Intro to Gluten Detection Dogs

If the dog is not trained properly, they're going to make mistakes that are going to impact your health and you don't want to mess with that. As one of my my friends who is a a gluten detection trainer, she said, you know, you're not going to just, you know, perform heart surgery or want your heart surgery performed by somebody that's not a heart surgeon, right?

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This is Doctor Talks, real talk from real doctors on the issues that matter to you most. Hello everyone. Welcome back to the Integrative Health Podcast with Doctor Jen.

Today we're going to be talking to Kendra Williams. She was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2017, and she found that eating a strict gluten free diet was very challenging due to many instances where food and restaurants contain gluten.

Even though they were told that it was gluten free after getting sick many times, she decided to train a gluten detection dog.

Kendra's Celiac Diagnosis Story

She's been training Suki since he was six months old. She she checks all of her food, medicine, and personal care products. She's already saved. Kendra several times from getting finally ill from gluten.

Suki is a Portuguese water dog who is a gluten detection dog. She checks food, medicines and personal care products for her mom, Kendra, who has celiac disease.

She raises a pot when she detects gluten and knows is a leg when there is none. She was born March 20th, 2020. So welcome Kendra. I found your story on Instagram and it's just so cool.

So tell us a little bit about yourself. Well thank you. So yeah, I live my whole life, without celiac disease, I ate gluten, I ate everything, I had no issues.

And I mean, I had, I think, different issues over the years, but it was very strange to me. When I really got, I got very, very sick, in 2017, went to lots of different doctors and they couldn't figure out what's going on with me.

And I finally went to actually an integrated integrative rheumatologist who, was able to figure out that at the core of my problem, among other things, was celiac disease.

So, it was really strange because my diagnosis was not a typical meal. My number one complaint was I was coughing, excessively, like I basically had bronchitis that didn't go away for months and months and months.

And even after, you know, invasive things. I had a bronchoscopy and, and they were like, oh, your lungs are filled with inflammatory cells. Well, what's causing it? O acid reflux.

And so, you know, it's just all this stuff that was not it was leading me to be in a really bad place because I was so physically sick. So thankfully, I was diagnosed.

I mean, it's not a good thing to get a diagnosis of a major autoimmune disease, but I got the diagnosis and then going gluten free, I started to feel significantly better and yeah.

So that but you know, having never done it and then basically go just eat gluten free. Here's a two page list of stuff that you can and can't have. And, you know, good luck to you is what happens.

And unfortunately, you make a lot of mistakes. And, I have a social media presence. So I hear that a lot from a lot of people that when you're diagnosed with celiac disease, you people just don't have any idea about the ramifications of it.

And I thought that it was as simple as, you know, you could, you know, if you went to a place you could remove the insides of the sandwich and eat the the meat and cheese kind of thing.

No, you can't do that. And, and I think I realized that pretty soon on. But I didn't understand the issues with cross contact because I'm somebody that occlude my whole life.

So why would a tiny bit of gluten, be causing you problems? So, any time I went out, I was getting sick and even doing my best. So I one of my first meals, I went out with one of my friends, and I went to a place that was recognized for being good for gluten free.

And I had a plain burger, a kale salad with a vinaigrette, just basically plain kale with a vinaigrette, and then, an avocado. And I, I couldn't even make it home from the restaurant.

I was sick, so, you know, stuff like that, that just was kind of my day. And on one side, I felt a lot better because the coughing and some of the, the other physical issues were going away.

But then it was not easy. Right. Yeah. And, and things will say at the restaurant, it will say like now they say gluten friendly. So then they can like avoid, they're like, well, it's not good for celiac.

And I'm like so I personally I was never tested for celiac and I'm not not going to start eating gluten ever again to get the official tests. But I, I probably did, I don't know.

So I had Hashimoto's and it finally healed and my antibodies went to zero when I took out all gluten. And I can tell if I've been gluten bombed. I call it.

Yeah, but but my but I don't know, maybe I'm, I'm a non celiac gluten sensitivity person instead though you know and I think this is something important to talk the difference between if you want to.

Yeah absolutely. I mean I think it's challenging. There are people that are gluten free for other health reasons like Hashimoto's.

