posted on October 27, 2007 09:21:24 AM new
Our son and wife in the Bay Area don't have any children but have two large dogs they've rescued, which are their children. The older one, Risa, has been very ill (not sure what she had, but she had serious surgery a couple of weeks ago and they weren't sure she'd make it through). Here's part of a message from our son today.
There will always be a California, I guess! I can't imagine how much these kids have spent on their dog, thus far, but of course she's well worth it. I just thought you and Ralphie would enjoy seeing what has healed that sweet dog.
Now, here's the message:
"We’re thrilled about her progress. She didn’t go on any post-surgical medication at all. So I’m crediting a lot of her recovery to the cocktail of Chinese herbs and nutritional supplements. This is her current regimen, which we began post-surgery. I open and mix everything but the CarotoMax into her food. The CarotoMax she gets afterward. (Call me crazy, but I don’t like red stains on my fingers. Learned that one fast the hard way.)
Chinese herbs:
Stasis Breaker (anti-oxidant - two capsules twice/day)
Wei Qi Booster (to promote healing - two capsules twice/day)
Yunan Baiyao (improves circulation - one capsule twice/day)
Nutritional supplements (all from Shaklee):
CarotoMax and FlavoMax (Carotenoid blend for immunity and anti-oxidant as after dinner nightly chaser)
FlavoMax (Flavonoid designed to be taken with CarotoMax. Herbal anti-oxidant formula that includes green tea – only three/week since it has caffeine)
OmegaGuard (Blend of Omega3 fish oils for cardiovascular health – one gelcap/day)
The only western medicine drug she’s on:
Piroxicam with after-dinner pepcid chaser (anti-inflammatory – one capsule/day)
*She’s no longer taking YB. I’m planning to add the supplement CoQ10 to her cocktail to further strengthen her heart.
BTW, this week’s update is going to be fun. You know the t-shirt she’s wearing to keep her from scratching her staples? The pic is in one my recent blog entries. I decided to sign it like you would sign a cast. Well, that meant Hayley and Orion also had to. We then decided that of course we had to get Drs. Aki (primary who did the initial diagnosis) and McCain (holistic) to sign it. We took Risa to see Dr. Aki to have her staples removed yesterday. When I sheepishly took the shirt out and asked if she’d sign it, she gave an enthusiastic, “of course and I’m sure everybody in the back will want to also!” I left it behind for a day so that Dr. Murphy, the other vet there who we love, could sign it. I picked it up today. The thing is out of control. I’ll include a picture in this week’s update."
posted on October 27, 2007 10:38:04 AM new
Thanks, Roady! I'm sure the info will come in use, but NOT someday soon, I hope!
So many folks have sick pets recently, it makes me wonder if sumptin is going on (again) in the food supply...
He's back on IAMS WEIGHT LOSS (made with ALL AMERICAN ingredients) with one squirt/day of OMEGA3 supplement, and his GI performance the past 3 weeks has been...GRAND!
THERE'S a picture worth a thousand words: poor ole Ralphie trying to take a peaceful DUMP, with his Daddy bent over him in inspection mode (LOL!)!
Keeping my fingers crossed that things stay this way...
posted on October 27, 2007 01:00:24 PM new
Glad to hear that Risa is making progress and congrats to Ralphie on his stellar GI performance!
We are so happy that our Lacy is very much herself again after her bout with Cushings and the trauma of her surgery. She is eating really well and loving the long walks she and I take every morning that it is not pouring rain. I have discovered some really interesting areas of our neighborhood that I did not know existed after living here 35 years.
-----o----o----o----o----o----o----o----o
“The illiterate of the future will be the person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as of the pen.”
Maholy-Nagy, Vision in Motion, 1947
posted on October 27, 2007 05:06:03 PM new
Tom: Because I'm The Mom, I get to ask nosy questions. Here are some of his answers:
"Heh. The weekend of her diagnosis was a bundle of emotions. A lot of it was despair and feeling helpless. This took a huuuge turn when I realized, “wait a minute. Why can’t we go the natural route???” I started researching canine and human cancer wellness. This was mostly online at first. Since then I’ve also read more than one book on it. Over time, her cocktail has taken the form of finding common threads among all the sources. It’s been an amazing experience.
You know we were already believers in living a Wellness lifestyle. But this experience has really changed the equation for us. What it’s done is put those strong beliefs into action. We’ve both put a renewed emphasis on taking our supplements (some of the same ones Risa takes and multivitamins daily) and we only clean with environmentally-friendly cleaners. We are making our house a toxin-free place. After all, those cleaners that have warnings about ingesting? Dogs walk on the floor and then lick their paws! There’s no reason to use cleaners that make things worse than when you used them.
Yes, it’s not cheap. As a rough estimate, so far we’ve spent somewhere around $5,000, the initial diagnosis and the surgery being the vast majority of it. We’re lucky we have the resources for it and never had to make the “but we can’t afford it” decision. Did you know that the Humane Society picked up Risa (or Megan as they named her) on the day we were married? How’s that for a sign?
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posted on October 27, 2007 05:44:47 PM new
Oh, geez! Photo! I had forgotten all about Lacy! So happy she's doing better!
Roady: It's hard to avoid all the environmental pitfalls in the home & still survive economically! The WATER here in JAX is totally NASTY, so, ever since Ralph was a baby, I've attached a PUR filter to our tap -- all my COFFEE water & all his drinking water runs thru PUR...
