Learning & Adapting

I am learning to adapt.

Heck, aren't we all doing that every day? Sometimes we get tired of adapting, so we cling to things that are familiar just because we want to feel comfortable.

I described myself to a friend the other day as "a shark for learning," meaning I'm always interested in learning new things (and most definitely not interested in repetitive practicing). The more I learn, the more I adapt, and this certainly pertains to how I feed and care for Vida.

I'm often asked "what's the best ________." Fill in the blank with food, supplement, herb, whatever. And so many people are flustered or frustrated when I deflect that question with "it depends on the dog." But I want everyone to know that I also experience that feeling of resistance when the suggestion doesn't match what I believe or am comfortable with. And I must always remember that feeling of mine when I see that look in their eyes that tells me I've hit a wall (of resistance, confusion, frustration..).

So I'm learning to try new things. Now I don't just do this willy-nilly. I research it, learn more, mull it over, consider the options. But then I try it.

For example, I'm always telling people to rotate their "green supplement" (their mixed supplement of choice, usually includes, kelp and other green foods, vitamins, herbs, etc). Yet I had my dog on the same one for over a year straight because I thought it was the best. Now I'm not saying it's not a good supplement, but my mindset closed my eyes to options. And really, what's the worst that could happen? My dog's healthy, and it's easy to see when something isn't agreeing with her, and conversely, when it is. (I say it's easy with her, but really, it should be easy with any animal if you're really paying attention) So I switched, and you know what? She looks even healthier!

Now we can almost never really know exactly what is making our dog glow with health. Heck, it could be just that time of the year, in that year of life, with the whole collection of things that you offer them working together.

All of us should take a good look at our pets and really see them. We may think they look great, but when was the last time we changed anything or tried anything new? When was the last time we learned something new? We should always be looking forward, learning, and adapting.

The Mason Jar of Medicine

Here is the mason jar of medicine that Vida and I are drinking daily.

It's a re-used jar from the honey guy at the farmer's market (who has some resilient labels for his jars!). It's sweating a bit because I keep it in the fridge - I find the cold drink preferable because it quiets down the plant flavor (which isn't gross, just not inherently appealing to me, the spoiled human).

Yes, the dog and I are taking the same tea. I pour it into a small bowl, drink my share, then pass it down to her to finish the two tablespoons or so I've left her. And yes, she likes it. Twice a day.

So here's the recipe:

Equal parts: dried dandelion root, dried burdock root, dried nettle leaf, dried red clover flower, and whatever extra item I choose to add (rosehips this batch, for example).

To make this jar I use 2 tablespoons of each, with water measured by filling the jar to the brim.

To make it a proper medicine... put in the dandelion and burdock (the water is in a pan by now, right), bring to a boil and then simmer gently with the lid on for 20 minutes. Then turn the heat off and add the nettle and red clover, put the lid back on and let it sit until it cools down. Strain it (I use a mesh strainer, plus a piece of cheesecloth so I can squeeze out the goodness).

Please remember to let it cool before offering it to your dog. Vida is wary of a warm bowl as her whiskers descend into it, and will pull back if she suspects the liquid it contains might be too hot.

It's important to cook the roots well, but not overcook the leaves and flowers. That's the difference between a decoction (for the roots) and an infusion (for the leaves and flowers).

Where do I buy my herbs? I buy them online from Mountain Rose Herbs. Be aware that when you order it's by weight - 4 oz of dried dandelion fills about one measuring cup, 4 oz of red clover fills about 8 cups. I will need to order dandelion and burdock again soon, for instance, while I still have plenty of the others.

We're drinking this consistently unless I turn useless and don't make it. We did skip a couple of days last week because I didn't make it, but I plan on using it for several months.

It's important to know that yours (and your dogs) liver is the center of the universe, healthwise, in the body. If there are chronic problems, look to the liver. This tea is designed to tone the liver and improve it's function. It's not an "etched in stone" recipe, but it's one that I'm comfortable with for long-term liver care.

Drink up!

New Year

[ok, not exactly a post about raw food, but I hope you see the connection]

This New Year day was really a great one because it was shared and simple, and not filled with angst or resolve.

We went to the beach in the afternoon to see a labyrinth etched in the sand by a local artist, Kirk Van Allyn. There were so many people there it was amazing, and a lot of them were decorating the labyrinth with colored sand, rocks, flowers, etc. Here is a photo of one of those decorations, and more here in an album on Facebook.

Looking down from the bluff you could see the tide already taking back some of the labyrinth, and at first I felt like I might have missed something, like were were late. But when we went down to the beach and walked around I could see that was completely the wrong assumption.

