What To Do If Your Pet’s Food Is Out Of Stock Everywhere?

Do you own a pet with some medical issues, and who is on a therapeutic diet? Then you must be aware of how important it is for your beloved pet to stick to a planned diet that its veterinary doctor has prescribed. You may also have experienced how fatal it can be when this pet of yours once experienced a switch of food.

The year 2020 and 2021 saw quite a few lockdowns due to COVID-19. And during these lockdowns, it was always a steep challenge to find the desired food brands. So, many pet owners had to face a lot of difficulties meeting the dietary needs of their pets.

As per many survey reports, many pets were affected during this period since they didn’t receive their prescribed diet. The pet owners had no choice since both online and offline shops functioned irregularly in those periods and failed to supply the required amount of food. So, it was a new lesson for mankind to store and stock essential items.

The humans learned that they should start behaving like ants who store food for future usage. The way the world is operating, many unforeseen incidents may lead to shutdowns for a considerable period.

During these periods, the stored food will come not only for your rescue but will even ensure your pet’s well-being.

Tips for situations where you run out of stock of your pet’s food

Now let us see how you can rescue your pet in case its food runs out of stock. Following are a few tips that you can follow to ensure the appropriate supply of pet food:

1. Use the technology. Visit the websites or mobile apps of retailers, be it small or big, and check if they have stock of the pet food you are looking for. If you are lucky to find any, do not lose time. Order it immediately. It may happen that the retailer is charging some extra bucks to deliver. If you have no other option, it is wise enough that you avail of the product at this increased price. Only cross-check that the retailer is selling the original product.
2. Depend on the additional information provided by the websites or mobile apps of the retailers. A few websites or apps may not have the product themselves. But they may guide you by providing you with the locations where your required products can be available. Sometimes, they may direct you to a vet who may have that food product in his/her stock. Grab these opportunities and make the best use of them.

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3. Take the help of social media. Post your requirements on social media. You may be lucky to get a positive response.
4. In the case of dry foods, it often happens that a particular-sized bag of your desired product is not available. So, don’t search your product through a specific quantity filter. It may happen a small, or a big-sized bag is in stock to the retailer. Don’t think twice. Just get it at once. If you find that more than one small-sized bag of your desired pet food product is available, there’s nothing better than that. Order more than one packet in that case.
5. Beware of the alternative options. These alternatives may be provided by the websites or mobile apps of retailers. The algorithms set by most of these websites or apps offer you alternative options for your desired pet food product based on the composition. It’s not that these alternative options are not reliable. These can work perfectly fine for those pets which have no medical complications. However, if your pet has medical complications and your vet has prescribed it a therapeutic diet, do not order those alternative options at once. It’s better to call your vet and consult with him/her. You may have some queries. Ask them. Tell the vet the exact composition of the alternative available pet food product. If the vet approves it, verify with your vet if the quantity remains the same for this alternative product as it was for the original prescribed product.
6. Beware of the alternative flavors available. As stated earlier, all the pets may not find it easy to switch between various flavors. Specifically for those pets with medical complications, changing the flavors of their food can be fatal as well. So, you must always consult the vet before ordering an alternative flavor.

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7. Consult a veterinary nutritionist who has been certified by the American College of Vet Nutrition if you think of preparing your pet’s food yourself when the dry food of your pet runs out of stock. The problem of preparing the pet’s food at home is finding the right balance in the recipe. The recipe should be nutritionally balanced so that your pet enjoys the meals and maintain its health standards. Also, the food should be tasty enough so that your pet can digest it properly.
   The vet nutritionists can help you in achieving this objective. However, in cases of lockdowns, it may it extremely hard to get hold of the vet nutritionist. So, if you have the idea of preparing your pet’s food at home, you should be prepared when the situation is normal. When the situation gets normal, visit a vet nutritionist along with your pet. While keeping a record of the weight, breed, and other significant aspects of your pet, the nutritionist will teach you how the pet food must be cooked. Pet food should be a nutritionally balanced one. This training will come as a big help in case there is a shutdown situation where your pet’s ready foods are unavailable.