The podcast highlighted the growing trend of integrative veterinary care that combines traditional Western medicine with natural Eastern therapies to provide personalized pet health solution.

Integrative Veterinary Care and Philosophy

• Dr. Carol Osborne emphasized avoiding unnecessary drugs by using natural alternatives when possible to optimize each pet’s health.
• This approach targets root causes rather than just masking symptoms, focusing on rejuvenation and long-term wellness for senior pets.
• Dr. Osborne invested in continuing education in nutrition and holistic therapies after observing limitations in traditional treatments.
• This philosophy challenges the mainstream veterinary reliance on frequent vaccinations and chemical prescriptions, appealing to pet owners who seek safer, more individualized care.

Vaccination Strategy and Preventative Care

A key outcome was the recommendation to shift from routine annual vaccinations to immunity testing (titers) to avoid over-vaccinating pets and reduce exposure to toxins (22:45).

• Titers measure protective immunity for diseases like rabies, distemper, and parvo, allowing vaccines only when necessary.
• Rabies vaccines can last up to 8 years, and distemper/parvo vaccines last over 4 years, reducing frequency needs.
• Dr. Osborne urged pet owners to ask for mercury-free and non-attenuated vaccines to minimize toxic exposure.
• Seasonal use of heartworm and flea preventatives should align with mosquito and flea activity, not be given year-round, to reduce toxic load on pets.

Pet Nutrition and Diet Recommendations

The discussion revealed that many commercial pet foods are low quality and potentially harmful, urging owners to be cautious and informed (28:30).

• Pet food companies prioritize profit, often using low-grade ingredients and additives like melamine and cyanuric acid, which caused major recalls killing over 250,000 pets in 2003 and 2007.
• Dr. Osborne recommended avoiding grain-free diets due to links with heart disease and supplementing with taurine (250 mg for small dogs, up to 1,000 mg for large breeds) for 4-6 months during diet transitions.
• Ideal diets include homemade or raw frozen options with balanced portions: roughly one-third protein, one-third carbs, and one-third vegetables, plus vitamin/mineral supplements.
• Feeding pets twice daily, ensuring fresh water access, and maintaining lean weight are essential for longevity; obesity cuts life by up to 30% when over one-third above ideal weight.

Exercise, Weight Management, and Physical Care

Exercise and maintaining healthy body condition emerged as critical for pet health and lifespan (38:00).

• Dr. Osborne advised 20 minutes of exercise twice daily for mental, emotional, and physical benefits, noting many owners enjoy it as much as their pets.
• Pet owners should assess weight by feeling ribs and waist: ribs should be felt but not seen, and waist should be tucked; excess fat indicates need for veterinary weight management.
• Skin and coat health reflect internal wellness, so use pet-specific shampoos and bathe pets at least once a month to maintain a glowing coat (50:30).
• Protect pets’ paws from hot surfaces by testing ground temperature with a hand or barefoot; use booties or salves to prevent burns.

Seasonal and Vacation Safety for Pets

The show underscored important safety tips for pets during warm weather and travel (43:00).

• Pets should wear life jackets near water since not all dogs can swim; breeds with flat faces or low body fat are particularly vulnerable.
• Limit water play to 15-20 minutes with breaks to prevent overheating, as pets cannot sweat effectively.
• Never leave pets in parked cars where temperatures can rise to 120°F within 15 minutes on an 80°F day.
• For travel, ensure pets are healthy, carry health records and certificates especially for cross-border trips, and bring familiar food and water to reduce stress.
• Use natural calming aids like peppermint tea or essential oils (chamomile with blue cypress) for nervous pets on vacation.

Business and Practice Developments

Dr. Osborne is relaunching her website and rebranding her clinic to emphasize longevity therapies for pets, focusing on nutrition, hydration, and proactive care (52:50).

• The new website will launch in about 10 days, aiming to better engage pet owners with education and services.
• The clinic offers comprehensive blood panels to monitor pets’ internal health, critical because pets age faster than humans.
• Dr. Osborne’s toll-free number, 1-866-DOCTOR-CAROL, supports broader outreach and consultation across Canada.
• This transformation aligns with the increasing market demand for holistic and integrative pet care, differentiating her practice in the competitive veterinary landscape.

Transcript

00:00
Cathy Biase
You are listening to Radio Maria Canada. We now present the Health Hub, hosted by Kathy Biase. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Health Hub. I’m Kathy Biasa, your host, and along with our producer, Alex Diaz and our production assistant, Daniel Tersini, we would like to welcome you to our show. 

01:01
Dr. Carol Osborne
Chris. 

01:01
Cathy Biase
Good morning, Alex. How are you? Good morning, Kathy. I am keeping quite well. Excellent. It’s both of our first days back in the studio in three weeks, so if you hear buttons pressed and you hear, you know, oopsies and stuff, but that’s all right. Be patient with us. Yeah. It’s amazing what you forget in three weeks. It’s just kind of like muscle mass. Right. Goes away quickly. Too quickly. Yeah. How was your holiday? Very restful. And I went to. To Spain, as I had previously mentioned, perhaps for my sister’s wedding, which was quite beautiful. Got to meet the entire family, which was nice. 

01:40
Music
And. 

