100. Celebrating 100 Episodes: Pets, People & the Power of the Human–Animal Bond

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Speaker 1 (00:00):

Pets, add Life, your guide to the latest in Pet Trends products, and the joy of the Human Animal Bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bonafide, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog tv. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Pets Add Life. I am one of your co-host Chris Bonafide, and joining me as always a smooth red Bordeaux, Kristen Levine, how are we doing?

Speaker 2 (00:30):

I'm doing great. How did you know that? I like a smooth red Bordeaux

Speaker 1 (00:33):

Because who doesn't?

Speaker 2 (00:35):

That's true.

Speaker 1 (00:35):

Yeah. I've been playing around with what we should call our fan base, and I've arrived at alcoholics

Speaker 2 (00:46):

That

Speaker 1 (00:46):

I love it, but taste, is it tasteless? Is it bad?

Speaker 2 (00:51):

No, I think it's intriguing. People are going to want to know what a alcoholic is.

Speaker 1 (00:55):

I mean, I want to kind of want to know one too. And we are addressing all our lovely pal alcoholics today because we are celebrating a big milestone. Isn't that right, Kristen?

Speaker 2 (01:06):

Oh my gosh. I can't believe we made it this far.

Speaker 1 (01:08):

Yeah, this is episode number 100. Woo. Look at that. Oh, look at the mustache on that guy. Sh. I should bring that back. Oh,

Speaker 2 (01:20):

I love it.

Speaker 1 (01:22):

Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:22):

You know what that means? It's, it's our 100th episode. That means we've had 200 guests,

Speaker 1 (01:29):

200

Speaker 2 (01:29):

Products, 200 questions, and 200 stories.

Speaker 1 (01:33):

Yeah, it really is incredible. We were chatting before we started filming that our producer thought that we'd do a couple of these and then call it quits. That this was supposed to be like a pilot, a little test between the collaboration between APPA and Dog tv, but alas, through pure stubborn willpower, we have persisted in doing 100 episodes. And the other cool thing about this episode is when it airs, we will be at VMX. So we've got a great episode now. We've also got some amazing content and interviews coming up. So just because we've hit a hundred does not mean we've hit a wall.

Speaker 2 (02:17):

No, no. We're picking up steam now. We've got some momentum behind us. We're going to be talking to some really incredible veterinary professionals here at VMX. So we got some really great content coming up for our alcoholics.

Speaker 1 (02:31):

Kristen and Chris, present story time. It's story time, version number 100 for the 100th time. Kristen Levine, why don't you go ahead and kick us off.

Speaker 2 (02:44):

Oh, and it's so great that you say kick us off because my story is about the World Cup

Speaker 1 (02:50):

This year. Okay. I was going to say, I hope it's not about kicking dogs. Geez,

Speaker 2 (02:53):

Kristen,

Speaker 1 (02:55):

This is supposed to be a happy one.

Speaker 2 (02:56):

No, this is a cool one. 2026. In case you haven't heard, world Cup is being hosted across the us, Canada, and Mexico, but 78 out of 104 matches are going to happen right here in the good old United States. So basically the biggest sporting event in history, it's going to attract fans from all over the globe. And what I thought was pretty cool is that the US Soccer Organization has unveiled a brand new mascot ahead of the 2026 World Cup. And it is a dog, and it's actually, more specifically, it's a Chesapeake Bay retriever, which is, they chose it because it's a breed known for loyalty, courage, and intelligence. So this pup is going to wear Jersey number 27, which symbolizes the 27 national teams under the US soccer umbrella that includes men's, women's and extended programs. And the cool thing is the mascot does not yet have a name, but fans can help choose it by becoming a US Soccer Insider and voting through the US soccer official app. So all you have to do is download the app, search the, I'm sorry, search the mascot topic, and you can either submit a name or vote on some of the names already submitted.

Speaker 1 (04:15):

That's amazing. And I'd just like to say that Chris Bonafide would be a great name, just bonafide. Yeah. Chris Bon fdi, one word, maybe a hyphen in there somewhere. Great name for a dog, probably by only shot at being anywhere near the World Cup. So vote for Chris.

Speaker 2 (04:41):

Yes, vote for Chris, and I vote for Chris to do your story next.

Speaker 1 (04:46):

Wow. Okay. I have a vote. This is the first time somebody's actually voted for me to do anything. I have a fun little report here that got released towards the end of 2025, but I don't think we covered it in the show. And I love covering app's, pet owner survey results because there's so many fun things in here. And this was the bird Small Animal and horse report because those three animals have a lot in common, apparently they really don't. It's the final three segments. But there's some really interesting tidbits in here, especially about Gen Z. So bird ownership, 22% of bird owners are Gen Z. And that is a skyrocket from 2023, a 22% increase from 2023. So I think that's awesome. And bird store personnel are a growing source of information. 25% rely on bird stores for information while 28% rely on bird store personnel.

