Grain Free Diet For Dogs

Grain free and low carb do not go hand in hand.

Grain free diet for dogs.

50 vegetables 40 meat protein 10 grains many grain free dog foods especially the moist and freeze dried grain free dog foods contain more protein and animal fats and fewer carbohydrates than their grain based counterparts. For example in dogs suspected of having food allergies also known as an adverse food reaction a grain free diet might be recommended on a trial basis to see if symptoms improve. Grain free diets don t contain the cereal grains we like to avoid like corn rice and barley but they contain large amounts of peas potatoes lentils and legumes. University of california davis veterinarians led a team that has found a link between some popular grain free legume rich dog diets and a type of nutritional deficiency and canine heart disease known as taurine deficient dilated cardiomyopathy.

The most important thing to remember is to choose a food that provides your dog with complete and balanced nutrition. This happened because with the recent advent of gluten free grain free and whole food diet fads for humans the grain free diet for dogs has successfully taken off in the pet. When they looked into what these dogs were eating they found that 90 were on a grain free food and 93 were on diets that contained peas and or lentils. Why is this significant.

Of the dogs that developed dcm the fda found that 91 were eating a grain free diet. In the fda s july 2019 update on diet and canine heart disease they examined labels of dog food products reported in dcm cases to determine whether the foods were grain free defined as. Starch a type of carbohydrate is essential in making kibble. The foods were tested for minerals metals and amino acids and no significant abnormalities were found.

In certain situations your veterinarian may recommend a grain free diet instead of grain dog food. And 93 of the grain free diets contained peas and or lentils. This is true whether or not the food contains grains. Misconceptions about grain free dog food under the 25 percent rule for dog food the food must contain at least 25 percent of the ingredients in the name not counting water used for processing.

Grain free is the same as carbohydrate free. 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. Most vets today recommend that carbohydrates and grains make up a small portion of a dog s diet according to dogster. Veterinarians also frequently hear from pet parent confusion regarding grain free and low carb.