Pup

I’ve been taking care of this beautiful boy the same way I take care of my health and my families health.

He’s had skin issues on and off through his two years of life.

The first time it came up we went the obvious route and it seemed like a simple fix. When the problem recurred and the solution offered was the same but the result didn’t last my gut started doing it’s thing, louder and louder until I couldn’t ignore it.

He had scratched himself to the point of bleeding, the kids were distressed and everything in my body said ‘no more’.

No more injections, no more treating symptoms, no more covering up the outward expression of an internal problem.

I sat with what our other options might be and serendipitously connected with a local holistic Vet who uses chinese medicine, herbs and homeopathy along with conventional Veterinary treatments.

We spent a good hour in her clinic, this boisterous, handful of a dog laying in the corner as calm as he’s ever been, talking about what the skin irritation could be trying to tell us and how we could address the underlying imbalance so that it would stop needing to tell us in such a disruptive and painful fashion.

Food, a herbal remedy powder, some homeopathic drops. Not simple, not cheap, not quick, not even a sure thing but it made sense. It was an experience reminiscent of the many appointments we’d been through with our LW in the past.

Patience, perseverance, trust through the ups and downs. Exploring how the advice we’d been given could be tailored to our context, to real life, to perfect imperfection.

Being clear about what we need to minimise for him.

Being realistic about that being enough. That being a good start and a move in the right direction.

Being ok with the parts that are not achievable, now or ever for us. That would cause more stress than they are worth.

Being willing to take and allow some time to get to where we need to be with it all.

I learned what a perfectly balanced raw diet looks like for a dog like ours. I worked out how we can feed him well to suit his needs, better than we were before we knew, without being overwhelmed by the idea of perfection.

He’s still got red areas on his belly, he’s still an itchy scratchy dog, bothered by the heat and many things in his environment.

He’s sensitive, he found us for a reason.

We manage his sensitivities the best we can, we keep learning and following the clues, trying the tools that come up. We accept the ways that he is different and how those differences challenge us. We love him and we see the gift of the challenges he brings us- that show us where we have room for growth, for more patience, compassion and love.