Heart Like a Dog

The Good, the Bad, and the Oh My God of living with dogs!

Why I Buy Kidde Smoke Detectors

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Close to four years ago, we had an issue with a malfunctioning smoke alarm.  (You can read about that HERE.)

It took us a long time to work through Sampson’s noise phobia after the smoke alarm incident. He’s finally at a place where noise doesn’t bother him too much, but I think some of that in part, might be a slight loss of hearing.

Kidde Smoke Alarms Save the Day

After the smoke alarm incident, I looked around for a smoke detector that didn’t beep. In my search I came across Kidde smoke detectors.  We ended up with the hallway, and bedroom smoke detectors. The wording on the box of the bedroom smoke detector said, “Talking.”

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Sold!

Ten Year Sealed Lithium Battery

The great thing about the Kidde smoke detectors is the ten year battery. You don’t have to check or replace your battery every year. In fact, the battery in the Kidde smoke detector is a sealed lithium battery.  You cannot replace it. When the battery goes, you throw it out and get a new one.

When I read that label that said talking smoke detector, I immediately thought, this will be perfect for Sampson. But what I discovered is, it still beeps.  It does ‘say’ Fire, BUT it also beeps.

How do I know this you ask?

In August of 2016 I was getting ready to leave for vacation when the smoke alarm in the bedroom started beeping. I took it down, checked it, it stopped beeping, I put it up. I did this the second time it went off. The third time it went off, I took it off the wall, put it in a Styrofoam cooler, and put it in the garage.

Ain’t nobody got time for that!

I consulted the Google to discover some people were having issue with the smoke detectors when it was really humid out. It was August, and humid as all get out, so I assumed that was the issue. I went to Vancouver, and then I forgot all about that smoke detector, until…

My Dog Freaked Out From a Beeping Smoke Detector

One night last summer, at around midnight, the smoke detector in the hallway suddenly began beeping. Almost immediately, Sampson came barreling through the bedroom door in blind panic.

I don’t mind a little noise, but that constant beeping, It’s scary! Almost as scary as an orange and pink lizard.

I got up pushed the button and the noise stopped. Got back in bed, starting settling Sampson down and the thing went off again. Tried pushing the button but that didn’t work. Sampson is following me around panting like mad, so I decided I’d put the damn thing in my car (or smash it in the driveway) and  I was just on my way outside when Hubby came out of his room.  Then Delilah got up, so now the four of us are in the dark living room, trying to figure out why this thing wouldn’t stop beeping!  Hubby tried taking the back off to pull the battery, but you can’t.

Finally, frustrated and exasperated, Hubby took a screwdriver and killed it.

Dead.

Kidde Stands Behind Their Smoke Detectors

The next morning I called Kidde to complain about their smoke detectors. I mean, what’s the point of spending extra money for a 10-year guarantee if it doesn’t last?

The customer service rep was kind, and good. He listened to me without interruption, while I told him about the two faulty smoke detectors. He asked me if the first detector was still beeping and I told him “no.” He asked if the battery was still good, and I told him I didn’t think so.

Then he said, “I’ll send you replacements.”

In case you missed it, that was plural. Replacements.

I was floored.

“Did you hear me? We killed the smoke detector. We didn’t just stop it from beeping, we destroyed it. Dismantled, dismembered, it’s literally in pieces.”

He understood what I was saying, and yet, he was replacing BOTH of my smoke detectors. Without me even asking.

But while I had his ear, I had to ask, “Why would the smoke detector go off? I mean, the box says it’s good for 10 years.”

That’s when he dropped this little bombshell on me.

Are you ready?

You have to clean them. Am I the only one who didn’t KNOW this? WTF? Yes, you need to 1) use your vacuum on them once per month, (paying attention to that little sensor located via a hole on the side, or 2) use condensed air to blow them off, because sometimes bits of dust can get on the sensor and cause it to malfunction.

Still, even though I hadn’t cleaned the smoke detector, and even though I literally destroyed a smoke detector, a few days after my phone call to Kidde, two replacement smoker detectors were delivered to my home.

I’ve worked customer service of some type for years. You could say I’m particular when it comes to customer service. Okay, you should say I’m particular because I am. In my experience, customer service has fallen by the wayside with a lot of companies, so when I find a company that 1) stands behind their product and 2) provides outstanding customer service, you can bet I’m going to share my experience.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a couple of smoke detectors to vacuum.

Disclosure: This post is not sponsored by Kidde Smoke Detectors. Kidde Smoke Detectors is not responsible for any of the information shared here. I simply had a good experience and wanted to share that with my readers.

Treating Arthritis and Joint Injuries With CBD Oil

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This post is sponsored by Treatibles. I have been compensated for sharing my honest opinion about Treatibles. But I will never share something with you I don’t use myself.

Both my dogs are considered seniors now, and have been for a while. At eight-years-old I disagreed with this, but now, at 13 (Sampson) and almost 11 (Delilah) I’ve had to accept the fact, that yes, I have senior dogs.

It’s hard for me to imagine these two are Seniors.

