Observing one's dog during holistic treatments is sooooo important! There are so many clues to help you help them by making adjustments. By observing the animal and taking your ego out of your decisions you will make better decisions for their care. For example,
I posted last time about the herbal formulas I was going to give Vida to accompany her current homeopathic treatment. I'd spent a few days mulling them over before writing them down, reporting them to her vet, and making up formula #1 and giving it to her.
Then I watched and learned.
First of all, she didn't need that much. I had planned on one-half a cup twice a day. After all, we were "fighting" cancer, right? We need to get in there and get things done. Her vitality is good, she should do fine with it.
Uhhh, not so fast!
The homeopathics are aggravating her condition (at this point, the beginning of the process is when that's more likely). I can see how most owners wouldn't notice the aggravations as they're a bit subtle. They are also tied to existing symptoms, so they add to the picture.
She threw up twice, two days apart, at the same time of day under the same conditions. 10:00am - which is right in the middle of the time of day that the Spleen meridian is most active. She's need support for Spleen already. She's been more itchy, some reverse sneezing is back. Liver heat, stagnation, weak spleen coming to the fore... Not to mention that changes in her mouth (larger not only in
the main growth but nearby spots that had been incipient).It became clear that her body was having enough work to do processing the homeopathic treatment, and didn't need the added weightlifting of my mondo herb formulas. What her body needed was support. The body needs support to heal. It doesn't need to be run ragged.
Chamomile to the rescue! Don't make fun of chamomile, it's medicine. I took a look in Cheryl Schwartz's Four Paws Five Directions and found several references that made so much sense (I'm not sure why I didn't use this book as a reference when doing my materia medica, but notes have been added now you can be sure).
We all know chamomile soothes the stomach. It's not discussed much in TCM-centered references, but Schwartz describes it in a way to rang true for this situation; it "relieves constrained Liver Qi," smooths Qi circulation, helps clear damp heat, reduces inflammation, moistens Yin. There was a discussion of Liver and Spleen fighting each other that I found intriguing.
So she's getting a big spoon of Chamomile tea in her meals. Next batch will have a little dandelion added. Go slow, keep it simple, keep it supportive. Keep the ego out of it!
On a lighter note.... Vida got to go with me on a herb walk here at the Tecolote Canyon Nature Preserve led by John Finch from Self-Heal School of Herbs. She tasted fresh rosehips, toyon berries, and loved the young wild mustard (she kept grazing on it while he talked about the next plant!). She'll try anything - a real herbal dog!
