On June 27, 2019, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released an update to two previous advisories regarding dog food and dogs who had developed dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The release made a splash in the mainstream news – but this is all that most people seemed to get out of the news coverage: “THERE ARE 16 BRANDS OF DOG FOOD THAT ARE KILLING DOGS!”
Unfortunately, this is a wildly oversimplified take-away message. It set off a panic in the countless dog owners who feed their dogs some variety made by one of those companies, and may have inflicted serious financial damage to the companies named (as well as all the retailers who sell them) – this, despite the fact that the FDA stated at the outset of the release that the cause of the DCM cases is still unknown. “Based on the data collected and analyzed thus far, the agency believes that the potential association between diet and DCM in dogs is a complex scientific issue that may involve multiple factors.”
Further, in a “Questions and Answers” addition to the update, the agency says things like, “At this time, we are not advising dietary changes based solely on the information we have gathered so far,” and “It’s important to note that the reports include dogs that have eaten grain-free and grain-containing foods and also include vegetarian or vegan formulations. They also include all forms of diets: kibble, canned, raw and home-cooked. Therefore, we do not think these cases can be explained simply by whether or not they contain grains, or by brand or manufacturer.”
It’s a bit puzzling, then, why the agency named the brands of foods that were reportedly fed to some of the 560 dogs whose DCM cases they are investigating (and even more puzzling: why they didn’t include the varieties of foods that were implicated, just the company names). Naming the companies suggests that those companies were responsible for the dogs’ illnesses, even as the agency denied this as an explicit causation. We’re not usually conspiracy theorists, but this move undoubtedly gave a boost to these companies’ competitors.
We don’t mean to sound protective of the companies. Don’t get us wrong: If it can be proven that a company has knowingly or even inadvertently (through cost-saving measures, say) taken steps that resulted in a previously known or predictable harm to dogs, we’d be happy to help drum them out of business. The point is, the cause of these cases is STILL unknown. So why name the companies, rather than just describe the characteristics of the products that have been implicated so far?
Our guess is that so many people buy and feed products without having a clear reason for doing so, and so many fail to read the ingredients panel and guaranteed analysis – perhaps naming companies was the only way to get owners’ attention, and to alert them to check their foods, and think about their dogs’ condition. If they are feeding a product from one of the named companies, are their dogs displaying any symptoms of compromised cardiac health?
The only explicit advice that the FDA offered to owners wanting to protect their pets came at the end of the update: “If a dog is showing possible signs of DCM or other heart conditions, including decreased energy, cough, difficulty breathing and episodes of collapse, you should contact your veterinarian as soon as possible. If the symptoms are severe and your veterinarian is not available, you may need to seek emergency veterinary care.” This is sound advice – and owners would do well to follow it regardless of what diet their dogs are fed.
Information about the cases
We do believe that the agency is more concerned about protecting our health and that of our pets than protecting industry interests, though, again, naming some (not all!) of the companies was kind of a weird move. However, we very much appreciate the fact that, in an effort to give pet owners and industry insiders more information about the issue, the agency has shared much more information in this update and other linked documents than was previously released.
Between January 1, 2014 and April 30, 2019, the FDA received 524 reports of DCM; this includes some 560 dogs and 14 cats. Some of the reports include cases in which multiple pets in the same household developed DCM – which is why total affected animals (574) add up to more than the number of reports (524). The cat cases are beyond WDJ’s area of expertise and we will not discuss these.
The agency also has received many reports regarding dogs with other cardiac problems, but if a dog was not diagnosed with DCM by a veterinarian or veterinary cardiologist, his or her case was not counted in the totals above. The FDA says it will continue to collect information about these cases, as dogs may exhibit cardiac changes before they develop symptomatic DCM. For more about these changes, see “Non-DCM Cardiac Cases” in this linked addendum to the June 27 update.
Some of the detail included in the update dramatically helps illustrate the immediacy of the issue. Though earlier reports referred to DCM cases dating back to 2014, we learned from this update that there were only seven reports regarding DCM made to the FDA from 2014 through 2017: one in 2014, one in 2015, two in 2016, and three in 2017.
But in 2018, the FDA received a communication from a group veterinary cardiology practice in the northeast concerning an unusual cluster of cases of DCM. The veterinarians reported that they had seen a number of dogs with DCM who were 1) not breeds known to be at a higher inherited risk of DCM, and 2) most had been eating grain-free diets prior to diagnosis.
Veterinary cardiologists discussed this with colleagues. Soon, other practitioners realized that they, too, had seen more cases of DCM in dogs of atypical breeds for the condition – and many of them, too, were eating diets that were grain-free and/or high in legumes and/or potatoes. More and more veterinarians started submitting reports about their patients to the FDA.
The FDA released its first advisory about this issue in July 2018, in order to alert pet owners and general-practice veterinarians of the possibility for DCM to develop in dogs, especially if they had been maintained on grain-free/legume-rich diets for any significant period of time. The agency warned interested parties to be on the lookout for the symptoms of DCM: loss of appetite, pale gums, increased heart rate, coughing, difficulty breathing, periods of weakness, and fainting.
This news almost immediately triggered a spike of cases being reported to the FDA. Some 320 reports of DCM were made in 2018; so far in 2019 (through April 30, the most recent date included in the FDA advisory update), some 197 reports of DCM have been made. Of the 560 dogs discussed in these reports, 119 have died.
The FDA cannot confirm, however, whether these numbers indicate an actual increase in the population of dogs that develop or die from DCM or whether the attention brought to bear on this issue has increased awareness and hence reporting; unlike in human epidemiology, rates of disease and deaths are not kept for animals. (FDA: “Because the occurrence of different diseases in dogs and cats is not routinely tracked and there is no widespread surveillance system like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have for human health, we do not have a measure of the typical rate of occurrence of disease apart from what is reported to the FDA.”) Because we don’t know what the rate of DCM is overall, it’s possible that many cardiac problems, diet-related or not, have gone unreported or even undetected (for example, mistakenly attributed to “old age”) until the FDA advisories and updates brought it to the attention of many dog owners.
One of the major points made in the 2018 advisory was that cardiologists were seeing the unexpected development of DCM in atypical breeds and in dogs with other atypical characteristics. DCM tends to affect dogs of certain breeds (most of which are large and giant breeds), older dogs, and more dogs who are overweight than of ideal or low weight. Veterinary cardiologists say they are seeing more cases in breeds that are not known to have a genetic predisposition to DCM, in younger dogs, and in medium and even very small dogs.
The FDA’s 2019 update confirmed that there has been, at a minimum, a shift in the makeup of the dogs involved in these 560 cases. The update contains a table that enumerates how many dogs of various breeds are represented in the 560 cases. The breed with the most cases (95) is the Golden Retriever. However, according to registration numbers of purebred dogs, it’s the third most popular breed in the U.S. Also, the FDA has speculated that there has been greater awareness and social media discussion about DCM among Golden Retriever owners (as they are prone to a taurine-responsive form of DCM), and this perhaps prompted Golden owners to bring their dogs to the vet and be diagnosed sooner, and to report their cases to the FDA.
Mixed-breed dogs are next on the list with 62 cases, then Labrador Retrievers with 47; in neither case would those dogs be expected to have a genetic predisposition to DCM. There are more mixed-breed dogs in the U.S. than any individual pure breed, and Labradors are the most numerous purebred dog in the U.S., so it may be that these dogs are represented so high on this list by virtue of their greater representation in the population. Fourth on the list, though, is a breed that is known to have a genetically higher risk of DCM: Great Danes, with 25 cases. There were 23 pit bulls, and then two more breeds known to be at higher risk of DCM: German Shepherd Dogs (with 19 cases) and Doberman Pinschers (15).
DCM tends to affect more male dogs than females, and that pattern has held, with 58.7% of the cases involving males. This, as well as the atypical age and breed distribution of the cases, had led FDA researchers to surmise that the cases that have been reported to them this far are the result of a combination of expected causes (inherited predisposition) and dietary causes.
The implicated companies
Again, it’s a little weird that the FDA named pet food companies, when the link between the foods and the cases of DCM is not yet clear. Even stranger is that they named only 16 companies – that fact seemed to make the biggest impression on the mainstream media. Headlines in publication after publication make it sound like there are just 16 companies that have been doing something wrong –making it sound as if as long as you avoid those companies when buying your dog’s food, all will be well. If only!
The 16 companies named by the FDA appear on a table presented in the update (linked again here, scroll down). The table lists the 16 companies that were named in 10 or more of the cases of canine DCM reported to the FDA since 2014. These 16 were implicated in 431 of the cases; the foods that were fed to the pets in the other 129 of the cases were not in the table – which leaves open the possibility that someone feeding a food that caused, say, nine cases, remains unaware that their dog’s food, too, may potentially contribute to their dog developing DCM. It’s a tad random.
The companies mentioned in every single one of the 560 cases are available, but not in a particularly accessible way. A link provided in the update takes the reader to a 77-page table that lists all known information about each DCM case presented to the FDA. We plan to mine that 77-page table for all this information – the companies named in fewer than 10 cases, as well as the varieties mentioned in every case – in the weeks ahead. We will share it with you when we’re done – or share a link if someone does this and posts the information before us.
Also, the update did not specify which varieties of each company’s products were implicated. While some of the companies named make only the type of products that have been implicated in the majority of reports (we will get to that in a minute), some of those 16 companies make two types of products: the type that has been implicated in the vast majority of the 560 cases, as well as products that contain grain and do not contain any of the ingredients that seem to be associated with the development of DCM. In the case of these companies, naming only the brand and not the varieties implicated in the reports was a disservice to the companies and consumers alike.
Characteristics of the implicated foods
The FDA has not yet reached any conclusions about definitive links between the foods that the 560 dogs were being fed and their development of DCM. However, if, in an abundance of caution, an owner wanted to avoid products that share the traits of these foods, it’s possible to do so. The update includes enough information about the implicated foods that could help consumers select foods that do not share the traits of the implicated foods. Just keep in mind that causation is still unknown and that the FDA’s only conclusion so far is that “DCM in dogs is a complex scientific issue that may involve multiple factors.”