Understanding Celiac vs Non-Celiac Sensitivity

I also had thyroid. I had thyroid cancer. I was never officially diagnosed with Hashimoto's, but I'm pretty sure prior to I had Hashimoto's. So but I no longer have a thyroid.

So people, for those reasons or, you know, other autoimmune diseases like you said, I feel like this alpha gi, this is another reason a lot of people are gluten free.

So those are those reasons. And then there's non gluten sensitivity. So my my niece has non gluten sensitivity. She's been tested for celiac disease all the way through.

Endoscopy is not positive yet she reacts extremely badly with neurological symptoms. I mean basically like absent seizures really, really really bad if she eats gluten. So those are those things.

So I always like to see that because sometimes people say, oh you're non gluten sensitivity. That's not that big of a deal. No. And I hear from people all the time I have non celiac gluten sensitivity and they have as significant of issues as celiac disease.

And and you know who knows. There could be a tie to it too. They just never found what that all looks like. And I think the amount of research that needs to go into celiac disease and celiac disease as an autoimmune disease where your body attacks, the, the village of the small intestine so easily side what I like to compare it to is your villi are like they are the lining of your small intestine, that, they're finger like projections, I always think of it in a healthy person is like a shag carpet, you know, big and fluffy, and the nutrients get absorbed.

But when you have celiac disease and you're not eating gluten free diet, those bill, they become blunted and fall down. That I think I like to describe.

It is tile like it's a tile floor. There's nothing getting in there. Yeah, they're not there rather than this, it's, you know, flat like this. So but when you go gluten free, then the villi grow back and there and they're better.

So you're are you are able to to process the cool news for, for for people like you. And then I have other family members that are in the same that obviously you don't want to go through and do all the testing because that means you have to do a gluten challenge, which is eating gluten for a number of days.

They are now in testing of some blood tests where you can. And it sounds like it's very promising. I saw a doctor in Australia talk about it, where they can, they can test blood of people and give a definitive diagnosis of celiac disease without a gluten challenge.

So it feels like that is right around the corner because they're advanced in the testing. The Celiac Disease Foundation had some research on it, too. So, definitely check it out, I need it I need to do a post about it, because I think that's probably one of the most exciting things that I learned over in recent and recent history, because I do find that there's a lot of people that are in your position that went gluten free, especially because most people go, oh, just go gluten free and you know, you'll feel better.

But once you go gluten free, yes, you do feel better, but they won't definitively do the tests. For the endoscopy. Right. So and it is also it's really exciting because it's noninvasive to correct.

That would be that'd be a great blood test. So one post that I loved of yours was you had just talking about like the cross-contamination, like you had a salad that had a crouton on it and you took the crouton off and you don't see any gluten, but technically there's still gluten particles there.

Correct. So it's right. It's scary because when you go to a restaurant, you have people working back there that may not understand why people are gluten free, or they might think, oh, this person just doesn't want a bun because they're doing low carb.

So oops, I forgot to take the bun off. So I'm going to they put it on by accident. So then they're going to take it off.

Why Kendra Trained Suki

And that can really wreck people for a couple days a couple weeks at an immune level too in the body. So tell us why you decided to to get a gluten detection dog and how.

Yeah, I so I was just sick of, getting sick and I had learned about gluten detection dogs and I thought, oh, this is great. And I'm someone who's always had a dog.

And my dog at the time was 16 years old, so I knew he wasn't going to be around very long. And it coincided with the pandemic. So for work, I travel a lot and nobody was traveling.

So I thought, oh, perfect time for me to get and train a puppy. And that was kind of just, I thought, this will be great. I'll do it. And, you know, I didn't know then what I know now.

So I made a lot of mistakes, I would say early on, and it was definitely a comedy of many errors. That thankfully worked out okay, but but yeah. So I started to to I decided I'm going to get a dog and then I'm going to find a trainer and I'm going to train.

That's not the right way to go about it. And, and then I started training my gluten detection dog, Suki. And so that was in I got her in May of 2020, and it's a two year process to train a detection dog, so.

Wow. Yeah. So you work with, with and owner training, which is what I did. You work with a gluten detection trainer, somebody who specializes in it. And, they meet with you via zoom for 1 or 2 times a week, and you do a session, and then you train on your own in the interim.

