Hundläroverket

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and Hundläroverket?
I have been an ethologist since 2008, when I graduated from Stockholm University. By then, I had already been working as a dog instructor since I met my first dog in the late 1990s. Animal welfare has always been the most important thing in my life! As an ethologist, I’ve been able to make a difference - for example, I’ve worked as an expert in animal cruelty cases - but today I devote my time to running Hundläroverket, the dog center I founded many years ago. It now offers private training, courses, and a large indoor dog training facility. Always with the dog’s welfare as the top priority.

What characterizes a dog that is truly doing well, in your opinion?
From an ethologist’s perspective, my answer is that a dog needs to have both its behavioral and emotional needs met. It should live in a conflict-free and peaceful environment - a family where it is seen as the individual it is, and where the humans also understand that dogs today are expected to handle much more than their biology allows. Many dog owners would benefit from being more tolerant toward dogs (as would society at large). Dogs differ in appearance, behavior, and individual conditions. But none of them are adapted to the high-tech and stressful lives we currently offer them.

What do you think is important to consider when choosing food for your dog?
Based on what benefits my own dogs, I prefer a protein-rich diet. I train my dogs intensively (we compete at elite level in short-distance sled dog sports - weight pull), so I avoid food where carbohydrates are the main energy source. For dogs in general, I want to see food that supports gut health. There is a clear link between gut health and behavior — a dog that doesn’t feel well in its stomach cannot be expected to behave optimally. I also prefer kibble that isn’t too large. And of course, the food should taste good to the dog!

From a broader perspective, I personally want to choose food that does not increase suffering in the world. I simply cannot choose food made from animals that I know were raised industrially, perhaps in countries with much poorer animal welfare standards than in Sweden. That’s why insect-based food feels best in my heart - it is far easier to ensure the welfare and humane handling of insect larvae than that of fish, birds, and mammals. And the day we all think a little more about how our actions can positively impact others - that’s when the world becomes a better place to live in!