The Truth About Pet Care
How fear-mongering is shaping pet care—and why I stopped feeding into it
If you’ve spent more than five minutes on social media, you’ve probably seen:
“Raw feeding is dangerous”
“Kibble is causing your dog's health problems.”
“Your veterinarian is only recommending food they sell.”
The list goes on and on…
Somewhere along the way, pet care stopped being about education and started becoming a competition of clickbait to go viral.
And honestly? It’s NOT helping dogs.
The more shocking a post is, the more comments it gets. The more outrage it creates, the more people share it. Before long, an opinion becomes “fact” simply because everyone has seen it repeated enough times.
I’ve watched pet parents become completely overwhelmed even from my own lifestyle posts! They’re terrified they are failing their dog because they “can’t afford” the same care but they want to do what’s right.
Whether it’s multi-level marketing companies promising “the miracle supplement every dog needs,” influencers earning commissions and creators selling their own content… it can start to feel like every post is leading to a checkout page.
Now, I'm not against people making a living. As a small business owner myself, I understand the value of earning an income from the work you love. But somewhere along the way, pet care online has started feeling less like education and more like a constant stream of opinions telling us we are right or wrong.
There Is No Perfect Pet Parent
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned over the years is that dogs are individuals. What works beautifully for one dog may not work for another. My dogs thrive on fresh food and your dog may do incredibly well on kibble. But no one deserves shame for living their life the way they want.
When I first entered the pet industry, I wanted to learn everything! I listened to every expert. I followed every trend. I wanted to feed the “perfect diet” and be the best parent ever for The Pugstables. But over time as my own dogs continued to experience health challenges no matter how well I cared for them, I reflected on some of the decisions I made before and decided…
When we know better, we do better and that’s all we can do!
We can’t go back and change what we didn’t know at the time. But we can choose to stay curious and make informed decisions moving forward. The goal isn’t to chase every opinion that appears on our phones—it’s to listen and make thoughtful choices for the dog standing right in front of us.
The more dogs I care for, the more I see that health isn’t built from one single decision. A dog’s overall quality of life is much bigger than what side of medicine you agree with. Stop cringing and just live life!
I’m Switzerland Baby!
We need to improve a dog’s life without making the owner feel guilty.
Can we add fresh food to kibble instead of insisting not to feed it?
Can we move away from the idea that titer testing means anti-vaccine?
Can we acknowledge that both approaches have valuable roles to play?
I would much rather leave a conversation feeling informed, than frightened.
Maybe it is just me, but when an online veterinarian shares information, I want to understand the why behind the recommendation—not feel like I’m being pressured into believing their opinion is the only acceptable choice.
For example, I appreciate when a veterinarian shares information that encourages pet parents to look deeper, ask questions, and be active participants in their pet’s care. But I’ve also seen veterinarians caution about the importance of evidence-based care. Those conversations matter, because protecting pets from unsafe practices should always be the priority.
Where I struggle is when the delivery becomes dismissive.
I think we have to recognize how much social media influences these conversations. Most recently, we have all watched a pet creator build their platform around one feeding philosophy, only to later share that they no longer follow that approach and have moved toward something different.
And changing their mind wasn’t the problem. We should want people to learn, grow, and adjust when they gain new information. The concern is that they claim they were “wrong” and admitted they only did it to go viral.
When the message becomes, “anyone who questions conventional recommendations is being misled,” or when another professional is dismissed as “fearful” simply for approaching care differently, I think we lose an opportunity for a more productive conversation.
Because fear exists on both sides.
What I value most is someone willing to look at the whole picture, consider the individual animal, and have honest conversations about what may or may not be beneficial for them.
Because good care isn’t about choosing a side. It’s about being willing to evaluate new information and make decisions based on the needs of the animal in front of us.
Both conversations can have value. But the difference is whether the conversation creates curiosity or fear.
I don’t need every professional to agree with each other. But I hope we can move toward a place where we can have respectful conversations without making people feel guilty for making the best decision they can with the information they have.
Because at the end of the day, most of us are here for the same reason: we love our animals and want to help them live healthier, happier lives.
Just Be, Mindful.
Imagine how much more we could learn if we spent less time trying to “win” debates and more time listening to one another.
Fear may get clicks. But compassion builds community.
And if there’s one thing I’ve learned after all these years in pet care, it’s this:
The best decisions are made from a willingness to meet in the middle.
P.S. I’d love to hear your perspective. Have you ever felt overwhelmed by conflicting advice online? How do you decide what’s best for your pets?