The vast majority of the products that the owners were feeding to the dogs in the reports submitted to the FDA were dry dog foods: 452 of the 515 reports involved dry dog food. The thing is, 452/515 is 88%. Currently about 85 to 90 percent of owners feed dry food, so this proportion is probably equal to the proportion of healthy dogs who are fed dry diets, so (statistically speaking) is meaningless information.
Grain-free diets represented 91% of the products implicated in the reports; 93% contained peas and/or lentils. Potatoes and/or sweet potatoes were present in 42% of the products. These numbers are far more intriguing.
The inclusion of peas, lentils, chickpeas, and other legume seeds have reached some sort of critical mass in recent years with pet food manufacturers. Though they’ve been present in many pet foods for at least a decade, in recent years, the percentage of their representation in formulas has grown. We wouldn’t worry unduly about one of these ingredients appearing on an ingredients panel in a minor role – 6th or 7th or lower on the list, say. But if there is more than one of these ingredients on the list and/or one in one of the top five or so positions on the ingredients list, for now, we’d look for another product to feed our dogs.
There are a number of animal nutrition experts speculating about what might be happening with these foods and why some dogs who have been eating them have developed heart problems. We will follow up with some analysis of some of the leading theories in future posts, but for now, let’s focus on what owners can do immediately to protect their dogs, based on what is currently understood and/or suspected about the relationship between the foods named in the reports made to the FDA and the dogs’ health problems.
Our recommendations for action
1. As we stated in our response to the 2018 advisory a year ago, no matter what your dog eats, if she has any signs of DCM – including decreased energy, cough, difficulty breathing, and episodes of collapse – you should make an appointment to see your veterinarian ASAP, preferably one who can refer you to a veterinary cardiologist.
2. For now, we would strongly recommend avoiding foods that use peas – including constituent parts of peas, such as pea starch, pea protein, and pea fiber, and especially multiple iterations of peas (such as green peas, yellow peas, pea protein, etc.) as major ingredients. If any one of these appears higher than the 6th or 7th ingredient on an ingredient list, for now, we’d switch to foods that do not display this trait.
Same goes for chickpeas (may be referred to as garbanzo beans), any other type of bean, and lentils.
We’d switch away from any foods containing more than one of these ingredients (peas, beans, or lentils).
3. Also, if you read through the 77-page table that includes every one of the 515 reports received by the FDA about a pet with DCM, you will see many times over that pet owners fed whatever they had been feeding to their dogs for months or even years. The same food, day in and day out. Month in and month out. Year in and year out! We’ve said it before and we will say it again: Feeding the same food for months on end amounts to putting your dog’s life in a single company’s hands. Is there any company on earth that you would trust to provide ALL the nutrition you consume for the rest of your life?
Please switch foods frequently, and not just from one variety to a different variety made by the same company. Switch among products that are made by different companies, with different ingredients. Unless your dog has a proven allergy to a number of ingredients, switching from one food to another, as often as every time you buy a new bag of food, helps provide your dog with “balance over time,” and keeps any nutritional imbalances, overages, or deficiencies from contributing to your dog’s health problems.
4. As we have stated many times, we would feed grain-free foods ONLY to dogs with a demonstrated allergy to or intolerance of grains.
When grain-free dry dog foods were first introduced to the market, we were happy that owners of dogs who had a proven intolerance of or allergy to one or more grains could find commercial dry food options. However, as this segment of the market exploded, it became apparent that many more owners were choosing these products than dogs needed them. Somehow, the message spread among dog owners that grain-free foods were “better” – with little or no explanation offered as to why this was alleged. We based our concern about their over-popularity on the high levels of inclusion of ingredients that did not have a long history of use in dry dog foods. Potatoes and sweet potatoes worry us less than peas, chickpeas, and beans; they have been utilized in dry dog formulas for longer than the legumes.
What if your dog absolutely can’t consume ANY grain (and this has been demonstrated with a sound food allergy trial)? There are a number of companies whose grain-free foods do not appear or appear very infrequently on the 77-page table of all the DCM reports. We are aware that some dog food manufacturers add supplemental taurine to their products (and have always done so). Whether this or some other factor (ingredient sourcing, better manufacturing, better formulation, etc.) is responsible for their scarcity on that list, no one knows for sure. But if your dog absolutely can’t consume ANY grain, we’d look for products without peas or legumes (or those with perhaps ONE of these ingredients low on the ingredients list), from a manufacturer whose name is not found on the table… and to hedge your bet, we’d check to see whether they add supplemental taurine to their formulas (and go with one of their products if they do).
Not all of the dogs in these reports have been found to exhibit low taurine levels – and none of the diets implicated in the reports have been found to contain levels of the amino acids that dogs use to manufacture the taurine they need (cysteine and methionine) that fail to meet the current levels legally required for a “complete and balanced diet.” However, there are several compelling possible reasons that could result in the dogs’ failure to utilize or benefit from these amino acids. For example, some chicken meals are so low in digestibility – and often so heat-damaged – that the methionine is not present in an available form. Also, high fiber levels can interfere with some dogs’ ability to convert these amino acids into the amount of taurine they need. The main point is, there are dogs who have shown improvement after their diets have changed and supplemental taurine was prescribed.
Note: The possibility has been raised that there may be more than one mechanism at work causing all these DCM cases and cases of other cardiac problems, something to do with the cysteine /methionine/taurine issue and something else. While the vast majority of the implicated diets mentioned in the FDA’s reports are dry, grain-free foods, some food that do contain grains also have been implicated, as well as some canned, raw, etc. diets. All owners need to be alert to their dogs’ symptoms – and don’t just chalk up exercise intolerance, panting, lethargy, etc. to “old age” in previously healthy senior dogs! Make an appointment and discuss these symptoms with your veterinarian soon.
As more dogs have a sensitivity to beef & chicken, rather than grains, it would be helpful for you to suggest foods without beef, chicken, peas, lentils, other legumes, & potatoes.
Farmina, you can get with no grains or ancestral grains. I use lamb/blueberry no peas is available.$$$
Lynn,
THANK YOU! Farmina is a FANTASTIC brand. It’s made in Italy and is under the European Union standards which are MUCH HIGHER than US standards. No fillers. No hormones. No GMOs. No by-product. NO BULLSHIT!
Which one of the Farmina foods does not contain peas – I have looked at these and most have some pea starch and pea fiber
I noticed they use pea starch though. :-/
I would so much rather feed a food with beef & can’t find any. The other ingredient that has increased in foods is chicken. Probally because it’s cheep. Any one give thought to this as a potential problem? I won’t even eat some of the chicken out there. I have noticed chicken is far more prevalent in dog food lately. I am very suspecious of this as a probable cause.
Thank you for this article.
I have fed Fromm for over ten years varying the different flavors every time I made a purchase. I still believe they are a good company that provides a variety of good foods. The only reason I am not feeding it now is that my Wheaten has some kidney issues( more likely breed related) and the vet suggested changing her diet to a prescription food that seems to have helped. I am not a conspiracy minded person either but that was my first thought when I read some of those names on that list. Thanks for keeping it real.
Mine developed kidney stones after eating Blue Buffalo- he was only 4months old. I switched to FROMM grain free but my vet said change to something with grains or prescription diet but he won’t eat it.. he’s 5 years old now.
Why no mention of AAFCO feeding trials? Those are a very important part of quality control as well is the statement complete and balanced statement.
My point as well! With regards to WDJ: “If it can be proven that a company has knowingly or even inadvertently (through cost-saving measures, say) taken steps that resulted in a previously known or predictable harm to dogs, we’d be happy to help drum them out of business.” Yeah, it can be proven. None of the companies actually testing their food are making dogs sick. These boutique foods that WDJ recommends so highly command exorbitant prices, yet do zero testing for the bioavailability of their foods’ nutrient profiles or the lifelong effects of their foods on dogs. Owners that feed these foods are basically paying for the privilege of their dogs being test subjects and gambling with their dogs’ lives. The companies can claim ignorance because they honestly don’t know their foods are bad for dogs. They never bothered to test them to find out. And yet WDJ touts these foods as being “quality” foods?? It’s shameful and it’s purposefully ignorant articles like this that are the reason I’m cancelling my subscription.
I am confused about your comment because this article doesn’t recommend feeding your dog the brands mentioned in the FDA report.
AAFCO feeding trials are actually pretty short, and basically only prove that a food won’t kill the animals eating it in the short term. There are minimal standards for “passing” these trials.
Thank you.
AFFCO are lobbiest that get paid by the biggest food co. They don’t want these co. To loss$$$ . They don’t care about small and family businesses!!!
Stupid comment. Let me guess, vets are all funded by Royal Canin and want the dog to get sick so they make money?
Unfortunately, the AAFCO guideline’s measurements only measure LEVELS of, say, proteins, etc. There are no measurements of “bio-availability”. It’s incredibly easy to boost the measurement of protein with low grade ingredients that are, in fact, indigestible to our furry friends; so the AAFCO’s claims of “Complete and Balanced” are misleading.
Check out Dog Food Advisor (though I’ve never seen a Cat Food Advisor – you can use the same BASIC ingredients logic in choosing a cat food with only a couple of differences ie: taurine).
Dog Food Advisor will teach you how to decipher the ingredients label to make an informed choice.
I’ve used Orijen for years :: it has greatly improved the health of my clan and I am grateful for it :: though, yes, it is expensive and I am not rich; but I’d much rather spend the money up front on quality ingredients, than vet bills and toxic pharmaceuticals.
Side note: One of my dogs is so full blown PTSD that I have yet to be able to bathe her; she’s almost 4 years old and has no odor at all – one of the effects of quality food.
Consider the fact that kibble became a thing in the early part of the 20th century because a food manufacturer was looking to do something with the leftover waste from his business (can’t recall the guy’s name) :: LITERALLY the stuff that was usually swept away and tossed in the dumpster.
Ingredients matter.
Also the number of cases this represents works out to something like 0.0047% of companion animals (of course there will never be a definitive number as there are so many pets that never see a doctor.)
Ingredients matter :: educate yourself :: your furry kids will thank you for it!
