the holistic dog.

I started using doTerra essential oils about a month ago to help ease the symptoms of fibromyalgia and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). Both illnesses can be hard to get under control, and sleep issues are not only a symptom but also a perpetuating cause of flares.

Because of this, I first dipped my toes into the doTerra waters by purchasing lavender and a blend called Serenity. Before bed each night, I apply Serenity to the bottoms of my feet (the oils are more quickly absorbed into the bloodstream that way) and lavender to my neck and wrists.

This stuff works, y'all. But that's a different story for a different time (email me if you are interested in hearing more).

After a few nights, I noticed that, every time I opened the bottle of lavender, Claire's eyes would pop right open and her tail would start wagging. Every time. So, I began putting some lavender on her chest and behind her ears before putting her to bed. Since I started using it on her, I've noticed that she has a much easier time relaxing and falls asleep more quickly.

I started doing some research, and it turns out that you can use a number of oils on dogs for so many different things. Claire had another bout of acute pancreatitis last week and I rubbed marjoram and lemon on her tummy and between her paw pads to help with the pain. Lemongrass and peppermint combined makes a great insect repellent, as does the Purify blend. The combination of lemon, peppermint, and lavender provide great allergy relief (and I'll be starting both of us on this regimen early next week). Clary Sage treats dry skin. Digest Zen treats nausea and vomiting. Frankincense and lavender/Serenity calm stressed out dogs. THE OPTIONS ARE ENDLESS!!

I'm really excited about this discovery of doTerra, and it's worked so well for me and Claire that I'm now a Wellness Advocate for them -- after only a few weeks of being introduced to their products. If you have any questions about what essential oils might work for you and/or your dog, let me know and I'm happy to help! It's worth a try, right?

these are my confessions.

My sister sent me a link to this yesterday - the signs that you treat your dog better than you treat yourself. If you haven't seen it yet, you MUST check it out because the pictures are awesome. Here's what I have to say about the whole thing:

1. You shiver half the night because you let them steal all the blankets. Truth. I also sleep curled up in a ball because she tends to sprawl out in the middle of the bed.
2. They have their own personal tablet to watch animal shows on. Um, no, that would be weird. She uses the TV in our bedroom so she can get comfy and relax. Also, Animal Planet has some shows that are not age-appropriate for Claire, so she tends to watch The Food Network.
3. More people show up to their birthday party than to yours.  Again, truth. People and dogs. The neighborhood pups aren't willing to come to mine...
4. You take your job super seriously but you never get mad when they slack off at theirs. Yes. I mean, how can you get mad at that sweet little face?!
5. You sing them lullabies to help them get to sleep... every night. Well, I sing along with the Spotify playlist that I made for her. She finds The Civil Wars very soothing.
6. You pay top dollar for their groomer but you haven't been to a hairdresser in ten years. She has short fur so she doesn't need a trim, but she does get "manicures" - and I haven't been to get my nails done in a really long time... Pretend you aren't looking the next time you see me.
7. You took the time to teach them to surf, but you can barely swim. Not true; I'm a Cape Cod girl, so I love the water! Though I did take up running because it's Claire's favorite thing to do.
8. You take the day off work to make sure they don’t overheat on the hottest day of the year. I have done this in the past. Thankfully I won't have to do this at the job I have now because I can work from home and personally make sure that Claire is comfortable with the temperature set on the AC control.
9. You spend your life savings on emergency surgery for them and would definitely do it again. A few things about this: (a) I'm a social worker, therefore I don't make enough to have savings, and (b) I'd cash out the ol' 401K if I needed to. But praise God that she hasn't needed emergency surgery because my heart would break for her!
10. Your significant other is convinced you love them more. I don't  have a significant other. Probably because everyone knows that nobody puts Baby in the corner. No second place for my girl!
11. You take them to the dog park everyday after work instead of going out and having fun with human people. I did this every day for the first three years of her life - and I met some of my good friends because of it (humans, not dogs). Now she tends to have more low-key afternoons since she's a mature 4-year-old.
12. You sleep on the floor with them when they're not feeling well. I have done this on the few occasions that Claire was too sick to come to bed. When she had pancreatitis, she couldn't get off the couch one night, so she slept there and I slept on the floor next to her.
13. You spend more money on toys for them than your parents spent on you as a child. Hahaha! When we were home on Cape Cod, even my mother commented on the endless supply of toys!
14. You spent more time stressing out about their doggy wedding to the neighbor’s dog than your own. Not applicable, people! Besides, the neighbor's dog hates Claire. And Claire's many boyfriends would be jealous...
    
    

savory treats for a sweet girl.

