On the TV series "Kitchen Nightmares," Gordon Ramsay infamously (and frequently) describes the restaurant meals he's presented with as resembling a "dog's dinner." Apparently Gordon hasn't seen the lavish meals that dogs today are fed. Julia and Anya go back in time to look at the history of dog food, what we feed our dogs today, and who determines what goes into a nutritious dog's dinner. 

If your new year's resolution is to devote yourself to your feline companion, we have just the story for you: Cat Cults. Yep, you read that right. Today, we're talking about a cult of human beings who worship cats and one cult leader, in particular, who wreaked havoc on her followers. MeWOW, indeed!

The Grinch is one of the most famous characters in Christmas history, but often forgotten is his beloved sidekick Max. In this episode Julia and Anya discover the origins of Max, ponder if the Grinch ever deserved Max's love, and pitch a new spinoff where Max is the star. 

What happens when a dog bites another dog? Or when a dog attacks a human? To find out, Julia and Anya look at some recent news stories about dog attacks. What do they learn? That dog attacks can be more complicated to prevent and remedy than they thought.

We're thrilled to share our conversation with Benjamin Clark, curator at the Charles M. Schulz Museum. While all of the Peanuts characters are amazing, we naturally focused the discussion on the King of Cool, Snoopy. Join us on a journey through Snoopy's origins, his sometimes tempestuous relationship with Charlie Brown, his insatiable appetite, and how he became a global icon. Happy Thanksgiving!

We assumed that connecting with spirits would be scary, be they human or animal. Turns out, it's not scary at all! Today's guest is Sue Pike, The Animal Talker. Sue is an Animal Communicator, Reiki Master, Spirit Channeler and Spiritual Teacher. Sue is uniquely capable of communicating with living and transitioned animals, not to mention the variety of spirits and deities that surround them. She shared with us her experiences receiving and sending messages with different critters, as well as advice that anyone can follow to better communicate with their pets.

We're revisiting the animated and live action 101 Dalmatians movies to see how they hold up today. (As Anya points out, Julia's favorite animal movie should have included a PSA about doggy family planning.)

The recent nation-wide impact of the Canadian wildfires on the U.S. has been nothing short of scary. Cities filled with orange smoke and air quality levels at terrifying highs have forced the conversation about why wildfires start and how to manage them in areas where people never expected to have to deal with them. Part of those discussions in the news media and on social has been about the effect of wildfires on animals, from household pets to wildlife across the U.S. Julia and Anya discuss what happens to animals during wildfires and what can be done to help them. 

Last month, King Charles's coronation took over the internet, and while we aren't exactly "royal watchers," we couldn't help but follow along. King Charles is said to be many things but is he an animal lover? We dive into a short history on the British royal family and their relationship to animals -- corgis, eel pie, and all. In the end, we have to agree that the Balmoral Bats have it better than most of us.  As the musician Lorde once put it, "we'll never be royal" -- even compared with the castle critters. 

Giddyup, Julia and Anya are taking on the Kentucky Derby. They go back in time to find out where the Derby came from, why it's so short, and why there's so much pastel in attendance. Later, they explore the lifecycle of racehorses and call attention to racing's seemingly unstoppable villain horse trainer, all while asking the question, "Is this still ethical?" (Pastel hats being the first crime against humanity.)