A Bump in the Road

9/30/13 - Have you ever caught your dog eating her own stool or another dog's stool?? this is appalling especially when you spend so much money on good dog food or time and money making your pet's meals...but this is something they will do when they have an enzyme deficiency. Here is more information and a better explanation as to why dog's do this: http://drplechner.com/learn/miscellaneous-articles/digestive-enzymes/ Shasta did this on our walk the other day and although I was disgusted I knew I was going to run into some digestive problems...but didn't realize how far this would set her back. She kept doing it despite my efforts to pick up her poop immediately after she went potty and despite my efforts to make sure she didn't pick up anything on our walks. Shasta was not getting the nutrients she needed on the limited ingredients I was feeding her during this time that I was trying to weed out what she might be allergic too. She was also not absorbing the enzyme supplements that enables the breakdown of the food and therefore she was craving, starving, and not absorbing efficiently. She started to lose weight rapidly, her coat looked disheveled, and I could tell her vision and demeanor was worsening. I took her into to see my general vet and was scared to death when I saw how much weight she had lost. I had some blood work done and her results showed that her white blood cell count was high. My vet was concerned about her diet and wanted to prescribe antibiotics as long as Dr. P agreed it wouldn't disrupt his protocol. After consulting with Dr. P. we put Shasta on an antibiotic for 2 weeks and I started researching commercial dog foods again to get her on something more nutritious. At first I was reluctant to put her on a raw food diet because of her suppressed immune system, but further research indicated to me this was the best (but most expensive) choice. Within a week Shasta showed phenomenal results. She put on weight, her demeanor was better, her vision was better, she was no longer eating stool, she no longer had diarrhea and her coat was thick and shiny! : ) We are back on track. I have to say that since Shasta has started Dr. Plechner's treatment for her high estrogen and changing her diet, she has not been itching at all and she is no longer shedding like she used. We have always needed multiple lint rollers in the house, constantly vaccuming and washing bedding to keep the hair under control and now we have no need for any of it! : )