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One-Putt - March, 2005.  One-Putt is a 10-year young Siberian Husky.  His people, Chip & Janet, have 11 dogs (soon to be 12) Siberian Huskies/Husky mixes, and most are rescues.  One-Putt has been on an all-natural diet (raw meat/vegetables/some grains) his entire life.  For a brief time last year, an all-natural kibble was introduced to his diet & we believe that because his system was so pure & clean, that even a natural kibble wasn’t the best for him.  We believe that his immune system was weakened and that’s when he became susceptible to disease, and when he contracted the heartworms.  He was expressing none of the symptoms but he was slowing down a bit. Contrary to the veterinarian’s recommended treatment, we chose not to treat him conventionally.  So, after finding out about Robin & Bandit, we decided to treat One-Putt with the herbal program.  That was in September of 2003, and happy to say, One-Putt as of February 2005, is microfilaria free! In addition to the herbal treatment, we put all our dogs on the Bravo Raw Diet www.bravorawdiet.com, and all natural herbal multi-vitamins & plant enzyme/probiotics (digestive enzymes).  None of the dogs eat kibble or grain, and not only are they all in excellent health, they love dogsledding in the winter at the local state forest.  One-Putt has a new bounce to his step & the other dogs no longer take advantage of him.  He definitely reestablished his position in the pack, & happy to say, he’ll be back on the sled dog team next season!

One-Putt's Heartworm Program, 9/04 -2/05
One-Putt's DOB is 4/11/1994, weight at the time of treatment was 44 lbs.

3 Artemisia twice daily (a.m. on empty stomach & p.m. on empty stomach)
2 HS II twice daily (a.m. & p.m. with meals)
1 CO Q10 twice daily (a.m. & p.m. with meals)
½ capsule Black Walnut mixed with meal once daily - 5 days on, 2 days off.

Janet Simon

Update:  September 21, 2006

One-Putt passed away recently due to old age.  He had been heartworm free, and had become a senior citizen in his pack of sled dogs.  He was a determined little sled dog over the years, and being only half the size of his pack-mates, he had to work twice as hard to keep pace.   He had a quality life and lived it to the fullest. 

Janet, his Mom wrote the following about him:  "A light in my heart is flickering out, and that light is the special joy your time here on earth has brought me, One-Putt. You were welcomed into our hearts as a little 8 lb. ball of fluff in November of 1994 with a champion’s heart full of love and life and with a very purposeful spirit – one that I will never forget. You went through a lot with us, my special boy, and you are now privileged to go to the next plane and to be here with us in a way that only those who have passed can be.  I am giving you the honor of passing on with dignity, respect and clarity. Thank you for all you have taught us.    You will be sorely missed, forever appreciated and eternally in our hearts.  Farewell, my little buddy.  May your spirit soar. "

Janet and One-Putt have been an inspiration to so many who have dealt with heartworms and their dogs.  It is only fitting that One-Putt be given a special honor on our stories page. Bandit and I know that One-Putt is running free and full of his youth again at the Rainbow Bridge. 


The Rainbow Bridge Poem


Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
 
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together.... 

Author unknown.

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April 2007 - Oreo’s story began in April of 2005 when he was 6 years old.  Oreo is one of my 17 rescues.  He came from a fairly large sled dog kennel.  A friend of mine runs his dogs competitively, and by his standards, the dogs are past their prime at 6, and once these “older”, experienced dogs have taught his younger ones how to be a sled dog, he places them in good homes.  His dogs are all from Iditarod champion lineage, and have already taught my dogs so much.  My dogs are mostly rescues, and even though they are all huskies or husky mixes, they have no prior sled dog experience and are not from sled dog lines, so adding the experienced sled dogs like Oreo to my pack/team has been very beneficial.

The former owner told me that he puts all his dogs on a conventional preventative when they’re puppies and keeps them on it all the time.  He never tests his dogs and unfortunately, Oreo tested positive on the antigen test when I adopted him and took him to my vet for a check-up.

Oreo weighed 45 lbs. when I adopted him.  I immediately put him on the Bravo raw diet and a high quality, grain-free kibble. 

I chose to use the herbal approach to treat Oreo’s heartworm condition.  Even though my vet was unfamiliar with the herbal treatment, she was supportive and cooperative, since she knew that I researched, pursued and utilized alternatives when appropriate.

Oreo’s treatment consisted of Artemisia twice daily on an empty stomach, (2) HSII twice daily with meals, (1) COQ10 twice daily with meals, and ½ capsule Black Walnut mixed with his meal once daily (5 days on, 2 days off).

On May 4, 2005, Oreo was tested again: Antigen – high positive, Difil – negative, Smear – positive (saw 3 microfilaria).  On August 23, 2005, he was tested again: Difil – negative, Spot – positive, Antigen – positive.  He was no longer coughing, his vitality and appetite were good, and he was gaining weight, which he needed to do.  He had gained 14 lbs. and was rarely coughing.   His coat now had a nice sheen to it and I felt we were moving in the right direction.

At the end of September, 2005, his tests were what I consider to be very good news: Difil – negative, Direct – low positive (only 1 microfilaria viewed), Snap – high positive (I was not concerned, since my belief was that his blood still had the antigen, but not necessarily any adult worms.). 

My vet indicated to me that Oreo had a very healthy, athletic heart.  Usually, a dog’s heart rate will go up at the vet’s office due to nervousness, yet Oreo’s was 60.  The vet felt for murmurs or any irregularities and reported that his heart sounded excellent.

In February, 2006, Oreo tested positive on all 3 tests – difil, snap and antigen, yet he wasn’t exhibiting any of the heartworm symptoms.  His appetite was good, and even though he coughed occasionally, he was coughing a lot when I adopted him, so I still felt that he was getting better and that his recovery was moving in the right direction.