So you do daily training with your dog and depending on what you're doing, but you're training not only the gluten part, you're also training the behavior.

Because service dogs have a different level of behavior standards. And so you're doing all that on a regular basis. So. So my Chihuahua, she, she passed, a couple of years ago.

She was a service dog. And yes, like lots of training had to pass as therapy dogs, international training. The hardest part was to have her sit for I think it was like a couple minutes.

I was like, don't lift your butt up. Like because they're a Chihuahua. They're always anyway. But she did, and it was great because I could bring her to my office.

We did events at the library, and it was it was so great. It was a lot of hard work, though. So the gluten detection dogs there, so they're service therapy dogs plus extra training or so they're their dog is different than a service dog.

A therapy dog provides therapy in group settings. And so the level of training on a therapy dog is very different than a service dog. A service dog is trained to help someone with their disability.

So, celiac disease is recognized as a disability, as our food allergy. So she is task trained. So she's trained to perform a task for me. And the task is gluten gluten detection.

Or it would fall under the category of allergen detection dogs, medical alert dogs. So her task is gluten detection. So that's that's what she does. And so she has to have all the training of behavior and service, and then she has to be trained in that task of gluten detection.

And it's actually multiple tasks because it's she tacks plates bowls, cups, you know, so food empty like in a restaurant.

How Gluten Detection Dog Training Works

She checks my medicine and then she also checks packages of food. So when I go grocery shopping, she checks the food in the package, before I buy it or when I bring it home, she checks the packages before I put them away.

So walk us through the training a little bit. And and it's two years minimum, right? If someone out there is listening, like, I would love to do this.

Like, could they do it with their dog that's five years old? Could they do it with any breed of dog? How does this work? I don't recommend doing it with an older dog like that, because it takes two years, and then you've got into a point where it's a lot of work for the dog, like just the sniffing takes a ton of energy.

It is more than an hour of exercise sometimes for the sniffing. It just requires that much brainpower. And and and think that's why trainers recommend sniffing games for puppies to get them, to work off some of their energy.

So generally it gets into old when you get into upper ages like that, and Grant and five is not old school is four, but you have to worry about their physical abilities.

Suzuki travels with me, she goes places. She's doing a lot more than she would do when she's home. So, you know, on a day like today, I'm working all day.

She's laying on the couch or laying in her bed and we go for walks. But if I'm going to a conference or trade show or meetings, she's walking through airports with me.

She's so it's physically demanding and that ends up being a lot for a dog the older they get. As far as breeds go, you really do need to be selective.

Of breeds. There are breeds that are probably easier, you know, more capable of doing it. You definitely don't want, you want a dog that is going to be engaged with the work and ability to work.

So, so, you know, normally service dogs, you look at labs, goldens and, and, and poodles, those tend to be the, the main, the main ones of service dog work because they're temperament wise, the ability to do it.

But finding the right breed for you has to be based on the person as well. So you know what your needs are, what your abilities are, you know, because some people might have additional physical limitations.

They might have limitations. Where they live and things like that. So talk about the trainer, I guess. So, because I'm sure some people listening out there are like, wow, like I'm all in, I want to do this.

So you said you worked with a trainer via zoom two hours or two sessions a week, 1 to 2 depending. Yeah. Now is this sorry, is this someone that could assist you be like, this is something that I want for my family or one of their kids or or something.

Could they assist you with the breed and like, with suggestions on how to start out? That's 100% what I recommend. So I'm actually in the process of launching some courses to help answer a lot of those questions.

And the idea behind it is I made all the wrong mistakes. So I got a dog first. I didn't know my dog breed would not be one that I would recommend for people.

Because of their their needs. And they're just harder to train because they're super smart. She's a Portuguese water dog. You know, chose the breeder, chose a dog on my own.

Not good. Then I went to a trainer who was a service dog trainer who said, oh, I can train gluten detection. The thing she told me to do put my health at risk.

Yeah. So? So all those things. And I hear stories of people all the time that went to a trainer that ended up with a really sad. I mean, I just I'm working on an interview I just did with a gal that, you know, her, she was left with a dog, wasn't even trained, and she was sold a dog that wasn't even trained.

So I recommend working with a trainer and doing owner training and a trainer that is specifically trained in gluten and allergen detection because unlike regular dog training.

