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Approaching Dog Training Holistically- Diet
Hi Everyone,
I hope you’re doing well and I hope I’m posting this in the right spot. Let me preface this by saying, I did look through my Catch curriculum binder and as best as I can tell, I didn’t see anything related to this topic there (watch me eat those words later lol).
Does anyone ask their clients about their dog’s diet, in order to get a better sense of the bigger picture? I always ask via intake forms when was their last vet visit and were there any results out of the ordinary (to see if pain or discomfort could be a factor in their behavior).
The person that I purchase my dog’s food from currently was under the impression that I discussed diet during my consultations. So, I just thought I would ask the group and see if anyone here did that. Thank you in advance!
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4 Replies
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Hi @zaneb , I think that’s a great question. The types of food and treats that my clients use with their dogs are standard questions on my intake form. I also ask if the dog has any allergies or sensitivities, and how they eat (i.e., grazing, snarfing at the speed of light, refusing to eat unless tasty tidbits are added, etc.).
This helps me in a number of ways: I can make treat recommendations that I think will be sufficiently motivating for the dog; I can suggest different feeding rules (e.g. no free-feeding if the dog is not yet house-trained); I can suggest foods to choose for stuffing into puzzles; and if the dog has allergies, I can point them to their bag of kibble to confirm the protein source(s) and then recommend fresh versions of that protein when higher-value treats are needed.I have really strong opinions about what is and isn’t good nutrition for a dog and would absolutely cringe to myself if I read that the dog was being fed a low-quality kibble with lots of junk fillers. But I’m reluctant to offer nutritional advice because I am not actually qualified to do so. Often, I’ll refer the client to dogfoodadvisor.com so they can read reviews about many different foods and learn more about the pros and cons of individual ingredients.
This is a loaded topic — so many people have strong opinions about the ‘right way’ to feed a dog!
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Hi @virginiad . Thank you very much for the response. This pretty much affirms how I’ve been doing things, I was just curious if anyone did anything different. I always ask clients if their dogs have any potential/known food allergies. However, I like the question you asked about snarfing at the speed of light (Labradors, anyone? lol).
I have strong opinions as well but I tend to keep them to myself unless I am asked by a client. I usually point them to the Dog Food Advisor website as well if they have questions. I also tell them to check with their veterinarian, although in a lot cases they refer to brands such as Hills etc. I don’t judge anyone and when a dog’s health is in question, I always refer them to their vet. My long term client, a Labrador, was having some serious food allergy issues, characterized by relentless, frequent diarrhea. The client tried everything under the sun and then went to his vet and they discovered that he had a chicken allergy. They changed his food and bam, no more upset stomach. I just felt so bad for the dog.
I agree, it is a loaded topic, and I too, am passionate about it. As difficult as it was, the above mentioned situation with the upset stomach + Lab made me a little more flexible and open minded. I still have my own thoughts but when it comes to the well being of a dog, I can consider different view points, especially if the person has a veterinary degree. 🙂
This is a safe space so I will just say that my dog food guy, while he makes a quality product, has always been a little pushy when it comes to me referring my training clients to him. I finally had to set a boundary yesterday, although I am not sure it sank in for the other party concerned. He saw a client’s name I charged on Venmo and asked me if I brought up the topic of his food to them (very uncomfortable and awkward). Anyway, thank you Virginia for the second opinion! I am going to stick to my general M.O. with maybe a tweak or two to the intake form. 🙂
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Sounds good, @zaneb , and perhaps some other DD members will share some other helpful input.
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Nice work, Zane, with the professional referrals. It’s important to stay in our “wheelhouse”. I usually do the same thing, I say: “I’m not a nutritionist, I rotate my own dogs foods and I look on Dog Food Advisor for ingredients to watch out for. Not every food is for every dog, you just have to try to find what works for your dog, and if you have questions, seek out someone who is well versed in nutrition which may or may not be your veterinarian.” ????
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