Vital Animal Podcast

#42 Dr. Janet Roark rightly calls herself the Essential Oil Vet.Newly graduated from vet school, she found herself in a deeply stressed state.Migraine headaches, classified by the allopaths as “ice pick migraines” (ouch!) forced her to take time off she didn't want to take.Newly graduated, in a new practice, new work load, and chronic migraines accompanied with depression that drugs weren't helping — what was she to do?One day, she found herself without drugs, suffering a crushing migraine, and all she had with her was a small tube of essential oils she'd been given by a helpful friend.In short order after topically applying the oils to her temples and back of her neck, the good doctor experienced a revolutionary resolution of her pain and suffering.In mere minutes, the migraine lifted. No drug had ever come close to bringing this kind of relief.“If it worked this fast and this amazingly on me (when the drugs did not), imagine what it could do in my animal patients,” thought Dr. Roark!And the rest, as they say, is history.Listen up as we explore her transformation, her shift in practice, and her happy results with a wide variety of animal patients.This is a very timely episode, as Dr. Roark is offering an in depth workshop to help you wield these amazing natural remedies, safely and effectively in your own animals. You'll have two full days LIVE with her, with break out sessions, lots of bonuses, and lifetime access to this material, and it's all happening May 20-21, 2023.To get full details and be able to perform your own EO miracles, use this link to get her Early Bird Pricing.For more links and info, be sure to visit the show notes at VitalAnimal.com/42

#041 Dr. Rob Silver has worn many hats in his holistic career, most obviously as a practicing veterinarian of four decades, but also as an author, a CBD/cannabis expert, a supplement formulator, and lately, as a medicinal mushroom expert.Join us as we discuss the vast kingdom of mushrooms and some of their amazing health properties.Rob saw early successes with cases of cancer, but discovered by further study that mushrooms are far from a “one trick pony.”From their calming influence, to curing nervous disorders, to boosting immunity, and adding energy, mushrooms are really a rich poly-pharmacy unto themselves.The mushroom family even shares about 30% of our DNA!We discuss Lion's Mane, Cordyceps,  Reishi, psilocybin, and how even ordinary store bought button mushrooms are good for us in many ways.The exciting news is that Rob is bringing his formulating knowledge for animals to a company that's been making very pure mushroom products for people for years.To find out more and contact Dr. Silver to see if mushrooms might be right for your animals, be sure to hit our shownotes at VitalAnimal.com/41There you'll also find the transcript of this show and see your chance to leave a comment

#40: Against a backdrop of an admittedly wild couple of years with COVID-19, lockdowns, masking, vaccines rushed to market, and statistics that have been shown to be wildly manipulated, perhaps one of the most confusing things are self-proclaimed experts who proclaim confidently that viruses simply don't exist.Now that I've had no less than three listeners wonder if that claim has any basis in fact, I think it's time we looked more deeply into it.As one of the most fascinating diseases I'm familiar with offers some great insight into this question, let's put the spotlight on rabies to answer this.Rabies has been plaguing mankind for centuries, long before viruses were even hinted at.As it's such a horrible, scary and usually fatal disease, and one that you're being told to repeatedly vaccinate against, we'll use rabies to see if a virus might be involved.Or is it simply “terrain” responsible for people dying in the 10's of thousands from rabies every year?

Vital Pet Health CEO, Jason Donas joins me to give us some big news in product development.It seems my friends in Vital Animal's “sister company” have been busy reformulating to make your animal's immune support and detox options really amazing.Jason explains the process of micronization and why it takes an expensive machine to accomplish it. Far more than mere filtering, this process makes your pet's supplements instantly available and fully absorbed.Practically speaking, that translates to way more “bang for your buck.”What's more, the entire product line now is formulated with 100% natural ingredients, long the goal of Dr. Scott Treadway, chief formulator at VPH.And, since the upgrade, it means all the products are now readily available to your cats as well as your dogs.As a friendly introduction to the newly reformatted product lines, Jason has graciously offered a sweet discount to the Vital Animal Podcast listeners. You'll find the details on this page:www.VitalPetHealth.com/specialClick that link to get your dog or cat on the best immune support and detox options available.

#039 When your vet pushes you into procedures you don't want that are more risk than benefit, it's time to FIRE him!Join me as I share a real life story (one of far too many I have) about a woman being held hostage by her vet. She was being told she had to revaccinate her already vaccinated dog in order to get insulin for this same dog. Scout's had diabetes for 4 years…Learn why I recommend firing this vet, why more vaccines for this dog would be malpractice, and what you can do to get your needs met.Are you paying a vet who's more interested in his bottom line than doing the conscientious thing for your animal? If so, it's time to make a powerful statement: You're FIRED!Find out more at the show notes for this episode at VitalAnimal.com/39

#037 As a homeopathic vet, I'm always puzzled when people ask if it's safe to use homeopathic remedies after their animal has been given drugs or, in this case, vaccines.I'm really not sure what's going through their heads in this, as the reality is there's no safer medicine I'm aware of than these ultra diluted remedies.It's the drugs or vaccinations I'm concerned about safety on!This episode grew out of such questions and I share with you some of the details of how remedies are made and how they are extremely safe, even if they are made from deadly viruses (often the case with nosodes) or even poisonous venoms or metals like mercury or plants like belladonna.You'll also hear homeopathy's amazing roots, when Dr. Hahnemann stumbled on to a finding (in his own body, no less) that would change the course of medicine for ever, from the late 1700's on to today.Tune in to discover how homeopathy is not only safe but how it can be used to take the place of vaccines and powerfully protect your youngsters against serious and often fatal diseases.

