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Going Mutts Pet Services and Nutrition, Fort McMurray, AB (2025)

07/09/2025

🌿 Energetics: Where Science & Intuition Meet

Have you ever wondered why one dog thrives on an herb while another flares — even if they seem similar?

That’s where energetics comes in — an approach rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and holistic frameworks, but grounded in science, observation, and pattern recognition.

Energetics isn’t “woo”; it’s a powerful tool to understand your dog’s terrain beneath the symptoms, by looking at their temperature preferences, digestion, emotional terrain, coat patterns, and responses to stress or diet.

⸻

A Peek into My Pack:
I have three dogs — and their energetics couldn’t be more different:

🐺 Treble (Cold/Damp) →
He seems “warm” because he pants and seeks cool spots, but a deeper look shows a cold constitution:
light pink tongue, chronic loose stools, and a heavy double coat trapping superficial heat.
He needs warming, lymph-moving herbs like calendula to support his digestion and drainage.

🐺 Jazz (Warm/Damp) →
She’s cool-seeking too, but truly warm:
shiny, slightly oily coat, dark pink tongue, strong digestion, and robust energy.
She benefits from cooling lymph herbs like cleavers to keep her warmth from tipping into damp-heat.

🐺 Rhythm (Warm/Damp) →
She’s also warm but in her own way:
loves blankets and sunbathing, has a reddish tongue, and history of obsessive licking hinting at yeast/damp issues.
She thrives with gentle warming lymph herbs like calendula, with occasional pulses of cooling herbs if damp-heat flares.

👉 Even though Rhythm & Jazz both fall under “warm/damp,” they’re still unique in how they show it, and what they need to stay balanced.

⸻

🌀 Energetics Isn’t Just About Feeling Hot or Cold

It’s about understanding your dog’s whole terrain, including:

• Tongue color
• Digestive patterns
• Coat condition
• Emotional responses
• Breed traits (like Treble’s heavy coat contributing to trapped heat)
• Environment & stressors

This is why if you do an energetics intake with me, the more details you share, the better!
It’s about matching herbs or foods that dance with your dog’s unique terrain instead of forcing it in one direction.

⸻

✨ Energetics is where science and intuition meet:

It’s about seeing the patterns beneath the symptoms, recognizing how the whole terrain shifts with environment, stress, and diet — and then picking herbs or foods that dance with that terrain, not fight it.

It’s why the same herb can heal one dog but throw another off balance — and why you’re already ahead of the game by observing your dog deeply, asking questions, and refining your choices based on what you see, not just what a chart says.

Watch → Learn → Adjust → Rebalance → Repeat.

⸻

I’m sharing a photo of some herbs that I use with my dogs: dandelion leaf tea, red clover, yarrow, cleavers, and calendula tinctures.

Remember — many other herbs can be used depending on your dog’s unique needs, helping their body find balance.

07/08/2025

🔥 Environmental Allergies Aren’t Just “Skin Deep” — They’re a Gut Problem, Too!

Most people think food allergies = gut, and environmental allergies = just itchy skin or inflamed eyes.

But here’s the kicker: both types are rooted in gut permeability, immune dysregulation, and terrain imbalances.

That’s why my allergy protocol supports dogs (and humans!) with BOTH food and environmental triggers — because the terrain doesn’t care where the allergen comes from if the immune system is primed for overreaction.

⸻

Here’s how it works 👇

⸻

1️⃣ Bile Flow: The Unsung Hero of Allergy Healing
• Bile controls gut microbes → fewer endotoxins → less inflammation.
• Bile absorbs fat-soluble nutrients (A, D, E, K) that rebuild gut walls.
• Without healthy bile, toxins recirculate, inflammation spikes, and allergies flare — even to environmental triggers.

✅ Better bile = stronger gut barrier + calmer immune responses.

⸻

2️⃣ Lymph Flow: Clear the Hidden Backlog
• Your gut’s lymph tissue manages immune responses.
When lymph is stagnant → immune debris piles up → chronic inflammation → leaky gut stays leaky.
• Environmental allergens (pollen, dust) spike immune activity → if lymph can’t clear it, your dog’s system stays in red alert mode.

