"Some people will never understand how much you can love your dog…but that’s okay as your dog knows" 💚
As a family of self-confessed empaths and highly sensitive people, we absolutely adore our own little family dog Ruff. He was a rescue found wandering the streets of Cyprus 13 years ago now (!) and he has been the focal point of our family for the last 12.5 years.
Not sure where we'd be without him and I am sure that you can all relate to this!
Why do we bond so fully with our dogs and what do we mean by neuro divergence in dogs?
Dogs have lived alongside man for the last 12-14000 years - that is a very long time, and with a short breeding cycle of a few years, our dogs have adapted fully to our everyday lives and characteristics.
Do you know that dogs are the only species to have an extra eyebrow to allow their eyes to raise and give that dewy-eyed 'puppy dog' expression that makes our heart just melt and our bond even stronger?
Our dogs are also the only species (except for chimpanzees) that have adapted to pointing and can seek out an object or food on the ground simply by us pointing at it. Try it with your dog. It results in complete trust from them.
I have pointed at an empty bowl before next to a full bowl of food and Ruff has trusted me and gone straight to the empty bowl first - what trust and what bonding!
We have bred our dogs to retain certain characteristics through intense breeding over thousands of years and such as herding in Border Collies, doing tricks with Poodles, digging in Terriers, retrieving in Springer Spaniels and guarding in German Shepherds.
All of these traits lead to our dogs suffering from enormous anxiety if they are not able to fulfil these high energy level ADHD pursuits. This is where we mention the possibility of our dogs sharing in our traits of neurodivergence and sensitivities.
Be mindful of these anxieties that certain breeds have bred into them (as do some people) and allow them 'timeout' either alone, or give them the rewards their hyperactive intelligent brains need such as hiding their dry food or using activity mats - this offers them the dopamine release they seek.
The most important character trait we ALL want is natural empathy that our dogs seem to be born with and that we just adore and encourage.
I do confess to being a complete empath which is why I have had to stop being a GP vet and can concentrate on running my online JUST BE KIND business to help you as I felt overwhelmingly drained by each and every consultation that I had.
I could almost feel what people felt as they walked through the doors of the consulting room with their ill dog, cat or rabbit or even chicken and it took its toll on me as a hypersensitive person.
Our dogs are exactly the same with their hypersensitivities to conflict, unpredictable routines, loud noises or behaviours, and they have an innate sense of what we are feeling and they sponge it all up!
I remember experiencing this first hand way back in the 80's when as a vet student; we shared our family home with a number of dogs and one was a very shy darling Bearded Collie called Biddy.
Our dogs were never allowed on the furniture and there was one morning where I had just received my exam results to say that I had failed biochemistry in 2nd year at vet school and would need to repeat the year.
My world had fallen apart and I lay sobbing on my bed.
Biddy amazed me in that she quietly climbed on the bed and lay over me as if she too felt all my pain - an experience that I will never forget.
So we have absolutely bred our dogs over the years to experience these intense emotions of empathy, love, devotion, loyalty, trust - all of the intense positive emotions we look for in people we want to be close to.
These emotions whether human or dog, lead to great sensitivities too, and if any form of trauma exists in the life of a dog with its sensitivities, these anxieties are heightened (same in people)
I have to share here a story about our little Ruff that I feel so overwhelmingly guilty about as I caused the biggest trauma in his life (which is possibly why I feel such devotion to Just be Kind as a way to find only the best food and future for him!)
It was back in 2014 when he was about 7 months old and we had rescued him off the streets of Cyprus.
He adored people from the word go and his favourite thing was visiting the shops with me and socialising as much as possible.
There was one day when the school term had ended and I wanted to buy some thank you cards for the teachers at my daughter's school.
I stopped at a small shop selling cards and gifts and tied him loosely to a metal stand outside the shop that displayed the cards.
I had been in the shop for a few minutes when I heard a terrible noise.
He had bolted and pulled the entire stand down with cards flying everywhere but the worst thing was that the stand was still tied to him and he ran dragging it along trying to escape from something that terrified him and yet was tied to him.
When I caught up with him, he was in a terrible state - anal glands expressed all over him, heart racing and to this day 12 years later, he still suffers from PTSD towards anything metal.
It breaks my heart that I had caused his trauma and I feel I owe him everything that is good in his little life.
He cannot walk past metal trolleys, runs upstairs to hide if an ironing board comes out, and jumps at the sound of anything metal!
How awful is that?
I am convinced that this trauma and anxiety led to him developing hypothyroidism at a young age of 3 where his fur began to fall out!
