Zoopharmacognosy: Supporting your Dog's Innate Healing Wisdom & Your Own with Rachel Knott

What if your dog could point you to exactly what they - and you -  need in order to heal? Well, they can! In today’s conversation, I talk with Rachel Knott, the owner of My Animal Matters, about how applying the practice of zoopharmacognosy with our dogs can open up an entire world of insights into the relationship between our dogs’ health issues, behaviours, and ourselves. I know it sounds like the most incredible Scrabble word (and if you ever manage to accomplish that, you definitely have to take a photo of that board and send it to me!) but zoopharmacognosy basically translates to animal medicine knowing, and speaks to ALL animals’ innate wisdom when it comes to healing - including our own! Whether you have a dog who has health or behavioural issues that you have struggled seeing success with, or you just want to learn how to better support your dog in staying healthy, or you want to learn about deepening your bond with your dog, then you’re going to really get a lot out of this chat! Rachel shares her own story of how a wake-up call while working in the corporate world, then being laid off, led her to working in Battersea Dogs Home in London where her next chapter of working with dogs began. She also talks about how this journey with dogs helped her to see the relationship between our stress and our dogs’ stress, and how by learning the practices of deep listening, animal communication, and botanical self-healing, she has been able to support countless dogs - and their owners - on a journey back to physical, emotional, and spiritual health. From a border collie suffering from obsessively chasing shadows, to dogs with allergies and skin issues, and even her own dog who displayed aggressive behaviour.  She also shares tips on how you can start to practice self-selection with your own dog today by using some simple items in your kitchen cupboards. 00:21  INTRO 04:10  INTRODUCING RACHEL KNOTT (+ LUCKY!) 05:55  RACHEL SHARES HER OWN STORY FROM THE CORPORATE WORLD TO WORKING WITH DOGS - WHEN THE UNIVERSE FORCES YOU TO FOLLOW YOUR PASSION 08:40  MAKING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN YOUR DOG’S STRESS AND YOUR OWN 10:02  YOUR DOG KNOWS WHAT IT NEEDS TO HEAL 17:00  WHAT IS ZOOPHARMACOGNOSY? 21:30  RECLAIMING OUR TRUST IN OUR OWN HEALTH 25:18  REBUILDING TRUST IN OUR DOGS  - AND IN OURSELVES 32:46  CASE STUDY: A BORDER COLLIE WHO OBSESSIVELY CHASES SHADOWS, AND AN OWNER DEALING WITH GRIEF 30:11  CASE STUDY: COSMO THE BOSTON TERRIER TEACHES RACHEL ABOUT ANGER 52:00  LEARNING TO REALLY OBSERVE YOUR DOG 54:10  HOW ZOOPHARMACOGNOSY HELPED A DOG WITH SEVERE SKIN ISSUE WHO HAD TRIED EVERYTHING 57:30  CASE STUDY: WHEN A LARGE DOG BECOMES RACHEL’S TEACHER 1:01:00 EMBRACING CURIOSITY AND BEING OK WITH NOT KNOWING 1:02:00 THE IMPORTANCE OF DEEP LISTENING 1:04:00 RELEASING THE IDEA OF THE EXPERT AND OUR ATTACHMENTS TO LABELS 1:10:00 HOW TO DO SELF-SELECTION WITH YOUR DOG TODAY USING THINGS IN YOUR KITCHEN CUPBOARD 1:14:00 WHAT DOGS HAVE TAUGHT RACHEL ABOUT WHAT DOGS HAVE TAUGHT HER ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN To find out more about Rachel’s work, including her botanical self-healing course, and upcoming Animal Reflections course with Denis Liam Murphy, visit her website: https://myanimalmatters.co.uk/ Check out Denis Liam Murphy's Book The Blame Game: How to Recover from the World's Oldest Addiction. By using the following affiliate links, I earn a commission and you help support the podcast, at no extra cost to you: https://amzn.to/49SzzUM https://amzn.to/3vgbb0d You can also follow Rachel on Instagram at: https//:instagram.com/myanimalmatters Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please like, review, and rate it. It really helps other mystic dog mamas who are looking for support and community to find the podcast. https://instagram.com/mysticdogmama DISCLAIMER: This is not a substitute for medical advice or other relevant professional advice.