01:42
Cathy Biase
I’m just really happy for my sister and my new brother now. And your new brother, that’s wonderful. I’ve never been to Spain, so did you do traveling around there? Yes, I went to Barcelona, Camos Girona and Estoga. Very nice, essentially. Was it as hot there as it’s been here? I believe. I believe so, yes. It’s been quite warm here. It has been quite. Quite warm here, for sure, is what I’ve heard. Excellent. And you were telling me your grandfather’s not well, so our prayers go out to him and I hope everything works out for the best in that area. It’s tough to see one of our families struggle. But thank you so much. Our prayers are with you. Thank you. And of course, today’s show was live. Our first show in three weeks. 

02:30
Cathy Biase
And if you would like to call in, Our number is 416-245-1534. Please follow us on our social sites. We are on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and we are at the health hubrmc. And do feel free to email us at thh radiomaria ca if you have any questions for us. If you want to get a hold of any previous guests we’ve had, all the podcasts are now up from our previous shows and they are doing quite well. Off the top of my head, the tourism one with Chris Gonzalez, it’s the most recent one, I believe. Yes. And that was quite interesting. It really got me diving into it. Touring tourism now is not. Is not. He were talking about with him was sort of healthy tourism and going to destinations and traveling healthy, which made me sort of do a deep dive into sustainable traveling. 

03:27
Cathy Biase
So that’s a new interest of mine and I’m doing some research on that because I do like to travel. And it’s very interesting when someone like Chris opens your eyes to traveling with more mindfulness. The things that you can do when you’re traveling to help the places that you’re going to sustain them just by what you’re packing, how you’re packing so many wonderful things. You know, we are evolving into a more conscientious society, I think. And that podcast was wonderful. So the last three weeks are up off the top of my head. I cannot remember them. But do go to Radio Maria Ca. You can go to my website, which is Kathy Biase.com or all of your favorite podcast platforms, SoundCloud and iTunes, and you will see them all there. And they’re doing quite well. People have taken a real interest in them. 

04:20
Cathy Biase
So it’s wonderful. Now today, this is sort of a public service announcement for non drinkers, non alcoholic drinkers, or for those who might be the designated driver for an evening. And the idea to talk about it came to me when I was out this past weekend and was looking for something to have to drink on the patio. There were a few of us out and I thought, you know, what am I going to drink? I know I drink wine, but I just didn’t feel like it was really hot night and I just didn’t feel like having wine. And I perused down the menu and I found non alcoholic cocktails. 

05:01
Dr. Carol Osborne
Nice. 

05:02
Cathy Biase
It really nice. And to be perfectly frank, I had heard of this company called Sealip a year ago and I have ordered two of their products. But it was great to see them on the menus of the menu of this particular place that were at up till now. You know, the choices if you’re not drinking are fairly limited. You always have a virgin cocktail. You know, the things that come to mind are virgin Caesars, Pop and water. If you’re the person that’s not drinking and you know, looking at him. But that’s all right. Yeah, well, but this is absolutely what I’m talking about. And some people just feel that they’re not partaking as much because they don’t have the fancy glass or the cocktail sort of thing. 

05:44
Cathy Biase
And I thought, you know, just to give you another thing out there that’s a little bit healthier of an option for you, I’d introduce you to this company and they are called Seedlip. And I’ll just give you a brief explanation of them. I have no affiliation whatsoever. I just you know, when I find something that I think is terrific, I want to pass it on to you guys because it’s, you know, all in the name of good health and sharing good information. So Seed Lip produces and sells non alcoholic spirits. The developer and creator is Ben Branson and he uses herbal remedies and distillation techniques that date back to the mid 16th century and uses these to formulate his products to date. From what I looked at on his website, he has three offerings of non alcoholic spirits. 

06:34
Cathy Biase
They are all zero calories, no sugar and sweetener free and no artificial flavors. So they just, you don’t even, you wouldn’t even miss the alcohol when you’re drinking these. They are delicious and very different. So I just thought, you know, again, this is just purely out of, you know, to know we’re in the middle of summer and you know, Toronto is just bustling on the patio. So if you want something that’s a little different, they have three, as I said, offerings. One is called Garden108 and this is a flor blend of hand picked peas and homegrown hay actually from Branson’s farm with traditional garden herb distillates. And he suggests to have it with tonic water and a sugar snap pea to garnish. 

07:23
Cathy Biase
You do that, you put it in a fancy little glass and you just feel like you’re right in the midst of all that’s going on and tasty. I’m going to tell you the cocktail that I had, whatever day it was on the weekend that I went down there. The next one is called Spice 94 and this is Jamaican allspice berries and cardamom distillates with two barks and a bright citrus finish. And a simple serving for him was tonic with red grapefruit peel as a garnish. So, you know, just adding tonic water to these things. This is generally when I have it, when I’m, you know, up north, I just put tonic water. I don’t go to the extremes that some of the bars do when they’re doing their concoctions. Sometimes simplicity is best in terms of the flavors. Right? It is. 

08:09
Cathy Biase
And you can’t really drink these things on their own. And I do think that actually on the website they recommend that you don’t drink them alone. They’re quite strong. But it’s amazing when you mix them with something else how much they just sort of blend into what you’re doing with them. So it’s not something that you just sort of add ice to you do have to put some at least tonic water in. Right. The third one is called Grove 42. And this is zesty complex citrus blend of three orange and spice distillates. And again, tonic water with a twist of orange peel. Makes it look pretty. But I wanted to let you know what I had and I got it was called, I think it was called a garden blush. And so it was that, what is it called? The Garden 108 distillate. 

