Paws For Reflection

08/22/2026

I can’t agree more! And they need your presence, off your phone and off your headset. ✨💕 watch the change!

Did you know one of the simplest ways to make your dog happier is to let them sniff?
A 2025 study showed that dogs who spent just two weeks doing daily nose work approached new situations with greater optimism, confidence and curiosity.
Why? Because sniffing isn’t just how dogs explore the world; I t’s how they think, solve problems, and satisfy one of their most important natural instincts.
Every walk doesn’t have to be about covering distance. Slow, strolling “sniffaris,” scent games, hidden treats, and nose work activities give your dog’s brain the enrichment it craves while helping reduce stress and improve emotional well-being.
Sometimes the best thing you can do for your dog’s mental health is simply giving them permission to stop... sniff... and experience the world the way nature intended. 🐾
🐾 Let your dog lead the next walk. You might be surprised how much happier you both become.

08/08/2026

Worth the effort.

🧬 CAN WHAT YOUR DOG EATS CHANGE HOW FAST THEIR BODY AGES?

A fascinating new peer-reviewed pilot study suggests it might.
Researchers followed pugs for 6 months, comparing dogs that stayed on extruded dry kibble with dogs switched to a cooked, minimally processed, human-grade diet formulated by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist.

Instead of just measuring weight or bloodwork, researchers looked at changes in the dogs’ DNA associated with biological aging — essentially, how old their bodies appeared compared with their actual age.

🥩 The surprising finding? Dogs switched to fresh food showed a nearly 1-year shift toward a younger biological age in just 6 months, while dogs that stayed on kibble did not show a significant change.

🥩 Fresh food: +2.75 years → +1.80 years
🥣 Kibble: +2.77 years → +2.46 years

Even more interesting, the dogs’ bodyweights remained stable, suggesting the shift wasn’t simply due to weight loss. Researchers also found significant changes involving KISS1R, a gene associated with metabolism and obesity, in the fresh-fed dogs but not the kibble-fed dogs.

Published in Veterinary Record Open, a peer-reviewed journal of the British Veterinary Association published by Wiley, the study adds to growing research on the potential benefits of balanced, minimally processed foods.

🥦 Want to add more fresh food to your pet’s bowl but aren’t sure where to start? That’s why Dr. Karen Becker and Rodney Habib wrote The Forever Dog LIFE.

It includes 30+ complete and balanced fresh-food recipes that can be served raw, poached, slow-cooked, or baked, with versions for dogs and cats, different activity levels and life stages, plus hundreds of variations online.

Whether you feed fully fresh or simply want to add more fresh food, The Forever Dog LIFE helps you do fresh food right. 🐶🐱🥩🥦

07/31/2026

An option for transitional spaying and neutering. “Let's be clear: the debate is not whether dogs should be sterilized—it's how they should be sterilized. Hysterectomy and vasectomy prevent reproduction just as effectively as traditional spay and neuter procedures while preserving the hormones that science has shown are essential for lifelong health. We can achieve both goals: zero unwanted litters and better long-term endocrine health. Responsible population control and hormone preservation are not opposing ideals—they should be the new standard.

To find a vet that performs hormone-sparing sterilizations, visit: https://www.parsemus.org/vet-directory/

To download a summary of the research: https://www.proactivepaws.com/pages/veterinary-science-review-2025-spay-neuter-health-effects

To learn more about this topic, including how to support des*xed dogs with HRT: www.hormonehealthfordogs.org

To sign the petition encouraging vet schools to teach students diversified sterilization techniques: change.org

DOES SPAYING OR NEUTERING REALLY MAKE DOGS CALMER?

For decades, many people have been told that spaying or neutering helps reduce unwanted behaviors. But a new 2026 peer-reviewed review published in Animal Reproduction suggests the science is more complicated.

After reviewing decades of research, the authors concluded there’s not enough consistent evidence to recommend spaying or neutering solely to change behavior. In fact, several studies included in the review found some dogs showed more fear, anxiety, or certain forms of aggression after being spayed or neutered.

