Finally to the Vet - Blood Test

Yes. After 4 years, I finally brought Rossi gal in for her blood test. Yea, I know she is long overdue for her test. I'm guilty of procrastinating the inevitable. 

I know I have to get her checked at some point in time, but I really hate going to the vet.

My fat cat, Rubie, went along too for her test too. She has been with us for almost a year and has not been to the vet for any check (for the same reason).

Rossi gal's blood test results

I'm so glad that my Rossi gal cleared her blood test. :)  The vet said she is looking good, except for her skin.


Rossi is diagnosed with atopic dermatitis, a very common issue, according to the vet.

Since the day I took her home, she has been experiencing issues with the skin, fur loss...rashes...demodex.

She is especially affected by the weather and environment. When the weather gets hot, her rashes start popping out, only to subside when the weather gets better. Then when the environment is dusty, she also gets affected. It doesn't help that the haze is back now. Sighz.

Through Daddy and my observation, we do not think it's food-related. Now we know it's really not. Even if there is no cure for atopy, we will do our best to manage her condition.

The vet was saying, if we could move to somewhere with a cool climate, e.g. Australia, it would do good for her skin. I wish too, but not possible, yet.

What matters most now is, there is nothing wrong with her, other than her skin(something we have to work on). But all in all, she is a healthy gal. :)

I also did a comparison of her current test results against her results 4 years back. Her overall readings have improved significantly from her last test. :) I attribute this to her diet. I believe diet has played an important role in her well-being. 

Daddy & me believe too, that Dr Dobias' Green min has contributed to her health as well. She is into her 3rd jar of Green min now.

This also impressed upon me that we are on the right track for Rossi gal, what we have been doing for her. Daddy agrees. We will definitely continue in this direction for our darling.

Fat cat's blood test results

My fat cat, rubie, cleared her blood test too. :) I must say she is quite sturdy for a 10 year old gal. 

Other than having a higher BUN value, she is fine.

It's not a biggie. The vet just asked if we have been feeding her a lot of meat and advised us to reduce her meat intake. He told us to include some mashed pumpkin to her meals. Zzzzz.  

I simply smiled and looked away.

He is a nice vet, but I couldn't agree with him on this. Carnivores dun eat pumpkin. Neither is my fat cat getting any.

Till the next test. ;)

Signing off with a few fave photos of my darling & her nanny.

The Ear Infection Nightmare

In my last entry dated July 2013, I mentioned an upsetting issue that I hoped would be resolved.

It was a nightmare. At least to me, it was. I felt so stressed out and depressed over it. I couldn't talk or write about it, until now.

Rossi gal had an ear infection, which began in Oct 2012.  All along, she had a skin issue, but she didn't have a problem with her ears until that fateful day in Oct 2012. I noticed her left ear canal looking sore. Stupidly, I used the herbal ear wash to clean her ear and that's it. She scratched at her ear hard, resulting in her whole ear becoming bloody and very inflamed. Wrong move. I shouldn't have used the damn ear wash on her, it worsened her ear's condition. This also marked the beginning of the nightmare.

Between ears and skin, I would rather deal with the skin. At least, I can see her skin and target the rashes. But I was unable to delve deep into her ear canal. The ears are like an abyss to me. I feel so lost.

I got the vet to check out her left ear and she was diagnosed with a yeast infection. She was prescribed Surolan ear drops. As expected, it contains steroids and for this very reason, I refuse to use it on her. Actually, I just wanted a diagnosis of her ear from the vet, not the meds.

I tried to manage her ear infection on my own, using silver sol, internally & externally. I fed her silver sol, flushed her left ear and cleared out a lot of wax  daily for a long time. Her ear flap & lobe were also very flaky. I was also removing a lot of flakes & wiping her flap+lobe with silver sol daily. I used up many bottles of silver sol. But there was no improvement. Silver sol didn't work for her.

