Buying from the Dying Shelf

Have you ever been to the garden shop and looked over at the "Dying Shelf".  You know, the shelves where plants are typically $1 to $5 but look like their going to die before you even get them to the car?

I have and it's my favorite place to shop!  Look over the plant; does it have some green still on it?  Is it free of mold near the bottom?  Are the shoots of the plant at least 30-50% green?  If so, you're in luck!  You've got the perfect find!

This Year's $1 Find!

Last Year's Find

Commonly know as Hens and Chicks these are a flowering succulent plant.  They grow best in sunlight, planted in well drained soil.  They like to be tucked in near rocks.  

This is my best find so far this year, $1 for 6 plants!  The average price is $2 PER PLANT!  What a deal!  When planted outdoors, they WILL survive the winters and grow in the northern climate of New Jersey. You can also plant them indoors, just be sure to have well drained soil.  In other words, don't water them too much.

The flowering picture was last year's find.  I got a FULL FLAT  for $5 (just a few are pictured), and planted them throughout the rocky areas of the garden bed.  They were very sad looking last year but this year they are thriving and blooming.

$5 Find

These are Chlorophytum Comosum, otherwise known as Spider Plants.  You pretty much CAN'T kill these plants!

Last year, on the same Dying Shelf, along side of the Hens and Chicks, I found ONE pot with 3 of these dying plants for $5. 

The average price is $10-$15 PER PLANT. 

Part of the $5 Find

I simply separated and repotted them into 3 containers and PRESTO, I now have 3, big beautiful Spider plants to enjoy for the price of $1.67 per plant!

  

And finally, my CRAZY plant.  I actually have no idea what this is!  It was marked 50 cents and in a planter the size of a tea cup.  I couldn't resist!  It has easily increased its size 300% over the last year. It grows vertically with horizontal shoots.  Hey, if you happen to know what it is, let me know!

If you know what this is,
let me know!

Share any great Buying from the Dying Shelf finds with us!

7/3/15 UPDATE  Our friends at Our Fairfield Home & Garden were kind enough to identify this plant.  It's a PENCIL CACTUS and unknown to me, is poisonous! It also is stated at growing 12-20 FEET!  Oh my!  Well, since we have both cats and dogs that like to nibble the houseplants, I'll be putting this one on the top shelf for safety and if it does grow to unimaginable heights, we'll be removing it completely.  In the meantime, I'm having fun watching this crazy thing grow!

Quiche Simplified

Quiche, such an exotic word.  Sounds complicated doesn't it...baking a Quiche.  Well, it doesn't have to be complicated at all!  This is my very simple, very uncomplicated, very basic Quiche recipe.

Tomato, Avocado, Herbs

Mix together 8-10 eggs, 1-2 cups cheese, 1/2 cup milk and a pinch each of salt and pepper.

Yep, that's it.  Now, if you want to make it a little more complicated, add

1 chopped, fresh tomato

1 chopped, fresh avocado

1/2 cup or more Fresh Herbs

You can increase or decrease these ingredients to your liking.

The more filling you add, the lessor amount of eggs you'll need.  

Keep in mind you should always have a minimum of 8 eggs.

Here's how to build it...

Preheat oven to 350

Grease dish with butter (I prefer ceramic dishes).

Add filling ingredients.

Pour egg mixture on top of filling.  Pat down any areas that are not covered by the egg mixture.

Bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on your oven.

That's it!  You're done!  Quiche Simplified.  Quiche is subjective -  you can add any of your favorite fillings to the basic recipe, or none at all.  It can be as simple or as complicated as you want.

If the knife comes out clean, it's done!

From my Garden
Thai Basil, Basil, 

I use a TON of fresh herbs, mainly from my garden.  I found this awesome little herb grinder, AR+Cook in HomeGoods.  Put the herbs in, push down and twist the top.  Nicely chopped herbs come out the bottom!  I'll admit, I spend alot of time in the Kitchen and I do love my gadgets!

A+R Fresh Herb Mill

STOP Boiling Over!

Some time ago I stumbled across a Kitchen tip that has become one of my most valuable bits of kitchen knowledge.  It may sound too simple, unbelievable and possibly a down right lie BUT I can assure you it works EVERY TIME!

The ONLY gadget you will need is a wooden spoon that can sit comfortably atop your pot. Put it on when you start cooking (before boiling, works best). Yep, that's it! I can honestly say I have no idea WHY this works, but it does, every time.  I will say, I have an electric stove (although I REALLY REALLY miss gas stoves!).  If you have a gas stove, I would love your feedback on this method.