#036 Are regular blood tests on your animal giving you a false sense of security?Might there be better ways to suss out your animal's health status?Tune in to hear how a homeopathic vet thinks about these tests and even better, suggests something that's even more powerful. And costs nothing out of pocket!These freebies were here long before we got all fancy with measuring blood, taking radiographs and doing MRIs or ultrasounds.These “measures” are really at the heart of our survival as a species!Listen up and you'll get the drop on your animal's clues about her health well in advance of things changing in her blood.That adds up to getting some valuable treatment started earlier: always a great idea to prevent suffering.Be sure to stop in to the show notes for this episode at VitalAnimal.com/36

#035 I think it's appropriate to say there is no more important place to be clear about what you want than in health care. If you allow yourself or your animal to just blindly take what ever a doctor recommends, trouble will ensue. I guarantee it.This episode was inspired by a listener who knew she didn't want vaccines for her pup. She'd already seen vaccine damage in her two children, but when she sought out holistic vets, she asked them if they vaccinated.They did.And Alesha felt stuck at that point. How could she get her needs better met?By asking better questions!This episode is here to help you get your veterinary needs met. While a vet can be a great ally on your natural path, it's never safe to assume that he'll have your every desire in mind if you don't spell out your desires for your animal very clearly.You must ask wise questions, either of your current vet or if you're interviewing a potential new one.As “prevention” is often where the trouble begins and healthy animals become damaged, often for life, you'll need a vet who understands your goals and will help you achieve them.I share with you my thoughts on “sympathetic vets” and how to ask the right questions so your vet becomes a trusted part of your path to a wildly healthy, naturally disease-resistant companion.For more links and additional goodies, be sure to visit the show notes for this episode at VitalAnimal.com/35

#034 Titer clinic: Lisa Rosamino is ready to start one now that COVID-19 pressures are letting up for her pet food buying club.She learned about titers from Dr. John Robb and me but wanted to make it easier for her many pet food customers to get that testing done easily and affordably.If your local vet has either refused to do titer testing or made them prohibitively expensive, you’ve got options. Recent reports from listeners that some vets are even refusing to draw blood for you to get a titer done spurred me to explore titer clinics as a viable workaround.Tune in to see what it takes and maybe you can organize a titer clinic in your neighborhood or pet store. I'll bet you could do this!I also review why yearly titers are both unnecessary and potentially dangerous if you don’t fully understand this test's results.For more help on titer testing and further understanding, be sure to visit the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/34

#033 The skin. Who knew your Sadie’s outer protective layer was intimately associated with her immune system?And when you shampoo her lovely skin, you are actually impairing Sadie’s immune system?Oh oh.We live in a world of “germophobia” (fear of germs), but the bottom line is, we all benefit from having healthy skin microbiomes! All those alcohol wipes and repeated washings with soap or shampoo do is mess up Mom Nature’s well-tested plans to keep us all healthy!Join me and homeopath Julie Anne Lee as we discuss the intimate connection between healthy skin, its native flora, and general health. And how you can encourage more resiliency and diversity in this, the largest organ any of us has.Dirt in the litter box? A mud mask for your dog? Getting down and dirty with your creatures may just be the best thing for all of us!For a special offer from Julie’s The Adored Beast and further links on this episode, be sure to visit the show notes at VitalAnimal.com/33

#032 I first heard of Wondercide when CEO Stephanie Boone sat with me in my Austin clinic over a decade ago and explained her amazing cedar oil based products to me. Using cedar, a ubiquitous “pest species” tree all over Texas that was being cleared and burned regularly to repel and kill fleas and ticks?It sounded like a win win.Tune in to hear how the poisoning of her own dog Luna started Stephanie’s drive to bring a better form of pest control to the world of dogs and cats and their people.This once small boot strapped company just crossed its one millionth customer metric and people are thrilled with not only the safety and effectiveness of the Wondercide products, but the exceptional customer service that Wondercide’s team brings to the table.Be sure not to miss the show notes for this episode, as Stephanie has graciously provided a 15% discount on her best products to you, our listener.You’ll find this and more resources at VitalAnimal.com/32

