Pet Holistic Health Update

In my second blog post I wrote about our pets raw diet and some information about their holistic lifestyle. The little gremlins seem to be a favorite by everyone who views their pictures or reads about them so I plan on keeping everyone posted as to how they are doing as well as discuss successes and any stumbling blocks with their lifestyle. We recently have made some changes to their diet so I wanted to update everyone :).

Our three pets, Malachi, Maikoda and Milo are still doing very well :). They are all three still raw and love their Primal pet food. Despite their love for their food, Malachi, the black and white male, developed an inflamed annal gland....ewwww, I know gross. In light of helping others to navigate a healthy, raw or holistic diet for their pets, I felt I should share what we learned, despite the unappealing symptom :). An inflamed anal glad often develops with dogs when they are not getting enough fiber. You know that commercial with the dog dragging its bottom across the carpet!? That's often what dogs do that have this symptom. Luckily Malichi never did the butt drag... Phew!  

My husband and I take our pets to holistic vet, Jim Coddigton of The Country Vet in Navato. Dr. Coddington is very kind and knowledgeable. I love that he has alternatives to pharmaceutical medications, such as herbs and acupuncture. He lets us know when there is an herbal option and when he feels a medication may be necessary. Dr. Coddigton talked to my husband about our dogs diets and what they are eating. He told my husband that unfortunately the raw foods for dogs that are out on the market are not a perfect food and often lack enough fiber. Of course this depends on the particular dog and their individual needs. I was a little surprised at first because we often give our dogs fresh roughage mixed in with their food, but around the time this problem developed, we had been slacking with mixing in their fresh roughage. We were very busy because we had just moved and I figured they were getting a complete and balanced meal, and that what we added was just extra good stuff :). Silly me, as of course just like humans, dogs benefit from variety. Our vet suggested a dehydrated brand that he feeds his dogs. 

I took this information to heart and researched the brand he suggested. The ingredients actually ended up being nearly identical to the raw food with the exception of potato. This particular brand was also not organic and, if possible, I like to keep my pets on organic food, as commercial animal products (especially pet grade) often contain hormones, antibiotics and many toxins. Our pets also LOVE their food, so my husband and I decided to first try to add more fiber to their current food and see if they did well. Our vet also suggested this option, but in the form of psyllium husk. 

We have been slicing up sweet potato or squash on our mandolin and storing that for a couple days at a time in the fridge. The thinly sliced/chopped pieces enables the sweet potato to be easily digested. Dogs in the wild eat roots and tubers as a part of their natural diet. This gets mixed into their food along with any other roughage we have been eating, such as carrots, zucchini, greens and celery. I also have been saving the pulp from juicing (when it is safe for the dogs) and rotating that into their food as well. They still have been loving their meals and Malachi's situation has resolved. Yay! 

Ironically, this little incident shows that dogs are omnivores and need more vegetation that many realize. I stated in my past post that there are many dogs that actually thrive on vegan diets, if done carefully and with supplements. Our cat didn't need any changes to his diet. Cats are carnivores and do much better with a higher percentage of flesh. 

I would also like to add that we rotate the different types of Primal meat so our pets get a viriety of nutrients. For a couple weeks they will eat chicken, then they may eat duck and the next salmon. All our pets do not do well with the larger animals meats so we do not feed them bovine or sheep meat. It is important to observe your pet carefully for any sign of allergy or intolerance to particular foods. I have heard of many dogs and cats being sensitive or allergic to bovine, so this is something to monitor when feeding your pet. Signs of sensitivity include loss of hair, itching, vomiting, diarrhea, sneezing, runny nose and watery, runny eyes. Also, trust your pets instincts if for some reason they avoid a particular type of food or do not eat very much of it, later becoming sick. Here is a quick list of foods that are not safe for pets: all parts of the avocado, chocolate, apple seeds, grapes and raisins, green tomatoes and tomato leaves and stems, onions, spicy foods, caffeine (not great for humans either) macadamia nuts, persimmons, salt, spinach and milk (most adult cats and dogs do not contain the enzyme to break down the sugar lactose in milk products). There are other possibilities, so it is wise to do your own research and always monitor your pet for their individual needs.

We also began alternating the echinacea supplement to our pets food every other week. Our vet informed us it was best to rotate, as the immune system can build a tolerance when it is constantly being introduced to the system. Our dogs seem to be doing really well with this eating regimen so far, and I will of course update as to any news or changes on this front. We are keeping the dehydrated food as a possible option for traveling, as it is convenient to simply rehydrate in a small bowl of water. Their current pet food is frozen, so it's a bit trickier for traveling. We usually bring a cooler anyway to transport some of our own raw goodies, yet options are always good :).

Lots of love and light from the Margraf clan ~ XOXO

Changes and Shifting ;)

This last month has been crazy! My hubby and I are moving and things in my life have been shifting and changing very rapidly. Due to these changes in my life and the speed at which they are occurring, I was beginning to feel the blogging format may not be the best platform for me at this time. I am definitely creating a website as well, but I decided to update the blog in the meantime and feel out if it’s a good fit right now :).