We're on Pinterest!

https://www.pinterest.com/homesteadingins/

In the Home
In the Kitchen
In the Yard
In the Coop
Coming Soon.... In the Workshop

(Please be patient as we build our boards)

One Last Bowl of Cherries

2.5 QT Crockpot

The squirrels tried to beat us but we prevailed!  We picked one more big bowl of cherries.  Considering it's over 80 degrees outside, I didn't feel much like turning on the oven which prompted an intense internet search for a crockpot recipe.

Sounds easy, right?  Wrong!  Nearly every recipe I came across called for cherry pie filling.  Can you say yuck?  I'm not really a "pie filling from a can, filled with preservatives, excessive sugar and fillers" kind of girl - can anyone say cherry slime?!

I'm not kidding when I tell you it took some real digging to find a recipe where I could use FRESH CHERRIES!  Luckily, I came across The Crockpot Gourmet.  I did not know this Blog but after some browsing around, I bookmarked it and found them on Facebook.


The recipe is simple...

• 16 oz frozen sliced peaches
• 12 oz frozen sweet cherries (pitted)

• For the filling:
• ¼ cup greek yogurt
• ½ cup all purpose flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• For the topping:
• 6 tablespoons cold butter
• ½ cup wheat flour (or regular flour is fine too, I just like the extra texture of the wheat flour)
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. In a small bowl whisk together the filling ingredients until well combined
2. Add peaches and cherries and toss to coat
3. Spray crock with nonstick spray and pour filling into crock
4. Using a sharp knife cut up the butter into tiny pieces trying not to touch with your hands
5. Then using a large fork add in remaining topping ingredients and use fork to cut it all in to form a crumble topping (or if you have a pastry cutter then you can just to this all at once)
6. When the butter is pretty well broken up and combined (don't worry if it's not perfect) then sprinkle evenly over the top of the filling in crock
7. Cover and cook on high for 2-4 hours

Notes

I used a 3.5 quart oval crock

The only changes I made were (1) I used our fresh Cherries and a bag of Frozen Mango and (2) I didn't make the topping but only because I just made Strawberry Pie and Cherry Pie. My plan for this is as an ice cream topper.

Some of my favorite Facebook pages

These are the main pages I follow on Facebook.  I don't really have time to 'surf' Facebook for hours on end so I've narrowed my Feed to just those I really am interested in reading.

Good News Network.  With nearly 400,000 followers this is definitely one to start your day!  Get a does of truly good news on anything and everything worth noting around the globe.

Designing Dawn.  I love her DIY projects so much I literally copied her Kitchen and made it my own. Check her out!

Remodelaholic.  They have a big following, nearly 200,000 but still very helpful, relevant and insightful posts.  She regularly features readers questions and her many followers always come through with great suggestions!

Homesteading Freedom.  A site I just recently started following and already has paid off!  She posted a remedy for tent caterpillars (spray the webs with vegetable oil - kills the caterpillar but not the plant) and it works great!  We did it to all our fruit trees and so far so good!

Freebie Shark.  This is an awesome coupon site.  She'll even stack coupons (with links!) to get you the very best deals!  Recently she staked some Target and manufacturer coupons.  I had over $45 worth of items in my cart, yet paid only $17!  A penny saved....a penny earned.

Becoming Minimalist.  LOVE this site.  Great quotes and articles for living a simple and purposeful life; remembering what's important in our lives.

Lucas Roasting Company.  Not only do they sell the BEST coffee available, their Facebook page consistently posts articles on the lives of coffee farmers, fun coffee facts and more.  KNOW where you get your coffee!

Andrea Dekker.  Touches on a little bit of everything.  She's very down to earth and easy to read. Great for young families.

Farmgirl Gourmet.  The name says it all and I aspire to make some of her awesome dishes!

I Support Farmer's Markets.  Great information on advances in the organic world, along with other useful articles on organic food, GMOs, etc.

Planet Green.  You get the idea.

La Leche League.  Advice on all things breastfeeding and being a mom.  I was a LLLeader for 7 years and loved every minute of it!  I only stopped because the area in Virginia where I lived didn't have a solid group.