(05:49):

And those are huge increases since 2018. And I think it's the Internet's becoming less reliable and not enough people are asking bird questions on pet's sad life. So pay attention to that. Those trends for Gen Z track also across small animals. Millennials hold the majority of the ownership of small animals, but Gen Z has gone up to 34%. They're right. Millennials are 35%. Gen Z's right there. They're starting to take over. They love their furry, furry little guys. And you're going to like this, Chris. And 37% of those small animal owners have a rabbit, the most popular small animal. And the second most popular small pet is Guinea pigs, then hamsters. So I would've assumed hamsters was number one.

Speaker 2 (06:38):

I would've too. That kind of surprises me that Guinea pigs are more popular than hamsters.

Speaker 1 (06:42):

Yeah. And then horses. This one should be no surprise. Millennials are now the greatest owners of horses because millennials have that executive money now. We have that old head money. We're not the young guns anymore. And the report goes on to talk about a bunch of this other horse stuff. We don't really cover horses in pet's side life. So I'm not going to stick you all through that muck, but see you horse punts.

Speaker 2 (07:11):

Very good, very good.

Speaker 1 (07:11):

I'm on fire today. I got eight hours. Stop horsing around. I got eight. No, I'm going to keep horsing around. I got eight hours of sleep last night that has not happened since the baby was born, so I'm feeling invigorated. But yeah. Yes, some interesting stuff. And if you head on over to American pet products.org and scroll on over to the press release section, you could see some of the highlights from the report. And if you are a major pet brand or industry mover and shaker, reach out to the app sales department to purchase a copy of the fold beyond the leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professional. It's my absolute pleasure to introduce Jolie Dudley to the podcast. She is a New York based producer, comedian, and lifelong dog lover who has turned her passion for comedy and rescue work into a nationwide movement.

(08:01):

After earning degrees in psychology and education from Christopher Newport University and Louisiana State University, Jolie left higher education to build a career rooted in connection, inclusion and joy. She's the co-founder of Must Love Dogs and Comedy, a 5 0 1 C3 nonprofit organization that hosts dog friendly comedy shows to raise money for animal rescues while uplifting underrepresented performers including women lgbtqia plus and Bipoc comedians. The show has been called The Happiest Place in New York City by timeout, New York where pups roam freely, comics perform in bright supportive spaces and strangers become instant friends. There's all sorts of amazing statistics here. Raising more than $30,000 for animal rescue organizations, 500 diverse comedians booked, 100 dog friendly shows produced across the country. Earned A PBS Shelter Me episode titled Funny Boom and secured a buzzfeed partnership to develop a televised comedy special Jolie, you are living out our dreams. You're living out our dreams. It is an absolute pleasure to welcome you today. How are we doing?

Speaker 3 (09:10):

Hey, good, good. Thanks so much for having me.

Speaker 1 (09:12):

Of course. So your story begins with adopting your dog. Nope. Aptly named after Leslie. No, from Parks and Rec on the Mount Rushmore of sitcoms for me, one of my favorite shows. So how did that rescue experience spark the idea that eventually became must love dogs and comedy?

Speaker 3 (09:31):

Yeah, I'm looking behind me. She's asleep on her bed behind me.

Speaker 1 (09:35):

I'm jealous.

Speaker 3 (09:37):

Yeah. So I adopted, Nope, when I used to live in Louisiana in 2017, and then she moved with me to the big apple. And so she wasn't a pandemic pup, but everybody, our lives changed during quarantine and we were spending a lot of time together on the couch. And so once things started opening back up in New York City and I started to go out and perform and consume comedy, I felt bad leaving her at home because we had just spent so much time together. And my partner had a lot of friends that adopted during quarantine, and the humans could not leave the apartment because their dog had so much separation anxiety. So we were like, Hmm, we really want to go see our friends in real life again. We want to bring our dogs with us and we want to see comedy. What if we combine all of these things into something for this group of people? And that's kind of how the idea started back in 2021.

Speaker 2 (10:34):

Wow, that is really cool. One of the very coolest things to come out of the COVID era. So time out, New York calls your show the happiest place in New York City. That's some supreme compliments. I

Speaker 1 (10:47):

Praise.

Speaker 2 (10:48):

Yeah. What do you think makes the energy in your room so different from a typical comedy show?

Speaker 3 (10:54):

Yeah, so I would say very different than a typical comedy show. One, there's dogs. So regular comedy shows have hecklers that are humans maybe drinking a little too much and saying some things here and there. But ours are mainly the dogs who are barking and sharing their thoughts or howling along. And so one, we have the dogs that makes it different, but two in our spaces, they're not traditional comedy spaces. So you're not going to go into a comedy club and see us. You're going to go into a dog cafe, you're going to go into a dog daycare, a brewery, and we're taking a space and transforming it into a comedy space, and we have to leave the lights on.

