Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Atlas received his 7th acupuncture today at home along with a neck massage which I think is his favorite. Dr. Williams is suggesting Jingtang herbs from Dr. Xie. Has anyone got any experience with them? He is completely on board with the chemo after amputation and is mindful to not start any herbs until sufficient time after last chemo. Which is scheduled for this Monday as are his 3 month x rays. Im trying not to freak out. So either we do more chemo with metronomics
or we go natural herbal now.
Dr. Williams has seen "really good results" with the herbs when used in conjunction with acupuncture and sited cases going from completely immobile to mobile when thinking along the lines of Atlas wobblers. He also suggested electro acupuncture. Basic thinking being he's just so huge that we need to kick it up a notch. Wonder if trying just once to see would hurt? I've seen the con argument of stimulated cell growth.
Also on the rehab front, we visited Tripawds Gear and ordered a Float Coat for Atlas! Can't wait to get it and go swimming in the lake!
Monday we checked out another rehab place that has a water treadmill. Atlas knew right away and went up to the tank and sniffed it and leaned in it checking it out. Unfortunately they didn't have it ready to go with water so we go back tomorrow to give it a try. Hopefully Atlas is just as eager and we get going on his core building because I have started seeing physiological changes. His spine is forming a hump in the middle and his chest and underarm area seem to take a pounding and are always a little more red and slightly bruised looking. And his neck has GROWN three times in size!
I'll try to get video of the Mighty Atlas on his water treadmill.
Yes Jing Tang Herbals is the only company that I have ordered herbs from as recommended by my holistic vet. Dr Xie is great and I believe still teaches at Univ of FLA vet school. The herbs are tested for purity and never contain any animal parts. I have used both Stasis Breaker and Bone Stasis powder for bone cancer although there are other formulas that may apply.
Pam
That is also the company that our holistic vet uses. I am seeing him with Roxie for the first time Saturday so I don't know what he'll recommend, but he'd prescribed their products for my dearly departed GSD, Logan, for degenerative myelopathy and anal sac cancer. I just started Roxie on Apocaps and K9 Immunity Plus since we finished chemo on 7/1.
How great Atlas is getting his treatments at home! I'd taken Logan and our other DD GSD, M.E. Lou, to another holistic vet for acu and she also used electro-acu and traumeel injections. I believe all the modalities kept them both comfortable enough to extend their lives. Also dragged those poor kids to a rehab place with both a deep pool and water treadmill. Logan HATED the treadmill; used to plod along and then would just stop, slide off the back end, and send us a rude digit in his thought bubble (he was like that). Liked the swim, though; long as I ran around the edge of the pool and we played keep-away with his Frisbee. M.E. was just the opposite; thought she was going to drown in the big pool but liked the treadmill. Any of the aqua exercises have a great strengthening effect with so much less stress on the body.
Good luck with your new program!
-Liz and Roxie Roo Roo
Thanks so much. I did not know they were also called Stasis Breaker, I just saw a post on that....need some time for research and reading! FL is where our vet went for his continued education in this area and also said Dr. Xie was great.
Thanks Liz and Roxie, I think Atlas felt the same as Logan about the water treadmill. 
I also don't think they had enough water in it to do what it was supposed to. He still seemed to be pounding that one leg and not really buoyant enough to be low impact. He has always loved swimming at the lake and beach so I think that's where we're headed as we can't find a deep pool anywhere around us. We're also looking into the Apocaps
and K9 Immunity
after we finish with chemo next week.
May be some of the treadmills just aren't deep enough for a dog of Atlas' stature! The place we went was originally a horse rehab facility, and they still use it for horses as well as dogs. The swim pool has a long underwater ramp that goes into the main part of the pool and that is 13 feet deep. The treadmillwas installed in a stall-type of structure that lowered into a tank with a Jacuzzi. That tank was heated for the treadmill work. Big pool wasn't, which I didn't like in the winter; great place, though; handled lots of serious cases and treated them all with great care.
Holistic vet wasn't familiar with Apocaps or K9 Immunity ; I brought the product descriptions with me. He couldn't tell what kind of apoptogens the Apocaps has, and I didn't know. He didn't see anything wrong with either. He did suggest burdock root, turmeric, chlorophyll, and human probiotics (refrigerated kind), and feeding her sardines or mackerel since they're natural sources of fish oil and the calcium needed for the body to use the oil. So I'll try them, too, although she's got a nose like a freaking bloodhound and refuses to eat anything she doesn't like the smell of!!
The adventures continue....
-Liz
roxiesmom said
Holistic vet wasn't familiar with Apocaps or K9 Immunity ; I brought the product descriptions with me. He couldn't tell what kind of apoptogens the Apocaps has, and I didn't know.-Liz
Sounds like a good visit with the holistic vet! I like that kind of thinking. If you want to learn exactly what's in Apocaps , here is a blog post about the ingredients.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I knew I read it somewhere!! 
Thanks much; sent the page onto the vet so hope he'll take a look. He was also curious about Tripawds, so he might find this all very interesting.
-Liz
roxiesmom said
He was also curious about Tripawds...
Please consider providing his office with some Tripawds cards or fliers or ask if they might like a lobby display to help inform others. Posters and calendars are also available in the Tripawds Gift Shop. Thanks!
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Liz, could you please email me privately? Trouble was my precious Tripawd.... he had developed osteosarcoma when the metal implant from his TPLO surgery corroded... I lost him six years ago on April 14th. My GSD Sheba had DM and I lost her in 2001... but my precious Shiloh Shepherd Kimber currently is battling anal sac carcinoma. She is on the jingtang herbs.... but a new tumor formed and is the size of a golf ball... she is also a paraplegic... would like to know what you did for Logan and how it helped. Thank you so much.
Kimbers Mom I'm sorry to hear about your Sheba, we hope the treatments give her a good quality of life for as long as possible.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Hi Kimber's Mom. I composed this as a PM but your name didn't come up in the recipient list-I think because you're a "guest". I'm so sorry that Kimber is going through this, and that you're going down this path again.
In hindsight (SORRY!!), the anal sac cancer was less an issue with Logan than the DM; it was his mobility that finally forced the decision. He'd lost his longtime sister/pest GSD earlier that year, and he just seemed to fade after she passed. He made it past his 14th barkday, and this was after emergency bloat surgery at 12, becoming stone deaf, and having been an old soul when he was a pup. My husband (who's had back issues for years) and I spent 6 months hauling Logan's his back end around. One day we fell going out the kitchen slider and he turned and gave me The Look. And it was time. He did have occasional bouts of diarrhea that we assumed were partly due to the cancer.
I'll look back and see if I have a receipt with the name of the herbs we used; I don't remember all the "stuff" we went thru with the old boy!
How old is Kimber? I hope she is comfortable. This is such hard stuff to manage; my heart and prayers go to you both. I wish I could be more help.
Hugs,
-Liz and Angel Roxie
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