99. Pet Health Breakthroughs, Vet Insights & Navigating Complex Pet Households

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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.

Speaker 2 (00:14):

Hello and welcome one and all to another episode of Pets Ad Life. I'm the leader of this three Ring circus, Chris Bonti, and joining me is my ringmaster, Kristen Levine. Kristen, how's it feel to be part of this lovely little circus we call pets Add life?

Speaker 3 (00:39):

I think it's more than three rings some days. I feel like we have a five ring circus going.

Speaker 2 (00:43):

Five ring circus.

Speaker 3 (00:45):

Yeah.

Speaker 2 (00:45):

I've never been to a five ring circus. Sounds intense. Sounds intense.

Speaker 3 (00:50):

Hey, is it too late to say Happy New Year still? I mean, how long can you really say Happy New Year before? It's ridiculous.

Speaker 2 (00:56):

That's a great question. I think we're still clear. It's been less than a week.

Speaker 3 (01:01):

Okay.

Speaker 2 (01:01):

Or it's two weeks,

Speaker 3 (01:02):

Almost two weeks. What day is it?

Speaker 2 (01:05):

I think you know what? You know what? It's 2026. We had a rough 2025, didn't we? If saying Happy New Year in March makes you happy, go for it. I'm not going to judge you. You are free. You are free to wish upon all the kids. According to our producer, Larry David says, you can't say Happy New Year after January 7th. That's the rule.

Speaker 4 (01:29):

So

Speaker 2 (01:29):

We're done. Well, too bad. Happy, happy New Year. No, screw you all.

Speaker 3 (01:34):

You know what I love about the new year is obviously it's a fresh start. You've got your goals and your resolutions, but what I hate about it is it's like being shot out of a cannon. You come off of this long relaxing break and you just kind of want to ease back into work and ease back into the air and boom, you got to fly to Orlando to go to VMX, which I'm excited about, but it's like, I don't know, it's a lot all at once.

Speaker 2 (02:02):

I miss college for many reasons. But the big one is the winter break where you wouldn't really go back until the second or third week of January. Those were the days because you're right, it is full steam ahead here in pets ad life world in everybody's world, I'm sure starting January. And don't worry guys, it's only what, 353 days till Christmas. So still doing it the same way we've always done it. It's tradition at this point. Two stories, two guests, two products. We're going to answer two questions and then we'll say goodbye.

Speaker 1 (02:44):

Kristen and Chris, present Storytime.

Speaker 3 (02:47):

This is a clinical trial story for you. If your cat resembles a furry loaf, this story might offer some hope. So researchers at Cornell have begun testing a once weekly GLP one therapy for overweight cats. It's a treatment designed to curb appetite and help manage feline obesity. And the reason this is important is because six out of 10 cats here in the US are now overweight or obese. And the typical practical advice that your veterinarian gives you to manage their food intake and make sure they get enough exercise, it's not always producing the result that we need it to produce. So this is a biotech company called Axton. They're focused on pet health and they've partnered with Cornell for this clinical trial. And let's see, the trial's going to run for about three months and they're enrolling client owned domestic cats with excess weight. They're trying to enroll about 70 cats, a minimum of 70 cats up to 140. And apparently they do a preclinical trials that showed that the therapy would reduced voluntary food intake with observed. Oh, what does that say? Let's see. All right, lemme back up here. All right. In preclinical studies in lab cats, I don't want to even talk about that. We just use our pet cats. I just hate to think of cats in a lab.

Speaker 2 (04:22):

Use me, test it on me.

Speaker 3 (04:26):

Anyway, those preclinical studies showed that it did reduce voluntary food intake. And the reason this is important is because our overweight cats are facing serious health issues. Things like diabetes, joint disease, decreased mobility, and the quality of life, shorter lifespans. And like I said, the traditional weight loss strategy of diet and exercise don't always work in the real world because cats are sometimes difficult to motivate to exercise. And so it makes a drug-based therapy potentially a big breakthrough. And we won't know for a few months, but I'm sure we will find out and report back to you once we have the data.

Speaker 2 (05:09):

And if you're the proud owner of 70 obese cats, they're looking for you. You're the one person, they're looking for you.

Speaker 3 (05:15):

Cat lady.

Speaker 2 (05:16):

Cat lady. If you have 70 obese cats, give them a call. Okay, you could be really helpful here. Oh my gosh.

Speaker 3 (05:24):

All right, let's pivot. Let's pivot to your story.

Speaker 2 (05:26):

Another hard pivot. Pivoting all over the place. I've got a little story here, and if you recall recently I talked about APAs fish and reptile report. And we're happy to announce that fish and specifically reptile ownership is up. People are keeping more of these pets. But in the growing age of the internet and all of its glory, which is a scary beautiful place, there is a warning that the AP put out now with the internet and our ship. Anything mentality, things have shifted. And who is the expert they brought in here? I want to give them credit because he was really intelligent about the way he describes this issue. Matt Coli, the senior director of international policy at the International Fund for Animal Welfare. He says The dramatic growth in online marketplaces has put consumers directly in touch with wildlife traders and criminals around the world.