Both dogs have had age related issues, in the last few years. Most notably Sampson has been dealing with Arthritis and Delilah was recently diagnosed with a progressive Cornea Disease. Sampson has also been dealing with CCL tears, although those are probably more related to his build and his lifestyle.

If you follow this blog, you know that I’ve tried many, many different procedures, therapies, and supplements to help ease Sampson’s joint discomfort. Most of them work, if not for long term, at least for a short while. Since his partial CCL tear in January of 2015, the bulk of his treatment has been pharmaceutical, which most of you know, is my last choice for treatment. He’s been on Carprofen for inflammation and Gabapentin which is a nerve-blocker. He also has Tramadol for those really bad days.

His walks are limited to short, gentle walks twice per day. While I know these walks are what’s best for him right now, it hurts my heart that his world has become so small. One of my hopes is that I can find something that will allow him to have longer walks on occasion, and hopefully get him back into the woods that he loves.

For a while now I’ve been wanting to find a natural product that would help him with this goal, as well as allow me to begin weaning him off the pharmaceuticals. I’d consider Hemp, but the one biscuit I tried, was just not cost effective for a dog Sampson’s size.

When I noticed the folks from Treatibles would be at BlogPaws, I couldn’t wait to talk to them. I stopped at the booth and spoke to Jodi, explaining Sampson’s situation, and the fact that he was such a large dog, and costs for using the Hemp were prohibitive for me. Jodi happily shared they had a Hemp capsule, that would give Sampson the dosage he required for an amount that seemed reasonable to me, and fit into my budget.

Treatibles CBD Oil

Sampson is currently on his third bottle of Hemp, with a dosage of one 10 mg capsule per day. Dosage is typically 1 mg per 10 pounds of body weight, but this will depend on your pet, and what issues you’re treating. For a dog Sampson’s size, he would normally get about 9 mg, but it’s perfectly safe for him to get more than the recommended dosage.

I’m seeing the Hemp work in a couple of different ways.

One…we can tell he is feeling better. He walks better, with less of a limp in his bad leg. He is also more playful.  He will often times grab a toy and flip it around. One day he actually ‘threw’ something at me, which I haven’t seen him do in ages. He will also run around the house in short bursts, and has initiated play with Delilah on more than one occasion. There have also been times in the yard, where I’ve turned my back for a few minutes, or dashed into the house for something, only to come back outside, to find Sampson has used the stairs and given himself full access to the back yard. Those times he comes back to the door with a definite swagger in his step.  You can tell he’s so proud of himself.

July 21, 2017 – The day before he started on Treatibles.

The second area where we’ve noted improvement is in his front paws. For the longest time Sampson has been licking at his front paws.  There were actually periods of time where this licking made his paws bleed.  He actually licked those paws practically raw. Initially we thought it was behavioral, allergies, a lick granuloma, or boredom. Then he was diagnosed with Arthritis in his front toes and wrists and it all made sense.

Since starting on the Hemp oil, I’ve noticed a definite slow down, of the licking.  (FYI, I’m also working on shortening those nails because I believe they are also a contributing factor to the arthritis pain.) His paws started looking amazing, so good in fact, that I thought it might be safe to start decreasing the amount of the Gabapentin he was taking.

August 13, 2017 – Just about 4 weeks after he started taking Treatibles.

Let’s look at those paws side by side.

About a month ago, I started decreasing his Gabapentin. He was taking 300 mg twice per day. One in the morning and one in the evening. At first I started by dropping him down with the morning Gaba. 200 mg in the morning, 300 mg at night. He seemed okay with that. We did that for at least a week to 10 days. Then I dropped his Gaba down to 200 mg in the morning, with the same dosage at night. After a week or so, I noted that while he wasn’t going at his toes so much, he had begun licking at his wrists.

October 11, 2017 – 3 months after starting Treatibles

So he’s back on the Gabapentin at 300 mg twice per day. Without the Hemp Oil, I think we would have kept increasing the Gabapentin, which is something I really wanted to avoid. So for now, he will continue with the Treatibles Hemp Oil, along with the Gabapentin and the Carprofen.

A lot of people are under the misconception that Hemp is a psychoactive drug like Marijuana, and that’s just not true.  You will not be giving your pet “pot treats”.  While Hemp and Marijuana both come from the same plant species, “Cannabis,” Hemp has little to no THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) which is the chemical compound that gets you high.  (SOURCE)  A lot of the differences come from the way they are grown and cultivated, although it’s good to note that Hemp is grown all over the world and is used for food, oil and fiber, in this fashion, the whole plant is use, as opposed to Marijuana, where only the buds are used.

If you’re interested in finding out exactly how the Cannabinoid system works in your pet, check out the information page at Treatibles.

Hemp oil can be used to help manage a variety of different issues with your pet. From pain and inflammation, to separation anxiety, epilepsy and seizures, joint pain and inflammation, allergies, and the list goes on and on.

To see how some of our blogging friends have benefited from using Hemp, you can check out these reviews as well.

Can Treatibles CBD Oil Products Benefit Your Pet? Our Experience & Review by Jan at Wag ‘N Woof Pets.

