in the long winter months.  And predictably, some have said bitches they were about to place in pet homes, suddenly began to reproduce!  No kidding...

So here’s a personal but interesting example that I hope will stick in your mind. We bred Bengal cats until a doctor said Bill was allergic to cats. As interest in the breed developed, I flew to California and had the honor of spending a few days with Jean Mills, the developer of the hybrid Asian Leopard/domestic cat. When my f2 female would not “call” for a mate, Jean said to put a halogen light down low so it would shine into the cat’s eyes as she moved about the enclosure. Huh? She explained that the light would stimulate her hormones. Even though we had built an elaborate outside cattery, Jean said the daylight was different in NC than in Southern California and the move had thrown her off cycle. Oooo-kay…… I did as she said, the cat came in season, and all was well.

About a year alter, another breeder that said cats can not be kept under artificial light, that they “go crazy” and will not reproduce or fail to ovulate. She said that fluorescent lights were the absolute worst. I looked up at the brand new fluorescent lights over my work center and thought about how grumpy I had become. I reflected on the many hours I had previously spent outside; training, bathing and grooming my dogs and how for the past six months I had been glued to a computer screen. Interested but skeptical, I checked out a pile of books and learned how to research online. Three days later, I ordered those lights removed, picked up a leash and headed for the sunshine!

So fling open the curtains, the sun is no harder on the furniture than a bunch of dogs. Run the kennel dogs off those comfy beds and out of the air conditioning. If you’re in the blazing south, arrange your schedule so the dogs get outside in the early morning and late afternoon. Put nursing puppies outside, let them get dirty, dig holes, and eat grubs but above all, let them soak up the sunshine.

Straight legs. Strong bodies. Reduced cancer risk. Health reproduction and ovulation. This is not just dog medicine. Try it for yourself, especially if you work nights and sleep days. We could give you statistics on night workers but I don’t want to scare you.  Besides, TheDogPlace is for dogs.... and owners, and those who care enough to research!