08:55
Cathy Biase
And they put in it at the place I was at, cucumber juice, lime, fresh mint and a touch of honey. It was delightful. It really was good. And they served it in a nice little glass. And so there you go. I just wanted to give you other options. So it is called Seed Lip. It will be under non alcoholic beverages. So it is coming becoming more and more popular as the bars are now really starting to understand that there are there is a significant number of people that prefer non alcoholic drinks and want more than just sweet pop or water. So again, it’s called Seed Lip. So hopefully you can look out for them. Their website is called seedlipdrinks.com and actually on their website, I was looking at it yesterday, they’ve got a whole bunch of recipes if you want to use their products. 

09:48
Cathy Biase
I have no idea if it’s sold in stores here, but I ordered mine online. So there’s your handy dandy tip as we come back into our live shows after three weeks. So on to our show today. Most of us who share our homes with animals, our pets are actually natural extensions of our family. So you know, when they hurt, we hurt. And we want to provide the best health care for our animals, for our pets that help to ensure that they live a healthy, happy, vibrant, long life. So hence the introduction of our guest, Dr. Carol Osborne. Dr. Osborne is an author and world renowned integrative veterinarian of 20 plus years. After graduating from the Ohio State College of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Carroll completed a prestigious internship at the Columbus Zoo. 

10:40
Cathy Biase
Shortly afterwards, she launched a very successful private practice and became the founder and director of the nonprofit organization the American pet Institute. Today, Dr. Carol operates the Chagrin Falls Veterinary center and Pet Clinic. She offers traditional veterinary care for dogs and cats with a softer natural touch. Her approach highlights the importance of nutrition and utilizing holistic avenues in combination with traditional treatments, the definition of integrative care. Dr. Carol has appeared several times on Fox and Friends, the Today Show, Good Day LA and Discovery’s Animal Planet. She’s also been featured in USA Today, the LA Times, Ladies Home Journal, Women’s World, InStyle and the New York Daily. 

11:28
Cathy Biase
Our learning points today among many will be how integrative veterinarians differ from mainstream vets, Pros and cons of different types of diets for your cats and dogs, safe vaccination with your pets, warm weather safety tips, and safe vacationing for your dogs. Especially this time of year, it’s important to understand the safety tips that go along with having your pets on vacation with you. So when we return return, we will talk with Dr. Carol. 

12:03
Music
Well, I called your name a long time ago and you sprung away from a heart of stone. But I was careful then what I let you see Only thought you wanted the best of me. The less I trust you the less I grow the more you love me the more I know I don’t have to be afraid to show all of me. Follow me. Where there’s hurting you show me what Ken can do. Where there’s hatred you show me how kindness can move. Where there’s fear deep inside. I won’t run, I won’t hide I give you all of me so that you can see every broken piece and open up my and love you in my whole heart. So I’m ready now gonna let you. 

13:06
Dr. Carol Osborne
In. 

13:08
Music
All the way to the scars beneath my skin you don’t look away cause you understand and you hold my heart with a gentle hand oh where this hurting you show me what he can do. Where there’s hatred you show me how kindness can move Let us fear deep inside. I won’t run, I won’t hide I give you all of me so that you can see every broken piece and open the mouth and love you my whole heart my whole heart. The less I trust you the less I grow the more you love me the more I know I don’t have to be afraid to show all of me where there’s hurting. 

14:10
Dr. Carol Osborne
Oh. 

14:13
Music
Where there’s sorrow and shame enter into the pain where there’s hurting you show me what he can do with his hatred you show me how kindness can move. Where there’s fear there deep inside. I won’t run, I won’t hide I give you all of me so that you can see every broken piece and open the box and love you in my heart. I love you in my whole heart. My whole heart. 

15:01
Cathy Biase
You are listening to Radio Maria Canada. We now continue with the program the Health Hub, hosted by Kathy Biase. Welcome back, everybody. Our phone number, if you’d like to call in, is 416-245-1534. Please do follow us on our social sites. We are on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and we are at the health hub rmc. We’ve got a few minutes for more questions and then we’ll close it out. Dr. Carroll, welcome to the show. Thank you for joining us. 

15:28
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, thank you, Jesse. I’m delighted to join you. 

15:30
Cathy Biase
What a great topic to talk about after a three week hiatus for us. I’m really looking forward to this show. I have two dogs of my own. 

15:38
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, that’s wonderful. That’s man’s best friend for the very best reason. They’re just wonderful companions and they put so much love and joy into our lives. So it’s a delight to join you today and share our love of animals and great tips for healthy, long lives with all of your pet loving lives. 

16:00
Cathy Biase
And we have a lot, we’ve got a lot of questions and I’m going to sort of integrate them into the show and then maybe take some time to deal with some. Some of them are actually my husband’s. Ask her this, ask her that. It’s okay. We’ll see what we can get to. How did you develop this passion for animals? 

