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Freedom
From Illness:
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March 2017 |
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Welcome to the monthly Freedom From Illness
wholistic newsletter from Russell Louie and Margaret Auld-Louie at Optimum
Choices. To receive this newsletter by e-mail, click:
Subscribe Newsletter. To unsubscribe, see the bottom of this e-mail. Contents March Sale March Sale
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Current News
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********************************************************************************* Senior Pet SignsWe all know the meaning of the pet sign when your dog goes to the door and barks—‘I want to go out.’ Here are some pet signs we have interpreted over the years from our senior pets. Since we are not vets or animal behavior specialists, we do not claim these are universal signs for all pets, just ours. Please check with a qualified animal practitioner to interpret your pet’s signs. Head in food bowl— when a healthy pet does this in an empty food bowl it usually means they are hungry. But when a senior or sick pet does this it could mean they need a specific "healing" ingredient from food or nutrition their body is lacking. Is your pet suddenly eating inappropriate items, such as dirt, rocks, twigs or leaves? Is your pet suddenly licking red sandstone rocks or wanting to drink from a natural body of water with algae in it? This could mean a mineral, vitamin, fiber, enzyme or chlorophyll deficiency. Maybe they are not getting enough nutrients for a carnivore (from nutrient deficient or special diet dry kibble) to fill them up. Dogs need 60-80% meat + fat protein, while cats (obligate carnivores) need 70-90% meat + fat protein to be healthy. Head in water bowl—when a healthy pet does this in an empty water bowl it usually means they are thirsty but when a senior pet does this and there is water in the bowl, what does this mean? It could mean they need some nutrition their body is lacking or they do not feel well and they want to “wash” away that “icky” feeling. Lapping up water furiously, then vomiting—while dogs are notorious for quickly gulping their food, we started to see this when our dog, Mikki, got chronic renal failure (CRF) and lapped up water and then vomited. She was constantly thirsty but she would either gulp water too fast or the signal that her stomach was full of water just was not making it to her brain in time to stop (she also had doggy dementia at 18 years old). When we observed this, we tried to distract her after a while by petting her or offering her treats. This would stop her drinking water. We did not want to discourage her from drinking frequently with CRF but we just wanted to cut the consumption or speed of drinking down. Getting stuck in corners—when our dog Mikki got doggy dementia (18 years old), she would wander into the corners of the room and just stand there. One night she wandered into the downstairs bathroom and got stuck behind the door. She barked all night until one of us woke up and “rescued” her by turning her body around so she could walk out the bathroom. Apparently, her mind could not figure the way out or her “reverse gear” was broken. Sitting in litter box but not using it—our dying cat, Iris, did this on her last day with us. She first developed labored breathing. Then she went into the litter box and sat down without doing anything. We deduced she felt “icky” and wanted to ‘eliminate’ that feeling. We later learned that night at the hospital she was dying of congestive heart failure and she quickly passed away while in an oxygen chamber. Not getting comfortable sitting down—when a pet cannot get comfortable in any position sitting or lying down, we suspect something is wrong. We deduce they are in some discomfort or pain. One obvious answer is arthritic pain. Sometimes isolated supplements, herbs, homeopathic remedies and even drugs may help. But our 15 year old cat with pancreatitis and triaditis suddenly started doing this. She would lie on one side with her legs stretched out to the left, then switch to the right side. We learned this was probably due to the labored breathing and congestive heart failure she would later die from that night. We suggest a vet visit whenever you see this happening. Whenever one sees abnormal behavior in a pet it behooves one to seek professional help in interpreting what might be wrong. The above signs are just our interpretation from observing our pets. Most pet parents know their pet better than anyone else. See our December, 2013, newsletter, You Know Your Pet Best.
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Contact us
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E-mail:Telephone:303-271-1649 office Location (available by appointment ONLY)416 Plateau Pkwy
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