#031 The more we learn about the microbiome, that vast collection of bacteria, yeast, viruses (and even small parasites) that make up our gut and that of our animals, the more important we see it is.It affects our brains and behavior. It affects our hormones. It affects immunity, digestion and nutrition, and probably a whole lot more.I invited Dr. Odette Suter, a holistic vet colleague who’s been doing FMT (poop “transplants” or fecal microbiota transplants) in many of her patients to good effect.We go deep (pun intended) on this topic, which is far from new, and which recognizes that the flora of an animal or human can be beneficially modified by introducing fecal material from a healthy donor to the sick one.Join us as we explore the possibilities for enhancing health, the long history of FMT, and the various ways a transplant can take place.For additional links on this episode, be sure to visit the show notes at https://VitalAnimal.com/31

#030 We were taught in vet school that “one size fits all” when it comes to vaccination: a Great Dane and a Chihuahua both get a 1 cc dose of the vaccine. There was some vague explanation that the “antigenic load” was all the mattered, and big animals and small ones needed the same amount of challenging substance injected.This is what a past client was told recently when he asked for a smaller dose of rabies vaccine to be given to his 9 lb dog. His reaction (like mine should have been as a vet student) was “What the H? How does that make any sense at all?”I immediately knew who to interview on this: Dr. John Robb of Protect the Pets, who observed early on in his practice that the smaller the pet, the more likely they were to have a negative reaction to a vaccine. In his work at a Banfield clinic, he also had access to a very large study that showed, in well over a million dogs, that he was far from the only one to observe this.Join me and Dr. Robb as we discuss this reality that most of our profession refuses to come to grips with. We discuss how titers clearly demonstrate that immunity happens in the small pets with a lessened dose. Dr. Robb had to endure the long, lonely torment of his veterinary board for refusing to adhere to a standard dose that he knew would cause harm to his smaller patients.For more information and links, be sure to visit the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/30

#29 Are you unknowingly causing illness in your animals in the name of prevention?This week’s episode was inspired by Sarah, who commented that her young Golden Doodle had just gotten sick for the second month in a row and she’s now wondering if she unwittingly caused the bloody diarrhea and vomiting by giving her pup heartworm prevention.Join me for an enlightening discussion on not only heartworm but prevention in general.Could your good intentions be paving the road to a hellish state of health for your animals?For valuable links and more help, please visit the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/29

#28 Some things are time sensitive, but biology rarely follows the calendar, especially when we speak of immunity in you or your animals.Does immunity slowly “empty out,” like a gas tank, and need “refilling” at a year or three?Listen in as I give you the info you need to see through the marketing that is often masked as “Your pet is DUE for xyz vaccines! Make your appointment today!”Inspired, as is much of my world, by questions I get from you, my listeners. Maggie is a 14 year old dog, adopted at age 10, and Carolyn has been told she’s up against a hard calendar deadline.Oh oh.When you get clear on what I’m sharing with you in this episode, you’ll grow in confidence and know better how to respond responsibly to such notices.And, I’ll answer Carolyn’s question about how to prime Maggie’s immune system to better withstand the immune confusion that comes from most vaccination events.For special links on this episode,  head over to the show notes: https://VitalAnimal.com/28

#027 My guest is Zac Pilossoph, DVM, who’s wearing several hats these days but I asked him on to share his knowledge about cannabis and its application in pet health. His curiosity about this plant has lead him to take advantage of repeated educational opportunities so that he can help champion its use for your animals.What are cannabinoids, the compounds we are hearing so much about that are present in this plant?And why does every animal with a spine, us included, have a widely distributed “endocannabinoid” system that helps us maintain homeostasis, that balanced state where we both feel great and function as Nature intended?Dr. Zac calls this the "Master Regulatory System," and sees it as the perfect complement to the immune system we know to be so immune in surveillance. Listen in to find out what frontiers of CBD use in animals are exciting Zac and learn how you can do your due diligence in this "Wild West" of cannabis supplements we find ourselves in.For more links and a chance to comment on what you've heard, be sure to stop in to the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/27

#026 My guest this week is Julie Anne Lee, homeopath and owner of the Adored Beast Apothecary.Her origin story itself is seriously inspiring. Julie felt the connection to animals from a very young age, and wanted to help them. After some years of searching, she realized her vet tech work wasn’t her best foot forward. When homeopathy cured her of a difficult illness quickly (and in a foreign country, to boot), she knew immediately that was what she wanted to offer the animal world.But, she chose to skip vet school and study with the best of the best in veterinary and human homeopathy instead. When it came time to bring her services to the public and their animals, she had to get creative, as the Canadian vet board was having none of it. Don’t miss Julie’s shrewd choices that ended up with her owning a clinic and employing 5 vets!I invited Julie on to open the box on leaky gut. Unless you’ve lived under a rock for the past decade, you’ve heard of this disease and how widespread it is. And you’ve likely heard even more about the ever increasing influence the microbiome has on everything in your body and that of your animals!How are these related? How do you know when leaky gut is holding your animal back, and how can you ultimately help them get back to normal?Julie is, to a fault, a deep researcher. She sticks to a subject like a bulldog and won’t settle until she learns all she can and takes that knowledge into the trenches, testing her findings in the real world.Can you just throw some probiotics at this condition and expect a fix?Julie’s work says no, it’s clearly not that easy. But she knows what does work, and shares that with us in this episode.Getting the chance to listen to how this brilliant woman thinks and solves problems for animals is not to be missed!Her links and more are in the show notes at https://VitalAnimal.com/26