He is still treated for hypothyroidism to this day and I just know that feeding him plant-based and pure Omega 3 Algae oil in his golden years (as he will be 13 on World Vegan Day the 1st November this year), have resulted in his increased and happy lifespan. We couldn't love him any more than we do.
The same trauma happens in the intensely sensitive breed that I just adore and I know so many of you do too - our rescue racing Greyhounds (Please read here For The Love Of Greyhounds)
Greyhounds have PTSD to metal too from being in metal cages, having metal muzzles put on their sensitive faces and heavy metal food bowls. be aware of this when you have a rescue Greyhound and use bamboo feed bowls and be aware of this sensitivity and all sensitivities in the skin and digestion of these dogs which is why they do so well on a calming plant-based diet.
How has digestion changed over the years?
Our dogs digestion has changed at the gene level compared to the digestion of grey wolves. The slide below is one I have mentioned in so many talks:
Dogs have adapted completely to the way that we eat and they thrive on a diet that is best for us which is high in plant proteins and fibre and low in saturated animal proteins and fat.
I will never forget having 2 enormous dogs - a Rottweiler and a German Shepherd in my tiny consulting room many years ago and their owner telling me how she raw fed them and they couldn't be left alone as they used to destroy her kitchen and rip up the lino and the skirting boards when she left .
The anxiety these poor dogs felt from being fed a diet for wolves that was SO high in protein where the best food is one with a protein level of no higher than 25% and made from plants (as all the latest studies show - we LOVE the science!)
Will a healthy gut microbiome affect my dog’s behaviour?
There is a correlation between a healthy gut and a healthy mind. This has been shown in to be the case in humans, thanks to the gut-brain axis.
The gut-brain axis is the two-way biochemical signalling that takes place between the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) and the central nervous system (CNS). We all know the feeling of having 'butterflies in our stomach' when we feel stressed?
This is the gut-brain axis at work.
In our dogs, they have been shown to have less gut bacteria if left alone for long periods of time. This is due to stress in these pets that relays directly to the gut and affects their digestion and vice versa.
I know that eating a wholefood plant-based diet that is full of colour and natural plant nutrients, is the only thing that settles my IBS which I have suffered from all my life.
We have exactly the same thing in our dogs that suffer from IBS, colitis or intolerances.
They do SO much better when fed a natural pure plant protein diet that actively feeds the gut microbiome and contains high levels of the amino acid Tryptophan (a precursor to serotonin - the happy hormone)
Which foods contain added Tryptophan and natural plant nutrients?
Our best wet dog foods Jumping Jack, Gentle Rosie and Give A Dog A Bean contain extra Tryptophan as well as natural fibres and proteins from an array of vibrant vegetables all gently cooked in their trays - the closest you can get to home cooking!
Our Home Cooking Just be Kind Supplement also contains Tryptophan as well as all the nutrients needed when home cooking and combined with our Omega 3 Algae oil that provides Vit D3 and pure Omega 3's, it is quite possible to home cook safely for your dog and provide them with up to 30 different coloured plant proteins a week!
See our 4 home cook recipes here.
So excited to announce Gentle Rosie trays that is now available to buy!!
Gentle Rosie - our exciting delicious third recipe contains added Tryptophan as well as gentle plant proteins such as Amaranth, Lupin, Faba Bean Protein, Sweet Potato, Rosehip - all ideal for dogs with sensitivities needing a pure hypoallergenic diet that is grain free, soya free, free of animal byproducts, non-GMO ingredients (registered with the Vegan Society which is the delay in its launch as taken so long to achieve this accreditation, but we got it!!)
Fermentation Proteins Shown To Benefit The Gut Microbiome
Any foods that actively enhance the gut microbiome; will have a calming and beneficial effect on your dog by soothing any painful uncomfortable allergies and intolerances in highly sensitive dogs.
We currently stock and sell Pure Bites treats with a creamy delicious filling of fermentation protein, MicroBell dry and wet foods that contain tasty microbial fermentation protein (first of its kind and the only food accepted by athlete Border Collie Ninja - a parcours athlete!!), and in August, we launch the UK's first ever cold-pressed superfood called BioBuddy that also contains this bacterial fermentation protein as well as a number of other plant superfoods - hooray for innovation!!! 🙂
“When nutrition is done right, you don’t necessarily notice it working — you just notice your dog thriving. No noise, no stress, no vet appointments. To benefit our environment and farmed animals too is a massive bonus!”
- Dr Arielle Plant Powered Vet