(11:41):

So it's bright. And that kind of shakes up people, especially on the comedian's side, they're kind of standing there. And it's weird to see more than just the front row of audience members. So it is definitely bright. It's definitely a different vibe than maybe a traditional comedy club where you're maybe in a basement somewhere sitting in the dark and laughing. So I think just the tone of the show is very bright and happy. Hopefully the comedians are making you laugh, but if you're not vibing with a comedian, you can look down and see a dog. And that's just an instant serotonin boost. So it's just chaotic joy all around.

Speaker 1 (12:27):

And I'm sure the crowd work must be different when there's dogs available, and you could see everybody's face rough. But what I really love about these events is how you spotlight underrepresented comedians, because it turns out straight white guys like myself have had the spotlight for a little bit too long, I'd say. So how do you create a safe and supportive environment for performers, and how do the dogs and their presence add to that experience?

Speaker 3 (12:58):

So when we first started the show back in 2021, right after quarantine ended in New York, a lot of these alternative comedy spaces had closed. So we didn't have, second City, UCB had closed a lot of these spaces for more alternative acts and more alternative, just comedians in general didn't have as many spaces. And so we kind of jumped into that and we're booking individuals that might not be in the comedy club trajectory, and they're more in these Brooklyn spaces, or you see them on a rooftop or in a laundromat and these alternative spaces in New York. So yeah, we definitely made sure that we were jumping into that. And then we have an open submission policy where any comedians can submit to perform on our show, and then we reach out to some individuals too and just try to be intentional about representing the city that we're in and different diverse perspectives and viewpoints and stories and experiences.

(14:08):

But I will say some people come to the show and expect it only to be about dogs, and it's only going to be pet related jokes. And it's not like that. It's comedians doing their regular sets, but the dogs do play a huge part into it. Heckling. Sometimes the comedians will, if they're interacting with an audience member and their dog is barking or really excited, we've had the dogs come up and give them kisses. They're trying to tell a joke. We've had comedians hold the audience members dogs and continue with their set. And it's just really an immersive kind of experience where at a more traditional club, sometimes people go to comedy shows and they're like, oh my gosh, please don't pick on me. But the dogs are like, please, please pick on me. Please. Yeah, please let me be part of this.

Speaker 2 (15:00):

So Jolie, you've raised more than $30,000 for rescues through these shows, and I understand you even feature adoptable dogs too at the shows.

Speaker 3 (15:10):

Yeah, yeah. So part of our mission besides spotlighting the underrepresented performers is to support animal rescue because my dog is a rescue dog. So that's something that's really important to me. And each show, we partner with a different animal rescue organization. And so at minimum, they are a beneficiary of a portion of our ticket sales. So we'll throw them some money, and then at maximum, if their bandwidth allows, we have space for them to come to the show where they can table. We allow them to come up on the mic and talk to the audience about ways to get involved, ways that they need extra support and extra help. And then if they're able to, and they have some foster pups, the foster parents will bring the dogs to the show. And then in between the comedians will bring up a dog and we write a funny little bio about them based off of their personality and their traits, and we'll give them a spotlight in between each of the comedians.

Speaker 2 (16:09):

Yeah, absolutely. Well, I'll tell you what, you've got a PBS episode, you've got a buzzfeed special coming out, but let's talk about where, because we're coming up on time. So where can people see must love dogs and comedy? What resources do you have for us so we can find out about a show schedule or how we can get involved?

Speaker 3 (16:29):

Yeah, definitely. So we are on social media, must love dogs and comedy or on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook. And then we have our website Must Love Dogs and comedy.org. We do at least one show in New York a month, but this past year we started to go out of New York a lot too. So even if you don't live in New York, you could still follow us and join our email list because we might come to a city near you. That's definitely one of our goals is to be able to bring our city or bring our show to different cities and spotlight local up and coming talent, spotlight local work from animal shelters and reach more individuals.

Speaker 2 (17:10):

Awesome. Fantastic. And thanks for all the work you put into creating such a great concept and helping shelters and rescues in the process. Thank you so much for joining us on this special hundredth episode, Julie.

Speaker 3 (17:22):

Yeah, thanks for having me.

Speaker 1 (17:26):

So Kristen, as I was vigorously preparing for the show as I always do, you know me, I'm all about the homework.