In June, 2006, Robin and I discussed Oreo’s treatment and decided to switch his program up a little.  As a result, I added Herbal Pumpkin (in place of the Black Walnut) with the hope of jump-starting his immune system and to see if that would do the trick.

The good news came in August, 2006.  Oreo tested negative on all 3 tests: two different antibody tests and one antigen test.  Hooray!!!  Maybe switching to the Herbal Pumpkin made the difference.  I’m just happy that I stuck with the program and didn’t quit.  I could have lost patience and decided it wasn’t working fast enough, or I could have been reluctant to switch to the Herbal Pumpkin and just decided to use the conventional treatment.  But that would have been a disservice to both Oreo and myself.

Oreo is now a happy, healthy, vibrant 65 lb. member of the pack and the sled dog team, thanks to Robin and Bandit, and their wise and good counsel!!

Janet Simon

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"I can't thank you enough for your help with my Duncan. I thank God for the Internet, because I don't know how I would have ever found the program you helped me and Duncan with. I took him back to the vet today for his check up. He was on Bandit's program for only two months, and his heart worms are gone!!! His test was negative, and the doctor was even surprised. He wants me to email him what we did! This is so wonderful, because I didn't have to have him treated with poisons and it was much cheaper than the $600 near-death experience normal vets were willing to put him through that probably would have killed him, being that he's nine years old and has Addisons. I'm keeping him on the preventive treatment, because he looks better now than he has in years. I don't know which herb did the trick, but he's doing great. I was really afraid it wouldn't work, since we had to go easy on him due to his Addison's disease. But it really came through. I don't know how to thank you enough. I've told all my friends if their dogs happen to get heart worms, they know who to call!!! With my most sincere gratitude"
April Scott, Fort Worth, Texas

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"I want to let you know that Josi, the dog we were treating with the herbal heartworm program just tested negative for heartworms. It was very exciting. The vet wanted to say it was because of the life span of the heartworm. But we know better, don't we? What are the chances every single adult heartworm she had died at once? I don't know why the vets aren't more open to new things. It is so much easier on the dogs. I wanted to get her re-tested because I watched her decline and then come back. I figured that the decline was caused from the heartworms breaking up and being absorbed. I just felt like they were gone and the testing proved they were. Just wanted to pass on the great news so that others may be encouraged. I would like to be able to help somebody like Bandit's "mom" helped me."
Mistee

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"I am writing to say thank you for making your heartworm remedy available on the internet. Our dog A.J. who is 15 years old was diagnosed with heartworms. Our vet told us that they could treat her with medication, but that she was so old and weak that it would likely kill her. We went to the internet to see if we could find an herbal solution. We followed your program and A.J. feels better than she has in years. She is running and playing again, where she was lethargic before. We also tried Pau D' Arco for tumors that she had developed on her neck, back and tail. We were amazed when all but one of her tumors disappeared within weeks. We will take her in February for testing to see if her heartworms are gone.
Thank you again." Jim Tucker

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"Back in March I started my Black Dog on Bandit's heartworm treatment. Black Dog had been diagnosed with heartworms several months prior to this, but had been showing no symptoms until March. In March, he developed a terrible cough and was frequently out of breath. I began the program and within in a couple of weeks his cough disappeared. In about one month, his energy level went clear to the sky! I had a hard time keeping him quiet as I was worried about his heart due to heartworms. By December he started refusing his morning and evening pills. I took him to the vet last week and he tested Heartworm Negative!!! I am so grateful to Robin and to Nature's Sunshine."
L. Williams

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5/09/03 "Brownie Lou is doing great! He wants to run soooo badly! Wagging that tail all the time too! I remember when we took Brownie Lou in from the shelter after his owner had to return him to move into a nursing home. We fell in love at first sight with this 12-year old dog with a raccoon face.

He fit right in with our other dogs and learned the ropes quickly. His bad breath led us to discover that most of his back teeth were barely intact and were infected. We had seven infected teeth removed and cleaned the rest. Heartworms were discovered while at the vet for the surgery. It was suggested he get through recovery and then discuss treatment. Due to a reaction to pain medication, he took a turn for the worse and we thought we would lose him. The vet agreed that going home may be the only answer, so we checked him out and gave him lots of love and attention in addition to antibiotics.

By the next week, Brownie Lou's PCV levels were back up again and the fever gone. We still had the looming decision before us as to how to treat his heartworms. Considering Brownie Lou's age and predisposition to medication allergies, he would not be a good candidate for traditional heartworm treatment, so I searched online for an alternative method and found Bandit's natural heartworm program. I emailed Robin and was so pleased when she replied and provided me with so much information and caring advice. Robin and Bandit gave me hope that we could treat our little 'old' fellow and help him to be healthy once again and live many more years with us! I ordered the program and we've been on it for four weeks and Brownie Lou has felt wonderful. It is hard to keep him on a leash because he wants to run, run, run. His tail wags constantly and our little buddy is feeling so good. We have highest regards for Robin and this natural alternative for heartworm treatment. We tell Brownie Lou every single day that he has many years left with us. We believe it and with that sparkle in his eyes, he does too!"
Jackie Bigham

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6/2/03 "Thank you for putting yourself out there and offering the program to all us dog owners. Both of our vets rolled their eyes at the mention of an herbal treatment and both also didn't assess the risks of the conventional treatment. It's only been a month and a half and Smily is doing much better since he has been taking the herbs, he has more energy, nicer coat and has even lost some weight.
Thanks Robin." , Matt & Jordana, Turks & Caicos BWI