Sooooo, Steven and I are moving to Sonoma. Just a town over from Napa, but it’s a completely different vibe. The place we live right now has not felt right to me from the time we moved in. It’s a three story building, with long narrow hallways and LOTS of stark white walls and vaulted ceilings. It has a very cold, contemporary feel… not my style. I have been manifesting for over a year and half now the perfect place to really facilitate healing, growth and happiness. My hubby and I have gone back and forth with the thought of buying vs. renting (we even almost bought one home), but have decided to continue renting… one of the main reasons is that we don’t know how long we will stay in this area. We have a list of places we would love to experience living in.

We are so excited to move into our new home! It’s walking distance from the town square of Sonoma on this adorable street full of character and charm. I love that this particular area has lots of mature trees and is surrounded by the beauty of the valley… not like those stark suburban streets in which every home looks the same. Our new home in particular is very greeeeen :). It has a living fence of sorts and lots of mature, beautiful trees in the front and backyard. Lots of space for our two dogs as well! The home is older, which I actually really like as it has charm that newer homes often lack. It has lots of windows and a huge sky light in the living room. As I look out the windows I feel secluded in our own little forest….love it! Being in nature is soooo balancing to me, so that was a huge priority for finding a new home. I need to feel connected to nature!  We also got the AMAZING amethyst pictured above to commemorate our new home and bring lots of magical energy into our new space :).

Amidst all the moving, many changes have occurred! I was certified in Reiki 1 and 2, by the lovely Laura Bruno. Laura is a Reiki Master Teacher, author and Intuitive Coach. She has been such an inspiration and guiding force for me. She has become my friend and mentor and it was such a blessing receiving this healing gift from her. She is very wise :). Reiki is a technique of energy healing. It can be performed at a distance or in person, by “laying on hands.” The word Reiki translates to mean, “spiritually guided life force energy.” I can attest that this healing gift promotes relaxation, yet is powerful and beautiful in its effects. The class and experience were so transformative to me, that I plan to take Reki 3 as well and become a Master Teacher myself :). I plan to incorporate this healing gift into my practice to help others on many levels and it is a fantastic tool for my everyday life, my own healing journey and my animal companions. The applications for Reiki are endless, as it is effective for all spectrums of imbalance. Physical illness, emotional imbalances, side effects from other healing or medical therapies, all of these can benefit from Reiki.

Speaking of my little ones :), I thought I would also mention my dogs and my cat, as my dogs particularly have been getting a lot of attention and questions from fellow raw foodies! Many have wanted to know what I feed them, since they are raw. Many have wanted to know about them in general since it’s not every day you see a Miniature Husky!

My dogs are Alaskan Klee Kais. They are of northern descent and are miniature Alaskan Huskys. We feed all our pets Primal... a brand you can get at Whole Foods and other health food stores. It is in the frozen section and consists of all raw, organic veggies, fruits, roots, bones, and meats. It mimics a dog’s/cat’s diet in the wild :). The organic meat is the part of the animal they eat in the wild (liver, kidney, etc.... not all muscle...which is a food primarily for scavengers :) They LOVE it!!! Go crazy for it! The ratio for cats is more meat then the dog food. Dogs are omnivores, not carnivores, so they require less animal protein and many dogs have even been known to thrive on a vegan diet if done carefully, with knowledge and supplements. I also give them whole food supplements/super foods. They get Olive Leaf, Echinacea, E3 Live and flax oil. We rotate the Echinacea every other week. They are thriving. They also chew on sun dried bones only and eat whatever my hubby and I are eating :). They love all fruits and greeeens :). They often eat the stems/spines of whatever green I am putting in my green smoothie. Some favorites are kale, red leaf and romaine, collards and chard... oh and they LOVE celery! Malachi, the black and white male, used to have this coughing problem where his throat would get really irritated. He would "hack", and I thought he may have asthma. He also used to get dandruff... no more problems for him though! Completely healthy boy :). When we transitioned our little girl she went through this phase where she smelled really bad, lol. Now she smells sweet….. they all do! No doggie odor over here, lol.

I’m sure there are many out there wondering what I eat. I thought the best way to answer this is to post my food intake for a while. My eating habits this week have been a bit different. Because of the move, hubby and I decided to make things really easy on our selves and picked up a take away box of yummy delights from Seed in Santa Rosa. I am normally very simple with my eating… basing it on green juice, smoothies and salads, but this week there are more extravagant foods in my diet! So here you go! A day in my world of food choices :):

Morning greeeeeen juice – celery, apple, jerusalem artichoke, dandelion greens, romaine

Green Smoothie – peach, cherry, banana, kale, maca,
I blend these two in after by hand. They are very sensitive to heat and the blades of the blender - MSM, probotics

Slice of raw broccoli quiche from Seed….soooooooo good!!!

Avocado salad with micro greens and golden squash – delicious dressing based with RAW coconut vinegar

I get a lot of questions that I think I will address in this blog instead of answering everything individually. I hope I answered some of your questions today and I am always open to more!

In Love and Light ~
Cassie