#025 My guest this week is your best friend if you buy commercial pet food of any kind. Susan Thixton came to her calling as crusader for quality pet food many years ago when her vet told her her healthy dog died of bone cancer from a commonly used pet food preservative.She’s learned so much since then and shares it regularly with interested consumers with pets to feed via her website and newsletter. And believe me when I tell you, the world of Big Pet Food is “buyer beware!”Her work has included:— tracking aflatoxin in corn to poisoned pets (110 have died recently from this liver toxic mold)— using FOIA documents to get at hidden loopholes in the regulation of pet food quality— attending the AAFCO meetings as a voice for you, the pet food consumer— publishing rankings of pet food from best to worstThis woman is on a mission! Your pets need her to stay safe in the jungle that is commercial pet food.You won’t want to miss Susan’s inspiring and cautionary message in this episode.You can find more in the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/25

#024 Most vets and “single species doctors” grossly misunderstand what symptoms are, how they are extremely valuable, and how cure is defined.That means that, unless you are smarter than your vet and choose carefully who gets to be your trusted health care provider, your animals are likely to become less and less healthy the longer they partake in “modern medicine.”Listen along with Dr. Falconer as he explains why symptoms are critically important to understand and hugely useful in getting and keeping your animals truly VITAL.Discover what symptoms are, who or what makes them, and how “controlling them” is asking for long term trouble in your loved ones or yourself.What’s the difference between “common” and normal?How do symptoms “talk to us,” whether we are vets or perceptive caregivers? What are they really saying, anyway?And the case of the horribly itchy dog named Maggie whose skin disease was finally cured when an odd symptom was revealed about her heat cycles.You’ll never view symptoms the way you used to after you hear this episode. And that will only help your animals stay in their best state of wild health and natural disease resistance.For show notes and links to this episode, be sure to to visit https://VitalAnimal.com/24

#023 I interviewed Dr. Andrea Tasi to learn more about how cats have been “talking” to all of us over the years.We explored how this amazing semi-wild species is perhaps the most sensitive one we see regularly, whether you are a veterinarian or not. Dr. Tasi has made a similar metaphor as I:Cats are humanity’s “canary in the coal mine.”I’ve written about them in this context over many years. The more they take part in conventional medicine, often in the name of prevention, the sicker they become. And that’s true both with individuals and the feline species itself.What Andrea added to my earlier concerns was evidence that this trend of cats losing their health to “over prevention” had continued way further than I previously knew. Her revelations were like jet fuel tossed on my slow smoldering leaf fire of concern.She being a 100% feline vet and a 100% homeopathic one at that, has insights for us all, regardless of species.My original red flag came as hyperthyroidism became a thing sometime after my first decade of practice.Where did that come from?? I’d never heard of it in four years of vet school nor in my next many years in private practice! Since then, it’s become quite common in cats. Surely it didn’t fall from the sky. No chronic disease does that, by the way. They are 100% man made.Join us as we discuss choices you can make to maximize your cat’s health and get insights that will apply to all other species, including humans.For related links, visit the show notes for this episode here: https://VitalAnimal.com/23

#022 What are nosodes and do they deserve the bad rap some vets give them? I asked my old friend and homeopathic vet colleague Dr. Don Hamilton to answer this in light of a Jean Dodds blog post saying they clearly don’t work. Not enough “science,” she said.Don helps us understand where that opinion comes from: a faulty study done by Susan Wynn and Ron Schultz Ph.D. Don was actually contacted before the trial was set up and he made it clear: the study design was guaranteed to fail. Their knowledge of HOW to use nosodes properly was woefully lacking.We discuss what a nosode is, why they are safe, and what methods to use to ensure success. Don has a great story from his early days of giving them to a kennel experiencing significant infectious disease problems in their boarders. The nosode brought great success, but new management put a stop to their use.Whoops, up went the infectious disease! The kennel staff said, “Whoa, we need to start this up again!” and down went the incidence once more.New management again, and same deal, all over again: stop the nosodes, the boarders got sick, sound the alarm and restart the nosodes, everything gets better. AGAIN!Not double blind, placebo controlled, published research. But is that supposed “gold standard” necessary before we move forward with safe and effective natural remedies?Not in my world!Don’t miss this episode if you want the truth about nosodes from a long time homeopathic vet whose work helped inform how many of us use these remedies effectively.For more info and links to this episode (and a great place to comment or ask questions), the show notes are here: https://VitalAnimal.com/22