So you said you trained your service dog. You're learning behaviors. Sit, stay. You know, being calm, maybe doing, you know, tasks like alert task jumping up or, or, you know, alerting to a behavior or things like that.

Those are pretty typical service dog tasks where gluten in an allergen detection, you are 50% of the thing. So you how your body is positioned, how you hold the plate, how you hold the package, what kind of signals you give to the dog.

You cannot check yourself, during the training process without someone. Because, I mean, I, I watch I see videos of people all the time where I'm like, oh, they're totally signaling that dog.

And, oh, yeah. So it's really important. So you work with a trainer that's, that's trained in gluten and allergen detection, and then they're watching you and they will say, okay, you did this.

And there's so many things that are unconscious to you. And there was one point, you know, how frequently you change out the samples or what the, the the pattern that you have.

So as you're doing training, you're presenting gluten samples and gluten free samples, over time and all of a sudden you're going, wow, I didn't realize that every time I do two gluten free and a gluten and dogs can pick up on those patterns, and those are things.

As a handler, you don't think about. And it's important then to have somebody going, wow, you did that, or hey, did you know you moved your left leg forward?

A half a half a centimeter. And it's almost like a lie detection test, like I'm kind of 100%. And dogs are so much more intent on your body language. Yeah.

Then then voice. They they're not listening to your words. They're much more feed off of, you know. Oh, you tilted your head to the right a little bit or, you know, you scrunched up your face and all those things.

It's you. That's why you want to work with the trainer. And the other part is it's your health as well. If the dog is not trained properly, they're going to make mistakes that are going to impact your health, and you don't want to mess with that.

As one of my, my friends who is a a gluten detection trainer, she said, you know, you're not going to just, you know, perform heart surgery or want your heart surgery performed by somebody that's not a heart surgeon.

Right? You're not going to go to your general practitioner to do heart surgery. And that's and that's kind of what it is. And I, I agree, I mean, I see it in the integrative functional space.

People will just say, oh yeah, I'm an expert. And they took a weekend course or they don't even see patients or, you know, you have to be careful and do do, do, do do diligence out there because there's people they just want your money.

So they're going to say whatever, but this is about your health. And like you said, oh my gosh, I couldn't imagine spending not only money but training hours.

And the dog wasn't trained the right way, 100%. That would not be not be good. Yeah. So that's that's one of the things. So I partnered with, with one of my friends who is a gluten and allergen section, actually with two human allergen detection trainers to put together, kind of a baseline of here's the things you should know going into it.

And to really help, because it's a major commitment. Once you decide, I mean, you get the dog, you're you're committed for the dog's life.

Choosing the Right Dog and Trainer

Right? And and if if you're doing the training and depending on how you do it, a lot of the horror stories I hear are people that. Well, I got a dog that was fully trained, you know, so they're out the money 100%.

The owner. Yes. That was my question. Can someone just pick a dog up that's already trained in this? They do have those. Okay, I, I personally don't necessarily think that's the right way to go just because you're 50% of the deal.

And so you don't have that level of trust with your dog as you do as you build it. So and you're also not as able to read the dog. People do it, and there are programs out there.

But, I really, truly believe because you're going to also be ongoing maintenance training your dog and it's not you have to keep up with it. So I think it's best to do the owner training with the trainer.

But and there's also cost differentials too. When you've got the fully trained, they, they're training that dog for a year, or two years before you are even engaging with the dog.

Or you might be going there for a week or so at a time to do some, some sessions. And generally that's like one big chunk out of pocket when one thing is I like about the owner training is they're doing it basically on a pay as you go basis, on a monthly basis for the training that you're taking.

So I do think that two financially is a way better way for most people. I mean, it definitely was for me. Now, this may be a random question, but I mean, this is a medical thing.

And like having a gluten detection dog would keep you out of the hospital maybe, or something. Would and insurance help with any of this? And unfortunately not. Of course not.

Why would they? Why would they? I mean, some people have said they've used their, hsa HSA plans for it. I'll take that. Yeah, yeah. So some of those I personally have not I'm self-employed, so I don't have an HSA, but, but I, I know some people who have, you can do some deductions.

