Been feeling hopeless about Gretchen's health lately. She has been in a lot of pain and we haven't had a lot in the way of directives from our Banfield vets as to how to proceed other than managing pain with drugs. (See some rants about that here) We had been very happy with Banfield up until now, I want you to know. But this latest rash of issues with Gretchen, and their inability to be on the same page with her treatment, left us a bit less confident of their ability to care for Gretchen as she is aging.

So Gretchen (and Chris and I) met a new vet today. We sought an integrative vet thanks to friend-of-a-friend Nahara Ruskin. Turned out there was one basically right across the street from our current vet(s) which had excellent Yelp reviews. Chris expressed trepidation about seeking a vet who might prescribe acupuncture or chiropractic treatment for our dog (which I understand), but I asked him to have an open mind since I had such positive experiences with it. We thought today would just be a check up, but it ended up being much more.

The office is unassuming. It sits in a strip mall next to an Ethiopian restaurant. Small, not very polished decor, but clean and friendly enough. We filled out the paperwork and were taken to a small exam room. The tech came in and asked us lots of questions about her current issue. I am so used to the Banfield "check heart rate, take the temp, etc etc" that it was surprising not to run through the usual drill--a drill which usually has very little to do with what issue we came in for, but seemed like the "Way We Do Things At The Vet". Gretchen normally backs her butt into a corner and pants until she drools, as she can be very anxious in unfamiliar surroundings. She was panting, but was walking around the room exploring like I almost never see her do at the vet. She only once backed her butt into the wall, but immediately moved away from it again to explore. Good sign.

The doctor, Ulrike Rudolf, came in shortly after; and it was one of those times when you immediately feel at ease. Her energy was great, she clearly wasn't rushing in from four other appointments or rushing off to four more, and was so gentle with Gretchen that the pup clearly felt safe. She endured every poke and prod without fuss. We talked more about symptoms and the progress of her treatment so far and the doc listened attentively. After some more examination and reviewing the records that Banfield faxed over, the first suggestion? Accupuncture.

I could feel Chris bristling behind his stoic facade, but he didn't protest, God bless him. The vet talked us through all the places she was putting the needles and what those locations were meant to improve. I appreciated being talked through it all so completely. There was one zinger of a spot Gretchen protested briefly, but other than that it was like she didn't feel a thing. Just sat there calmly. I was amazed.

I liked even more that they did everything in the room with us. At Banfield they always take Gretchen into some back room for most everything they do. Here they checked to make sure we were okay with them performing all the procedures in the room with us and we enthusiastically said yes, by all means. So she got her accupuncture, and then had to wait 20 minutes with the needles in. There she was, walking around the room with needles sticking out all over her like she didn't even notice they were there. I found that hilarious.

Then when the needles were removed, guess what came next? Yep. A small chiropractic adjustment. The vet wants to do a more comprehensive one in a few weeks once her present issues have relaxed a little from the acupuncture (can you feel Chris steaming right now?), but she did a minor adjustment there and then.  Chris was a silent saint.

What else occurred blew me away though...

So Gretchen has a fairly new lump on the front of her chest/neck that is painful. They poked it today to get some cells to look under a microscope, and Gretchen barely even reacted. She was SO CALM! They did it all in front of us (again, with our permission). Two big needles in a painful lump and she has no reaction? Just let the tech hold her. That was miraculous.

But THEN they needed to take blood for a blood panel on her liver issues. So two vet techs come in and get down on a towel with Gretchen. Together they wrap their arms around her and gently roll her onto her side. I was poised for a struggle. She doesn't squeal or resist--neither in pain from the back issues she has been having nor in panic she usually displays with vets handling her like this--and just lays down and CHILLS OUT. Like...lays there like she is just being pet (which she is by one of the techs, but still!). Even when the loud hair trimmer comes on (loud noises usually upset her)--nothing. Lays there, not even panting. Not when the big needle goes into her leg. Not when they have to move the needle around a little when the blood didn't flow for a second. I am sitting there marveling at how calm and happy my dog looks while she is undergoing something that normally freaks her the hell out and the tech kinda shrugs gently and says, "She is probably just really relaxed from her acupuncture." My mind? Blown.

Anyway, that was a very very positive experience. Sadly, the down side to the testing thus far is that she has to have the lump biopsied and possibly removed. So Monday she goes in and goes under anesthesia to get a biopsy, and to see the extent of the lump, how deep it goes, etc. She will also get an x-ray at the same time (I can see the $ signs swimming in front of my eyes and it makes me choke), so we can get a better look at her spinal health. Better to have it done while she is restfully sedated than to wait until later and have her feel stressed anew.

So it's a scary surgery scenario with an uncertain outcome, and a bunch more money we don't have to spend, though on a dog who is worth every penny. We both really REALLY liked the vet, personally/professionally very much our kind of energy. I recognize sounds crazy to entrust your dog to surgery with a vet you only met once; but Chris and I both agreed we really liked the vet and felt good about the decision, so that's saying a lot. Please keep our pup in your prayers!

