Dog owners often treat their pups like family, which makes it all the more important to feed them a high-quality, healthy food. Unfortunately, it can be really confusing to figure out what a “healthy” dog food even is. Should you feed your dog raw food? Grain-free? Kibble? Soft food? It all depends on which “expert” you ask.
Based on a recent investigation by the FDA, you may want to cross certain “grain-free” dog foods off the list.
Grain-free food has become trendy in recent years. It’s probably not a coincidence that it became popular at the same time that gluten-free and paleo diets for humans became popular.
But the FDA found that 16 dog foods are closely linked to heart disease, and many of the foods are grain-free dry kibble.
“We understand the concern that pet owners have about these reports: the illnesses can be severe, even fatal, and many cases report eating ‘grain-free’ labeled pet food,” a statement from the FDA said.
These foods often contain a high proportion of peas, lentils, potatoes, and other legume seeds.
Here are the 16 dog food brands, in order of how many reports of heart disease they were associated with: Acana, Zignature, Taste of the Wild, 4Health, Earthborn Holistic, Blue Buffalo, Nature’s Domain, Fromm, Merrick, California’s Natural, Natural Balance, Orijen, Nature’s Variety, NutriSource, Nutro, and Rachael Ray Nutrish.
Watch the video for more information on how these foods can affect your pet!
Source : https://www.littlethings.com/dog-food-heart-disease/