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What is wrong with grain-free diets?


Barley and Stella sporting their fall bandanas about two weeks after diagnosis

The problem isn't necessarily a lack of grains. The problem is that grain-free diets tend to substitute grains with legumes. 
 Adding grains into your dog's diet won't solve the problem.  However, excluding certain legumes will likely reduce the occurrence of heart disease, or heart disease progression. 

 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting pet owners and veterinary professionals about reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs eating certain pet foods containing peas, lentils, other legume seeds, or potatoes as main ingredients.

 While taurine deficiency may be one of the causes to dilated cardiomyopathy, overall the cause is unknown.  According to the FDA,

 Early reports from the veterinary cardiology community indicate that the dogs consistently ate these foods as their primary source of nutrition for time periods ranging from months to years. High levels of legumes or potatoes appear to be more common in diets labeled as “grain-free,” but it is not yet known how these ingredients are linked to cases of DCM. 

 This issue begs the question - what do I feed my dog?  Start first with asking your vet. They will likely recommend the top five brands that have been on the market for a long time: Hills Science Diet, Royal Canin, Iams and Purina.   

Comments

  1. ParasJanuary 16, 2026 at 3:30 AM

    Nice articles and your information valuable and good articles thanks for the sharing information N&D Holistic Dog Food

    ReplyDelete

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