The pet wellness boom is real. Are we doing too much?

I was at a friend's house the other day, refilling her dog's water bowl in the sink when she suddenly whipped around and blurted, "What are you doing?!"

Hearing her tone, you'd think I was caught spray painting her dog hot pink. But the alleged blasphemy here was that I was giving her pup unfiltered tap water.

Luna only drinks filtered water. "She drinks what we drink," my friend plainly stated.

When I got home later, I stared into my dog's cloudy, chlorine-laced water bowl while he stared at me.

The pet wellness boom

We all approach our pet's wellness differently. At the same time, we also share the common desire for our pets to be well. But what does pet wellness look like in an age when we're being marketed ashwagandha and acupuncture for Hufflepuff's anxiety? Does Fettuccini really need to be on a raw meat diet with daily doses of collagen puptides? Can Krypto take colloidal silver instead of overpriced antibiotics?

Lil' Miss Peaches, an LAist dog, goes to doggy day care to keep her mental health in check.

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Jenn Baughman

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Last week on LAist 89.3's AirTalk, we invited Dr. John Tegzes, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, to join us for a fact check on pet wellness. Here's what we learned.

How we got here

The boom in the pet wellness industry may have had its genesis during the pandemic.

"It was the perfect storm," Tegzes said, explaining how a surge in pet adoptions combined with a severe shortage of veterinarians primed us for this moment.

Leaf, the author's dog, waits to be seen by his primary care provider.

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Lucy Copp

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But that's not all. We're also in a moment where self-care, for humans, has reached fever pitch, and the pet has taken notice. The result? A slew of new products and services aimed at giving Fido the dog equivalent of a hot yoga class with an Erewhon smoothie cooldown.

And now we have choices to make. But how?

What to know

I never once considered adding a daily fish oil supplement to my dog's kibble, but here we are. My spoiled dog child Leaf gets six pumps a day.

The hope? Joint strengthening.

The evidence? Lacking.

“ What is important to recognize is that we don't always have the evidence to suggest that everything is doing good, and in fact, there is evidence that some things can cause harm," Tegzes warned.

Ikigai, an LAist cat, naps on premium linen sheets after playing a game of chase around the house with his owner.

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Frank Stoltze

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The pet wellness industry is far less regulated than ours, with much fewer tests and trials to verify efficacy. That said, there are standards for efficacy. You just need to know what to look for.

What to look for

Let's start with kibble. Intuitively, we know an overly processed meal isn't healthy. But unlike other pet products, we have evidence for kibble. "There's a lot of scientific evidence that it can promote inflammation," Tegzes said, adding that he cooks his animals fresh whole food.

For many reasons, cooking your dog homemade meals may not be possible. I tried the practice for a week with my own dog, but I have a hard enough time cooking for myself. So if you're in the kibble camp with me, this is what Tegzes recommends.

"Make sure the pet food has undergone rigorous testing," he said.

How? Check the packaging. It might say one of two things: exceeds AAFCO standards by analysis OR exceeds AAFCO standards through feeding trials. You want feeding trials.

Goose, an LAist dog, has a dog bed in every room of his house. While Bernie, an LAist cat, gets four meals a day.

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Danny Sway

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Feeding trials demonstrate not only that the food contains the nutrients, but that the animals can absorb them, and that they can thrive on that diet throughout their lifetimes.

When considering supplements for your pets, look for something that says "NASC standards" on the packaging. That label means the product meets certain standards put forth by the National Animal Supplement Council. It's a nonprofit, non-regulatory organization that offers suggestions for how pet supplements are manufactured and delivered.

It's up to you

Ultimately, how we care for our pets is as personal as how we choose to care for ourselves. And what works for one pet and their owner might not work for another.

Tegzes main message is: pay attention, do your research and talk to your vet.

***

One of our LAist colleagues, who is on the brink of losing their pet, said recently "she is the closest thing I'll have to a child."

I get that. You might too.

Leslie, an LAist dog, has an outfit for every occasion.

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Cato Hernandez

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Tegzes certainly does.

"If a new food topper promises longevity, why wouldn't we want to try it?" he said.

Why wouldn't we try the supplements, the pet psychics, the CBT oil — all of it — if it means a little more time with them? Just don't let the marketing deceive you.

They won't live forever. But we do get to love them forever, even if their water wasn't always filtered.

Listen to the full conversation below: