The Integrative Veterinarian

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The Integrative Veterinarian episodes

April 10, 2021 Dr. Alexia Tsakiris- Coaching and Wellness
Dr. Alexia Tsakiris was a guest on Episode 8, which aired on April 11, 2020. There we covered her upbringing, veterinary education, work experience, and practice life. In addition to her clinical work, Alexia offers coaching services for veterinarians and is forming a Women's Veterinary Collective.
Today we talk about the events that led her to recognize that she was experiencing burnout, the strategies she used to get past those rough patches, and her philosophy behind coaching and offering a space for female veterinarians to have a community where they can gather, share, and support one another.
I'm a big believer in coaching and wellness support, so I'm happy to be able to share this conversation with Alexia with you.
Show Notes:
Dr. Alexia Tsakiris' website
Kefi Collective (Women's Veterinary Collective, Kefi Collective, and Integrative Business Coaching)
32 min
March 27, 2021 Eric Grey
This episode is a little different from the previous ones in that I'm talking with an acupuncturist rather than a Veterinarian. Eric Grey is a good friend who is an experienced Classical Chinese Medicine practitioner. In addition to the things we talk about on the podcast, Eric has lectured to veterinarians both at the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association Conference as well as the Midwest Veterinary Conference.
When I started practicing holistic veterinary medicine and learning different modalities, I saw that the culture was for practitioners to learn a multitude of modalities to have a full range of things to offer a patient. At least in my case, it sometimes seems like a juggling act to balance keeping current in multiple modalities so that I can offer my patients the best care possible. Eric's recent decision to limit his practice was intriguing to me, so I was able to arrange for us to talk about that decision in the context of his professional life to date.
Eric Grey, MSOM is an Acupuncturist in Astoria, Oregon. He has a BS in both Biology and Philosophy from Oregon State University. He got his MSOM from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon in 2009.
He and his wife and business partner Amanda Barp founded the Watershed Wellness Clinic in the Ladd's Addition neighborhood of Portland, Oregon in 2009. Eric also served as Adjunct Faculty at NUNM. He continued his studies including an herbal discipleship and clinical training with Heiner Fruehof, PhD and is a Diplomat of Canonical Chinese Medicine from the Institute of Classics in East Asian Medicine. While still a student at NUNM, Eric founded the website Deepest Health, which started as a blog about his experiences as a Classical Chinese Medicine student, but now has evolved into not only a blog about his experiences as a practice owner, but also an Educational Center offering short online courses in topics related to Classical Chinese Medicine and the business of acupuncture.
After building Watershed Wellness to include multiple practitioners, Eric and Amanda decided to relocate to Astoria, Oregon in 2016. They started Watershed Wellness Astoria while continuing to commute to Portland part-time to practice. In 2018 they closed the doors in Portland and have devoted their energy to Astoria full-time.
Join me for this conversation with Eric as we talk about founding two clinics, running an online business, and the thought process behind his most recent decision to stop practicing acupuncture in order to limit his practice to herbal medicine.
Show Notes:
Deepest Health Website
Quitting Acupuncture: on transitioning to Herbs-Only Practice, Part 1
Quitting Acupuncture: on transitioning to Herbs-Only Practice, Part 2
Quitting Acupuncture: on transitioning to Herbs-Only Practice, Part 3
Quitting Acupuncture: on transitioning to Herbs-Only Practice, Part 4
43 min
March 13, 2021 Dr. Shelley Doxey
Dr. Shelley Doxey was raised outside of London, England. She got her veterinary degree from The Royal Veterinary College in 2002. She has been involved in small animal practice since graduation. Her focus is on the management of painful and debilitating conditions such as osteoarthritis and geriatric diseases. She provides integrative care to patients both in her own solo practice and as part of a multi-person small animal practice
She is certified in acupuncture by the Association of British Veterinary Acupuncturists. She has a strong interest in Western Herbs, and has a Graduate Diploma in Veterinary Western Herbal Medicine from CIVT. She is a member of the British Veterinary Rehabilitation and Sports Injury Association, the Association of British Veterinary Acupuncturists, the British Association of Veterinary Herbalists, and the Veterinary Botanical Medical Association.
Please enjoy this conversation as we talk about her education, her early years in small animal practice, adding acupuncture and herbal medicine to her skills, and practicing both solo and in a group.
33 min
February 27, 2021 Dr. Nancy Scanlan
Dr. Nancy Scanlan was born in Maine, but spent her childhood constantly moving both around the United States and overseas, following her father's career in the United States Navy. She got her DVM from the University of California Davis in 1970.
After graduation, she worked in various private practices and taught in Veterinary Technician programs. Her path to integrative medicine started with an in interest in vitamins and supplements. She was certified in acupuncture by IVAS in 1989, and also has training in chiropractic, Chinese and Western Herbal Medicine, and Homotoxicology.
She spent nearly 20 years as an Integrative Practitioner in a 7 person small animal practice in the Los Angeles area. She has also consulted for supplement and herbal companies.
She is the author of a textbook for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses and has lectured both nationally and internationally. She has also served as the Executive Director of both the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association and the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Foundation. She is currently the Student Services Director for CIVT.
Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Scanlan as we discuss her childhood travels, her veterinary school and practice experience, serving as an Executive Director, and how she now spends her time living in a remote cabin in Mount Shasta, California while working for CIVT.
39 min
February 13, 2021 Dr. Matthew Muir
Dr. Matthew Muir got his veterinary degree from Charles Stirt University in Australia in 2010. After a few years in mixed practice in Australia, he relocated to the UK to spend a few years doing dairy practice, small animal emergency and critical care work, and small animal private practice. He then returned to Sydney, Australia to join All Natural Vet Care, an integrative small animal practice with an emphasis on preventative health through nutrition and other natural therapies. He embraces the One Health concept and is interested in sustainable food production, ecology, and natural diets for pets. He is the co-founder of the Lyka Pet Food company, whose mission is to combine science and sustainable ingredients to formulate outstanding quality meals for home delivery. Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Muir as we discuss his veterinary school experience, his various practice experiences, and his current professional activities in private practice, the Lyka food company, and exotic animal rehabilitation and conservation.
35 min
January 30, 2021 Dr. Jim Clark
Dr. Jim Clark was born in Kamloops, British Columbia. He got his bachelor's degree in Physics from the University of British Columbia, and his veterinary degree from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan in 1979. He joined a mixed animal practice in Salmon Arm, British Columbia, where he practices to this day.
In 1996 Dr. Clark did a sabbatical at the Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island. He then attended his first American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association meeting and began his journey into integrative medicine. He is certified in acupuncture by the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society.

