The Integrative Veterinarian

By College of Integrative Veterinary TherapiesMedicine Alternative Health Health & Fitness Kids & Family Pets & Animals

The Integrative Veterinarian episodes

January 29, 2022 Dr. Ruth Roberts
Dr. Ruth Roberts was raised in Anchorage, Kentucky. She earned her undergraduate degree in Biology at Warren Wilson College and her Veterinary Degree from North Carolina State University in 1990.
After working in a few small animal practices after graduation, she purchased a solo doctor practice in 1993. Because of some health challenges, she sold the practice in the midst of doing training at the Chi Institute. She started a mobile practice, seeing patients for holistic care in a converted mobile veterinary clinic.
In 2009 she opened a brick and mortar integrative medicine practice, which expanded to employ two other veterinarians. During that time she started doing telemedicine, focusing on creating diet and supplement plans for her patients. In 2016 she sold the brick and mortar practice and has been doing only telemedicine ever since.
Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Ruth Roberts as we discuss her education, exposure to holistic medicine, training in holistic medicine, and how she has used that training to practice in some unique ways, both in person and remotely. We also discuss her upcoming webinar on telemedicine for CIVT.
32 min
January 15, 2022 Dr. Veerle Dejonckheere
Dr. Veerle Dejonckheere was born in the Flemish Region of Belgium. She got her DVM from the University of Ghent in 2001, with a concentration on Equine Practice. She spent the next two years in a large animal practice in rural France, then moved to Leicester England to work in small animal practice. She spent five years in allopathic small animal practice before starting to work in a rehabilitation and sports medicine practice. Today she works in a number of clinics working with patients using Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Therapeutic Exercises, Nutrition, and Herbal Medicine.
She studied Veterinary Phytotherapy with Peter Conway, Medical Herbalism with Kerry Bone, and Chinese Medicine with both Giovanni Maccioca and CIVT . She is certified in Acupuncture by the Association of British Veterinary Acupuncturists and in Chiropractic by the International Veterinary Chiropractic Association.
She also is one of the founders of the British Association of Veterinary Herbalists.
In this conversation as we discuss her childhood in Belgium, her veterinary school experience and her exposure to a wide variety of veterinary experience through traditional employment, locum practice, and as a volunteer for animal charities in Europe and Asia. We also cover how she structures her practice in order to best serve her clients. Please enjoy!
38 min
December 18, 2021 Dr. Jean Hofve
Dr. Jean Hofve was raised in Oakland, California. She worked a number of jobs before veterinary school, including working as a sheriff's deputy while taking prerequisite courses. She got her DVM from Colorado State University in 1994.
She was introduced to holistic medicine by visiting speakers while in veterinary school, and even took a short course in homeopathy while still a student. After graduation, she started practicing in a feline only integrative medicine practice. After working in a number of practices, she started the Little Big Cat website with Jackson Galaxy. She has continued to teach, write, and consult since then.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Jean Hofve as we talk about attending veterinary school as an older student, finding holistic medicine, serving as an advisor to AAFCO, consulting, formulating and selling flower essences, and working with Jackson Galaxy.
52 min
December 04, 2021 Dr. Susan Howell
Dr. Susan Howell was raised in Washington State. She got her undergraduate degree in Fine Arts, then moved to Fairbanks, Alaska with her husband and worked as a veterinary technician for a number of years before returning to get her veterinary degree from Washington State University in 1997.
After graduation, she worked in a number of small animal practices in Washington as well as the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area. There she developed an interest in holistic medicine and began her journey.
She was employed by the Standard Process Company to support Veterinarians by giving lectures in the field as well as answering technical questions. She was certified in Acupuncture and Chinese Veterinary Food Therapy by Chi University in 2017.
In 2017, she also opened her own holistic practice in White Fish Bay, Wisconsin. Thrive Holistic Veterinary Care provides complementary veterinary care with a focus on Nutrition Response Testing, functional nutrition, TCVM food therapy, and acupuncture.
Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Susan Howell as we discuss her education, her time at Standard Process, opening her own holistic practice, and providing care both in person and remotely.
42 min
November 20, 2021 Dr. Christina Chambreau
Dr. Christina Chambreau was raised all over the globe, as her father served in the United States Air Force. At age 12, she worked on a school project with the Air Force Base Veterinarian in Tokyo which started a love of veterinary medicine that has continued to this day.
She earned her Veterinary Degree from the University of Georgia in 1980. While in veterinary school, she attended an Acupuncture short course taught by Drs. Marvin Cain and Grady Young, which cultivated an interest in holistic medicine.

After graduation, she became interested in Homeopathy and helped Dr. Pitcairn form the Academy of Homeopathy. Dr. Chambreau has taught an introductory homeopathy course for years, starting countless veterinarians on their holistic journeys.

