Family Dog Naturals Serves The Entire Family

Betsy and David Head, owners of Family Dog Naturals in Leland, take great care to look out for your pet’s nutritional needs. They consult with clients to customize their offerings based on each pet’s situation. We asked them a few questions recently about their business.

1. How did you get interested in pet nutrition and natural foods and supplements?

We started Family Dog Naturals in 2013. Prior to that back in Connecticut I had been in wellness & nutrition for dogs and cats. I had worked for a holistic veterinarian and managed the family’s retail store since 2004.

2. What are your most popular brands – foods and supplements? What do they provide that is better than grocery store brands?

We carry many varieties of dry & wet natural foods for dogs & cats: Orijen, Acana, Fromm, First Mate, Open Farm & Fussie Cat just to name a few. These foods are free of corn, wheat, soy & by-products, ingredients you never want to see in your animal’s food! We also sell quite a bit of raw food including Primal, Stella & Chewy & Answers and believe it is one of the best foods you can feed. Coming from personal experience, both of our dogs have been eating raw all their lives and thrive on living food! In addition, one of our best sellers is a home cooked premix that you add your own protein to. Dogs love it because it is formulated with human grade ingredients!

As far as supplements go, we sell vitamins and healthy oils to help complete any diet. One of our most popular items is a glucosamine supplement that is incredibly helpful for joint function and is easily absorbed into the body.

3. You offer free consulting to determine the pet’s needs?

Please feel free to stop by the store any time for a free consult. We feel it’s so important to listen to your dog or cat’s needs and do our best to get them on the right track.

4. What issues or questions do you hear often from your customers?

One of the most common issues we hear from customers is that their dogs or cats are very picky eaters! We hear you and we have many free samples to help figure out what they would enjoy best. We feel it is so important your animal really love what they eat!

5. As pet owners, we’re often cautioned about changing our pet’s diet from what they are used to. Is there any basis to this thinking?

We feel it is important to change the protein and even the brand of food you feed on a regular basis. Most people make the mistake of keeping their animal on the same food all the time. Unfortunately, what can happen is they can develop an allergy to that particular protein. Plus, who wants to eat the same thing day in day out! However, when you do change foods for the first time you definitely have to gradually do so. Once the body has acclimated to a food it will soon be much easier to interchange food.

6. How do you and your staff learn about the products you offer?

We believe the best way to sell any product is from personal experience. Any of our knowledgeable staff can attest to that. When they use a product for their own animal, they can give you an honest opinion on what works well and what would be an ideal fit for your dog or cat.

7. What about food allergies? Do you see those; how should we recognize and deal with those?

Unfortunately, we hear way too often about so many animals developing allergies. Side effects include itching, shedding, loose stool and even obesity. So many things from poorcommercial foods to chemical flea & tick prevention all really suppress the immune system. We need to keep the immune system as strong as we can. One of our biggest pet peeves are the chemicals & pesticides that are used in many of the topical and ingestible flea & tick products. They have a bevy of side effects, including seizures. There are many wonderful natural alternatives that can be used from powders that go in the food to natural topical sprays that are tree, plant & herb derived.

8. Any other comments for people interested in improving their pet’s diet?

Please feel free to stop by anytime with any questions or concerns. We are open 7 days a week and we even offer FREE delivery! Just call for more info.