My Dog Is Better Than Your Dog

We've made being a dog safer than ever before. But is safer actually better?

Think about it: We leave our dogs alone for 8-10 hours a day. We live in apartments where they can't run free. We keep them away from other dogs until they're 16 weeks old. And then we create an entire industry—TVs for dogs, automatic ball launchers, anxiety medications—to manage the fallout of a lifestyle that, let's be honest, we created.

So here's the uncomfortable question: Are we solving real problems, or are we just trying to make ourselves feel better about asking dogs to adapt to a world that wasn't built for them?

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. David Haworth, a veterinarian with a PhD who has worked at every level of the animal health industry—from Pfizer to PetSmart Charities to Morris Animal Foundation. He's currently on the Board of Dog TV, a network scientifically designed to reduce stress for pets home alone.

And before you roll your eyes at "TV for dogs," stay with us—because what we're really exploring isn't about screens or gadgets. It's about the ethics of modern pet ownership, what enrichment actually means, and whether we're being honest with ourselves about what dogs truly need.

If you've ever felt guilty leaving your dog home, questioned whether you're doing "enough," or wondered if technology is helping or just distracting from bigger problems, this episode is for you.

KEY INSIGHTS:

✨ Why "safer" isn't always healthier for dogs, and how risk, learning, and engagement are essential for their wellbeing.

✨ What Dog TV actually is: scientifically designed content to calm, engage, or provide habituation therapy (not just random videos).

✨ How modern TVs (60 frames per second) finally allow dogs to see screen content, unlike older TVs that just flickered.

✨ Why bad behavior is the fastest way to erode the human-animal bond, and how environmental enrichment prevents it.

✨ Why we need to stop prescribing "just walk your dog 2 miles a day" when real life doesn't always allow for it.

✨ The hard truth: most people put less thought into getting a dog than buying a car they'll replace in 2-3 years.

✨ How dogs mirror the parts of our personality we need to see—especially the negative ones we'd rather ignore.

✨ The powerful statistic: After a spouse dies, having a dog doubles your survival rate in the first year because it forces you to maintain routine.

✨ Why the human-dog bond is fundamentally different from other animal bonds, and why we need better language to describe it.

RESOURCES:
Dog TV: dogtv.com
Embark Genomics: Breed identification and genetic health testing
Dr. David Haworth's longevity-focused pet podcast launching in 2026

FOLLOW:
Dr. David Haworth on LinkedIn: LinkedIn

Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com
Integrative Pet Wellness Center on Instagram: @integrativepet
Dr. Lily Chen on Instagram: @dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet

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I know what you're thinking. Wait, isn't this podcast about dogs? Yes. Yes it is. But today, we're doing something different because sometimes there's information so important, so lifesaving, that it doesn't matter if you're a dog person, a cat person, or both.
If you're listening to this episode, there's a good chance your heart is heavy. Maybe you just heard the words "FIP" from your vet. Maybe you're watching your kitten fade and you feel helpless. Maybe you've been told there's nothing that can be done.
I need you to hear this: FIP is no longer a death sentence.
I'm sitting down with Dr. Lisa Fiorenza again, a veterinarian who has cured over 70 cats from Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) since 2020. Seventy cats who were supposed to die are now thriving.
For decades, FIP was considered incurable. When I graduated from vet school in 2007, we were taught that if a cat was diagnosed with FIP, the kindest thing we could do was prepare the family to say goodbye. There was no treatment. No hope.
But that's not true anymore.
In this special episode, Dr. Lisa is sharing everything you need to know: how to recognize FIP early, what treatment actually works, where to find help if your vet isn't aware of the cure that's now legally available in the United States, and what the success rate really looks like.
Spoiler: It's 95% if treatment is started in time and the cat is responding well.
This information could save a cat's life. Whether you have cats, know someone who does, or just care about animals—please listen, take notes, and share this episode with anyone who loves cats.
There is hope, and we are here to help you find it 💚