Montana
I recently subscribed to the Youtube channel: Kimberly Gauthier, which for the most part is of interest to anyone who feeds or is interested in feeding a raw dog food diet. She interviews integrative veterinarians and animal nutritionists frequently. Just a few days ago I watched her video interview with Laurie Coger, DVM, an integrative veterinarian from New England. When the subject came up about the high incidence of DCM in dogs who’ve eaten grain-free kibble, Dr. Coger hypothesized that these formulas containing peas and/or legumes may be substituting some of the meat in the recipe for more legumes, therefore keeping the protein percentage up, ( and their cost down), but also unknowingly reducing the taurine to an insufficient level. The entire pet food industry lost my trust in 2007. I’ve been feeding homemade raw diets to my dogs and cats ever since. Reports like this, especially with all of the still unknown causes justify my decision to make my own.
I also (mainly) feed raw, but I’m concerned that there have been a few raw-fed dogs with DCM that don’t fit the profile of those with genetic links. So, raw may not get us off the hook.
The only reason I choose mainly grain-free kibble (for training treats, mainly) is that these formulations tend to feature more meat than meat meal. and no meat byproducts. I’m concerned about the legumes, but I also started adding small amounts of taurine to my dog’s diet just in case (not enough to throw of her amino acid balance).
I wish this weren’t so complicated.
Many companies have added Taurine to their product……check your labels or contact the company it may already be in there
Obviously, I’m the sort of person who reads dog food labels. Hah!
Whether it’s already there or not doesn’t really clear up whether it was added before or after heat processing, or if indeed that’s a factor in absorbability.
Taurine is a non-essential amino acid that dogs develop naturally within their own bodies. Not all dogs with DCM are taurine-deficient.
Hi Jeanmarie
In fact “meat meal” is the higher protein ingredient :: I know it may seem counterintuitive, but when a meat, Chicken / Beef etc., is the first ingredient it is in fact lower in protein as it has a high percentage of water; so (named) meat meals are what you want to be the primary ingredient.
I feed my dog raw meat, as indicated above, I don’t buy meat meals, thanks.
I have an UBER finicky Black German Shepherd who is also allergic to potatoes/potato starch (causes chronic ear infections) and fowl. She would sometimes eat, often late at night when I was asleep, or sometimes not at all. Had her on two different GF, one-protein (fish as she had digestive issues from lamb) kibbles (one that made “the list”) and she’s recently “tired” of them and wouldn’t eat. She seemed bummed out (?). I started cooking for her. I found a recipe from Healthy Pets (Mercola) and not only is she eagerly eating at EVERY feeding, she is a completely different dog. Her energy and playfulness have returned and she is excited when I carry her bowl to her eating area. I have done a ton of research and am making sure she is getting everything she needs daily (including STINKY sardines!) and will be following the news on DCM, legumes and grain-free kibble. Till then, I’ll be my dog’s personal chef. LOL!
Would you mind linking the recipe?
KLM, I finally found Royal Canin’s Skin Support fish diet, which has grains, doesn’t have peas, legumes or potatoes, and doesn’t have the offending proteins. (It does have chicken fat, but I contacted RC’s nutritionists, and the chicken protein has been removed from the fat – and my dog does fine on it. Unfortunately it’s very expensive. Another option is their hydrolyzed protein vet diet – also expensive. I’d love to hear about more options though so that I can rotate my dog’s food rather than feeding one or two lines forever.
Look into Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin and Stomach Salmon and Rice kibble. Contains only rice, barley and oatmeal, no other grains, and is a single source protein … salmon. No cases of NDCM have ever been reported as Purina follows WSAVA guidelines and employs MANY full time PhD veterinarian nutritionists who perform feeding trials, sometimes for years before releasing foods to the consumer public. Pro Plan is the top of Purina’s line and has long been the choice of breeders and show dog owners. The other large companies who, like Purina, have had no cases of diagnosed NDCM are Royal Canin, Iams/Eukanuba and Hills/Science Diet. Most of these large companies have many varieties that may fit your requirements for food.
My vet has recommended Pro Plan also.
I had been using several varieties of Acana, and occasionally Orijen, grain-free, until these results and noted that peas, lentils etc were near the top of the ingredient lists. I switched to Annamaet Option (salmon, lamb, and brown rice) because the ingredient list did not include beans or lentils. Then my vet told me she had stopped using Annamaet because of these findings and switched to Pro Plan because it is one of the most studied brands. Having always been led to believe that Purina dog foods were not sourced from quality ingredients, the equivalent of taking your kids to McDonalds every night, I’m at a loss to know what to feed my dog now. Am I wrong about Pro Plan?
What was the vet’s rationale for switching away from Annamaet? Annamaet Ultra is grain-inclusive and doesn’t have peas/legumes as far as I know and was one of the brands we considered when switching away from Orijen (we ultimately went with Farmina Ancestral Grains).
In a word, yes. But that’s not your fault, the snooty dog world has been hiking their leg on Pro Plan for decades. After this research came out they, unlike most companies, discontinued their grain-free line. Even cheaper options like Diamond can prove healthful for dogs without issues, too, it’s all in the ingredients after all. A brand’s reputation, their packaging, and marketing have nothing to do with it. It is important, however, to check each recipe formula before offering it as even within brand lines there can be differences.
The only problem with Pro Plan is the cost. I did buy a small bag and my girl loved it. Being on a fixed income makes it hard to buy the more expensive food. My girl is 5 years old and has always eaten Taste of the Wild(High Prairie)
I found you can significantly reduce costs by feeding home cooked. Buy various meats on sale and freeze. Eggs are super cheap too. Cook up the meat. Cook up some rice. Add extras like parsley, sardines, livers, beef or chicken stock, pumpkin seeds, seaweed powder, healthy fat. Mix in a few veggies that are canine friendly. Toss in a crushed Men’s One-a-Day vitamin (recommended in a dog food recipe book I own). Done. I can feed a 45-pound female dog for less than $15.00/week, sometimes $10/week. Meat super sales, Aldi’s, egss and local butchers with cuts for dogs are lifesavers.
wow!! great recipe. all except the one a day. i’d not do that now that so many foods are adding supplements and vitamins.
I did not see that you were balancing the calcium/phosphorus ratio in your recipe. You should check on that as it is the most important factor people tend to miss in home-prepared diets. There are a number of great books out there for home-prepared diets. My personal favorite is Canine Ancestral Diet. I use the recipes, but don’t feed raw, so I adjust for that. But do make sure you are balancing calcium which from your listing, seems to be missing.
Of course the ” big 4″ have no reported cases even though they all produce formulas with the same ingredient as the suspect foods… they stand to gain a substantial increase in sales as does those organizations/individuals who are in their pocket… money talks especially in huge sums.. There is far more to all this panic and it isnt only grain free foods.
I’m also suspicious. And where was the FDA when Purina and others were killing dogs with their jerky treats Made in China?
Dog Lover: I agree.
I work in the pet food industry and here is what I would like to inform the public about:
1. Please remember, these FDA reports are just that, REPORTS. There is currently NO scientific study to back up these claims. Also,
2. Most vet schools get a large amount of funding from big name brands like Purina, Science Diet, Eukenuba, and Royal Canin. It’s not a coincidence that those are the brands most vets recommend, even though the ingredients list is terrible and they aren’t all 3rd party tested.
3. Unfortunately, most vets are NOT licensed nutritionists, and most schools only recently started requiring vets to take a nutrition course. In fact, in over 90,000 vets in the US, less than 100 are licensed pet nutritionists. So asking your vet about what to feed your dog is like asking your doctor about your own health: they know about as much as you learn in public school.
I feel better after reading your comment, Petfood Guru. We have been feeding our German Shorthaired Pointers a homemade raw diet for many years but the youngest one has many allergies and we’re trying to figure out what’s causing it. She’s now 6 years old and we still haven’t resolved it. We just had her tested by 2 different labs for food and environmental allergies. They both gave a slightly different report but both agreed on several big items. We just decided to switch her to commercial food and chose ACANA Pork and Squash for it’s limited ingredients. Now they are saying ACANA is top of the list for DCM. It seems to be helping her allergies though and I’m not sure what to believe anymore.
I refuse to buy anything- especially dog food/treats that’s made in China, Vietnam, Cambodia etc. I’ve heard Canada is more strict about ingredients that are added. I purchased Purina Pro Plan that my vet recommended- my 5 year old Havanese/Shi Tzu won’t touch it. I also read in the ingredients there are , corn gluten, chicken by-products ( slaughter house garbage),soybeans, liver flavor?, soybean oil, menadione sodium bisulfate (fake Vitamin KK that was banned in the US because of toxicity. How can anyone recommend this garbage?
I’ve been a pet owner and advocate for many years and worked with Vets in the pet industry for a long time. It is my understanding that Royal Canin does the most scientific testing on breed specific formulas and what is best for our pets. They spend years testing their products to ensure they are safe for our pets. As for Iams/ Eukenuba I have never heard any good reviews for them doing major studies to offer the best pet food for our furbabies. Purina has a lot of dollar power and Pro Plan is their high end product. I would not feed most of Purina’s products to my pets. I know factually Royal Canin spends crazy amounts of time and money on getting the perfect product for our pets. I know that is expensive, but I believe they engage in due diligence to provide a safe and healthy choice of food for our pets.
Hi Sherry,
Dog Food Advisor is a great learning tool.
I’m decidedly NOT a fan of RC :: they use cheap ingredients. By-product meals / brewers rice….. it’s, imho, poor quality and high priced!
Hills Prescription Diet food has nothing in it that is prescription, other than Vets sell it and get a cut. Plus it is more expensive than their other food. Plus, Hills was just responsible for killing lord knows how many dogs because their jobber put 70x the amount of Vitamin D in the food. They only disclosed this when the press got ahold of it. There is no requirement either from the FDA or AAFCO that pet food companies disclose or recall foods that kill dogs. It is all “voluntary”
I’d personally never feed Hill’s unless the only other option were to starve my dog.
