Canine Heart Disease. Avoid these dog foods.

[Cattledog]

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
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 disease usually affects large breeds, but the F.D.A. said it knew of smaller dogs that had also been afflicted.

The disease was most frequently reported to the F.D.A. in golden retrievers, but the report noted that breed-specific social media groups and activities raised awareness of the issue in these communities of golden retriever owners, who perhaps disproportionately notified the F.D.A. of their dogs’ diagnoses.

Most of the dog foods listed are usually labeled “grain-free” and contain a large proportion of peas, lentils, legume seeds or potatoes, according to the report. Many of the dogs researched in the investigation did not have a genetic predisposition to the condition, the F.D.A. said.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/29/us/dog-food-heart-disease-fda.html?fbclid=IwAR3GUR9mJwVHdEaOfRGJGgb5sUHMKr6YWYXbUarFOmhGZLRr_3O58-imsoY

[mopinko]

1. those are some darn spendy brands.

i had a dog w a lot of food allergies, and i fed a couple of those brands.
i dont know why this became such a big deal.

[pangaia]

2. My sister and BIL are both vegan.

They have 2 rottweilers.

About 6 months ago they started making vegan meals for the dogs, Since then ALL and ANY signs of any health issues have vanished !

[snacker]

3. Good information.

Thank you.

[mr_lebowski]

4. Bull F***ing Shit ...

Hey, instead of buying ACTUAL quality food, like the brands above, why don't you spend about the $ame on some Royal Canin Golder Retriever Formula and give your dog this SHITTY ASS load of ingredients (if you know how to read a pet food label you know this is GARBAGE food, marketed at top-quality prices):

New Formulation: Brown Rice, Chicken By-Product Meal, Oat Groats, Brewers Rice, Wheat, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken Fat, Natural Flavors, Powdered Cellulose, Dried Plain Beet Pulp, Wheat Gluten, Fish Oil, Dried Tomato Pomace, Vegetable Oil, Sodium Silico Aluminate, Calcium Carbonate, Potassium Chloride, Psyllium Seed Husk, Salt, Fructooligosaccharides, Vitamins [Dl-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate (Source Of Vitamin E), Niacin Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Source Of Vitamin C), D-Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Riboflavin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Vitamin A Acetate, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement], Sodium Tripolyphosphate, L-Lysine, Taurine, Choline Chloride, Monocalcium Phosphate, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Dl-Methionine, L-Carnitine, Trace Minerals [Zinc Proteinate, Zinc Oxide, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite, Copper Proteinate], Gla Safflower Oil, Marigold Extract (Tagetes Erecta L.), Green Tea Extract, Magnesium Oxide, Chondroitin Sulfate, Rosemary Extract, Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols And Citric Acid.

Personally I'll take my chances giving my pets actual quality ingredients like you find in most of the brands on that list, and hope for the best, and not pick some brand NOT on the list and assume it must be 'better'.

[Phentex]

5. I wonder what people are feeding their large breed dogs?

Most of the brands listed are on the lists of best foods to feed your dogs. Perhaps it's the grain free issue that has people worked up. We are feeding our rottweilers Earthborn Holistic but I will talk to the vet about this today as they just happen to have annual checkups later this afternoon. I do not have the desire or the time to cook for my dogs and then provide supplements which is why I like feeding them a dry kibble.

[mr_lebowski]

6. You are exactly right ... I think the makers of the brands that have been putting out mostly crap

quality foods (looking at you Royal Canin, Bil-Jak, and Science Diet), making obscene profits selling near-Dog Chow level foods at boutique-level prices ... are losing market-share fast to brands creating lower-margin but much higher quality foods (most of what's on this list) due to people getting better educated and caring more what is in the foods they're feeding their pets, and mainstream stores responding by stocking more and more of these products.

In AZ recently Pet-Smart has started stocking Merrick, which is of great quality, and for a while now they've been adding more and more high-end, high-quality brands. They still have only a few 'boutique-level' brands available, but their top-end offerings are moving up, I'd bet a few more of those type of brands (like Call of the Wild for example) ... are coming.

If there's really a problem I suspect it will NOT be traced to foods being generally 'grain-free' but rather to some ingredient that's commonly substituted for grains (i.e. Wheat and Corn) such as Millet, Barley, Peas, Lentils, or Potato (Sweet or otherwise) ... don't get me wrong, we need to get to the bottom of it, but in the meantime I'm not going to suddenly start feeding my cat almost-certainly GMO GRAINS (nor would if I still had dogs). I'll take my chances continuing him on high-quality foods and let the chips fall where they may.

[madinmaryland]

7. Our dog has to eat grain free food. It messes his intestines and stomach up, if

He eats the stuff with grains. We get the stuff in the refrigerated tube. He loves the stuff.