16:17
Dr. Carol Osborne
Oh, I’ve loved animals ever since I was a tiny child. And as I grew up, I realized that being able to combine my love for animals and my thirst for medicine, being a veterinarian would be an ideal way to accomplish both of those goals. And as such, it’s been a lifelong endeavor. 

16:40
Cathy Biase
Wonderful. And you’ve had such success. You’ve been on such prominent shows and interviews. So everybody must gravitate to your way of thinking in animal care and the tenderness that exudes when you’re speaking about animals. Just wonderful. Just wonderful. 

16:56
Music
Yeah. 

16:57
Dr. Carol Osborne
And you know, a good point, Kathy, is a lot of people don’t really know what an integrative veterinarian is. But as you mentioned a few minutes ago, an integrative veterinarian is someone that integrates or combines the traditional Western medicine techniques with the natural Eastern therapies. And in doing such, we try to optimize healthcare individually for each patient. We and I personally try to avoid as many prescriptions, chemicals and drugs as I can. And when we can find a natural alternative to replace it with, that’s exactly what we do. 

17:43
Cathy Biase
So you’ve had to, I imagine, embark on a new line of study when it comes to care for the animals, just as an integrative practitioner would be for the humans. How did you go about studying for animal care in a more Eastern way. 

18:01
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, after I graduated from Ohio State College of Veterinary Medicine, I was in private practice for about 10 years, and all my puppies and kittens suddenly became senior citizen. And they were afflicted by the variety of aches and pains that we do experience when we become a little older in life. And when I would look around for certain solutions to try to help my patients, I could only find things that sort of put a band aid on them. But I couldn’t really find anything where I could get at the root of the issue, address things in a functional manner and try to help them rejuvenate, recover. Rejuvenate, if you will, so that weren’t just dealing with the end, but, you know what I mean, trying to help them go forward. So it was at that point that I took a. 

19:00
Dr. Carol Osborne
And I took professional education in nutrition and holistic therapies. And then after that I wrote a couple of books and reopened up my clinic so that I could share my new way of thinking and all my newly learned knowledge with all the pet lovers in this area of Ohio. 

19:26
Cathy Biase
Well, you know, the integrative, I love the words you’re saying. Integrative, functional is another one I don’t think people have yet where people are just coming into the functional atmosphere for humans. And I think this is going to be a new topic and people may not have actually considered a functional approach to having their animals taken good care of. And, you know, although. And we’re going to get into this in a little bit, although we can’t cross over supplements directly. Humans, dog, we are, you know, a different system altogether. The underlying theme that each pet is individual, each pet needs to be treated on an emotional level as well as on a medicinal level is. Is quite novel for some people. 

20:14
Dr. Carol Osborne
Yeah, pets just like you and I have physical needs, they have emotional needs. 

20:20
Cathy Biase
And. 

20:21
Dr. Carol Osborne
And we try to address all of those issues going forward to optimize health and welfare and then work with the owners so that they get a better understanding of what we’re doing and where we’re trying to go and how we can best do that as a team. 

20:42
Cathy Biase
Well, let’s dive into some of these questions that I have myself and also that have been asked too us. Let’s start sort of on the wider frame. What areas of mainstream veterinary. We’re talking mainly cats and dogs here. Right. That’s where your practice is focused right now. So we’ll keep it to that. Okay. So we’ll keep it to cats and dogs here. 

21:04
Dr. Carol Osborne
Okay. 

21:05
Cathy Biase
And then I’ll leave it to everybody. If you would like to contact Dr. Carol, we’ll give all the information out and she can point you in the right direction. If you’re looking for some more exotic animals, where would you challenge mainstream veterinary practices the most? 

21:23
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, I don’t really know, Cassidy, that challenge is the right term. I just like to think of what I like to do is I think that there are lots of people and lots of pet owners out there that have realized that more drugs and more prescriptions are not necessarily the solution. And through the various menu pet food recalls and some of the, quite frankly, disasters that pets and their owners have been through with the pet foods and with some of the traditional medicines that have been recalled for various reasons, there are many people out there, I find, who are willing to go the extra mile to try to minimize unnecessary drugs and chemicals. There are many people out there who have realized that the bag of dry dog food sitting at the pet store is not necessarily providing your pet with optimal nutrition. 

22:35
Dr. Carol Osborne
Over vaccinating your pet going in every year, even every three, again, is not really making your pet any healthier. So just as an example, when it comes to vaccines, and I do believe that we all need to have a baseline level of immunity given to us when the mother’s immunity from her milk runs out. But after that we offer titers. And a titer is a blood test that we take and send to a lab that documents whether or not an individual has a protective level of internal immunity for that specific disease. And that would pertain to rabies, distemper, parvo hepatitis, leptospirosis, kennel cough, etc. 

23:28
Dr. Carol Osborne
So instead of running to the vet every year and having to put more and more vaccines in you, a titer is a very valid option that allows you to find out if the pet already has a protective level of immunity and as of such does not require to have another vaccine put in him. By the same token, when it comes to vaccines for people as well as for pets, vaccines are available without mercury, referred to as thimersol, and that are not attenuated. And don’t ever be afraid to ask your veterinarian if that type of vaccine might be available at their facility. Because again, things like aluminum and mercury are highly toxic and are not things that you want anyone, quite honestly, to put in your body or to put in your pet’s body. Most rabies shots last eight years. 

