Bones Pet Boutique

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May, 2001 We got our Standard Poodle (Belle) at age 2 from a top breeder in Canada who fed her dogs the raw diet. Belle was the picture of health. After one year we noticed her teeth had yellowed and we made that comment to the breeder. She said this was a result of feeding kibble (too much starch). She gave us the diet she feeds all her dogs and because we were ignorant on the topic and thought it would be too cumbersome, we brushed it off. It was about this time we got our second poodle, "Lyla," a Canadian Champion. In our second year, Belle started having mucousy stools. After a visit to the vet and many tests later, she was diagnosed with IBD (irritable bowel disease). They put her on pills and this cleared up the problem, however after the pills were finished it came back. More pills later and a "special diet" (available only from vets, for apparently the rest of Belle's life) was recommended. Even with the new food without the pills, the condition returned. Meanwhile, Lyla was starting to develop ear problems (infections with yeast and black tar buildup) which required several visits to the vet for "flushings" and medication. After several months, and numerous vet bills, it was suggested we see a specialist and make an appointment at the University of Guelph (a vet school and animal research centre). After a month of special pills to fight the yeast infection, the buildup seemed to subside, but was still there. One possible solution suggested was a $700 ear/canal widening operation to "alleviate" the problem. We called our breeder out of frustration. She told us it was their diet. For Lyla, our breeder said her poodles do not have a history of narrow ear canals and all the widening would do is allow more air into the canal, not solve the yeast or tar build up. We then got on the web and investigated everything we could find about the BARF diet (Bones and Raw Food) and Natural Raw Feeding for pets. We eventually prepared our own "veggie glop" with all the leafy greens and gave them a dinner of raw chicken necks/backs. Within 3 days Belle's mucus coated stools (colitis) had disappeared. Both dogs went through some diarrhea and detox which is a normal reaction to switching to a raw diet. Meanwhile, Lyla's ear infection improved. A follow-up visit to the University suggested improvements had occurred in her ear and we were surprised that the vet (an allergy specialist/professor) reacted favourably to our switch to a Natural Diet as a possible cure for Lyla's problem. It has now been seven years since making the switch and we have never looked back. Their coats are soft and shiny as when we first got them, and teeth are white again, the beautiful white in their eyes has returned . Our vet initally called to see how they are doing and we believe he was surprised that this diet was working. We have since switched to a new vet who believes in feeding natural foods and takes a holistic approach. If we have one regret it is our 2 Dalmatians (from a top Canadian breeder), since gone. They suffered with allergies. Eddie (a Canadian Champion) was medicated (prednisone) with special "vet" food most of his life.

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