(06:32):

In today's society where pretty much anything can be put with a click of a button and shipped anywhere in the world in a matter of days, no wildlife is safe. So it's really just be aware of where you're buying stuff from. It's like, I don't know if you remember this commercial, maybe from the early two 2010s where it was like you wouldn't download a car. It was like an anti internet piracy, PSA, which I always thought was just the funniest thing. You wouldn't download a car soon, we're going to be 3D printing them, so who cares? But it's, it's like the same thing. Think if you're on the internet and you see a snake for sale, really think, what am I buying? What has the snake gone through that it's now arriving with the click of this button? Should I be doing, is it ethical for me to do this?

(07:25):

And I would always recommend that if you are getting into reptiles, the best way to start is to go visit an exotic specialty pet store where you could talk with somebody a, about the care because the care is intense. And it's a lot different from owning mammals. These animals are not very similar to us and what they need and how they operate. And the second that animal is going to be was acquired by the store in an ethical and legal manner. A lot of exotic specialties have their own breeding license and will breed their own reptiles in a safe environment and then sell some of the brood that way. So really just be on the lookout honestly. Would you buy a dog on the inter, you've never seen the animal and you just click the button by and the dog shows up. You wouldn't do that with a dog. You wouldn't do that with a cat. So don't do it with your snakes and your turtles and your iguanas, et cetera, et cetera. So there's my soapbox.

Speaker 3 (08:28):

That guy would be a great guest to have on the pod,

Speaker 2 (08:31):

Get him on the pod beyond the leash, exploring

Speaker 1 (08:33):

The untold stories of pet passion and professionalism.

Speaker 2 (08:36):

It's my pleasure to introduce Dr. Tiffany Tupler, the senior manager of veterinary relations at Chewy Health, where she bridges cutting edge pet health research and everyday pet owner support. In partnership with the Human Animal Bond Research Institute, chewy Health launched the 2025 Pet health challenges study, which captures insights into how pet parents and veterinary practices alike are navigating, evolving health, behavioral and lifestyle issues and companion animals. Dr. Tlers previous work spans giant breed dog health, preventative medicine behavior and nutrition, and she regularly contributes to expert articles to major pet care publications. We got ourselves a smart cookie here, folks. Welcome Dr. Tupler.

Speaker 4 (09:21):

Thank you. I appreciate it. I'm excited.

Speaker 2 (09:25):

Of course. So to start, walk us through the genesis of the pet Health Challenges study. What were you and your team trying to learn? What was the point and what do you end up finding?

Speaker 4 (09:40):

Yeah, that's great. So something that we really strive for at Chewy Health is we really want to understand what pet parents are facing, what challenges they have. Is it something with technology? Is it just their understanding? And then obviously it's a natural fit for us to partner with the Human Animal Bond Research Institute because again, for them, how are animals relatable to humans and how does that connect us to the bigger picture or bigger world? And so we really focused a lot on the challenges that they're facing and how that affects the way that they care for their pets and in their medicine. And it was a really interesting study because I don't know how much you guys know about the human animal bond. It's really, really interesting. But this particular study was the highest that we've ever had. So out of a score of 70, we actually had 60. And that's kind of the relationship that people have with their pets. And obviously you can historically think like, okay, maybe that was due to COVID or maybe that's due to our changing evolving landscape. But in this study, we pooled over 2000 pet parents, cats and dogs, so mostly small animal. And we really wanted to look at how we can make things more accessible. How do we build trust with pet parents and how do we continue to have them understand the landscape of what medicine is and how we can help them?

Speaker 3 (10:51):

Yeah. Dr. Tupler, were there any surprising findings from this study?

Speaker 4 (10:57):

Yeah, I think one that really stood out for me is we found, which I mean isn't surprising for us as vets. We know we're very well trusted. 98% of pet parents actually enjoyed their vet. They're satisfied. But what was really interesting about the study is only 36% were extremely satisfied. And I think that really speaks to a larger context of how we understand medicine. And it's not necessarily always about cost or delivering good care. I think we know we deliver good care. I think the difference is the trust mean, and even if you look at a one health directive medicine in general, I think medicine is great, but the problem is we're not relatable. We're not creating networks, we're not kind of being that mentor when people come in and really asking those questions, we're there in person, but then what happens when they leave?