Food Inc.  Rocking the world with over 1 MILLION followers, Food Inc, offers insightful articles on what is affecting our food around the globe.

and of course,

Homesteading in Suburbia

Cherries From Our Yard

We moved here just about 3 years ago and found the property to have so many features we love including multiple fruit trees!  We have 2 Apple, 2 Cherry and 2 Peach.  The house had been vacant for about a year so the animals had the run of the place, literally! Our first two summers didn't yield really anything since the squirrels, birds and bears got it all first.

Now on our third summer, we are fully ingrained and the animals have subsided a bit (there's no controlling the bears!) AND we've been able to pick two full bowls of ripe, delicious cherries!

Now I just needed to figure out what to make with them!  Remember, I'm also in the midst of two full baskets of Strawberries!

Fortunately I found a great recipe in my favorite cookbook, Simply in Season.  This is my go-to book, even before the internet, for easy to prepare, healthy ingredient recipes.  My next hurtle was pitting all those cherries!  My research paid off, I found a simple, free, way to do it easily.  Simply take a hard, plastic straw, push it through and out pops the pit!  Honestly, I had this done in about 30 minutes.



I even had enough cherries left over to make and freeze a filling batch.  Following the recipe below, I chose to cook the fruits.

1 1/2 Cups each of four fruits: raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, marionberries, boysenberries, huckleberries, saskatoons, mulberries, strawberies, sour cherries, peaches, apples

Mix together and pour into a 10-inch deep dish pie pan. Alternatively, the fruits can be cooked with 1/4 cup water, 1/4-1/2 cup sugar (depending on the sweetnesss of the fruit) and 2 TB cornstarch to thicken before baking.

3/4 cup flour3/4 cup rolled oats3 TB butter2 TB oil34/ cup brown sugar1/3 cup nuts , chopped; optional

Mix until crumbly. Evenly sprinkle topping over fruit.
Bake in preheated oven at 375F until fruit bubbles and topis golden brown, about 30 minutes; may take longer if using frozen fruit.

I had cherries and peaches on hand for this recipe.
For the additional batch of filling I froze for later, I used
the remaining cherries and frozen blueberries.

Enjoy!

What's cuter than a puppy and
a bowl of cherries?
Well nothing, of course!

Homemade Laundry Detergent....Yes, it works!

Years ago I came across this recipe for Homemade Laundry Detergent by the Duggar Family.  I was skeptical at first, only a tablespoon would clean our clothes?  Doesn't the commercial laundry industry convince us that only huge amounts of THEIR particular brand of detergent will clean our clothes?  That we should pay upwards of $20 a bottle for such a important item?  That we must be NUTS to try anything else!

Well, sometimes you have to scrape by and during those days I decided it was high time I gave this Homemade Laundry Detergent a try!  So off I went for my ingredients, taking note that there was only 3 and all chemical-free.  But would it really clean the clothes for a family of 5 (all males but me!), including a husband that works in a quarry and spends most of his time outdoors?

It worked.  Not only does it work, but it works GREAT!  No chemicals, no additives, no perfumes. This also had a pleasant side effect of no longer irritating our skin (I have occasional eczema) from commercial detergents.  I will say it does not work so great on solid whites.  I have seen people add Oxy-clean to this recipe with great results and essential oils for scent.

Think about it, for less than $10 you can do approximately 40 loads of laundry.  Hmmm... that's just about 25 cent per load.  Let's say a commercial soap for $20 also does 40 loads (and we know it doesn't) that's double the cost.  Seems like a no-brainer to me.

Did I mention, the boxes of Arm & Hammer and Borax will net you about 9 complete recipes so really you're just buying the Fels-Naptha.  I'm no mathematician but that's like 2 cents per load. Again a no-brainer.

Ingredients - total initial cost under $10

• 1 Fels-Naptha soap bar
• 1 cup Arm & Hammer super washing soda (not baking soda or detergent!)
• 1/2 cup borax

Preparation Instructions

1. Grate soap or break into pieces; place in a food processor and blend until the entire bar is powdered.  Alternatively you can use any type of food grater. 
2. Mix the powdered soap bar and remaining ingredients together in a small bucket with a lid. If you are using a food processor, just add the remaining ingredients and continue to blend.
3. Powdered soap can be stored in a dry area indefinitely.   

Use Instructions

For 'really dirty' clothes use two tablespoons per load. For 'standard wear' clothes use one tablespoon (like intimates and towels).


While we're on the subject of soap, here's a quick and 
easy way to stretch your dollars with dish and hand soaps.  