Do your research before making a blanket statement about dead dogs. There were NONE due to vitamin D over abundance due to the company Hills sourced their vitamin D from. It is true that Hills immediately voluntarily withdrew the affected canned food from the market AND alerted the FDA and the media … as well as offered recompense for veterinary bills and testing and for the cost of the food that was returned. Wouldn’t that show responsible actions from a responsible and trusted company? I think so. Also, veterinarians are entitled to a small profit margin for the cost of the space used to stock products for sale to their clients.
Vets are in bed with the dog food companies, just like the drug companies are with doctors. You can defend them but most have two weeks of dog food nutrition classes and it’s done be… you guessed it Parina dog food company. So they a conflict of insert and that’s a fact. They truly have no idea what this is from and to name Dog Food is a crime. They should be sued for that.
I have noticed that my Vet is now stocking and I suppose recommending Purina Pro Plan whereas in the past it was Scientific(?) brand. My son’s Vet in Florida also recommended Pro Plan for his Labrador Retriever. His dog gained unnecessary weight. I am very suspicious about Vet’s recommendations.
I think Hill’s acted very responsibly in this whole affair. I’m starting to reconsider my position against them.
I’m sorry to inform you that I was literally just at a Hills Science Diet training meeting and it was more like a middle school health class: they didn’t talk about the product or why they think it’s good. I literally had to ask their “vet consultant” where the food is sourced from, why isn’t their food 3rd party tested, and how they can justify having so much corn in their diets. She literally said “fillers are fiber”….yeah, if you eat bad tacos that will push things out of your system too, that doesn’t mean it’s healthy. Plus, she didn’t talk about DCM until the class pried it out of her and all she could say is “there is no study yet, just reports, but you should probably just stick to our food anyway”. For the love of God, go to a pet supply store (NOT PETCO OR PETSMART) where employees are actually trained in pet health and know about the brands they carry.
Yeah, I still won’t use Hill’s, but then I feed my dog raw.
you are all highly delusional about how many dogs died and how Hills and vets handled this. my dog was almost killed by this food, i reported it to the vet after she ingested a small amount b/c her reaction was terrible (tremors, glassy eyes, excessive drooling and panting, and incontinence) within 1 hour. each time, and at only 1/3 of a cup since this food was vet Rx as part of her recovery from pancreatitis. the vet said they never heard anyone react that way. so, i kept feeding right up until the recall. her stool was also BLACK as tar while on the food.
and 3 weeks AFTER STOPPING the food, she began drinking excessively, panting at rest, and having all signs of kidney failure. vet testing revealed ALT liver enzyme was elevated indicated POISONING.
through some fast acting and supplements to her food, we only recently began to have her drink the normal 3 -4 cups of water per day. when her kidneys almost failed, she was drinking 6-9 cups per day. HILLS diet did that. nothing else.
shame on you for defending a company and mispeaking while having NO KNOWLEDGE of how many of our dogs are still suffering from the food. thousands were killed. THOUSANDS. go online and search FB and other social media for groups dedicated to learning and speaking out about the truth of how many dogs passed.
Taxonomists include dogs and wolves in the same species. It seems unlikely that wolves evolved eating grain, or peas, or lentils. Evolution does not concern itself with health of wolves, humans, or any other species beyond the age required for an individual to pass on its genes. Eating food that is best in the long run does not matter because the long run does not matter. But, just as evolution does not concern itself primarily with love seeking longevity, love does not concern itself much with evolution. Wolves will eat any animal they can catch which does not pose a threat to them. Therefore, the advice to seek variety seems good (although kangaroo seems historically dubious). My next purchase will switch away from the Champion brands, even though I still think they are best overall and have given me the only observable improvement in results over other foods widely deemed to be a bit less good (and certainly less expensive). And I will switch back and forth amid Champion’s fishy formulations. Enlightening article. Thanks.
I don’t see any question about the chemicals that are sprayed on different legumes and potatoes — I have read they can be very toxic — they ought to look into that
Dennis: This is exactly my thought! What of the processing?
I just tried Fresh Pet Vital grain free…NON GMO….my Giant is old 14 next month and loosing too much weight….I change foods all the time…trust no one, sorry…..she eats and loves it (the frig roll)….putting on weight and looking for food !!!!!! I was crock pot cooking for her and I still had to hand feed her…..with Fresh Pet she stands at the counter waiting for me to cut up the roll………..and eats it on her own…no spoon feeding……..as long as this continues we are both happy….
Dennis: I agree! Also, what about GMO corn, which is the most prelevant ingredient in Purina Products (except for the Sensitive Stomach formula) usually 4 different versions high on the ingredient list. You can’t find corn that is not sprayed with pesticides because it has been genetically modified to handle it. Just FYI, the lead vet on the original DCM “study” if you want to call it that, is on the board of Purina. Also, Purina uses the synthetic form of Vitamin K, menione sodium bisulfate. It has been banned from human use here and in Europe. “There has been a lot of concern lately about the use of menadione, a synthetic form of vitamin K, in pet foods. Menadione has been banned for use in human over-the-counter supplements because it is toxic at excessive dosages.”
Now, I’ve been wondering if anyone has looked at the water quality these dogs regularly ingested. Most humans filter their own drinking water, but not their animals’, and considering how many things are pumped into treated water, there are a slew of chemicals and additives to consider here, which may disrupt nutrient intake. I read years ago when my Maine coon boy cat died of cardiomyopathy that fluoride has been found to inhibit bacterial enzyme growth (why it helps with cavities in teeth), and I’m wondering if that plays a role in the necessary enzymatic process for our fur babies’ ability absorb the taurine quantities they need. Also consider chlorine in the water: what does chlorine do? It also destroys bacteria, and this carries through the digestive system, and, by extension, has been linked to an increase in cancers and heart disease as essential flora aren’t able to perform the same nutritional upkeep needed for a balanced system. I, for one, cannot drink unfiltered chlorinated water, as it causes intestinal upset and acid-reflux. Needless to say, I have been filtering any tap water my animals receive for years, since, I know I don’t want that in MY body, so why put it in theirs?
Kudos, Nancy, for pointing out two of the major gaps:
1) Brands but not specific formulas. That is outright irresponsible on FDA’s part. Maybe that’s why they released their report to the industry a week before the general public.
2) The potential for an artificial spike in reporting that is undoubtedly skewing the results. DCM is attributed overwhelmingly to ‘unknown causes’ when genetic predisposition is ruled out.
I would also like to point out that the FDA graph showing proteins fed is a bit misleading. Since chicken is the most commonly fed protein, you would expect it to show up more frequently in the reported cases than say, kangaroo.
Peas and lentils first appeared in food without being approved by the regulatory agencies. Those ingredients have since been approved – years after they proliferated – based on ‘there doesn’t seem to be any problem’ argument rather than actual studies about their appropriateness. Another failure on the part of the agencies.
Kibble is supplemented with taurine as it is heat sensitive so the likelihood that taurine deficient food is the case is suspect. Even as grain-free foods replace meat protein with peas and lentils the supplementation should take care of that. Dog’s diagnosed with taurine deficient DCM usually recover with supplementation. FDA did not find this to always be the case. Interestingly, at least one case reported to FDA shows high levels of taurine in the blood. Something else is going on here.
I was reading Dr. Jean Dodds’ take on this and she quoted a 2018 study published in JAVMA: “The apparent link between BEG diets and DCM may be due to the grain-free nature of these diets (ie, use of ingredients such as lentils, chickpeas, or potatoes to replace grains), other common ingredients in BEG diets (eg, exotic meats, flaxseed, fruits, or probiotics), possible nutritional imbalances, or inadvertent inclusion of toxic dietary components. Or, the apparent association may be spurious.”. So basically the author of this published article is saying they don’t have a clue. Period. Lots of speculation and that’s it. Her article is also interesting because she details what FDA is doing with the vet community to continue the research this. That information hasn’t really made it to the public. It does look like FDA is making a good faith effort in this area.
One last observation. If you group the brands according to who manufactures (co-pacs) them, one company stands out – Diamond.
Thank you for this article. I felt like the FDA Statement was made for shock value, We feed our dogs Farmer’s Dog food – both our dogs get the pork and turkey meals – since last October and they’ve been doing great with that. Their food has sweet potatoes as the 2nd ingredient on one of the formulas, and the other formula has split peas. I brought the ingredient lists to the vet to review last week while there for a regular appointment, and he said he didn’t love the potatoes or the sweet potatoes” in the foods, and suggested I switch our dogs to Purina Savor food (*gasp* on the Purina suggestion). I decided to wander through the pet food aisle at Tractor Supply to see what the food options are, and at least 90% of the foods were grain-free, and at least most of them were also an “…& Potato” formula. Unless I start cooking for the dogs myself again, I’ve been feeling a bit like I’m floating out at see with a leaky boat
I also had trouble finding foods that were NOT grain-free! (Though I confess I didn’t even look at Purina.). So frustrating.
Thank you for this article. You raise some good points about interpreting the claims. I was surprised that the premium grain-free dry food I am giving my lab has peas, pea flour and lentils listed in position 5, 6 and 7. One note, you suggest changing food often – doesn’t this pose a problem to a dog’s GI? I believe that if you are to switch foods, it should be a gradual process. Based on your suggestion, one would need to be mixing dry foods most of the time as a way to transition slowly.
As WDJ has pointed out before, regularly changing and mixing foods makes it no big deal to switch as the dog’s digestive system is already used to providing the enzymes needed for proper digestion. Variety is indeed important. I don’t find it takes 2 weeks to switch foods. I mix it up all the time, and no digestive upsets. I feed mostly homemade raw with some supplemental kibble, mainly for training treats, Kong-stuffing, or a minor part of a meal, etc. Best wishes.
A couple of the articles floating around have “veterinary cardiologists” recommending that people only feed Royal Canin, Hills or Purina. Ignoring the fact that these manufacturers have had numerous recalls, and also ignoring the fact that no one knows exactly what is the link between DCM and dog food, if any. This whole thing just doesn’t pass the smell test for me.
Has anyone realized that Purina is processed in China. Yes they are a US company, but the processing is done in China. The recalls of Purina are numerous. And a few years back when we had a major recall of gog foods, Purina was at the top of the list. Since we feed both wet and dry to our English Mastiff, I also supplement with table food, and fruits. We feed Fromms, Kohapet canned, and although Weruvia is processed in Taiwan, it is a high quality canned food. No fillers, just a variety of chicken and lamb. I will never feed my Zeus any Purina product.
