Meet Local Pet Health Coach, The Hound Healer

Parents will give the world if it makes their children happy, even if their children have four legs and fur. 

Just like humans, pets struggle with their nutritional well-being, medical ailments and mental health. However, a pet’s plea for help is often seen as a normal woof or meow, until they end up in the vet’s office. Jody L. Teiche, local certified pet homeopathic educator and founder of The Hound Healer, speaks on her life as a pet health coach and the value of her work in changing animals’ lives.   

Growing up in a health-conscious home, Teiche was always interested in health. Her work in homeopathy, however, started when her daughter was 3 years old and overcame an ear infection through natural medicine. Teiche carried this appreciation for natural medicine with her as the years passed. 

For 30 years, Teiche was a publicist in New York City before retiring and creating two companies built on her passion for animals and fashion: Couture by Sophie and Bark & Swagger. When her pup Sophie developed a brutal skin condition, Teiche also found herself with intestinal issues; she returned to her roots of homeopathy and nutrition to cure herself and Sophie. 

Credit to Barbara Tyler-Ahlfield

“Homeopathy cured my stomach issue when nothing else would,” Teiche says. “And it got Sophie 75% cured (of) her skin condition. It was an entree back into a world that I love but was not focusing on. I dove (into homeopathy) really, really deep.” 

Teiche took her passion to a new level after it cured Sophie; she found mentors and masters in the U.S., India and Canada and studied intensely by working with her own animals and friends.

“I really wanted to do my heart’s work, (which) was natural medicine, animals and people,” Teiche says. “So, I decided to put them together.” 

Teiche created an official course for pet parents on nutrition, mindset and the basics of homeopathy. While taking the course, clients saw life-changing results in their four-legged friends. 

One success story Teiche experienced was a pup named Max who swallowed a sewing needle, which had to be surgically removed. Since then, Max has struggled with chronic digestive issues and raw, red paw pads. The vet couldn’t rid Max of his chronic problems, but Teiche and Max’s parent worked together using homeopathy, and Max was healed. 

“(Max’s parent) has her dog back and a skill that will serve her, her dog and any other people or animals she cares about for life,” Teiche says. 

Health coaching is vital to a holistic life for both animals and humans because medical professionals are only taught standard treatment in school. With health coaching, Teiche looks beyond typical medicine. 

Credit to Victor Ang

“The conventional medical system is challenging to navigate for people and pet parents,” Teiche says. “Conventional doctors and veterinarians were not taught preventative medicine in med school. My mission is to teach pet parents the other way, and the other way is full of options to help the body heal itself.” 

However, Teiche understands her work alone isn’t always enough to cure clients. If needed, she brings in homeopathic vets or expert pet trainers to help the animal in ways she cannot. Whether it’s Teiche’s hands-on work or the help of another source, the Hound Healer’s goal remains the same — to ensure the pet’s well-being. 

By bringing other professionals into the pet healing process, Teiche is able to help clients learn mindset tools to help their animals reach a healthier life stage. She also supplies clients with the right questions to ask the vet, enabling them to feel empowered and informed at their appointments.

As a pet health coach, Teiche isn’t just a bridge between medical professionals and clients; she’s a bridge between the pet and pet parents. She closes the spiritual gap between her clients and their animals by connecting them to a similar mindset. 

“We have the answers inside of us in terms of what we need to do,” Teiche says. “We need someone who is going to help us learn ourselves and our pets deeper, and then the answers become very clear.”