Domino's Dysbiosis Journey

Domino’s journey reminded me how deeply connected the gut, skin, and immune system truly are. Everything started changing after her tick and flea treatment around late November, which continued until early January. At first, it didn’t look alarming. Then slowly, her skin barrier started breaking down. The bumps came first.

Then the flaking.

Then the relentless itching. Eventually, her coat began losing its integrity.Parts of her fur thinned.

Her skin became dry, inflamed, reactive.

And the discomfort was becoming visible not just in her body—but in how exhausted her system already felt. When we ran her bloodwork in March, her body reflected what we were already seeing externally. Her inflammatory markers were significantly elevated:

• WBC: 21.92 HIGH
• Eosinophils: 5.47 HIGH
• Lymphocytes: 6.23 HIGH
• Monocytes: 1.69 HIGH

Her immune system was clearly overreacting.

Her body was under stress. At one point, she was treated as a fungal case, and while every intervention was done with the intention to help her, the additional medications added more burden to a body that was already struggling to regulate itself. The drying treatments further compromised the moisture and integrity of her skin barrier, aggravating the inflammation and itching even more. And after prolonged antibiotic use, another layer became clearer: Her gut was no longer functioning optimally. This is something I wish more pet parents understood—When the gut becomes imbalanced, the body often starts expressing it through the skin. The itching.

The inflammation.

The hypersensitivity.

The poor skin recovery.Sometimes these are not isolated skin problems. Sometimes the body is already dealing with dysbiosis underneath it all. So instead of continuing to chase symptoms one by one, I shifted Domino’s care toward rebuilding her system more gently and more holistically. This was where Pet Culinary Medicine became deeply important in her journey. 

We focused on:

🐾 gut support

🐾 anti-inflammatory nourishment

🐾 less processed inputs

🐾 moisture-supportive foods

🐾 rebuilding skin integrity from within

🐾 supporting the immune system gently instead of overstimulating itAnd slowly… her body started responding.Not overnight.

Not perfectly. But steadily.By April to May, her coat already began showing visible changes. Her fur started filling in.

The inflammation calmed down.

Her skin looked less angry.

The itching became more manageable. Even her follow-up bloodwork reflected improvement:

• Lymphocytes decreased
• Eosinophils reduced
• Immune stress markers started calming

And for me, that mattered deeply—because healing isn’t just about making the skin “look better.” It’s about helping the body feel safer again. 

Domino reminded me that skin conditions are often not just skin-deep.Sometimes the body is asking for deeper support—

through the gut, through nourishment, through reducing inflammatory burden, and through giving the body space to regulate again. Her journey is still ongoing. But today, when I look at her coat slowly regaining its shine and softness, I’m reminded that healing is often quieter than people expect.

Sometimes it looks like:

less itching

better sleep

a calmer body

a softer coat

and a system that no longer feels like it’s constantly fighting itself.