We often forget how hazardous common items and foods can be for our pets.  Below is a comprehensive list of items to keep away from your pets.  This is a great list to keep on your refrigerator or someplace accessible to the whole family.  In addition to this list keep the phone numbers for your local veterinarian and emergency veterinarian visible as well.  It is important to stay calm and act quickly when a pet has consumed something toxic.  Even after ingesting many of these items, it can take several hours for your pet to show symptoms. If you have witnessed your pet ingesting something or just suspect that your pet has consumed something dangerous contact your veterinarian immediately.

Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pet

• Alcoholic beverages

• Avocado

• Chocolate (all forms)

• Coffee (all forms)

• Fatty foods

• Macadamia nuts

• Moldy or spoiled foods

• Onions, onion powder

• Raisins and grapes

• Salt

• Yeast dough

• Garlic

• Products sweetened with xylitol (most sugar free gum contains xylitol)

Other Household items

• Citronella candles

• Cocoa mulch

• Compost piles Fertilizers

• Swimming-pool treatment supplies

• Fly baits containing methomyl

• Slug and snail baits containing metaldehyde

• Prescription medications

• Antifreeze

• Liquid potpourri

• Ice melting products

• Rat and mouse bait

• Fabric softener sheets

Guest post by Leslie Cook - Lifelong animal lover and pet boutique owner of Woof Life in Crown Point, IN, with a passion for proactive pet care. If you are in the area please stop by and visit our store – http://www.wooflife.com/

Hill’s Science Diet petfood brand losing market share as consumers look to smaller petfood brands for more natural options is the title of an article from PetFoodIndustry.com

From the article –

In an effort to compete, Hill’s introduced the Science Diet Nature’s Best line, which included ingredients like lamb, brewers rice, soybean meal and apples. But, “the consumer had a disconnect with this idea of Science Diet and a naturals product,” said Ian Cook, Colgate CEO.

I wonder why? Is it because that Science Diet has ruined it’s reputation a long time ago with the holistic community and now the main stream pet owners are seeing the advantages of feeding their dogs a food based in similar fresh ingredients that they themselves would eat?

Or could it be that they have stagnated while the rest of the industry has changed with the consumer ideals? –

Hill’s launches new Ideal Balance natural petfood brand – New line of dog and cat food is first new petfood brand from Hill’s since 1968 – Is it better late than never or a little too late?

Interestingly, even though they are late to the party and have a large number of foods to model to try to reclaim market share they have still may have missed the mark on this new food. It only received 3 out of 5 stars from Dog Food Advisor, an independently owned website – Hill’s Ideal Balance Grain Free Dog Food (Dry) Although the food is acceptable and is better than their previous products it is still a dog food that your dog can survive on rather than thrive. As consumers we are looking for the best quality ingredients and a dog food that allows our dogs to be their best, to live optimally.

Dr Becker has a few comments about Hill’s decline in her article –
Buyers “Bust” This Pet Food Company – Should You Too?

She summarizes how to maintain a healthy pet extremely well –

While pet product companies and marketers try to find ever more unique and creative ways to lure you, their human consumer, your carnivorous cat or dog maintains the same basic requirement for whole, fresh, unprocessed food as her wild ancestors. In fact, your pet’s health, vitality and quality of life have little to do with how many nifty new pet products you purchase.

In addition to the right diet, your pet’s other most basic needs include:

Plenty of physical exercise and mental stimulation
Minimal exposure to toxins including vaccines, veterinary drugs, and pest preventives
Regular (preferably twice yearly) wellness exams with an integrative or holistic vet
Routine at-home dental care, bathing and grooming
When it comes to caring for your dog or cat, it’s not about finding the latest new invention in pet food or products … it’s about providing your furry companion with a simple, natural diet and lifestyle that creates abundant health and a long life.

What is your opinion? Is Hill’s changing your mind about their pet food? Or have you always fed Hill’s because it has been good food for your dog?

What an oops!! It is unwitting consequence of the Controlled Substance Act that was completely overlooked. The DEA is already starting to enforce the law with veterinarians. SO a Bill # H.R.1528 is being sponsored “to amend the Controlled Substances Act to allow a veterinarian to transport and dispense controlled substances in the usual course of veterinary practice outside of the registered location.” This will legally allow veterinarians to carry controlled substances so that horses and other animals can be humanely euthanized when necessary at the farm.

