Sometimes finding an answer requires thinking outside the box. For me, this meant leaving traditional veterinary medicine and the dispensing of one medication after another, to visit a holistic practice.
I have a German Shepherd dog who came to me after being diagnosed with allergies. He had been treated with cephlaxin and other drugs for over 1 1/2 years. When he came to live here last June he was still on medication and he had no guard hairs and a brittle undercoat. He also had an ear infection. He was bloated from the meds but you could see the sparkle in his eye.
I started feeding raw and he was weaned off the medication. His coat improved. We ran and played and his physical conditioning got better, as well. We started alternating feeding days with Solid Gold kibble. Even though he had improved tremendously and his beautiful dark sable guard hairs were growing back, he continued to have moist spots that I would treat with sprays and ointments from the vet.
Then, in November, my well meaning husband added cedar chips to the bedding. Some dogs react to the oil on the cedar and I had stopped using it in the kennel for this reason. Of course, Ali reacted. This time, his face swelled and he itched and I called the vet when he wasn't bouncing back. Steriods were prescribed.
He got worse! His skin was scaly and dispigmented, and he lost hair again. When the vet said "well, we always suggest trying a novel protein" I felt there was a lack of communication. My friend had recently taken her elderly GSD to a holistic vet and seen amazing results but cautioned that it had to be approached with an open mind. I know her to be a skeptic and believed that if there was any voodoo hocus pocus about it, she would not suggest it.
I met with Dr. Strickfaden at Countryview in Green Bay. She explained to me how antibiotics are used to kill bacteria, but that they also kill the "good bacteria". When I got home, of course, I did more research on the internet and this is from the link listed below:
" In a healthy body, there is both good and bad bacteria in the intestinal tract. There shouldbe about 80% good bacteria and about 20% bad bacteria. Let's be very clear about antibiotics: They are used to kill bacteria.
When antibiotics are used, both good and bad bacteria are destroyed in your dogs intestinal tract! Once the antibiotics are stopped, the bad bacteria grow back first - and faster. "
Click here: antibiotics, antibiotics for dogs .
Essentially, what had occurred was that there was probably some allergic reaction to begin with . Tests show sensitivity to wheat and corn, neither of which are contained in what he is fed now but are common in many commercial foods. However, the antibiotics meant to help him, killed the good bacteria and left him open to infection. He did improve when the offending foods were removed from his diet, but the underlying infection remained. Then, when faced with another allergic reaction and given MORE antiobiotics, he had nothing left to fight with and the yeast infection went crazy.
As an aside, we also ran a thyroid panel and that does not show this to be a thyroid issue.
So, the first thing to do is get his interior back in order. Part of that involved the voodoo part of all of this~ bioresonance therapy. Read here for more on that subject:
CountryCare Animal Complex > Bioresonance Therapy
To tell the truth, it reminds me of a divining rod! The flexible tip of the rod moves in circles until the magnetic field is "in tune" with the dog? the universe? anyway, it stops moving in a circle and moves up and down, signaling the end of the session. Ali slept all the way home. The following day, he greeted me at the door with barking. That meant he was feeling better and wanting to DO something, darnit!! Am I seeing improvement that isn't there? I'm trying to remain objective but have to say that I finally have hope that there is an explanation and a treatment for him. And one that does not involve keeping him medicated. We have another treatment scheduled for Monday, so I will keep you posted as to whether we continue to see progress.