I applaud your article. I had switched my 13 year old pug and 2 year old German Shephard to grain free. Taste of the wild. After about 2 months they both started to develop ear issues. I went through the entire list of pages of foods. After reading your articles I switched back away from grain free. I am now slowly seeing their ears improve. Thank soooo much
The common element across all dry dog foods in the study was they used rendered meals as a primary protein source. This denatured protein is SO overprocessed that dogs are not getting the complete amino acids required for proper nutrition. From the cheap seats, it seems big pet is using using shills like Ms. Kearns and Ms. Freeman to create fear and drive folks to their local vet. Ironically, local vets don’t know anything about nutrition that isn’t taught by Mars, Purina or Hills in vet school. My store stands by the grain free foods we carry.
I can’t help but wonder that by naming those companies the FDA “thinks” is at fault, and, like you said, without naming the exact foods, that this isn’t a big corporate scare tactic to get people back on RC, Purina, and Science Diet. Our vet clinic get daily phone calls now about this, and guess what our vets advise? Feeding Royal Canin, Purina, and Science Diet because these foods have veterinary nutritionists!
PhD veterinarian nutritionists (canine NOT bovine, porcine, etc.,) are employed full time by the big 4 dog food companies. They often keep foods in their off market pipeline for years before releasing them as commercially available diets, only after trial testing and tweaking them. If you care to know which brands and varieties of brands were reported to the FDA by owners of dogs diagnosed with NDCM, you merely have to access the “Complaints” section of the FDA Update, available in the update via highlighted links in several places. There you will find the information reported to FDA on each dog, their age, sex, breed if known, and detailed diet information listing brands fed and varieties of those brands for the time period reported..it is not the FDAs objective to collude with some dog food manufacturers in order to put others out of business. This update, FDA’s third one in a year, is merely an update on the information reported to this agency. FDA HAS FINALLY NAMED NAMES OF COMPANIES PRODUCING DIETS REPORTED TO HAVE CAUSED DIAGNOSED HEART DISEASE AND DEATH IN DOGS. If these 16 named manufacturers and the dozens of smaller companies with fewer than 10 reported cases doesn’t alert the public of the impending heart disease epidemic, then FDA has failed to do its duty. RC, Purina, Science Diet and Iams Eukanuba have not had even one case of reported NDCM so far in this study. This is because of the money spent in hiring the professionals and doing the trial testing required, not by mixing up foods that sound good on a human restaurant menu. Dogs have specialized dietary needs and require being fed accordingly to keep them healthy. Wake up people,,start putting your trust in your veterinarians again. They know more than you think and that’s why we take our beloved animals to them … for their advice. NDCM (nutritional dietary cardiomyopathy) is an evolving heart disease in dogs and vets are coming up to speed on it just as is the pet owning public. You’ve fallen for the very slick marketing of small pet food companies who are making huge profits on cheaply formulated foods of questionable nutritional quality. Educate yourselves.
“not by mixing up foods that sound good on a human restaurant menu.”
Do you really think this is how people devise homemade diets?
Jeanmarie Todd … I was replying to the post above mine. Nowhere did I EVER mention homemade diets. Do not accuse me of saying something you want me to say.
Maxine, I haven’t accused you of anything. I was trying to clarify what you were saying, because that’s what it sounded like to me. I don’t have any desire for you to say anything in particular; there is no “something you want me to say.”
“RC, Purina, Science Diet and Iams Eukanuba have not had even one case of reported NDCM so far in this study.” This statement is false. Read through the case studies (the 77 page document) and you will see all of these brands listed.
Krista … look at the diagnoses of these NDCM dogs you are captioning. Most have reasons other than nutritional, or in addition to nutritional, some are genetically predisposed breeds, for their DCM. Also, in companies as large as these (feeding hundreds of thousands of dogs) there will always be some outliers.
I am surprised that no one seems to be entertaining the possibility that this is not diet related at all. I find it interesting that the first increase in these types of reported cases occurred in the tick phobic northeast. The use of chemical flea and tick control products has skyrocketed in the past decade. All of these types of products are systemic pesticides. Is it possible that one or more of these chemicals could negatively impact the heart? Or, it may be possible that some of these chemicals may interfere with the absorption, creation or utilization of nutrients required by the heart? I would like to see statistics that show what pest prevention these dogs have been on and for how long.
I agree. I also wonder if the increased use of Glyphosate is a factor. Glyphosate has been shown in studies to affect the heart. It is common,y used to dry lentils and peas in NA in order to harvest them more quickly. I also found it interesting that the article said that in some cases several Pets came down with DCM. They were likely fed the same food, however, perhaps they are being exposed to Roundup around their yard or in their community.
I knew that glyphosate can cause many serious health issues but did not know that about the heart. Thank you so much for pointing that out. Certainly it is obvious that there are a number of factors that seem far more likely to be problematic than the diets. Of course big pharma and big chem have far more influence than dog food companies so it is not a wonder that they are being scapegoated.
The reason many dog owners are switching to grain free diets is to avoid carbohydrates. From my time working in a doggie hotel just out of a population of 300 guests who have been in our hotel, 10 of them received insulin injections. This report has just 574 cases of DCM out of over a million dogs. The percentage is staggeringly higher our dogs will get diabetes from a grain diet. And rice and potatoes are high in starch which converts to carbohydrates.
For the time being I would give supplements containing taurine and stay grain and potato free.
And why in the world are carbohydrates NOT listed on pet food nutrition panels?
Good questions! Obesity and diabetes are a far bigger problem, which is not to say the apparent rise in nutritional DCM is not concerning.
Question: is there any issue with DCM in dogs in the EU? Is this a US based problem only? Some of these foods are available there too but I haven’t heard of any issues anywhere in Europe.
No… Welcome to the american corn syndicate charade!
Thanks for the update. I’m puzzled by anyone who says they’re canceling their subscription because of your reporting on this subject. I find your reporting to be very helpful. I trust that you’ll keep us updated with any new developments or insights. Thank you.
According to the United Nations Department of Agriculture analysis, grains do NOT contain ANY taurine at all. Neither do most fruits and vegetables. So I don’t think that it the presence or lack of grain that is the significant factor in these cases of DCM. Supplementing your dog’s diet with taurine is easy enough, as it is found in heart, dark meat poultry, fish, and clams. It is also sold in capsules at the Vitamin Shoppe and by online pet stores. There must be some other factor causing this (relatively small) number of cases.
Certain dog food companies definitely are implicated: The ones who advertise, without any evidence to support it, that a grain-free diet is healthier or better for your dog than one containing grains, or that ones containing exotic or less common protein sources (lamb, trout, bison, duck, etc.–to include peas, other legumes and beans) are somehow superior to other brands. None of this is substantiated, and this deceptive marketing is meant to prey on the fears of well-meaning but poorly-informed dog owners. What is substantiated I bet are the profit margins from selling smaller bags of food at higher prices.
I’ve not seen any companies actually make claims that grain-free is healthier, they just advertise that they don’t contain corn, wheat or soy, for instance. There is reason to believe it may be safer to feed a variety of proteins rather than just 1-2 meat sources day after day, year after year. It’s common knowledge that that kind of strategy can lead to the development of food intolerances or allergies over time in humans; are dogs any different? There’s no reason to believe, that I’ve seen, that there is anything dangerous about feeding trout, bison, rabbit, etc, instead of just chicken all day every day. It’s what else goes into the kibble or diet that seems to be the issue.
“What is substantiated I bet are the profit margins from selling smaller bags of food at higher prices.”
I think Purina et al are very comfortable with their profit margins, especially given their tremendous volume. There are few ingredients cheaper than corn and rendered meat byproducts.
There is indeed reason to believe that varying protein sources is a good idea: 1) to balance differing nutrient profiles over time, 2) to avoid developing food intolerances or allergies if only the same few ingredients are consumed exclusively, 3), to avoid boredom 4) to avoid depending on one food in case of contamination/recalls. If there are production problems in a smaller manufacturer, it’s easier to trace and correct than huge manufacturers with wider distribution.
Also, many of the boutique food manufacturers take great care to source their ingredients responsibly and to process the ingredients carefully for maximum digestibility and preservation of nutrients. It’s unfortunate that the FDA didn’t require testing the effects of adding large amounts of legumes to dog food; I don’t think that’s evidence of mal intent on the part of the dog food companies. They’re all following perceived consumer preferences to some degree, including the big guys.
So, no, I don’t accept your assertion that it’s all about “fears of well-meaning but poorly informed dog owners.”
Thank you for your article regarding this FDA report. I have been following this for some time now as my Male Golden Retrieve passed suddenly heart related at just 9 and I fed him what I thought was the best of these grain free foods and peas were way down on the list. I have since learned whole chicken as the first ingredient is 75 % water therefore the peas move way up. I know longer use grain free foods although I realize there is no definitive answer it is a risk I’m not willing to take. I advise others to do the same. In fact for the most part I am cooking for them. I certainly hope the companies were not aware of the potential problem, but now that they are I for one who like to see some action. When I called them when my dog passed they essentially ignored my questions and expressed their sympathy for the passing of my still young dog. Just be careful everyone. 🐾💔♥️
Thank you, WDJ, for staying abreast of this current canine health controversy. I thought it was extremely irresponsible that the FDA reported only the names of the brands and not the specific meal formulations within the brands that were suspect. Many of those brands offer both grain-free and foods with grains. I was one of those people who bought into the “grain-free” story. Now that every vet I know has said that grains are fine, I switched to Fromm’s Gold Large Puppy kibble with healthy grains, but no corn or legumes. Our 7 month old large breed mix puppy loves it and is very energetic and healthy. I boil organic chicken breast and add about half a cup of the unsalted broth and about an ounce of chopped boiled chicken breast to each meal, as wetting the kibble helps prevent bloat. Also, the chopped chicken gives the food a little more oomph, without creating a dietary imbalance.
Where will this controversy land? It’s hard to say. But until then, let’s all just be smart and, more importantly, be ever aware of our dogs’ state of health.