To support this new bill please go to - Help Ensure that Veterinarians Can Provide Complete Care to Their Animal Patients

A Facebook friend, horse owner and lawyer, Laura McFarland-Taylor, changed her action alert to be more in line with a horse owner to read as such -

I am writing as not only a horse owner that regularly uses ambulatory veterinary services, but more importantly as a constituent, to urge you to cosponsor the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act of 2013 (H.R. 1528). 

Veterinarians treat multiple species of animals in a variety of settings. Unfortunately, the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) makes it illegal for veterinarians to take and use controlled substances outside of the locations where they are registered, often their clinics or homes. This means that it is illegal for veterinarians to carry and use vital medications for pain management, anesthesia and euthanasia on farms, in house calls, in veterinary mobile clinics, or ambulatory response situations.

Veterinarians must be able to legally carry and use controlled substances for the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, to safeguard public safety and to protect the nation’s food supply.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which enforces the law, has informed organized veterinary medicine that without a statutory change, veterinarians are in violation of the CSA and cannot legally provide complete veterinary care. The DEA has already notified some veterinarians in California and Washington State that they are in violation of this law.

The practice of veterinary medicine requires veterinarians to be able to treat their animal patients in a variety of settings, like rural areas for the care of large animals where it is often not feasible, practical or possible for owners to bring livestock (i.e., cows, pigs, horses, sheep, and goats) into a veterinary hospital or clinic;

Veterinarians also offer house call services or mobile clinics or conduct research and disease control activities in the field away from the veterinarian’s principal place of business.

Veterinarians also respond to emergency situations where injured animals must be cared for onsite such as the transfer of dangerous wildlife (e.g. bears, cougars) or the rescue of trapped wildlife (e.g. deer trapped in a fence). 

I am asking you to support the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act of 2013 (H.R. 1528)because veterinarians need to legally transport controlled substances to the locations of the animal patients, not only for the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, but for public safety.

Please feel free to contact Dr. Ashley Morgan, at the American Veterinary Medical Association should you need additional information. Dr. Morgan is available at 202-289-3210 or amorgan@avma.org.

Thank you for your support in this bill!

Dom, a sales rep from an internet marketing company, emailed me and offered to write a guest post for this blog in exchange for a link to his client’s website and $120. Amazing to me, since my site has been dead for the past year and a half! You want to pay me $120 to have a post on here? I have to say that Dom was very polite and only mildly pushy and it seemed like a legitimate good deal. So why didn’t I accept the deal?  The site he was going to be linking to was a support site for the horse racing industry and more specifically it was a site that gave good information on how to bet on horse racing.

So now my ethical side didn’t blink at all with the gambling aspect – if someone wants to have fun spending their money on gambling it is not of my concern. However the support of horse racing did give me pause. I was just unsure if I wanted that type of stigma belonging to my website. I’m sure in the past I wouldn’t have thought much about it. If I look back at the posts on this site I may even have a post pointing to horse racing websites – I don’t remember. However now I do care. I have decided to remain neutral on aspects of horse racing.

What do I mean about being neutral? In a previous post I explained my position on horse racing -

There are many reasons for horses not to be racing at 2 years of age. The main one is that the skeletal structure of the horse is still growing and is incapable, in the majority of cases, to handle the stresses that racing places on the it. As for why horses race at 2 years of age, I have yet to hear a good reason that they have to race at that age. Obviously the industry has big money and investments are made. Having a horse wait another year or two before it possibly starts making a return increases the risk of the investment and slows the business of racing dramatically. Also traditionally horses have been raced at this age for many many years. So are these good enough reasons to continue racing at 2 years of age? Personally I do not think so.

As for is horse racing inhumane? I do not believe so and heres my reason..horse love to run, it comes naturally to them. If you have ever ridden a horse, especially one such as a thouroughbred, they love to go and they love to go fast. Interestingly, many of them actually love to race, they are not forced into it, they really want to do it. Ask any jockey or horseman that has been around the racing industry for even a short amount of time, they know when a horse just is not into it. They know if the horse really does not like it, that horse is not going to win and will be removed from racing very quickly. Now this does not mean that all of racing is humane. I believe some things need to be changed such as the age at which they are allowed to race needs to be raised. More turnout should be allowed, more rest and recovery needs to occur, and less pharmaceutical enhancements.