I did a little spring summer cleaning this weekend which had me clearing out cupboards and throwing away things that aren't needed anymore. As I cleaned out Claire's cupboard, which was stocked with a variety of treats, I realized that she is allergic to 99% of the kinds that I'd been giving her for the past three years. That inspired today's mission: find some more treats that don't have any poultry, wheat, oats, yeast, apples, or bananas in them.

First, I gathered up all of the unopened bags of treats that she can't have anymore and put them in my car to bring to the nice man who sells papers at the corner of Murphy and I-40 - his dog is always with him, so on my way to work tomorrow, I'll see if he would like them.

Next, I contacted my pals at Dog Pack Snacks to check out the ingredients of their awesome treats, and thankfully Claire can still have their Liver Snaps; they are one of her favorite kinds. What I love about DPS is that their mission is to make healthy and wholesome treats - this means they use lean meats for high protein and lower fat, fruits and vegetables, and no wheat/soy/corn/by-products/sugar/salt/preservatives/colors. I know, I know, it sounds too good to be true, but it's as real as real can be! Claire is obsessed with these little snacks, so I'm glad that she can still have them!

Then I went to Nashville Pet Products to see what they had in stock, and after discussing things with the manager, I came away with ZiwiPeak's Good Dog lamb jerky treats. This product is made in New Zealand and is all natural. They are very up front about their philosophy on animal welfare, and they make it very clear that all of their animals are raised in a cage-free feeding environment and are treated humanely. That's something that I fully support!

Today's mission was a success! In addition, I'm happy to report that Claire hasn't had any of her usual symptoms of acid reflux or pancreatitis since starting her new food by California Natural. I'm hopeful that her digestive track is finally beginning to heal, and that she will continue on the path to health and wellness!

 

a pity party.

We are miserable. Just miserable.

I am covered in poison ivy from trying to be Super(wo)man. If you saw me, you'd run screaming in the other direction. I have dark circles under my eyes since I haven't slept in a week because I'm too itchy, and I've got calamine lotion everywhere. I look pretty awful. I refuse to go to work looking pink and crusty, so I'm just going to suffer tomorrow. And I'm not good at suffering in silence, so watch out people!

Claire, on the other hand, is on day three of a bout of pancreatitis and/or GERD, so she is feeling really awful too. She looks so pitiful when she's sick that I just want to cry for her. Everyone knows when she's sick, too, because she walks around with her ears lowered and her head down, and she doesn't wag her tail at all. It's really really sad.

All this to say that we're not good company right now. Hopefully we'll both be feeling better tomorrow...

tasty treats.

Due to Claire's January bout of pancreatitis, she now takes a daily supplement of Digestzymez, thanks to Dizzy's Corner Store. She tolerates it well, and though I can't see her pancreas healing itself, I trust that the enzymes in this supplement are doing their job. I also have to be pretty careful of what treats I give to her, since pancreatitis is brought on and gets worse when dogs eat rich and fatty foods.

Claire can finally have two-inch raw/frozen marrow bones again, but I only give her one a week instead of two or three a week like she'd been having before. You know, just to play it safe. Now, she gets more cartilage-based treats on a regular basis: cow trachea and pig's ears and duck feet. They look disgusting. I have to gingerly pull it out of the bag and give it to her, and then I can't watch her eat it. But all three are low in fat, high in protein, and full of glucosamine chondroitin which helps her joints.

Want to get in on this for your dog? Check out any local pet boutique - my favorite option - or get some here, here, and here.

Oh, the things we do for love...

the cure for any sickness.

My sis and I had a great time hanging out this weekend during her quick weekend trip to Nashville. And you know, I wish I could show you a montage of pics of the two of us with Claire at a variety of places doing lots of fun things. But I can't, for two reasons:

1. Andie and I spent the majority of the weekend touring the Nashville restaurant scene. Don't even judge. We're Italian. Eating is like... a hobby for us.
2. Claire was sick. Again. With a stomach bug. Or pancreatitis. Or a stomach bug that triggered pancreatitis. Either way, she ended up at Banfield on lots of medicine and special food.

Claire spent most of the weekend resting. And while I absolutely loved spending quality time with Andie, I was also very worried about Claire and how she was feeling. We took her for a short walk on Saturday morning and she did just fine, but when we got back to the house, she laid back down in bed and just looked pitiful. We took her to the park for an hour yesterday, but instead of playing with her friends, she stayed close by and got lots of loving from my friends.

