Luke is a very special dog who has been a loyal companion and trusty friend to the Aughtman family. As owner Michael Aughtman explains below, he may even have saved his wife’s life with his attentiveness and diligence. Here is how Lolahemp allowed Luke’s owners a chance to improve his quality of life as he approaches his golden years:
Luke got the best traits of his parents -- a Rough Collie dad and Golden Retriever mom that were bred by a family in the area. He's playful but calm, spirited but obedient, protective but sweet, strong but gentle. From a young age, he was a natural disc dog; even at his 95-pound prime he was an athletic Frisbee-catching ace. He has had amazingly few health issues as well.
With his stable, steady temperament, we have always trusted him around strangers and children more than any other dog we've owned. And yet we knew that he would never let anything happen to us or our young daughters who grew up with him. That innate protectiveness was never fully needed, and we figured if it ever was, it would be against a threat from outside the family. But we were wrong.
In late 2018, my wife fell ill. Thinking it was just another nagging cold-like virus or maybe a touch of pneumonia, she visited the urgent care facility down the street. She didn't really improve in the days to follow, but she noticed that Luke was increasingly attentive to her. Luke would not leave her alone, constantly staring at her and nudging her. Luke's behavior, combined with her persistent symptoms, made her decide to visit the hospital emergency room this time.
I took her to the E.R., and by that evening she was diagnosed with acute congestive heart failure. It was severe enough that the doctors said she might not have survived the night if she had not sought proper medical attention. That was a sobering and scary event, and we have had a renewed appreciation for Luke ever since. My wife is still recovering, slowly but surely, and Luke still stays very in tune with her.
We have always loved Luke, but now we had even more reason to make sure his life-saving loyalty and attention was rewarded with comfort as he aged. Although Luke has always been physically robust, he is a 13-year-old large dog. It was not surprising to see him gradually slow down over the last couple of years, but after we moved in late 2019, he began spending far more time lying down and was getting up more and more slowly. We also noticed him struggling with steps/stairs and slippery surfaces.
Luke has been on a mainstream joint supplement (Cosequin or similar) for a couple of years, and we had added an occasional anti-inflammatory (Rimadyl or similar) when he appeared to be stiffer or achier, but we couldn't tell if those things really helped. And we were afraid of increasing medications for fear of affecting his liver and other organs.
After starting Luke on Lolahemp 600mg CBD Tincture, he began getting up and down with much greater ease. We noticed definite improvements within just a few days of starting him on Lolahemp tincture. Within a couple weeks, the results were even better. It's almost like we have shaved a couple of years off his age. He also wanted to play more often and spend less time just lying around. He became generally friskier, like when he was a younger dog. He is undoubtedly more comfortable.
Luke weighs just under 90 pounds now, so we began giving him 12 drops twice daily on an empty stomach. It's easy to administer, as it soaks right into his favorite dog biscuits (he calls them "cookies").
In addition to more get up and go and less achy stiffness we saw other improvements as well after we started Lolahemp. For the last couple of years, he has had increasing discharge from his eyes. For a year or so, we have used a couple of different eyedrops on him a couple of times a day to soothe them. Even with that, he had excess "eye goobs" morning and evening. My wife and I both saw that problem virtually disappear the same week we started him on the tincture--what a nice bonus! We believe Lolahemp has lowered his overall inflammation levels, resulting in multiple benefits--some of which we may not even notice.
Basically, thanks to Lolahemp, we just feel like we have "the real Luke" back because now he behaves like a younger version of himself. He wants to play more, so we feel like we can play fetch with him and get him to run and romp without wondering if we are doing more damage than good. A dog generally knows his own abilities and limits best, so when Luke is motivated, we can do more of the things we did before to keep him fit. And our other dog (herself a rambunctious 85-lb. companion of Luke's for 9 years) can run and play more safely with him when he is stronger and more flexible. By the way, she (Lyla) has a fireworks phobia and we will definitely try Lolahemp for her when July 4th rolls around!
I looked at a few different sources when I decided to try CBD for Luke. I knew I wanted a safe, human-grade tincture so I browsed a few big-name brands. When I came across Lolahemp on a third-party website, I clicked the link and checked out the products. I specifically wanted a tincture because I wanted to control his dosage more confidently.
I like that Lolahemp seems to take the same measures for efficacy and safety as the larger "human" CBD companies, yet they are dedicated to pet wellness. And I was not disappointed!
