Ever since Spirit Tika posted about her camping adventure in the Tripawd Discussion Forums, I’ve been thinking about an old Native American character who told us this joke, back in Bemidji, Wisconsin:

This Ojibwe and a Choctaw meet in a bar. The Choctaw asks the Ojibwe about the three-legged dog by his side.

The Ojibwe says, “A dog this good, you can’t eat all at once.”

True story. Well, meeting the old guy was anyhow.

So, in honor of this funny old guy, my people finally put together this humorous Tripawds BBQ apron, because another important lesson I taught them in our travels is that laughter is indeed the best therapy.

From diagnosis through amputation and recovery, to hospice cancer care, people need to follow the lead of us dogs and make the most of each day, while laughing at any adversity life may throw your way.

Recently, there’s been some discussions here and in the Bone Cancer Dogs Yahoo Group about whether or not mushroom therapy has any real benefit to dogs undergoing cancer treatment.

We wanted to get a current picture on the status of how mushroom therapy treatment is doing out there in the real world, so we wrote to my oncologist, Dr. Marie Mullins, who led the K9 Immunity clinical trial that I participated in, when I was patient in 2008 at the Santa Fe Veterinary Cancer center.

With her permission to quote her, here is what Dr. Mullins said about the study:

“The results of the K9 Immunity trial have not yet been published. They were submitted to JAVMA* but rejected (they rarely publish articles on nutriceuticals). They were going to try to get it published in some international mushroom journal (not sure of the exact name) but I have not heard much since then (October 2008 time frame).

The data that I saw was all very preliminary (some of the dogs were still alive). At that point in time, it did not appear to significantly extend survival times but the case numbers were low and statistics lacking.

However, it seemed to overwhelmingly improve their quality of life and protect most of the dogs from untoward chemotherapy side effects.”

In our own limited knowledge about mushroom therapy, we recently learned that mushroom therapy isn’t just something being promoted for dog cancers only. A family friend who is a certified “ND,” a naturopathic doctor, in Washington state, and specializes in holistic cancer treatments, uses mushroom therapy for her own human patients.

It’s so hard to know what is fact and what is fiction when it comes to nutriceuticals, but by posting your stories and experiences with K9 Immunity and other canine cancer therapies here in our Eating Healthy Forums, we can try to help get the official verdict out to the public much sooner.

*Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association

Recently, New York resident Yvonne Gonski wrote to us after watching the PBS show we were featured in, called Why We Love Cats and Dogs. She was moved by Jerry’s story, and wanted to share her own experience with Prana, her amazing nearly fifteen year old German Shepherd girl.

Sadly, Prana recently passed away after a courageous battle with pneumonia. She will be missed dearly. Her Mom wrote this great post for us, before Prana went to the Bridge. We publish this story in tribute to this amazing girl. May her spirit fly free.

Here is Prana’s inspawrational tale . . .

If you’re wondering what the secret is to ensuring a long healthy life for your dog, Yvonne Gonski has two words: “raw foods.” And although many of you Tripawds are battling cancer and might be avoiding raw foods right now, we thought your pawrents still might find these general concepts about home made dog diets to be useful.

“I have been raising German Shepherd dogs for the past 28 years. My journey of learning to provide my dogs with alternate methods of care began 15 years ago, following the passing of my three male German Shepherds.Although two of them died from age related conditions, I started to question the commercially prepared food I was giving them and the conventional vaccines and medications they received over the years.

One of the books that got me started was The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat, by Juliette de Bairacli Levy A strong advocate of a raw foods diet and the use of herbs to treat most canine diseases, she bred Afghan Hounds for over fifty years.

Her lines are virtually disease free and many of her dogs typically lived into their twenties. Her book has become my bible for feeding and treating my dogs with herbs when they are ill.

What Does Prana and Vahana’s Raw Diet Look Like?

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Since we just updated my cancer dog health tips page and finally wrote complete details of my cancer care diet, it is only fitting that we remind you how dog food is best served for three legged dogs.

The healthiest diet for your three legged dog is best served from the Tripawds Large Pet Bowl.

This and many other cool products that help raise awareness and support this website are available in Jerry’s three legged dog store. Got your 2009 Tripawds Wall Calendar yet?

FYI: Don’t forget to raise your dog’s bowls up off the ground to reduce strain! Read our updated health tips for more canine cancer and amputation recovery advice.

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Please note: this information is just based on my own experience, and is not meant to replace advice given to you by your vet or other canine health professional. To read about what other pawrents are feeding their tripawds, please visit our “Eating Healthy” Forums.

Before I got sick, I used to eat a half “BARF” diet (Bones and Raw Foods), and half premium Innova EVO kibble diet. I  was lean and healthy, and my system was used to good food already. That’s because when I was about four years old, my Mom found out what’s really in commercial dog food. After that, she never fed conventional dog food to me again – that stuff’s bad.

When we learned I had cancer, we wanted to make sure my diet was as healthy as possible. To point us in the right direction, my Mom did more BARF research and attended a BARF class. She also got a great book called Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats that helped her find the right combination of a human grade, meat and veggie diet for dogs with cancer.She and Dad decided to focus on a few select type of foods and supplements, which we describe below. There are many other choices out there, please do your research and learn what’s best for your dog’s unique health picture.

After I got sick, I still ate a half-BARF, half kibble diet, but some BARFers don’t advise giving dogs kibble and BARF foods simultaneously, because they say kibble slows down digestion of raw meats. My Mom tried to give me a 100 percent BARF diet for a while, but found that I was getting too skinny.

She started feeding me small amounts of Innova EVO kibble with supplements mixed in. As an entree, I got various types of raw meat. I never had a problem with digestion, and once I started eating this way, I maintained a perfect weight of 75 pounds.

Please keep in mind that we are not experts, and your dog’s own nutritional needs may be different. We recommend  talking to a holistic nutritional expert and/or learn all you can about BARF before attempting a diet change for your Tripawd.

My Dog Cancer Diet

My daily regimen changed over the two years I fought cancer, just like the cancer within me evolved. In my case, the osteosarcoma progressed exactly as textbooks describe it. My diet changed at three distinct times while I fought this disease.

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Dear Readers,
My Mom wrote this for her Toastmasters speech. I hope you enjoy it. –Jerry

It’s estimated that thousands of cats and dogs died from the recent outbreak of contaminated pet food. How could so many animal lovers let this happen to their beloved pets? The sad truth is, they just didn’t know any better. Until my own dog got sick from a diet of cheap food, I didn’t know either.

Like most people, at one time I put a lot of faith in the big brand pet foods. I believed the claims about how nutritious their food would be for my dog. In the first years of Jerry Dog’s life, I chose his food by buying whatever seemed better than the generic bulk stuff at Winco. Jerry ate it up, and grew into what I thought was a healthy adult dog. But when he got to be about 5, his teeth started yellowing, and his skin turned flaky. Then he started having seizures. After some expensive trips to his vet, I started doing my own research. All I had to do was Google “commercial pet food ingredients.” What I found, horrified me, and it should scare you too.

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