Possibilities for Pen...

I'm a fiddler - not the kind who can play the stringed instrument but the kind who has to fiddle with things and can't leave things alone. That normally gets me into trouble and leaves me wishing I had left well enough alone. But in this case, I'm blaming it all on the IBR founder and president...

We tried a little experiment on Penny - a raw diet, no Viokase or enzymes. So, after four days on ground turkey, green beans, kale, and okra, what do we have? Perfectly solid stools. Now, to those of you who haven't been following Penny's tale, that may seem like an odd thing to celebrate. But for those who have, and who know about her initial diagnosis of an insufficient pancreas that seemed to indicate she would need medicine with every meal for the rest of her life, this truly is celebratory news.

I'm no vet. My own vet will be the first to tell you that. But IBR's founder and president has likely dealt with more digestive issues in Pointers related to poor diet and neglect than anyone else, and she encouraged trying the raw diet. And I listened. So far - knocking heavily on wood - it's working, and we've been able to cut out the prescription Viokase.

So, what's going on? Well, again, I couldn't even play a vet on TV, but I'm wondering if there isn't a grain intolerance in Pen coupled with a weakened pancreas. While Pen did score an 8 on her TLi test - which measures enzyme reactivity and falls within the healthy range - it's still on the lower side. But going raw and cutting grains out made a dramatic difference overnight. We're going to try beef and chicken; while turkey seems to be working, we want to make sure there aren't any allergy or intolerance issues with the other types of meats. But we're very encouraged by the developments of this past week and cautiously, cautiously hopeful that the right diet, combined with non-prescription supplements including enzymes and probiotics, might hold the key to her overall health.

Today was an example of one of those days I'll use to badger my husband to replace our bulky digital camera, because I would have carried a small one to photograph Pen at a doggy festival. She was such a good girl - shy and a bit reserved but incredibly quiet, well-behaved, and patient and curious with adults, children, and other dogs. I was so proud of our little foster girl - she still has a long road to building her confidence, but she's making great progress.