(11:46):

Where are pet parents going? Where are people going to get that medical education and just being available outside of the exam? Because when they're there, they're happy, but we're not really fulfilling that kind of gap. And I think this is where technology comes in. This for us as doctors can really fill that, especially as veterinarians, we can be your educational group and it isn't big things or behavior and nutrition, but those don't, don't relate to pets either. That's a great way to help people understand their world medicine in general and really listening to these questions. And I think that's a big part of what we've learned is that as veterinarians, we're so good at doing the in-person, but we really have to start thinking about different ways to connect. And just like with education and just like when you're learning something, you have to have three different touch points. You've got to be able to emphasize three different ways because not everybody's paying attention in exam. Some of us are really anxious, our dog is older, maybe we're not listening to everything. And so having that email or text or maybe even a virtual visit that can follow up with to ask those questions, why is my dog chasing its tail? Or should I buy a sweater because it's cold outside?

Speaker 2 (12:52):

Absolutely. Every time I'm in a medical office, I black out. I don't remember what happens, what the doctor or the vet told me. I think that's a really, really great point. Your study touched on several domains of pet health, behavior, nutrition, preventative care, access to veterinary services. So throughout the study, which domain showed the steepest challenge or maybe we'll say biggest opportunity in your view?

Speaker 4 (13:19):

So as Christine knows, I talk a lot about preventative health and proactive education. And I think a big one for us, which I think we knew is 82% of pet parents don't understand their pet's needs. They don't understand medicine mean. We know that. I mean, we're seeing that in the landscape of medicine in general, and it kind of shows when we look, someone comes in for an exam, where do they go after? What's their trusted source? What are they looking for? So as veterinary professionals, not just veterinarians, it should be part of our role to help people understand what are you supposed to do? How do you find credible resources? We expect that y'all are doctors, right? You must be a scientist. You understand how to find credible resource. And I think that's a huge gap in medicine is that we make assumptions that you guys understand the basics.

(14:10):

You understand why I am giving your dog a vaccine, you understand why your dog might be anxious. We're really not going back to the basics and teaching people kind of that middle ground. And so being that change in how we practice medicine because it doesn't just affect us. I have this really funny story that I use. One of my really close friends, they got a herding dog, which they've never owned before. And so I walked them through a 12 week behavioral communication. And it's not about training them, it's not about buying a supplement, it's really about connecting and communicating like psychology. And it was really funny because when they had their first kid after the first couple years, they were like, everything you taught us about behavior, we started using on our children. And it really got us interested in psychology and communicate. And so I think it revitalizes you as a doctor when you realize people don't know and we have to make, we can't assume and judge people because they don't know.

(15:06):

And so I think that's a big part of the study is helping people understand utilizing that. And like I said, behavior is one of them. That's a connector for many people because you see what your pet's doing every day. You see what they're eating. So nutrition is another one, and this is what pet parents want to learn about. And as doctors, we focus so heavily on, like you said, you're going to black out. I'm going to talk about vaccines, I'm going to talk about medications. We're going to talk about your dog getting older. We're going to talk about blood work and radiographs and all this stuff. And you're like, oh my gosh, I just wanted to know if I should feed my dog pet. So it's really becoming that related.

Speaker 2 (15:37):

Yeah, I didn't know I needed to bring a notebook.

Speaker 4 (15:40):

Yeah, exactly. Well,

Speaker 3 (15:42):

To your point about pet parents just don't know, sometimes given the study's insights, do you have some recommendations for pet parents? I guess the question would be what resources should they look to or what questions should they be asking their vet so that they feel more supported after that veterinary visit?

Speaker 4 (16:08):

Yeah, exactly. So number one, it's totally okay to bother us. You are never doing too much. I think another thing that I want to emphasize too is I'm not always the smartest person there. So really getting out of that head space of like, I have to talk to the doctor. When you think of human medicine, sometimes your nurses are the specialists who really are that relatable educational resource. So when you think about going to your vet clinic, make sure you're utilizing the whole team because a lot of times I'm busy, but sometimes my credentialed vet techs, sometimes my customer support team, they know a lot of these answers and can be just an easier resource for you to obtain. And I think big ones, you're right, write down every question. I don't care how silly you may think it is. I don't think, oh, I don't want to bother them.

(16:55):

They're so busy, they're saving lives, but I'm saving your pet's life by educating you proactively about things that could affect them in the future. And so I think it's important, like you said, to find credible resources. How do you do that as a doctor? So again, teaching, learning. How do doctors find credible resources? Am I going online and looking at a podcast and am I actually reviewing who these people are, what their education is, what makes them an expert? And talking to your veterinarian because it's okay that you don't know, and it's okay that you're not a scientist. And so we really have to start using those tools. And I think that's where tech comes into play is finding those resources like academic institutions, things that we do at Chewy Health. I was a part of the symptom checker team. We actually have a virtual thing where you can type in a whole bunch of random questions and interact.

