HOMEOPATHIC HELP FOR YOUR PETS; SHERMAN OAKS STORE SUGGESTS RAW FOOD, HERBS, EVEN MASSAGE.

Byline: Karen Dardick Special to the Daily News

Flower essences, herbs, hypoallergenic foods and homeopathic tinctures neatly line the shelves in the Sherman Oaks corner store next door to a women's evening-wear boutique on Ventura Boulevard.

Customers striding in are on a mission: to find the best, the healthiest, the most healing products available. For their pets.

That's right. Their pets.

Almost as quickly as America is adding homeopathic products to its medical arsenal, this pet-enamored nation is beginning to turn to the promises of natural healing for their ailing animals.

In 1994, Americans spent more than $165 million on homeopathic products for themselves, and the sales have been increasing by 25 percent each year since the last decade, according to the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States.

Likewise, pet owners are getting more comfortable with using alternative treatments for their pets. In 1996, the American Animal Hospital Association found that the majority (94 percent) of pet owners surveyed used no alternative forms of medicine for their pets. By 1998, 78 percent of pet owners surveyed still had not tried alternative medicines for their pets; of those who opted for alternatives, pet massage (11 percent) was the most popular treatment, followed by holistic treatments and herbal remedies (tied at 8 percent each).

``More than 50 percent of my clients want alternative methods for their pets,'' said Megan Bamford, a Los Angeles County veterinarian who combines classical homeopathy with conventional veterinary medicine. ``They want it when traditional medicine can't solve their pets' problems.''

Her prescriptions for health often lead pet owners to Pets, Naturally, the holistic pet store in Sherman Oaks.

There, customers discover raw pet foods in frozen packages, homeopathic supplements and a broad network of resources.

A low table in the store is covered with business cards of holistic veterinarians, animal chiropractors, Reiki (hands-on healing) experts, energy experts and animal communicators.

And a sofa and tables are placed conveniently near bookshelves stocked with volumes devoted to holistic pet care and natural diets.

``I refuse to sell any products containing byproducts, chemical additives or preservatives, or any food that isn't hypoallergenic,'' said owner Marie Sabatine, whose future plans include in-store workshops and seminars for pet lovers.

Her feelings on homeopathic pet care are strong, rooted in a personal battle to find alternative solutions to the ulcerative colitis that was destroying the health of her dog, Snowball.

Despite its best efforts, conventional veterinary medicine wasn't halting the progression of disease in her frisky Maltese.

Her search for alternative methods only intensified when she added Pomeranian Sandy to her household. By the time Sandy was a year old, she had endured four surgeries to correct hip dysplasia.

``I love my animals so much and did everything I could to help them,'' Sabatine said.

In her search for answers, Sabatine met Andreina Maxwell, a flower-essence consultant who taught Sabatine about raw food diets recommended by holistic veterinarians. Sabatine immediately switched her dogs from commercial dog food to raw foods. The effects on their overall health, she said, were dramatic. They've been permanent converts ever since.

Several years later, in October 1994, Sabatine opened her holistic pet store ``to help people not go through what I went through with commercial pet foods, drugs and so on.''

She persuaded Maxwell to join her staff when the store opened, and customers have been filing in ever since to test the theories of homeopathic healing.

Anita Morales of North Hollywood, a regular customer of Pets, Naturally since she discovered raw food cured her terrier mix of a food allergy, freely shared her experiences with another customer whose terrier suffered from similar problems.

Later, Maxwell leaned against the counter helping customer Andre Amos of Hollywood figure out a solution for Storey, Amos' 3-year-old Himalayan cat who had been upsetting the household with unpleasant behaviors, including refusing to use the litter box.

``Tests don't show any medical problems, and the drugs she's now getting make her lethargic and are changing her personality,'' Amos complained. ``Now I'm willing to try flower essences and other means to stop this behavior.''

Among the other means, Maxwell suggested taking the cat to an animal communicator.

``Marie and Andreina are very versed in the condition of animals and go out of their way to help you find the right answers,'' said Morales. ``If they don't have the answer, they can direct you to someone who will.''

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1) Marie Sabatine holds Snowball and Sandy, the companions whose health problems prompted her to investigate alternative remedies for animals and open her Pets, Naturally store in Sherman Oaks.

(2) Andre Amos looks for a natural remedy under the direction of flower-essence consultant Andreina Maxwell at Pets, Naturally.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer