"Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a good teacher."

Titan's owner found me shortly after he was diagnosed by a vet with small intestine's disease. She was unable to find reliable information about this type of diagnosis on the internet. Titan had symptoms of vomiting bile, gurgling stomach, and digestive upset. He also had fatty lumps and skin tags in several locations over his body.

After performing an MBA, Titan chose Fennel, German Chamomile, and Bergamot oils. He also chose a topical to be applied to his skin tags.Titan also indicated that one of the main food sources he was eating was not synergisticly working with his body.

Titan was very keen to eat the German Chamomile oil. His owner admitted that she was inconsistent with offering the oils to Titan. However, Titan had improvements in symptoms within 3 days of starting the oils. His stomach gurgling was less. 

Once Titan's diet was switched around to exclude the food that was not working well for his body, the symptoms of vomiting cleared and the gurgling completely went away.

Titan's case taught me that even sporadic offerings of the oils can still make a difference. The results may take longer to achieve when not offered consistently, but within one set of oils, Titan was able to balance himself.

Scout's owner came to me with concerns of her behavior and physical state. Scout is snippy towards other dogs, especially one's she doesn't know, was having behavioral outbursts when left home alone, and she has luxation of the patella on both sides (both medial and lateral) which she had from birth.

At the time that Scout's owner was coming to me, she had recently come off a course of antibiotics for treatment against Lyme's disease. She was now also presenting with a heart murmur.

In the previous week, Scout had been playing hard and stopped suddenly, yelling out in pain. The vet was concerned that Scout's heart murmur was cause of the outburst and was recommended to a specialist. The owner was back and forth on how she felt about that as Scout was also holding her rear leg up at the time she was screaming out in pain (often a sign of patella luxation). However, Scout has also been breathing more heavily that normal during exercise and doesn't seem to have as much endurance recently which could be a sign of ill health cardiovascularly. She asked if I could check in with Scout to see how she was doing.

When I did Scout's MBA, she showed many imbalances. These were in the Governing Vessel, Spleen, Heart, Small Intestines, Bladder, Kidney, Triple Warmer Adrenal, and Liver Meridians. She was also showing a depression in her immune system function.

While this seems like an overwhelming amount, her main imbalance was at the Small Intestine Meridian which is often associated with knee problems.

She chose three oils, Helichrysum, Carrotseed, and Juniperberry. Helichrysum is often a good choice for those animals experiencing multiple interlocking problems. 

I also took a look at Scout's diet. With her Spleen Meridian being off, I wanted to take a look at what she was all eating as this meridian can be associated with food sensitivities, sugar intolerance and sluggish systems. 

Sure enough, Scout was consuming a lot of "people food" snacks that one of her owners was sharing with her because she "begs" and he gives in. Some of the snacks were still appropriate for her, but some modifications were needed. Sugars are carbs, and carbs are heat. Heat increases inflammation within the body, and could contribute to added inflammation in her knee joints.

Scout was very keen to her oils, but she ended up gravitating to the Carrot Seed the most. Her owner reported that if she could, she'd probably eat the bottle. 

It was also reported that she was improving her behavior and wasn't acting out as much when her owners would leave her home alone. She also was more relaxed around other dogs and more willing to play with others. 

Scout went off of her other two oils but was still keen on the Carrot Seed without any let up. This lead me down the route of suggesting a deworming protocol as often times when animals are overly enthusiastic about this oil, it can indicate parasites.

Scout's owner got her dewormed and Scout went off the Carrot Seed oil. She requested Melissa hydrosol which is good for behavioral and physical muscle issues. She enthusiastically took the hydrosol and within a week was entirely off oils and hydrosols. All meridians balanced.

Scout is a great example of how sometimes one main imbalance can govern all the others. Some simple diet changes, along with one set of oils, balanced her meridians - and she had quite a few!

Scout's owner did get a second opinion on her heart by someone more experienced. He did not believe that she had an issue that needed attention by a specialist at this time. They also did new radiographs on her knees (she hadn't had any in almost 3 years), and was happy to hear that Scout's knees had not further deteriorated. 

Rainy's owner and I were talking one day and she expressed to me that her bird dog training was hitting a road block. Anytime that Rainy would feel unsure or insecure, she'd walk back to her owner instead of finishing the trial. Rainy also suffered really bad false pregnancies. With another one in just two weeks, I suggested trying an MBA on her and her owner agreed. 

Rainy's MBA showed an imbalance in the Governing Vessel and Gall Bladder Meridians. She chose three oils, Ravensara, Geranium, and Hyssop. Geranium is a hormonal balancer and helps give confidence.

After the trial, I got word that Rainy did phenomenal at the trial. Her owner was incredibly pleased. Rainy was especially keen on the Geranium, which wasn't surprising considering she was starting her heat cycle. 

When I did a check in with Rainy, her meridians were all balanced, but she was still looking for support through the use of Benzoin, Lemon, and Yarrow. Yarrow is a good first aid, and coupled with Calendula oil is very soothing internally. Yarrow can also help with "menstrual" woes. 

It was not long after the introduction of these oils that Rainy had an accident while playing with her dog brother. The incident was not witnessed but resulted in a broken tail for Rainy.