Because of my opinions I choose not to support the horse racing industry, however I am not going to bash them either. Many advancements in medicine have come from horse racing, many of the ideas we have for treating injuries, taking care of illnesses, and new uses for pharmaceuticals have come from the horse racing industry. As with all aspects of life there is good and bad, thus to remain neutral makes sense.

The good of horse racing is watching those magnificent animals charging down the track, true beauty in motion, such powerful animals! The upper echelon horses are well cared for and provided the best in medical care and the best care in general given the constraints of the industry. They are treated like kings, even most of the other horses are cared for in a proper manner because a horse that is not well cared for is not going to run very well and certainly is not going to make any money. What I really do not like with the horse racing industry is what I call the “backside of the track”. I have been there and seen it. I have seen the desperation in the owners and trainers that are not doing so well and the treatment of the horses to try to get them to compete at a high level, the attempts at glory of trying to be at the top and it’s not pretty.

The early training of horses that are not yet even fully grown is the worst offense and the fact that it takes 100+ horses to make 1 winner and at the upper echelons 1000+ horses to make a winner, some farms breed for years and never have a top echelon winner. The majority of horses do not make it to the top, do not make it to glory, do not make it to be a magnificent animal in the big three races. There are a lot of horses used up, broken, and beat down in attempts to make it to the top and for that reason I do not wish to support horse racing.

To be honest there is bad in almost every aspect of the horse world and in every discipline. The “backside of the track” in the other disciplines – Dressage and rollkur, Arabian show horses and gingering, Tennessee Walkers and soring, Jumpers and poling, Saddlebreds and their shoes and tail sets, Quarter horses and their shoeing and tying their heads up, etc, etc. Horses in all disciplines also are broken down by bad training, excessive competition, improper medical treatment, and owned by desperate owners trying to win blue ribbons. It is almost no different than that of the horse racing industry with the exception that it is usually for self indulgence and self glory, rather than a business and money. I do not wish to support these bad aspects either.

I wish to remain neutral. I work in the horse industry and there are good people, there are people doing the right things and caring for their horses in the best way they know how to care for them. I wish to provide information about ways to improve the health, welfare and movement of horses no matter what their discipline. If a website is devoted to health care or welfare of horses I will be glad to promote the website. If a website has an article about health care (even a racing website) I would be inclined to promote the article, but on my own terms and pointing specifically to the page/post I choose. I feel better about myself and my conscious will be clear.

What do you think? Did I make the right decision or am I just sitting up here on my soapbox blowing smoke looking like a fool?

This is a common concern for canine athlete owners and trainers; injuries in general are concerns, so why take a risk with an athlete that will have to perform? The thought about not letting them play with other dogs to reduce the chance of injuries is common however is it right? In one study performance dog play with the human handler is important especially right before an event. It helps with keeping the dog focused during the event. But how about dog on dog play? Should you let your prized performance dog play with that other dog?  - You want the short opinionated answer, yes you should allow your performance dog to play with other dogs.

Let’s go through my reasoning for allowing performance dogs to play.

First – your fear here is injuries,right? Why are you letting your dog do an athletic event in the first place? It is much more likely to be injured in its sport than playing with another dog. The most common type of injuries in performance dogs are repetitive stress injuries – shoulder instability, carpal strains, cruciate ruptures, and tendon/ligament strains/tears.The most frequent type of injuries that veterinarians see are broken bones from car accidents and other equally severely traumatic events and then the next most common has to be cruciate ruptures. In canine sport medicine practices cruciates and other tendon/ligament injuries are the most common – the repetitive stress injuries. Besides lacerations to ears and the skin on other areas of the body, dog play does not cause very many injuries and the injuries that it does cause are not likely to affect performance.

Second – dogs are pack animals. The nature of a dog is to be and interact with other dogs and that includes playing. Apologies to my single dog family homes for the next statement, but dogs that are not allowed to interact with other dogs are more likely to have behavior disorders. So for the mind of the performance dog, it would be best to allow the dog to have its natural tendencies and then control/moderate the activity. Dog play is going to help the dog in other aspects, such as relaxation (we all know – all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy), develops coordination and muscle development utilizing different muscles than the normal routine of training which will help balance, and can learn from the other dog such as restraint and impulse control.