I appreciate all the great information you provide. Thank you!
Marvellous, I do the same. I feed my German Shepherd 200 gr boiled organic chicken breasts on top of her Hill’s Science pellets every day and she loves it and is doing fine.
another problem, is that many people are taking the time to report their dog/cat. i found this out recently. some vets are not even reporting animals. so the amount of animals could be much higher. i check everything that i buy for my girls, it if has peas. lentil, etc. i dont give it to them. i took my dog food to my vet when this first came out, she said no peas, etc. i now cook most of their food. most gf dog foods have these in them, somewhere. you can also feed freezed dried foods. freezed dried raw as well. my youngest will not eat raw. i spoke to one of the owners of a local pet store last year and he said that many of the dog foods were going to be redoing their ingredients because of this, maybe adding taurine. if you do supplement your dog’s diet with taurine, make sure it is the correct amount. you can cause problem by them getting too much as well.
My holistic vet said the following: that the peas, lentils & chickpeas and legumes are all cheaper sources of protein and harder for the dog to digest. They did not used to be IN ANY grain-free dogs foods. These ingredients BLOCK (to some extent) the absorption of taurine, so even if it is added to the kibble (by the manufacturer) that may not fix the problem. She felt feeding a fish variety of dog food, or adding some canned fatty fish to the dog’s diet, was a good idea, if you were going to feed grain-free, versus feeding raw but she was a BIG ADVOCATE of raw – if you knew what you were doing.
She also felt that grain is very inflammatory (and is the root of a great many health problems for many dogs) and she does NOT advocate feeding ANY grain. Grains (as another poster mentioned) HIKE the dog’s blood sugar SKY HIGH very quickly (unlike sweet potatoes) which are fibrous and low glycemic (if you need a carbohydrate). Anything that digests quickly into SUGAR is inflammatory; it increases pain, feeds infections, feeds yeast inbalances, hot spots, and sugar feeds cancer cells. Sugar also taxes the canine pancreas (which is NOT designed to handle sugar).
It is my own personal question (since nearly all the dog food companies are now bought out and owned by one of THE BIG THREE massive companies – like Mars & Nestle) whether they would (now) intentionally TRY to find a way to kill off the grain-free dog food market…. on purpose. As WDJ pointed out, many years ago (the sudden lack of taurine) was a major problem in manufactured cat food. It was not immediately known, though and it was more serious for cats, since they CANNOT MAKE any themselves and must get ALL of theirs from their diet, unlike dogs, who can make some. Grain-free food has been looked down on by the cheaper grain-filled dog food companies for years, but it has TAKEN OFF and is (or was) much preferred, although now RAW is becoming very popular as well. They have done all they can to cheapen the recipes of the independent companies they BOUGHT OUT. Innova, for instance 10-15 years ago HAD NO peas, or any of these products in their grain-free foods. I know, because I have a dog who is SUPER ALLERGIC to peas. You virtually can’t find a food (without at least peas) or one that is NOT MADE IN PLANT, with other foods MADE WITH PEAS. (Think of the severity of a peanut allergy, yes -that’s my dog’s situation.)
Hmmmm….My veterinary nutritionist and my veterinary cardiologist BOTH told me — one just today — that taurine is not toxic, and excesses, if any, are eliminated through urination. My dog has been supplemented since September when his serum taurine was 16, far lower than the “critical level” of 40. It was within the normal range at 251 in April. However, the cardiologist wants me to continue supplementation. My dog does NOT have DCM.
“…taurine is not toxic, and excesses, if any, are eliminated through urination.”
That’s good to know, thanks!
I have 2 golden retrievers from New Zealand. They are not remotely related. I was feeding Taste of the Wild grain free for years.Roasted Lamb variety. Taurine was listed as an ingredient. Through a golden retriever group i was made aware of the possible issue with grain free foods and Nutritional DCM. My dogs had no symptoms indicating any problems. They both competed in obedience and had no shortness of breath or the other symptoms they say to look out for. I had the opportunity to have echocardiograms done by a cardiologist at a local breed clinic. Both dogs had “marginal left ventricular function”. I was shocked. I was told to change foods to non grain free and supplement with Taurine for both, and include L Carnitine for the younger one with worse numbers. Recheck echos in 6 months. I did this, and on their 6 mo recheck their echos had vastly improved and ventricular function is in the normal range for one, and almost there for the other. Need to have another echo final in 6 mo. If there were no intervention they most likely would have progressed to DCM .
Its my understanding that the inclusion of peas, lentils and other legumes is fairly recent . I believe my formula changed in 2015.
I do not use chemicals on my dogs for fleas/ticks
This problem is real folks. If you wait until your dog shows symptoms it could be too late and not reversible. Why take the chance?
Hello, I also have two golden retrievers one mail he’s 3 I’ve been feeding him taste of the wild for the last year I’m hoping it isn’t too late as far as I know he doesn’t show any signs yet. I also have a 6 week old female. Do you mind sharing what food you feed your fur babies?
What about all these poisonous vaccines that are given to our dogs! Have the dogs who got sick from these foods been over vacinated? What about all the foods on the “dirty dozen” list that may be on these foods? Many food items and water have been tested and they contain traces of the chemical in products like Roundup and plastics in water and food! I do believe in changing foods frequently and avoiding the ingredients that are named but the vaccine issue and the chemicals in our food and water is changing the chemistry in our bodies and our best friends. Look for yourself what dangers are in the vaccines we have been programmed to use.
I am trying to find a dog food that contains good grains but no rice (very hard to find). I am concerned about the arsenic in rice and am wondering if anyone knows about how arsenic might affect our dogs? Love all the comments and appreciate WDJ.
Nature’s Logic uses millet in their formulas. No rice, corn or wheat. They also claim to not use any synthetic supplements.
I had an adopted dog who died last year of a heart murmur- a cavalier- American cocker mix ( they have a genetic tendency for it) but I am sorry I fed her a limited ingredient diet.She had the heart murmur when I adopted her at 10 and she was sensitive to many foods she couldn’t eat rice- did terribly on the premium dried foods like Orijen and she ended up ending natural balance sweet potato and venison canned only until she died at 13.I probably inadvertently added to her health issues. I now have an english cocker who had telescoping of the intestines and lives on ID Hills prescription diet.He too did poorly as a puppy on the premium foods and at a year old he had his surgery and now lives on canned gastro diet.I dont think lentils or chickpeas or pea protein have any place in dog food and I am sorry with both dogs that I followed the hype about the grain free.Years ago the other dogs I had were fed Eukanuba and there were no gastro issues though being english cockers they are prone to kidney disease I would like the current dog I have to be on another food but he simply can not tolerate legumes, fruits or most vegetables found in most foods canned food .He cant tolerate dried food even the prescription dry food upsets him because it is so highly processed.I do sometimes give him sweet potato and I supplement with eggs or sardines but it is a delicate balance with him and his only constant is the chicken stew prescription.Mainly because very few canned foods have low protein and fat levels like the prescription food and are devoid of fillers like peas.Both dogs could not tolerate dry food and I wonder if another english cocker I had who died about 7 years ago of kidney disease would have done better if I hadn’t fed him the high protein kibble foods that were faddish ten years ago.I have not had any good experiences with the dog food industry.Home cooking( with restrictions) is probably my only alternative.Even with a cat I recently got I started feeding her all the premium canned cat foods literally tried everything but all she like is Purina one dry food and fancy feast medleys and that is what she is getting after throwing out cans of Weruva, wellness, etc nd trying to hide “”taste of the wild dried in her bowl of purina one- maybe she is wiser than I know.
I lost my long coat Chihuahua beginning of this year due to DCM. I was too, totally on the premium brands, high protein, grain free diet train ever since I had my little Starlet when she came to me at 8 weeks old. I always read ingredients. And when her first food that came with her was almost done, I bought her first premium brand for her 13 years ago before all this came out. And that brand is on this FDA list. I read the ingredients and said to myself, “Wow!! This is the best food. Look at all the meat contents followed by peas! Peas are so healthy!” I fed her this brand for awhile, and switched a handful of brands throughout her life, specifically avoiding Petsmart or Petco and only shopped at specialty stores that only sold high-end, premium, and expensive foods and always grain-free. And I would rotate between these brands. All of these brands I used are on this FDA list. So when she was diagnosed with DCM I was obviously heart broken. However, at that time I had no idea about this possible link and continued to feed her the same type of food. About a year after her diagnosis, she passed in the ER staring straight into my eyes as if she was asking me for help. This was earlier this year and I still haven’t heard about this possible linkage between grain-free and DCM yet even though the info had been our.
