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I HATE BEING SICK, but I hate it even more when one of my pets is sick. When I’m ill, I can at least ask someone to get me what I need. Animals aren’t so lucky—they can’t tell us what they need to make them feel better. You can bridge this communication gap, ­however, by caring for your pet’s immune system and using the appropriate herbs to fend off disease.

The immune system identifies and attacks bacteria, viruses, and fungi that invade the body and cause illnesses, such as allergies, colds, and gastrointestinal disturbances. It is a complex, integrated system that includes the spleen, thymus, lymph nodes, tissues, cells, and blood proteins.

A healthy immune system can handle minor invasions, but when any one of its organs is compromised, the immune system likely will suffer. So I like to protect my pets with a few herbal immune-system boosters on a regular basis, and I always give them these herbs when they have a minor illness to keep it from becoming more serious.

A good start

The first step toward keeping your pet’s immune system in proper working order is to provide a healthy environment, which includes good nutrition, regular exercise, minimum stress, and lots of love. Scientific studies have shown that pets living in stressful surroundings have weakened immune system responses.

Immune system support

An easy way to help your pets stay one step ahead of a cold or infection is to incorporate immune system herbs into their diet. It’s easy to do—just sprinkle culinary favorites onto their food, including thyme, garlic, oregano, turmeric (all antibacterial), and cayenne (it enhances the activity of immune system cells). Don’t worry about doses—your pet will eat only what it needs and ignore the rest.

The most notable herb for supporting and stimulating the immune system is echinacea (Echinacea angustifolia and E. purpurea). Echinacea reinforces nearly all actions of immunity, including white blood cell production and activity and blood protein production. It also helps heal wounds, fight inflammation, and, to some extent, counteract tumors and certain bacteria and viruses.

If you catch an infection early, you can often stop it with low doses (1 or 2 drops) of a nonalcoholic tincture of the whole herb, given three to four times a day for a week. For prevention and general immune care, I recommend a low dose once a day for five days each week.