Lastly – is your dog a superstar, and no, not in your own mind? Is it one of the top dogs in the nation? Are you going for your second national title in your chosen canine sport? If you are, then you are in the top 1% (and I am being generous) of canine performance dog owners. So then why do all these owners do it, when only a select handful make it to the top? Very few are making money from it, even some of the top are spending money not making it. It must not be about being the top or about making money, it has to be about something else. For the majority, it is about having fun with the dog. OK, then how about it? You are going to prevent your dog from having fun, because you have a fear that it is possibly going to injure itself so that it will not miss out on the opportunity to perform something else that is fun but is more likely to cause injury? How does that make any sense?

Let the dog be a dog and let your performance dog play! There is much less of a chance of injury playing than in the sport itself, it helps the behavior and mind set of the dog and its fun!

Do you really want to prevent performance related injuries, then stop worrying about your performance dog playing with other dogs and condition your dog against the repetitive stress injuries by purchasing (and then using) one of  Dr. Chris Zink’s Canine Sports Production books,  Clean Run’s Canine Fitness and Conditioning videos,  or Dr. Debbie Gross Saunders’ Strengthening and Stretching the Performance Dog  videos. You will have a happier and healthier performance dog!

In October she came to see me for treatment of the dangling leg since it was not seeming to be improving and in fact she was getting sores on the top of her foot. Her vet was considering amputation. Examining her it was obvious that she had suffered a severe injury to her brachial plexus and radial nerve and could not extend her leg as her triceps muscles and her digital extensor muscles were limp. She had also developed a common complication of this injury in that the opposing muscles the biceps and the carpal flexor muscles were contracted, since they have no opposing force to stretch them back out.

Most general practice veterinarians will give an anti-inflammatory (many times corticosteroid) and give the nerve time to heal and in many cases it does. If the brachial plexus or the radial nerve has been completely severed the dog will never regain use of its leg – the extensor muscles will remain flaccid and the flexor muscles will remain contracted. In cases in which the dog appears to not gain any movement back in the leg for an extend time such as in Cassidy’s case, most vets assume that the nerve is then severed and usually opt to amputate the limb; however some of these cases the brachial plexus/radial nerve just doesn’t heal with out stimulation. Neuromodulation is necessary to stimulate the nerve to regain function. It is sort of like you don’t use it so you lose it concept. Canine rehabilitation with neuro rehab is the treatment of choice for these dogs. The only problem, without trying to do electrodiagnostic testing, is that we will not know if it will work without doing the rehab and we have to try for 4-6 weeks without improvement to determine if it will not work.

In a case like Cassidy’s we have two goals – increase brachial plexus and radial nerve function and reduce flexor muscle contraction.

Therapies to reduce flexor muscle contraction -

• Laser Therapy
• Ultrasound Therapy
• Manual Manipulation and Stretching

Cassidy’s first visit we did laser therapy and chiropractic. Electrical acupuncture the next week. The third week we saw no improvement so we started electrical stimulation and laser therapy weekly along with exercises to entice her to extend her leg. The very next week we noticed movement in her triceps muscles! Some progress which meant that the brachial plexus was intact and eventually she would heal she just needed some stimulation.

There still was no movement even with electrical stimulation to the extensor muscles that controlled her carpus (wrist). What is very interesting is that if the nerve does not function electrical stimulation will not contract the muscle no matter how high of an electrical current you place into the muscle. If the nerve doesn’t work, the muscle does not work period. However repeated electrical stimulation will entice the nerve to function. I was a little discouraged that we had movement in the triceps but not the digital extensors I was starting to fear that the damage to the radial nerve was too great and we were not going to get that function back.

The very next week Cassidy came in still the same and although she was really extending her elbow. Although weak she was extending it during play, but the wrist remained contracted and unable to extend. We could straighten the wrist out about 80% of normal manually but there was no movement in the extensors, that is until we placed the electrical stimulator on her. We have movement with electrical stimulation to her toes! Way to go Cassidy!

We are going to continue electrical stimulation and exercises to entice her to extend her limb for the next few weeks. Hopefully in the next month or two she will be back to normal. Her brachial plexus and her radial nerve damage will be repaired and she will have normal function an start rebuilding the muscle she lost from the last 6 months.