Switching to my other two dogs that I adopted about 7 years ago. One was a boy Maltese and one a girl Maltese. They came to me around 4 or 5 from a friend in perfect health, beautiful white coat and no tear stains at all. They were on Purina ProPlan since they were born. I told myself ugh.. bad food I’m switching as soon as the brand new bag of ProPlan is finished. And I transitioned both of them to the premium grain-free foods as I was feeding my Chihuahua. Seven years later at three months ago, my girl Maltese was diagnosed with DCM. Can this really be? After the diagnose is when I found out about the FDA article. I have now switched her to a grain diet and I’m hoping she will not get worse as fast and maybe improve because we caught it early. I’m monitoring. I know the article says grain-free and peas and legume are not definitive causes, I feel I have to give it a try. As for my boy Maltese, about a month after I switched him from ProPlan, he started having terrible skin issues and scratched himself to infection leading to needing anti-biotic and steroids. In my head I’m like ok I need to find better food for him so I searched high and low, trials after trails of all the premium and expensive food I can find and NOTHING!! From that point on it was chronic skin infections at least every other months no matter what I did including bath every 3 days using special shampoo and diligent flee control. We went through Atopica, steroids, antibiotics, Apoquel, and allergy shots every two weeks. So one day I realized the protein content between the ProPlan he was on and the food I was giving him was such a big diff that I tried a food where the protein content was slightly lower but still grain-free and still a premium brand. That seemed to helped a bit. The infection was less frequent but the yeast infection did not lessen. So I did further research and found that maybe peas and potatoes can turn into sugar and maybe make yeasty dogs worse. So I looked and looked and looked for a premium brand that did not have peas and potatoes and it was sooo difficult. But because I believed grained food was so bad I refused to take him off grain-free and continue to feed him what I thought was best for him which peas and potatoes were always within the first 5 on the ingredients list. Finally, between July and August of this year when he had three rounds of terrible skin infections that required three rounds of steroids and antibiotics that I finally caved in and listened to what the specialty dermatology vet had asked me to do freakin 7 years ago, which is to switch him to a food that was grained and is made by one of the big food companies. I also decided to take him off of Apoquel when I started him on the bad grained food which was mainly fish meal, brewers rice and brown rice. And for the first time in 7 years, he stopped scratching…within a week. Omg why didn’t I listen and was so stubborn??!! He hasn’t scratched or licked once in three months. I am blown away yet feel extremely guilty. I cannot help to think I’m the one who triggered his allergy by switching him to a diet that I thought was good just because it sounded good to me. I can’t say specifically if it was the grain-free or if it was the peas and the potatoes but I just know he’s doing excellent on the grains and the terrible brewers rice and rice that I once thought was horrible. I have never seen his coat so shiny and soft since I first put him on a premium grain-free diet. I also just realized many grain-free foods tout soy free yet soy is a legume and so are peas!! So if soy is so bad wouldn’t peas be not that great as well? I also can’t help that possibly I’ve contributed both my dogs to DCM. I
I had researched dry dog foods & which Brands were best according to Ingredients & the placement of each in the listings. I fed my dog-8yrs old Labrador/pit bull mix-Farmina: Ancestrial Grains , which had high meat/protein amts w barley groats, br rice & oatmeal for the grains. I alternated with Frommes Four Star Chicken . My pup is a picky eater-I often mix his kibble w lean, grass fed cooked ground beef-pouring any grease off b4 mixing-I usually add about 1/3 cup to 2/3 cup kibble.
I’m wondering if this is healthy for my dog-any opinions?
What about organic dog food without glycophates and pesticides. Has this been studied?
The “slick marketing campaigns” are by companies owned by the Big Ag giants such as Colgate Palmolive and Nestles. The “experts” (veterinarians included) they employ are there to do one thing only, which is design foods using the cheapest ingredients which are by products of the human food industry and make them palatable and marketable. The veterinarians got their training in nutrition from the same companies employing them, because those companies have a monopoly on vet school nutritional education. Read some of the ingredients in these foods and tell me how wonderful and trustworthy those companies are. Beneful Grain Free (Purina) has pea starch as the second ingredient, by the way. These companies spend far more on advertising than they do on research and development, just like the pharmaceutical companies. The Big Ag company foods have improved dramatically in the last ten years, and that improvement has been due to competition and raising of public awareness by the small quality oriented companies which are now being demonized by certain agents of Big Ag. Left to their own devices, they would still be giving us foods made from corn and soybeans. Whole Dog Journal’s advice is excellent…rotate foods, feed a variety, NEVER trust one company for the health of your beloved pets.
This article keeps harping on the fact that varieties of food aren’t listed, only the poor maligned companies. The relevant information is the ingredients that put dogs and cats at risk. It’s offensive to describe the reaction of dog owners as panicked in response to the information. People who buy grain-free want healthy pets and have been tantalized by advertising from companies which have failed them egregiously. There have to be standard safety measures in place to ensure that the food you invest in won’t hurt or kill your pet. Considering its track record with drug companies, it’s refreshing the FDA is taking a stand.
Anyone know or wonder how many of the 560 dogs were on a consistent monthly heartworm preventative? And if there is one brand with higher number than others?? Or the new big fad in the last year or so of canine influenza vaccines?
ZIWI Peak has no grains, peas, legumes or potatoes. It is an excellent air dried food.
thanks for sharing this. it looks like EXCELLENT food and a wonderful option. it’s in my Chewy cart. i just don’t know about the fat % as it has nearly double typical. and my pup has had 2 pancreatitis bouts from high fat intake accidents.
I think that a lot of articles in magazines AND stores shame people who feed Purina. I used to feed boutique dog food and my dogs did horrible on it—- A lot of them had dandruff, ear issues, etc. I was always led to believe that Parina and others were just trash. After trying numerous, and VERY expensive dog foods, I tried pro plan on the advice of one of my friends and they’ve never looked better and acted better. They have done trials upon trials through the past 50 years and I’m a firm believer in them. A lot of those, so called boutique dog foods, don’t have scientists formulating their food. AND!—- they are not made in China as a lot of people think.
Of course the ” big 4″ have no reported cases even though they all produce formulas with the same ingredient as the suspect foods… they stand to gain a substantial increase in sales as does those organizations/individuals who are in their pocket… money talks especially in huge sums.. There is far more to all this panic and it isnt only grain free foods.
I keep hearing from vets about the importance of following WSAVA standards, but many of the recommended foods aren’t on your list…what’s a dog owner supposed to do?
Lynn,
I used to feed Farmina Lamb /Blueberries, but they now include ‘pea starch’ near the top of the list of ingredients. American Natural Premium makes two dry dog food flavors that are legume free; one Turkey and the other Chicken, Turkey & pork. I haven’t found them in my local pet stores, but Chewy.com has them and many pet stores will special order these formulas if they carry ANP. Also, the Original American Natural Premium Chicken does not contain any legumes. Purina, IAMS, Authority and Royal Canine all have quite a few formulas without legumes, but some of their other ingredients are troubling. One of my dogs was eating a kibble with peas as the fourth ingredient for 6-8 months and she is not doing well . It was the only food she would eat that didn’t make her itchy and gassy. I am hoping that getting rid of peas and legumes in her diet will help her, so I am going back to grain based food.
There are not a lot of options right now, but I suspect the dog food companies will be reformulating their foods in the near future.
Thank you for this article! It really broke down some of the information, ie: data, that can be so misconstrued! We have two English Cream Golden Retrievers, so the initial report was, of course, concerning. While I, too, am glad that the FDA is involved in this issue, creating a panic certainly is not in anyone’s interest. I have often questioned the whole “grain-free” diet fad thing, and never seem to get an adequate answer as to WHY grain is bad for dogs. Your pragmatic approach to this issue has certainly helped to address this issue. I would love to see you break this diet trend down even further. As a very careful – and perhaps, somewhat paranoid! – dog owner, I work hard to feed my fur babies what is best. After all, I want them to be around for as long as possible, and I will do everything in my power to do so! Your comment about rotating foods and not relying on a singe brand really struck home. That is the best advice I have received from anyone – including vets!
But if you have had great results with one brand and one version, how do you find other brands to believe in and rotate foods. Logically it makes sense, but implementation is overwhelming to me.
So many opinions, so little certainty. At the end of this overwhelmingly detailed discussion, I am still left utterly baffled and confused.
No two vets seem to agree; the generally untrained sales force in the burgeoning dog food stores have their favorites but I don’t trust that the recommendations are in MY DOG’S best interest — only the manufacturer’s; breeders have their favorites — no two alike — and friends with dogs are really no help at all. They’re as confused as I.
There ought to be a national dog owner’s health council, accredited and peer reviewed, to narrow the field.
I agree about a Natl dog owners’ health council. It seems so logical but why hasn’t this happened decades ago>
I have fed 8= dogs Hills-Science diet kibble for 52 years. ALL passed away at normal ages from normal reasons, NO problems. I grew up with a border collie that lived on home-made hotcakes, only and died normally at 14 1/2 years.h
I own standard poodles in Vancouver, B.C. My older dog is now 9 years old; 21.75″ at the withers and 40 pounds. I also have her 6 year-old daughter; 22″ at the withers and 38 pounds. Both of my dogs have been on grain-free diets their entire lives and have eaten Acana food exclusively for the last five years They are highly athletic, energetic and full of poodle bounce and prance. When the first FDA report came out last year, I set it aside because correlation does not equal causation and becauae there was little information about any poodles being affected. This year, I read the report again and noticed that some standard poodles were affected and that the majority of dogs with DCM were eating Acana food, the same brand as I feed my dogs.
Meanwhile, for the last two months or so, I’ve noticed that my older dog was slowing down. She seemed less energetic overall, and was ready to quit running and playing fetch sooner than she had been. I attributed this to her age, even though 9 is not old for a standard poodle her size. I expect her to live to be 12-14 years old. But when I took the dogs to one of our favourite off-leash places, a large forest outside UBC, Penny just wasn’t up for running around in the forest. She spent most of our walk calmly at my side, though she could have gone anywhere she liked. The next day, I took her to my vet. He heard a very faint heart murmur and did heart x-rays and a blood test. Her heart appeared to be slightly enlarged, but not out of normal bounds. The blood test results the next morning showed that she was on the cusp of heart disease. He ordered an echocardiogram, which was performed that afternoon. It showed her heart was enlarged, one valve was leaking (causing the subtle heart murmur). The x-rays and echocardiogram also showed a mild case of bronchitis, for which Penny had had no symptoms. The cardiologist reviewed the echo and declared that Penny has NDCM, caught in its earliest stages. The veterinarian suggested changing the dogs’ food to Royal Canin Mature. Penny was given an antibiotic and an anti-inflammatory drug but no cardiac medication. I will have the echocardiogram repeated in 6-8 months. The cardiologist and veterinarian expect Penny to have a full recovery with no residual damage.
I pride myself on taking first-class care of my dogs and had fed them grain-free because I believed that was the best thing for them. I knew very little about canine nutrition. I swallowed the hype that there’s something wrong with feeding a food that contains meat by-products and meat meal because I didn’t really know what those things are and, frankly, because I don’t eat meat by-products, myself (things such as kidneys, liver and heart, which I find distasteful regardless of their nutritional value). The simple fact is that these things are very good for dogs. When I think about it, I have to recognize that when an animal kills another animal, the first thing they devour is usually the liver, followed by other organs; muscle meat is less important, initially. I also have to admit that I have a strong prejudice against large corporations in general and that makes me suspicious of the big animal-food manufacturers.
