The Beginning...

Sage is my 6 (?) year old Lab/Newfie mix rescue has been fighting the past 3 years with a skin issue that has left her balding and itchy. It has left my house covered in a layer of nasty skin powder as she scratches nearly 24/7. She has become sad and loppy and we have tried everything. Steroid shots worked once, but the itchies came back with a vengeance. Round two of shots did nothing for her. Her skin is black in some places and red and angry in others. She has lost fur nearly everywhere. We have tried every spray, shampoo, mousse and cream known to man. She was even on prescription drugs for a while. The vets had said it was not her food. They checked her hormones, they were fine. 

We changed her diet 100 times. Removed grains, only salmon, only veggies, no chicken, only sweet potatoes, every combination you can imagine. What we missed was the raw diet. I never even considered it. Sage began to lose weight and I was getting scared.

Turning point:

Into my life came an amazing herbalist, Crystal Merrell who sent me a FaceBook message from a holistic vet. Attached was two pictures, a before and after of a black lab named Ramsey. Ramsey looked like Sage’s twin. Ramsey had lost his hair in the exact same spots as Sage. In the after photo Ramsey had begun to grow his fur back. The magic potion? I hoped I had found it through Ramsey!!! 

Even Sage's eyes had begun to fill with gunk. She had a "mask" on her face where the fur around her eyes was gone.  Her neck was black "elephant skin" and even her "Newfie" white spot on her chest was falling out. Her front legs were red and warm to the touch. I was heart broken over how sad her face was. I fought so hard to save this sweet giant. Family members had watched this battle for so long the idea of "letting her go" had been mentioned. I squashed that idea immediately.  I can't give up on her now!

My sweet girl's sad face. I wash her face and eyes two or three times a day. 

More evidence of missing fur. Even the tip of her tail is losing fur.