Mystic Dog Mama

Could “dampness” be part of what’s going on with your dog?
Maybe your dog has recurring yeast or ear problems. Maybe their digestion seems to be constantly up and down, or you’re dealing with symptoms that improve for a while only to come back again.
What if, instead of looking at each of these things as a separate problem, we started to look at the bigger picture?
In this Revisited episode of the Mystic Dog Mama podcast, I’m bringing back my conversation with Dr. Neal Loh, holistic and integrative veterinarian, because there is so much in this conversation that continues to shape the way I think about nourishment and whole-dog health.
Neil introduces us to the traditional Chinese medicine concept of dampness — a pattern that can sit beneath and contribute to a whole range of health imbalances.
We talk about what dampness is, how it can show up in our dogs, where stagnation fits into the picture, and why food and food energetics can be such an important part of supporting the individual dog.
But perhaps what I love most about this conversation is that it moves us away from the idea that there is one perfect food, one perfect diet, or one perfect solution.
Because in traditional Chinese medicine, context matters.
The individual dog matters. Their constitution matters. Their digestion, their environment, their emotional state and the foods they are eating all form part of a much bigger picture.
In this episode, we explore:
Dampness in traditional Chinese medicine — what it is, how it develops, and why it can be such a stubborn pattern
How dampness can show up in our dogs — including recurring yeast, ear problems, digestive upset and other patterns of imbalance
Stagnation and damp heat — and how these concepts can help us think differently about chronic or recurring symptoms
Food energetics and individual constitution — why the same food can have very different effects on different dogs
Why “balanced” doesn’t have to mean perfect — and how TCM can help us move away from the pressure to get everything right in every single bowl
Looking beyond the symptom — and beginning to see health as an interconnected picture rather than a collection of isolated problems

The question I really want you to take away from this conversation is:
What changes when we stop asking only “What symptom are we trying to fix?” and start asking “What is the whole dog telling us?”
So whether you’re completely new to Traditional Chinese Medicine or you’ve been exploring food energetics and constitutional approaches for years, I think there’s something here for you.
Continue the conversation
Learn more from Dr Neal Loh
https://www.holisticpetvet.com.au/

Start your holistic journey
Download my free Mystic Dog Mama Nourishment Starter Kit for practical guidance on fresh food, energetics, targeted support, curiosity, and holistic health:
https://mysticdogmama.com
Join The Nourished Pack
Continue the conversation with like-minded dog guardians inside our free community:
https://facebook.com/groups/thenourishedpack
Join me for one of my upcoming Cook-Alongs!
Saturday 26th September 10am-1pm UK time
Saturday 3rd October 5pm-8pm UK time (12pm ET// 10am MT// 9am PT)
Information and booking: https://mysticdogmama.com/upcoming-events
If this episode resonated with you…
Please consider following the podcast and leaving a rating or review. It helps more soul-led dog guardians discover these conversations and supports the growth of this community.
And if someone came to mind while listening, I'd love for you to share this episode with them.
Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease, or replace medical guidance. Please speak with your veterinarian.

Is your dog “allergic” to everything?
Maybe they can only eat one protein. Maybe you’ve been told to avoid chicken, beef, grains, dairy, or a whole list of other foods. Maybe you’ve tried food after food, supplement after supplement, and you’re still dealing with itchy skin, recurring ear problems, digestive upset or unexplained reactions.
But what if we’ve been too quick to call all of these things an allergy?
In this Revisited episode of the Mystic Dog Mama podcast, I’m bringing back my conversation with Dr. Katie Woodley, holistic veterinarian and founder of The Natural Pet Doctor, because this conversation feels particularly relevant right now.
Since announcing my upcoming cook-along, I’ve had several dog guardians get in touch to ask whether it’s suitable for their dogs because they have allergies, sensitivities or intolerances — and some dogs apparently have an ever-shrinking list of foods they’re “allowed” to eat.
And it got me thinking about how much fear and confusion can surround food when our dogs are struggling.
Because allergies, intolerances and sensitivities are not necessarily the same thing.
In this conversation, Katie helps us untangle some of that confusion and look beyond the ever-growing list of foods our dogs supposedly can't have.
In this episode, we explore:
Allergies vs intolerances vs sensitivities — what’s actually happening in the body, and why these terms are so often confused
Food and allergy testing — which types of testing can provide useful information, and why some tests may leave you with more questions (and fewer foods) than you started with
The gut–immune connection — and why gut health can be such an important piece of the puzzle when we’re seeing skin and digestive symptoms
Why it isn’t always about the food — and what digestion, absorption, the microbiome, stress and the nervous system might have to do with the picture

The question I really want you to take away: instead of only asking “What food is causing this?”, what happens when we start asking “Why is my dog reacting in the first place?”
So if you’ve been stuck in the cycle of food elimination, testing, changing diets and wondering what on earth your dog can actually eat anymore, this conversation is for you.
And if you’re wondering whether my upcoming cook-along might be appropriate for your dog, I’d definitely give this episode a listen first.
Come with your curiosity switched on.
And let's look beyond the label.