(17:46):

PET MD is the same way. We have articles that answer questions, how we know pet parents want to be answered, right? I want to tell you everything about Canine Parvo. You probably don't want to hear that. You just want to know why is my dog, why does my dog have an upset tummy? And so I think it's getting that kind of education in place. And then finally, the big one is planned for medical. Be proactive, but always plan for that event. So get health insurance, wellness plans, talk to your veterinary team about what would be the best resource, especially for their long-term care.

Speaker 2 (18:17):

Amazing. Well, Dr. Tupler, thank you so much for taking some time today. It's always a pleasure to have you on the podcast. If there were a pal all stars, you'd be on the starting line. Dr. Tupler?

Speaker 3 (18:29):

Yes. I think you're our only guest that we've had three times. Maybe your You're up there. You're up there. Thank you, Dr. Tupler. I love that symptom checker idea. I'm going to check that out.

Speaker 2 (18:46):

Yeah, there's a lot of really good stuff out there. And I want to shout out my veterinarian, Dr. Wolf at the Norwalk Animal Hospital. If you're watching Dr. Wolf, Norwalk Animal Hospital does such a good job of this kind of stuff. They have a biweekly newsletter that goes out. They have a symptom specific hotline that you could call and have some quick questions answered. And they were so good at doing end of life Care for Tiger and having a very honest discourse with us through, it's a difficult process to go through. And I just think they are a shining example of all the things that Dr. Tupler was talking about.

Speaker 3 (19:31):

Way to go Dr. Wolf. All right. Please join me in welcoming our guest. She's back for a second time. Dr. Dana ble. She serves as the Chief Veterinary Officer of the North American Veterinary Community, which is also known as NAVC. This is the organization behind VMX, which you hear Chris and I talk about periodically, which is the world's largest and most influential veterinary conference, and it's opening this week in Orlando. So in her role as CVO, she provides medical leadership across all NAVC educational initiatives, oversees scientific content for VMX and ensures that veterinary professionals worldwide have access to the latest breakthroughs in animal health technology and critical care. Dr. Bel is known for her deep expertise across companion animal medicine, exotic animal care, clinical standards, and global veterinary trends. She's been featured widely across the media, CNN US A today, you name it, the Pets AD Live podcast. Most importantly, and as VMX continues to grow and her leadership, we're now welcoming tens of thousands of veterinarians, vet technicians, students, and pet health innovators from over 80 countries. Welcome Dr. Barbo.

Speaker 5 (20:55):

It's so good to be back. Thank you for having me.

Speaker 3 (20:58):

Of course. You must never sleep. All those things you're responsible for.

Speaker 5 (21:02):

I know that was a stellar introduction. Oh my gosh. I'm like, do I really do?

Speaker 2 (21:06):

We got to send it to her for our resume. Yeah, we got to get to her for our resume.

Speaker 3 (21:11):

We need to update for sure. Yeah, it's fun. Well, for our pet parent listeners, can you give us just an overview of what your job as CVO looks like from our standpoint?

Speaker 5 (21:24):

From your standpoint? Yeah. So one of my main jobs as CVO is to oversee the continuing education at our events. And our events, like you said, draw tens of thousands of veterinary professionals. We also have some online education, so we certainly even draw even more veterinary professionals to that space. And one of my main roles is to bring together the leaders in veterinary healthcare from our industry partners to specialists, to general practitioners that are again at the edge of bringing the very best in pet medical and healthcare to pet parents all over the world nowadays. So again, my role is to help shape what those conversations look like, make sure we're bringing again, the best speakers, the best leaders, those that are really changing how we see our pets, the availability of medications, clinical care protocols. Now the introduction seems appropriate. It is really a lot of aspects that I touch on. Wow. I do a lot. I do all that. So it's really fun. I get to work with veterinarians, veterinary technicians and pet health professionals from every aspect of animal care, from production and farm animal care all the way, like you said, up to exotic pets and companion animals.

Speaker 2 (22:53):

That's amazing. And I want to talk a little bit about the education because I think what a lot of listeners may not understand, for anybody who's practicing medicine, whether it's on a person or on an animal, they have to do something called continuing education credits. And this is how your doctor's knowledge and your vet's knowledge doesn't become dated. They stay up to date on some of these things, and it's your job to help develop these kinds of programs. So how do you curate this kind of education? How do you decide what's most important for veterinarians to stay on top of?

Speaker 5 (23:27):

Yeah, it's a real challenge, right? We don't stop learning the day you get out of school. Everything that you just learned is outdated, literally

Speaker 2 (23:37):

Pre sister, right?