Speaker 2 (17:33):

Yep. Two minutes before the show. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (17:35):

I was really marinating on Jolie as this dog centric comedian kind of thing going on. And I had a very interesting dream that I performed a standup set to a whole crowd of people in a theater. And I was dressed in a dog costume, big mascot dog costume, and doing Jerry Seinfeld esque observational humor about being a dog. What's the deal with milk bones? They don't taste like milk, they don't feel like bones. And that's just the sort of person I am and the dreams I had. So maybe we need to make that a reality and I need to go on their show and do my Jerry Seinfeld as a dog.

Speaker 2 (18:23):

I'm sure she would book you.

Speaker 1 (18:24):

Yeah, I don't think so. Their comedians seem really good.

Speaker 2 (18:31):

Was the audience laughing in your dream?

Speaker 1 (18:34):

No.

Speaker 2 (18:35):

Please join me in welcoming Dr. Deborah Mandell. She's a professor of clinical emergency and critical care and the head of the emergency service at the University of Pennsylvania, Ryan Veterinary Hospital. She's a board certified specialist in emergency and critical care and has spent her career treating life-threatening conditions in dogs and cats at one of the nation's top veterinary hospitals. Dr. Mandel also serves on the American Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council where she helped develop the Red Cross cat and Dog first aid course and first aid app. That's pretty cool. Thus making lifesaving skills more accessible to pet parents everywhere. Her work focuses on preventing emergencies whenever possible, and empowering owners to act confidently when every second matters. Welcome Dr. Mandel.

Speaker 4 (19:25):

Thank you. Good morning.

Speaker 2 (19:27):

Yeah, it

Speaker 4 (19:27):

Was awesome synopsis of my career.

Speaker 2 (19:30):

Yes, yes. Well, you've been busy and you've done some incredible things for pets and we're happy to have you here on this 100th episode. And I thought we would start it off by just asking you, what are some of the most common emergencies that you see that are actually preventable?

Speaker 4 (19:49):

So I would say for preventable emergencies, by far, the most common presenting complaint that we see is vomiting and or diarrhea and toxin and farm body ingestions. And these are typically caused by dietary indiscretion, meaning they either got into something that they shouldn't have or were given something as a treat. New treats, food, human and pet medications, toys are typically the culprit. So monitoring your pet with new toys to make sure they don't rip 'em apart and ingest part of it, paying attention to see if they like towels or socks or underwear that they like to eat. Making sure all medications, both human and pet are high away in a high cabinet knowing what is toxic to pets so that you don't have any in the house or in an area where your dog may frequent. Keeping them away from picking things up off the ground on a walk or all things that can help. And then the second part of that is if you do see your pet ingest something that they shouldn't have or they are given something immediately, call and bring your pet to the vet so we can see if we should induce vomiting to prevent further issues down the line.

Speaker 1 (21:01):

Yeah, I always say, I've said a million times on this show, I'm going to say it again, if your dog will eat it, never assume that your dog won't eat it. Your dog will eat it, whether it's some type of lotion or cosmetic or food scrap batteries. Batteries, they will, it's what they do. But I want to ask you about your work with the American Red Cross and specifically on their cat and dog first aid course and app. I think that's awesome that that exists. I've done, I always do CP classes, I always stay up to date on that kind of stuff, but it's obviously going to be very different for your care for a cat and dog. So what are some of the essential first aid skills that every pet owner should have in their back pocket and stay up to date on?

Speaker 4 (21:49):

Certainly, like you said, CPR is going to be the biggest, and there are guidelines, updated guidelines on performing CPR in dogs and cats and knowing how to perform CPR, excuse me, knowing how to perform CPR before you ever have to perform CPR is obviously always important. And the biggest thing in performing CPR in dogs and cats is really where you place your hands is very different based on the type of breed of dog or chest confirmation. And then as opposed to small dogs and cats. So knowing can place an proper way to perform CPR, how it's, again, the 30 compressions, two rescue breath similar to people CPR, human CPR, knowing how to do that is a very important skill. Hopefully you never have to, but obviously knowing how to do it so you can immediately start, because the sooner you start, obviously the better the prognosis can be. Knowing what steps to take if your pet starts choking on something is important. And then just simple ways to try to stop bleeding. Those are, I would say, the three easy skills to know beforehand. Again, hopefully you'll never need them, but if you do, you know how to intervene immediately.

Speaker 2 (23:07):

Sure, sure. And tell us about the app that I mentioned in the intro. Would the app help to prepare us for those types of emergencies?

Speaker 4 (23:15):

Yeah, the app actually separates dog and cat. There's a prepare an emergency and learn section. It goes through CPR and choking and also covers many other emergencies and what signs to look for and what to do before you take your pet to the vet. It also has preventative things and it's really a comprehensive app for not only first aid, but everything that you would need to know what to do in disasters and emergencies, how to prepare yourself for those is a huge other skill and tool that we tell owners. How are you going to get your dog or cat in an emergency very quickly if you need to evacuate, where you would go to which direction you would go to. And just having things prepared beforehand is always extremely important.

