Trevor and I deal in nutrition for humans at our business, so this is something I am totally comfortable with. I understand what food can do for a person, not just how much you eat, but when and what. I have many food intolerances and know what that has done to me. I expect its the same for animals too.
I am embarassed to say that we have not been as vigilant with what we feed our pets as we should be. We buy kibble for both the dogs and the cats. In our defense, our animals have lived long lives, but now that we have a multitude of issues its time to get serious.
The Dr who does Asha's accupuncture and Chinese medicine has a food therapist on staff. Yesterday, I took all three dogs to see her. Asha is a bit overweight and obviously has her behavior issues. Maggie is quiet a bit overweight and has always had food issues. Buster came along for the ride. He seems to be the perfect weight.
We talked a lot about our routines, the dogs' personalities, their histories, their histories with food and weight, their relationship with each other, with us. My head was spinning. Trying to explain our routines to someone else is overwhelming (probably for her too). This is all very Chinese medicine based and so we focused on the dogs' constitution based on the 5 elements - Earth, Wood, Fire, Water, Metal. I know about these things through Asha's accupuncture and herb treatments. Its fascinating stuff.
I was there for over three hours. I got a new perspective on our pets and how they related to the world and to each other. While I am often exhausted with Asha, I totally love the things she is leading me towards. I love that I am able to learn new things, to get a new set of eyes on our situation. I am able to look at the relationships and interactions in our house in a different light and they make much more sense to me when I see them this way.
The dogs were so great. Buster just layed down and slept. Maggie wanted to do the same, but Asha thought they should play. Maggie LOVED these little cushions and said "see...I'm not overweight".
Eventually Asha went to sleep.
By this time, Buster was in my lap, so no picture of him.
It was exhausting for all of us! By next week we should have a food plan for all dogs that should allow Maggie and Asha to lose some weight. It will also include foods that will help them get back in balance, calm them, heal them. Oh man....I can't wait.
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