Burt, Kelsie, Leo, & Lucy
Ecko Bear & Shasta Bear
Einstein, Teeniny, & Itty-Bit
Fred
Harmony
Kaisha
Logan
Lundy
Maddie
Nellie, Emma, & Harley
Nikopotomus & Sheena
Osha Root
PJ
Sam
Snoopy
Sophie, Polar Bear, & Sadie
Starbright Sue
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Burt's Grub Burt's Grub Burt's GrubBurt's Grub
Burt, a Chesapeake Bay retriever, chocolate brown, with white on his chest, is a special boy. He loves to swim and jump up in front of me so he can look me square in the eye. I consider him my Velcro dog, as I can always turn around and bump right into his cold nose, or step on his little brown toes. Burt also has an assortment of health issues, I could write a book about his numerous trips to the vet, and live comfortably on what I have spent, pre-BARF.
Burt hurt his shoulder at 18 months and X-rays revealed a serious case of bursitis. The specialist informed me that as Burt aged, I would be pumping him full of drugs just to keep him mobile and comfortable. Sure enough, at about 6, Burt started to slow down. A short walk would have him limping for days. No longer would he bounce up and look me in the eye when he greeted me at the door. He was rapidly losing the movement in his shoulder, and aspirin wasn't working. Half a buffered aspirin would cause him stomach upset within 24 hours. I tried all the alternative pain relievers (glucosamine, chondroitin, yucca, green-lipped mussel) but to no avail. Burt just couldn't hang with the other dogs, and he was getting depressed. I could hear the vet specialist saying all those years ago, "All you can do is keep him comfortable; he probably won't live past 8 or 9". But I wasn't ready to give up; Burt still loved swimming, and would swim endlessly, if I let him.
Luckily, in 1997, I discovered the raw diet and it has helped Burt tremendously. He had always had horrible teeth, in fact he was missing so many teeth, I wasn't sure he would be able to chew the bones. He proved me wrong as he ripped and chewed his bones down to nothing. His teeth stopped rotting away and his limp disappeared. It was about this time that my friend Jeanie Collins told me about Dr. Rena in Colfax who does acupuncture. So between his acupuncture and the raw diet, Burt was a new dog, pain and drug free. Burt is 11 years old; he now swims with a life jacket, and he walks a little slower, but he continues to chew bones enthusiastically and has regular acupuncture and chiropractic adjustments. Oh, and he still does the happy bounce.
Kathy
Truckee, California
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