Why? The review explains that reproductive hormones don’t just influence reproduction. They also play important roles in brain function, learning, memory, stress responses, and emotional regulation. Removing those hormones may affect dogs differently depending on their genetics, age, s*x, breed, and individual temperament.

One of the most interesting parts of the review is that the authors discuss hormone-preserving alternatives that prevent breeding while allowing the body to continue producing its natural hormones. These include:

🐕 Vasectomy – prevents male dogs from reproducing while leaving the testicles in place, so testosterone production continues.

🐕 Ovary-sparing spay – removes the uterus but leaves one or both ovaries intact, preventing pregnancy while preserving ovarian hormone production.

The authors suggest they deserve more attention because they can help preserve some of the health and behavioral benefits associated with natural hormones while still preventing unwanted litters.

The review doesn’t argue that dogs should or shouldn’t be spayed or neutered. Instead, it encourages veterinarians and pet owners to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach and make decisions based on each dog’s individual health, lifestyle, behavior, and risk of reproduction.

07/23/2026

💕✨🐾

07/07/2026

Great food tip.

🍠 Sweet potatoes are a great add to your dog’s bowl. They’re packed with beta-carotene, a powerful antioxidant that dogs convert into vitamin A to support healthy vision, skin, immune function, and overall cellular health.

And sweet potatoes are also great for your dog’s gut. They contain resistant starch, pectin, and other prebiotic fibers that feed beneficial gut bacteria. As these fibers are fermented, they produce beneficial short-chain fatty acids like butyrate, which help support the gut lining, immune system, and a healthy intestinal environment. Interestingly, a recent peer-reviewed study found that dogs with skin allergies had fewer gut bacteria that produce these beneficial compounds, highlighting the close connection between gut health and immune health.

One of my favorite nutrition tricks is to steam, cool, and serve sweet potatoes. Steaming helps preserve beta-carotene while making it more available. Refrigerating cooked sweet potatoes overnight converts some of the starch into gut-friendly resistant starch that feeds beneficial bacteria. Finally, serving sweet potatoes with plain full-fat yogurt, a hard-boiled egg, sardines, herring, or fish oil helps your dog absorb more beta-carotene.

Whenever possible, choose organic sweet potatoes and leave the peel on, as the skin contains extra fiber and polyphenols that help nourish beneficial gut bacteria while also reducing exposure to pesticide residues.

Sweet potatoes come packaged in a whole-food matrix rich in beta-carotene, vitamins, minerals, and prebiotic fibers. Cooling them overnight also helps reduce the blood sugar response by increasing resistant starch.

🍠 How much should you feed?

• Small dogs (under 20 lb / 9 kg): 1–2 teaspoons daily
• Medium dogs (20–50 lb / 9–23 kg): 1–2 tablespoons daily
• Large dogs (50–90 lb / 23–41 kg): 2–4 tablespoons daily
• Giant dogs (over 90 lb / 41 kg): Up to ¼–½ cup daily

Remember, healthy add ins can make up about 10% of your dog’s daily calories.

07/06/2026

An important reminder that Integrative Medicine really helps our animal friends.

A ten-year-old female neutered Parson Russell Terrier presented with chronic anxiety-driven behaviours, including separation anxiety, fear aggression, noise phobia, nocturnal obsessive licking and destructive behaviours. Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine assessment led to a diagnosis of Heart Yin and Blood deficiency with Empty Heat disturbing the Shen, alongside Liver Qi stagnation with secondary Heat. Over the course of three acupuncture treatments, the anxiety, fear aggression, and compulsive behaviours decreased. This is consistent with emerging clinical and neurophysiological evidence, highlighting acupuncture’s value in managing chronic anxiety-driven behavioural disorders in dogs.

You can read this in-depth case report here:https://civtedu.org/documents/gsWLTppgn695oPmI8njK.pdf

Learn about our Veterinary Acupuncture courses here:
https://civtedu.org/courses/acupuncture

07/02/2026

Great food advice!