We took her with us when we ran errands [I'm starting to think that she likes going for rides in the car since our roadtrip at Christmastime] and while I ran in and out of a couple stores to get what we needed, Andie opted to stay in the car with Claire to keep her company. I tried to make it quick because I wanted to get Claire home to rest [and because it was time for me and Andie to eat our 20348324th 3rd meal of the day], but from the looks of it, I didn't need to rush.

I found this picture posted to Facebook on Andie's profile when I got home. If I didn't know how sick Claire actually was over the weekend, I would think that she was faking it so she could spend some quality time with Andie. Regardless, I am positive that this little snuggle-fest made her feel better.

Maybe it's a coincidence, but since then, Claire has been more energetic and has started to eat her regular food again. Naturally, I've decided to attribute Claire's progress to Andrea's visit - an obvious conclusion to come to, don't you think?! Someone's trip to Nashville should be extended. I mean, if not for me, Andie, do it for Claire!!

   

  

someone needs a breath mint.

I tried. I really did. But it was nearly impossible...

It was so difficult that I gave up after the second attempt...

I failed.

But she just would not let me brush her teeth.

We were in the car the other day, heading to the dog park. She was standing on the center console with her head sticking out the sunroof, ears blowing in the breeze. Maybe it was the way the wind was blowing, but I caught a whiff of something that just smelled terrible. Like dead fish.

I'll be totally honest with you: I thought it was my breath at first. I'd eaten some spicy food for lunch, complete with garlic and onions [yes, my officemate adores me, if you were wondering]. I was mortified. I stuffed a whole pack's worth of gum into my mouth in the hopes that it would eradicate any remnant of my stinky lunch before I got to the park. [Did you know that eating a whole pack of Orbit at once isn't just hard to chew, but the mint makes you sneeze at least eight times? Truth. Firsthand knowledge]. But when we stopped at a red light and Claire leaned down to give me a big fat kiss, I realized -- partly with relief and partly in horror -- that it was not MY breath causing the dead-fish smell... it was HERS.

She's never been one to have bad breath, but I recently started giving her a different flavor of her food - trout and potato, as a matter of fact. And apparently, it reeks. But she actually likes it and it's easy on her stomach [which is important with her chronic GERD and recent pancreatitis scare], so I am hesitating to change it back...

The next day, after taking a quick trip to PetSmart, I sat down with Claire and discussed why I absolutely have to brush her teeth. She listened to me explain that I don't want her to be the smelly kid dog at school daycare who doesn't have any friends because they can't stand the stench. She also heard me say that preventative care is the best care, so we had to nip this in the bud. I believe I also told her that this would be more painful for me than it would be for her. And then I tried to persuade her by telling her that the toothbrush itself is peanut butter flavored, so maybe she would like it.

Aaaaand... nope. She let me look at those pearly whites, but she wouldn't let me touch them with the toothbrush. Actually, when she saw it coming towards her, she kept leaning backwards until she tumbled over. And then she rolled over for a belly rub. [Does she think I'm an amateur?! As if I was going to get distracted by that!] I tried putting the toothpaste on my finger to brush her teeth that way, but when I started walking over to her, she turned and ran into our room. And then, my fifty pound dog tried to hide behind the bookcase.

That's when I gave up.

I realized that this was not going to happen, no matter how badly I needed wanted it to. I haven't yet come up with a solution, so suggestions are welcome. For now, I'm trying to manage it with dental chews, a water additive, and raw marrow bones.

HELP!! I just can't let the trout win this battle.

  

i'd just like to thank...

You know what? I'm just going to admit it: I like blog awards. But I would, because I'm all about encouragement and praise [giving it and receiving it], and a blog award falls right into that category! So thank you, Lauren and Desmond for thinking of us and passing it on! I'm excited to extend the compliment to six of my favorite blogs, too! But before I do the honors, I'm supposed to list some fun facts. These fun facts are going to be related to today and this weekend in particular, along with some other random things that are on my mind!

