![]() Can you believe it’s already 2025? It feels like just yesterday we were ringing in the new millennium, and now we’re nearly a quarter-century in. With how fast the world changes, it can be hard to keep up with the latest trends and developments in pet care. That’s why we’re taking this chance to look forward to 2025: what sorts of pet care trends are we expecting to see in the new year, and do these trends live up to their own hype? If you’ve heard the buzz around raw diets, fitness wearables, alternative preventatives, or anything else trendy and new, read on! ![]() New Year, New Meal Carefully regulating what we eat has long been understood as an important piece of our own health, so it makes sense that pet owners are turning a more critical eye towards their pets’ nutrition as well. With so many pet foods on the market, and more and more discussion around whether store bought foods are even best for our pets, it can be hard to know if you’re making the right choice. Raw diets have seen a recent surge in popularity; these diets focus on ingredients such as muscle and organ meats, bones, fruits, vegetables, and raw eggs, thought to be more in line with how dogs dined before they were domesticated. Advocates for the raw diet tout benefits such as shinier coats, cleaner teeth, and higher energy levels, but the experts aren’t so sure. An FDA study found raw pet food is more likely to be contaminated with potentially harmful bacteria compared to other pet foods, while the American Veterinary Medical Association bluntly “discourages feeding any raw or undercooked animal-sourced protein to dogs and cats because of their risk to human and animal health.” Even as we were writing this article, an Oregon-based raw food manufacturer issued a recall after contaminated food was confirmed to have resulted in a cat contracting H5N1 and dying. Grain-free diets have also gained popularity, for many of the same reasons as raw diets. Marketing would have pet owners believe grain-free diets are “more natural” and more in line with dogs’ evolutionary diets, and that this translates to health benefits over standard foods, but once again the jury is out. The FDA has an ongoing investigation into the link between grain-free diets and Dilated Cardiomyopathy, particularly in breeds not genetically predisposed to this condition. The initial promise behind grain-free diets may also be faulty; while many of these diets seek to eliminate nutritional “fillers” (ingredients designed to bulk out food without adding nutritional value), many fillers actually contain necessary fiber to maintain intestinal health. Diets seeking to remove these fillers without compensation won’t be nutritionally balanced. Concord Animal Hospital has long pointed our clients towards veterinarian formulated brands such as Royal Canin, Purina Pro Plan, and Hill’s Science Diet, as these brands invest heavily into research and development, and formulate foods to address specific health concerns, breed or age issues, dietary sensitivities, and so forth. Alternative diets can have a place in managing a pet’s health, but the one-size-fits-all approach touted by the manufacturers of raw, grain-free, and other boutique diets is often driven by the marketing machine, rather than an authentic concern for pet wellbeing. Finding the correct diet for your pet can take time, effort, and uncertainty, and it would be so much easier for pet owners if someone invented a miracle food fit for any pet. Food manufacturers know this- it’s why they’re all so eager to convince you they have. ![]() Too Fit To Quit Dogs need exercise. Some breeds more than others, but any Border Collie or Australian Shepherd owner will tell you their dog doesn’t let them skip leg day. For a long time our view of canine fitness has been limited to walking, running, and the vigorous game of fetch. But in recent years, our whole concept of getting fit with your pet has expanded! Perhaps the biggest change has come in viewing pet fitness not as an extra chore to fit into our schedules, but as a part of our own fitness journeys. According to Colorado State University, this link goes both ways; your own physical activity can impact the activity and fitness of those around you (pets included!), while working out with a pet also makes owners more likely to stick with their own fitness goals and routines. Nearly any exercise you can imagine can be tailored to include your pet, from swimming and circuit training to dog yoga or canine crossfit! If having a structured routine helps you stay consistent, as it does for many, you may even be able to find hybrid canine-human fitness classes in your area. Just like with our own workouts, it’s important to pick activities that are a proper match for your pet and your fitness goals. Healthy adult dogs with decent stamina may enjoy long hikes in the woods, while more energetic dogs might prefer the frenetic bursts of action you find in circuit or agility training. Fitness wearables like fitbits and smart