Hi friends,
I spent a few days in the warm buzz of AHVMA, the biggest holistic veterinary conference in the country, as both an exhibitor and an educator. I came home tired in the best possible way, and I have been wanting to tell you about it ever since.
Here is what I keep thinking about. Not the lectures, though they were wonderful. The people.
Some of the vets in those hallways are colleagues I have been in regular conversation with for years, on calls, in message threads, across webinars, and this year I finally got to hug them in person for the very first time. There is something about that moment that a video call can never give you. We shared long dinners. We laughed until the tables around us noticed. We talked late into the night about all the possibilities in animal care, the ideas that keep people like us awake in the best way.
And standing in the middle of all of it, I felt something I want you to know about, because it is genuinely good news for you and the animals you love.
The tide is changing.
You see, veterinary medicine has always been slow to evolve. For a long time, practicing the way I do felt like standing a little apart, loving conventional medicine AND reaching beyond it, and belonging fully to neither camp. But there is a whole generation of integrative vets rising right now, and I met so many of them there. Vets who believe there is a bridge between conventional and holistic medicine. Who are not choosing sides. Who believe the best option is simply whatever works for the pet in front of us. Sometimes a medication, sometimes microbiome, sometimes both on the same day.
A room full of people who practice that way does something to you. It is a very empowering feeling. It reminds you that you are not swimming against the tide. You are the tide.
And here is what that means for you, practically. Every year, this kind of care gets a little easier to find. The questions I encourage you to ask, about root causes, about the gut, about gentler options, are landing in more and more exam rooms where the vet’s eyes light up instead of glaze over. If you have ever felt alone in wanting more for your pet than a prescription and a “see you next year,” I promise you: a growing part of my profession is building exactly what you have been hoping for.
I also spent my teaching time there doing what I love most, sharing what the microbiome has taught me with colleagues who leaned in, asked hard questions, and are taking it home to their own patients. Every time that happens, the ripple reaches pets I will never meet. That thought alone was worth the whole trip.
And one more thing. Conferences like this are also where you meet the small companies, the founders standing at their own booths, telling you about the thing they built. And I believe this deeply: with small businesses, the founder’s heart and ethos are the most important ingredients, and they are the ones that never appear on the label. These are people who show up because they truly care about pets. You can feel it within one minute of conversation. I met three I fell for completely, and they’re waiting for you just below.
So here is my little homework for you this week: whatever you are choosing for your pet, a food, a supplement, a tool, ask who built it, and why. The answer will tell you more than any ingredient panel ever will.
Give your sweet ones a scratch from me. The future of their care is in very good hands.
I just had dinner with it.
— Dr. Lily
Dr. Rob Silver, Dr. Barbara Royal, Rita Hogan, Dr. Katie Kangas
Dr. Ambika Vaid, Dr. Rachel Mar,Dr. Hillary Wolfe, Janet Lee, Dr. Tori Countner
Three Finds I Brought Home for You
Mine Pet Platter: A flat feeding platter designed around how dogs and cats naturally eat: sniffing, licking, foraging, choosing, instead of gulping from a bowl. Slows mealtime, aids digestion, and turns every meal into enrichment. Designed by founder Dr. Carol Smeja, a PhD researcher who spent years studying the instinctive feeding behavior of dogs and cats, then built exactly what the science showed. Made in the USA from food-safe, plant-based materials. → minepetplatter.com
Daily Eats: Supplements founded by Dr. Alli, a practicing integrative veterinarian, together with her father, an engineer with 35 years in product development. Her reason for building it says everything: her patients kept needing double the label dose of other products to see real results, so she formulated her own, with every ingredient at a dose the research actually supports, third-party tested for purity and potency. A vet who got tired of pretty labels and built honest ones. → dailypetessentials.com (full transparency: this link gives you 10% off, and supports our clinic)
AnimaSol: Red and near-infrared light therapy blankets for dogs (and horses, and now humans!). If you’ve visited our clinic, you know how much I love red light for inflammation, recovery, and senior mobility. AnimaSol makes it beautifully simple at home: a wearable blanket with multiple therapeutic wavelengths, zero EMF, and fifteen-minute sessions your dog will likely nap straight through. → animasol.life (full transparency: this link supports our clinic, and I would recommend them regardless. Use code IntegrativePetSol at checkout for 10% off)
None of these companies asked to be featured. I use all of them for my own pets.