Speaker 5 (23:40):

Every single thing. And in a way, veterinary medicines really, it is super accelerated timeline. We have more interest, more investment in animal health than we ever have. So things are changing incredibly rapidly. So one of the things we like to do is first, yeah, look at what has changed, what are the most rapid changes? Some of those things are just the growth of what we can offer companion animals. So when I look back and we talk about old doc and the veterinarian that you probably took your pet to as a child, they were great doctors. They really were. But the availability of what they could offer you in your pet has changed so dramatically. So we went from just doing vaccines and wellness exams and maybe some flea preventative, and then eventually heartworm control. And now we have vaccines that cover a much wider variety of diseases, and we have the ability to do far more when your pet does get sick. I think about cancer care. I think about joint health. I think about some of the advanced surgeries that we have today. I think if we told the doctors that were around 43 years ago when VMX first during the first VMX that we were doing hip replacements on dogs, I think they would have been blown away.

(25:06):

Flabbergasted. Yeah, exactly. And it's not just, certainly it's talking about some of that specialty care, but we're also talking a huge portion of our audience's, general practitioners. So the folks that pet owners interact with on an annual are hopefully semi-annual basis, especially as they're pet ages, so that we can do more preventatively for animals these days. So it is very challenging, but we really look at that growth. And we also look at the idea nowadays too, about this idea of a spectrum of care and meeting pet owners and serving pet owners where they're at in their pet ownership journey, in their pet's health journey too. Because the care I provide for your two-year-old dog is not the same that I provide to your 12-year-old dog. And really meeting you where you're at again as a pet parent and what you need at this time is incredibly important. And we want to make sure that every veterinarian has a wide variety of tools and knowledge to share with you when you come in.

Speaker 3 (26:13):

Yeah. Yeah. That's great. And with VMX starting just in a few days, what are some of the major themes or breakthroughs that veterinarians are going to be learning about that pet parents are going to start hearing about? Can you share some of those? Yeah,

Speaker 5 (26:27):

They're so exciting. There's always some, I get really excited this time of year because one, it sets the tone for the whole year. I think about so many veterinarians going back to their clinics with this new knowledge, with this breadth of knowledge that they can take with them and share. And I think a couple of things come to mind. The idea of a health span. We used to talk about lifespan, and we have come so far, especially with companion animals lifespan. Again, 40 years ago, the average of a dog was typically eight. Well, now it's 12, and we know there's huge variety there. A large breed dog and a small breed dog, they don't have the same, we're not talking. It's apples and oranges now, right? You're Yorkie living to 17. I can help you do that today, and maybe you're husky. I can get to 12 comfortably.

(27:20):

But the idea is for those years, not just to be long, but to have more quality, to address things like joint disease earlier in a dog's life or earlier in a cat's life for the first time to talk about, again, cancer care that's not just about getting extra years, but having it be quality years. We think about nutrition and weight management is a huge issue. This is a medical issue that we're talking about in people that we're talking about in pets. I don't want your pet to live shorter lifespan because they're overweight. I want to talk about ways that are realistic for people to get weighed off all of these things. So it's really about prolonging health, not just living longer, but prolonging health. The other thing that of course comes to mind is technology and how we're using it. Everything last year was talking about AI.

(28:19):

And AI is fantastic. There's so much potential there, but we need to make sure it's applicable. And is it helping the average veterinarian? Is it making them more efficient? Is it giving them more time to talk to you, or is it just a fun trick? A fun trick is great, but it needs to have meaningful impact. And one of the biggest potential uses of it is just removing some of these boring. I have to sit and write a chart for 20 minutes. I don't want to sit and write a chart for 20 minutes. I want to talk to a pet owner, talk to a pet parent, and develop a good relationship with them and have a real rapport and be able to hear more from them about how their pet is doing. So it's really about utilizing those technologies, not just ai, but ai, especially in ways that are really meaningfully impacting a clinical experience. So I'm excited to see how that develops.

Speaker 3 (29:16):

And speaking of discussions, we are going to be at VMX next week, and we're really excited about some of the interviews we're going to be doing and that we can bring back and share on the podcast with our pet parents. And it's really great to hear you talk about meeting the pet parent where they are, the affordability issue, more of the personalized approach to what is it that you need, your pet needs, what's going to work best for your family. I think that's a great place to be headed in talking about.

Speaker 5 (29:47):

I'm really excited. I think so many of the experts that you're going to talk to are going to just be really fun. They have so many exciting things going on and are really going to be able to bring you some great information.

Speaker 3 (30:00):

Absolutely. Well, we will see you there. And we thank you for your time today. We know you're busy getting ready for the show. Yes. Packing up, ready to go. Yeah, there we go. Make sure you've got plenty of caffeine.

Speaker 5 (30:12):

You're going to need it. Extra good walking shoes too. It's a big show. Over 700 exhibits. Bring your good walking, my gosh.

Speaker 2 (30:19):

And your B blister.

Speaker 5 (30:21):

Yep. Yep.

Speaker 3 (30:24):

Thank you so much, Dr. Val.