I just had a conversation where I, some people were asking me those questions on Instagram and a CPA wrote me, but the challenge is it has to be more than 10% of your income, which most people the the general deduction is going to be, you know, more than, than what that cost is.

So depending, depending on where you are and what you're doing, in that that time. Right. So who would benefit from a gluten detection dog? Because I know you said you travel a lot, so that makes perfect sense.

You're eating out more. I mean, does everyone with celiac or even non celiac gluten sensitivity with, you know, severe reactions, you know, who would benefit from from one of these sucks?

I think the big thing is, is first of all, if you are continuing to have issues and your celiac is unresolved, I think some people especially like with refractory celiac disease that is not treatable.

That would be a huge that's a huge one. I would say people that continue to have issues that cannot be addressed with, with changing other things, people who want a different level of confidence, it's not the same is just having a quick little it's not a quick little hey, I'm going to just test this and see.

And it's all well and good. Because it requires ongoing maintenance and you're taking the dog with you, so it's it's work. So you also have to make sure that you have the capability and the time in your life to devote to a dog and to take care of a dog because it's a it's a living, breathing being that you do have to, you know, take care of and work with.

And it's not just, you know, a device that you're sitting on the machine or in a system, you know, I mean, technically, under the law, they're medical devices, but it's not the same is, you know, a walker, right?

It's it's something that, you know, Walker, you can put in the corner, and you don't have to feed it or water it or exercise it or, you know, do anything like that.

And a dog requires all that, so you have to have that capability. I would say for me, the benefit of having her even at home, and going to people's houses and things like that is I did not realize after diagnosed this what a mental load it was.

Every time I ate. So the stress of eating and, you know, I ate meals and I'd go if I, unless I'd prepared it, to 5050 that I'm going to get sick of this food.

And you don't realize how that affects you mentally. So I will say that was that's probably the biggest thing for me. The other thing that has been huge for me is she checks on my medicine because I have been sickened by medicine, with gluten in medicine.

And so that's another one that you can't you can't test it, you can't know you can call. But frankly, the medicines that I was sickened off of, well, the one when I was sick enough when she alerted to they both said there was no gluten in there.

Right. And their pills. So you you just don't know.

Costs, Insurance, and Who Benefits

You really just don't know. Yeah. And I like how you brought up, like, the emotional aspect. And I was just at a conference couple weeks ago and I was like, hey, what's gluten free?

Because my husband's like, it's meat. It's going to be gluten free. I'm like, not always. They put nasty stuff in and, it, it would be great. Like, it's really cool that you have Suki because you could just have her check because it literally takes ten minutes sometimes for like if you're at a conference for them to go back because it's not labeled and check.

And then even if it is labeled, sometimes I'm like, that looks a little sketchy and I double check, are you sure there's no gluten in there? I'll get sick and they're like, okay, I'll check with the chef.

I love it when the chef comes out to talk to me. That's when I have respect. But you don't want to get sick. I try to tell my husband, I'm like, when I get gluten exposure, like I feel bad.

I feel it in my bones. And then that's just inflammatory. I don't want that. So it is really hard for those because there's people that suffer with celiac with non celiac gluten sensitivity, because not everyone understands they they're just like whatever.

And you're and you have to deal with the consequences. So that makes it hard. Yeah. And I sorry sorry no go ahead. I was just going to ask like how how do people respond to Suki and you in this.

I mean did some people like get offended if I don't think people understand that if you prepare the food in, like if you go to a friend's house and they they have made other things with gluten, but they made you something special, gluten free, it still could register with gluten.

Like, has that happened to you? That would be kind of embarrassing, right? Yeah, it's for that for them. I mean, it's hard. Yeah. I have a friend who actually is a nurse.

Awesome. Awesome person, super supportive. And we had a potluck which actually was at my house, like, at the pool in my neighborhood. And, she, she understands and she knew.

And she goes, I looked at all the labels of everything, and everything was gluten free. And I was like, this is great. And I'm still. And nothing that she made technically had gluten.

Because she said she verified that Suki checked it and it had gluten in it. Another time, and I was on a trip with some friends and there they they are gluten free.

They don't have celiac, but they're gluten free for other health reasons. And so they know and they're super careful. And we had Suki check the sausages before they put them on the grill.

