When and Why to Consult a Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionist

When dogs are experiencing health issues, a common suggestion is to look at diet. Specific foods and supplements can be helpful with managing symptoms of problems such as kidney disease, heart disease, diabetes, pancreatitis, and gastrointestinal disorders. Dogs with food allergies and trouble with weight management also benefit from scrutiny of and changes to their diet. A board-certified veterinary nutritionist is your best resource in these situations, as they have extensive specialized education and clinical experience. 

When should you consult a board-certified veterinary nutritionist?

While your primary care vet can make diet recommendations for many basic concerns and simple disorders, board-certified veterinary nutritionists can find solutions for more complicated issues. Your dog may have a difficult combination of health concerns, you may have questions about homemade diets, or you may even just want to find the optimal food to help your dog live a longer and healthier life. A veterinary nutritionist can also advise pet owners about supplements since these are unregulated and can easily create an unbalanced diet. 

Why is it important to see a nutritionist who is board-certified?

The title of “nutritionist” is also unregulated, meaning that people with any level of education can refer to themselves that way- even a person with no education beyond their real-life experience. On the other hand, to become a board-certified veterinary nutritionist, the person has to go through extensive education and training. After four years of vet school, they must do a one-year internship and a two- to three-year residency in clinical nutrition, then pass exams to be certified by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM). Many choose to continue their education beyond this, along with conducting research and publishing their findings. To further complicate things, there are also board-certified animal nutritionists. This path does not include vet school or a residency, so there is much less education required. 

How do you find a board-certified veterinary nutritionist?

The ACVIM made the process of finding a veterinary nutritionist very simple by developing a website called http://vetspecialists.com. This site has a complete directory of board-certified specialists in Cardiology, Oncology, Neurology, Large or Small Animal Internal Medicine, and Nutrition. You can filter results to find veterinary nutritionists in your area, including specialists who do remote consulting with clients or primary care vets. 

Looking for other resources?

• http://acvim.org has information about the education and certification process for veterinary nutritionists, plus relevant news and research articles.
• http://vet.tufts.edu/foster-hospital-small-animals/specialty-services/nutrition has basic information about pet nutrition, a pet food nutrient calculator, and other useful tools and links.
• http://sites.tufts.edu/petfoodology/ is a blog with articles written by board-certified veterinary nutritionists, covering a variety of diet-related topics.