Speaker 1 (24:07):

Yeah, absolutely. And I think the other half of that battle, you could be as prepared as possible. You can know everything, you could be an expert, but there's always that chance that you freeze in an emergency. It's just a natural human inclination to sort of choke up and freeze when something goes horribly wrong. So how would you coach owners to balance that sense of doing something versus the paralyzing fear that happens in an emergency situation?

Speaker 4 (24:37):

And I think most people might take a few seconds to try to overcome that. And really just telling yourself the chances that you are going to do something that can be truly helpful and potentially lifesaving do outweigh the majority of times something that you're going to do that's harmful and you're doing these things again, you're always going to bring your pet to the vet. It's not like you're not going to then do the next step. But starting CPR is always better to start sooner rather than later. I agree. Sometimes you have this fear of I don't want to cause harm, but in these situations not doing anything is more harmful. So if you can kind of say to yourself, I need to get over that fear and just try to help to give them the best chance, that's really the best thing. And then if you fear that that's going to happen, also talking to your vet to make sure that everything you have in mind is right. And then knowing where you would go if it's in the middle of the night, say what emergency hospital you would go to, having again, the next steps in place will help you hopefully react faster.

Speaker 2 (25:50):

Yeah, absolutely. Knowing where that emergency hospital is in case you need it, and if you're traveling, identifying that emergency veterinary hospital that may be in a town that's unfamiliar to you just in case.

Speaker 4 (26:01):

And that is actually, I'm sorry to interrupt, that's actually on the app. There's a veterinary hospital locator where you've just put in where you are and it'll show you the nearest emergency hospitals.

Speaker 2 (26:13):

Let's shift gears. I wanted to ask you about vital signs. How important is it for us as pet parents to know how to check our pet's vital signs, what they should look like? Should we be checking them periodically? If so, how often?

Speaker 4 (26:28):

Great question. Because pets are extremely notorious for hiding their signs. They can't say, you know what? I feel off today. I have a headache. They really show very subtle signs until many things are very advanced. And so trying to check your dog's vitals and your dogs and cat's vitals along with other things that we'll talk about do become important. So easy things are mucus membrane or gum color. They should be nice and pink. So checking them daily, few times a week, weekly is important because any change from pink is extremely important. Checking your pet's heart and pulse rate, what's normal when they're excited, what's normal when they're sleeping, so you kind of have an idea as well. And breathing rate and effort, pale gums, fast heart rate, labor, breathing, those are actually immediate emergencies that you would bring your head to the vent. And then more overall things like they don't want to go on their typical two mile walk, it's down to one mile and they're getting slower.

(27:44):

They're not eating all of their food as fast as they used to. They don't greet you at the door sort of everyday things. Again, so many people come in and say, in hindsight, they stop eating their dry food weeks ago, but they were still eating the canned food. Really subtle signs are just things to get checked out. And so whether you keep a log or whether when you are feeding them or when you're going for a walk, just kind of keep a log and pay attention for those normal things so that hopefully you can catch them faster. Now, there are some immediate emergencies. All of a sudden internal bleeding is going to be an all of a sudden thing. But you'll notice Pale Gums, they won't want to get up. They'll have a fast heart rate. And so you'll know at that moment. That

Speaker 1 (28:35):

Is amazing.

Speaker 2 (28:37):

Yes. And thank you so much for all the work you've done for animals over the years and for educating us today about being better prepared for emergencies and

Speaker 1 (28:46):

Being our 201st guest on the podcast.

Speaker 2 (28:50):

Thank you very much for having me.

Speaker 4 (28:52):

This has been awesome.

Speaker 2 (28:56):

That's going to be my first app download of 2026.

Speaker 1 (29:00):

There we go. Mine was the gym membership app and it was deleted by the third. But I think my favorite part about what I heard there was in the app, being able to get breed specific information is really key. It does differ pet to pet and the size of your pet and all this kind of stuff. And I have been a lifeguard before. I've had to do choking CPR and all sorts of stuff. And what I will say is these steps are simple. They're easy to remember, and you'll be surprised at how heroically you can act in an emergency, but 90% of it is preparation. So do a little bit of reading and the Good Doctor said, hopefully you never have to use any of this. That's

Speaker 2 (29:55):

Right.

Speaker 1 (29:56):

The product of the week, and it's time for the product of the week hundredth anniversary edition. And I decided to do something a little different, Kristen, and it has nothing to do with the fact that I prepared for the show three minutes before it started. It's incredible. I've talked about it before. They have these brushes that you can use on your carpeting. You could use it on your sofa, you could use it in your car, and it completely eliminates dog and cat hair. And I have a Dyson 360 expensive ass vacuum that's supposed to completely take the pet hair out of the carpeting upstairs. And I would vacuum and then I'd use, they have one that I own. It's like a mop size so you don't have to bend down to do your floors. And then I would use that and I'd get a whole extra cat out of it.

