Why I'm the worst pet parent ever...

Have you ever felt so helpless you just wanted to give up?

Or so defeated you didn’t know what else to do but cry?

Or how about so tired it took everything you had just to get a load of laundry done?

Well that’s how I felt for 6 months after we brought home our first Bernese Mountain Dog puppy in January 2014.

Why did I feel this way?

Because this puppy had liquid diarrhea (I’m talking water) for 6. Months. Straight.

No lie.

This dog did not have a normal, solid poop until he was 9 months old.

I don’t have kids, but talking to my friends that do, I compare it to having a newborn.

Up every half hour at night to avoid having to spend even more time out of bed cleaning up a messy crate, walls and puppy.

Having to rely on friends and family to come over every 1-2 hours during the day while my husband and I worked to…again…avoid having to clean up a huge mess after working 12 hour days.

Spending thousands (dare I even say tens of thousands) of dollars on vet visits, specialist visits, invasive tests, prescription dog food, medications, and new dog beds.

And ultimately feeling like the absolute worst pet parent in the entire world. Knowing you weren’t able to “fix” whatever is wrong with your fur baby.

If this sounds familiar I got you!

This was my life from January - July 2014.

I suffered PTSD from this for another…oh I don’t know…year and a half.

Wanting to introduce my pup to new foods, yet terrified I'd cause a setback and go another 6 months in the same hell I'd just come out of.

It’s the reason why I started Beauty and the Berners.

It's the reason my nickname among my family and friends is, "the girl obsessed with dog poop".

Listen, if you know you know. If the poop ain't right, ain't nothing right!

And it’s not just Bernese Mountain Dogs.

I've heard from hundreds of people over the years about how their fur babies (and them!) suffered the same fate as we did because of crappy poop (pun intended).

If I can help just one pet parent avoid the absolute nightmare of chronic digestive issues in their puppy or dog, I will have left this world a better place.

My intention with this newsletter is to drop into your inbox once a week to share a story...

...tell you about one (or 100) mistakes I made so you can avoid them.

And help you learn how to feed your dog in order to optimize their health and (hopefully) increase their lifespan.

Because I don’t know about you, but if I can give my dog a few more days, months, or even years of time together, you can bet I'm doing it!

Now I’d love to hear from you!

Did you find me because you’re my brother or sister in dog digestion misery?

Or have you lucked out and never dealt with this, but want to learn how to avoid it like the plague? (good call by the way)

No matter how we found each other, I’m honored to have you as part of the pack!

We're on a mission to make every poop a perfect one!

Until next time…

Don’t forget - dogs are the best!

-Charlie

P.S. Who's your favorite Disney dog? Random I know. But I'm a HUGE Disney fan (if you're not we can still be friends ;) )

Check out my YouTube channel for more tips and tricks on giving your dog their best life possible!