Healthy Pets Mobile Vet, NC

06/15/2024

Shared from a post:

Yesterday we had two wonderful Golden Retrievers, ages 6 and 2, come in for elective surgical procedures. Both dogs had a history of eating a well-known and popular grain free diet for several years. In one dog, an arrhythmia (irregular heart beat) was detected so an x-ray of his chest was taken. His heart was enlarged, so an echocardiogram was scheduled for that afternoon. An x-ray was also taken of the other dog's chest as a precaution, and his heart was also enlarged. He was able to get an echocardiogram same day, as well.

The reports on both dogs just came back, and both of these gorgeous, otherwise perfectly healthy dogs have Dilated Cardiomyopathy. The cardiologist suspects that in both cases it is related to their diet. Thankfully, this condition was caught early, and when fed a traditional diet, their condition should hopefully reverse. Their cases are being reported to the FDA, along with the thousands of others from across the country.

There is no evidence to support feeding grain-free. Most pet allergies are related to environment (pollens, etc) or protein sources. Grain allergies account for a tiny fraction of all food allergies in dogs. Unfortunately, many dogs are becoming very ill or even dying from eating so-called "BEG" diets (boutique, exotic, grain-free), and the terrible thing is nutritionally mediated dilated cardiomyopathy is 100% preventable. There have been zero reported cases of NMDCM in dogs eating foods that meet WSAVA guidelines, currently made by Purina, Hill's, Iams/Eukanuba, or Royal Canin. We strongly suggest if you are feeding a "BEG" diet that you change your dog over to one of the brands listed above. If you have any questions specifically related to your pet, please call us.

We are so hopeful we caught this disease in time for our two beautiful patients to reverse their disease. Their very caring and dedicated owners have already changed their diet to one that meets WSAVA criteria. The articles below will help explain this disease, WSAVA guidelines, and why grain-free was more marketing than science.

http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2018/11/dcm-update/

https://www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/Arpita-and-Emma-editorial/Selecting-the-Best-Food-for-your-Pet.pdf

http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2016/06/grain-free-diets-big-on-marketing-small-on-truth/

https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/dogs-fed-some-popular-diets-could-be-risk-heart-disease/

Dr. Freeman provides an update on diet-associated dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs

06/13/2024

My lilies are blooming which made me think about sharing this with those of you that love your

03/16/2024

01/03/2024

PSA: We adopted our dog, Rowdy, from the shelter 5 years ago. He was already an adult dog, so we estimate he is about 11 or 12 years old at this point. I love this dog. He is the sweetest soul and my BFF. For the past week or so he hasn’t been acting like himself. He licked a raw spot on his foot. He was panting constantly. He was pacing. Sunday morning, the pacing and panting got so bad, and I was REALLY nervous that there was something seriously wrong with him. For 45 minutes, he panted like crazy and constantly paced back and forth. He was keeping his tail tucked down all the time. His ears were pinned back. He would not settle down and he wouldn’t eat. We tried everything. I ended up giving him a trazadone that he takes sometimes when he goes to the groomer. It seemed to take a little bit of the edge off, but not much. He still wouldn’t eat and still wouldn’t settle. I took off work on Monday so I could take him to the vet. We did bloodwork and x-rays. Knowing he is a senior dog, I was trying to prepare myself for the worst case scenario. I was glad to see his bloodwork was great except for some elevated liver enzymes. The x-rays showed he was a little backed up but no major issues. He got an anti-nausea injection and some Gabapentin to help with some tenderness in his back and to hopefully help keep him calm. When we got home, he was ok for a little bit, but eventually started pacing and panting again. We walked around the neighborhood for a long time and he used the bathroom a lot. He seemed pretty happy about that and was in good spirits until we got home and he refused to come back in the house. Every time I took him out that evening, he would hunker down like he didn’t want to come back in the house. When my vet called and I gave her the update, she suggested there may be some new electronic device in the house that was emitting a high frequency noise that is hurting his ears. We had just put new smart outlets in the house about a week ago. His pacing and panting were worse when the lamps were on, so I unplugged all the smart outlets. He stopped panting, stopped pacing, and ate his food. His tail was even up and wagging again. When I plugged the smart outlets all back in and asked Alexa to turn on the lamps, he immediately started panting and pacing again. My husband used an app to test the frequency of the smart outlets. It was off the charts. We've left the outlets unplugged for two days and have confirmed that it is definitely the smart outlets that are causing his stress and discomfort. He's back to being a totally normal dog now. I really thought this was the end for Rowdy based on the way he was acting. I am so thankful for Dr. Newell at BoonesCreek AnimalHospital for figuring out this simple solution. If your pets are exhibiting similar symptoms, you may want to consider checking your electronics first. I cannot express how relieved I am that he is ok now. 😭♥️🐶