Veterinarians can learn acupuncture and other TCVM modalities at one of the veterinary schools that offer programs –  Colorado State University, Tufts University or the University of Florida; or they can take a certification course offered by IVAS or the Chi Institute. The Chi Institute offers the most comprehensive programs for TCVM including all of the modalities and advanced courses up to and including a Masters Degree in TCVM offered in conjunction with South China Agricultural University. For this reason I choose the Chi Institute for my certification. I have considered pursuing the Master Degree program.

TCVM has changed considerably since its inception in China back when it was primarily used to treat horses and farm animals. Today it is used for those animals and also dogs, cats, and birds. Much has been learned about acupuncture and TCVM through the study and treatments of these companion animals. Here in the US TCVM is used many times, as it is in my practice, in conjunction with other treatments such as chiropractic, western herbs, nutritional supplementation and rehabilitation therapies (laser, electrical stimulation, and exercise). It is exciting to be part of a medical field that although has been around for 3000-4000 years is changing and expanding due to scientific advances and research and more owners being accepting of the treatments. I look forward to many years of treating my patients with TCVM.

The basic premise of TCVM is rebalancing the body to allow it to heal itself. A diseased body becomes out of balance. In TCVM some of the cause of disease is because the body is out of balance and in other cases the body becomes out of balance by an external force, such as a traumatic accident. In either case TCVM can be used hand in hand with western allopathic medicine to help the body recover from disease or trauma. They come from the disease from opposite aspects and can meet in the middle due to a common cause – to heal the patient. Western medicine is great at treating acute problems TCVM is great at treating chronic problems that western medicine has difficulty in curing. TCVM has little to no side effects. Western medicine is far superior in diagnosing due to the technological advances. An integrative approach works wonderfully for the patient because you can get the best of both worlds with superior diagnostics and treatment that has less side effects. Treatment that can approach a disease from both aspects that of treating the disease and that of helping the body heal.

One of my first cases in using TCVM was Bear – Canine Case of the Week: Bear and Cervical IVDD I hope I have many more successful cases such as Bear. He is still a patient and is doing well.

To be honest I am on the fence about it. In Illinois and in Indiana, which is where I live, it is endemic. Meaning it is all over the place here. There are estimates of 50% of the raccoon population carry the disease. Lepto is transmissible to humans and you can get it from your infected dog. Your dog can die from the disease or it can cause permanent kidney disease in dogs and humans. For those reasons it is important to vaccinate. In fact most veterinarians stop right there when describing lepto in order to convince you how necessary it is for your dog to receive the vaccine. It can be a scary disease.

So why would I be on the fence about such a horrific disease? Well, Lepto is a bacteria (spirochete) so the vaccine is not as long lasting as vaccine that protect against viruses, and it has to be given every year. In the past, the vaccine produced some significant side effects, the vaccine is cleaner now which has reduced some of the side effects, but it seems that some dogs are still experiencing them. Lepto has numerous strains more than 20, the vaccine protects only against 4 (the most common ones), so even if your dog is vaccinated it still can contract lepto, become sick and possibly transmit it to you or your children. 

So if you have a healthy dog and you have wildlife in your backyard or you have a dog that does spend time out in the woods, ponds, or areas that are known to have a lot of wildlife then the Lepto vaccination would be appropriate. However, if your dog has allergies or other immune system issues then you need to consider that giving an annual vaccine is not the best for the health of your dog. Also one thing to know is that lepto is not a death sentence. It is a bacterial infection and if caught early can be treated successfully with no long term effects. It has to be caught, tested for, and treated. There in lies the problem. Many owners are slow to bring the dog to the vet and many vets do not think of lepto first when the dog comes in lethargic with signs of a urinary tract infection, because it usually isn’t. Most of the time symptoms like that  is a simple bacterial infection not a kidney destroying life threatening zoonotic (that means humans can catch it) disease. The main difference is usually lethargy, if the dog is acting sick and has a urinary tract infection it is important to test for Lepto especially in endemic areas.

If you have more questions then ask away in the comment section below.