CBD Gel Capsules and Hemp Chews For Big Dogs: Treatibles Review by Jen at My Brown Newfies

Besides offering CBD oil in a capsule, Treatibles also has cookie type treats, as well as oil in drops, so you can get the exact dosage your pet needs.

I’m truly grateful for the folks at Treatibles for making a quality product that’s affordable for me, and offers me so many different options.

Treatibles Gel Caps gets a big four paws up from us.

 

NuPro Joint and Immunity Support For Dogs

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This post is sponsored by Nupro. I’ve been compensated by Nupro to share my opinion of their product. However, Heart Like a Dog will never share products that we don’t use ourselves. All opinions expressed within are ours. 

You all know Sampson has been struggling with Cruciate issues since 2014. That’s three years ya’ll. Three long and painful years of watching my dog struggle.

Struggle to get up, struggle to walk, struggle to be comfortable. During these three long (did I mention they were long) years, we’ve tried a number of different products and treatments in an effort to help ease that struggle. Some of course, like anything else, have worked better than others.

Every once in a while, you find a treatment that has a dual purpose. For us that treatment is NUPRO Joint and Immunity Support for dogs. (I refer to this as, “The Silver Label”.)

Nupro Joint and Immunity Support helps with joint issues as well as giving the immune system a lil’ something’ something’.

I first found out about Nupro at our local pet expo. With Sampson’s struggles, I’m always on the lookout for new products. I was given a very generous supply of Nupro to see how it might help Sampson.

There is also a Gold label which is a totally holistic product chock full of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids, and essential omega fatty acids. 

For those keeping score at home, I call this one, “The Gold Label.”

The container we received is five pounds and quite large. For a dog Sampson’s size (87 pounds) the recommended dosage is 2 scoops to begin and after a month, you can reduce it to one scoop per day. Depending on your dog’s issues, you can also keep it at two scoops per day, which I do. The five pound jug lasts us close to two months.

The ingredients. Oh so important to us! There are no wheat, corn or soy fillers!

Glucosamine, MSM, Ester-C (a mineral blend of Vitamin C), Norwegian Kelp, Ground Flaxseed, Yeast, Desicated Liver, Amino Acids and Enzymes, Garlic, Calcium, Lecithin, Lactobacillus Acidophilus.

Initially I waited to add this to Sampson’s diet. He had his annual exam towards the end of November and I had scheduled a follow-up with another vet at our clinic who’s been very helpful with Sampson’s joint issues. I wanted to be sure that everything we were doing was complimentary, not detrimental. I had received some samples at the expo, so I brought those with me and got the ok from Dr. Atz to try it.

The directions say you can sprinkle it on their food, or make it into a gravy. At first I started sprinkling, but then I was struck by brilliance, and realized that Sampson doesn’t drink a lot, so if I made it into a gravy, I’d not only be helping his joint issues, I’d be giving his kidneys a little boost too. (You have to love a product that serves a dual purpose!)

We feed raw, so I don’t pour it over his food. Instead he gets the Nupro as the third course, or “dessert” part of his dinner. (Yeah you read that right, my dogs get a three-course meal. That’s two (count em), two courses more than I get.) After he’s cleaned his bowl, and had his small scoop of pumpkin, I mix up the Nupro. I use a small milk pitcher, (because it has a spout) for ease of pouring. I call it his, “Go-go juice” and if I’m a bit slow in the mixing, he comes over to wait while I do it. I use a bit of warm water, add the Nupro, mix it up with a fork and then add a bit of cold water and mix again.

Sampson loves this stuff. I’ve said to Hubby, “Even if it wasn’t doing anything for him, I’d give it to him anyway because he loves it so much.” Siriusly, his little front paws ‘dance’ while he waits for him. And of course, Delilah is waiting by his side, so she can lick his bowl clean. (Because, the Lab part of Sampson doesn’t lick. Right) **eyeroll**

I wanted to wait a good while before sharing this because Sampson is a dog who is slow to adapt to things. We know this. Both from the surgical repair on his knee, and his recovery from the non-surgically repaired knee.

I can tell you, after five full months on Nupro, I definitely see a difference for him.  He has far less shaking in his back legs when he’s in the house. He seems to get on and off the sofa, and bed with far less discomfort and there are even days when he will pick up a toy and fetch it or tug with it. Of course, with his issues we try to discourage any sirius physical activity.

But what about the cost, I hear you say? Well in my humble opinion, the price is quite reasonable. This five pound container sells for less than $40. Which means this costs me about 66 cents a day.  (You can also buy it in a 20 pound container, which saves you about $80.)

I don’t know about you, but for me, 66 cents a day is a small price to pay to help give my dog some comfort in his senior years. It’s less than a cup of coffee.

Coffee is bad for dogs. I’ll take Nupro instead.

Am I telling you to give up your coffee?

Hell to the no!

I say be like Jodi. Keep your coffee. Considering cutting something from your grocery bill that you buy for your husband. I’m cutting out his cookies…;-)

Oh, and another cool thing, Nupro isn’t just for dogs. Nupro makes supplements for cats and ferrets too!

 

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