A routine anal gland issue turned into something more complicated.

In this mic’d up episode, I walk through what started as a common problem and what we discovered during treatment—real cases, real decisions, in real time.

In Episode 6 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea discusses one of the most common questions pet owners face: Is pet insurance actually worth it?

Veterinary medicine has advanced significantly in recent years, allowing for more diagnostics and treatment options than ever before—but these advances can also come with significant costs.

In this episode, Dr. Rea explains:

• how pet insurance typically works
• the types of coverage most plans offer
• common misunderstandings about pet insurance policies
• situations where insurance can be helpful for pet owners
• factors to consider when deciding whether a policy makes sense for your pet

Understanding how pet insurance works can help pet owners make informed financial decisions while planning for their pet’s long-term care.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.

For listeners who prefer the video format, the full discussion is also available on the AnimalDocRea YouTube channel.

Bonus Episode: Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea

In this bonus episode, Dr. Amber Rea takes listeners inside a real veterinary surgery as she removes a suspicious growth from a dog’s leg using a bowtie closure technique.

Skin masses are common in dogs, but some — including mast cell tumors — can be more serious and require surgical removal and evaluation.

In this Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea episode, you’ll hear Dr. Rea’s real-time commentary as she walks through the procedure and explains her thought process during surgery.

Topics discussed include:

• evaluating suspicious skin growths in dogs
• when surgical removal is recommended
• the bowtie closure technique
• why early evaluation of lumps and bumps matters

If you enjoy these behind-the-scenes veterinary cases, let me know and I’ll share more Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea episodes in the future.

In Episode 5 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea discusses the long-standing recommendation to feed chicken and rice for dogs with gastrointestinal upset—and why that advice may not always be the best approach.

For years, chicken and rice has been widely recommended as a bland diet for dogs experiencing vomiting or diarrhea. But newer understanding of veterinary nutrition and gastrointestinal disease has led many veterinarians to rethink this common recommendation.

In this episode, Dr. Rea explains:

• why chicken and rice became the standard bland diet
• potential nutritional limitations of this approach
• situations where chicken and rice may not be ideal
• alternative dietary strategies veterinarians may recommend for gastrointestinal recovery

Understanding how diet supports gastrointestinal health can help pet owners make better decisions when their dog is recovering from illness.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.

For listeners who want to watch the full video discussion, the video version is available on the AnimalDocRea YouTube channel.

Bonus Episode: Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea

In this bonus episode, Dr. Amber Rea takes listeners inside a real veterinary surgery as she removes an intestinal foreign body from a dog that swallowed something it couldn’t pass.

Foreign body obstructions are one of the most common surgical emergencies in dogs and can quickly become life-threatening without treatment.

In this Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea episode, you’ll hear Dr. Rea’s real-time commentary as she walks through:

• evaluating the intestines during surgery
• locating and removing the obstruction
• surgical decision-making in emergency cases
• what pet owners should know about intestinal blockages

This case was especially memorable because the patient happened to be Dr. Rea’s sister’s dog, who managed to eat something he definitely shouldn’t have…again.

If you enjoy these behind-the-scenes veterinary cases, let me know and I’ll share more Mic’d Up with AnimalDocRea episodes in the future.

In Episode 4 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea explains one of the most important — and most overlooked — factors in pet longevity: proper caloric intake.

Research has shown that maintaining an appropriate caloric intake and healthy body condition can significantly extend the lifespan of dogs. Yet many pets are unintentionally overfed, increasing the risk of obesity and shortening lifespan.

In this episode, Dr. Rea discusses:

• the research behind calorie restriction and longevity in dogs
• why body condition matters more than most pet owners realize
• how overfeeding impacts long-term health
• practical ways to determine the right amount to feed your pet

Understanding how calories influence longevity can be one of the most powerful tools for helping dogs live longer, healthier lives.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.

For listeners who want to watch the full discussion, the video version is available on the AnimalDocRea YouTube channel.

In Episode 3 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea takes a closer look at the claims made by the Clean Label Project about contaminants in pet food and explains what the data actually shows.

Reports from the Clean Label Project have raised concerns among pet owners by suggesting that many pet foods contain high levels of toxins or contaminants. But how should these claims be interpreted, and do the numbers actually represent a safety risk for dogs and cats?

In this episode, Dr. Rea breaks down:

• what the Clean Label Project report claims
• how contaminant levels are measured and interpreted
• how these numbers compare to established safety thresholds for pets
• why toxicology data can easily be misrepresented without proper context

If you’ve seen alarming headlines about toxins in pet food and wondered whether they reflect real risk, this episode explains how veterinarians and toxicologists evaluate the data.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.

For listeners who want to see the charts and data discussed in this episode, the video version is available on her YouTube channel AnimalDocRea.

In Episode 2 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea breaks down how dog foods are actually evaluated using evidence-based veterinary nutrition standards and shares her picks for some of the best dog foods for 2025.

With so many marketing claims and ingredient trends surrounding pet food, it can be difficult for pet owners to know what really matters. In this episode, Dr. Rea explains how veterinarians assess diets based on factors that go far beyond the ingredient list.

Topics discussed include:

• how veterinarians evaluate pet food formulation
• the role of nutritional standards and feeding trials
• manufacturer transparency and quality control
• why marketing claims can be misleading

If you’ve ever wondered how to determine whether a dog food is truly well-formulated, this episode provides a practical framework veterinarians use to evaluate diets.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.

For listeners who want to see the full visual breakdown of the foods discussed, the video version of this episode is available on her YouTube channel AnimalDocRea.

Episode 1: Inside Medicus Diets — Therapeutic Nutrition in Veterinary Medicine

Welcome to Episode 1 of The AnimalDocRea Podcast.

In this first episode, veterinarian Dr. Amber Rea sits down with the team behind Medicus Diets to discuss the science behind therapeutic pet nutrition and how diet can play a role in managing disease in dogs and cats.

We discuss:

• How veterinary therapeutic diets are formulated
• The research behind disease-targeted nutrition
• How these diets differ from standard pet foods
• The challenges of developing evidence-based nutrition for pets

This conversation offers an inside look at how veterinary nutrition research is translated into practical diets used in clinical medicine.

Dr. Amber Rea is a practicing veterinarian and the author of Reasons We Feed and Age Is Not a Disease, where she focuses on evidence-based approaches to pet health and nutrition.