24:31
Dr. Carol Osborne
As far as the distemper parvo hepatitis combo, those last four plus years. So those are just kind of Good things to keep in mind. I think the weather in Canada is not that dissimilar to the weather here in the States. And when it comes to, for example, heartworm medications that we often give on a monthly basis so that if a mosquito carrying heartworm disease would bite our pet doesn’t come down with heartworm disease. Now the reality is mosquitoes, there’s not a lot of mosquitoes around in the winter when the snow is out there. So giving your pet a heartworm preventative year round doesn’t really make that much sense. They’re effective because they are, you know, they have a level of toxicity, if you will, that prevents the microfilaria from developing into a mature heartwarming. 

25:34
Dr. Carol Osborne
So letting your pet’s body detox over that four to six month period makes a lot of sense to me. The same, I would say, is very true with your flea and tick preventative nexguard. And there’s a whole list of other commercial preparations available. For the most part, bugs in winter are not plentiful. So in my mind, there’s not a good reason to give your pet those medications when you know the inciting pest or flea, whatever you want to refer to it as, isn’t out there. So minimizing those toxic pesticides and prescriptions, considering titers instead of just all these vaccines, knowing what you’re vaccinating for and why. Because again, there are more and more vaccines every time you turn around. But just because they’re there doesn’t really mean that it’s the best thing for your particular pet. 

26:38
Cathy Biase
This is, this is sort of like where we started off years ago with human vaccines and now we’re being asked to question them and even the notion of not getting all the vaccines at once and spreading them out. But you know, when you’re saying this, I bump in personally to, we take our dog to a daycare every once in a while and they demand that vaccinations are done on a yearly basis, so rabies is done or else they won’t accept the dog. So this is like lagging. What integrative health for humans is again pushing up as well. So it’s, it’s very good for people to understand and to challenge. And I think this is the reason that we’re having you on the show is again with our human or pet children. 

27:25
Cathy Biase
We need to just not mindlessly go into this and challenge what’s going on. 

27:30
Dr. Carol Osborne
Yes, that’s exactly correct. You said it beautifully. 

27:34
Cathy Biase
Well and when we talk about, you know, let’s just go through all of the common notions, we go to the store, we buy a bag of kibble generally, I would imagine, I guess we have to start reading labels there, just as I preach reading labels. When you’re buying your own food, read the labels. What are the top three things that you’re looking for if you’re going to go the kibble route? Let’s start there. If you’re going to go the dry food route, what is, say, the top one, two, three things that you’re looking for and what you’re trying to avoid? 

28:06
Music
Well. 

28:09
Dr. Carol Osborne
I think a better way to look at the pet food situation, Kathy, is that first of all, you have to realize that those pet food companies are multi billion dollar entities and their bottom line is the buck, believe me. Now, when it comes to feeding, most Americans, and I would guess many Canadians as well, have basically been brainwashed by the multimillion dollar ad campaigns that those pet food companies put out on tv, on radio, on the Internet, on social media and everywhere else you look. So the fact of the matter is, and I’m going to address this primarily with dogs right now, is if we sit down for dinner, Kathy, and we have a chicken breast and some broccoli one night, salmon and green beans the next, turkey and cauliflower the next, that’s as good for you as it is for your pet. 

29:15
Dr. Carol Osborne
And that’s why they pay those graphic artists lots of money to paint all those pretty pictures on the boxes and the bags, because they want you to believe that’s actually what’s in, let’s say, that box of dry dog food that we refer to as kibble. But here’s what I can tell you. 

29:37
Dr. Carol Osborne
When that chicken, for example, goes into the rendering factory, the breast, the thigh and the leg, the parts that you and I think about, those parts go over to the human side and the parts of that chicken that are literally left lying on that floor, considered, and I quote, inedible for human consumption, those are the parts that go over to the pet food side and then in order to get the correct amount of protein, et cetera, that AAFCO requires to be put in that bag of food, things like melamine and cyanuronic acid, a chemical used to clean swimming pools, are used and approved by AAFCO to, and I quote, artificially increase the protein content, end quote. 

30:37
Dr. Carol Osborne
So for those of you that are old enough to remember Back to the 2003 and the 2007 menu, pet food recalls where over a Quarter of a million pets lost their lives. The reason that happened is because the melamine combined with the siluronic acid in the proximal kidney tubules or in iglis, just in the kidneys, it formed an insoluble precipitate that caused acute kidney failure and the death of all those helpless dogs and cats. Now, after that happened, what those pet food companies did, first of all, they hired a whole bunch of lawyers, and then they had to pay off all the lawyers and all those pet owners. So what they did is they hired more graphic artists to paint prettier pictures and to change the names to natural green, healthy names. 

31:36
Dr. Carol Osborne
If you think for one minute that they increase the quality of what they put in the pet food bags, then I would say go to fda.gov recall and just look at the list of pet food recalls that have gone on a daily basis ever since then. And it’s almost unbelievable, you know, and it’s. 

32:01
Cathy Biase
We don’t think that way. And this is what we need to start doing. It’s honest to goodness. It just sounds like the human path that we’re now going on with our animals. I want to leave that there to resonate with everybody. We’re going to take just a very quick break, Dr. Carol, and come back because this is a fascinating conversation. It’s got my heart going. So we’ll be back in a minute. 