And I was super tired. So I didn't tell them, hey, cook mine on foil. Or, you know, put something under mine. And so they cooked them on the grill, came back up and Suki alerted to gluten in the sausages because of the cross contamination of the grill at the Airbnb.

So all those things. Yeah, it's it's you just don't know. And even people that are 100% trying their best to make sure they're still risking eating that food.

So her checking makes I think most people that care and understand are great about it. They're they're fine with it. It's interesting in restaurants and stuff.

I felt like oftentimes they take my questions more seriously. So I still, if I'm going somewhere, I what I like to tell people is she doesn't make the food inherent safer.

She just lets me know that if it's safe to eat or not. So if I go to a restaurant, I still have to ask all the questions about preparation. I still have to ask ingredients.

I still have to, you know, do my due diligence beforehand. But then when it comes out, I have the reassurance that it's going to be safe because she's going to tell me if it has gluten or not.

And in that those cases, they don't just, you know, sometimes you go to a restaurant and they kind of almost roll their eyes because you're just being difficult.

And I live in California, and in California there is a lot of, I call them lifestyle gluten free people that are gluten free for lifestyle choices and, and to have no health ramifications.

So they might be gluten free. You know, I don't want the bread. So please take away the bread plate. But that when the dessert comes out, ooh, that layered chocolate cake sounds really good. Or that brownie sounds good.

Let me get that or let me have a bite of that. As someone with celiac disease, I would. That's not me. And that's going to make me extremely ill. And I'm never going to just have a bite and never even just touch something.

So as far as a tiny, you know, I don't want even a piece of bread touching my food because that's going to make me sick to, so they having her makes those restaurants take me a bit more seriously and go, okay, this is a real deal.

Yeah. That's great. Now she's she's a big dog. How how do you travel with her? Does she have to. Can she come with you on the regular. Yeah. Like passenger airplane area and.

Yes. Yes. Buy your an extra seat or. How does that work. No. Under the law, service dogs are allowed to travel in the, in the passenger cabin. So pets are not unless they're in a carrier and placed underneath the seat.

But service dogs travel, so she's trained, she goes underneath the seat. Or she. If I sit at the bulkhead, she just goes at my feet at the bulkhead. And, she just lays there and and sleeps and she goes with me, and I just have to pack everything for her.

So I'm packing, you know, food and treats and booties and, you know, brushes and anything that I need for her goes with me, on the travel. So she is never.

Not like you've never taken a trip without her since. Yes.

Living and Traveling with Suki

No, I have, I have it depends on where I'm going. So I just did a Celia Cruz this summer, and, it was in Europe, and it was super hot, and I. I'd never taken a cruise before, and I didn't think a cruise ship and in and out of really hot cities, in Europe would be the best place for her.

So she stayed home and had a vacation. And then I had a vacation, too, because I didn't have to worry about her. Yeah. While I was on the trip, mainly it was safe because, you know, it was a celiac cruise.

So the whole thing was 100% gluten free. I've also gone I've had some work, travel, for where I was teaching some classes. So I flown on those trips without her.

Mainly because I'm teaching a class for eight hours. That is stressful for me to worry about her and how she's going to behave when I'm trying to give my best to my work. So.

So in those instances, I left her. I've left her behind. But at the end of the day, this, like you were saying, this is a pet. Another life to take care of.

So it's, It's so cool, though, I, I just love what you do. And you're bringing more awareness to celiac disease, which is great. Yeah, it's it's just it's a lot like you were saying, when people when you go out to eat, it's a lot of anxiety because you don't want to get sick.

So it's so great that Suki is there for you to, to enjoy eating out again 100%. And when I'd say when I went on the when I go on these trips without her, I miss her terribly like it does.

That stress comes back to me. And you have other things where you're like, I hope this is safe. So I went to, I went on a trip to Chicago, and I ordered at a restaurant, and I also had a Nema sensor.

That so I tested with it. And those would always frustrate me because it takes like, six minutes to get a result, and then the result is not. It's usually inconclusive when I do it.

But I know a lot of people love, love that technology. Anyway, I, I was not well and like I, I'm pretty sure that had some minor cross contact of that food.

