Thursday, August 25, 2011

Rossi gal and Her Angry Bird

Yesterday, Daddy brought an angry bird home for Rossi gal. He has been looking  to get one for her and finally found it.

Looks annoyed & cute at the same time 

'Angry Bird' is one of his favorite games. For a while, I was also hooked on it. ;p

It has a tail too!

We got Rossi gal to pose for a photo with her cute bird fren (before she starts her usual tussle with it.)   

Took us a while to get her to pose without attacking the bird

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

New Toys

My darling daughter loves to play with toys. She swings and shakes them. She nibbles on them. She nudges me and daddy with them to engage us in a game of fetch or friendly tug-of-war.

Over the weekend, I ordered some toys for her. They arrived yesterday at my office.
She loves toys with 'handles'.

Grabs hold of them once they are within her grasp.


 Clamps down on the biggest one.


Wrestles with it.

  
Within minutes, a brand new 'battered' toy. :X  As usual.

Nearing 3 years of age, she is still as playful as ever. I hope she will stay the way she is, always. In her golden years, I hope she will still remain young at heart.  

Monday, August 15, 2011

Organic Slippery Elm Bark Powder

Recently, I have ordered some organic slippery elm bark powder. It arrived last Friday afternoon.


After reading about its uses for tummy-related issues and other inflammatory conditions in a herbs' book and online, I thought it would be useful to have it on hand. Not just for Rossi gal, but for me and her daddy as well.  

Pic of Slippery Elm Bark Powder
(*from Mountain Rose Herbs webby)
Besides this, slippery elm is also a nutritive herb, with carbohydrates, protein, fat, ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, calcium, and several trace minerals.

I personally find the article in this link on Slippery Elm for pets quite useful.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Slippery-Elm---Your-Pets-Best-Holistic-Friend&id=2207545

This link contains information on the uses of slippery elm for us.
http://www.herbs2000.com/herbs/herbs_slippery_elm.htm

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

An Episode of Tummy Upset

Rossi gal had an episode of tummy upset lately. Loose, runny poo. She was also having some gas. I couldnt quite put a hand to the cause, for she was eating pretty much her usual stuff.

Maybe I overfed her? Maybe I went abit 'too far' on variety in a short space of time and its a bit too much for her tummy to take? Maybe this...Maybe that...Well, I can't really figure it out.  

The wonderful thing was throughout, she remained her usual greedy and playful self. Her poo frequency and amount were pretty much the same, except the poo texture were a mixture of softness+runniness.

Her tummy upset lasted for more than a week, but I didnt think to bring her to the vet. Most likely, things like anti-diarrhoea meds, deworming meds and anti-biotics would be prescribed to her. I didnt like any of them at all and didnt think these meds were the solution to her tummy issue. I wanted her to heal with natural ways. Besides, as mentioned above, she was still acting normally.   

Most vets would also likely attribute her tummy upset to raw and advise me against feeding her raw, followed by instructions to give her a bland diet of boiled chicken/egg and rice. And I will never think of feeding rice or any cooked stuff to her. To me, these are inappropriate foods. She is on raw. Her body is meant for digesting raw, not cooked foods.     

Well, for one, I know raw is not the cause of her tummy issue, as in raw is not right for her or she shouldnt be eating raw (as vets would say), No. She has been on raw for more than a year and it has benefitted her health so much. I wouldnt blame raw or stop it simply cos of a tummy upset. Dogs on other types of diets can get tummy upsets too and they still stick to their same diet, ya.

Being raw fed doesn't mean nil issues or won't ever get sick. This is an unrealistic expectation. Raw is not some miracle diet. No diet is miracle for that matter.

So, what did I do for her tummy issue?

The very first thing I did was fast her. It was very difficult, cos she was always gazing at me with those pitiful eyes wanting food. But I had to do it for her sake. I fasted her for one meal, while giving her about half the usual portion for her next meal. I did this for about 3 days. (I could only manage a partial fast for her. A full fast is honestly too much for me and her to take.)  