(30:58):

So these are products that have the full crisp Baf stamp of approval. They have everything from little pocket sized ones to bigger handheld ones. And now for the beginning of 2026, they have a motorized. And this one I haven't used, but this will be the new aspect of it. They have a carpet like motorized shampoo and cleaner for spot cleaning if your animal has an accident on your carpeting. So I haven't tried that one yet. Tiger was always really good at the litter box, even all the way up through the end. So we never had a need for that. But I highly, highly, highly, highly recommend their line of products. I have never, I don't even own a lint roller. What's a lint roller? Who needs a lint roller when you have this? Who needs a lint roller? Who needs a lint roller when you have uproot clean? So be sure to check them out. Uproot clean.com. My number one pick out of the 100 products that I have presented on this podcast.

Speaker 2 (32:06):

Yeah, it's a great pick. Their line extension has really exploded in the past few years. I even noticed that they have dryer sheets and things for the laundry when you laundry your

Speaker 1 (32:19):

Blankets. Awesome. I remember when they first, we gave them a shout out because they won best in show at Global Pet Expo two years ago. And since then their line has absolutely exploded. So it's a great line of products.

Speaker 2 (32:40):

Yes, check it out. So my product today is this is treat for a dog who is in a crate, maybe being crate trained. I know lots of people got puppies over the holiday season, so maybe you're crate training. It can also be used when you're traveling and you use those SUV barriers. It's kind of like a cage. It's a barrier between the cargo area and the backseat. And it's called digs groove, D-I-G-G-S groove. And it's a lick and treat dispenser. It looks kind of like a Popsicle, but what you do is you put either peanut butter or yogurt or pumpkin or any kind of soft food on the Popsicle part. You stick in the freezer and then when it's frozen, it latches right on to a crate or a cage or a gate. So this is great for dogs that are maybe bored or even anxious because the simple act of licking can calm your dog. So I thought that would be a really good treat to try if you're crate training. But also, like I said, if you're traveling or if your dog spends time in the crate when you go to work, anything like that,

Speaker 1 (33:59):

It's

Speaker 2 (33:59):

Under 20 bucks.

Speaker 1 (34:00):

Under 20 bucks. There we go. That's what we're here to help your wallets at. Pets a yes

Speaker 2 (34:06):

We are.

Speaker 1 (34:07):

Yes we are. That's great. I mean, I've seen a lot of similar products because I think the dog in the crate or the dog in the car can be very stressful situations for both owner and animal. Alright, hold your horses, Mr. Jingle man, because we have a little special treat for you all because it's our hundredth episode. We've prepared a list of 100 ways pets add to our lives and we're going to rapid fire these for there are hundred, they wake us up even when we didn't ask.

Speaker 2 (34:46):

They remind us breakfast is the most important meal. Who then that is?

Speaker 1 (34:50):

They teach us patience.

Speaker 2 (34:52):

They teach us forgiveness.

Speaker 1 (34:54):

They teach us how to spell WALK quietly. And

Speaker 2 (34:59):

They make the house

Speaker 1 (35:00):

Feel alive. They make coming home magical. They keep our feet warm. They steal our pillows, they steal our hearts. They make zoom meetings unpredictable. They make laundry impossible. They force us to exercise. They force us to go outside. They force us to stop doom scrolling. They remind

Speaker 2 (35:22):

Us when it's 5:00 PM every day.

Speaker 1 (35:24):

They cuddle without judgment

Speaker 2 (35:27):

And they fart without judgment.

Speaker 1 (35:29):

They know when we're sad. They celebrate when we're happy. They're our emotional support comedians.

Speaker 2 (35:37):

And they keep our secrets.

Speaker 1 (35:39):

They lower our stress. They raise our grocery bills. They do. They make us laugh every single day and they make us clean every single day. They teach our kids empathy. They

Speaker 2 (35:52):

Teach adult empathy too.

Speaker 1 (35:54):

They stop family arguments usually by sitting on someone.

Speaker 2 (35:59):

And they remind us we are loved.

Speaker 1 (36:01):

They remind us we're needed. They

Speaker 2 (36:03):

Remind us to play

Speaker 1 (36:04):

And they remind us to rest. They remind us to buy treats. They do. They keep life unpredictable and they keep the floors crumb free. They keep couches fur covered. They turn houses into homes. They make mornings softer and they make nights cozier. They motivate us to explore new places

Speaker 2 (36:28):

And they help us meet new people.

Speaker 1 (36:31):

They help us avoid people we don't want to meet. And they photo bomb everything. They add personality to every selfie

Speaker 2 (36:40):

And they're free therapy.