Speaker 5 (30:26):

Well, it was great to talk to you today. Can't wait to see you.

Speaker 3 (30:32):

She has a pretty cool job.

Speaker 2 (30:33):

She does. She does. And it's a pretty cool show too. VMX. Yeah,

Speaker 3 (30:38):

It's very cool.

Speaker 2 (30:39):

In the same building as Global Pet Expo feels like going back home. And of course, pet Side Life will be at VMX bringing you all sorts of vet related content because it is a industry professional show, but there's a lot of interesting information for you all out there. So we will be bringing that information directly into your ear holes here at Pets Add Life.

Speaker 3 (31:03):

That's why you don't want to miss an episode. Ear Holes,

Speaker 2 (31:08):

Your Ear holes the product of the week, and it's time for the product of the week. And let's see here, how did I go about, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is what I did. I went New Year 2026. I went on to Amazon and they kind of do, it's not really like a year end wrap, but they do produce articles and pages on high volume products, products that were purchased a lot. So post holiday season, I was sort of looking around at what sold in grand numbers, and I found this really fun cat toy actually on Amazon. And it's one of those Amazon products that it's way too long to say the name of the product. It doesn't really have a name to it, but Interactive Cat Toy for Indoor Cat, automatic Flying Bird and Mouse One Enrichment Toy hands-free or handheld USB, rechargeable Safe Play Chase exercise.

(32:11):

It's just one of those people who's like, if I put a lot of words in the product, it's going to come up on a lot of searches, but it's really cool. It's like this, it's like a yo-yo. And you take the part of this yo-yo and you mount it to a doorframe, any doorframe you have and you turn it on, it's battery powered. You could charge it with the USB, turn it on, and the yo-yo descends on down a little cat tree chase toy and the yo-yo kind of spins it up and down and uses this intrical motion to toy around with it. So kind of just waves in the doorframe around for your cat. And I wouldn't call it like a smart toy, but is definitely more enhanced than your average cat wand or other toy. And great for us work from Homers when the cat's got the Zoomies and you don't have the time right then and there to interact and you want them to have an enrichment toy.

(33:05):

And the best part about this, it's automatic on sale right now for 22 bucks, list that 30 so you're not breaking the bank. This isn't like a crazy expensive toy. If they go buck wild on the thing and break it in six months, you get a new one. That's what I always fear with these smart toys for cats and dogs is like they destroy these things. I'm going to spend $150 on a smart toy. So 'em go absolutely wild. They had a little video in the clip of one of the cats playing with it from some influencers and it looks like a ton of fun. So just a little year end find there for us. Cat enjoyers.

Speaker 3 (33:44):

I love it. So my product of the week is something that I'm trying with Tulip. So we have been feeding her a fresh pet food that you get that's refrigerated in the grocery store. And over the holidays I learned that Blue buffalo has come out with a very similar product of fresh food product and it's called Love Made Fresh. And the folks at Blue Buffalo have a long history of being a trusted natural pet food brand. But I've never fed blue Buffalo before, so I thought I'd give it a try for Tulip. We haven't actually tried it. I have to go to the store to see if they carry it, but it is refrigerated. They make it for I think, small breed dogs and then larger breed dogs. It comes in a, this part's really cool. It comes in a resealable tub. So if you just take a scoop and then you can put the lid back on it, which I like that for convenience, and you can feed it in a lot of different ways.

(34:44):

You can feed it by itself, you can use it as a topper or you can mix it with whatever kibble or whatever you're currently feeding your dog. And you would want to mix it anyway if you're going to transition your pet from one food to another. So I think we're going to try the mixing first and see how she likes it. And it's funny, Paul's always worried about Tulip, Abbi enough variety in her diet. So that was one of the reasons that when I saw this, I was like, Ooh, this is really similar to what she already likes and eats. So we're going to give it a try. And apparently you can find it at Target, Walmart and many local grocers.

Speaker 2 (35:25):

Yeah, they got to have that refrigerator though, I bet. In the pet aisle, you see?

Speaker 3 (35:28):

Right, right.

Speaker 2 (35:29):

But I see that everywhere nowadays.

Speaker 3 (35:32):

I know it used to be a really unusual, but now it's becoming more with the popularity of fresh pet foods, it's really becoming a commonality.

Speaker 2 (35:41):

And I'm a sucker for good packaging, packaging a resealable tub. Me too. As I get older, the more I'm like, I am buying because it's going to be easy to put back in my fridge. Yeah, so really great product. I love me some blue buffalo.

Speaker 3 (35:54):

Speaking of packaging, can I just, let me just go on a tangent here.

Speaker 2 (35:57):

Give us a rant. A Kristen rant.