32:31
Music
I was blinded, you gave me eyes to see I was going under you reached out to me. No, there’s nothing you won’t do. To pick me up and pull me through every hour, eight days a week yeah, your love is like a fountain. 

32:57
Dr. Carol Osborne
It’ll never run dry. It’ll never run dry. 

33:03
Music
Your love is mine. Moving mountains Every day in my life. Every day in my life. 

33:12
Dr. Carol Osborne
Can I get a witness? 

33:17
Music
Hallelujah, hallelujah. We want glory but can’t measure up. We try money but don’t get enough. We fill our sky with fading lights trying to guide us through the night. But you’re the one thing and that’ll carry us. Because your love is like a fountain. 

33:52
Dr. Carol Osborne
It’ll never run dry. It’ll never run dry. 

33:58
Music
Your love is moving my mountain Every day, my life, Every day of my life. Can I get a witness? 

34:31
Cathy Biase
Welcome back, everybody. We’re here with Dr. Carol Osborne, and it is eye opening for me, for you pet owners. You really do need to, you know, sit up straight, like I’m doing here, and take a listen. Fascinating stuff. Dr. Carol. I know I’m not going to get to the end of all the questions I have here. So I’m going to try and combine a few things. Considering diet, most of us thought that. I shouldn’t say most of us. I thought that. I can’t speak for everybody. I thought that what I was buying was highly, you know, very good food. I was told that I researched it and, you know, maybe in vain. However, let’s talk about the diet you would recommend and the lifestyle you would recommend. This is a big question to give our dogs the healthiest, happiest, life with longevity. 

35:21
Dr. Carol Osborne
Kathy, that’s a great point. And before we end our little diet discussion, I just want to say that when you go out there, if the dry food is what works for your lifestyle, avoid the grain free diets for now until they’re able to figure out the real problem of why these dogs are getting heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy and whatever the connection is with the grain free diets. If your dog has been on a grain free diet, my suggestion is get the supplement called Taurine. T A U R I N E. I would say 2 to 250 milligrams for a small dog, 30 pounds and under, 500 milligrams for a medium dog, going up to 60 pounds and 750 to 1,000 milligrams for your large and your giant breed dogs. 

36:22
Dr. Carol Osborne
I would keep my dog on a toe ring shuffle supplement for an easy four to six months. And I would also transition over to a diet that has grain. Whether you’re making a homemade diet, 1/3 meat, which is your protein, 1/3 long acting carbs, 1/3 vegetables, or whether you don’t want to put the carbs in there, in which case you’re going to make it 50. 50 fresh veggies with the cruciferous on top of 50% of your meat. Add a comprehensive balanced vitamin mineral supplement and add taurine just to be safe. Don’t be afraid to look at some of these raw frozen diets. Primal in particular. I have no connection with it. It’s organic. In my opinion, it’s at the top of the chain. When you’re getting a ready made raw diet, they are steam pasteurized. 

37:20
Dr. Carol Osborne
So all the things they try to scare you, that’s what they’re doing, scaring you. My suggestion as far as keeping your pets healthy, feed your dog at least twice a day. At least feed breakfast and dinner. Your dog should have access to clean fresh water at all times. You want to visit your vet at least once a year. For seniors, every six months is a good IDEA senior citizens when it comes to pets, are Those animals age 7 and up when it comes to vaccines? Talk to your vet. Don’t just walk in and let him do everything at once. That’s not in your pet’s best interest. We holistically vaccinate. What that means is we do not use the same dose of vaccine for a 3 pound puppy as we would for 125 pound Rottweiler. Again, these are good things for you to know. 

38:15
Dr. Carol Osborne
And never be afraid to question your vet. Exercise. Exercise is a big one for many reasons. For mental health, for emotional happiness, and for physical well being. And keep your pet in a lean body weight. Avoid letting your pet gain all these excess pounds. Pet obesity is a huge problem. Over half of all America’s pets are overwhelming weight. If your dog is one third above the ideal weight for his size and breed, you cut his life short by 30%. So how do you tell if your pet’s in good condition? Kathy Easy. Stand behind your dog, take both hands, run them along either side of the rib cage. The rule is you should be able to easily feel but not see each other rib. Your dog should have a waist which is a little tucked up area right in front of the hind legs. 

39:18
Dr. Carol Osborne
If you can pinch more than an inch or so, it’s time to visit your vet and talk about a reducing plan. And if you have a pet on the other hand, who’s too thin, you shouldn’t be able to see the ribs. And if you run your hand right along the top of the dog’s back, you should not be able to feel what we call the processes of the vertebrae. If you can feel little bumps and bones again, that’s a sign that your pet might be too thin. Exercising at least 20 minutes twice a day. Most pet owners find that they get as much joy out of it as their pet does. I think those are just really the basics, the very most important vaccines. For all the listeners wondering, rabies is. 

40:11
Music
A lung. 