1. I'm spending this weekend puppysitting for Claire's friends Ollie and Darby while Erin&Jake go on a cruise. Claire hasn't seen them in awhile, so they're having a ton of fun catching up and playing hard. Rambunctious is a good word to describe the three of them right now, as I'm watching them take turns tackling each other.
2. Claire usually smells like maple syrup - hence the "last name" of Butterworth - but when we're at La Casa de Ollie&Darby, I find that she tends to smell like molasses. No complaints here! Either way, she's sweet as sugar... [I had to say it].
3. Claire's favorite treats are frozen 2" raw marrow bones. They're excellent for her teeth/breath, but I believe the cause of her pancreatitis was from giving her 4" ones. They were a little too rich for her. Note to self: 2"=good, 4"=pancreatitis. We're taking a hiatus from them altogether for just a little while. Solely because I'm nervous that the pancreatitis will flair up again without Claire taking a substantial break from all things rich and delicious.
4. I find it amazing how people learn to communicate with their dogs. I swear, sometimes Claire just looks at me, and I know what she is thinking and/or asking. I don't think one can understand this unless they've experienced it, so if you don't know what I'm talking about, you probably think I'm crazy. Go adopt a dog and then you'll see what I mean.
5. I took today off from work so that I could do some life-giving activities (including taking a long nap with Claire, which was very much needed). It made me realize that people need to live a little more of a dog's life; dogs spend the majority of their time sleeping, eating, playing. Sometimes they do work (agility, pet-therapy, rally, tracking), but they keep a good balance. Minimal stress. They've got it right. So do Europeans. [Just saying].
6. I'm considering making some homemade dog treats this weekend. You know, if I am feeling ambitious. Got any suggestions?

Okay, time to pass on the award! Make sure you check out these amazing blogs - they keep me laughing!

1. Barley&Ali - Ali left a comment on our last post, and I've been obsessed with her blog ever since! While you're visiting her blog, leave a comment for her and let her know that you're thinking of Barley as he recovers from surgery.
2. Magnolia the Therapy Dog - This was the first pet blog I ever read, and it's been so cool to follow along with Maggie's adventures. I love the way Jay writes, and his posts are peppered with adorable pictures of Maggie! He also inspired me to work with Claire as a therapy dog, and I can't possibly thank him enough for that!
3. Sage&Erin - Erin posts about once a month, but even knowing that, I find myself checking her blog every week to see if there's an update! I feel like Erin and I could be friends if we lived near each other because she's just that awesome! She started this blog to chronicle her memories with Sage, which is why I originally started my blog as well. Start reading at the beginning - you'll laugh, you'll cry, and everything in between!
4. Life with Arie - I met Katie in October at the BarkWorld conference, and I loooove her! We became fast friends. And how could we not, when we're both "Life With" girls? Her blog is a great mix of fun and helpful information. And she does product reviews, which has saved me both time and money when looking for things to buy Claire!
5. Dog Milk - This website is chock full of products (for dogs and dog lovers alike) that you can't find at chain pet stores. Each item that is featured links up to the designer's website so that you can find it easily. If I had hours of free time, I'd gladly spend it browsing this site!
6. Fido and Wino - Shauna's blog began when she was single and continued on through dating, marriage, adopting two dogs, and now... she's having a baby, y'all! This blog chronicles ALL of that. But now that a baby is on the way, she talks more about Fido and less about Wino. She's responsible like that.

Now I'm ready for some chill time with three sleepy dogs. So I'm going to go do that while you check out those blogs!

  

on the mend.

Sick puppy...

I had quite the scare last Thursday while I was getting ready to go to work. I got out of the shower and Claire was laying on the couch looking forlorn, and she had gotten sick all over the living room. The poor girl has had so many tummy issues with GERD that I know enough about it to know that it wasn't GERD this time. As I continued to get ready for work, Claire continued to get sick... And I began to worry. I went to work and sent my roommate a text for when she woke up, asking her to call me if Claire kept getting sick. I worried my way through the morning and finally had a chance to call Lyndsey to ask for an update on Claire. She said that Claire had curled into a ball on the couch and hadn't moved all morning. She also was dry-heaving and whining. Heartbreaking, right? I get sad just thinking about it. But that did it for me. I called the vet and made an appointment to take Claire in later that afternoon.

Not feeling well and not happy to be at the veterinarian's office.

Our very favorite nurse, Josie, was working that day and she commented that Claire was the sickest she'd ever seen in our 2.5 years of knowing her. I don't know who felt worse - Claire with her stomach ache or Josie for having to take her blood! When all was said and done, Claire was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis (for more info on pancreatitis, check out this post on my friend Jana's blog). We were sent home with an antibiotic, anti-emetic, anti-inflammatory, and a 4-day supply of prescription food.

She's always happy to see Josie, though!

Claire was down and out into Saturday, but by Saturday afternoon, she started wagging her tail again - such a good sign! We went to the park for just a half an hour yesterday and then I made her get back into bed. This morning, however, she was up early and excited to go back to daycare! No, really! She bounded out of bed when I mentioned it and then waited by the door until I was ready to go! And when I picked her up this afternoon, they said that she played all day and was back to her old self. Now that is news that I like to hear!

Feeling much better!

Just relaxing after a full day of fun at daycare!

  

Thank you to everyone who called, texted, emailed, commented, tweeted (etc etc etc) over the weekend to ask how she was/is doing! It means so much to us both!