Monday, March 29, 2010

Busy Weekend

Saturday morning both boys saw the chiropractor for “tune-ups.” Ike has been working really hard in class and doing lots of contacts and he hadn’t seen Cheryl in some time. With Bug, I wanted Cheryl to use applied kinesiology to muscle test him regarding the treats/meats I am feeding him and his supplements. Bug has been having loose stools a lot lately and this has absolutely NEVER been a problem for him (unless he was at a show and getting loads of high value treats or had a stomach bug).

I suspected the issue was the Ligaplex and possibly the Nature’s Variety. Bug is slightly allergic to chicken, and I have been feeding him NV Venison and Rabbit. These two products do contain chicken eggs and I wasn’t sure if that would be enough to cause a reaction.

Cheryl muscle tested all the treats and meats first and he did not have an issue with any of them. Hooray!! Given he cannot eat beef or chicken, developing a new allergy is a fear of mine. I am fortunate that he has a fairly low-key reaction (to both the beef and chicken) and doesn’t have an allergic reaction like some dogs I know, none-the-less I don’t want to have to scratch off any other protein sources!

On to the supplements. Bug is sensitive to the Ligaplex (knew it!), but given what it does (supports connective tissue and joints) Cheryl thinks it is important he continues to take it. He was taking it 2x daily. Cheryl suggested splitting one pill between am/pm. The surprise was that he tested VERY sensitive for the Glyco Flex II. Drat. Cheryl pointed out that liquid or powder forms of joint supplements are said to have a better rate of absorption. She said Glyco Flex does have a liquid supplement for horses I could try.

We decided I would meet her in Pembroke next weekend at The Healthy Animal. Apparently they carry a really wide assortment of joint supplements for both dogs and horses. I will bring Bug and we will muscle test him to see which supplements he can tolerate and go from there.

Saturday afternoon I attended a really interesting 2-hour seminar called Heal Faster, Move Better on preventing and treating injuries in the performance canine. The seminar presenters were Bug’s Rehab/primary vet and his Physical Therapist! I will post more on it later – including a book recommendation that has stretches for specific sports.

4 comments:

Katrin said...

The healthy animal is a GREAT store, it's where Li goes and recommends a lot of people in her area go. Good products.

Kathy Mocharnuk said...

That sounds like a great seminar, can not wait to hear more about it!

Sara said...

Definitely looking forward to hearing about the seminar.

Jenn said...

Let me know when you might be there .... I will come by and say hello! I LOVE the Healthy Animal. Diane (the owner) and the people that work there are very knowledgable.