Nurse-Led: Nutrition and Prevention in Veterinary Practice
Nicola Lakeman 1 episodes Nov 11, 2026
This podcast explores dog and cat nutrition, weight management, and the challenge of helping owners change how they feed their pets. Episodes discuss why overweight dogs can look normal, how diet histories are taken, and how feeding plans are built collaboratively with owners. It also highlights the veterinary nurse's role in preventive care. Presented by Nicola Lakeman, a UK registered veterinary nurse and textbook editor, it is aimed at vet and nursing students, practising professionals, allied professionals, and interested owners.
Episodes
Why nutrition gets left out of the vet consult
Nicola explains why weighing the animal, scoring body and muscle condition and asking what it eats should happen at every visit, done by whoever is seeing the animal, vet or nurse. She argues it is done more often than taking a temperature, yet gets skipped because of short appointments and fear of an emotional reaction from owners who want to talk about it. The question at the centre is
Why the dog in the park makes overweight look normal
Nicola explains why so many owners believe an overweight dog or cat is a healthy weight. When the dogs in the park have drifted heavier, overweight starts to look normal. Breed standards ignore individual body frames, and feeding is how owners show love. The question at the centre is how a nurse can change the way a pet is fed without the owner hearing it as criticism of that love.You wil
