Lemon Beagle

Summer

This is Summer. My very first encounter with a Lemon Beagle! I had never heard of this coloring before but they are just beautiful! Lemon Beagles are gold/tan and white in color.  Summer was purchased from Arizona and from what I've heard they are more popular in the southern states.  I have been working with Summer for at least a year now helping to keep her loose and acting like a puppy again.  She has responded great to chiropractic care. 

I Love Dog Kisses

Yesterday morning I headed over to Oconto Falls to see a handful of dogs in the morning.  As I walked into the clinic an old, sort of mean looking, very wide chested boxer took me by surprise with a friendly growl and I thought to myself that this could be an interesting appointment.  I sat on the floor as the owner and I discussed what was going him.  He was a little nervous rooming around the room but for the most part was doing his best to ignore me.  After about 5 minutes he walked right up to me and as we were sitting there face to face I wondered for a second if my face was going to get bit off when he gave me some of the most slobbery, wet, dog kisses that I've ever had!  After he figured out I wasn't going to bother him much he continued with the kisses throughout his whole appointment.  I could still feel the dried slobber on my face at work that afternoon when I would smile ;)

Glucosamine Supplements

The majority of pets I see come to me with some kind of joint pain and or arthritis/degeneration and that's why I usually recommend some kind of glucosamine supplement for owners to add to their pets diet.  Glucosamine is an amino sugar which is the precursor to glycosaminoglycans which is the main component of joint cartilage.  Supplementation of glcosamine may help to prevent cartilage degeneration and help with cases of arthritis, disc disease and osteoarthritis.  Dogs with longer backs and shorter legs like my little Dachshund, Winston, has been taking Phycox daily since he was a baby to help prevent early disc disease which is common among dwarf gene breeds.  Senior pets, athletic pets, pets with hip and knee problems and of course back and neck issues could all benefit from a glucosamine supplement to help protect their joints. Always make sure to check with your veterinarian before starting your dog on any new supplement. 

Winston and my daughter Zoe

Carrot Stretches

This week I went out to work with "Pal", a Palomino with a stiff neck.  He was having a hard time turning to the left when his rider was asking him.  An easy way to tell if your horse may have some muscle tightness or a misalignment of the vertebra (subluxation) is with carrot stretches.  With your horse standing square and you off to its side, gently ask your horse to bend its neck back towards its stifle.  When they do so they get the carrot! Make sure to stretch both sides equally.  You can also ask your horse to stretch his head down between his front legs.  Again with you off to his side, hold a carrot between his front legs and he should bring his head all the way down close to the ground and really get a good stretch of his top line.  If your horse is unwilling to stretch a lot at first it may just be due to the fact that they are not quite sure what you are asking them to do or they may have some other concerns such as tight muscles or subluxations.

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Pal, did his carrot stretches great to his right side but very poorly to his left side.  I found subluxations at C5 and C7 on his left side and some very tight muscles in his lower neck and chest.  After some adjustments and a little muscle work he was doing his stretches like a champ on both sides!  If you've never done stretches before with your horse, take things nice and easy and don't make them stretch farther than they can.  Just imagine if you were to start Yoga without ever doing it before.  It may take some time for their muscles to get used to the stretches and to lengthen.

Bummer Day

Last week I saw a dachshund that came to me with sudden paralysis of his back legs (not an unusual case).  They drove 2 hours one way just to see me!  The dog was 7 years old and such a sweetie.  He had no injury but he had back issues a few years ago but not this bad.  He had no hind reflexes, no deep pain response, had no bowel or bladder control and was painful upon palpation of his spine in this lower back. I've seen this case many times, especially in dachshunds.  I adjusted him and recommended that he see the veterinarian for an exam and some possible pain meds/anti-inflammatories since it was 4 days since it had happened and they didn't take him in anywhere yet. The vet did an exam, urinalysis and prescribed some medications.  I sent them home with some easy exercises to do with him and had them ice his back throughout the day.
I called to check on this dog over the weekend and he seemed to be doing okay. He still wasn't walking but wasn't getting any worse and was eating better.  I was suppose to see him yesterday when they cancelled because the dog had passed away earlier that morning.  I was shocked.  Needless to say I called the family right away to see what had happened.  They said that the day before he was suppose to see me he started loosing control of his front legs so they took him in to their vet who did blood work, etc.  From what the family said, he had some sort of rare disease that there is no cure for and all tests come back negative.  It sounded like the paralysis traveled throughout his body and affected his breathing.  They thought the disease started with a "c" but couldn't remember the long name for it.  I have been searching for this rare disease but have been unable to find it thus far.  If you know....I would love to know so that I am better prepared for this in the future, although from what the family said there was nothing anyone could have done.  At first I thought it was a tick-borne disease but I think they are all treatable.  I also read up on Coon-paralysis but that too, is not fatal.  Would love to hear ideas if you have them! RIP Leo.

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Snow Day

The weather man just said we got 15.4 inches of snow with another 2-4 inches on the way.  How lovely! And I thought spring was on the way.  I was supposed to travel to Rhinelander and Merrill today for some animal appointments but I am not going anywhere.  Hopefully they can hold out for a few more weeks. This was Winston after Bohdi (our German Shorthair) made a little path for him :) Needless to say he was pooped when he got back in the house!

Acupuncture

At Best Friends Animal Care Center in Merrill, WI (one of the vet clinics I work at) Dr. Kate Alden is certified to treat animals with acupuncture.  It is quite amazing to see.  We work together on a lot of cases and those animals seem to get better faster.  I do my adjusting first to make sure everything is lined up properly, then Dr. Kate will do her acupuncture treatment and then follow up with laser therapy after that.  The dogs REALLY seem to love it!  I think its like going to the "spa" for them :)  Most of the time the dogs seem like they are falling asleep.  If you've never thought or heard about acupuncture for your pet, it's something to think about and there is a laundry list of conditions that it is helpful with.  It also works great in conjunction with other treatments such as chiropractic, laser therapy and your traditional veterinary medicine.  

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