A recent report has revealed social media’s influence on U.S. pet owners and highlighted the risk of seeking pet care advice on these platforms.
The research, released by supplements manufacturer Protexin Pet, showed that pet owners turned to sites such as X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit for tips on issues that included dog walks, diet, grooming and bathing, and allergies.
“There is always a risk that owners may read something online, such as you should walk your dog three to four times a day, and take it as fact. However, what’s right for your dog depends on several factors, including breed, age, size and any relevant health issues,” said Dr. Ronan Fitzgerald, a veterinary technical adviser at Protexin Pet.
The study found that online trends in canine nutrition included:
- Should dog owners feed raw diets? The topic dominated the diet and nutrition discussions across the internet and social media.
- On one TikTok post, enrichment food bowls had upward of 60.8 million views, 6.4 million likes and 56,400 comments.
- In June 2024, 18,000 Google searches for homemade dog food recipes were made in the United States.
Other key highlights from the report included:
- A TikTok video of a dog with its paw in an Epsom salt bath reached 38.4 million views, 6 million likes and 22,900 comments.
- Many commenters praised grain-free dog food for helping with allergies and improving coats.
- An average of 18,000 Americans a month ask Google whether coconut oil is safe for dogs since a TikTok video showing how to massage coconut oil into a dog’s coat went viral.
- On average, 900 people in the United States search for “dog gut health” each month. The conversations are tied to pet diets formulated to alleviate pain and help digestion.
- 26,000 monthly searches explore probiotics for dogs and 25,000 focus on CBD (cannabidiol) for dogs.
- Four hundred Americans search, “Can dogs have human probiotics?” each month.
Protexin Pet urged pet owners to consider the reliability of user-generated content and to seek advice from a qualified veterinary professional rather than social media.