Speaker 1 (36:42):

They are also free entertainment. They teach us responsibility. They teach us humility.

Speaker 2 (36:50):

They teach us joy.

Speaker 1 (36:52):

They make holidays better.

Speaker 2 (36:55):

They make any day special.

Speaker 1 (36:58):

They love routine.

Speaker 2 (37:00):

They destroy routine.

Speaker 1 (37:02):

It's like a Charles Dickens novel. They remind us nature is fun

Speaker 2 (37:06):

And they remind us mud exists.

Speaker 1 (37:10):

They give us purpose.

Speaker 2 (37:12):

They give us companionship.

Speaker 1 (37:14):

They give us someone to talk to.

Speaker 2 (37:17):

They give us the best greetings

Speaker 1 (37:19):

And they give us the best side eye.

Speaker 2 (37:22):

They give unconditional love.

Speaker 1 (37:24):

They inspire us to be better

Speaker 2 (37:27):

And they inspire us to slow down.

Speaker 1 (37:29):

They inspire entire podcasts

Speaker 2 (37:33):

And they make us laugh until we cry.

Speaker 1 (37:36):

They make us cry because we love them.

Speaker 2 (37:39):

They keep our hearts open.

Speaker 1 (37:41):

They remind us what matters.

Speaker 2 (37:44):

They bring families together

Speaker 1 (37:46):

And they bring couples closer.

Speaker 2 (37:48):

They also bring chaos, the fun kind.

Speaker 1 (37:51):

They make vet visits and adventure

Speaker 2 (37:55):

And they make car rides iconic.

Speaker 1 (37:57):

They are living reminders of joy.

Speaker 2 (38:00):

And they're fuzzy alarm clocks.

Speaker 1 (38:02):

Yes, they're tiny little comedians

Speaker 2 (38:07):

And they

Speaker 1 (38:07):

Are constant companions. They help us heal. They help us grow. They help us feel less alone

Speaker 2 (38:14):

And they help us feel more alive.

Speaker 1 (38:17):

They listen without interrupting. They judge without malice. They forgive instantly,

Speaker 2 (38:24):

That's for sure. They hype us up like nobody else can.

Speaker 1 (38:28):

They know when we need quiet. We stillness. They bring out our softest selves

Speaker 2 (38:37):

And they make memories unforgettable.

Speaker 1 (38:40):

They keep us grounded. They keep us laughing. They keep us moving forward and they remind us to enjoy the moment they change who we are. They change how we live. They change our hearts forever. They give more than they take. They teach us how to love and they truly beautifully add life q and As. And now we are ready to roll into our favorite segment, maybe our second favorite segment for this show, but our favorite segment where we answer two questions from our lovely audience. This will be question 101 and 102 answered on this podcast. Absolutely phenomenal. Thank you everybody for submitting your questions. And I know what you're thinking. How do I have my question answered by Chris and Kristen? They must be pretty damn good at this if they've been allowed to do it a hundred times. Well, the answer couldn't be easier. You could head on over to pets add life.org/podcast. Scroll on down to the bottom of that page and you'll see a form to submit your question. Or if you're feeling as brave as the executive who green lit this podcast, you could record a voice memo and you may hear your question played live on the air.

Speaker 2 (40:01):

Alright, Chris, I'm going to let you go. First answering question, what would that be? 201 I guess. Alright, this is a cat question from Trent in Denver. Trent says, my cat has started avoiding her litter box and going outside of it. She's healthy as far as I know. So what causes this and how do I fix it?

Speaker 1 (40:22):

This is a great question. And healthy as far as you know, is the key here. So I'm going to start with my number one reason why Tiger used to avoid her litter box. And the answer is three lovely little letters. UTI and cats are very good at masking pain and a UTI. It's possible to present pretty much no symptoms outside the litter box aversion. And your cat can appear perfectly healthy. It doesn't necessarily mean there's any blood or anything in the urine itself though that can happen and it can be a scary moment if you've seen that, but it typically is a UTI. So I highly recommend a vet visit here, but there are a few other things that could cause litter box aversion. And if you have just a standard box, I would highly recommend giving it a deep clean. Cats love cleanliness, and oftentimes when you're just scooping out litter, the bottom of that box can become quite nasty.

(41:28):

So give it a good old, deep, clean, get it nice and fresh, nice and new. Also, if you've had any changes in your routine, if there's more people in the house than usual, it's the holiday season. If you've been having a lot of people in and out of the house through December and the new year, that can cause some stress or anxiety, any type of changes out of their routine. Even with the changing of the clocks a couple months ago, that cat could still be feeling that. Any sort of changes in appetite, if you've changed your food at all, anything that you've changed, go back to the old thing and see if that helps. But my number one crisp bonatti experience as a cat dad, it's a uti. I and UTIs are very easy to treat. Tiger would go get a single antibiotic injection, and if we had that vet appointment before noon, before nighttime, she was feeling better and using the box the way she used to. So definitely recommend a visit to the vet and change anything or go back to things that you may have changed in your house.