✅ Moving lymph relieves immune congestion that drives gut + allergy issues.

⸻

3️⃣ Magnesium: The Tight Junction Defender
• Keeps gut walls sealed by supporting tight junction proteins.
• Calms mast cells → less histamine → less gut + systemic inflammation.
• Smooths gut motility → prevents stagnation → less irritation.

✅ Magnesium = stronger gut barrier + fewer histamine flares.

⸻

4️⃣ Nervous System Regulation: The Allergy Wildcard
• Chronic stress → vagus nerve shutdown → loose gut walls → more allergens cross the barrier.
• Parasympathetic support tightens the gut wall and calms immune reactivity.
• Tools like Rescue Remedy help release emotional tension → less terrain chaos.

✅ Calm nerves = tight gut = fewer allergy flares.

⸻

🧠 Why This Works for Environmental Allergies, Too

Your dog’s immune system reacts to all allergens if the terrain is primed:

• Environmental triggers like pollen or dust → immune overreaction
• Food proteins → same leaky gut pathways → same overreaction

When you heal the terrain by supporting bile, lymph, minerals, and the nervous system →
gut walls seal → allergens (food or environmental) can’t slip through → immune system calms.

That’s why my protocol works for both food and environmental allergies.

⸻

07/07/2025

🐾 Let’s Talk About Dog P**p: Why Going Once a Day Might Not Cut It — Especially if Your Dog Has Health Issues!

You’ve probably heard someone say: “My dog’s perfect — they only p**p once a day!”

❓But did you know that p**ping only once a day can actually be a red flag if your dog has:
🔹 Allergies (ear infections, itching, paw chewing, eye goop, a**l gland issues)
🔹 Behavioral problems (anxiety, reactivity)
🔹 Chronic disease

Here’s why 👇

🔎 The Liver, Bile, and P**p — The Detox Triangle

• Your dog’s liver filters toxins, used hormones (like estrogens), and metabolic waste, then dumps them into bile.
• Bile carries these wastes into the gut, binding them up so they can leave the body in p**p.
• If your dog isn’t p**ping enough, these toxins sit in the gut longer, increasing the chance they’ll get reabsorbed into the bloodstream (enterohepatic recirculation) — creating a vicious cycle of terrain stress, inflammation, and chronic symptoms.

🚫 Why Wolves Aren’t the Best Model for Modern Dogs

Yes, wolves are amazing hunters — but they’re not:
• Drinking from plastic bowls or toilets.
• Sleeping next to WiFi routers or power strips.
• Walking on chemically treated lawns or inhaling city smog.
• Eating muscle/bone/organ grinds alone; they’re consuming whole prey, which includes fur, feathers, predigested plant matter, and gut contents — all natural sources of fiber modern raw diets often lack.

📌 But Don’t Wolves P**p Less?

Nope! Wild canids eating whole prey and roaming miles p**p multiple times a day because:
• Fur and plant fibers from prey add bulk.
• Constant movement supports lymph flow, bile movement, and gut motility.
• They’re not living in an environment overloaded with modern toxins that need to be cleared daily.

💩 Why More Frequent P**ps Matter for Dogs with Issues

If your dog has “allergies” (really leaky gut and immune dysregulation), yeast, chronic inflammation, or behavioral challenges, once-a-day p**ping is not enough.

Toxins staying in the gut longer → more reabsorption → more inflammation → more symptoms.

🌿 What to Do About It

• Add gentle fiber to the diet: steamed veggie purées, chia or flax gel, or even fur-on rabbit ears for dogs who tolerate whole prey elements.
• Support bile flow (e.g., sunflower lecithin, moderate bitters) — but only if bowels are moving.
• Encourage hydration, movement, and daily activity.
• Heal the gut and support lymph — a stagnant gut = stagnant terrain.
• And please, don’t say “my dog can’t eat carbs” — if your dog reacts to carbs, it’s a terrain problem, not a carb problem. Work on bile, lymph, and gut repair first. Fix those, and most “carb intolerances” resolve, along with yeast and dysbiosis.

