"We can prevent health problems with the right nutrition鈥
Rilana van de Lande is a nutritionist at the 木瓜福利影视 Veterinary Hospital nutrition centre. She gives people advice on the best diet for their pets on a daily basis.
"I've been interested in nutrition from an early age," explains nutritionist Rilana van de Lande. "I discovered how much nutrition affects your health while I was studying Animal Management. I was fascinated, and decided to study Nutrition and Dietetics. The thing is, I noticed I really missed working with animals. One day, I discovered the perfect job: counselling animal owners on their pets and livestock while doing research at the 木瓜福利影视 Veterinary Hospital."
The body's building blocks
"Nutrition is an important part of any treatment plan. Proper nutrition is crucial to quality of life 鈥 food provides the building blocks our bodies need. Every animal is obviously different. Factors like age, breed, environment and genes all influence the animal's health."
Vegan trend
More and more animal owners are asking for vegan.
Preventing nutritional issues
鈥淲e use nutrition to reduce, or even prevent, symptoms," Van de Lande continues. "I recently had a man at my desk with a dog suffering from joint problems. I advised him to add a supplement to his diet. In many cases, you'll see the effects after as little as three weeks. He was very sceptical, and came back a few weeks later to share his doubts. He suspected I might be right, but wasn't entirely convinced yet. When he came back a few months later, he told me he clearly noticed the effects of the dietary supplement. He had stopped for a while, but his dog started getting worse again. As soon as he started adding the supplement again, the dog's condition improved significantly. The evidence was so clear he just had to accept it. He also immediately started giving the same supplement to his young dog, an offspring of his older dog."
"You can prevent problems with the right nutrition sometimes. Some breeds have more issues than others. For example, larger breeds often struggle with joint problems. In those cases, we recommend foods that will strengthen the joints from an early age. That can help delay any issues that are specific to the breed. Sometimes I'll see a particular breed in the waiting room and I'll already have a hunch what kind of symptoms it's suffering from."
His dog lost huge amounts of weight thanks to intensive coaching.
A 23-kg Jack Russell
鈥淚 had one of my most memorable experiences during my first year at the nutrition centre," Van de Lande recalls. "An owner came in with a limping dog that was literally collapsing under its own weight. He told us: 'If you can't help me, I really don't know what to do'. His dog was a 23-kilo Jack Russell. Jack Russells normally weigh about five to six kilos. The dog originally belonged to his mother, and he'd started caring for it because he noticed it's health was deteriorating. I offered him intensive coaching: we spoke to each other every month and his Jack Russell lost huge amounts of weight. He started playing with his ball again, was able to walk and wasn't short of breath anymore. Six months later, I saw the same man in the waiting room, but I didn't recognise the dog. I asked if it was the same dog or a different one? The man enthusiastically replied: 'Yes, this is him and he's like a young dog again.' That just goes to show how important nutrition is. The right foods in the right amount make a world of difference."