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Kirby Update

About a month ago I shared with everyone the struggle that we’ve been going through dealing with the seizures my little dog Kirby was experiencing. Over the past month we’ve had ups and downs, but I believe we are now in a really good place. A Kirby update.

Kirby with a milk beard.

About a month ago I shared with everyone the struggle that we’ve been going through dealing with the seizures my little dog Kirby was experiencing. Over the past month we’ve had ups and downs, but I believe we are now in a really good place. A Kirby update.

You can read the initial story of Kirby’s seizures by clicking here. Long story short, my little buddy Kirby (all 7 pounds of him) began suffering from seizures that escalated into a massive seizure one Saturday night heading us to a veterinarian emergency clinic. I didn’t follow the traditional veterinarian’s advice (controlling the seizures with drugs), I sought help from holistic veterinarians and other REALLY smart people that I know and trust.

I think it is important to note that when one is trying an alternative treatment (not mainstream medicine), often patience is required. Each step I’ve tried through the last several months has been a full fledged effort – meaning I kept with the treatment attempt even if it didn’t appear to be helping him at first.

My first effort was to detox my little guy’s liver. We began using Dr. Jean Dodds liver detox diet and began giving Kirby a Chinese herb called Di Tan Tang. We remained on this diet for several weeks (he still takes the supplement today) and was showing great progress. And then we slipped back into having more frequent seizures – though the severity of them were significantly lessened.

Next we went to a raw (goat) milk diet – for 30 days. Again, he improved almost immediately with the diet change. But throughout the first 3 weeks of the milk diet, he would again do well for several days, then slide back for several days into more frequent seizures. But – there was significant improvement in the severity and the recovery for each seizure. When we hit week four – he only had one seizure the entire week – and it was very, very mild. And during week four I took him for a short walk around the neighborhood for the first time in months (exciting activity seemed to trigger the seizures) – he had no seizure before, during or after the walk!

After the 30 days on the raw milk diet, Kirby is now eating a ketogenic diet (about a week as of this post). 60% fat from MCT oil (sourced from coconut oil – MCT stands for medium chain triglycerides), ground grass fed beef (cooked), and broccoli (cooked). And again with this non-traditional treatment I see significant improvement. With this diet Kirby is much more his old self – very active, including increased frequency of his…humping the cat. As of today (1/8/17), over the past 2 weeks we have had only one very mild seizure (when the doorbell rang).

We took a chance and chose no drugs that could damage his liver, we chose food and supplements to try to control the seizures. We’ve gone from a massive seizure that took hours to recover from, to 5 seizures in a day leaving him very lethargic, to milder and less frequent seizures, to today – one seizure in 2 weeks that was VERY mild. I’m happy. He’s happy. The cat…is happy unless Kirby gets ‘too’ happy.

I thank everyone for your concern. A special thanks to those that have helped me along the way: Dr. Cathy Alinovi, Roxanne Stone, Rodney Habib and Dr. Karen Becker. We couldn’t have gotten this far without all of your help!

A message from Kirby (sound on, Kirby is talking to you)…

 

 

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food

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44 Comments

44 Comments

  1. Pacific Sun

    January 8, 2017 at 6:45 pm

    So cute!! Thank you for sharing this! Give Kirby a (virtual) hug from all his Fans!!

  2. Debbie Perkins

    January 8, 2017 at 6:48 pm

    Just wonderful news! My best wishes for Kirby’s continued good health.

  3. Nancy

    January 8, 2017 at 6:53 pm

    So happy Kirby is doing better. Alternative therapies are wonderful. Another issue to look into is over vaccinating and the dangers of flea and tick preventatives.My holistic vet does not pressure me to get vaccines, we do titer testing and no spot on flea and tick preventatives.

  4. Michele Shull

    January 8, 2017 at 6:53 pm

    You must check into Spark from petwellness. We had a sheltie we could never wean off of phenobarb. We started the spark and tried to wean him off again. This time it worked! No seizures!