For dish washing, purchase an olive oil dispenser.  Fill about 1/2 way with your favorite dish soap and the rest with water.  Be sure to use a high quality soap; cheap store brand soap won't work as well.  I LOVE Seventh Generation Free & Clear. One bottle will last me a good month, and I was dishes nightly (in fact, we don't even have a dishwasher in the house)!

For hand washing, purchase a Foam Soap Dispenser.  Purchase a REGULAR soap (not foam soap) refill bag like they sell at Target.  The bottle will have a mark for filling.  Generally it's 1/4 soap & 3/4 water.  I haven't purchased a refill bag in weeks!  And just in case you're wondering, being a Homesteading family we continually wash our hands!

As with the savings in making Homemade Laundry Detergent, this is also a no-brainer.

Composting Made Easy

Composting really is so simple.  There are dozens of sites telling you how to set up a compost area, layering materials, getting proper oxygenation; the details are endless. I'm here to tell you, based on over 25 years experience, that none of that is necessary!

Stainless is your best option

Start in the Kitchen with a compost pail.  DON'T buy a plastic pail, it WILL hold odors and smell after just a couple of months. And there's no need to buy anything fancy or complicated.  I found this stainless steel bucket in the Target clearance for $7 and had an extra pot lid at home.  If you're not that lucky, you can still get a stainless bucket and lid for under $20.  Stainless will never hold smells and cleans up easily.  We eat alot of fresh food so ours is emptied 1-2 times a week.

Almost everything is compostable

Put your kitchen scraps in the bucket.  Yep, it's that easy.  If you can throw scraps in the garbage, you can just as easily throw them in a bucket.  Everything goes in EXCEPT meat, eggs, dairy items, fish, bones.  Here's a great comprehensive list to use as a guideline from Planet Tea.



There are several ways to use your compost.  We have a one large compost area in our backyard where kitchen waste is mixed with 'greens' such as leaves, sticks and grass.  We simply add them when we cut the grass or rake the leaves.  We also dump directly into the garden.  If you don't have the space, you can purchase a Compost Tumbler. I will admit, I don't have experience with Tumblers so you'll need to research that as far as getting it started.

Dump scraps right into the garden

If you're new to composting, be patient.  It will eventually come naturally and you will find yourself freaking out if someone throws valuable compost waste into the garbage instead of the pail!

Also if you're new, be prepared to wait a full year before you can utilize your compost (a Tumbler may be quicker. HOWEVER, once your compost area is established, you will have nutrient rich soil to work with!  Yes, soil.   There's no need to start new areas each year, simply continue to add scraps.  Now that the area is established, adding scraps just adds to the nutrients and breaks down faster.

Mix scraps with 'greens' in a pile

What can you do with all that awesome, chemical free compost?  Use it in gardens, planting beds, and indoor/outdoor potted plants.  We put most of ours in the garden; fruits and vegetables grow beautifully in nutrient rich, chemical free compost dirt.






To sum it up...

1. Get a stainless steel bucket with lid.  The lid should have an air hole.
2. Put scraps in the bucket.  Use this list from Plant Tea as a starting guideline.
3. Empty scraps into your pile or tumbler at least once per week.
4. Add 'green' waste whenever you have it.
5. Turn your compost pile whenever you add greens.
6. Use your nutrient rich, chemical free compost soil!

What to do with all those Strawberry tops?!

Picking 2 big baskets of strawberries leads to 1 big bowl of strawberry tops!  That lemon is leftover from the strawberry pie.

I recently read a post about using the tops as an additive to water for great flavor.  Since I don't like to waste anything, I figured it was worth trying - really, what did we have to lose?

 

Turns out, IT'S AWESOME!  You should try it!

So Many Strawberries

My neighbor and I went strawberry picking at the Sussex Country Strawberry Farm. An annual event which yields TONS of ripe, delicious strawberries! They even have some great recipes on their website.  You can also follow them on Facebook.

My plan for the berries, so far, is freezer jam, bread and a pie. I like to make several breads and freeze them and then as much jam as I can with the leftovers.


As far as the jam, I'm not a 'canner'.  Trying the traditional method of canning turned out to be a disaster and a WHOLE LOT of wasted berries, hence the practice of freezer jam was learned!  And honestly, it's a quarter of the time spent and I successfully freeze all kinds of jams for at least a year.