Continue the conversation
Learn more from Dr Katie Woodley
https://thenaturalpetdoctor.com

Start your holistic journey
Download my free Mystic Dog Mama Nourishment Starter Kit for practical guidance on fresh food, energetics, targeted support, curiosity, and holistic health:
https://mysticdogmama.com
Join The Nourished Pack
Continue the conversation with like-minded dog guardians inside our free community:
https://facebook.com/groups/thenourishedpack
Join me for one of my upcoming Cook-Alongs!
Saturday 26th September 10am-1pm UK time
Saturday 3rd October 5pm-8pm UK time (12pm ET// 10am MT// 9am PT)
Information and booking: https://mysticdogmama.com/upcoming-events
If this episode resonated with you…
Please consider following the podcast and leaving a rating or review. It helps more soul-led dog guardians discover these conversations and supports the growth of this community.
And if someone came to mind while listening, I'd love for you to share this episode with them.
Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease, or replace medical guidance. Please speak with your veterinarian.

What if “reactivity” isn't the whole story?
What if the behaviour we find difficult in our dogs is actually communication - an expression of fear, overwhelm, a nervous system on high alert, or a dog who simply doesn't feel safe?
In this Revisited episode of Mystic Dog Mama, I return to my very first conversation with Dr Laura Donaldson, a conversation that had a profound impact on how I understood Lucky and the way I approached our relationship.
I first discovered Laura's work when I was desperately looking for help with Lucky's reactivity. At the time, I was experiencing so much of what can come with living alongside a dog who finds the world difficult: overwhelm, fear, isolation, grief, and the constant worry that somehow you're letting your dog down.
Laura introduced me to a different way of seeing things.
Rather than asking “How do I stop this behaviour?”, she encouraged me to become curious about what was happening underneath it - and to ask:
“What do I need to learn from you to help you feel safe in this context?”
That question has stayed with me. And over time, it became part of a much bigger shift in how I related to Lucky. Learning to listen differently, understanding regulation, paying attention to my own nervous system, supporting his gut health, and bringing together the physical, emotional and relational pieces of his wellbeing have all played a part.
Today, Lucky is a dog who genuinely enjoys being in the world, and I enjoy being in it with him.
That's why I wanted to revisit this conversation.
In this episode, we explore:
Why the language of “reactivity” can sometimes limit how we understand our dogs
What might be happening underneath behaviours such as reactivity and aggression
Understanding trauma and its potential impact on our dogs
The importance of safety and emotional resilience
How our own nervous systems and experiences can become part of the picture
Asking better questions of our dogs rather than simply trying to stop unwanted behaviours
How we can become stronger advocates for our dogs
Supporting dogs who carry emotional charge in their bodies
Laura's approach to grounding and regulation
EFT and energy work as possible tools for supporting emotional wellbeing
The relationship between compassion for our dogs and compassion for ourselves

Continue the conversation
Learn more from Dr Laura Donaldson
https://fourpawsfourdirections.com/
Start your holistic journey
Download my free Mystic Dog Mama Nourishment Starter Kit for practical guidance on fresh food, energetics, targeted support, curiosity, and holistic health:
https://mysticdogmama.com
Join The Nourished Pack
Continue the conversation with like-minded dog guardians inside our free community:
https://facebook.com/groups/thenourishedpack
Join me for one of my upcoming Cook-Alongs!
Saturday 26th September 10am-1pm UK time
Saturday 3rd October 5pm-8pm UK time (12pm ET// 10am MT// 9am PT)
Information and booking: https://mysticdogmama.com/upcoming-events
If this episode resonated with you…
Please consider following the podcast and leaving a rating or review. It helps more soul-led dog guardians discover these conversations and supports the growth of this community.
And if someone came to mind while listening, I'd love for you to share this episode with them.
Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease, or replace medical guidance. Please speak with your veterinarian.

