Dr. Ian Billinghurst: Strange Similarities Between Human Health & the Health of Our Pets

Have you ever seen a dog that’s a spitting image of its owner?

The resemblance can be hilariously uncanny, but beyond similarities in affectation, gait and overall goofiness, we find time and time again that the health of our pets is often reflective of the health of their caretakers.

Having dogs or pets around has been an integral part of the human experience for ages, but do you know what the biologically appropriate diet really is for your furry friend?

If you’ve been following Fat-Burning Man for a while, you may have come across a post or two about my dog, Bailey the Labrador Retriever, who has miraculously survived many near death experiences, including getting hit by a car, stung by a scorpion, bit in the face by a rattler, falling off a small cliff, and several mild to major poisonings of various kinds. But like a cat, she continues to survive.

We’ve attributed her miraculous resistance to injury over the years to the way that she’s been fed, an extremely nutrient-dense diet.

And today’s guest was actually very influential in the way that we started feeding our dog over 10 years ago now.

We are here with Dr. Ian Billinghurst, a veterinary surgeon with over 40 years of experience. He’s also a nutritionist, acupuncturist, agricultural scientist, lecturer, nutritional consultant, raw pet food producer, and author of multiple excellent books, including The BARF Diet.

Whether you have pets or not, I hope this show is very helpful to you. We’re chatting about:

• Strange similarities between human health and the health of our pets
• Things doctors and veterinarians are paid not to know
• What a biologically appropriate diet for our pets really looks like
• Why you should give your dog a bone
• How to avoid cancer in dogs and cats
• And tons more…

Let’s go hang out with Dr. Billinghurst.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Pandora | Stitcher | TuneIn | Deezer

If you want longevity, quality of life, and overall health and happiness⁠—whether we’re talking about dogs, cats, pets in general, or humans⁠—you have to look at the diet.

And so that’s what we’re talking about today. Not just feeding your pets in a biologically appropriate way, but hopefully translating that a bit to what it looks like to feed humans a biologically appropriate diet.

So if you want your family and your furry friends to live a long time and to live well, be sure to listen to today’s show.

Where To Find Dr. Ian Billinghurst

You can find Dr. Ian Billinghurst books, including Pointing the Bone at Cancer, Give Your Dog A Bone, The BARF Diet, Grow Your Pups With Bones, and more on his website at DrIanBillinghurst.com.

'We now know that intermittent fasting for humans is good. It's also great for dogs.' -Dr. Ian Billinghurst @gussysgut Click To Tweet

As you heard in today’s show, Dr. Billinghurst was kind enough to send us a generous sample of his fermented, probiotic-rich blend of organic veggies, herbs, cheeses and pet-friendly superfoods called Gussy’s Gut. Our dog, Bailey, absolutely loves it so far.

'Our dogs will be far more resilient to bacteria and pathogens and more able to live with them if they're living with a diet that mimics or is very close to what they evolved to eat.' - Dr. Ian Billinghurst @gussysgut Click To Tweet

If you’d like to order a sample of Gussy’s Gut, just head over to GussysGut.com and click the “Order a Sample” button. Be sure to redeem your special Fat-Burning Man 10% off listener discount by entering this code during checkout: FBM10

You can also follow and be friends with Gussy’s Gut on social media @gussysgut on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and TikTok.

'We might be doing ourselves or our pets a disservice by trying to hit a 100% of those nutritional requirements every single day. That's not the way that nature works at all. ' -Dr. Ian Billinghurst @gussysgut Click To Tweet

Dr. Billinghurst: Go to my website DrIanBillinghurst.com and get hold of the books and just learn the simple principles of feeding your dog properly. It is so simple. You don’t need an Excel spreadsheet.

So, to learn more from Dr. Billinghurst go to his website DrIanBillinghurst.com.

Before You Go

Like I mentioned in this interview, part of today’s show was recorded from the road.

I hoped I would get through recording without hearing jets going over us. But we’re actually recording this, like I mentioned, from the road next to the Bell helicopter and aircraft plant in Amarillo, TX.

It’s a remarkable place to watch ridiculous military aircraft, fighter jets, giant planes, helicopters, ospreys, and much, much more that have been flying over all day.

Thankfully we recorded the actual interview ahead of time before we got to the helicopter plant, so it should be smooth sailing for this show with Dr. Billinghurst.

Now, here’s a quick plug for our family company over at Wild Superfoods.

Every purchase that you folks make over at WildSuperfoods.com directly supports our work on this show—podcasting, video shows, virtual reality, music and beyond, so we really appreciate it.

Right now, Wild Superfoods is only in the United States, but if you are in the States and you’re looking for a super high-quality protein powder, greens powder, omega’s supplement, D3 supplement and much, much more, please visit us over at WildSuperfoods.com.

Here’s a quick review that came in from Brittney for Collagen Cocoa, which is one of our daily favorites. She rates it 5 out of 5 stars, and says:

“My husband and I love Collagen Cocoa as our protein powder of choice! Great with water as a post workout, or added into my coffee with heavy cream! It arrived quickly and we are on the subscribe and save plan!”

Brittany, thank you so much for dropping that review over at WildSuperfoods.com.

You can’t get this on Amazon or any store or any other website. Every purchase, like I said, directly supports us.

So, if you’re interested in trying our all time favorite real food health boosting goodies, please visit us over at WildSuperfoods.com.

And if you’re looking to save a few bucks, then definitely look at the additional discounts that you get with the Subscribe & Save plans, as well as the extra savings we put together for you when you purchase any of our bundles.

And if you’re looking for a quick discount and it’s your first time over at Wild Superfoods, then please use the code WILD15 for an extra 15% off your purchase.

And if you’re interested in Collagen Cocoa, in particular, it makes a terrific drink mixed in water, cold or hot.

You can’t really necessarily tell from the website or me holding it in my hand right now, but the container is giant—weighing a whopping 1.8 pounds of concentrated protein bone broth goodness.

And you get 21 grams of protein in each serving of Collagen Cocoa. So check it out, and also look at the additional savings you can take advantage of when you grab a Collagen Cocoa bundle.

We really appreciate every little review that you make, every little touch point that you have with us.

I really appreciate, whether you ever purchase anything from us or not, I appreciate that you’re listening to this show and hope you enjoy the interviews with many more shows to come.

By the way, this episode of Fat-Burning Man is brought to you by our family company, Wild Superfoods over at WildSuperfoods.com, and our friends at LMNT.

If you’re frustrated with the lack of healthy sports drink options out there, you are not alone.

When it comes to electrolytes, the popular drinks on the market actually have low amounts of electrolytes and miss the mark on the optimal ratio that your body needs.

But the good news, is that LMNT is a surprisingly tasty electrolyte drink mix without any sugar, fillers or suspect ingredients. And it’s actually packed with more electrolytes than standard sports drinks in the ideal ratio your body needs.

It comes in individual grab and go packets that mix easily in water, so you can get a pick-me-up wherever you are.

And for just a little while longer, LMNT is giving away free sample packs to Fat-Burning Man listeners, so you can try the different flavors for yourself.

Be sure to claim your free LMNT sample pack, while the deal is still going. Just go to drinklmnt.com/wild

Thank you for all your notes, reviews and support. We couldn’t do this without you and appreciate all the ways you get in touch and stay connected with us.

Do you have a pet? What do you feed them? Do you have a dog that you feed raw meaty bones? Did you find today’s show with Dr. Billinghurst helpful? Drop a comment below!