  5. Mark Hamilton

    January 8, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    Susan, I am very glad it is going well and thanks for the update(s).
    We have an 11 year old 8 lb. Yorker (Buddy) who is going thru some very upsetting episodes as well. Have not gotten to the bottom of it yet!
    Mark

    • Mark

      January 8, 2017 at 7:03 pm

      Yorkie not Yorker!

      • landsharkinnc

        January 9, 2017 at 7:07 am

        hahaha — was thinking ‘Yorkie x Cocker’ LOL!

  6. Fredda Johnson

    January 8, 2017 at 7:05 pm

    Seizures are terrifying for our pets and for us. I’m glad to hear he’s doing better. I’ve written before on your site about how eliminating food and snacks with rosemary extract stopped my Yorkie from having seizures. I imagine you are aware of this through the extensive research you do, but wanted to mention it again for anyone who hasn’t heard of the neurological effects rosemary extract can have. Pet food and people food companies use it as a natural preservative. Pet food companies jumped on it after the Chinese dog food scare of 2007. There has been research done on its effects on toddlers, but not on pets. Please everyone, be aware.

    • Reader

      January 8, 2017 at 7:24 pm

      Yes, it’s a listed ingredient on a lot of ground Turkey products. I wonder if they use it for Chicken products too?

    • Opie Catt

      January 8, 2017 at 9:06 pm

      Yes! Rosemary AND carrageenan…. neurotoxins / excitotoxins are running rampant in pet foods! causing seizures.

    • Paula

      January 8, 2017 at 9:57 pm

      Good to know. Thank you.

    • Cheryl Mallon-Bond

      January 8, 2017 at 11:27 pm

      Hey Fredda,
      This is so maddening! how manufacture’s continue to put ingredients in our pets food when they have no proof it’s ok for them. I had no idea about rosemary. As someone else commented, about carrageenan… I was aware about that…It’s practically in EVERY single canned cat food! The Cornucopia Institute put out an article on that over 3yrs ago, yet manufacture’s still continue to use it in their food. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. It was the same thing about garlic, when it was found out that it was bad for cats & yet it still was in many many products, & probably still is!

      Do you have any links w/ info on it that you can share? When I mention this to people, I like to be able to share w/ them something they can read on it. Thanks. ???

  7. Catherine Bienvenue

    January 8, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    So good to hear.

  8. Sandra Michele Wachtstetter

    January 8, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    Kirby is sooo cute and I’m so happy at the progress! Thank you for all you do!

  9. Tina B

    January 8, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    This is wonderful news! Kirby looks amazing….I do notice the kitties are keeping their distance. 🙂

  10. Batzion

    January 8, 2017 at 7:25 pm

    Hey Kirby, look at you! Very happy to get your message and know that you are feeling so much better. A lot of people care about you, Kirby, so you stay healthy and sassy. Sending you a big hug and lots of love to you.

  11. Hope

    January 8, 2017 at 7:42 pm

    GO KIRBY! So happy to hear and I know your heart ache must be easing a bit too Susan. Love Kirby’s message. Thanks for including us in this journey.

  12. toni

    January 8, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    Such a relief to hear this. Having been through so many ups and downs myself, I hope he continues to do well. Don’t despair if he goes backward a bit.

  13. lesliek

    January 8, 2017 at 8:01 pm

    This is great news !! You go Kirby [ just not at the cat ] , realfood can work miracles for them & us.

  14. Barbara

    January 8, 2017 at 8:16 pm

    Did you try Nuvet Plus which has prevented my dog’s grand mal seizures for over two years?
    Nuvet.com
    And you can read plenty of other testimonials from other dog owners, inclyding specifically on seizures.
    I do not work for Nuvet, I am just a very thankful customer.

  15. carole

    January 8, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    Kirby is so funny and cute. So glad to read that he is doing well on the new diet

  16. Kathryn

    January 8, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    Awww, thankful to hear how well Kirby has improved!! A wonderful blessing ?

  17. Dawn

    January 8, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    Susan, I truly admire your patience and sticktoitvness. Being in the allopathic medical field, even tho I believe in and use alternative methods on my critters, I’ve spent my career seeing immediate results as the goal. To be able to deal with the emotional strife of watching your little love be in such a predicament and not just jump for a quick fix is more than admirable. My hat is off to you. keep doing what you’re doing and keep getting better kirby!

