Tell Us What You Think

It's been one full year and 57 episodes of Tails of Truth, and Dr. Angie and JoJo are taking a minute to sit in it. In this episode, they look back at their favorite moments, the episodes that hit hardest, and a few things they've genuinely changed their minds about along the way. From pet insurance skepticism to the Lepto vaccine, from raw food hand washing habits to processing grief in this public space, this is what it looks like to learn out loud in front of an audience that keeps showing up.

They also revisit the grief episode that moved so many listeners, and give a nod to Euthabag, a company creating beautiful, meaningful options for pet body care after passing. If you're in an end of life season with your pet, they are worth looking up. On the insurance front, JoJo shares why she finally put her dog Sage on a Lemonade pet insurance policy despite being highly skeptical of the industry, and what she's watching for.

Coming up in year two: a dermatologist, an oncologist, a cat behaviorist, and more episodes that make complicated veterinary medicine feel like a conversation with a friend.

If you've been here since the beginning, thank you. If you're just finding them, welcome. This is a podcast that tells the truth about veterinary medicine, and they're just getting started.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

1. It's okay, even good, to change your mind when new information or lived experience shifts your perspective. JoJo opted for the Lepto vaccine and pet insurance. Dr. Angie is finally addressing Fritz's weight. Both took time and that's okay.
2. Veterinary professionals carry shame too. The shame episode resonated deeply because naming it is the first step to doing something about it.
3. No question is ridiculous. If you have a question, it means it hasn't been answered well enough yet.
4. Cat episodes consistently perform because cats are underserved in veterinary content.
5. Community matters. The Bodhi grief episode showed how powerful it is to feel held by a group of people who understand.
6. Lifting the curtain on what it's like to be a veterinary professional is part of the mission and it's rare.
7. Veterinary humor is a coping mechanism and it's real. The giggles stay.

SOUNDBITES

"I like that we're making veterinary medicine accessible and that there's information out there that is valid, truthful, safe, and free." — JoJo

"Allowing myself to feel ashamed about it and settle into it has actually now given me the space to do something about it." — Dr. Angie

"It's okay to change your mind when you learn new information and when you have life experience that shows you something different." — JoJo

"Anytime we're talking about cats, I love it because they are so underserved." — Dr. Angie

"The podcast is teaching me, it's kind of shining a light on my own stuff, which is so therapeutic. And it's reminding me that I can be open to change." — JoJo

"We deliver great content, but we're also giving you an inside look that a lot of veterinarians probably aren't focused on." — Dr. Angie

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Tell Us What You Think

We're not here to shame you for Googling your pet's symptoms, or researching with AI, at 2 a.m. We've done it too.

This week, Dr. Angie and JoJo get real about AI and pet health advice and what it gets right, where it dangerously misses, and why no algorithm can replace 20 years of hands-on clinical practice. They test two popular AI tools live (ChatGPT and Claude) on the show using a real clinical scenario (a 12-year-old cat not eating and losing weight), compare the responses side-by-side, and break down exactly what was missing from both answers.

The conversation also touches on AI hallucinations in veterinary research, the difference between a search engine and a conversational AI tool, and why the 2 a.m. symptom spiral is completely understandable as long as you know what to do next.

Bottom line: use the tools. Understand their limits. Always follow-up with your vet.

Book a consultation with Dr. Angie at boulderholisticvet.com.

Key Takeaways:

1. AI tools can and do hallucinate including fabricating veterinary research studies with real-sounding citations that don't exist.
2. There is a meaningful difference between using a search engine and using a conversational AI tool. Search returns sources you choose to trust. AI returns a single answer without always disclosing where it came from.
3. When AI was tested live with a real clinical scenario (senior cat, weight loss, not eating), one tool missed inflammatory bowel disease entirely which is one of the most common diagnoses in that presentation.
4. A 3-pound weight loss in a senior cat equals roughly 20 to 30 percent of total body weight. That is not a "wait and see" situation.
5. Googling pet symptoms at 2 a.m. is not something to be ashamed of. It's what people do. The goal is knowing how to use what you find.
6. No AI tool can replicate 20 years of clinical practice or hands-on physical examination.
7. Use AI as a starting point. Then bring it to your vet and have the conversation.

Sound Bites:

"AI just can't replace practitioners. It can't replace 20 years of clinical practice." — Dr. Angie

"You're going to use your AIs and you're going to Google, but they are not the end all, be all." — JoJo

"When we tell people not to Google their pet's symptoms, that's so unrealistic." — Dr. Angie

"Chat GPT seems very generalized. Claude is a little bit more mature." — JoJo

"This is a great reason for a consultation. If you've Googled or AI'd something that scared you in the middle of the night." — JoJo

"It pulled in some really random disease that we'll often in medicine call zebras — something that's so rare. That's so unlikely." — Dr. Angie

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Tell Us What You Think

We need to talk about anesthesia-free dentistry because it is marketed everywhere and a lot of loving pet parents are spending real money on something that mostly just makes teeth look pretty.

In this episode, Dr. Angie and JoJo break down what anesthetic-free (or "awake scaling") actually does, what it misses, and why the gap between those two things matters so much for your pet's health. Dr. Angie shares what she sees in practice: pets who have regular anesthetic-free cleanings and show up needing multiple extractions because the disease had been quietly building under the gum line the whole time.

We also talk about approaches to home dental care with teeth brushing, periocare, and what to look for when you peek in your pet's mouth once a week.

If you want to take a deep dive into understanding oral health, you'll enjoy our Tooth Truths: The Dental Episode or if you feel fearful of anesthesia for your pet check out our episode Is My Pet Safe Under Anesthesia? What to Ask & What to Expect

Key Takeaways

1. Anesthetic-free dental cleaning only addresses tartar visible above the gum line while the majority of dental disease in dogs and cats lives below it.
2. The procedure is cosmetic. It makes teeth look better but does not treat, diagnose, or prevent disease where disease actually lives.
3. Pre-anesthetic blood work, monitoring, and modern gas anesthesia have made veterinary dental procedures significantly safer than most pet parents realize.
4. Dr. Angie saw a consistent pattern: pets receiving regular anesthetic-free cleanings often showed up needing the most extractions because disease had progressed undetected for years.
5. "Board certified veterinarian" in marketing copy is not the same as a board-certified veterinary dental specialist.
6. Checking your pet's mouth once a week at home is genuinely valuable. You know your pet's normal better than anyone.
7. Periоcare applied along the gum line a few times a week is a solid B+ for pets who won't tolerate regular brushing.
8. If anesthesia fear is what's keeping you from scheduling a dental, go listen to the anesthesia episode first as it addresses that fear directly.

Sound Bites:

"I wish they would say this is just cosmetic — that says we're gonna miss over half of the dental disease in your dog's mouth." — Dr. Angie

"I'm not judging you as a listener or as a pet parent. I'm judging the marketing. That's what I'm judging." — JoJo

"$295, y'all, is not that cheap when you can go get one for $500 or $600, which you might end up having to do anyhow." — JoJo

"They are not cleaning under the gum and they're not assessing the tooth structure under the

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• Schedule your personalized one-on-one consultation with Dr. Angie
• Shop my favorite CBD.

Please subscribe and review! xoxo Dr. Angie & JoJo