This post is written in “first dog” by Meshach the Great Dane puppy.
I live in NM and from what I understand, the past several years have had regular droughts with spring being the worst. That translates into FIRES! When most states are getting lots of rain to feed and nourish the greenery, instead here there has been mostly wind and heat.
I am going to share a few photos Mom took on Friday, May 25, 2012 at dawn (these are not sunset photos these are sunrise photos!) to show what we’ve been breathing and having to endure with the big fires burning down south and all the smoke making its way up here. Yesterday it was so bad that we couldn’t see far at all as if we were in a big fog. I was VERY bummed bepaws I like to go outside and get my daily sunbath and evening outdoor activities – Dad always plays frisbee with me in the evening but he couldn’t yesterday or Friday :-(. I was at least fortunate to get my LONG morning walk with Mom every day- which always gives me the zoomies, and today with Dad, WOOF! The mornings have been fairly clear so we could still breathe but on Saturday morning on our return home Mom and I could see the smoke rolling in and all around us until we were breathing it. Our eyes and noses burned and so did our lungs – not good. 
Having to stay inside ALL day almost for a buppy is hard bepaws I want to be outside in the mornings and all evening to watch the neighborhood children playing, and all of the wildlife. And since we all have horse fencing out here I get to chat with all my canine buddies through the fences – even though we don’t share fences here we can all see each other.
I am glad today is clear and no smoke so I will get to be outside in the fresh air even though the wind is blowing at least it is blowing the smoke south. It’s a BIG fire in the Gila National Forest and it seems the humans are either not doing much or not able to do much to contain it sigh. And it was started by lightening.
I hope all of you who are getting too much rain will send some our way. And then we can all be outside enjoying the festivities that only summer can bring – fresh air, sunshine, and LOTS of wildlife activity which is VERY enjoyable for a dog to be a part of, WOOF!
I even have blue tail lizards all in my yard that I love to chase but Mom doesn’t want me hurting them bepaws she says they eat all the bad bugs. We don’t use any pesticides or herbicides in our yard so all the bugs like to come to our yard. Caterpillars were recently eating a bunch of stuff but good old-fashioned food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE) and birds came to the rescue hehe!
So what has Mom been doing for our lungs and the air in the home? We have even had
to turn off the A/C bepaws the smoke comes in that way too. Well Mom has been diffusing essential oils and also using our salt lamp too. That has helped us a LOT!
This has very much helped us to keep our immune systems strong*, the air clean and cleared, as well as the negative ions in the air that we need for health. So while I didn’t get my normal routine which includes necessary laws of health, my humans made sure to remedy naturally, WOOF!
Well that’s all for this time. Hope you all enjoy your Memorial Day weekend!
Have a pawsitively tail waggin’, NATUROPATHICALLY healthy day, WOOF!
NOTE: Do a Google search on “salt lamps” and you’ll find a lot of different ones that you can purchase. We purchased ours from a local health food store. 🙂
Photo Attribution: ALL photos by Dr. Kim Bloomer, Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved
Kim Bloomer, V.N.D., N.D. is an animal naturopath as well as being certified in small animal nutrition, with years of experience in animal wellness. Dr. Kim is a published author, writer, and blogger. Subscribe to her DOGgone Newsletter for updates or to her blog via email. Copyright ©2005-2024 Aspenbloom Pet Care, Dr. Kim Bloomer, All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the Author/Publisher. This article is intended to be educational. However, it is not intended to be a substitute for diagnosis or treatment from a qualified animal health professional. Dr. Kim Bloomer and Aspenbloom Pet Care, do not assume any legal responsibility for misuse of the products discussed in this article. The only essential oils referenced on this website are Young Living.