🔗 Bottom line:

Your dog’s p**p isn’t just waste — it’s their primary detox route. Going at least twice a day can be key to clearing bile-bound toxins, balancing terrain, and helping resolve chronic skin, gut, and behavior issues.

Feed fresh, but feed wisely — for your dog’s environment, not just a wolf fantasy.

**pMatters

07/06/2025

🌿 Should You Add Nutritional Yeast to Your Dog’s Diet? Let’s Nerd Out…

Nutritional yeast is often recommended as a tasty topper or B vitamin booster for dogs — but is it a good idea for every pup? Here’s what you need to know before sprinkling it on your dog’s food:

⸻

✨ What is Nutritional Yeast?
• An inactive yeast (usually Saccharomyces cerevisiae) grown on sugar-rich mediums like molasses or beets, then harvested and heat-deactivated
• Popular in raw and home-cooked diets for its nutty, cheesy flavor and B vitamin content
• Naturally rich in some B vitamins — but many brands are fortified with synthetic vitamins like folic acid or cyanocobalamin (B12), which may not be ideal for dogs with MTHFR mutations or sensitivities

⸻

⚠️ Watch for Fortified Yeasts
• Fortified nutritional yeast adds synthetic folic acid and/or B12 to boost vitamin levels
• Dogs with sensitive terrain (methylation, histamine issues) may react poorly to synthetic folate or high-dose synthetic Bs
• Always check labels: look for unfortified nutritional yeast if you want to avoid synthetic additives

⸻

🔥 Why Some Dogs React Poorly
• Nutritional yeast can be high in amines, which can trigger histamine-like reactions in sensitive dogs
• Dogs with histamine intolerance, chronic allergies, gut dysbiosis, or yeast overgrowth (Malassezia) may flare with itchiness, digestive upset, or behavioral changes
• Some pups experience detox-like symptoms if terrain is congested, as B vitamins ramp up methylation and detox pathways — which can overwhelm a system that’s not ready

⸻

✅ Who Might Benefit
• Dogs with low stress resilience, mild B vitamin insufficiency, or picky eaters needing extra flavor
• Dogs without chronic itching, ye**ty skin, or gut issues, and who show no history of histamine reactions
• Short-term use during terrain rebuilding phases when you want to support B vitamin pathways gently, especially if you’re avoiding folic acid-based B-complexes

⸻

🚫 Who Should Avoid or Wait
• Dogs with active allergies or chronic itching (especially if “ye**ty” smell or red paws are present)
• Dogs prone to histamine overload, chronic ear infections, or yeast overgrowth
• Dogs with sensitive methylation pathways (e.g., known MTHFR mutations or folate-related issues) until terrain work supports safe B vitamin utilization

⸻

🌿 What Brands Are Unfortified?
• Sari Foods Nutritional Yeast Flakes – 100% unfortified, naturally sourced B vitamins
• Dr. Berg’s Nutritional Yeast – small-batch, unfortified
• Foods Alive Unfortified Nutritional Yeast – clearly labeled as unfortified

🛑 Common fortified brands: Bragg, Bob’s Red Mill, Red Star, NOW Foods, Anthony’s — these almost always add synthetic folic acid/B12

⸻

💡 Pro Tip:
If you’re looking for dog-safe B vitamins, single-nutrient options like folinic acid (instead of folic acid) or gentle B2/B1 can work better in sensitive pups — but always match to their terrain!

⸻

🧀 The Ye**ty Recap:
Nutritional yeast can be a useful B vitamin source and flavor boost — but it’s not universally safe. Choose unfortified versions, introduce it slowly, and skip it if your dog shows signs of histamine issues or chronic yeast

07/05/2025

🐾 Introducing Energetics Services for Dogs — Personalized Support for Every Terrain!

Ever wonder why your dog’s preferences, reactions, or health challenges don’t match “one-size-fits-all” advice? That’s where energetics come in!