She wrote the Healthy Animal Journal, a book that assists pet guardians in keeping an accurate health history, and has done remote holistic consulting and lecturing. Today, she consults with pet owners who want to provide holistic care for their pets.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Christina Chambreau as we talk about attending veterinary school in the 1970's, her varied practice career, her outlook on holistic care for pets, and her current consulting practice.
35 min
November 06, 2021 Dr. Barbara Royal
Dr. Barbara Royal was raised in the Chicago, Illinois area. She got her veterinary degree from the University of Illinois in 1995. She made an effort during her veterinary education to get exposure to a wide range of different facets of veterinary medicine, including work with aquatic, zoo, and wildlife species.
After graduation, she practiced in a variety of different environments, while discovering an interest in holistic medicine and nutrition. She did IVAS acupuncture training, studied Western and Chinese herbal medicine at Tufts University, and Rehabilitation at the University of Tennessee.
She is the founder of the Royal Veterinary Treatment Center in Chicago, has published magazine articles and a book, and is an international speaker. She has also served as President of the AHVMA.
Dr. Royal and her business partner Dr. Natasha Lilly founded the Royal Animal Health University, which is dedicated to teaching holistic care to pet parents, industry professionals, and veterinarians, with an emphasis not only on animal health, but on the health of our environment and planet as well.
Please enjoy this discussion with Dr. Barbara Royal as we discuss her education, her variety of experience in veterinary medicine, her interest in nutrition and environmental health, and the recent merger of Royal Animal Health University with CIVT.
36 min
October 23, 2021 Dr. Barbara Fougere
Dr. Barbara Fougere was born in England and raised in Australia. She earned her veterinary degree from Murdoch University in 1986. After graduation, she went into practice, and spent some time in the UK doing locum work before returning home to Australia. She founded her practice, All Natural Vet Care in 1997 as a mobile practice, and evolved to a brick and mortar practice in 2003.
She did post-graduate work in Organisational Development, Social Science, and Business Management before becoming interested in holistic medicine. She earned a Master's Degree in Health Science with a focus on Herbal Medicine in 2005.

She co-authored the textbook "Veterinary Herbal Medicine" with Dr. Susan Wynn, which was published in 2006. That same year, she and Dr. Steve Marsden founded the College of Integrative Veterinary Therapies, the world's first online College teaching Integrative Veterinary Medicine.

Dr. Fougere is a current Board Member of the Veterinary Botanical Medical Association and the American College of Veterinary Botanical Medicine. She has served as a Director for numerous conventional and holistic veterinary organizations and is a member of many more. She has lectured internationally, contributed to numerous textbooks, and written a number of scientific articles.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Barbara Fougere as we discuss her education, her exposure to holistic medicine, founding CIVT, her health journey, and the recent merger of CIVT with Royal Animal Health University.
40 min
October 09, 2021 Dr. Karen Goldrick
Dr. Karen Goldrick was born in Sydney, Australia. She got her veterinary degree from the University of Sydney in 1987. After graduation, she spent some time traveling and doing locum work in the UK for a few years before returning to Australia.
After ten years in private small animal practice, Karen joined All Natural Vet Care in Sydney in 2005, where she practices to this day. She was certified in Acupuncture by IVAS, and has studied Chinese Herbal Medicine at the Sydney College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Herbal Medicine at the Sydney College of Natural Therapies. She has also studied extensively through coursework at CIVT.

Please enjoy this conversation as Karen and I talk about her education, practice experience, evolution as an Integrative Veterinarian, and her advice for new graduates with an interest in Integrative Medicine.
43 min
September 25, 2021 Dr. Mona Boudreaux
Dr. Mona Boudreaux was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. She earned her veterinary degree from Louisiana State University in 1987. After graduation, she moved to Idaho and was in private practice there and at Washington State University's Emergency Service. She then relocated to Albuquerque New Mexico and started her journey into holistic medicine.
She is certified in Acupuncture by IVAS and Chiropractic by the AVCA. She was mentored in Chinese Medicine by Dr. Gary Allen, OMD and discovered her love for Energy Medicine. While in New Mexico she and Dr. Allen began teaching Chinese Herbal Medicine to small groups of Veterinarians and at the same time founded her herbal company, A Time To Heal. Dr. Boudreaux relocated to Illinois and continued teaching Herbal Medicine to Veterinarians while working in private practice.

In addition to her practice and teaching, Dr. Boudreaux has served as President of the American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture as well as the President and Executive Director of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association.

Although she sold the herbal business and now identifies as retired, Dr. Boudreaux hasn't ruled out another foray into the business world in the future. She is happily living on a small property in the mountains South of Asheville, North Carolina.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Mona Boudreaux as we discuss growing up on a farm, aspiring to be a veterinarian as a woman in the 1980's, discovering holistic medicine, and paying attention to what the universe brings you.
36 min
September 11, 2021 Dr. Diana Drumm
Dr. Diana Drumm was born in Nashville, Tennessee. She earned her undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology from the University of Montana, and got her Veterinary Degree from the University of Tennessee in 1999. After graduation, she did a residency in Comparative Medicine at the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego California.
She then joined a mixed animal practice in Bishop, California. She purchased a small animal practice in Reno, Nevada before moving to San Diego and purchasing the Animal Healing Center.
Dr. Drumm was certified by IVAS in 2006 and in Chinese Herbal Medicine in 2007. She has training in Veterinary Orthopedic Manipulation, Ozone therapy, and Homeopathy.
She is the incoming President of the AHVMA as well.
In this episode we discuss her education, growing a multi-doctor holistic practice, how Covid has changed the way we work, and her thoughts on becoming AHVMA President in October of 2021.
34 min

About The Integrative Veterinarian

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The Integrative Veterinarian is a series of conversations with Integrative Veterinary Practitioners and how they approach their craft. We talk about things like their history, their veterinary school…