#021 Lyme is a strange disease, and I invited Dr. Todd Cooney to weigh in on it as he’s researched it carefully and, like me, has seen dogs with positive titers who are completely healthy and free of symptoms.All too often, conventional veterinarians recommend a month’s worth of antibiotic treatment for these titer positive yet healthy dogs. Is that more risk than benefit, knowing what we know now about the importance of the microbiome to health?How about the Lyme vaccine? Should you get that to keep your dog safe? Dr. Cooney brings in the “big guns,” the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, all board certified experts whose answer to this question should make everyone stand up and take notice.Is your vet up to speed on this disease? If not, when you learn what we’ve got here for you in this episode, you can prevent unnecessary treatment and over-prevention.“No” is a complete sentence, by the way…For more info and links to this episode, head over to this page: https://VitalAnimal.com/21

#020 Have you ever considered using homeopathy to help your animals?Or, does it just seem too unbelievable or weird or just, well, unclear what it is exactly? And what does it look like if you embark on hiring a homeopathic vet to help you?This episode answers those questions for you, so you can betterunderstand what homeopathy is (and isn’t)know what to expect from a homeopathic vet visithave an answer to the skeptics who say it’s “only a placebo!”see how very important you are to the process of getting your animal cured!I share down to earth experience from my homeopathic practice and include a definition of possible outcomes, not only from homeopathy, but from any treatment of any kind.A case of a heartworm positive dog is related to illustrate how wide reaching and life changing homeopathy can be.If you’ve ever had questions or even reservations about homeopathy, you’ll want to tune in to this episode.For more links and resources, click this link to get to the show notes: https://VitalAnimal.com/20

#019 This week’s episode is in response to a plea from a dog owner on Facebook. She was finding the vets around her intent on selling her “drugs” (read: pesticides) and vaccines when she didn’t want either. She called it “literally PUSHING” her to get these unwanted treatments.While she’s been avoiding them for a few years as her dog has been doing well since a switch to a raw food diet three years ago, she still would like to avail herself of veterinary services from time to time:Worm checksHW testsTitersHow to get that diagnostic work done without being pressured into unwanted poisons and vaccines she knows are not necessary?Can you relate to Shanna’s difficult position?Would you like to have better control over what you consume at a vet’s office without being pushed (or worse, shamed) for your “knowing better” than to partake in dangerous drugs?I’ve got some answers for Shanna, and share an even more egregious pressuring by a vet whose motto seemed to be “My way or YOU’LL PAY.” When I wrote about this on my blog some years back, the conventional veterinary community shrieked fowl. No matter, as my readership could relate and shared similar stories and appreciation.Perhaps these examples and answers will help empower you to be a wiser consumer and get only the services and products you choose from my profession.For the show notes and links for this episode, hit this link: https://VitalAnimal.com/19

#018: Have you sought to strengthen your animal’s immune system and been told colostrum is an amazing natural way to do that? How it’s specially made to help calves survive in the germ filled world they are born into, and so, it’s good for you and your animals?I’ve long been impressed with a component of colostrum called transfer factor. It’s well studied for over 60 years with thousands of research papers published on it world wide. I chose to use it in myself and my patients based largely on all that research and the results have often been quite remarkable in both me and the animals who’ve gotten it.In this episode, I’ve clarified the differences between colostrum and a key immune component, transfer factor. The two are significantly different in who they can help. Knowing the difference will help you do better for your animals (and yourself) and save you money when you make an informed choice between these two seemingly similar products.Inside, you’ll discover:— what’s in colostrum that makes it so amazing— who exactly benefits most from it (and how those who do can die without it)— how a critical time factor makes all the difference between the two— how the size of colostrum’s main ingredient limits its usefulnessIf you’ve ever wondered if colostrum and transfer factor are interchangeable, you won’t want to miss this episode.For links and more on this episode, see the show notes at https://VitalAnimal.com/18

#017 Dr. Marybeth Minter shares a case with us, a dog I’ve heard about over the years, long suffering with horrible allergic skin disease. Kali, the middle aged Border Collie had lost all her coat, had open sores, was regularly plagued with fleas, and Chrystal, her owner had tried everything without success.Kali was on various raw food diets, healthy supplements, and had been prescribed for by two other well qualified homeopathic vets in the past without much improvement. When Dr. Minter was called upon, in addition to using the constitutional prescribing approach, she suggested that toxins might be playing a role and recommended a radical diet change: a plant based diet, based on recipes from Dr. Richard Pitcairn.Chrystal rolled up her sleeves and began feeding Kali this way, thinking she had nothing to lose: she’s tried everything else and her poor dog had suffered long enough!Tune in to hear what this radical idea has resulted in. Regardless of your views on “right vs wrong” feeding, this is worth your time.For more info and links, be sure to see the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/17