Outside of veterinary medicine, Jim enjoys dancing, singing in a barbershop quartet, flying vintage airplanes, as well as practicing and teaching Tai Chi. If you've attended an AHVMA Conference you know Jim as the leader of Tai Chi practice in the mornings before sessions begin.

Please enjoy this conversation as Dr. Clark and I discuss his childhood in the Western Canadian desert, choosing veterinary medicine as a career after his physics studies, the importance of sabbaticals, and how he has maintained a love for the practice of veterinary medicine for over forty years.
45 min
January 16, 2021 Dr. Kim Henneman
Dr. Kim Henneman is a native of Utah. She did her undergraduate studies at Utah State University and her veterinary training at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, graduating in 1986. She was certified by IVAS in acupuncture in 1991, by the AVCA in Animal Chiropractic, in Chinese Herbal Medicine by IVAS in 2000. She has training in both basic and advanced classical homeopathy. She achieved Fellow Status with the AAVA in 2008, and was Board Certified by the American College of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, both in 2013 (Canine) and 2014 (Equine). She is the only Diplomate in the College to be credentialed in both disciplines. She also has expertise in thermal imaging for both diagnosis and rehabilitation. Her holistic practice is located in Park City, Utah, but her interests and skills have taken her around the globe, both teaching and performing clinical duties. She is a well respected veterinarian for sled, working, performance, and search and rescue dogs as well as performance horses in numerous disciplines. Dr. Henneman has served her profession by being on the Board of Directors of both the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association as well as the American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture. Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Kim Henneman as we discuss her veterinary education, holistic training, and her work in holistic veterinary medicine both in Utah and around the world.
36 min
December 19, 2020 Dr. Kelly Halls
Dr. Kelly Halls was born in Melbourne, Australia. She got her Veterinary Science degree from the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia in 2002. She then went into mixed animal practice in Southern Australia for a few years, followed by two years as a locum veterinarian in various parts of the UK. Returning home in 2007, she then worked in a large small animal practice as well as an emergency practice. In 2015, she founded Bentons Road Veterinary Clinic in Mount Martha Victoria. The practice emphasis is on integrative management of patient health through individualized nutrition, vaccine programs, and parasite control. Behavior is another focus area of the practice, by use of behavior based handling techniques and offering puppy training classes from the nursing staff. Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Halls as we talk about her time in veterinary school, mixed veterinary practice, travelling during time as a locum veterinarian, and founding the type of practice she thinks should be a model for small animal practice today.
38 min
December 05, 2020 Dr. Kim Lim
Dr. Kim Lim received her veterinary degree with honors from the University of Melbourne in 1990. She then entered small animal practice and was certified in veterinary acupuncture by the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society in 1992. She earned a Master's Degree in Animal Chiropractic from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in 2000. She has also completed the animal rehabilitation program from the Canine Rehabilitation Institute. She has been in Integrative Veterinary Practice since 1996. Dr. Lim currently owns a solo practice in Geelong Australia. She is also a national and international speaker, and has served the Australian Veterinary Chiropractic Association, the Australian Veterinary Acupuncture Group, and Geelong Australia Veterinary Association. Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Lim as we discuss her veterinary school experience, her introduction to integrative medicine, and how integrative medicine has changed the way she practices.
46 min
November 21, 2020 Dr. Pedro Rivera
Dr. Pedro Rivera was born in Munich, Germany. He was raised in Puerto Rico, and attended Purdue University for both his undergraduate and veterinary degree. After graduation he returned to Puerto Rico to practice, then moved back to Indiana to work in private practice before starting the Healing Oasis Veterinary Hospital in Sturtevant, Wisconsin with his wife Michelle in 1993.
Dr. Rivera earned a certificate of completion from the Options for Animals Veterinary Chiropractic program in 1998. He also completed advanced training at Options as well. He has also studied Chiropractic Neurology from the Carrick Institute and is a Fellow of the American College of Functional Neurology, the only veterinarian to do so. He is also a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Dr. Rivera and Michelle established the Healing Oasis Wellness Center in 1998. The school has both a Veterinary Spinal Manipulative Therapy as well as a Veterinary Massage and Rehabilitation programs that are nationally accredited. Dr. Rivera is also on Faculty at the Veterinary Chiropractic Learning Centre in Ontario, Canada as well as the Backbone Academy for Veterinary Chiropractic and Healing Arts in Sittensen, Germany. He also has extensive experience as both a national and international speaker.

Please enjoy this conversation as Dr. Rivera and I discuss his upbringing, education at Purdue University, early years in practice, and his experience in teaching Spinal Manipulative Therapy and Rehabilitation to licensed professionals for over two decades.
37 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…