Speaker 3 (36:00):

Ziploc bags. Okay. Sometimes the Ziplocs that have pet food in them, they're hard to reseal, but I love the Velcro Ziplocs, they're awesome. Counter a smart packaging innovation.

Speaker 2 (36:14):

You want to know a fun fact? And I might be giving away the ghost here. The innovation of that Ziploc style resealable bag came from the cannabis industry because if you make it tough enough, it could be considered child safe and it's the kind where you have to pinch and sort of press it out first, otherwise it won't open. But it is a really, really cool technology. Really, really cool. I struggle with the, I got these things. Here's a bonus, bonus product of the week, like chip clips for your bag. Put a clip on it. Well, I have this one that is as wide as the bag, so you roll it down and it almost scoops into the roll. I haven't had a stale chip since the Carter administration. Lemme tell you,

Speaker 3 (37:04):

I'm so glad you brought that up. That is a major pet peeve because chip clips, you buy these chip clips and they're like two inches wide and you need three chip clips for the bag.

Speaker 2 (37:12):

That ain't clipping chips. Whatcha doing? And I'm a Costco buyer, so I'm getting the big bag of Kirkland Kettle. This is months worth of potato chips. And they better be fresh. They better be fresh otherwise, otherwise I'm going to have a conniption. I might cry. I bite into a stale potato chip and I might cry.

Speaker 3 (37:36):

All right, maybe we'll put a link to that massive chip clip in the show notes.

Speaker 2 (37:39):

Link to the chip clip in the show notes q and as. It is time for our favorite part of the show where we're going to answer two of our lovely questions from two members of our beautiful audience. And I know what you're thinking. How do I have my question answered on this show? Well, I have a solution for you. We're a solution driven show, and I come to you with answers. You're going to head on over to pets add life.org/podcast. Scroll on down to the bottom of the page. You'll see a form to submit your question. Or if you are feeling as brave as somebody just blindly going onto the internet and ordering a snake, you can have your question recorded as a voice memo, and we may play it live on this show. How about that? Huh? I love it too.

Speaker 3 (38:30):

I wish pets could write in and ask questions. That would be cool.

Speaker 2 (38:33):

Ron will figure out a way if he could invent TV for dogs, he could figure

Speaker 3 (38:38):

Outs letters

Speaker 2 (38:39):

To Santa for dogs. Get on it, get on it.

Speaker 3 (38:43):

Okay.

Speaker 2 (38:43):

Well, our first question, Kristen, is coming to us from Rachel. No, your question is Mike from Scottsdale. I got a little lost on my piece of paper there, Rachel. We're going to get to your question, but the question I wanted to ask Kristen, it's from Mike in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Mike asks, I live in Arizona and keep hearing about Valley Fever in dogs lately. How worried should pet parents be and what are early signs we should look out for before it becomes serious?

Speaker 3 (39:15):

Great question, Mike. And honestly, I didn't have a lot of knowledge about Valley Fever except that I recall that the CEO of dog tv, Becky, she I think had an issue with one of her dogs being diagnosed with Valley Fever and she lives in Phoenix. So yeah, so I looked it up. By the way, her dog is doing great. I do know that. What is Valley Fever? It's a fungal infection caused by, lemme see if I can pronounce this correctly. Coio spores found in dry dusty areas like Arizona. And when dogs inhale these spores from the soil, it can lead to lung infections. And in some case, the fungus spreads to the bones in the nervous system. That's pretty scary stuff. Early symptoms often look like the flu, coughing, fever, fatigue, not eating their food, not being hungry. Some dogs even limp or lose weight or act painful to the touch.

(40:15):

So if you live in the Southeast, do not ignore any of these signs. See your veterinarian. The good news is there is a vaccine for dogs that is in the works for Valley Fever. It might actually be available now because the article that I read said it may be available by the end of 2025, so hopefully it's available now. And in the studies, the vaccinated dogs had a much lower risk of serious infection and side effects were minimal. So bottom line here is talk to your veterinarian if you live in this area, and ask if the Valley Fever vaccine is available, if they recommend it for your dog, and any other tips to avoid your dog even encountering these spores.

Speaker 2 (40:55):

Yeah, I'm sure these desert vets are all over it. Oh yeah, for sure. So definitely talk to 'em. Fungal infections or no joke,

Speaker 1 (41:02):

No

Speaker 2 (41:02):

Joke for anybody, whether it's a person or an animal, them fungi will get you. You

Speaker 3 (41:09):

Don't want a fungus among us?

Speaker 2 (41:11):

No, no fungus among us, but you can still invite me to your parties, despite me being a fun guy,

Speaker 3 (41:18):

Not a fun guy,

Speaker 2 (41:20):

Not a fungi. Alright, well,

Speaker 3 (41:24):

Alright, so Chris, I have a question for you. Okay, this comes from Rachel in Nashville. So Rachel says, we have three dogs, two of the dogs are best friends, but the third one just doesn't seem to fit in. There's tension and occasional fights. How can we create harmony and help the outsider dog feel safe and accepted?