Let me say, I love my house.  This is our 4th house (in 27 years) and by far the best!  It has plenty of DIY projects needed that will happen eventually and 3 acres of privacy, but since it's now summer, basically all of my free time will be spent in the Kitchen.  This is the only downfall of my dream house. Being a cook-from-scratch and bake-from-scratch Homesteader, I envy all those big, beautiful Kitchens all over the internet. The actual work space in my kitchen is in a 10x10 area with about 6 feet of working space.  Not ideal, but I make it work!

So, without further adieu.. here's everything I need to make some pretty awesome Strawberry Breads..

I used the recipe from Simply in Season, my favorite summer cookbook.

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour                                         
• 1 1/4 cups strawberries (mashed)      
• 2/3 cup oil                                         
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon             
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
Mix together in a large bowl, stirring until just combined. Pour into greased 8-inch loaf pan and bake in preheated oven at 350F  until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour.

• 1/2 cup / 125 ml whole wheat flour 

• 3/4 cup / 175 ml sugar 

• 2 eggs 

• 1/2 teaspoon salt 

**Changes I made;  I used 1.5 cups freshly milled flour and added a Tablespoon of ground flax

I used one full box to make 3 breads and 1 pie
and strawberry water.




I definitely take the easy way out in making jam.  Strawberries, sugar and Instant Pectin, that's it.

Follow the directions on the Pectin container, let it sit 30 minutes,
then refrigerate or freeze.

My son and I  crushed one full box and prepared all this in less than an hour! And if we're talking dollars and sense, it's about $4 per pint.  Not bad considering limited ingredient, organic jam will run you around $4 per half pint!

Some of my Favorite Entrepreneurs

Cory Jeffer, Certified Massage Therapist, Harrisonburg, VA  

Ok, yes, he's my son BUT I've read the reviews from his 650 hours of clinical work and it was all praise!  He continued to get clients with the same results.  We are so very proud of him!  He's relocated to Virginia (to the town we formerly lived in) and is building a new clientele.  If your in the Harrisonburg, Virginia area, give him a call.  He does all areas of massage IN YOUR HOME!  Check him out on Facebook, you won't be sorry! His website is full of great information.

Lucas Roasting Company, Broadway, VA

Now, if we're talking premium, small bath, freshly roasted coffee then Lucas Roasting Company can't be beat.  We've been buying from them for nearly 5 years and an average of 4-5 pounds every month, we consider ourselves experts!  All orders are roasted to order and generally shipped within 48 hours. Honestly, they are simply the VERY BEST!  You can also find them on Facebook. Oh and if you DO decide to give them a try, tell them Lee Ann sent you :)

1922 Starkey House in Dundee, NY, aka The Finger Lakes

Innkeeper Cathy Moskel is one of the nicest people you'll meet.  We spent our Anniversary weekend here and loved every minute.  She's right on the Wine Trail and close to Watkins Glen State Park (a MUST see).  She's been awarded the Certificate of Excellence by TripAdvisor. She locally sources all foods for the Inn and prepares them like a 5 star Chef.  You can find her on the web or Facebook.

Robin and I went to Elementary, Middle and High School together then lost touch as our lives took different paths.  We reconnected through Facebook a few years ago and I was delighted to see she's pursuing a passion for writing.  I was even more pleasantly surprised to see she had authored her first book Rachael Awakened.  Of course I purchased it and found it to be very provocative and interesting reading, with a great story line and characters.  You should check it out for yourself!  You can also find Robin on Facebook.

How lucky am I to know and be friends with TWO published authors?!  Very, I know!  Anne's, aka Margaret Locke,  book, A Man of Character, already has numerous raving reviews.  Check it out here.  And find Margaret on Facebook.

Julie's Interior Designs is based in New Jersey but offers an online Paint Consultation service nationwide.  Check the out online or on Facebook.

I am a Homesteader...and I live in Suburban New Jersey

Anniversary weekend at
1922 Starkey House in upstate NY

I have to say, I never thought of my self as a "Homesteader". Images of run down shacks on the outskirts of Alaska come to mind when I hear of homesteading. However, the more I learn about it, the more I come to realize this has been our way of life for nearly 20 years!

Being married over 25 years to an avid hunter, gardener, composter, landscaper and outdoorsman (to name just a few) has taught me alot. It was my stepping stone, WAY BACK in 1988, to a life of homesteading. A life I didn't realize I would become a part of and love every minute of it!

