This is to say a very grateful thank you to Robert McDowell and his staff for their generous support and wisdom. Our dog, Sir Lancelot, was the joy in our day. He loved life and was a love hound when we took him for walks.
He welcomed each opportunity to meet people and their dogs on our walks, which I thought of as our "adventures." He would literally stop and smell the flowers on our path and I always wondered about all the secrets he knew from sniffing around that I would never know. He was a delight. A "joy" boy.
One thing I would especially like to make other dog owners aware of, which I found out the very hard way, is that Vets (at least here in the US) are taught to somewhat disregard Lipase levels until they at least double. Lancelot had had problems with digestion since the day we brought him home.
He was 1 year old and we got him from a wonderful place... The Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago. He was found as a stray that had been found roaming the streets.
Over the years we kept trying different things with his food and medication. What he really needed was a raw food diet that Robert McDowell and his staff strongly advocate but which I never even knew about until it was too late. I did change his diet even though he had a few months left to live, and I can't tell you how much he loved it, and how much I believe it helped him.
We kept getting tests and x-rays on him with not many answers. We did start him on medication for his liver about two years earlier. However, I could tell he was getting worse. Everyday I would rub his belly and press where his ileocecal valve was to help his food empty down. I learned where it was from a chiropractor, and had done that for him almost every day of his life.
As time went on I could see that doing that for him required more and more time, and that was telling me something was worse but we kept getting the same tests and no new answers.
In the end, when he started throwing up, his Vet recommended an ultra-sound. That's when we found a large tumor that had grown where his stomach drains into the small intestine. This also meant his pancreas wasn't functioning. I asked the Vet a lot of questions and found out that an x-ray will not show a tumor! I found out Vets are not taught to question until Lipase levels double.
When I took him in for tests in October 2004 his Lipase levels had been over the limit and all she did was do an x-ray that wouldn't show any tumor. It was not until February 2005 when he started throwing up that we found out what was going on, and it was too late.
At that time it was recommended that we see a surgeon but the Vet wanted that more for me to feel comfortable knowing that I explored everything, although she did not think it would be best for him. The prognosis for him surviving surgery was not good so we chose not to have surgery.
By the grace of God I stumbled upon your herbal treatments site and immediately contacted you with my situation.
You were wonderfully supportive and helpful and sent me the herbal treatments immediately. The day I started giving Lancelot the medication is the day he stopped throwing up.
In my heart I knew I was fighting a losing battle, but I was still hoping. However, because of the intense spread of the disease if it couldn't stop it, it could at least make his last days as comfortable as possible.
Every moment became that much more precious to us, and each day was a gift of him being here. He was a valiant little boy and each day we would give him his medicine, lots of love, and enjoy our walks. The Vet said we could keep him as long as his good days outnumbered his bad. Every day he could walk, and eat, and enjoy his day we could keep him.
During this time I also got medication from my acupuncturist/herbalist and I gave him that too.
At the very end he started curling up his leg and crying and I asked the doctor why. He explained that the tumor was affecting the stomach too much, and it made it painful for him to extend his leg. Then he stopped being able to walk. He'd get up all excited and happy to go on a walk, walk a few feet, and collapse. We knew it was time to let him have his wings. My daughter, Jennifer, and I, stayed with him when we let him go home to heaven on May 14, 2005.
I'm still stunned myself that I asked this, but I had a brief autopsy done to find out what happened. His Vet, who had been most compassionate during this time, and knew I was trying herbal medications as well as traditional medicine, told me she was glad that we did not have the surgery.
She said that his pancreas and liver was full of cancer, that the tumor in his 35 pound body had grown to the size of a plum, and his gallbladder was so full of bile, that if any of it was being released that it was extremely little. She said she didn't know how he didn't throw up every day.
Then I knew the truth, and I told her, it was the herbal medication I had been giving him every day. Because since the first time I gave it to him he was able to keep his food down.
The picture you see of Lancelot was taken a couple of months before he passed away.He was very gray, but other than that looks healthy. When he passed away he was 14 years and 8 months. Although I know that's considered a long time for a dog, it's just never enough when you love someone.
You were all so compassionate, and helpful, and supportive. Our gratitude will always be yours for all the extra time that you gave us together. Your medication gave him a "miracle" in it's own way because in reality when I found you it was already too late for him, and yet you gave us additional quality time together.
We had additional time for belly rubbing loving, cuddling, Lancelot was so happy just walking and exploring the neighborhood and his delightful smile.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the wonderful medication, your support, and care during this time. It is with deep gratitude that we will always hold you in our hearts for the time you gave us together.
Very sincerely yours,
Karen, Jennifer, and Lancelot
Questions:
I'm on a special series of herbal medicaitons to work with Candida Yeast Problems on myself, and my daughter is doing it too. Are there any herbal supplements that you have to heal this?
If my letter is too long, please let me know and I will revise it. If the picure is too big, I can make the size smaller for you. I'd rather it be smaller than cropped.
I found a home for his other medication, but kept the Maritime Pine Bark for myself. Did you say 4 drops 1x/Day in water? I can't remember. Sorry...
I apologize for taking so long to write... I kept hoping time would help but I still cried like a baby and have a mound of tissues sitting here from writing this letter. You two were amazing and I send you blessings every day for being there for us. It's not easy to enter someone's life when they are in a life and death situation, but you're support, and guidance, have meant the world to us, and we will be forever grateful.
Very truly yours,
Karen
Answer: Click here to visit the new treatment: Candida - A 20th Century Disease
