Posted on 06/30/2019 6:59:58 AM PDT by ConservativeMind
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identified 16 brands of dog food that had been linked to heart disease in dogs that eat them, according to a report the agency published Thursday.
In the report, the FDA named for the first time the pet food brands most frequently associated with adverse events. In descending order of most incidents of heart disease, the brands are Acana, Zignature, Taste of the Wild, 4health, Earthborn Holistic, Blue Buffalo, Nature’s Domain, Fromm, Merrick, California Natural, Natural Balance, Orijen, Nature’s Variety, NutriSource, Nutro and Rachael Ray Nutrish.
The heart condition examined in the report, canine dilated cardiomyopathy, often results in heart failure and is believed to have a genetic component, according to the report.
The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates there are 77 million pet dogs in the United States, most of which are not developing dilated cardiomyopathy, the FDA said in a statement. The number of dogs affected with heart disease may not seem like a lot, John de Jong, president of the veterinary association, said Saturday, but the FDA found a trend and is informing consumers of it.
De Jong said the trend of not having grain in a dog’s diet might be a culprit.
“The whole grain-free thing is a popular myth,” de Jong said. “If they look at the dogs’ relatives in the wild, like coyotes, wolves and hyenas, they live on their prey. Those animals they prey on are typically herbivores, so they are ingesting grains anyway.”
(Excerpt) Read more at seattletimes.com ...
I've been feeding my doggies Purina Pro Plan forever.
I’m with you on all that, and was playing on this:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtles_all_the_way_down
Not exactly idiocy, just imprecise wording. Wolves don’t eat grains directly or even indirectly. They eat pre-digested vegetable matter.
When they take down a kill, the first thing they go for is the gut, not the tenderloin. And what exactly is in the gut of a deer? If they want to call that grains for laypeople so be it.
Dogs/wolves will also sometimes eat their own crap and they can actually get nutritional value out of seconds.
Got Cats and Dogs? Do This in a Pinch, But Don't Make a Habit of It
On obligate vs scavenging carnivores.
Someone needs to follow the money with regard to the FDA's so-called study, and why these 2 rags are shilling for it.
Never heard of those brands? They are most of the premier brands of dog and cat food. Acana and Orijen are extremely expensive foods using human quality meats and fish, not leftover parts. I am happy not to see Wellness on the list, although my little Zizu kitty is not fond of it. I am also relieved to see that Solid Gold is not on the list, because Zizu loves that one.
This news item must really be rocking the knowledgeable pet owners' world, because this is like saying Lexus, Cadillac, Lamborghini, Mercedes, etc. cause health problems. But this article won't even register with those people who feed their pets garbage like Friskies, Meowmix, etc. which are mostly cheap grains.
“Those animals they prey on are typically herbivores, so they are ingesting grains anyway.”
what a total bullshit statement ...
Have you ever dressed out a deer?
Every single one I have ever shot & field dressed (many dozen), the rumen was chock full of vegetable matter. All chewed up ready to be eaten by whatever wolf might have taken that deer if I didn't get there first.
It was green and not brown at that state.
We always leave the gut pile right where the deer died, and by the next day carnivores and scavengers have eaten everything -- including the contents of the rumen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Wolves and other carnivores do not butcher their prey. Oh, they eat the choicer parts first, but they eat it all.
You city guys really need to get out in the field a little more often...
They can’t pull this crap with cats because cats are obligate carnivores.
We don’t have dogs, but if we did, we still wouldn’t feed them adulterated dog food if we could afford better.
Wild canines rarely live long enough to develop old age diseases.
I wonder if this PETA/animal rights activist lunacy. Idiots trying to turn carnivorous pets into vegans....
LOL @ you. You can't afford the expensive dog food, yet they eat venison. Are you aware of the price of venison?! The meals you feed your dogs are fit for a king! (I'll be right over!) They're getting the best of the best! Fresh meat killed with love.
BTW, I'm cooking "dirty" tripe today for my dog. Yup, windows are fully open and I'm stinking up the neighborhood. ha ha ha dog is drooling
I've seen deer eat apples off a tree. I've seen deer eat milkweed. I've seen rabbits eat dandelion greens. This shocked me.
Wife does all the shopping including Critter foods and I’m pretty sure that’s what She gets th Girls and they have no trouble with eating it. Or ANYTHING ELSE that they can get away with Begging, Trash Diving, Counter Walking, Letting it hit the floor or dozens of other ways. Heck Savannah (the deaf white Boxer> even eats Pickles sweet or dill, Carrots, Lemon Drops, Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Apples, some Chicken and Dumplings cooked up for the nutcases.
Cakes, Cookies, Cannolis, any Pasta, Pig Ears, Treats from the Bank and Pharmacy, Jalapeños, Cats, Bugs... well You get the idea.
That's what we use too on the 3 Labs. Of course, they will eat *anything*.
Didn't I read somewhere, it's not the ingredients in the food, but the toasting method [which is not regulated/or considered an ingredient] to make the food more brown looking?
Would love to know who paid for the study. We’ve fed our dogs BB or Acana grain free since they were pups. Our last two lived to be 12.5 & 13, and present two are healthy 8 y/o’s. Interesting that there is no mention of Purina grain free on the list.
Apples OK with no skin - they don’t digest that and can get stuck in the gut. Also no grapes - poisonous for them.
We also give a little plain white rice every day but it’s not for them - it’s for us. Act’s like a binder and makes picking up poop a lot easier!
**Although moderate amounts of the flesh of the apple is perfectly safe for your dog to eat, you must use caution when giving this treat to your dog since the covering of the seeds contains minute amounts of amygdalin, a compound that contains cyanide. There’s some evidence that suggests the stems may also contain traces of cyanide, so it’s best to remove them, too. To be harmful, the seed coating has to be broken in order to release the amygdalin, so if your dog consumes a few seeds whole, he should be fine. **
https://www.vetinfo.com/is-it-safe-for-dogs-to-eat-apples.html
Because they let their meat rot before they eat it.
I prefer the term "vegetarian by proxy".
Some very expensive dog food in that list. Paying more makes the owners feel better about themselves, doesn’t seem to do much for the dogs.
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