40:13
Dr. Carol Osborne
That distemper, hepatitis and parvo are usually all combined in one shot. And that makes a lot of sense if you’re boarding and grooming a lot, going to puppy daycare. The Bordetella, also referred to as kennel cough, is an airborne kind of like the flu. So that makes sense too. And that’s not really a bad vaccine. Some of these daycare centers will require the flu, at least here in the states. Kathy and if that’s a requirement, then it’s okay. But when you get into some of these other vaccines, Lyme’s disease vaccine is highly controversial as to whether it causes permanent neurologic damage or actually interferes with the ability of your pet to get Lyme disease is a matter of great debate at this point. I think it’s important to remember that ticks transmit 10 different diseases, not just Lyme’s disease. 

41:19
Dr. Carol Osborne
So even if you vaccinated your pet for Lyme’s disease, there’s still nine more diseases that you’re not going to vaccinate for because there’s not a vaccine for available. So as far as ticks run your hands over your pet’s body every morning and every evening. If you find something that shouldn’t be there, by all means remove it, stick it in a little jar of alcohol. You can then call your veterinarian to be sure of what it is. Ticks have to attach for 24 to 36 hours before they’re capable of transmitting disease. They love the head and neck area. So around your house, cut the grass, make sure you don’t have a lot of big shrubs and bushes. That’s very helpful as far as prevention. And if you’re thinking of going on vacation with your pet this holiday season, remember to visit your vet. 

42:20
Dr. Carol Osborne
Make sure your pet is healthy and able to make the trip before you put all your plans and gear, make sure your pet is healthy, get a copy of those health records and get a health certificate if you’re for example, leaving Canada and planning to come to the States. If you’re traveling by plane, you’re going to need a health certificate somewhere between 10 and 30 days from the date of departure. So you need to get all that lined up and make sure if you’re going to a hotel, motel, a campground, make sure that your pet is well at the destination of your choice. As far as that being said, there are so many pet friendly commercial venues, hotels, motels, parks, campgrounds, resorts, etc. That open their arms to people traveling with their pets. 

43:15
Cathy Biase
These days, more and more actually we go traveling. I’m surprised at even the hotels that. 

43:20
Dr. Carol Osborne
Allow oh yeah, they’ve got all kinds of programs and they roll out the red carpet to get you and your pet to visit with them. Remember that wherever you go, it is stressful to your pet. Bring some of his or her normal food and water. Make sure that your pet understands basic obedience. Don’t forget about pet safety belts. And if you have a little bit of a nervous pet, a couple of great little holistic recip, a little cup of warm peppermint tea is wonderful for upset tummies excellent. You want to again, stick to the normal diet. Try to avoid rich, fatty foods. If you do get the indigestion, try the peppermint tea. You can withhold food and water for about four to six hours. And if diarrhea should ensue, you want to stick with something bland. Let’s say chicken and rice. 

44:25
Dr. Carol Osborne
And throw in some blueberries. Blueberries are wonderful to get that colon to settle down and not be so nervous. Some of the essential oils are wonderful for calming. Chamomile with blue cypress, a few sprinkles on the back. Smells wonderful and it just takes away the edge. Kind of like having a little sip of wine. You can put that on your pet a couple of times a day. And if you’re out there shopping, never leave your pet alone in a parked car. And on a hot day, remember that the temperature inside your car within 15 minutes on a day that’s 80 degrees can become 120. So never leave your pet in a parked car. 

45:12
Cathy Biase
You have covered, like, virtually everything. That’s wonderful. I have had a couple of questions come up about the same sort of topic. And vacationing with your dog. Now, not all dogs can swim. Is that correct? Or can all dogs swim and some don’t choose to? And should they wear a life jacket? 

45:31
Dr. Carol Osborne
Yes, pets should always wear a life jacket. Not all dogs can swim. And the swimming issue has become of such high importance that many experts now recommend getting your dog a few expert swimming lessons before you embark on wherever it is that you might be going. You know, remember things like, you know, flat face, breeze, pugs, boxers, shih tzus. They’re really not good in the water. They’re also not good in heat because they’ve got that flat face and their respiratory system is compromised to begin with. Your sighthounds, greyhounds, Italian greyhounds, the big ones and the little ones. Those dogs have almost no body fat. Consequently, they are not buoyant at all. Swimming, probably not a good thing, you know, on the list. And some of the little, like, boxer breeds, they’re just not really made for swimming. So, yeah, not all dogs can swim. 

46:43
Dr. Carol Osborne
You always want to get your dog a life jacket if you’re at the beach, on the boat, or going to the pool. And when it comes to any kind of water, supervision 100% of the time is so important. I cannot overemphasize that enough. And in the hot weather, you know, 15 or 20 minutes is great. But then bring your pet inside, let him take a break, let him cool down. Pets can’t sweat. So the over feeding issue, which can lead to heat exhaustion and heat stroke, is a very big deal. And it is very real. And pets like Labs and Goldens, they will play ball with you endlessly because they’re not going to realize that they’re too hot. We kind of have to do that for them. 

47:33
Cathy Biase
That is a beautiful piece of advice right there because I. Okay, you’ve brought up many points of how I have failed as a pet owner. But we have crust, we have golden doodles, and they don’t stop. They really don’t stop. And we didn’t realize that they didn’t have this capability of the shut off until one of our dogs blew a leg and then ended up blowing the other leg. You really have. They’re human almost to the extent. I mean, there’s. So if someone didn’t know were talking about pets, they might think we’re talking about young children. Children. Now, the one thing I do want to ask you. The paws of dogs, you know, we tend to think that they’re impenetrable. Are they sensitive to the heat? 

