Grain Free Diet For Dogs Causing Heart Problems

Dcm is a common form of heart disease in dogs especially in large and giant breeds.

Grain free diet for dogs causing heart problems.

When a dog comes to us and we learn during the history that it s on a grain free diet we advise switching to a non grain free diet said dr. Certainly there is another issue with grain free dog foods that is causing the many heart disease illnesses and deaths but our existing u s. The fda s investigation of grain free dog food and heart disease many of the cases of dcm have involved dogs that were fed grain free diets suggesting that diet may play a role in this disease. Grain free diet for dogs leads to canine heart disease alternative diets have long been a suspected cause of dcm.

This study looks at other potential causes and how to communicate this information to clients. Amid an ongoing investigation by the food and drug administration into a possible link between heart disease in dogs and grain free dog food often including legumes such as peas. We ll hope that fda will address this glaring problem then. The food and drug administration s investigation of grain free dog and cat foods.

Anna gelzer a veterinary cardiologist and an. This alarming trend led the us food and drug administration fda to launch an investigation into whether diet and other factors are putting pets at. One size fits all nutrient profile regulations plays a role. In july 2018 the fda announced that it had begun investigating reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy dcm in dogs eating certain pet foods many labeled as grain free.

Symptoms of dcm include tiring easily shortness of breath and coughing. After conducting an investigation last july they concluded that 90 percent of dog foods connected with dcm cases were grain free and 93 percent of those foods contained peas or. But for the majority of dogs it s not yet clear what is causing the heart disease experts say. The latest research on grain free dog foods and heart disease the fda has been instrumental in alerting consumers to the potential for dcm with specialized diets.

The next aafco meeting will occur soon january 21 23 2019.