KEY INSIGHTS:
✨ How FIP went from a death sentence to a 95% cure rate, and why every cat parent needs to know this now.
✨ What FIP (Feline Infectious Peritonitis) really is: a coronavirus that mutates in certain cats and hijacks their immune system, causing massive inflammation.
✨ Why FIP is most common in kittens and often triggered by stress like vaccines, surgery, adoption, new pets, or environmental changes.
✨ How to recognize FIP early: decreased appetite, decreased energy, weight loss, and sometimes a distended belly (wet form) or neurologic/eye symptoms (dry form).
✨ Why FIP is called "the great pretender" and how it can look like so many other diseases, making diagnosis challenging.
✨ How the drug GS (a pro-drug of remdesivir) became the cure for FIP after research published in 2018 by UC Davis and Dr. Niels Pedersen.
✨ Why underground Facebook groups saved tens of thousands of cats before the drug was legalized in June 2024.
✨ How treatment now costs $600-$4,000 (depending on cat size and pharmacy) compared to the previous $4,000+ for unregulated injectable versions.
✨ Why oral GS is now the preferred treatment over injectable (it's less painful, more effective, and doesn't cause bladder stones).
✨ What minimal testing you need before starting treatment: blood count, chemistry panel, and feline leukemia/FIV test to rule out other diseases.
✨ Why creating drug resistance is a serious concern, and why treatment should only be used when there's strong clinical suspicion of FIP.
✨ How to find FIP-savvy vets and resources, including the FIP Global Cats Facebook group and FIP Vet Education Group.

RESOURCES:
🐾 Dr. Lisa's FIP White Paper – Free resource on diagnosing and treating FIP @DrLisaHolisticVet🐾
FOLLOW:
Dr. Lisa Fiorenza on Instagram: @drlisaholisticvet
Dr. Lisa Fiorenza on Facebook: facebook.com/doctorLisa 

Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com 
Integrative Pet Wellness Center on Instagram: @integrativepet
Dr. Lily Chen on Instagram: @dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet

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Have you ever noticed that when you're anxious, your dog seems anxious too? Or that you and your pet struggle with the same health issues — digestive problems, autoimmune diseases, even the same kind of anxiety? You're not imagining it.
In this powerful conversation, Dr. Lily sits down with Dr. Lisa Fiorenza, an integrative veterinarian who sees this pattern every single day in her practice. Together, they explore the fascinating connection between pet and human health, the gut-brain axis, microbiome restoration therapy, and why our animals are often mirrors of our own emotional and physical state.
This episode will change the way you think about healing — not just for your pet, but for yourself too.

Key Insights
✨The Mirror Phenomenon Pets and their people often present with remarkably similar health issues. Dr. Lisa shares how she consistently sees anxious owners with anxious pets, people with GI issues whose pets have chronic diarrhea, and even families dealing with autoimmune diseases alongside their cats experiencing the same condition. This isn't coincidence — it's a message.

✨The Gut-Brain Connection 95% of our serotonin (our "happy chemical") is made in the intestines. When the gut is out of balance, it doesn't just affect digestion — it impacts mood, anxiety, behavior, and overall health. The same is true for our pets. Healing the gut can transform not just physical symptoms, but emotional wellbeing too.

✨Microbiome Restoration Therapy (MBRT) Dr. Lisa walks us through MBRT — a two-step process using rectal ozone to clear out harmful bacteria's "suit of armor" (biofilm), followed by healthy fecal transplant material to repopulate the gut with beneficial microbes. This therapy is creating profound transformations in pets with chronic GI issues, anxiety, autoimmune conditions, and even cancer.

✨Energy and Emotions Matter Our pets pick up on our emotional state in ways we're only beginning to understand. Dr. Lisa emphasizes the importance of managing our own anxiety and grief — especially during palliative care or end-of-life situations — so we don't transfer that emotional burden onto our beloved companions.

✨Integrative Medicine Works Best When You Don't Have to Choose
You don't have to pick between conventional and holistic care. The magic happens when you combine them — using surgery, chemotherapy, or medications alongside acupuncture, herbs, and microbiome restoration to support the body's natural healing capacity and improve outcomes.

✨Prevention is Everything
So many chronic diseases start years before symptoms appear. By the time pets are visibly sick, inflammation and imbalance have often been building for a long time. Preventive integrative care — addressing gut health, nutrition, and emotional wellbeing early — can change the trajectory entirely.