  18. LilnAme

    January 8, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    So happy to hear that Kirby is improving! I’m sure the cat has mixed emotions about it, however. 🙂 Kirby is very blessed he has you as his caretaker. Go Kirby!!

  19. Sally Roberts

    January 8, 2017 at 8:58 pm

    I am so happy for you and Kirby !!! I hope he continues to do well !! Huggssss to Kirby and you !

  20. Tina

    January 8, 2017 at 9:15 pm

    I’m so glad that Kirby is doing better! In a discussion recently with my holistic vet on using CBD oil for my 14 yo doxie’s arthritis, he mentioned in passing that the only dogs in his practice with seizures who did not respond to CBD oil were dogs who had their first seizure before the age of one. All the older dogs had excellent success with it. Here in Colorado it is sold over the counter at better pet food stores. And my dog is in much less pain since he started taking it.

    • Cheryl Mallon-Bond

      January 8, 2017 at 10:44 pm

      Hey Tina, I too, had mentioned previously to Susan about the CBD oil for seizures. Can you tell me more about why is it, that if the animals had seizures before 1yrs old, that it might not work as well? I hadn’t heard about that. I would like to read up on it. Do you know of anything that has helped w/ younger aged animals who have seizures? Thanks in advance for any info you can provide. ???

  21. Paula

    January 8, 2017 at 9:48 pm

    As a longtime user of homeopathy and other alternative medicine for all of our little guys, bunnies, cats, even hamsters, this is so awesome to hear. So happy little Kirby is well! Homeopathy for Small Animals by Don Hamilton, DVM is my bible. Patience is also a must.

  22. Adriana Rojas

    January 8, 2017 at 9:52 pm

    So happy to hear Kirby is doing better…sending hugs and smooches his way!

  23. Caroline Snyder

    January 8, 2017 at 10:09 pm

    Susan, Magnesium.. if all other causes such as tumours are ruled out, then you need to rectify Magnesium status.. Rather than faff around with oral supps, make up a solution of Magnesium Chloride flakes (very cheap on Amazon!). 8 ounces in 1 quart of distilled water.. and apply with a saturated cotton ball to her tummy, inside her ears, and also to her paws.. every day..massage well in.. and yes they love you doing this!

    Magnesium Chloride Flakes 2.2 lb
    https://www.amazon.com/Magnesium-Chloride-Flakes-2-2-35-27/dp/B002E62HXQ

    Obviously you are doing the low carbohydrate diet .. good .. consider adding Heart.. it has the highest Magnesium content of any part of the body.

    I would also be upping “good” fats – Omega 3,6 and 9 Fatty Acids are in THIS product.. Ultra Oil Skin & Coat Supplement with Hempseed Oil – a perfect balance:which makes awesome nutty vinaigrette too! https://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Oil-Skin-Supplement-Hempseed/dp/B0048Z93NS

    If you are giving a Vitamin supplement, consider stopping.. most supplements are garbage, and made from cheap, China-sourced ingredients.. if the supplement has Vitamin B12 as Cyanocobalamin, or Vitamin B6 as Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, dump them!

    Wellness Resources offers THIS product for humans..about 1/3 of a capsule per day provides a slug of “Ready-use”, natural, Co-enzyme forms of vitamins, and I guarabtee, with the Magnesium, will have an amzing impact on general health!

    Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin™
    http://www.wellnessresources.com/products/daily_energy.php#ingredients_dosage

    All The Best xx
    PS I am a Mutritional Biochemist (human) but we humans really are not THAT different to our dogs!

  24. Karen Lewis Louisville

    January 8, 2017 at 10:12 pm

    Susan : So glad Kirby is on the mend. Going to special showing at Village 8 movies on dog food on Tuesday Thanks for your hard work and dedication. XOXO

  25. Jeanette Owen

    January 8, 2017 at 10:33 pm

    A vet in Az straightens out problems with raw meat. It works – takes a few weeks to start to show improvement & 2 months to cure.

