Meet Dr. Maureen McMichael, our primary pet health specialist at the New Biology Clinic
Dr. Maureen McMichael serves as the New Biology Clinic’s primary wellness specialist for our Pet Health Membership program, for which she provides individualized health support for all a member’s household pets. Maureen believes that the pet’s health is intimately entwined with their family’s health on a physical, mental and spiritual level.
She believes all health starts with a strong foundation of diet (e.g., fasting, ancestral foods, optimized water), exercise (e.g., grounding, sunlight, etc.) and high quality sleep. She uses the foundational principles of New Biology coupled with her knowledge of integrative and herbal medicine, along with her studies of German New Medicine to identify the root causes of illness. Her experience shows that when the Pet’s caregiver is empowered, confident and calm, the pet’s healing can be more rapid and complete.
For the Clinic’s enrichment services, Maureen gives foundational talks (e.g., diet, fasting, water, sleep, grounding, sunlight, etc.), chronic concerns (e.g., joint health, urinary and kidney health, heart health, etc.), urgent issues (e.g., bleeding, toxin ingestion, stings, snakebite, etc.), and what to have on hand. Whenever possible, she will include a downloadable “cheat sheet.” Additionally, she will hold periodic Q&A sessions with pre-submitted questions by members. Maureen’s group sessions are included at no additional charge for all members, whether or not they are enrolled in the Pet Health Membership.
Dr. Maureen McMichael completed a BS in Biology from Columbia University, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) from Cornell University and a Master’s in Education from the University of Illinois. She completed an internship and residency in Emergency & Critical Care Medicine and became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care in 2001.
She has held faculty positions at Texas A&M University, the University of Illinois and Auburn University. She is an inaugural professor at the Carle-Illinois College of Medicine, University of Illinois.
Her Research interests include: geriatric pet health, working dog health, the microbiome and gut health, oxidative stress in health and disease, and treatment of pro-thrombotic states. She has published over 90 peer reviewed articles, numerous book chapters, two emergency textbooks, and one eText, the Tactical K9 Emergency Handbook: Step by Step Roadmap for Common and Uncommon Emergencies.
Maureen has been dedicated to keeping working dogs healthy since her first encounter with Bretagne in 2001. Bretagne was a Search and Rescue (SAR) dog from Texas that had traveled to the World Trade Center after 9/11. Betagne was then deployed to the Utah Winter Olympics and Dr. McMichael worked with her handler to acclimatize her to the Utah Winter. Maureen has received special recognition from Texas Task Force 1 for her work with their K9s. In Illinois, she taught K9 first aid, opioid reversal (e.g., Narcan®) and CPR to SAR groups, bomb squads, SWAT teams, EMS teams, Arrow Ambulance personnel, firefighters and the canine handlers at the Springfield Police Training Institute.
On the personal side, Maureen lives with her human family, dogs, chickens, and bees. She is enjoying the transition from standard beekeeping (Langstroth hives) to natural beekeeping (horizontal hives with minimal intervention).