Resources & Links

Connect with Dr. Lisa Fiorenza:
Practice name: Dragonfly Holistic Veterinary Care
Linktree: linktr.ee/DrLisaHolisticVet
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: facebook.com/DogtorLisa
Instagram: @drlisaholisticvet

Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com
Integrative Pet Wellness Center on Instagram: @integrativepet
Dr. Lily Chen on Instagram: @dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet 

Sign up to our newsletter to get more holistic pet care tips 🐶🐈‍⬛

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Bharat Kumar, once an emergency vet, now a holistic house call vet, to explore a part of pet health that's often overlooked: the emotional, energetic, and spiritual lives of our animals.

Dr. Kumar blends Ayurveda, psychology, meditation, Reiki, acupressure, and holistic medicine to better understand the rich emotional and mental landscape our pets navigate.

We talk about why dogs in India seem to face different health challenges than dogs in the U.S., why our animals often carry the emotions they absorb from us, and how meditation and energetic presence can support deeper healing.

If you’ve ever felt like your pet was holding up a mirror to your inner world, this episode is for you.

KEY INSIGHTS: 
✨ How pets absorb the emotions of their humans — and why they struggle to process what they take on.

✨ Why animals in India have fewer chronic diseases, and what that reveals about their lifestyles. 

✨ How Dr. Kumar’s background in Ayurveda and meditation shapes his understanding of inflammation, gut health, and long-term wellness.

✨ How energetic presence, intention, and calm can change a pet’s behavior instantly during an exam or treatment.

✨ Why spiritual practices like Reiki and meditation help pets release stored stress and emotional “residue.”

✨ Why fixing the gut is often the first step in resolving allergies, anxiety, GI issues, and immune dysfunction.

✨ Why Dr. Kumar believes pets are “enlightened beings” whose health depends on the energy of their environment — including their humans.

RESOURCES: 
Dr. Bharat and I might be collaborating on a meditation retreat for pet parents next year. To make sure you don’t miss any updates join my email list here 🐶👇

Get meditation retreat updates and holistic pet parent tips 

FOLLOW:
You can book an appointment with Dr. Kumar through this website: https://comfortpawsmobilevet.com/
Dr. Kumar On Instagram: @drbhrtkumar
Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com
Integrative Pet Wellness Center on Instagram: @integrativepet
Dr. Lily Chen on Instagram: @dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet 

Sign up to our newsletter to get more holistic pet care tips 🐶🐈‍⬛

In this personal minisode, Dr. Lily Chen opens up about her word for 2026, a surprising case that's changing how she practices medicine, and an important study every pet parent (and human) taking gabapentin should know about.

This isn't a typical episode with a guest expert or clinical protocols. This is Dr. Lily, fresh back from Taiwan and about to head to VMX, sitting with you and sharing what's on her mind—trust, bioresonance breakthroughs, chronic pain management, and why asking better questions matters now more than ever.

If your pet is on long-term medication, dealing with chronic vomiting or pain, or if you're simply curious about the future of integrative medicine, this episode is for you.

WHAT YOU'LL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE:
💚 Dr. Lily's word for 2026 – Why "trust" is her anchor for the year ahead 

💚 The indoor cat with chronic vomiting – How a bioresonance scan revealed glyphosate toxicity (and what that means) 

💚 Qest 4 bioresonance explained – Why Dr. Lily believes this is the next step in medicine 

💚 The gabapentin study everyone needs to know – New research linking long-term use to dementia and cognitive decline 

💚 Alternatives to chronic pain medication – From acupuncture and laser therapy to PRP, prolotherapy, and amnion injections 

💚 Why the gut microbiome affects pain – The gut-nerve connection that changes everything 

💚 The invitation to ask better questions – Why symptom management isn't enough anymore

CONNECT WITH DR. LILY & INTEGRATIVE PET WELLNESS CENTER:
📍 FOLLOW:
Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com
Integrative Pet Wellness Center on Instagram: @integrativepet

Dr. Lily Chen on Instagram:
@dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet
💌 Sign up for our newsletter to get more holistic pet care tips 🐶🐈‍⬛

INTERESTED IN QEST 4 BIORESONANCE TESTING?
We now offer remote testing for pets everywhere. Contact us to learn more: 📧 Email: [email protected]
📩Instagram: @integrativepet