I'm eating the same food as my dog!

Yes, it's true, my dog and I are on the same diet. Surprised?

Two months ago my vet diagnosed my 10 year-old dog with severe back pain. Pepe, my Bichon Frise-Cockapoo mix started a course of steroids for the pain. Little did I know that the aspirin he had gotten the day before, combined with the steroids, would upset his stomach and result in a bleeding colon for five days.  After going through a series of emergency vet visits to get my dog stable, I decided I was going to try any natural healing methods I could find to help stabilize my dog's digestive system, so I visited my local holistic pet store.  

I explained to the storeowner all the issues going on and she suggested, "You should just feed him natural table food. It's much better than the dog food out there. It's much healthier for him."

Bing. A light went off in my head. Over the last year I have drifted off my very healthy diet. My schedule got busier and my diet slid downhill to a menu supplemented with frequent off-hour visits to fast food restaurants. I've been trying to get myself back on track and maybe this is exactly what I need... to eat what my dog eats. Yes, that's it!

To start, I knew Pepe would be eating a few blueberries a day. I had been told by our vet that blueberries would help get rid of the red discharge collecting under his eyes. So out comes the bag of wild frozen blueberries at dinnertime and it gets mixed in with his food. For me, a half-glass of bubbly seltzer with the frozen blueberries floating on top. Yum. Fizzy, chilly and I know it's good for me.

Since my new commitment to my dog's health, my shopping is now honed in on fresh green beans, carrots, zucchini, sweet potatoes and Idaho potatoes. My dog can eat endless amounts of cooked veggies. He loves everything! He likes more veggies than I do. So in this ironic role reversal, my dog is my Jenny Craig, my weight watchers buddy, my "personal consultant." I just look into his deep, dark eyes and think, "If it's good for you, it's good for me."