Speaker 2 (41:44):

That's a great question, Rachel, and I'll answer this as a fellow dog who does not fit in fellow outsider dog. In all seriousness, home prep is a great way to address this, meaning each dog has their own separate space, despite the two of them being really close. You want to not really force isolation, but each dog should have their own area to eat and they should have their own area to sleep. They should have a space that is for them. And that kind of raises up this idea of individuality because if the outsider dog sees these other two dogs sort of always sharing and then isn't shared with, that creates isolation. So that's a great easy way. Feeding them separately is another good way. Just get 'em in their own space, get 'em into the habit of going to their spot and waiting patiently for their bowl and then eating without arguing.

(42:47):

Because a lot of times in that hierarchy, it's the instinct of food scarcity and scarcity of resources. And two dogs may be sharing and mal one isn't. So feed separately is a great start. That's something you could do right now. And then really manage whatever that high value resourcing in your home is. Now that could be anything. It could be a certain type of treat that your dogs love. It could be your attention, it could be when they go on walks. You want to be super fair and super balanced with the way you distribute these resources. So just make sure that you have this mind for equity amongst your pets because it's really easy to fall into that trap of, oh, these two dogs get along. So they're the well-behaved ones. And that's not always the case. Sometimes the outsider has done nothing wrong and it's just sort of the social pecking order that has kind of transpired, parallel walks, individual attention, reward the calm behavior, but it's really just about creating equity in your home and start it with food.

(44:01):

I would say 90% chance the dynamic was formed because of food, their dogs, and you didn't really describe the situation. It kind of seems like you got this third dog and the third dog didn't know where they plug in. And you may have had this great routine of these two dogs living super harmoniously and eating right next to each other, or even sharing the same bowl, sharing the same water bowl, going for walks at the same time. You got to force some individuality back into your household and I think you'll see a little bit of success that way. And if it continues to be a problem, it's time to call. I would say a behaviorist, not necessarily a trainer for this. And we've had a lot of great tips from animal behaviorists across the years here on Pets Side Life. So go back and listen to some of those episodes. I do. Kristen,

Speaker 3 (44:49):

Grade Me. You did great. You did great. And actually you mentioned, I'm so glad you mentioned a veterinary behaviorist because as you were talking, I was thinking about Dr. Lisa Adaa, who we've had on the show, and she has this really great take on how she advises people to manage their dogs that aren't the dog they want them to be. So for example, in my case, I love my dog Tulip, but what drives me crazy is how she barks at every noise. And she says, I mean certainly there are behavior modifications, there are things you can do and all the advice you gave is really great, but at the end of the day, if it doesn't move the needle enough, be okay with your dog for who they are. Dogs have different personalities just like people do, and maybe the loner dog is a loner dog and prefers to be alone. So I do think it's a great idea to talk to a veterinary behaviorist if you've tried these things and it's not working, but just love the dog you have and maybe don't spend so much time and effort trying to make the dog who you want that dog to be because it might not be possible.

Speaker 2 (46:01):

That is fantastic advice. On next episode, Kristen will be answering both questions. How about that? How about that? How about that? Somebody sending a question about Batman or something, I'll feel pretty comfortable answering that. Anyway, hey, that is a 2026 show in the books. Cut it, wrap it, edit it, put it under the tree, send it to all the kids around the world

Speaker 3 (46:32):

Under the tree. If your tree is still up, put it away.

Speaker 2 (46:35):

No.

Speaker 3 (46:37):

How long is your tree going to stay up, Chris?

Speaker 2 (46:40):

As long as hope wants. Good answer, good answer. It'll stay up the day I see her schlepping the cardboard box up the steps is the day that the tree goes away. Fair enough. For all of you out there who still have their Christmas trees up, enjoy your extended festivities. For those of you who are task minded and have already taken your tree down, congratulations. You're better than the rest of us and I hope you're happy about that. We're going to be back next week for another episode, as always, from the pets ad life family. I'll say it one more time, even though Larry Dave would yell at me. Happy New Year and we'll see you next week.

Speaker 3 (47:21):

I'm going to do something different this episode. I know that Ron likes when I do these little punny things, but I think I'm going to end with a tail end tidbit and that is that, did you know that your dog's nose is as unique as a human fingerprint?

Speaker 2 (47:38):

I didn't, but now I do. Thanks, Kristen. Tail, Kristen's tail end tidbit. Say it six times fast and I'll send you a prize.

Speaker 1 (47:46):

Pets add life,

Speaker 2 (47:47):

Your guide to the latest in pet trends

Speaker 1 (47:49):

Products, and the joy of the human animal bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bon, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog tv.