We're just a regular Suburban family. We live in a beautiful town in a beautiful 3 acre home filled with DIY projects, surrounded by awesome neighbors (no, they are not 20 miles away lol) and yes, the grocery store is 10 minutes away and a huge mall is just 20 minutes down Route 15! To look at us you'd think we were just like everyone else.

But we're not.

High School Sweethearts
25+ years later

We exclusively eat venison (no chemically processed beef for us!), have gardens, grind flour, bake from scratch, DIY, use only what we need, recycle manically, shop Farmer's Markets and Trader Joe's as much as we can.  Now Trader Joe's IS at least 40 minutes from here but so worth the trip AND I get to visit my sister! 

We are not crushed by debt but live by our means and do without when necessary.  We've had some really GREAT times and some really AWFUL ones too.

We have three beautiful sons who are learning right along with us but still have complete freedom to become their own persons (One would be considered a Hipster, one is an artist and one is a total techie nut). We've been called hippies, crunchy, even bitchy (I can get on a tangent about healthy eating).

We've essentially cured asthma and gastritis through nutrition. By essentially I mean no more pneumonia episodes or nebulizers. No day and night pills for gastritis. Not one of us has had the flu in years. In fact, we RARELY get sick at all. All through changes in our nutrition habits.

My Beautiful Boys

I hope you find this Blog interesting and helpful. I'm happy to answer questions if I can. Remember, Google search is your friend.  Talk to your local farmers, they are a wealth of information.  Seek out like-minded people to get yourself started or continue your journey. 

You will never know it all....E-V-E-R-Y D-A-Y is an opportunity to learn something new!

Getting Ready for Chickens

So how about those organic egg prices?  Not so budget friendly are they?!  And in light of the recent Bird Flu, ALL eggs have doubled and tripled in price!  I don't know about you, but I'm not about to pay those prices, especially for eggs that 'they' will deem okay to eat when this is all over.  So…. we’ve decided raising our own chickens (for their eggs) is the way to go.  We have the space so why not, right?

The coop is actually an attachment my ever-so-handy-hubby is building on the side of the shed out back.  These chickens are going to be living in the Taj Mahal!  That’s alright; maybe they’ll produce even more eggs for us.  At this point, the walls and wire are up, the roosts are set and the floors are down.  There are a couple more things that need to be done, including staining everything (that’s going to be my job) and then we’ll go pick out some chickens!

We even got a couple of the boys in on the building!  

Make sure to check back for updates! We should have our chickens by the end of the summer!!

On a side note, I'm trying to learn as much as possible which to equates to an overactive Pinterest Board!

Critters on the Homestead - Meet Oscar

Oscar.  He’s a strange one.  He’s a rescue we got nearly 9 years ago when we lived in Virginia.  His mother is full bred Dachshund.  They told us the father was a Terrier but we are convinced it was a Beagle.

Oscar LOVES his veggies!

He’s a lovable and loyal friend but I can tell you his energy level is better suited for the elderly rather than 3 boys.  He’ll go for a nice, slow walk or sit outside on the porch with you, but don’t expect any ball catching around going on here.  This, of course, causes him to continually be overweight despite our best efforts.

Around age 3 he developed some sort of allergy which causes his ears to crust (yeah, yuck!!) and his hair to fall out!  So after nearly $1,000 in vet bills and many months of treatments, medications and creams, we decided to go our own route.  And we’re SO GLAD we did!

A friend suggest Nutro Naturals (Venison formula only) to essentially ‘cure’ the allergy issue.  I’m here to tell you that after just ONE MONTH on the Naturals, his hair was restored and his ears completely cleared up! That was nearly 5 years ago.

About a year ago, our middle son fell on Oscar and injured his shoulder. He still favors it on occasion and (re)pulls the muscle making it difficult to walk.  It doesn’t help that he tends to have a weight problem with his lineage and inactivity.

So back to the books I went (or in this case the internet!).  I’m not about to pay hundreds of dollars in veterinary bills AGAIN with no results.  So, after lengthy searches and lots of reading, I learned that dogs LOVE fruits and vegetables.  They can’t have all fruits and vegetables but enough to comprise a nice variety.

Be sure to research this yourself before feeding pets any new foods.

Give Oscar a bowl of carrots and apples and he’s got it down within minutes!  AND, his shoulder was feeling better within 2 DAYS! Needless to say, this pooch is getting a steady raw diet (mixed with his Nutro Naturals for complete nutrition).