But, boy! It sure feels like a lot of our furry family friends are getting ill lately -- doesn't it?
posted on October 27, 2007 05:47:44 PM new
For sure, Jane - wish I had him around, but I only have 1 dog now compared to 3 a while back. Less poop and less scoop......
posted on October 28, 2007 07:44:02 AM newRALPHIE'S VERSION OF THE FISH CHEER:
Gimme a S
S!
Gimme a W
W!
Gimme an E
E!
Gimme an E
E!
Gimme a P
P!
What's that spell? SWEEP!
What's that spell? SWEEP!
What's that spell? SWEEP!
He's tres adorable in his minature RED SOX uniform, liddle whisk broom tightly clutched between his teeth, all ready to lend a hand tonight, as da SOX SWEEP THE CROCKIES!
posted on October 28, 2007 11:10:06 AM new
Yikes! I wish!
Ole Ralphie is a confirmed NATURALIST and prefers his attire to be..."AuNaturale"
A few Xmas's ago, some friends gave him a beautiful sweater -- nice & warm for those COLD JAX JAN mornings, when he shakes & shakes...
So, I put the sweater on (him, not me) and he looks really dapper and debonair -- really smart & handsome, ya know?
I turn my back for about TWO MINUTES to get his halter & leash &, when I get back -- the sweater is OFF and he just be sitting there giving me his "go ahead, OldMan, I just dare ya to try THAT again" look!
I put the sweater back on (HIM, NOT ME) and stand there watching him for 5 minutes -- tis a MEXICAN STANDOFF!
I go to the can & come back and...THE SWEATER IS OFF! HOW THE HELL DOES HE DO THAT? And the weirdest thing is: he won't take off the sweater if I'm watching -- only if I go away for 1-2 minutes!
posted on October 29, 2007 10:24:35 AM new
I remember Kate Smith from radio days when she opened the show with her theme song When the Moon Comes Over the Mountains, but most of all I remember her opening the Philadelphia Flyers home games, either live or by recording, with God Bless America. She was truly their good luck charm because they won most of their games when she sang.
It was so exciting when she appeared live.
There is a statue of her at the Spectrum in Philadelphia.
posted on October 29, 2007 11:13:41 AM new
McJane: I was really little when Kate Smith was so popular, but I'll always remember her rendition of God Bless America. Very moving.
We lived in a little village of about 350 people during WWII; Dad had a church there, and I remember a hymn the congregation sang, something like "God bless our boys, wherever they may be, God bless our boys, on land or on the sea" etc. Our little town had several men in the war, and at least one never came back. And one came back in a casket.
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[ edited by roadsmith on Oct 29, 2007 11:14 AM ]
posted on October 29, 2007 11:39:27 AM new
This hymn Roadsmith? (I wasn't alive during WWII but have always loved the "Navy Hymn":
Eternal Father, Strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bid'st the mighty Ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
O hear us when we cry to thee,
for those in peril on the sea.
O Christ, the Lord of hill and plain
O'er which our traffic runs amain,
by mountain pass or valley low,
Wherever Lord thy brethren go;
Protect them by Thy guardian hand
From every peril on the land.
Lord, guard and guide the men who fly
Through the great spaces in the sky,
Be with them always in the air,
In dark'ning storms or sunlight fair.
O, Hear us when we lift our prayer,
For those in peril in the air.
posted on October 29, 2007 11:47:32 AM new
Neglus, I've always loved that old hymn. My biased opinion is that today's churches have lost a lot, with their "praise bands" and jazzy new-age music. (I'm sounding like a geezer!)
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posted on November 3, 2007 07:08:02 PM new
I am just catching up on threads that I have missed and found this one.
Oh my...memories!
I went to school in London, England and it was in the days when we still had a morning 'Assembly" where we sang a Hymn and said Prayers and there were school Announcements. This would have been 1955-1960 era.
This was one of my favourite hymns too except that it was in such a low key and with 500 girls trying to get their voices down to their boots we somehow didn't quite do it justice.
There are two pieces of music that really move me..this is one and the other is 'Land of Hope & Glory'. Whenever I hear that sung by a huge crowd I just am a total wreck!
posted on November 3, 2007 07:48:35 PM new
I think those days of pomp and ritual were better than today's students' experiences in some ways.
My grade school was Emerson Elementary in Phoenix. The two-story brick school was shaped like the E in Emerson; the E was open to the playground, the long edge of it was on 7th St.
Every morning we lined up in the two courtyards of the E: K-5 in the lower one, 6-8 in the upper one. We lined up in order behind our teacher; there were PA announcements, then we recited the pledge of allegiance, and finally there was Sousa band music over the PA as we marched into the building and into our classrooms. It was a good orderly way to start our day.
Couldn't be done year around in colder climates, of course. And I'm sure we didn't line up on rainy days (which were few and far between).
Nostalgia. Ain't it wonderful!
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posted on November 3, 2007 07:59:08 PM new
Yep..nostalgia is wonderful and so was the self discipline that we learnt from rituals like that.
My Grand-daughter is now grown up but when she was about 10 years old she asked me one day "Granny, what was the worst thing you ever did at school"?
I think she was expecting a really juicy answer but I had to think hard and replied "I got caught running in the hallway"
She looked at me in utter disbelief and said "Yea...right...you must have done something else bad".
I told her that what I did was considered very bad and I was punished!
I am sounding like a real old fogie here but they just don't get it!
"childrens do learn"
