From Zookeeper to PhD Animal Nutritionist: Dr. Francis Cabana on Pet Food Myths, Microbiomes & Feeding Better Dogs

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, we sit down with Dr. Francis Cabana to talk pet nutrition myths, unbalanced homemade recipes online, microbiome health, probiotics, and what it’s really like working in the pet food industry. We also cover whether dogs are true carnivores, zoo kibble, affordable ways to improve your dog’s bowl, and how to confidently choose evidence-based nutrition over internet noise.Timestamps:0:56 – Dr. Francis’s origin story: from zookeeper to PhD animal nutritionist 8:06 – Why she started sharing about pet food on social media 13:13 – Life for dogs, cats, and pet parents in Singapore 17:16 – Unbalanced homemade recipes and misinformation online 25:31 – Encouraging pet parents (and our own parents) to try something new 32:00 – PhD in Animal Nutrition vs online nutrition certificates 40:11 – Are dogs carnivores? And what’s the deal with zoo kibble 45:10 – The microbiome, probiotics, and gut health 51:11 – Working as a nutritionist for a pet food brand 57:38 – What Dr. Francis feeds + affordable ways to improve your dog’s bowlLinks Discussed:https://www.instagram.com/fuelledfurlife/https://www.fuelledfurlife.com/Dr. Francis's published studies: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=francis%20cabana&sort=date&sort_order=descSocial media:Kimberly: Raw Feeder Life, RawFeederLife.comErin Scott: Believe in Dog podcast, BelieveInDogPodcast.comRaw Feeder Life, Instagram.com/RawFeederLifeBelieve in Dog Podcast, Instagram.com/Erin_The_Dog_MomThanks for listening to our podcast.  You can learn more about Erin Scott's first podcast at BelieveInDogPodcast.com.  And you can learn more about raw feeding, raising dogs naturally, and Kimberly's dogs at KeepTheTailWagging.com.  And don't forget to subscribe to The Alternative Dog Moms.