My Husky is Diagnosed with Masticatory Muscle Myositis (MMM)
Margaret Cowie
A leap of faith and the aid of an immune system builder changed my life and that of my dog. In the late 1990’s my dog, Ivan,
a 14 year old Siberian Husky, was plagued with masticatory muscle myositis (MMM)—
a disorder that led to the atrophy of the muscles in his head and neck. At that point,
things were okay, but we were told to be prepared for him to experience lock-jaw, which would lead to the inability to eat.
By 2002, Ivan was no longer able to lap water,
because when he’d drink it just fell from his mouth back into the bowl.
While waiting to see a vet, to keep him hydrated, I pushed water into the cheeks of his mouth using a large hospital syringe.
When we got the appointment with the vet that diagnosed our senior dog with MMM, she told us not to give up hope and
then prescribed steroids and a highly caloric diet—for now.
Related: Se also Sara Mae’s MMM Story & Recovery
The steroids helped Ivan’s ability to eat and lap water by reducing the inflammation in his jaw muscles.
But I knew about the terrible side effects of steroids and wanted
to wean my dog off this drug as soon as possible. However, each time we tried to wean him off them, the
condition amplified—leading us right back to where we were. You know how much one loves their canine companions and
I couldn't stand to see him suffer. So reluctantly I offered him another round of the prednisone.
I hated the idea that Ivan had to remain on a low “maintenance” dose for the rest
of his life.
Steroids are known to suppress and weaken the immune system. This in turn caused my poor Husky to suffer a severe case of staph
infection on his back. I had just given him a bath and then upon drying him with a hair dryer and running my fingers through his
fur to lift it and allow the heat to circulate through it, to my horror, a handfuls of hair, with the skin attached, were coming
off in my hands leaving puss behind! Needless to say, I panicked.
This time, our vet prescribed antibiotics. Once again, I wasn't thrilled because I understood the
side effects of antibiotics as well. Nevertheless, I religiously followed protocol
for this, but the infection did not clear. A second week of the same medication was prescribed and administered.
The skin symptoms appeared to improve but less than two weeks later, the infection reoccurred.
Since our vet was nearly 200 miles away, we sought out another closer to home.
Taking the dog to this man only gave us a bigger
headache. He didn’t know what to do…and mentioned it could be cancer. He offered to look some things up on the internet and then
get back to us with a clearer diagnosis. He did also mention that he could put the dog down or we could take him home and shoot
him ourselves. What?! I was horrified! Apparently those are the options in “the sticks”.
We found a new vet—50 miles away this time—and he prescribed a course of antibiotics for up to six weeks. More time on
the drug was necessary to wipe out the staph infection. He also told us we’d need to stop the steroid, since it was most
likely compromising the immune system after being used for so long.
When the infection reappeared, this vet said he would consult with a colleague who practiced holistic medicine. He knew of an
immune system builder that could potentially help. Since his colleague was on vacation, I researched the web for that “builder”.
In my search, I landed at Shirley’s Wellness Café—finding
a plethora of information and a potential cure to what ailed Ivan.
After reading so many “unbelievable” testimonials, I immediately ordered the immune system builder. What did we have to lose?
Well, low and behold, after using this product, Ivan was finally relieved of staph infection for good. We kept him on
a maintenance dose of the immune system builder for the rest of his life, which was a bit more than three years—living
to the ripe old age of seventeen! He was a case for the veterinary textbooks!
In those three years, I’d like to add, he was afflicted with other immune system crises. Once he was bitten by a tick and went
into shock. We were certain we were going to lose him.
Well, it seems the immune system had enough information, due to
the immune system builder we were feeding him daily, and he pulled through after a two day battle for his life. No other
meds were used—just TLC.
We were very blessed to have our wonderful Siberian Husky for all those years.
We had rescued him from starvation when he was age
three. And for that, he showed us a regal side and a special kind of love that impacted our hearts and will remain there forever.
Margaret Cowie is avid animal lover, author, and natural healing advocate. She shares the experiences with her pets,
bordering miracles, with others so that they, too, can have more quality time with their 4-legged companions.
Contact Shirley for more information about
the remedy that Margarent gave her dog.
Sara Mae’s MMM Story
When our 2 years old foster came to us, we made a vet appointment. She was checked out and was diagnosed with Masticatory
muscle myositis (MMM) and was heartworm positive. She could only open her mouth an inch or so and her head and jaw muscles had begun
to show signs of atrophy.
I had never heard of MMM and so I started searching for information on the web. That’s when I learned about Immune
Support molecule. I sent a message to Shirley and she called. I ordered the product and started Sara Mae on it. On the evening of day 3,
Sara Mae had a small bark of which she hadn’t been able to do. The next morning she sat up in bed and yawned with her mouth at least half
open. Her eyes got big and she looked at us like what just happened. She once got a tennis ball in her mouth, but couldn’t get it out even
using her two front feet. My husband had to get it out. She now chews on rubber balls bigger than a tennis ball and once done, opens up a bit
more and the ball falls out.
She has been on immune support molecule now 3 1/2 weeks. She yawns with her mouth 100% wide open and this morning when at the
vet’s office, he examined her and said he saw no signs of MMM and he opened her mouth. She wasn’t crazy about that, but he said he saw no signs
of pain and he saw nothing wrong with her muscle structure in her jaw or head. Brenda
Brenda is a volunteer foster for NBRAN (National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network).
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