Chad, though not a Chihuahua, has done time as a hairless dog. The 10-year-old Yorkshire terrier lost most of his hair because of skin allergies and had been without hair for a couple of years, said Dr. Norman Silverstein of Villa Park Veterinary Hospital.
Chad`s owner, Debbie Pietrini, spent thousands of dollars putting him through a desensitization program with a veterinary dermatologist in 1981-82. ”In the beginning of 1985, I put him on a product called Prozyme,”
Silverstein said, reading from his records. ”The next note I have is in March, and his hair was growing with Prozyme. I had them come in April 1, and hair was growing well.” Chad now has a full coat of hair, said the veterinarian and the dog`s owner.
”I`ve had some interesting responses with this product with hair problems,” Silverstein said. ”I`m a conservative kind of guy; so I decided to keep track of all the 36 clients I gave it to. It is not a cure-all. I wish it always worked the way it did with Chad; it doesn`t.”
Prozyme, developed over a 15-year period and first marketed in 1976, is described by the Elk Grove Village company that manufactures it as ”an all-natural combination of four highly purified enzymes in a palatable, free-flowing powder form.”
It contains a blend of proteolytic, amylolytic, lipolytic and cellulolytic enzymes that are claimed to enhance the caloric and nutritional digestion of food nutrients.
Enzymes run the machinery in human and animal bodies; every function in the body requires enzyme action. The body is capable of making its own enzymes. The theory behind the use of supplementary enzymes is that people and pets have wandered too far from their natural enzyme-rich diets of raw foods. (Enzymes are killed by the heat of cooking.)
CELLS WEAR OUT
Researchers find that the older a person or animal becomes, the lower the output of enzymes. It is believed that the more a body has to manufacture its own enzymes, the faster cells wear out, producing many of today`s
”civilized” ailments, such as arthritis.
Dr. David Epstein, of Glenview, veterinary liaison for the manufacturer and an investor in the company, has been observing Prozyme-treated dogs and cats since November, 1984. Prozyme was developed from the work of Dr. James B. Sumner, professor of biochemistry at Cornell University and a Nobel Prize winner who did his work 40 years ago.
There are other pancreatic enzyme supplements on the market, but Prozyme claims its product has an extra ingredient and is made only from plant sources, while others use plant plus swine pancreas sources.
Not all veterinarians agree on the value of using Prozyme to treat ailments other than pancreatic insufficiencies. Underlying this is the reluctance of the medical establishment, human and veterinary, to recognize the role of nutrition in reversing disease, Epstein said.
Dr. Sheldon Rubin of Blum Animal Hospital in Chicago said: ”When Prozyme came out, I did a little trial with it here. It worked well as a good substitute for dogs that needed pancreatic supplements.”
Rubin said that when the product came out there were ”claims it rejuvenates old dogs and that it is like the fountain of youth,” which he felt were misleading.
”I can`t disagree with the theory, but I don`t use the product. As a cure-all for all sorts of ills, it falls short.”
CITES TESTS
Tests by large pet food companies, Epstein said, show that animals digest only 82 to 85 percent of their feed.
If you increase the quality and quantity of food`s nutritional value with Prozyme, Epstein said, ”it`s going to help the animal. We all can do with better nutrition. That`s all we`re talking about here.”
Epstein said that Prozyme can often help alopecia, dermatitis and gastro- intestinal disturbances such as flatulence, chronic colitis and irregular bowel activity. He said it demonstrates success in treating limping in dogs that have arthritis or hip dysplasia.
Dr. James Neil, of the Ottawa (Ill.) Veterinary Hospital, said he has used Prozyme for three years and finds that ”it has excellent use as a preventative of chronic colic,” a serious health problem among horses.
Neil has also used it in dogs and cats. ”A 3-year-old golden retriever with hip dysplasia was like a puppy again. It completely relieved his problem. We use it on any animal we figure people can afford to have it (used) on, because it does so much good.”
Bob Bearden, who runs a boarding kennel in Milwaukee, said he has been using Prozyme for more than five years.
”In all my years working with dogs, I`ve never seen anything like it. In several instances, the dogs were no longer responding to traditional chemical therapy. When there are chronic malabsorption problems, diarrhea, hot spots, where we`re more or less at the end of the rope, we start using Prozyme. All these difficulties clear up in a short time.”
FEEDING PROBLEM
Bearden, who breeds golden retrievers, said, ”Many of the larger breeds are going to be susceptible to hip problems and arthritis. It can be a function of poor breeding. But there has been a nutritional relationship established. Much of what we feed animals is not what nature intended them to eat. Prozyme helps them break down foodstuffs their systems aren`t used to.
”Prozyme does not cure anything in and of itself. It enhances the nutritional quality of food and allows the body to do its work more efficiently,” he explained. ”As long as there is a nutritional relationship between the animal and the problem it has, Prozyme can help.”
Bearden said that he notes no side effects other than a weight gain, which means owners have to monitor their pet`s diet. He said his records show he saves approximately 30 percent on food costs. ”It is an absolutely free product. With my savings in food, I have been able to cover the cost of Prozyme,” he said.
Dr. E.S. Morris of Plum Creek Animal Hospital in Crete has been using Prozyme in her practice since June, 1986. She said she finds ”sometimes dogs on medication do better when they get the medication and Prozyme.”
Dr. Fred Drazner, a veterinary specialist in internal medicine such as kidney and heart disease at Wright Animal Hospital in Des Plaines, said he has not used the product but feels ”there is no scientific basis to its claims. Any drug that claims to be helpful for so many different things has to raise your eyebrows. There`s never been any tried-and-true, scientific, double-blind tests on the product.”
Epstein answered that ”not all cases are going to respond the same way. ”Some veterinarians,” he said, ”may not have used the product long enough.
”It is not a fountain of youth, but it does invigorate the body,” he said.
”Three thousand clinics all over the country are using Prozyme now,”
Epstein said. His company, which is a small one but believes in the future of its product, is trying to keep tabs on results. –