What if understanding what dogs need begins with a much simpler question:
What is a dog?
In this revisited episode from the Mystic Dog Mama archives, I return to my very first conversation with veterinary surgeon and author Dr. Tom Lonsdale - a conversation that laid the groundwork for so much of my own thinking about canine nourishment.
Tom has spent decades challenging conventional approaches to feeding and caring for carnivores, and in this conversation we explore one of the foundations of his work: why he believes raw meaty bones are so important to canine health and wellbeing.
But this conversation goes far beyond what belongs in the bowl.
We explore the dog as a facultative carnivore and what that might tell us about nourishment, behaviour and physiology. Tom also introduces his thinking around cybernetics — the idea that living systems are interconnected and regulated through feedback — and how this framework led him to develop a hypothesis about the relationship between periodontal disease and the wider health of carnivores.
In this episode, we explore:
Why Tom believes raw meaty bones are fundamental to the health of carnivores
What it means to consider the dog as a facultative carnivore
The relationship between food, behaviour, physiology and environment
Why the mouth may be far more significant to whole-body health than we traditionally consider

Continue the conversation
Learn more from Dr Tom Lonsdale
https://www.thepetfoodcon.com/

Start your holistic journey
Download my free Mystic Dog Mama Nourishment Starter Kit for practical guidance on fresh food, energetics, targeted support, curiosity, and holistic health:
https://mysticdogmama.com
Join the waitlist for my Mystic Dog Mama Oracle Deck! https://mysticdogmama.com/oracle-deck
Join The Nourished Pack
Continue the conversation with like-minded dog guardians inside our free community:
https://facebook.com/groups/thenourishedpack
If this episode resonated with you…
Please consider following the podcast and leaving a rating or review. It helps more soul-led dog guardians discover these conversations and supports the growth of this community.
And if someone came to mind while listening, I'd love for you to share this episode with them.
Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease, or replace medical guidance. Please speak with your veterinarian.

What does it mean to be a responsible dog guardian when science asks us to rethink what we've always believed?
In this Revisited episode of Mystic Dog Mama, I'm joined by holistic veterinarian Dr. Lise Hansen for one of the podcast's most listened-to and talked-about conversations.
For many of us, routine neutering was simply part of responsible dog ownership. It was the advice we were given, and we made those decisions with the best information available at the time.
But science evolves.
As our understanding of the body's interconnected systems has deepened, so too has our understanding of the long-term health implications of routinely removing a major part of the endocrine system. This conversation explores what that growing body of research means for our dogs, and how it invites us to rethink not only neutering itself, but our wider role as their guardians.
Together, we explore:
✨ Why routine neutering has become one of the biggest paradigm shifts in modern canine healthcare
✨ What the latest research tells us about the role of the endocrine system and why sex hormones influence far more than reproduction
✨ The changes to the World Small Animal Veterinary Association's reproductive guidelines and what they mean for dog guardians
✨ Common concerns around pyometra, testicular cancer and population control, and how these fit into the current evidence
✨ Alternative approaches, including hormone-sparing procedures, and when they may be appropriate
✨ Why holistic health isn't about focusing on one decision in isolation, but supporting the whole dog through nutrition, lifestyle and informed healthcare choices
✨ What this conversation teaches us about curiosity, discernment and allowing our understanding to evolve as new evidence emerges
One of the themes I return to throughout this conversation is that we all make the best decisions we can with the information available to us at the time. This episode isn't about blame or guilt. It's about remaining open to learning, asking thoughtful questions, and becoming more informed advocates for the dogs who share their lives with us.
Whether you're making decisions for a young puppy, caring for an adult dog, or simply interested in how science continues to shape the future of canine health, I hope this conversation gives you plenty to reflect on.
Continue the conversation
Learn more about Dr. Lise Hansen
Visit Dr. Hansen's website to learn more about her work and her book The Complete Book of Cat and Dog Health: https://alternative-vet.co.uk/
Start your holistic journey
Download my free Mystic Dog Mama Nourishment Starter Kit for practical guidance on fresh food, energetics, targeted support, curiosity, and holistic health:
https://mysticdogmama.com
Join the waitlist for the Mystic Dog Mama Oracle Deck
https://mysticdogmama.com/oracle-deck
Join The Nourished Pack
Continue the conversation with like-minded dog guardians inside our free community:
https://facebook.com/groups/thenourishedpack
If this episode resonated with you...
Please consider following the podcast and leaving a rating or review. It helps more soul-led dog guardians discover these conversations and supports the growth of this community.
And if someone came to mind while listening, I'd love for you to share this episode with them.
Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease, or replace medical guidance. Please speak with your veterinarian.