However, I have learned a great deal in the last two weeks, including how wrong I was. Champion Pet Foods does not employ veterinary nutritionists. It publishes no research findings about the foods it makes and it shares little information about their food and ingredients, saying that these things are proprietary, not for general knowledge. In contrast, Royal Canin, Purina, Hill’s, Eukanuba and Iams employ hundreds of Ph.D. and board certified veterinary nutritionists who also publish their research findings in peer-reviewed academic journals. They share their findings with other pet food companies. They make their foods in their own factories in order to exercise the best quality-control possible. They don’t make foods for other companies. They conduct extensive trials of all their foods. And they all are in compliance with the World Small Animal Veterinary Association nutrition guidelines. None of the boutique manufacturers conform to the WSAVA guidelines.
No dogs eating grain-inclusive diets have been found to have an increased incidence of NDCM. None. This is not because of some conspiracy on the part of the big dog food companies. Those companies didn’t invent NDCM. Their products simply don’t contribute to NDCM and, in fact, are used to treat NDCM in dogs who have been eating grain-free foods. In the end, what matters to me is that my dog recovers from NDCM and has the best chance for a full and long life. If Royal Canin food is part of what keeps her happy and well, so be it.
As it happens, the Royal Canin formula my vet recommended actually costs me about $8.00 less per bag than I was paying for the Acana food. I will pay whatever I need to pay for my dog’s food. I had thought that the high price of the Acana food was because of its quality!
Acana and Champion Pet Foods continue to say that DCM is a “rare” condition, claiming that there are only some 500 reported cases among the millions of dogs in the US. This is disingenuous. The reported cases are just that: reported by veterinarians and dog owners. These cases are not found through some randomized investigation of all pet dogs in North America. The manufacturers also say that the dogs with DCM were genetically predisposed to the condition and were either large or giant breeds. My standard poodle is not large or giant; she is not genetically predisposed to DCM. Nor are quite a lot of other breeds apparently affected by grain-free diets. I have offered to give copies of my dog’s test results and reports from the cardiologist to Acana. They have not replied.
Thank you Ann I too was feeding Acana and just recently switched to Canidae have you heard anything about Canidae brand
I feel you.. I feel contributed to my doggies getting g DCM.
The vets and nutritionists involved with the taurine-deficient DCM Facebook page, stand by WSAVA’s guidelines and discredit the reading and evaluating of dog food ingredients.
I have to chuckle that the brands listed tend to be the brands you recommend. Dog food from companies that use novel ingredients, slick advertising and promises rather than years of feeding trials and success. Perhaps you need to reexamine your standards for “approving” dog foods with no track record, and the ingredients that YOU find acceptable. Although we feed mostly raw, Pro Plan has always been our Go To dog food and the one we recommend to people who do not wish to feed raw. Pro Plan has an excellent track record and is the food of choice for thousands of knowledgeable dog breeders, dog show exhibitors and performance folks.
I have 5 rescued dogs and they have varying issues from neglect before I rescued them from ears, skin, stomach, and pancreatitis. They range from 9-13 years old. I have a Bassett that is allergic to both garlic and Saresto collars. I feed 4Health and have for many years. I do not like Purina because of all the recalls they have on a constant basis and won’t feed any of the lower end dog foods. I research food brands on a regular basis to help safeguard my dogs because they have enough problems without adding to it. I read the FDA announcement and was not feeding the 4Health choices that were listed but in the years that I have been feeding them there have not been recalls and I have never had a problem. My dogs are healthy on the 4Health foods and I don’t like to risk putting them on anything harmful. I always want to tell the people at the chain stores to but ALPO down and run far away when I see them with it. But then I had a dog that lived 16 years on Ol Roy from Walmart when I was a teen.
I don’t see any mention of the Life Balance. It has never had a recall. Anyone knowledgeable about this dog food?
Does anyone know if green/ string beans are ok to feed? My dog likes them and I cook her meals. I have been using BalanceIT as a product to make sure they have a balanced diet, but be careful when building their recipe – they have legumes, peas and potatoes listed.
Peg, Balance IT has legumes, peas and potatoes? Yikes! My veterinary nutritionist says “legumes” are “any bean you’d use for chili or bean soup.” She specifically said green beans are not a legume
Taurine is a non-essential amino acid that dogs develop naturally within their own bodies. Not all dogs with DCM are taurine-deficient.
I work in the pet food industry and here is what I would like to inform the public about:
1. Please remember, these FDA reports are just that, REPORTS. There is currently NO scientific study to back up these claims. Also,
2. Most vet schools get a large amount of funding from big name brands like Purina, Science Diet, Eukenuba, and Royal Canin. It’s not a coincidence that those are the brands most vets recommend, even though the ingredients list is terrible and they aren’t all 3rd party tested.
3. Unfortunately, most vets are NOT licensed nutritionists, and most schools only recently started requiring vets to take a nutrition course. In fact, in over 90,000 vets in the US, less than 100 are licensed pet nutritionists. So asking your vet about what to feed your dog is like asking your doctor about your own health: they know about as much as you learn in public school.
*interesting.
You work in the pet food industry then tell your bosses to stop feeding dogs things that have no benefit to them, and some are down right dangerous. Dogs need meat fish or poultry, organ meats like brains heart lungs kidney liver, they dont need the bulk of the rendered cooked product to contain more plant protein than animal protein which is exactly what is happening. The dirty little secrete is that the protein level you see listed on a bag of dog food is mainly plant protein that does nothing for dogs and actually causes them to be amino acid deficient. Tell them to stop cheaping out by adding plants and grains instead of organ meats and muscle meats, you know flesh. Small quantities of grains plants and potatoes vegetables and fruits are okay…small amounts that is. But the ridiculous amounts added to feed by the manufacturers is not healthy the bulk of the food is legumes lentils potatoes or grains. That is stupid dogs cant do anything with that! its just there as bulk and filler and to up the protein level in the nutritional label. And most do it, stop it, people will catch on sooner or later. All the industry talk of dogs need peas and potatoes etc is hogwash they are just cheap filler proteins that dogs can not make bio available and because of them have amino acid deficiencies or can not make use of the amino acids they do get. Just because you put a named meat as the first ingredient does not equal that ingredient being the bulk of the food once its been cooked down in a vat. Most consumers dont know this, its a dirty little secrete that the meat part is counted to prior cooking.
I see nowhere where the incidence of DCM in ‘breeds’ is corrected for the population of those breeds in the community.
EG If the population of German Shepherds in the community is 100x greater than the incidence of Shih Tzus then relative speaking it ‘incidence’ of DCM in German Shepherds would be equal it the reported cases of it was 100X that reported for Shi-Tsus. Or why aren’t ‘mixed-breed’ the highest incidence of DCM?
Nancy Kerns — can you please provide your academic credentials? Do you hold a phd in nutrition or related fields in biochemistry? Are you a cardiologist?
The readers here deserve to know who they are taking advice from.
And… who is paying their salary!
Google: “Bad Science and Big Business are behind the biggest pet food story in a decade,” authored by Daniel Schulof. It is a most interesting and informative read. Seems that at least three of the veterinary scientists most responsible for the DCM related dog food scare through their December 2018 article in JAVMA are sponsored by the big three dog food companies who stand to profit the most by implying a link between DCM and grain free diets. Coincidence? BTW, the scientists in the JAVMA article provided no scientific evidence for their hypothesis.
My orijen regional red does not list a bean or pea until ingredient 17 on the list. Si that a problem. Also it list taurine at 0.35%. How much should it have
If you add up all the “lentils” its 7% of the total…..have the same question as you ,is that still too high ? Trying to say with Champion , but having trouble.
Hey Nancy Kerns at WDJ, I noticed something – The FDA changed their story a bit from the first report to the 2nd update. In the first report, they said “of the dogs eating a single, dry diet…90% was grain-free, which left about 100 odd dogs out of the equation, but in the 2nd update, they just simply say 90% was grain-free. Could you look at that point in both updates and let me know what you think?
Hello
My beloved Sheltie (Gracie) was diagnosed with Cushing’s disease and Heart disease like three years ago.
They put her on meds for Cushing’s disease, meds for the Heart disease, 2 different blood pressure meds as well.
She passed away 9/4/2020 we sent her to heaven actually.
We did all we could for her but in he back of your mind you never fell it was enough.
Your feel guilty but believe me I did everything I could do I was her nurse 24/7 we build such a bond.
She started to have seizures and fainting. Weak and not eating well. Her gait was off like she was drunk, coughing, shaking, quivering, confused at times,
And she developed mouth ulcers the cardiologist believes it was from the blood pressure meds.
Now to my point about DCM.
In the past I feed her real PEAS and CARROTS with her kibble.
Did I contribute to her death?
I thought peas and carrots would boost her eating habits.
I read all this about DCM and PEAS and I do feel like I contributed to her Heart disease – enlarge heart two murmurs and high blood pressure. As for Cushing disease I don’t now how she got that.
So please consider the consumption of the Peas and carrots I fed her with her kibbles. I’m nor concerned about the carrots but the PEAS yes.
All this talk back and forth with the FDA and Veterinarian’s about Grain Free vs Whole grain foods an the association
with DCM and Grain free diets is disheartening.
Peas, Peas, Peas, Peas – like I said I gave her peas and carrot with her kibble thinking I was doing Gracie good.
But to read all this about DCM is killing me I feel like I been saying all along that I killed my Gracie with Peas.
I’m am not sure how long I started giving her peas with her meals – that a hard one but I know for the past three years that passed I did not feed her peas.
So if you think the peas that Gracie consumed in the unknown period contributed to her heart disease beware do give you little fur buddies PEAS.
I loved Gracie with all my heart.
She was my puppy-mate.
She is gone now 6 months and I still cry and miss her so much.
The guilt continues and the deep heartache remains.
I carry her ashes to the bedroom every night and carry them back down to the L/R each morning it makes me feel closer to her.
If only we were allowed a free pass or a vacation day to visit heaven to be with our departed loved ones would be awesome.
But then I think I would not want to leave it would be very hard to say goodbye again.
Hug and kiss your fur-loves and tell them every day that you love them dearly.
Take them to the Vet’s for anything you might think is wrong better to be safe than sorry.
I send out virtual Big hugs to all humans out there and all our fur buddies.
Stephen John Beyer Sr.