Dr. Chris Bessent
Veterinarian, formulator, educator, and founder behind multiple approaches to pet health
For more than thirty years, Dr. Chris Bessent has built her work around one central belief: health is rarely shaped by one thing alone.
Her career has brought together veterinary medicine, nutrition, herbal medicine, and formulation — always with the goal of understanding what helps animals regain balance in a way that lasts.
What began in practice eventually grew into multiple brands, each created to solve a different part of the same larger question.
Experience That Shaped the Work
Dr. Bessent holds bachelor’s degrees in nutrition and animal science, along with certifications in veterinary acupuncture, chiropractic, and Chinese herbology, plus a master’s degree in acupuncture and oriental medicine.
That training expanded how she approached chronic skin issues, digestive problems, recurring infections, aging-related changes, and the patterns that often connect them.
Four Ways That Work Took Shape
Herbsmith
Herbsmith began during years in practice when Dr. Bessent kept running into cases that did not fully resolve with conventional tools alone.
As she expanded into chiropractic care and Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, the results opened up a different way of thinking — one where herbs, nutrition, and proactive support often became part of helping pets stay ahead of the most common problems she saw every day.
What began as custom herbal blends mixed in practice eventually grew into formulas designed to make that kind of thoughtful support more accessible to pet parents.
Simple Food Project
Simple Food Project grew from the belief that food should do more of the work.
After years of seeing how often health came back to the bowl, Dr. Bessent developed freeze-dried recipes made entirely from whole foods, without synthetic vitamin packs or mineral premixes, so the ingredients themselves remain the nutritional foundation.
Medicus
Medicus grew out of the same question that shaped much of Dr. Bessent’s work: how do you meet specific nutritional needs without losing sight of the food itself?
The result was a line of Foundational, Targeted, and Veterinary Diets designed to support specific nutrient goals using thoughtfully chosen whole-food ingredients.
Wisconsin Freeze-Dried
Wisconsin Freeze Dried became the manufacturing arm that made close control possible — from ingredient sourcing to formulation to freeze-dried production.
Keeping that work under one roof in southeastern Wisconsin allows product development, quality standards, and day-to-day production to stay closely connected.
A Place for the Ideas Behind the Work
This is where Dr. Bessent writes more freely about food, herbs, aging, digestion, behavior, ingredient choices, and the everyday patterns that still shape how she thinks about pet health.
Supporting Joint Health
Humans and animals alike all deal with joint discomfort. It’s a common musculoskeletal issue that can result from a lack of necessary nutrients or from
Allergy Management: Western vs. Eastern
(If you haven’t already, check out our precursor post – Boiling Over: An Intro to Allergies) If you’ve ever been around an allergic dog,
Food Energetics
For the allergic dog, food is medicine. Some foods have cooling properties, while others are warming. Animals experience allergies may benefit from a diet that
Milk Thistle: Liver’s Super Sidekick
If you’re familiar with herbal supplements, you’ve likely heard of Milk Thistle. Sometimes considered a weed, milk thistle presents a wide array of benefits for