#016 In this interview, I’m the guest and I’m being interviewed on homeopath Julie Anne Lee’s Adored Beast show. Tune in to learn how you can use titers wisely and save both money and your pet’s health when you know this stuff.Titers seem simple enough on the surface: they are measures of antibodies your animal has made to a germ of some sort, usually a virus.But what are the limits of titer testing?Does your vet read titers properly? Do breeders understand the difference between vaccination and immunization?13:00 What value does a titer have? Less vaccines? And why would you want to limit vaccines?If a vaccine label says “Repeat annually” what does that really mean? Is annual titer testing a better path or a waste?What’s DOI? How is that important?16:15 What are the limits of titer testing? When the titer falls, is your animal really no longer immune? 22:53 How likely are puppyhood illnesses going to hurt a senior? Is revaccinating your senior more risk than benefit?All this and more is answered in this episode to help you be a wise guardian for those innocent animals in your care, what ever species they are.For more help and links, be sure to see the show notes for this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/16

#015 Eleni Gkikakis is an animal intuitive but joined me on this interview as a homeopath. Not just any homeopath, Eleni has found herself working with a species most of us have only seen in zoos or on TV: the African lion.If you weren’t aware, homeopathy can be used via telephone consultation to help animals at any distance. As it requires symptoms to guide the prescriber to the right remedies, those can be conveyed in a variety of ways, and in Eleni’s case, that’s been via phone and internet, with descriptions and even some videos of lions with health challenges.While she’s spent time in South Africa around these magnificent creatures, the cases she shared with me were all done long distance, and with a high degree of success, I’m happy to report.How do you even get a remedy into a lion??Well, Eleni has donated a remedy kit or two to those on the ground, and they’ve figured out some creative ways for remedy to reach the lions’ mucus membranes, where the energetic potency can have its effect.You won’t want to miss a moment of this fascinating conversation as Eleni relates several real cases of lions helped with homeopathy under challenging conditions (you don’t just grab a lions mouth and drop your pellets in, right?).For more links and even a special chance to help these creatures, see the show notes at https://VitalAnimal.com/15

#014 Fear seems an all too common emotion among many animal owners these days, especially with the near constant narrative coming at us about some supposedly killer virus out there, just waiting to bring us down.I’d like to see fear replaced with reason and confidence, especially when it comes to raising wildly healthy, naturally disease-resistant Vital Animals.Join me as I take you through the real life scenarios that brought this emotion to my attention recently and see how I think it’s a dangerous one to carry with you on a regular basis, consciously or un-.Common sense would dictate that you shouldn’t live your life in fear, and it should be fairly obvious that your animals, sensitive creatures that they are, will pick up on your emotional state, for good or for bad.We all have it within us to keep fear in its rightful place, reserved for those times when it’s truly warranted. Listen in and hear several examples of how it is often used to control us and what you can do to fight back.The links and show notes for this episode are at https://VitalAnimal.com/14

#013 Kasie Maxwell is back, this time sharing her decades of experience in helping pet owners make the transition to raw feeding. We discuss kittens, puppies, kibble addicted cats, and dogs and how each is unique in their needs to make the jump smooth.Not only has Kasie worked through her SFRAW buying club to help people climb to a higher nutritional plane for their pets, she also shares how a walkabout in Kenya helped shape her recommendations on feeding your cats. She was lucky enough to live among the Masai for a spell and learned how lions actually eat. And what “normal” big cats stools look like!If you’ve ever needed a little help getting your animals switched to raw, you’ll want to listen to this episode closely and read the accompanying material linked in the show notes.Bottom line: all those groups of animals need a somewhat different transition but none of it is difficult when you learn from an expert like Kasie.For the show notes and links to this episode, head on over to https://VitalAnimal.com/13

#012 Dr. Madalyn Ward has been working with horses since well before vet school and joined a conventional equine practice early on.We both graduated in 1980 and our paths crossed first in 1992 when we both joined the first Professional Course in Veterinary Homeopathy, taught for graduate veterinarians by Dr. Richard Pitcairn, in Eugene, OR. She traveled from Austin and I from Maui repeatedly for a year’s study (5 or 6 trips as I recall).After that training, her practice changed fundamentally, as did mine.When it came time for me to move to Austin, Dr. Ward graciously offered me a place to practice and her small animal clients, as she was too busy with the horses at that point.And the rest, as they say, is history.In the episode, Dr. Ward takes on two of the commonest horse health management issues:how to feed horses appropriate to their “always browsing” naturehow to think about vaccinations in this, probably the most over vaccinated speciesOne of the most amazing revelations to me from her interview: these huge beasts can benefit from very small doses of whole food supplements. One might think an animal weighing 1000lbs or more would need a ton of supplements compared to a dog, she’s seen the opposite to be true!For the show notes and links to this episode, please visit: http:/VitalAnimalhttps://VitalAnimal.com/12