But you know, it's like you're hungry, you have to eat. And I'm like, oh, she was here. She would have told me conclusively one way or the other, and I wouldn't have felt bad, but it wasn't.

It wasn't a bad, cross contact. So, all right, what do you do when your food comes out? They say it's gluten free. You did all the due diligence asking, and then she she says, you know Sue, she's like, yeah, there's gluten on there.

Like, what are the like waiters responses and the chefs and like what happens? Do they send it back and try again. Has it ever twice had gluten. Like how do you handle those situations I guess yeah.

I usually just tell them and depending on what it is and what my level of confidence is. So if it's a place that I'm like, it was sketchy to begin with, then I'm just like, well, whatever.

So, I went with a celiac friend recently to a Mexican restaurant and they're like, it had good reviews and stuff, but, it was one of those where there some of their answers were a little bit weird.

And the, the friend who's celiac, she's like a restaurant expert. So she was asking really good questions and she's like, well, and she trains restaurants.

So, and oh, you have cool friends because I. Yeah, yeah, I'm the weird one. When we go out, you know, I'm like, asking all these questions. Everyone's staring at me and I don't care.

Well, that's with my regular friends. This is one of my my internet, celiac friends. Oh, love is celiac with Kayla. Anyway, she so so they we asked them a bunch of questions, and then they came back and the chips.

Suki alerted to that, they said they had fried earlier. Afterwards, we thought about it and we should have tested some outside of the basket, because it might have been the basket that was contaminated, but got it.

Then they had said, you have the tortillas. We ordered the same thing. We ordered chicken tacos. Super plain, but they said we'd be better off, using just the lettuce wrap or the lettuce tacos instead of the tortillas because the tortillas was were cooked in the same area.

So we're like, great. So two tacos each one of the tacos. Suki alerted T for gluten, and we tested it multiple times. So it's just we just put that aside.

She took it home to her boyfriend and he ate it. That's usually, frankly, to be honest, what I do if if something is, I will let them know there's other areas where I've had them redo it and and come back.

Now, do you alert reviews like, for people on this or, you know, because it's hard because it's like you don't want to slam the business, but you also don't want people to get hurt.

Yeah, it's really hard. I tend not to recommend places 100% unless they're, like, wholeheartedly, unless they're 100% gluten free, because there's so many variables to them.

Right? Yeah. Right. You know, I ate recently with a friend at a breakfast place and they said all the right things, and the meal was fine, but the gluten free toast was had gluten on it.

Maybe they same toaster? Maybe. No, they said they had a gluten free toaster. But who knows if people are pulling that bread, that gluten free bread with gloves that touch the gluten, you know, there could be any point if they're pulling bread from a gluten loaf, putting it on a plate and then pulling bread from the gluten free, then maybe they've contaminated the bread that way, I don't know.

It gets to be really hard. So some of those right. I put those down as reviews. But that's so random. Yeah. And for the most part, the main of the meal was fine.

The other part is the dogs can detect down to lower amounts than, you know, what is considered safe. So you can eat. The research is 20 parts per million in a day, which is still not very much. But, you know, is that, is that is what she alerted to?

More or less. So, I find that more often than not, she gives me the all clear. If I'm doing my due diligence and I'm asking all the right questions about it.

So, so I do. I she's given me a lot more confidence in eating out than I had before. Yes, I love it. That's amazing. Well, everyone has to go check you out.

Kendra and Suki on your Instagram because I love watching your reels that are fun. And you do great teaching on there. So why don't you tell everyone how they can find you in Suki?

And best way to get Ahold of you. Yeah. So, suki.com is my is my website on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube. Every single one of those is under, Suki, which is Suki p dwd for Portuguese Water Dog.

And those are those are all the all the ways to get a hold of me. And, our courses are going to be launching soon. So probably by the time this comes out, if you're interested in getting a gluten detection dog.

Those are that's a great way to start to give you the information you need. And also just to figure out, hey, is it right for me? We go through that, that you can really look at.

Is it is it right for you? Are you ready for it in your life and where you're where you are I love it. Well, today was so informative. I've learned so much about gluten detection dogs.

Really appreciate you being here today. Well, thank you so much, Jen. I really appreciate the opportunity.

Kendra Williams

How Your Dog Can Help You Detect Gluten and Stay Healthy