By assessing patterns of heat, cold, tension, moisture, and emotional balance, I help you match your dog’s unique terrain to the right foods, proteins, carbs, and gentle supplements — because every dog deserves individualized care.

⸻

✨ What’s Included:
🔹 A detailed energetic profile of your dog
🔹 Personalized food, protein, and carb recommendations tailored to your dog’s constitution
🔹 Gentle supplement suggestions if appropriate (excluding herbal recommendations for puppies, pregnant/nursing dogs, or complex cases)
🔹 Educational material explaining what energetics are, why they matter, and how they change over time
🔹 Optional tracking sheet to monitor changes
🔹 10% off your first full consult when you purchase an Energetics Service
🔹 Follow-up support available for an additional fee if you’d like to adjust your plan as your dog’s terrain shifts

⸻

💰 Pricing & Details:
🔹 Puppies, Pregnant & Nursing Mothers, Complex/Chronic Cases (e.g., CKD, cancer, heart disease) — $30

📌 These services focus on energetic profiling, food, and gentle supplement supports only. Herbal recommendations are not included at this time, as I am still expanding my knowledge in these sensitive situations.

🔹 Adult Dogs, Seniors, Rescue/Trauma, Performance & Working Dogs
– Full Energetics Service (includes food, supplement, and herbal recommendations): $50
– Food-Only Energetics Service (skip herbs, just get dietary energetics): $30

⸻

Whether your dog is a playful pup, an aging senior, a competitor, or a survivor of tough times, I’ll help you create a nutrition plan that honors who they are — not just what they eat.

📩 Message me today to get started or learn more!

07/05/2025

Rain, rain, and more rain… don’t look at the forecast for Sunday 😅

… I hope that everyone has a great weekend — just a quick reminder, I am on days off the 6-8, 18-20, and the 30-August 2!

07/03/2025

🐾 Ultra-Processed Kibble vs. Whole Foods: Are We Missing the Point?

Have you heard the “10% rule” — the advice that you shouldn’t feed more than 10% of your dog’s daily calories from unbalanced fresh foods?

It’s a message that often creates fear instead of empowering dog parents.

Here’s what’s backwards:

• For humans, we’re told to eat more fresh, whole foods and minimize processed foods.

• But for dogs, the message flips: stick to ultra-processed kibble, and don’t rock the boat with fresh foods.

• Even when dogs do get fresh foods, we’re warned they could break their diet with a single bite of real food.

Yes, with puppies, getting nutrient amounts and ratios right is crucial during rapid growth — even in fresh diets, balance matters.

But for adult dogs, the idea that a few fresh, nutrient-dense foods will “unbalance” their entire diet is more fear than fact.

Your dog isn’t going to blow up if they don’t have a perfect diet.

The bigger problem?

• Many commercial diets are only “balanced on paper” — or pass feeding trials that prove only that dogs survived, not that they thrived.

• And nutrient guidelines? They’re just that — guidelines. Your dog might need more or less of a certain nutrient, and even if a recipe is perfect on paper (or a kibble nutrient a**lysis), how do we know what was absorbed, utilized, or bioavailable?

• Humans eating “healthy” processed foods often miss the mark nutritionally, too — it’s a societal problem, not unique to pet parents.

A more realistic approach:

• Education over fear.

• Thoughtful use of both processed foods (when needed) and targeted fresh foods — because let’s face it: modern life makes 100% fresh diets tough for many families.

• That includes raw feeders who rely on convenient but unbalanced 80/10/10 blends — often chosen for price or ease — which can leave calcium too high, fat too low, or essential nutrients missing, even if you rotate proteins. These diets may look fresh, but fresh alone doesn’t guarantee balance.

• Support and resources to help families level up nutrition gradually, without guilt.

Dogs deserve better than fear-based feeding advice. Let’s empower pet parents to understand why fresh foods matter — and how to integrate them safely.

07/01/2025

🍁 Happy Canada Day from Going Mutts! 🇨🇦

Today we celebrate the joy our dogs bring us as we adventure across the beautiful land of maple leaves, crystal lakes, and wide-open spaces.

