Special Conditions Success Stories
COCO
Coco is a 12-year-old chocolate lab. Before bringing him into Dr. Sheppard, Coco’s appetite has disappeared and became very lethargic and sick. He was not himself and we were looking to find answers. The conventional veterinarian did extensive blood and glucose testing, treating his diabetes, but we started seeing Dr. Sheppard in hopes to get Coco back to the happy dog he once was. When we first came to Sheppard Alternative Animal Care, we were very open to alternative medicine and the importance of diet because of the struggles with my daughter’s health and food sensitivities. It made a lot of sense to apply it to Coco as well. We were desperate to get him back to normal and would do anything to help him! Dr. Sheppard put Coco on a strict fish diet with vegetables and the prescribed supplements. In the five years we have been seeing Dr. Sheppard, he has done amazing. Along with his raw protein and vegetable diet, Coco is on a very low dose of insulin for his size. The conventional vets are often surprised at how low the dose is, and that it has been decreased since his diabetes diagnosis. We attribute that to the diet and supplements recommended by Dr Sheppard. He does not have as many food sensitivities and is a happy dog all around. Our experience has been amazing. It’s obvious Dr Sheppard loves what he does and cares for the success of his patients. I have referred many friends to see him.
DAISY
Daisy was born Dec 16th, 2008. We were looking for a yellow lab specifically, and her picture showed up on the internet. We wanted her. We could tell her personality was going to be the kind of pet we wanted.
She was a princess from day one and was very picky. Not a typical lab. She didn’t like certain smells and didn’t like to walk in other dogs’ eliminations. She was one of a kind. We noticed Daisy was having issues with secreting her anal sacs when she was around 4 years old. I would take her to the vet every 3-4 months to get them secreted.
In 2016, My husband and I had to go out to California for 6 months for my husband’s work. Of course, we took Daisy with us. She flew across the country to be with her daddy and very pregnant mommy.
In February 2016, I decided to take her to a veterinarian in California after being there for a month because Daisy had anal gland issues. She couldn’t express them on her own all the time. I also wanted the vet to check her over to make sure she was well from flying across the country.
I will never forget that visit. Being only out there for less than a month, we had bad news about Daisy. The doctor found a tumor on her anal gland sac. She wanted to do a biopsy right away to make sure it wasn’t cancer, but she was confident that it was.
Test results came in and yes, she had anal gland adenocarcinoma cancer. It is a very fast-growing cancer. We found an oncologist right away, and we were able to schedule a surgery within a few weeks. They removed a pea size tumor along with 10 cm muscles surrounding it. She was only 7 years old in March of 2016!
We couldn’t even think about going through chemotherapy and radiation with her since I was pregnant and also, we wanted our Daisy to be Daisy. We couldn’t think of her being any different and wanted her to enjoy life out in California and beyond. They gave Daisy 9 months to 1 ½ year with chemotherapy and radiation. They estimated less than a year and without medication.
I was referred to Dr. Sheppard from a close Friend of ours, Lisa, and when I came home from California, I made the call to get an appointment right away.
We were able to get in before I had my daughter in June of 2016. Dr. Shepherd put Daisy on supplements and changed her diet. He did rectal exam on her to make sure the tumor didn’t come back.
We did this every 3-4 months to keep her healthy and to make sure the tumor was not back. Daisy lived almost exactly 5 years later after having the surgery to remove the tumor. The cancer did end up coming back but there was no way of knowing unless we did X-rays every 6 months. Dr. Sheppard did everything he could to keep her longer, but the cancer was too much on Daisy and we had to say goodbye to her a month after we found out that the cancer was back. We said goodbye to Daisy on March 5th, 2021.
We are enterally grateful for Dr. Sheppard and his team for taking such great care of Daisy. He gave us 5 extra years with Daisy and kept her as she was, our Daisy. She was able to be a big sister twice to our daughter & son and she enjoyed every minute of it. She always enjoyed seeing Dr. Sheppard and the staff as opposed to other typical veterinarians. That was one thing Daisy hated going to the ‘typical’ vet. She was comfortable with Dr. Sheppard and she knew she was going to be taken care of.
I will only take our next pup to Dr. Sheppard. He is very knowledgeable and knows how to care for our pets. Every pet is unique and not every pet needs the same diet and supplements. He did wonders for our Daisy and I highly recommend Dr. Sheppard!