Meet Aspen (the original Barkery dog)

Aspen is our beautiful St. Bernard who was born October 1997. At two years of age Aspen experienced some stomach problems and irritable bowel syndrome. She barely made it around the block before her hips wanted to give out. She stopped going up and down our steps. I changed her food to help with her stomach issues however, the ailment kept returning. Frequent trips to the vet, medications and bland food were not helping.

One incident of severe cramps even kept Aspen from standing up. I immediately called our vet. I couldn’t pick her up because Aspen weighed 125 pounds. I finally got her to our Jeep, put her front paws on the tailgate and lifted her in for yet another trip to the vet.

More prescriptions and bland food did not seem to help. It was at this point I swore to Aspen that I wouldn’t let her go through this again. I began to research alternative therapies. It was through this research that I learned these prescription medications work through a dog’s liver and have been linked to liver failure. The food wasn’t giving her the nutrition she needed to be healthy.

Through my research I also learned about corn, by-products, carcinogenic preservatives and much more. I changed Aspen’s food to Eagle Pack Natural for large breeds which eliminated all of the unnecessary ingredients and gave her the nutrition she needed. I felt so passionate about this that I wanted to educate other pet guardians about nutrition. That’s how Brookside Barkery and Bath began.

Since 2002 when Aspen first became ill, we have changed to a Holistic Vet. Aspen is on a raw-food diet and she takes Cetyl-M for her joints. Now, Aspen is a very healthy 8 year old who is feeling better now than she was three years ago. Aspen’s stomach issues are a thing of the past, she runs when she’s outside, and has no problems walking or going up and down stairs.

Her diet fluctuates as her needs change. I monitor her and frequently make adjustments. For the summer, I put brewers yeast and garlic in her food to help ward off fleas instead of chemical flea repellent. In the winter we use more Omega based products and we watch her immunizations to reduce side-effects.

The positive results we’ve experienced over the years continue to amaze us. We use only animal friendly products in our home and our yard. Skin allergies are non-existent, there are no more bald spots or continual scratching. We now have a healthy pet instead of a wealthy vet.

Aspen was our inspiration and continues to be our motivation, bringing better health through nutrition to pet lovers everywhere.

As told by Aspen's owner and Barkery founder, Delena Stout.