After that, I increased her bone content by giving her a bone meal in the morning and about half the usual portion for her second meal at nite. I'm hoping the added bone content can help in firming up her poo.

During this time, I also stopped giving her organs and removed all the fats and skin on the meats & bones. I only gave her lamb meat, lamb rack and chicken wings+drums.  

Throughout the time, I also gave her manuka honey, followed by probiotics, then carbon pills (one by one in consecutive order. I went on to the next one when the previous one didnt work out.).

However, there seems to be little improvement. Though her poo seemed less runny, it was still loose+wet and she still had gas.

Up till this point, I was still racking my brains and busy contemplating on how I could help her. Then all of a sudden, I recalled a herbal remedy kept in her cabinet and thought it might do her tummy some good. I decided to give it a shot.

Parasite Dr. is the remedy. I have given it to Rossi gal a few times for its blood cleansing and digestive health supporting+balancing properties. During her switch to a raw, I have also given it to her and it helped in easing her into raw. (*I use it on an 'as-needed' basis. I dun use it regularly. The last time I used it, was during her switch to raw more than a year back.)

As per the Native Remedies webby, Parasite Dr. has these uses:
  • Cleanses and detoxifies the blood

  • Promotes digestive health and detoxification

  • Calms and soothes the digestive system

  • Supports correct balance of intestinal flora

  • Supports immune system functioning


  • I went ahead to administer Parasite Dr. on her, twice a day, with half a capsule of contents added and mixed with her food each time. 

    Just a couple of doses later, her gas went off and her poo began to take form and firm up. I was so happy! Finally, I saw signs that she was heading towards recovery. I continued her on it for the next 2-3 days...and she recovered. Thank God. :)

    Her poo is nice and firm now. No more loose or runny poo. I also proceed to increase back her food quantity gradually.

    My purpose of this post is to share about Rossi gal's tummy issue, my approach in helping her and how she recovered, as well as my personal beliefs/views.

    Parasite Dr. works well for her, but it does not mean it will work the same for others. Every dog is different. Please do research to understand more before attempting anything.

    What I did for her, might not be deemed acceptable. Some might feel I should have taken her to the vet. Some might feel I shouldnt be administering any sort of remedy on my own, be it natural or herbal. Some might feel there is a better way than what I have done. But whatever it is, it doesnt matter what anyone thinks. Most importantly, Rossi gal got well.

    I persist in my own beliefs on what is best for her too, for I know her best.

    Monday, August 8, 2011

    Omega 3

    Omega 3 (O3) fatty acids are beneficial to our dogs, for their skin, coat, joints and heart, just to name a few. To me, O3 is essential for Rossi gal's diet. I include it into her diet mainly for the well-being of her skin and coat.


    I have read of many pawrents, who give their furkids O3 in the form of fish oil, be it on a raw diet or other types of diet. For Rossi gal, I have been giving her O3 in the form of raw salmon. As I dun give her salmon often and the amount I give her each time is quite small, I have decided to get some fish oil to add on to her O3 intake.


    Between fish oil and plant oil, I choose to go for fish oil, as it contain active EFAs (EPA and DHA) readily available to dogs.

    More info on fish oil is available below.

    Fish Oil & its health benefits for dogs

    Wednesday, August 3, 2011

    A Dog's Soul

    I would like to share this beautiful poem here. The words really touched my heart. I hope the words will also touch the heart of every soul who reads it.

    I believe too, that in every dog, there is a precious, loving soul within.

    Every dog must have a soul somewhere deep inside
    Where all his hurts and grievances are buried with his pride.

    Where he decides the good and bad, the wrong way from the right,
    And where his judgement carefully is hidden from our sight.

    A dog must have a secret place, where every thought abides,
    A sort of close acquaintance that he trusts in and confides.

    And when accused unjustly for himself, He cannot speak,
    Rebuked, He finds within his soul, the comfort he must seek.

    He will love, though he is unloved, and he will serve though badly used,
    And one kind word will wipe away the times when he's abused.

    Although his heart may break in two, his love will still be whole,
    Because God gave to every dog an understanding Soul!

    By Author Unknown