There was so much activity, and it was all so friendly and welcoming. People meeting and chatting, people of all ages collaborating on personal embellishments to the design. The labyrinth itself being added to. All the while people coming and going from the site, up the staircase or down the beach. The community was visiting this wonderful temporary artwork on this afternoon of renewal - and watching the ocean renew itself on the design (which of course included people surfing).

I guess it's hard to explain, but it was such a refreshing start to the year. No expectations, no angst, just the beautiful and simple process. In fact that was probably was made it so joyous - the very nature of it is how we should approach the new year - every day a renewal of energy and life.

A Warming Alternative to Cooking

I was warned by Vida's holistic vet that if she got more lipomas I'd be advised to go from raw to cooked food for her. This is to relieve the dampness that is behind their appearance.

Well, if you've been reading my blog you can imagine my resistance. It's not that cooked food is bad, I just don't see her as needing that much diet adaptation.

Well, I have a theory that kinda splits the difference. I think that freeze-dried and dehydrated diets warm the food up without going quite as far as full cooking.

So I've been playing around with it, being wintertime (and very wet and relatively chilly here) it's a good time to warm things up a bit. I'm a big fan of mixing and matching food anyway, so I've been mixing regular raw with Stella & Chewy's Freeze-Dried raw (the Duck Duck Goose flavor), or mixing the freeze-dried with Honest Kitchen. (the warm/hot water to rehydrate it literally warms it too). She eats it up quick, no matter which permutation.

I'm very lucky to have easy access to all these goodies, of course. But really, it's all cheaper than the mainstream advice I was given (further surgery, radiation, etc). And it's way more fun for both of us!

Oh yeah, and I just joined Twitter... tryin' it out!

If at first you don't succeed...

Does anyone have a dog that will eat anything put in front of them? No matter what anyone says I think that we all experience that trials and tribulations of the food dumped on the floor and the pills spit out.

A month or two ago I tried feeding a food to Vida because it fit the bill for "moving chi," which is the goal right now. Primal Pheasant, with ginger and other plants that together should be a chi-moving delight for any raw-fed dog. Oh no. Not for mine. It was spit out and picked at, even when mixed with the reliable taste-improver of Honest Kitchen Embark. I couldn't just let it go, though, I kept the food.

Now that the season has decidedly shifted to Winter I tried it again. Score! She loves it and eats it up quick as can be, without any special preparation required. It seems that her body has decided that, yes, this is an appropriate food now.

I'm glad I trusted my instincts and hers.

Tea for Two

So here's my first tea recipe for Vida. I'm going to take it as well (and my mom too - a household experience). I could use the liver tonifying effects of this blend so I figure why not make just one for us to share.

Dandelion Root and Burdock Root are the main ingredients, plus Red Clover Blossom, Calendula Blossom, and Nettle. In TCM these are all rated cool or neutral - an interesting thing I noted with alteratives. Since she likes the warmer foods like Venison I think this will provide a good balance. While I have stronger herbs that I could use, I deliberately left those out because she's been taking them for a while. I can layer them in if I wish to, or alternate.

Roots and flowers should be cooked differently when making medicinal teas. Roots (with a couple of exceptions) need to be cooked a bit, so simmering for a while is in order (this is called a decoction). Flowers are more delicate, so they just need to be steeped - the water brought to a boil and poured over the flowers, covered and let to sit for a bit (this is called an infusion). Since I'm mixing roots and flowers I'm cooking the roots for about 20 minutes, then turning the heat off and tossing in the flowers (and keeping it covered during these processes - need to keep the steam in!).

Vida'll get a tablespoon twice a day, I'll get a cup (I may add a little flavoring to mine, cinnamom or stevia - I'm fussy). I could put this on a weekday plan, and take the weekends off, but really, these are fine to take every day, especially for the initial use (two months for instance).

For those interested in a few notes on each item, read on:

Dandelion Root - a classic for tonfiying the liver, and thus the blood. the root and leaf (and flower for that matter) really should be a regular part of the diet. Good source of minerals (most roots are).

Burdock Root - Another excellent blood cleanser and nutritive (lots of iron in those minerals). This can be used liberally (you can buy it at health food stores and eat it).

Red Clover Blossom - an alterative with anti-tumour and waste elimination properties.

Calendula Blossom - a great soothing anti-inflammatory

Nettle Leaf - very nutritious anti-inflammatory. Even has anti-histimine effects.

To learn more about these and other herbs, the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine has an amazing list of links to PDFs and websites with more information. Autodidacticism is a great attribute.