The food, the right food, the healthy food… no matter how much you know about it, there is always something new to learn.
There is no question about the importance of the right nutrition, we all know that the right food is a pillar for everything else that follows; it is especially important when it comes to our pets as they aren’t able to make the right choices for themselves.
I am fairly well educated when it comes to dog… and cat food for that matter… but lately I’ve missed something really obvious…
Just after summer I’ve made a change and started feeding my dogs raw. It’s not a full raw diet, I wish it was but maybe one day in the future we will get it… I’ve replaced the wet portion of my dogs dinner with raw. In addition I put Lilly on new kibbles, which at the time I thought would be a much better choice for her, the ingredients list seemed to be friendlier and it was more in line with the nutritional need for senior pets. All was good until we started to notice that Lilly is putting weight back on. Since last year and our “Nutrition challenge with Pets at Home” she was doing great, she lost all the weight she should lose and she was keeping in great form… well until a few months back.
I couldn’t work out why she was putting weight on, the measurements of the food were right, she wasn’t getting anything on top of what I wanted her to eat, she wasn’t “stealing” food (or at least no more than usual) yet there it was, she was putting weight on…
It was time yet again to seek advice from someone who might have more answers than me. We booked a new dog nutrition consultation at Pets at Home, they helped us last year, so it was a logical step to take…. as it ended up it was the right step… after the initial “interview” about Lilly and her feeding routine, any changes in behaviour, and changes in food, the answer was pretty clear… the new “improved” food I put Lilly on had way too high a fat content when compared to her old one. The solution was simple – find new, low fat food… with the advice of the consultant, we settled on James Wellbeloved Senior Complete Dog Food with Turkey & Rice, which has the lowest fat content and meets all the other requirements we expect from the food.
So you see, sometimes our “good deeds” might not be so good after all. No matter how much we know, there is always something new to learn. No matter how clever we think we are, there is no harm in getting a second opinion from someone with even greater knowledge. I should actually have picked up on the fat content myself but I didn’t 🙂
I am glad Pets at Home offer nutrition consultation and I really can’t recommend it enough. We have used it 4 times already and they were always of great help to us.
Weight check and nutrition consultation at Pets at Home are free of charge and you can book your slot via their website. You will need between 30 minutes to 1 hour of free time and your pet… oh and at the end of it, together with your recommendation you will receive a 25% discount voucher to buy your recommended food… double win, wouldn’t you agree?
Have you ever used a nutrition consultation for your pet?
Who is your “go to” person when it comes to pet nutrition?
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This is a really good post. A lot of pet owners just buy pet food without even thinking about the nutritional value - I admit, I have done in the past. A few months ago I took my bunny to the vets and was told she’s overweight (not obese, but she still needed to shed a few pounds). She’s been on a strict and gets a really good nutritional meal and she’s back to healthy size again! 🙂
I never knew that Pets At Home offered this service. x
I didn’t know they offer this service at all. I have a very fat cat who I’ve had on a diet forever and she never seems to lose any weight - I think I need to take her in.
I never knew PAH did this kind of service. Though my fur baby Falcor is in great health It’s good to know they’re there if needed.
Wow, I never knew that Pets at Home offered this kind of service I know they have in store vets, but this is fab x
Interesting post. I’d never heard of pet nutrition consultations. Glad yours helped.
Pets at Home offer some great services nowadays, which is brilliant.
It’s so important to feed your pets healthy food (we had cats) with the odd treat now and again. It’s great to get a second opinion too, to make sure you are feeding them the correct things. It’s also important to check their weight as well because they can very quickly put it on.
Laura x
I don’t use a nutrition consultant but I dont think we’re in need of one at the moment as our dog is in such good health, has a varied, balanced diet, very well exercised and the vet is always so pleased with her. If we were ever worried we’d definitely take her to see a pet nutritionist, its great that that facility is available as theres always so much conflicting advice out there and sometimes its a case of striking lucky to get it right xxx
I haven’t even thought of using a nutritionist for our dogs. They are both fed on dry food and a good brand, but it would be good to get a professional opinion x
My cat is in really good health but it’s good to know this service exists;-)
Pet weight gain and associated heath issues is such a massive problem in the uk! I used to work in a vets and out weight clinc was always fully booiked in advance! I take pet nutrition very seriously and have worked really hard to teach my girls about the associated responsibilites!
We took Sal for one of these - they were so helpful and I was surprised with how much they knew and all the things they looked at. x
I didn’t even know they offered that service. One of my cats is overweight so it might be worth booking him in for an appointment.
Yeah i have been there and done that before with my elkie and it was only after I spoke to someone I realised what I was doing
When my Mum had to downsize, my husband and I inherited her cat, Sunrise. Well, to be more precise we inherited a big ball of fur with a cat in there somewhere. Mum had spoiled Sunny so much that she was four times the weight she should have been. It took us ages to get her back to a healthy weight again. Then we took a three week holiday to Florida and my Mum looked after the cats. When we got back we were practically back at square one!