But Canada Day can also remind us of difficult truths. Many don’t know that in the mid-20th century, the RCMP carried out mass cullings of Inuit sled dogs (Qimmiit), often under government orders. This brutal campaign devastated Inuit communities, stripping them of their primary means of transportation, hunting, and survival on the land.

The Canadian Eskimo/Inuit Dog — one of our national breeds — was nearly driven to extinction.

This wasn’t just an attack on dogs; it was an attack on people, livelihoods, and culture. Remembering this painful history helps us honor both the resilience of Inuit communities and the deep bond they share with their dogs.

I feel deeply grateful to breeders like the one I got Treble from, who dedicate themselves to preserving these incredible dogs with respect for their heritage and the people they came from. By learning and sharing these stories, we can move toward a future rooted in truth, healing, and respect. 🧡

Did you know…
🍁 Wild blueberries can be a safe, antioxidant-rich treat for dogs, supporting brain and immune health.

🍁 Raw or lightly cooked wild salmon provides omega-3s for shiny coats, healthy joints, and resilient terrain.

🍁 Dandelion greens (pesticide-free) offer gentle liver support and minerals for both humans and pups.

So here’s to a day of reflection, wagging tails, sunshine, and a commitment to honoring the land — and all who call it home.

Have a safe, nourishing, and heartfelt Canada Day!

06/30/2025

🔍 Think Your Dog’s Kibble Fiber Supports Their Gut? Let’s Nerd Out…

Most pet parents see “fiber” on kibble bags and think, “Great! That’ll feed my dog’s microbiome!”

But here’s what the label doesn’t tell you:

📦 Kibble uses “crude fiber,” an old-school measurement from the 1800s (the Weende a**lysis).

It only captures insoluble fiber like cellulose or lignin — completely missing soluble fibers (pectins, gums, resistant starches) that actually support beneficial gut bacteria, bind bile, or soothe inflamed guts.

🧐 Even when brands add ingredients like beet pulp or pea fiber, they’re often highly processed and heated during extrusion, destroying many delicate soluble fibers.

So even if the marketing screams “prebiotic fiber,” the functional benefit is usually gone by the time it reaches your dog’s bowl.

⚠️ Worse, if your dog has dysbiosis (imbalanced gut bacteria) — which is common in itchy, allergic, or sensitive dogs — generic fiber can actually feed the wrong microbes, fueling gas, bloating, or inflammation instead of helping.

👎 Unlike human foods, which list total, soluble, and insoluble fiber separately on nutrition labels, kibble’s crude fiber tells you nothing useful about fiber quality, fermentability, or therapeutic value.

🔬 For true gut healing, dogs need targeted, individualized fiber strategies that match their terrain — not outdated crude fiber percentages designed for regulatory box-checking.

💡 Bottom line: Fiber in most pet foods is misleading, outdated, and often counterproductive for dogs with gut issues. Precision > percentages.

06/29/2025

🦴 Why Do I Talk About Bile Binding So Much? Here’s Why…

Bile isn’t just for digesting fat — it’s also a key way your dog’s body eliminates toxins, excess hormones, and metabolic waste.

But when bile doesn’t flow smoothly, or when it pools in the gut, it can irritate the intestinal lining, cause diarrhea or constipation, feed bad microbes, and contribute to inflammation.

That’s why I focus on bile binding in my protocols: giving bile something safe to attach to can help move it out of the body gently and effectively, supporting smoother digestion, healthier gut terrain, and better overall detoxification.

And when it comes to binding bile and providing calcium, the source you choose makes a huge difference — especially in DIY raw or home-cooked diets.

Here’s a quick guide:

⸻

🥚 Eggshell Powder
• Binds bile moderately.
• Balances phosphorus in home-cooked diets.
• Lacks trace minerals or the full bone matrix; always grind finely.

⸻

🦴 Bone Meal
• Moderate-to-strong bile binder.
• Naturally balanced calcium-phosphorus ratio.
• Sourcing matters — cheap bone meals can contain contaminants.