Speaker 2 (42:45):

Yeah, good advice. Anytime a cat or a dog has a sudden change, that tends to be more likely a medical issue as opposed to kind of a gradual change. So

Speaker 1 (42:56):

Yes,

Speaker 2 (42:57):

Good

Speaker 1 (42:57):

Advice. And I've got a question for you, Kristen, here from Kim in Orlando, Florida, which we we're here, Kim, come visit. Come visit.

Speaker 2 (43:07):

We could have done this in person,

Speaker 1 (43:09):

We could have. And Kim asks, with so many vaccines, parasite, preventatives, and tests out there, what does my pet actually need every year to stay healthy and what's optional?

Speaker 2 (43:20):

That's a really good question, Kim. It is kind of overwhelming, right? Because there are so many different vaccines and there's core vaccines and then there's non-core vaccines, which the average pet parent wouldn't necessarily know. But I think the best thing to do in this case would be to, I know we say this a lot, but talk to your veterinarian because not everything has to be done every year. It depends on a lot of things, including where you live, the age of your pet, your budget certainly can dictate what things get done at any particular visit. But when it comes to a regular wellness visit that you do every year or twice a year when your pet becomes a senior, there's really four parts to it. Usually there's the vaccine part, there's the parasite prevention part, there's the physical exam, and then there's usually blood work.

(44:14):

And when it comes to vaccines, again, your veterinarians probably going to recommend the core vaccines, which might need a booster every one to three years. But again, talk to your vet, your pet might not need a rabies booster. Your pet might not need lepto sclerosis, which is a non-core vaccine. So just have a really candid conversation with your veterinarian. As far as parasite prevention goes, if you live in a part of the country where the climate is warmer year round, like Florida or anywhere in the Southeast or Texas, it's pretty smart to continue the parasite prevention year round for heartworms, fleas and ticks. But again, you could talk to your vet about that. And then I do think the physical exam is super important. And also the blood work is important too, because that can help to identify any potential problems that you might not know about until symptoms started appearing. So I guess just to wrap it up, again, like I said, you don't have to do everything every year unless you just want to, and you have the budget to afford to do that. But just have a candid conversation with your vet about what your pet really needs and what you can afford, and you go from there.

Speaker 1 (45:31):

Absolutely. And I would say don't skip the stool sample because a lot of people skip that because it's gross. But the stool sample is for dogs. Great way to check for worms and other parasites. And it will also tell your vet about your animal's nutrition and if they're getting everything they need out of their diet, which we get so many questions coming into the show about diets for pets and grain-free, raw, et cetera, et cetera. And the way your vet's going to know that what you're feeding is working is through the stool sample. So don't skip the gross part. And folks, we've done it a hundred times before and we'll do it once again. It is time to say goodbye.

Speaker 2 (46:18):

I feel like we need some goodbye music.

Speaker 1 (46:20):

We need something really mellow, dramatic. Cue up the ai. Give me me melodramatic music here that says goodbye for the hundredth time. It is absolutely insane that we are still here doing the show. It's all thanks to you, especially you all listening right now to the end of the show all the way through the end. We know that it can be a lot of programming and not all of it is relevant to everybody. But we really appreciate all of you hopping in here, checking out the show, whether it's on your favorite podcasting app or on dog TV or on YouTube, wherever you're getting us, whenever you listen to us, however often you listen to us from the bottom of our hearts. Thank you for making my dream of screaming into a microphone for money, possibly. Well, the money part's not there yet, but hey,

Speaker 2 (47:12):

Right, it'll come. It'll come. It'll

Speaker 1 (47:13):

Come. Yeah. Easy come, easy go. Right?

Speaker 2 (47:18):

And in the new year, I promised I would end with a tail end tidbit. So I have one for you today.

Speaker 1 (47:24):

What's our tail end tidbit, Kristen?

Speaker 2 (47:25):

Okay. Well, dogs can hear four times farther distance wise than humans. And this is probably why it's impossible to open a snack bag or a package of cheese without them coming to run to get a piece. So

Speaker 1 (47:39):

Pitter patter, pitter patter,

Speaker 2 (47:40):

You're going to have to go six blocks down the street to open your snack bag if you don't want your dog to know about it.

Speaker 1 (47:45):

Cheese tax baby. Be ready to pay it. Pets add life. Your guide to the latest in pet Trends products, and the joy of the human animal Bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bonti. Powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog tv.