30/12/2023
From my highly knowledgeable veterinarian friend Lisa Newel from Malibu Animal Hospital, on why “grain-free” food is bad for puppies/dogs
This will be my last PSA of the year. To all the pet stores and pet food companies out there, shame on you for shoving those designer grain-free diets down my clients and other uneducated people's throats!!! You know this trend all started happening when humans started having problems with gluten and needed gluten-free diets. This does not translate into dogs and truly only about 1% or less of dogs have grain allergies. This is a scientific fact. So why do we need grain in our dog's foods? Well, besides the obvious, grains are carbohydrates and we need those for energy and especially growth. I about die inside when people tell me they put their puppies on a grain-free diet because that's what the breeder said. At that point I always ask, well what vet school did your breeder go to? Anyway I digress. Most importantly, we need those grains for heart health. In 2018, The FDA actually became involved because we saw a terrible trend in DCM, dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs, especially golden retrievers. And guess what they found? It was all related to these grain-free diets. People were actually killing their own dogs because of these foods. So why are they still out there? Why are we still being brainwashed? Not quite sure but I really want to do something about it in the new year. No more grain-free diets, unless your dog has been told by your veterinarian, your dog is allergic to grains! Happy New Year, thank you for allowing me to rant and hopefully do some good. Peace and love and a brilliant 2024.