⸻

🐕 Raw Meaty Bones
• Strongest bile binder with the full mineral matrix.
• Supports dental health, gut motility, and bile flow.
• Balance is key: too much bone can cause constipation or mineral imbalances.
• Different bones (feet, necks, ribs) vary widely in calcium — even the same cut can differ. Raw bones are often overfed, so moderation is essential.

⸻

💊 Calcium Supplements (e.g., carbonate, citrate)
• Weak bile binders.
• Useful short-term or if prescribed by your vet.
• Overuse can cause constipation or strain kidneys.

⸻

🌿 Seaweed-Derived Calcium (e.g., Lithothamnion)
• Weak-to-moderate bile binder.
• Includes trace minerals like magnesium and boron.
• Doesn’t fully replace the structural benefits of whole bone.

⸻

⚠️ Important Note for Kibble-Fed Dogs

If you’re feeding a complete kibble, extra calcium isn’t needed unless directed by your nutrition professional or vet.

Small whole food additions like raw bones or chews can be fine for enrichment, but they add significant calcium — consider total intake carefully.

⸻

✅ Bottom Line:
Choosing the right calcium source supports healthy bile flow, smoother digestion, and balanced terrain.

Work with your nutrition professional to match calcium sources to your dog’s unique needs — and remember, balance matters just as much as the source.

⸻

06/28/2025

🐾

I had a super busy Friday, so we’re celebrating Tail End of the Week today! 🎉

I’ve already sent out a few allergy protocols — we’re rocking and rolling, and I’m so excited to see some real progress.

Remember:
“Allergies” aren’t truly allergies — and it’s time we put a stop to that nonsense.

These issues are rooted in leaky gut, sluggish bile and lymph flow, and the reality that our dogs are living mismatch lives in modern times.

Let’s treat the real causes, not just chase symptoms — and hey, you might even save some money by skipping those useless “allergy” tests. 😉

It’s been beautiful out lately, with just the right amount of rain — I hope everyone enjoys a fantastic long weekend!

I’m also working on a brand-new service to provide energetic insights for your pups (and you too if you’re curious!), with guidance on supplements and proteins that complement your unique energetics.

Perfect for anyone who wants to start feeding with strategy, whether it’s kibble, toppers, cooked, or raw — without committing to a full protocol or consult.

Stay tuned for more details soon! 🐶

06/26/2025

📢 PSA for all my sulfite-sensitive dog parents — it’s time to meet your dog’s other sulfur problem!

For a long time, I thought sulfites were the main culprit behind all those allergy-like symptoms: itching, restlessness, paw chewing, rashes, flares after certain supplements, etc.

But there’s another category of sulfur compounds you’ve probably never heard of:
→ Thioethers.

These form when sulfur-containing amino acids (like methionine, cysteine, taurine) go through detox and metabolism.

If that process is sluggish, thioethers pile up in the tissues.

And these buggers? They’re way itchier, hotter, and more inflammatory than plain old sulfites.

They’re often behind:
• Red rashes and welts
• Paw chewing, yeast flares, crusty ears
• Detox crashes from amino acid blends, joint powders, or organ meat
• Neurological symptoms like mood swings or nervous system sensitivity (yes, for dogs too)

That’s thioether territory.

➕ Quick note:
Sulfites still matter — they can absolutely contribute to:
• Itching
• Restlessness
• Paw chewing

…especially when they stack up due to poor methylation or low molybdenum.

But they often act more like the match,
while thioethers are the fire that keeps burning once detox bottlenecks take hold.

So yes — both can contribute to skin issues, gut flares, and mood swings. That’s why we address both in the protocol.

⚠️ Heads up:
I’ll be pulling the Google Drive version of the allergy protocol soon while I finish major updates.

But don’t worry — if you’re already working with me 1-on-1, you don’t need it to follow your plan.

You’ll get full access again when the updated protocol is finalized and ready to download 💾

Until then, keep following along — I’m just getting started with these sulfur stories 🧪🐾

Going Mutts Pet Services and Nutrition

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