011 As a blog writer and podcaster, I get a lot of email, especially when things have gone badly in an animal’s world.One recurring theme that has always rubbed me the wrong way is the reports that puppies were vaccinated, often more than once, before they were sent home. As most leave for their new homes at 8 weeks of age, that translates to vaccines given to pups of 4 weeks or 6 weeks of age, and maybe again at 8 weeks, before they travel!As there is plenty of science behind this being a dumb practice, I’m calling it out as such in this episode.Minimally, the early vaccination of pups and kittens does no good but more concerning: every vaccine, given at any age, carries a very significant risk of long term damage to the recipient. Witness the explosion of allergic itchy skin and/or ears over the past many years. Most of this follows vaccination, but often a month later (so, unless you look for this pattern, you'll miss it).It boils down to what’s long been known about Mom’s colostrum and “passive immunity.” We’ve generated data on that since at least the 1950’s! And that is the #1 reason for “vaccine failure,” meaning the hoped for immunization has failed.As I understand the breeders’ intent (“We don’t want to lose youngsters to infectious disease!”), I do offer some safe and effective alternatives to all this crazy over vaccination.Please join me for this discussion and tell me in the comments if you need anything clarified.The show notes and comments for this episode are here: https://VitalAnimal.com/11

010 Have you ever thought of giving a vaccine as giving a disease? Dr. Pitcairn talks us through the logic and how we’ve been tricked into thinking that we are only helping our animals when we give a vaccine.This helped Dr. Pitcairn discover the significance of vaccination in trying to cure his chronically ill patients many years ago. When they got well only to a point, he began to wonder if “vaccinosis” was at work (the illness that comes after a vaccine).Does “giving the disease” by injection also explain why pets who’ve been injected with a killed rabies vaccine often change their behavior as well? Once content to be home, they now want to wander, or eat strange things, or seem more edgy or even downright aggressive.You’ll see vaccines in a new light when you listen to this episode. With the understanding of Dr. Hahnemann’s homeopathy, so much more starts to make sense about how vaccination is anything but a benign procedure.For links and more on this episode, see the show notes: https://VitalAnimal.com/10

009 Thomas Sandberg is an Animal Naturopath who’s seen first hand the power of feeding a “carnivore model” diet.His own Great Danes on this diet doubled their expected lifespans and he knew he was on to something. That early “Ah Ha” has grown into a much larger study now and his aim is to enlist 20,000 dogs and 5000 cats who are being fed raw to see how far the boundaries can be pushed.Some key ideas from this interview:Forget everything you’ve heard about balance and bacteria, the two biggest impediments to starting raw feeding.It’s almost impossible to screw up a raw food diet short term (1-2 months). You can feed only one protein source during your starting period and still do much better than kibble ever could.Organic? It’s great if you can afford it or even find it. Tom has never used organic sources and has seen amazing results with plain old grocery store bought meat.“The sicker the dog, the more they need raw food!”Join us for this exciting episode on why raw feeding need not be complicated and how you’ll see benefits within the first two weeks of switching from kibble.For links to more resources, visit the show notes at https://VitalAnimal.com/9

008 It’s not often you find a vet like Dr. Andrea Tasi, who knew even before vet school that she’d do an all-feline practice. What makes her unique, though, is that she shifted her practice to fully homeopathic and that changed everything.Join us as Dr. Tasi speaks to the uniqueness of this species, the challenges they face in “domestication” (Ha! Let’s use that word loosely), being both a predator and prey simultaneously, the challenges of homeopathy, and how to interpret litter box troubles, the area that leads many cats to be given up for adoption. It need not be so!For links and more from this episode, see the shownotes here: https://VitalAnimal.com/8

007 Dr. Scott Treadway has one over arching philosophy when it comes to formulating supplements: they will be most useful when they are wholly made from natural ingredients.Scott is a friend and partner in our Vital Animal Health sister company that makes our supplement line. I invited him on this week to talk about our latest supplement, Vital Animal Detox.We discuss the need for detox supplementation in pets and Scott goes into detail on why his formulation, based on highly purified zeolite and several synergistic herbs, is so effective in pulling toxins safely and surely out of your dog’s body. (Cat owners, stay tuned, he’s working on a cat version of VAD).Our VAD was borne from Scott’s work with war veterans from the war in Iraq, who came back with radiation poisoning (and likely vaccinosis!) and the VA hospitals were just giving them pain killers. His original formula helped detox these soldiers and the idea for Vital Animal Detox came from this work as we began to talk together.Join Dr. Treadway and I for an interesting journey into the world of natural detox.The shownotes for this episode can be found here: https://VitalAnimal.com/7

#006 It all started with a 9 year old cat given a death sentence: 3 months to live. Today’s guest spent an entire night studying, realizing she’d been doing it all wrong, and changed her cat’s diet over the next year with what she learned. Her cat recovered and was never sick again, dying at the respectable age of 22.Raw food for pets got its well deserved introduction to San Francisco in a big way when Kasie Maxwell Grujcic got a bunch of people to make an “assembly line” in a friend’s garage in 2001. She provided the direction and know how, gave everyone a task towards one end goal: everyone goes home with excellent raw dog food for a month.The rest, as they say, is history, and countless lives have been changed for the better with Kasie’s guidance, kindness and inclusive attitude. “Bones scare you? No worries, you don’t have to feed bones yet!”This episode is packed with gems of hard won knowledge, health challenges others would have given up from, bold decisions and successes that will inspire and amaze you."It’s all about honor for me, honoring the land, the environment, the animals being raised for food, honoring the producer of that food… and honoring the animals in my care which are carnivores…”Listen closely and be inspired by this living example of determination and selfless service to the animals and the planet.Link to the show notes for this episode: https://VitalAnimal.com/6

