I am so thrilled with the clean bill of health my dog received after our most recent visit to our integrative veterinarian that I just wanted to share. This isn’t a miracle story of a dog that was battling cancer or paralysis or anything dramatic. It’s a simple story about creating vibrant health in a dog that had a less than ideal start.
Despite knowing better, last year I fell into the trap that many do. I wanted to surprise my 10-year-old daughter with a Pug puppy on Christmas morning. Now, there would have been nothing inherently wrong with this if I had planned in months in advance and researched the best breeders. But of course, I came up with this plan in early December and began scrambling to find a reputable breeder who had puppies that would be ready for their new homes in a month. At the time, I thought I had lucked out and found one. The breeder I contacted talked a good game and cited the long lineage of champions in the family, spoke of how well cared for the puppies were etc. However, there were red flags that I chose to ignore. She would not allow me to come to her place to meet the puppies and the mother, instead she insisted on bringing the puppies to me and delivering whichever one I chose to me on Christmas morning. Well, this sounded ideal. It saved me the time and inconvenience of driving to where she lived and how much better could it get than having a puppy delivered to me on Christmas morning?! So, I went ahead with the plan. She brought two male puppies to me in early December. I chose one and she delivered him as promised on Christmas morning. I really thought I had hit the jackpot. My daughter was elated upon meeting her adorable little puppy, who she named Ceelo and, of course, it was love at first sight.
I made an appointment for December 26th to have Ceelo examined – expecting our veterinarian to simply look him over, administer his vaccinations and congratulate my daughter on finding a new best friend. Sadly, that’s not how things went down. At first glance, our doctor could tell he was a sick little guy. He had a double ear infection, red, inflamed sores all throughout his coat, especially near his rectum and his fecal test came back positive for several types of parasites, including Giardia. Our doctor suspected that the rash was most likely an allergic reaction to the vaccinations he had received from the breeder so he administered only what was absolutely necessary and we began working to bolster Ceelo’s immune system.
For the first few months, I would bring Ceelo in to our veterinarian once a month. He would do muscle testing to determine where the weaknesses were in his system and would prescribe various supplements to strengthen him. Ceelo’s health was definitely improving however, his skin was still red and inflamed, especially at night. Our doctor mentioned that in Chinese medicine, that was the Liver’s* way of releasing toxins from the system so we then worked on purifying his liver and eliminating anything that might be an allergen. I switched him off of kibble and on to raw venison mixed with simple fruits and vegetables. This had a huge impact on his skin. The redness went completely away and there was no more inflammation at all.
The change in diet worked wonders for several months, until Ceelo began having loose stools covered in mucous. I took him right back to our integrative vet who took one look at Ceelo’s tongue and knew immediately that something was not right with his Spleen.* He then did muscle testing to confirm his initial diagnosis. He prescribed a Chinese herb along with whole food and glandular supplements. I started Ceelo on the new protocol as soon as we got home, and WITHIN TWO HOURS his stool became totally normal again. He has remained on these supplements for the past month and he is thriving.
When I took Ceelo in for his follow up visit yesterday, my vet was stunned by Ceelo’s radiant health! He said he could barely believe that this was the same dog I brought to him almost a year ago. His coat is full, lush and vibrant. His skin is whitish pink. His ears are clear, his folds are clean and perfectly dry and his spirit is filled with joy! We both welled up with tears at the miracle that is integrative veterinary medicine. I am so grateful to have discovered my wonderful, intuitive vet and my daughter and I are looking forward to many happy and healthy years with our handsome little boy!
I hope this story may simply inspire a reader to consider integrative medicine from the beginning of a puppy’s life – when it can make the greatest impact.
Tina Morasco
* Editor’s note: In Chinese medicine theory, Liver and Spleen have functions that go beyond conventional Western functions. So we capitalize those words when we are referring to Chinese medicine, and make Chinese diagnoses that tell us which Chinese herbs to use. Those diagnoses may include some items that Western medicine recognizes. The diagnosis are based on certain Chinese symptom patterns and may sound strange to those only familiar with Western medicine. Chinese patterns tell us how to use Chinese medicine. Western symptom patterns tell us how to use Western medicine.