🐟 THE LONGEVITY FOOD YOUR DOG & CAT SHOULD BE EATING

One of the world’s largest nutrition studies found that women who regularly ate small fish had a 32% lower risk of dying from any cause and a 28% lower risk of dying from cancer over 9 years. Sardines may be small, but they’re one of the most nutrient-dense whole foods you can share with your dog or cat.

Every sardine provides:

• 🧠 Omega-3s (EPA & DHA) to support brain health, heart health, joints, kidneys, skin, and a healthy inflammatory response in dogs and cats.

• ⚡ CoQ10 to help fuel your pet’s mitochondria, the tiny powerhouses that produce energy inside every cell.

• 💪 High-quality protein + leucine to help dogs and cats maintain muscle as they age.

• 🦴 Vitamin D + calcium (especially from the edible bones) to support strong bones and healthy muscles.

• 🛡️ Selenium to support antioxidant defenses and immune health.

🧩 Nutrition researchers also talk about the “food matrix effect”—the idea that whole foods often provide greater benefits than isolated supplements because their nutrients work together naturally.

Serving guide: Feed 1 fresh sardine or 2 canned sardines (packed in water) for every 20 lb (9 kg) of body weight, 2–3 times per week. For cats and small dogs, simply feed a proportionally smaller amount.

🌿 Longevity hack: Top your pet’s sardines with a pinch of fresh parsley, dill, basil, or cilantro. These herbs are rich in polyphenols, natural plant compounds that complement omega-3s and add a wider variety of antioxidants to your pet’s bowl.

Tip: If you choose canned sardines, look for BPA-free cans. BPA is commonly used in can linings to help prevent corrosion, but it can also act as an endocrine disruptor.

06/26/2026

Yep! Every dog I have lived with & loved got broccoli in their meals. Not every day! Mix it up but 3-4 days a week.

🥦 RESEARCH SUGGESTS BROCCOLI MAY BE ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL LONGEVITY FOODS YOU CAN ADD TO YOUR DOG’S BOWL.🐾

Broccoli is one of nature’s richest sources of sulforaphane, a remarkable plant compound that doesn’t just work as an antioxidant. It helps switch on your dog’s own built-in protective systems, supporting detoxification, cellular repair, healthy inflammation, and defense against oxidative stress.

In a peer-reviewed dog study, a single dose of sulforaphane activated natural anti-cancer defenses within just 24 hours. In longevity research, sulforaphane has also extended lifespan by more than 50% in animal models, making it one of the most exciting plant compounds being studied for healthy aging.

Broccoli is also rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and prebiotics that nourish the gut microbiome and support long-term health.

🥦 One simple trick: finely chop broccoli and let it sit for up to 90 minutes before serving it raw. This gives broccoli’s natural enzyme time to produce more sulforaphane, helping maximize one of its most valuable protective compounds.

Sometimes the most powerful longevity foods aren’t expensive supplements. They’re already sitting in your refrigerator.

06/20/2026

Start now!!

🎆 Don't Wait Until July 4th to Prepare Your Dog for Fireworks 🎆

Remy may be ready to celebrate in his red, white, and blue, but many dogs aren't quite as excited about the loud noises that come with the holiday. We are sure many of you can relate!

If your pup struggles with fireworks, the best time to start preparing is now—not when the booms start. Here are some ways you can help relieve you dog's stress during fireworks (and thunderstorm) season!

🐾 Make your dog's crate a safe, comfortable retreat by offering meals, treats, and quiet relaxation time inside.

🐾 Begin desensitization training by playing fireworks or thunder soundtracks at a very low volume while your dog enjoys something positive, such as a favorite treat, toy, or training session.

🐾 If your dog becomes anxious during fireworks, plan to keep them safely crated indoors. Frightened dogs can panic and attempt to escape through doors, fences, windows, or screens, putting them at risk of becoming lost or injured.

A little preparation now can make a big difference when Independence Day arrives.

Need help building your dog's confidence before the holiday? Contact our training team at (530) 643-0794—we'd be happy to help!