#005 First, a dead serious discussion of why an oft-told joke among homeopathic vet colleagues needs to die. The longer this joke is true, the more animals suffer and the more money is bled from well meaning pet owners. None of that is funny!The “disease of our day” and why Dr. Falconer now almost never takes new patients these days.Modern medicine’s “dirty little secret” and just how are you supposed to find a solid homeopathic vet when there are so many “fauxistic” vets out there?Be sure to tune into this episode to get the joke, help kill it for my profession, understand what you’re up against, and get proper homeopathic veterinary care at the best time possible.Thanks for listening! Do share this episode and if you would, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!You'll find all the links to this episode at https://VitalAnimal.com/5

#004 Dr. John Robb joins me and shares a lot of helpful knowledge on titers in pets. He’d like to see titers accepted widely by all licensing authorities as a means of preventing over-vaccination.Listen in as Dr. Robb shares these gems with us:02:34 “The titer tells us the pet has already achieved immunity. So there’s no benefit from the vaccine…you’re injecting something that can only harm, with no benefit. That’s malpractice, in my opinion.”04:34: “I don’t really agree with the numbers game, because the lowest titer is the same immunity as the highest titer.”05:06: “Dr. Schultz (Univ of Wis immunologist, Dr. Ron Schultz) said it best, ‘It should be a yes or no answer.’ …If your pet has any measurable antibodies…it’s a pregnancy test, you are or you are not (immune), period.”17:32: “One state requires a titer: Hawaii. Because they know the vaccine certificate doesn’t tell you that the dog is immune. And since they don’t have rabies in Hawaii, you can’t get in there without a titer.…when it becomes real, like ‘we don’t want to have rabies here,’ you better have a titer to prove your pet’s immune.”At Dr. Robb’s website, ProtectThePets.com, you’ll learn how you can save money on titer testing and get his official “Immune Certificate” for your animal. Also there are petitions to help you get your state’s legislatures to change their out of date rabies laws and letters you can use to write individual law makers.Be sure to see the show notes for links and resources from this episode.

#003 Dr. Todd Cooney has had remarkable success with parvo. He's actually wiped it out of his practice after decades of struggling with it. His past conventional prevention failed 40% of the time and his clinic greeted him every morning with the stench unique to this deadly disease.What changed? And why is his patient population now seeing zero parvo incidence?It's all because Dr. Cooney shifted his prevention to homeoprophylaxis, the use of nosodes instead of the old school injections we were all trained to use.You'll learn from Dr. Cooney's data, gathered from his practice over the years, what actually works, both for prevention and treatment. (Neighboring vets refer all their parvo cases to Dr. Todd, as they know his success with homeopathy is so high!)To see the show notes and download some valuable free reports, click on this link:https://VitalAnimal.com/todd-cooney-parvo-prevention-treatments-ep-3

#002 You probably know Dr. Pitcairn as the author of Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats. It was this book that helped me offer something natural to my new clients as I transitioned to a holistic practice in the early 90's. Raw, balanced diets made a huge difference in my patients, and this book had the recipes to make the food.Then, he took on a new role in 1992 for me, when he taught the first Professional Course in Veterinary Homeopathy. That was a serious world changing course of study for me, and helped me redefine health, disease, and medicine. Homeopathy became my #1 treatment modality from that point forward to today.I asked Richard to come on today to talk about his years as a virologist/immunologist, when he taught epidemiology and got his PhD at Washington State, before homeopathy had even dawned for him. Why talk viruses and immunity with a famous homeopathic vet?You definitely want to know where these little creatures fit into the world and how our immune systems have learned to deal with them effectively. And what modern medicine brings to that protection system.You won't want to miss this discussion. Understanding this helps you keep your animals (and you, of course) safe and healthy and truly VITAL.For the show notes and links to this episode, please visit:https://vitalanimal.com/richard-pitcairn-viruses-immunity-ep-2

#001 - The Vital Animal podcast is here to help YOU make YOUR animals wildly healthy, naturally disease-resistant, and truly, wholly VITAL! Homeopathic veterinarian Dr. Will Falconer shares his wealth of knowledge from 4 decades in practice on all manner of ways you can make your animals the healthiest they can be.You can learn more about this approach at his long standing resource-filled website, Vital Animal:https://VitalAnimal.comIn this first episode, Dr. Falconer shares his founder’s story, “How a Leap, a Crash, and a Rebirth Shaped My Holistic Practice.” Was following his intuition without hesitation a smooth way to change his life as a vet? Not so much. But is he grateful he went through it all to get to where he is as an educator today? No question! If you’d like to get the links and show notes for this episode, just head to:https://VitalAnimal.com/welcome-vital-animal-podcast-1