We had too much cream. A leftover half-log of Laura Chenel goat cheese. A whole container of baby spinach I knew I couldn't use before it went bad. So it was time to come up with a recipe to use them! Chris kept saying "DAMN Shay." So I guess this improvised recipe was a win, and here it is:

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
2-3 oz goat cheese
1 cup packed spinach, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp flour
1 medium shallot, chopped
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Olive oil
Salt to taste

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Throw garlic and spinach in and heat until spinach wilts a bit. Remove to a bowl, add goat cheese and mix together.

Slice a 2" opening horizontally through thickest part of chicken breast; work paring knife in to open up a cavity. You can use your fingers to help open up the breast gently without breaking through other side. Stuff cavity with cheese mixture and massage through to fill it evenly.

Put flour and a dash of salt in shallow dish. Toss chicken breast in flour and salt until coated.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees while you...

Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in original pan, add shallots and cook 2-3 minutes. Remove to a small dish and reserve for later, keeping any shallot-infused oil you can in the pan.

Add chicken to shallot-infused oil and brown both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Meanwhile...

Line baking pan with foil. When chicken is browned, place in pan and put in oven. Cook 20 minutes or so until cooked through (cooking thermometer is helpful, as different chicken breast thicknesses will take different times).

About 10 minutes before chicken is done, add reserved shallots back into original pan along with cream, lemon juice, and a dash of salt. Reduce by half over medium-low heat. Keep warm until chicken is cooked through.

Slice chicken into medallions, arrange on plate, drizzle cream sauce over the top. Serve with favorite veg (we just crisp, sweet snap peas!)

I am not a big breakfast person. Wait...check that. I love bacon and eggs and big weekend breakfasts. But regular daily breakfasts I often feel at a loss. I prefer salty breakfasts, and if I have sweet I prefer it be fast and not too sweet. So it is strange that I have been eating a s'mores Luna Bar each morning for the most part. It's fast, easy, has some sugars and protein to get me through until lunch. But it is SO SWEET. Ugh. And it just doesn't feel healthy...it's not really.

I have been searching for a simple recipe for some breakfast bars or cookies I can make ahead of time, limits the refined sugars, satisfies the morning tummy grumbles, and gives a little energy boost. I have found a LOT of recipes with similar ingredients, but I improvised my own based on what I wanted (no added sugar), and what I had on hand.

I very happily had home-made applesauce in the fridge (no sugar added, so sweet and delicious!), but sadly only had sweetened coconut. I would prefer not sweetened myself. You could easily add more peanut butter if you wanted more of that flavor, and/or could replace it with any nut butter of your choice! Vegans: you can skip the egg. Many recipes do! It does bind the cookies a little better, which is why I chose to use one for my recipe.

INGREDIENTS
2 ripe bananas mashed
1.5 cup quick oats
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 Tbsp peanut butter (nor nut butter of choice)
2 Tbsp coconut (sweet or unsweetened, as you like)
1 egg

OPTIONAL
IF I had them, I would add raisins or dried cranberries, and/or some crushed nuts. I have also seen this done with some protein powder, which sounds like a good idea but I don't have such things on hand.

INSTRUCTIONS
Pre-heat oven to 350.

Mash banana up well, add oats, apple sauce and cinnamon and blend. Add peanut butter and blend. Finally add coconut and egg and blend one last time. (I did the blending in a few steps as it felt easier to get a good consistent distribution of the ingredients).

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spoon scoops of the mixture onto sheet--you can make small cookies or large. If spooning large scoops, flatten a bit to make sure the center gets cooked well.

Bake for 25 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack. Store in airtight container in the fridge.

Shay's Southwest Chicken Chili  
I created this recipe on the fly for dinner tonight when I needed to use up some chicken breasts we had on hand. I tend to always have onion, garlic, sour cream, and canned white beans around. The avocado I had leftover from another meal we had recently which I was happy to use up, and for me was real icing on the cake. A really delicious addition.

Ingredients
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large white onion diced*
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder (I am a spice wimp, add more if you like it hot!)
1 tsp oregano or marjoram
3 minced garlic cloves
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces
1/3 cup salsa of choice (I like medium heat Chunky Newman's Own)
2 cans white beans/Navy beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chicken or veg. broth sour cream cheddar or other favorite cheese(s), shredded

*optional:
divide out 1/4 of onion, mince
1 tsp dried cilantro
1 avocado diced
 Mix together above three ingredients in bowl and set aside  

Directions
Heat olive oil over medium heat, add onion, cumin, and chili powder to pan and cook for 3 minutes
Add garlic and chicken, cook 5-7 minutes until chicken is no longer pink
Meanwhile, take 1/2 cup of the white beans and chicken or veg broth and blend together with immersion blender, blender, or food processor
Add blended beans and salsa to pan with chicken, onion, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Simmer 8 minutes until chicken is done cooking.
Add rest of the beans, simmer, to heat through for 2-3 minutes
Spoon into bowls, add a dollop of sour cream, top with cheese.
Add avocado mix if you like.