It’s ALL About The Nika

Kibbles For Thought

While things are fresh in my head I want to share them.. maybe they will help another dog along they way.

#1. GET ROUTINE BLOOD WORK DONE ON YOUR PET! As your dog get's older, after 5 years or age, but no later than 8 years start doing a minimum of yearly blood work on your pup. If you can afford 2x a year - even better! But please at a minimum do yearly. Dogs cannot share or tell you things that are bothering them. So we need the blood work to know. Nika is the prime example. She still shows NO SIGNS of anything being wrong, but yet she does have two masses on her liver. We have always asked for a full blood panel, but be warned that every vet office has it's own standards of what a full blood panel is. Also please note that when you get blood work done, make sure your pets has fasted for at least 12 hours before any blood tests. Your vet should also be looking at ALL of your blood work comparatively over time. Ranges are one thing... but each dog like each person has their own "normal ranges." We use excel spreadsheets to keep an eye on all our levels to make sure nothing is going funny. Here is an excellent link to help you understand the basic wellness tests, what all the levels mean, and more: http://www.itsfortheanimals.com/BLOOD-TEST-EXPLAINED.HTM

#2. NEVER BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS! If something doesn't feel right, you don't understand something, or you just aren't sure.. ASK. Ask your vet, do your own research too. However, be warned when doing your own research there is a LOT of information out there. What we do is take it all in, keep aware of the dates of studies and literature, talk to our vets and then make a decision based on what makes the most sense based on everything we took in.

#3. GET A SECOND OPINION. Never be afraid to get a second opinion if something doesn't sit right for you. In this experience we have learned from our new vet that:
**Ultrasounds - pay for one to be done by a specialist who is looking at the insides of animals on a daily basis. He is going to see things better than someone who only does on occasion.
**MAKE THE APPOINTMENT! Sometimes those better folks are hard to get in with. So make your appointments as soon as you can. Worse case scenario you have to cancel the appointment. But please don't forget to cancel the appointment.. don't be rude.
**X-Rays - For broken bones a standard X-ray machine is fine, however if you are looking for the details, you want to be sure it is a digital machine and just like an Ultrasound you want a specialist interpreting them.

#4. DIET. There is a LOT of different views on diets out there. Not everyone agrees and frankly we realize not one thing works for everyone. We eat all RAW here. And when in a pinch we eat EVO kibble dog food. No carbs, No sugars... all protein and fat.

That's our tidbits for now... Today is the day we find out if there is anything that has spread. So please keep Nika in your thoughts and prayers that all is clear.