As time goes by, her ear's condition deteriorated. She was feeling very uncomfortable, shaking, rubbing & scratching her ear all the time. A lot of furs also fell out from her ear to the extent of being nearly bald. Her ear was so sore, till her canal became narrowed too. It really pained my heart to see her like this. I was very upset and angry with myself for my inability to improve her ear's condition. I blamed myself for what happened to her ear too.

The turning point came when I came across Dr. Dobias' blog on ear infections. In his entries, he wrote on the causes of ear infections and how to manage the ears naturally. One point in his blog that strike me was, excessive cleaning can cause ear infections and ears dun need to be cleaned frequently. He also listed down a step-by-step guide of the natural ear treatment. I decided to follow his advice of not cleaning the ears unnecessarily, as well as his steps in the ear treatment.

http://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/11014029-natural-treatment-of-ear-infections-in-dogs-part-1

http://peterdobias.com/blogs/blog/11014025-ear-infections-in-dogs-natural-approach-to-treatment-part-2

I ordered the products that he listed in the steps of his natural ear treatment.  


I started Rossi gal on a 2-month liver cleanse (Livton Complex), while giving her Green Min concurrently. At the end of the cleanse, I started to give her zyflamend (an anti-inflammatory supp) & continuing Green Min. After 1+month on zyflamend, I added on Zn Otic (a natural ear solution).

His ear treatment works for Rossi gal. It takes time and a lot of patience, but it works! Her ear infection has persisted over a year and finally, things are looking up. I'm overjoyed to see the significant improvements in her left ear and so grateful to Dr Dobias' blog that has helped her so much.

Thank God for Dr Dobias! I like his perspective, which is so different from the conventional point of view. His approach is natural & gentle, working from the inside out, rather than loading the body with meds. I personally find Dr Dobias' blog very insightful & his methods are definitely worth a shot.  

I have taken pictures of her left ear to monitor the progress, as follows:

This is the very first pic I took, though the infection started in 2012. 
It was inflamed, swollen & flaky with black pigmentation spread out on her flap.
The skin on her flap was hard & rough. Eventually, alot of the furs around her ear dropped off too. 

 

 

The latest pic taken of her ear. Looking so much better. :)

Overall view, Before and After:

The inflammation & swollenness have significantly subsided, the flakiness has reduced alot, the black pigmentation is fading off, the skin on her flap has softened & smoothened out and more furs are growing out.  

The journey was not an easy one. It took so long for Rossi gal's ear to see improvements. I was so worried that her ear was not gonna heal.  By looking at her ear then, I really felt hopeless. Thank God this wasn't the case! Thank God that her ear is on the road to recovery. Hoping to see her nice pink ear back soon. ^_^

At the same time, I will also keep up with the supps & do whatever is necessary to maintain the condition of her ear. Seriously, I do not want to go through the nightmare again.

Be Back Soon

It's been a very long time since I updated my blog. Been very busy. I'm currently working on an update. I will be back with it once it's done.

A Simple Celebration

I have my most important persons, Rossi gal & Daddy, and the new addition to our family, Rubie (aka fat cat), celebrating my birthday with me this year.

It was a simple & heart-warming celebration...with the people I love, a pretty cake & a short lovely message. How sweet. Nothing beats having the ones you love and who love you by your side.

Both gals are attracted to the glowing candle, in different ways. Rossi gal is watching the bright flame with a mixture of fascination & curiosity, while Rubie is staring down at it like it's some evil thing. ;p

There have been some nagging issues that I have been struggling with. Among them, there is a particular one that worries and frustrates me so much that my whole mind is totally overwhelmed by it, to the extent that I cannot concentrate & I get paranoid very easily. Luckily, I have Daddy going through it with me.

The celebration does help in distracting me for a while from it all. I needed this.

The maliciousness surrounding me is of no significance. I have no time or energy for petty stuff. There are important matters I need to focus on.

My only hope is for this particular issue to be resolved very soon. That's it.