Jen
I'd also add that our other dog, Charlie, has a host of other issues that may be related to being vaccinated according to protocol, which we are trying to improve through our work with you, Dr. Falconer.
Charlie suffered a seizure that came out of nowhere at 2.5 years old, he was given a "pancreatitis" diagnosis (because our old vet needed a diagnosis for his unwellness, the x-ray was inconclusive for anything) which was diagnosed the day after he had a seizure, and he was just diagnosed with Addison's Disease this past February, two months shy of his 5th birthday.
After Charlie's seizure, I began questioning whether everything we were doing was right. We were following all of the rules-- vaccinating, giving flea and heartworm medicine, feeding the best dry kibble, annual vet visits for their check up. My gut told me that something wasn't right-- we were during everything "right" and they were not vibrant, healthy pups (at the time they were 1.5 and 2.5 years old).
I was a subscriber to the Whole Dog journal and the articles always led me to further research. We started with their food, we transitioned them to the Honest Kitchen and eventually to a home-prepared cooked diet. Then I began questioning their flea and heartworm treatments one winter-- telling myself that it was cold so they could go off for a few months. By the time spring came around, I'd decided that the risk wasn't worth poisoning them little by little. I stumbled onto Dr. Falconer's information and reached out and through our work got the courage to stop vaccines and transition to a fully raw diet.
A little over a year later and our 4 and 5 year old pups are more vibrant than I've seen them since puppyhood. We are still working on getting them fully vital and healed but there's proof in the progress they've made. They are more playful and happy than they were when we had them on the conventional path.
I hope that sharing my experience will give someone else the courage to start somewhere and keep going. It can be overwhelming to know where to start. We are their guardians and they deserve to have us do the best we can by them.