When the vet examined the break through xray, she was fairly convinced that the tail would need to be amputated. The break had slid to have the two pieces of bone side by side rather than butted up against each other. The likelihood of the break callusing was slim.

After two weeks of carprovet, the owner reported no change in swelling or support to the tail. I suggested using cold laser treatment on the break along with comfrey. 

The owner reported a noticeable difference in swelling around the fracture in one use of the laser within 24 hours. After one week, the tail was moving in single motion, rather than the lower part of the tail past the break having a lag in motion.

Indy Anna's owner came to me with concerns with persistent ear gunk, even after medications had been administered as well as having a tender tummy - anything outside of what she was supposed to eat would cause gagging and vomiting. This was occurring several times a week. Because of this, she was having a hard time putting some weight on.

When I did the MBA on Indy Anna, she showed imbalances in the Spleen, Small Intestines, Heart Protector, and Large Intestines Meridians. Each of these meridians relates to digestive upsets, and feelings of protectiveness.

She chose two oils, Vetiver and Myrrh. Myrrh is an oil typically used to deal with "oozy" skin conditions such as the gunk in her ears. I also looked at Indy Anna's diet. When tested against kibble and raw feeding, Indy Anna preferred to stay on kibble which was surprising to me because many skin conditions can be caused by kibble. None the less, we trust the animal and their right to choose!

She stayed on the same brand kibble, but chose a different formula - which it turned out, the owner had already been looking at changing her to! She also requested 4 meals a day instead of 2 meals a day and to add some apple cider vinegar to her diet. Increasing the number of meals will shorten the length of time an animal with a tendency towards acid reflux will have an empty stomach (which is often the culprit) and adding apple cider vinegar would also help to neutralize the acid within the stomach. 

Indy Anna was particularly keen on the Myrrh oil. She interacted with this one the most. Her owner reported a decrease in the production of ear gunk. Once she moved her to a the new food and spread out her meals, the instances of gagging and vomiting decreased dramatically from daily to 1x per week. 

By the time that Indy Anna was no longer interested in the oils, her gagging and vomiting had completely stopped, and the production of ear gunk was nearly eliminated. I suspected that to completely eliminate the ear gunk, a transition to a meat based diet would likely be the next step if the owner wanted to pursue it. 

At this time the owner was pleased with the progress made and would contact me if further assistance was needed. In the end, Indy Anna made dramatic improvements in the physiological symptoms of her ears as well as the issues with her sensitive tummy.

She taught me that you don't need a raw diet to see dramatic improvements if it's not in the realm of possibility for some owners. Sometimes, a switch of formula and proteins will help the body move towards homeostasis. The owner was not able to feed 4 meals a day, but was consistently feeding 3 meals a day. It also shows that even if you can't follow the recommendations to the fullest, and you make it work the way you can, you can still see dramatic improvements.

content here

Spooky's owner came to me with concerns about his anxious behavior, running in circles when out with the rest of his sled dog pack, and running to the point of injuring his paws (running them raw). To deal with his feet, the owner is bringing him inside where he is separated with most of the pack. He also doesn't always get along with one of the other resident dogs of the house and needs to kept separate. This seemed to be the only way to keep Spooky from pacing and to keep his feet from getting torn up.

Anxiety like this (stereotypical behaviors) is what Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) refers to as "over yang" behavior and I see it quite often in the sled dogs. Part of it is personality type, and part of it is an imbalance with emotional regulation. 

When I did Spooky's MBA, I looked at several different aspects, including the arrangement of the yard of dogs. Each sled dog has their own individual spot within the yard. Each personality feeding off their neighbor and vice versa. I had Spooky's owner draw me a rough sketch of the yard and each dog's name. I did not ask for any details. I did not know who got along with who, sex, or anything other than name. I then asked Spooky to place each dog in the yard, including himself. 

Spooky picked an odd spot - one that didn't exist! But it turned out that his owners were planning to put new spots on that side of the yard. When I showed them Spooky's new yard arrangement, they agreed that some of the choices were really good and that they would try them out. 

As far as his meridians were concerned, Spooky only showed an imbalance in the Triple Warmer Adrenal Meridian. This meridian is often associated with stereotypical behaviors. 

Spooky chose four oils, Elemi, Geranium, Rosemary, and Roman Chamomile. Roman Chamomile often speaks to the "inner child" who has temper tantrums. Rosemary can be helpful for bad feet. Geranium often helps balance hormones. 

Spooky loved his oils. Often times they would put him into a deep trance and he would go to sleep! That's a good sign for an "over yang" dog. He was finally getting a moment or relaxation. He processed his oils fairly quickly and his meridians balanced out very well after just these four oils. Sometimes, animals just get down to business when they choose so many at one time! 

Spooky's owner reports that he is back out in the yard with the rest of his pack. While he still paces, it's not nearly as bad as it has been in the past. He also has not had any foot problems! His behavior has been able to be better redirected, and he is much more level headed in his interactions with some of his pack mates. 

Spooky's element is Fire. Fire in general tend to be a little more high strung animals who like to be involved and not left out. That is why I felt it was important to get Spooky back out with his pack so he could interact with them and not feel left out. He showed me that some animal's are just gung-ho to get started when someone is willing to listen and it doesn't take multiple assessments or a large amount of oils to make improvements in long term conditions.