Pet Connections Podcast

I'm so incredibly lucky have such great friends and supporters, and a special thanks to Cathy Menard, owner of Urban Dog, who invited me to join her on her radio show this morning: Pet Connections. If you didn't have a chance to check it out, here's a recording.

And if you need an extraordinary local business to help you with your dog walking and boarding needs, please check out Urban Dog.

Thanks to everyone who listened!

About Giffy, pt. 3: Why holistic?

Kunda, 11 years old
courtesy of Barbara O'Brien

As I was learning about soft training methods, I was also dealing with dogs that had allergies and emotional challenges. By a stroke of luck, I was exposed to Contact Reflex Analysis (which uses muscle testing to find the health of the body’s underlying systems) and Emotional Freedom Technique (tapping) after my dog Kunda developed severe allergies, so severe that she was literally tearing off her nipples. I took her to veterinarians, explored options, put her on ridiculous doses of Benadryl (12 per day, actually), and she was still miserable. It took 6 weeks for her spay incision to heal. Her white blood cell count was low, and her clotting time was slow. My vet told me that she’d need blood transfusions for any major work. Because she was suffering so mercilessly, I began to consider euthanizing her. Don’t mistake me, I loved Kunda desperately, but watching her suffer every day made me question her quality of life. Before making such a drastic choice, I decided instead to try an alternative approach. That’s when I was exposed to CRA and EFT. It changed my life. And hers.  

After 3 visits to the new vet, Kunda was assigned a combination of supplements in 3 rounds, things like acidophilus, milk thistle, olive leaf extract, and Echinacea C. We weaned Kunda off all Benadryl, and after the third treatment, she was no longer symptomatic. I ran new blood work at a vet who did not support alternative modalities, and her numbers were normal.

Kunda lived a healthy-happy life for another glorious 7 years; in fact, she died of degenerative myelopathy at the ripe old age of 11! 

Reggie, closeup of skin

The only way I could stop Reggie from scratching

Reggie after treatment

I tried dog after dog with the same types of results. Whether emotional or physical (frankly, the two usually go hand-in-hand), it worked. Time and again. Sarah, who was 25 pounds under weight and couldn’t keep down food. Reggie, who was tearing off his skin, and whom I could only protect by putting him in toddler’s pajamas—with socks and a cone around his head. He looked ridiculous, but it prevented him from scratching himself raw. There were many more, but these two, coupled with Kunda, convinced me. Dogs, after all, didn’t understand the placebo effect. I decided to learn the practices myself.

I’ve been studying muscle testing and tapping since 2008, formed a study group in 2009, attend seminars and workshops, and supplemented that with intuitive and energy healing training. Today, I practice tapping with dogs

And even now, I find myself amazed at how useful the practice can be—for anything from anxiety and fear, emotions associated to muscle pain. It’s an incredibly useful tool.

What I Do

In addition to offering behavioral consults for rescue dogs, I also work with dog wellness. At the recommendation of a friend, Emmy Vadnais, I call myself a "holistic dog consultant." Since 2008, I've been studying muscle testing (aka applied kinesiology) and EFT (aka Emotional Freedom Technique or tapping), and this past weekend, I was lucky enough to visit my local Vitamin Shoppe to visit with customers about health and dogs. (The folks at that Vitamin Shoppe, by the way are both incredibly friendly and super knowledgeable.)

I love that we're moving toward a model that includes both humans and dogs. In fact, I feed my dogs supplements every single day, and I've been thrilled with the results. They've never been healthier.

So today I'm going to write about one small component of dog wellness that affects a huge percentage of dogs (and people, for that matter): Yeast. You heard it, yeast.

Did you know that dogs can take human supplements? In fact, I've always been a little startled that people package these supplements separately for dogs. My two favorite yeast remedies for dogs are Vitamin Shoppe Acidophilus with Apple Pectin and Probiotic 8, which also comes in a vegetarian formula. In fact, I keep both of them in my refrigerator at all times. After all, yeast is something that so many of us deal with. (And I think it's closely related to the processed, sugary food we eat.) Whenever possible, I muscle test my dogs for the type of acidophillus they need, the quantity, and the duration. Then I break the capsules open on their food. (For the record, most dogs require 2-3 pills per day--in 8-12 hour intervals--for 2-3 weeks.)

If you don't know muscle testing, bring your dogs to someone who does. But you can usually tell if your dog has excess yeast by sniffing her ears. Do they have a sharp pungent odor? I've also noticed that dogs with excess yeast often have dark skin on their belly, kind of like they've been lying on rich, black soil.

So anyhow, why not give it a try? Not only will a dog with a balanced system feel better, he will smell better, too.