48:20
Dr. Carol Osborne
Yeah. Excoriation of the footpads. Very, very common. Here’s what I tell people. Take your hand and put it on the surface that you plan to walk on for five seconds. If you don’t want to take your hand, take your shoes off. If it’s too hot for you to walk outside barefoot, it’s too hot for your pet. And that applies to blacktop, concrete, artificial grass, and even sand. Get very hot. So remember, there’s all kinds of great booties out there. They even have a variety of different little salves that can act as paw protectors. But the excoriation of the foot pads, I unfortunately see it all the time. And another big one is if you have a dog with a big, thick hair coat, remember that in the winter when their hair coat is groomed and it’s free of mats. Yes. 

49:14
Dr. Carol Osborne
The hair coat insulates that pet and keeps them warm in the winter. That hair coat also insulates that pet and keeps them warmer in the summer. So again, dogs with big, thick hair coats like that are going to have a very difficult time when it’s 85 or 90 degrees outside. 

49:34
Cathy Biase
Now, the one other question that I want to get to, because I knew that we’d be pushed up against the clock here. A couple of people have asked how often. I know this is controversial. How often or do you need to wash your dogs? I’ve been told that their skin is extremely sensitive. You don’t need to do it more than a couple of times a year. And then I know people that get their dogs washed and groomed every four to six weeks. 

49:57
Dr. Carol Osborne
That’s a very good point. I don’t think the dogs are much different than you and I. Maybe just a little bit. So if you have a dog that gets a fancy hair coat, you know, cockers, poodles and the like, you’re going to be at that groomer every four to six weeks. If you have dogs like, you know, lambs and goldens, for example, they don’t need to be groomed that often, but they need to be clean. Personally, as a veterinarian, I think they should be bathed at least once a month. 

50:23
Cathy Biase
Oh my goodness me. 

50:26
Dr. Carol Osborne
So the thing to remember is use a shampoo that is the correct shampoo for your pet. Don’t take the bottle off, you know, the bottle of suave off the shelf in your shower and wash your dogs with it. We all have a little bit of a different ph to our skin. So you want to use a shampoo that’s made for your pet or get some oatmeal and make them batch of shampoo yourself, that’s perfectly fine. But if you wash and dry your pet properly and keep them clean and fresh and coat nice, remember that your pet’s skin and hair coat should be glowing. That the skin and hair coat is the largest organ in the body and it is an external reflection of one’s internal health. 

51:13
Dr. Carol Osborne
So if the hair coat is dull and dry and flaky, that’s giving you a big wake up call to see what you can do to address your dog’s skin and hair coat by addressing your dog internally, addressing the diet, adding those great essential omega 3 fatty acids so that we can start to improve their health and the skin and hair coat are a glowing reflection of how you’re doing as a pet owner. 

51:45
Cathy Biase
Well, I guess I’m going to have to go home and apologize to my two little ones because I certainly see where I need to pull up my socks. Fascinating. Fascinating. I didn’t even get to healthy snacks. But you know, we’ll leave that maybe for another interview. I’d like to talk a lot more about diet because I think that’s a topic that we really need to investigate. However, we are up against our hour here your social media sites. If someone wanted to find out more about you or get more information, where can they look? 

52:14
Dr. Carol Osborne
The best place to look right now, chagrin fallspetclinic.com that’s a long one. And in about 10 days. My doctor website is going to be relaunched, completely new and it will be absolutely wonderful. But Chagrin Falls petclinic.com you can call us toll free, 1-866-doctor-CARROLL and we’re all over the web and welcome calls and comments from pet loving listeners all over Canada. 

52:52
Cathy Biase
Excellent. Thank you so much. Any new projects that are coming out? 

52:58
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, we just did a whole rebranding that’s going to be incorporated into our new website. And what we try to do is longevity therapies on pets to help them enjoy longer, happier, healthier lives. And we do that through great honest nutrition as well as minimizing all the things that we just got done, talking about making sure that they’re well hydrated and being proactive preventative care. You know, everybody’s always talking about all the shots, but if you really want to know how your pet is doing, you need to know how their body’s working on the inside. So a comprehensive blood panel is as valuable, if not more so, for your pet than it is for you and I, Kathy, because pets age so much more quickly than we do. 

53:54
Dr. Carol Osborne
So if you stick to your gut and cover the basics, I think that you and your pet will both reap the rewards for years to come. 

54:05
Cathy Biase
Thank you so much. It’s really been a great show. What a great way to come back after three weeks holidays. Love to have you on again. There’s so much to talk about. This is such a new burgeoning area, the area of pet health, at least for a lot of us. I know not you, but thank you, Dr. Carol, for joining us. We really do appreciate it. 

54:23
Dr. Carol Osborne
Well, thank you. And I would love to join you at any time. And the reason that they it the practice of medicine is because we’re all out there every day practicing trying to make it better and better. 

54:37
Cathy Biase
Absolutely. Both in the human and in our animal sphere. Everybody, we’ve got a great lineup coming to you in August. We will talk to you next week on the Health Hub. 

54:54
Music
Sam. 

55:28
Cathy Biase
You have been listening to the Health Hub, hosted by Kathy Biase here on Radio Maria Canada.