There’s a story I saw recently that I haven’t been able to forget.
It was shared by a foster parent, the kind of person who opens their home again and again, no matter how hard the cases are 🫶🐶
She’d been fostering a beautiful dog who was unfortunately prone to seizures in really stressful situations.
They started her on seizure medication, hoping it would help.
And the seizures stopped. But then she started biting.
The same situations that used to bring on her neurological symptoms were now triggering aggressive behavior.
So they labeled it “behavioral” and made the heartbreaking decision to euthanize 🥺💔
But what bothers me is the thought—what if we’d asked a different question?
What if those seizures weren’t purely neurological? What if they were rooted in gut dysbiosis, something we now know can influence brain inflammation, serotonin levels, and how an animal processes stress?
What if her biting wasn’t a behavior problem, but an overwhelmed nervous system calling for help?
What if a gut protocol, or a Bach remedy formula for stress adaptation, or even the right anti-inflammatory diet had shifted her biology enough to stop that stress response? Could she still be here?
We’ll never know 💔
But here’s what I do know: The gut-brain connection is proven by science.
And you have to hear what they found in these two studies 👇
🧠 One found that dogs who were aggressive had lower levels of serotonin, especially those showing defensive aggression. Serotonin, of course, is mostly produced in the gut.
🦠 The same study found that dogs showing aggression had lower levels of key beneficial gut bacteria like Clostridium sensu stricto_1, Erysipelotrichaceae UCG-003, and Escherichia-Shigella—microbes you’d expect to see in a balanced, resilient gut.
🤖 Another study used machine learning to analyze the gut microbiota of anxious and aggressive dogs and found patterns in gut composition that could actually predict behavior. One genus kept standing out: Blautia, which is strongly linked to anxiety.
To me, that’s not just interesting. That’s urgent. It means we may be mislabeling medical conditions as “bad behavior.” And the consequences of misunderstanding are profound.
I’ve seen firsthand what happens when we address the microbiome in all kinds of cases 🦠✨
Like Klaus, my very first microbiome case who was a big, handsome German Shepherd with explosive, nonstop diarrhea that affected every part of his and his mom’s life. We did one fecal transplant. Just one. And no more diarrhea.
Then there’s Pneuma, so riddled with anxiety she couldn’t settle. But once her gut was stabilized? Her whole nervous system softened. You could feel the difference. And her allergies resolved to the point that we could transition her from hydrolyzed kibble diet to fresh food.
Miss Penny, a severe pancreatitis case who was being hospitalised regularly, came to me as a last resort. We not only healed the root cause of her pancreatitis, but she also experienced a personality shift. She went from being a little chihuahua who didn’t like being held or cuddled. But once we treated her chronic inflammation at the root? She relaxed. She started wanting to be touched. Seeking connection.
And Jinju, 16 years old, and now more vibrant than ever. We call her the “upgraded version of Jinju” of herself. She really shifted into her Queen Era after working on her microbiome 👸🏻
Then there’s Paddington. She used to growl at other dogs and couldn’t handle social environments. Now after receiving microbiome therapy for her chronic diarrhea? She walks into doggy daycare like she owns the place with a full crew of besties by her side. (And her diarrhea is also totally gone).
That’s what happens when we stop labeling pets as “difficult to manage” or “difficult to treat” and start supporting what their bodies actually need.
We actually talked about this during our Gut Health Masterclass inside the Concierge Membership 🦠✨
One of our members asked why her pet’s gut health wasn’t improving, even though she was feeding a rich, varied diet and using probiotics. Her microbiome test results just weren’t showing stronger colonies.
Here’s what I told her…
…sometimes, the best gut bacteria just can’t “take” because the gut lining isn’t in a good enough state to support them 💁♀️
If the inside walls of the gut are inflamed or damaged, they can’t properly host healthy bacteria. Even the best diet won’t take root.
It’s like trying to grow a garden in dry, cracked soil ☀️
That’s why I’m now offering a new test through Pet Innovative Lab that checks the health of your pet’s gut lining—so we can see if healing the environment itself is the missing link.
These are the kinds of exciting conversations we’re having inside the Concierge Membership 🛎️💖
So if you’d love to be part of the inner circle and have these conversations with us come join us 🛎️
I’d truly love to welcome you!
With love,
Dr. Lily 💜
P.S. Curious about the gut health masterclass I mentioned? If you join the Concierge Membership, you can watch the replay right away inside the member portal. It’s waiting for you the moment you sign in 🦠✨
P.P.S. You can now, for a limited time, join Concierge for $97 a month. Go check out 👉 The Crystal Tier.