  26. Cheryl Mallon-Bond

    January 8, 2017 at 10:56 pm

    Dear Susan,
    Thanks for the update on Kirby, & the adorable video! He is a real cutie! So happy he has been doing so much better! It has had to be so hard seeing him go through that. Continued good health to him.

    I am saving all the info you mentioned, about what you have used to help him, as well as all the information that other reader’s/posters have mentioned.

  27. Alice Sievert

    January 9, 2017 at 12:03 am

    So wonderful to hear. Prayers for continued healing for little Kirby.

  28. Teresa

    January 9, 2017 at 12:19 am

    Awe, your Kirby is such a precious angel. Thank you for the video of him. He looks great! As an RN, I have seen first hand what Rx drugs do to people and animals. Am extremely thankful for amazing herbals that are just as effective. Currently my cat who has renal failure and interstitial cystitis is on hemp oil (Canna Companion – CC). It was a Godsend. Despite the 4 prescription drugs she was on a little over a year ago, she was going downhill so fast I believed she would not make it. Her suffering was horrendous. So, I researched the subject and found the CC. It took about 3 weeks to see her totally improve, but when she did, it was nothing but miraculous. She literally came back to us from the painful, listless kitty with no appetite, to her normal self again. To date, she has not had a single IC episode. Am so thankful that she has her quality of life back and totally understand your joy seeing Kirby restored to good health. Nothing could be more precious than that.♥

  29. landsharkinnc

    January 9, 2017 at 7:22 am

    sounds like you’ve reached the point of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’! Shoot — that recipe for his meals sounds like it’s what I’d want on my plate!

  30. Deb Binder

    January 9, 2017 at 8:16 am

    That’s amazing. And wonderful! Thank you for sharing

  31. Stephen Goo

    January 9, 2017 at 9:34 am

    .
    I was Surprised not to find Mention of CBD …

    Does anyone have any Experience / Thoughts ?

  32. Karrie Kamke

    January 9, 2017 at 10:12 am

    I loved reading this! What a little sweetie – and lucky little guy (to say the least). Thank you for sharing it with us 🙂

  33. Laura Uran

    January 9, 2017 at 9:21 pm

    So glad your precious boy is improving. He’s very cute. : ) There is a medication that does not cause liver problems…my sister’s dog uses it and she has perhaps one seizure a year. Very manageable. It’s expensive though – Costco has the best prices. The drug is Zonisamide. Her dog also is sharp and does not seem “drugged.” She’s playful and active.

    Hope he continues to do well. Seizures are so hard to deal with. Good luck!

  34. Ellen M. Gagliano

    January 10, 2017 at 7:39 am

    I’m so glad that he’s doing so much better. In doing my own research, CBD (cannabidiol) seems to be a good thing in eliminating seizures. Ask the docs. Best to all.

  35. moviezombie

    January 10, 2017 at 2:18 pm

    the update is indeed good news!

  36. Mollie Morrissette | Poisoned Pets

    January 10, 2017 at 2:23 pm

    That is great news! Thanks for posting an update – we have all been worried about poor Kirby!

  37. Can

    January 18, 2017 at 10:23 am

    We wish you continued great progress with Kirby, it made me soo happy to receive this terrific update!!! As you do so much for others I can imagine how many directions you are being pulled in with a constant nervous feeling in the stomach as you focus on your little one and try a million different suggested things…you stay well too! We have had such success with many products ordered from here:

    https://naturalpetpharmacy.com/health

    All homeopathic and herbal; their vast selection of treatments have been really helpful for our family. We use the hind leg support, arthritis, and infection clear (natural antibiotic) regularly. I looked for you and they have seizure assist too! They really care and even offered further suggestions which have really helped us during some critical situations. (Sudden anemia, massive tooth infection) If I may suggest, although you are already doing so much, get all the computer equipment raised off the floor if that is where Kirby rests, perhaps placing on shelves. Too, if you have a new RV I suggest off gassing it if Kirby has been going on adventures? The floors, cabinets, walls, omit a ton of formaldehyde which can contribute to seizures in small beings. All the best!

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