watches are another trend that have exploded for human use over the past decade, so it’s no surprise they’re picking up steam in the pet sphere as well. These devices boast a whole suite of data and monitoring tools, from step tracking and calorie burn to heart rate, body temperature, and behavioral irregularities that could indicate a health concern. Sounds pretty great! …Right? The promise of having this information at your fingertips can be enticing, especially for anxious pet parents, but it’s worth asking if all these data points are actually necessary. In our research we found plenty of tech journalists and gadget reviewers debating the reliability and performance of these devices, but we didn’t find a single veterinarian advocating for why you should own one in the first place. Wearable devices could have a place in monitoring specific metrics for pets with certain health conditions (and they already do, if you count devices like glucose monitors!), but if you’re simply worried about monitoring your pet’s activity levels, diet, or general health, the good, old fashioned methods should serve you just fine. ![]() Alternative Medicine Alternative medicine is a broad phrase; it can be hard to define what counts as medicine, and which of those medicines are then alternative. Some treatments we offer here at Concord Animal Hospital are considered to be alternative medicine, such as acupuncture, while other times alternative medicine is used to describe products or treatments that haven’t been adequately tested or researched, and haven’t undergone FDA or EPA approval. Flea, tick, and heartworm preventatives have been at the forefront of the alternative veterinary medicine trend, thanks to their cost, frequency of use, and complex ingredient lists. By comparison, inexpensive all-natural remedies such as garlic, tea tree oil, or boric acid can sound appealing… But do they actually work? In short, no. Store-bought “all natural” preventatives are typically a blend of alleged home remedies that can be harmful or outright toxic to dogs, and even the ones that won’t harm your pet are unlikely to offer real benefit. While some of these remedies can be successful in controlling sections of parasite populations, many only work against specific life stages such as larva or adults, meaning they won’t thoroughly eradicate a population. The prognosis is even worse for natural heartworm preventatives- because according to the American Heartworm Society (AHS), there are none. The AHS states that, while there are natural means of reducing exposure, “there’s no such thing as a ‘natural’ heartworm preventative.” The safest and most effective flea, tick, and heartworm preventions are, as is the case with most treatments, specially formulated prescription medications, designed for their exact purpose. These medications are carefully developed to ensure efficacy without adverse findings, and are tested at quantities higher than the recommended dosage to ensure safety. Additionally, use of prescription medications allows a veterinarian familiar with your pet to ensure a given medication is right for a given patient, factoring in histories and side effects in a way that can’t be monitored with over-the-counter medications or home remedies. Behind the Trends Being a pet owner is hard. New information comes out every day on what’s best for our pets, and it can feel impossible to sort through what’s reputable and what’s not. In researching trends for this blog we found all sorts of reports, analytics, and projections from marketing firms who generally cared about two things: where you spent your money last year, and where you’ll spend it this year. These “trends” are supported by sales figures and dollar signs rather than medical research, and they start from the conclusion that you should spend more money, before working backwards to justify this. Many of these trends capitalize on the anxieties of caring, well-meaning pet parents (Is my dog getting enough exercise? Are the foods I’m feeding them healthy? Are these medications safe?), because an anxious pet parent is more likely to buy something than a reassured pet parent. So let us take a moment to say… You’re doing amazing. Your pet loves you, you love them, and that love isn’t measured in the money you spend. You’ve taken care of them every day since they’ve joined your family, and you’ll continue to do so, this year and for many more to come. Listen to the advice of veterinarians and the slow-and-steady pace of veterinary research, but don’t let anyone frighten you into buying their solution to a manufactured problem. Hopefully this blog can give you some peace of mind in 2025, but if you do have worries, give us a call! At the end of the day, no new trend compares to speaking with an expert who knows your pet’s unique health and history. Have faith in your own pet-parenting ability this year, and to pets and people everywhere… Happy New Year! Comments are closed.
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