Here are a couple of articles with other opinions - 
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/09/20/pet-owners-love.aspx
http://www.pet-health-care-gazette.com/2010/10/02/canine-leptospirosis-vaccination-pros-and-cons/
http://www.2ndchance.info/leptospirosis.htm

What is very interesting is owner’s perception of their dog being overweight versus what we as veterinarians perceive as overweight. It is a sensitive subject for owners that their dog is fat. A British study published last year shows “Although a high proportion of owners claimed to have discussed the dog’s weight with their veterinarian, some discrepancies were apparent between owner perception of animal weight and the veterinarian’s evaluation of body condition score. Owner disagreement was significantly greater for the veterinarian-defined overweight dogs (P=0·005). Owners often provide personal narratives to account for their dog’s weight status.” The study concluded that verbal communication should not be the only information given to an owner of an overweight dog.

There have been several other studies recently in regards to the prevention and/or the decrease in progression of arthritis in dogs that were fed restricted calorie diets. A diet of only 25% reduction in calories has shown to decrease the incidence of arthritis in elbows, hips, and shoulders of dogs and it was noted in one study that it increased the average age of the dogs by almost 2 years!

Talk to your vet, talk to a canine nutritionist about how to feed your dog appropriately. Realize that the dog food companies are trying to sell you food and that the amounts on the bag that they recommend feeding are only estimates and of course they are on the high side for most dogs because the more your dog eats the more food you will buy. If your dog is already overweight do not treat him like a human and feed a diet high in fiber that will just produce gas. I know that those of you that have tried the store bought “diet” foods have experienced the problem with high fiber diets and your dog really is the one to blame for clearing a room. The first order of business is to talk to your vet, have an exam and possibly some blood tests to be sure your dog does not have an underlying condition causing him to be overweight; however in my experience it usually is the amount and quality of food being fed.

The best steps to take (after the visit to the vet) for the overweight dog is to go to a diet that is species appropriate which means for your dog a carnivorous or meat based diet with no grain. Similar to people some dogs have a problem with grain and especially gluten and no not celiac disease but rather grains being pro-inflammatory, meaning it promotes inflammation. Increased inflammation in the body can lead to weight gain, similar to people that have a puffy appearance. It makes it very difficult to lose weight. It is best to feed your dog a meat based, grain free diet and count the calories. Use the following formula for an estimate of what your dog requires for calories per day Calories = 132 x (body weight in kilograms) X 0.75

For example the daily energy requirements of a 20 lb dog -

Convert pounds to kilograms ( 1 lbs = 0.454 kg)
20 lbs x 0.454 = 9.08 kg

Determine the metabolic body weight (kg0.75)
9.08 x .75 = 6.81

Multiply metabolic body weight by 132 (for the average dog)
6.81 x 132 = 898.92 or 900 kcal per day

So a 20 lb dog needs only 900 kcal per day total. To do a reducing diet you need to reduce the calories by 25% which is 75% of the total 900 X .75 = 675 kcal per day.

You can calculate an estimate of calories of the food you are feeding by using University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine formula of 3.5 kcal per gram of protein and carbohydrates and 8.5 kcal per gram of fat. Just use the percentages found on the side of the bag and weigh a cup of the food to determine how many calories are in each cup. You will find some interesting results and that maybe, just maybe, you have been overfeeding your dog.

Remember a thin dog is a healthy dog and a long lived dog, one that is not as likely to have arthritis or other diseases. So the next time you go to give that begging fat face a treat just because he wants it; realize he doesn’t know what you know – he doesn’t know you are killing him

Another great article with even more specifics – Pet Food Calorie Mis-Information

A dog food calculator – Dog Food Calculator

Our dogs are carnivores, they are not strict carnivores and can eat vegetables, however just because dogs fed plant-based diets can stay alive does not make it the best for them. An optimal biologically appropriate diet for a carnivore is to have a meat based diet. An optimal biologically appropriate diet allows the dog to thrive not just survive. It provides them with the nutrients needed for a healthy immune system and a solid base for a long healthy life.

A carnivores digestive system is not designed for efficiently digesting plant material. It does not have the appropriate enzymes in saliva to break down starch. Also the digestive system is too short in comparison to herbivores and does not contain enough of the necessary enzymes for proper breakdown of plant material. This makes it difficult to digest plant material and to be able to gain the optimal nutrients, such as amino acids. Dogs do not produce amino acids very well and so it is necessary to provide them in their diet. Essential amino acids for dogs come from high quality animal protein, such as beef, chicken, turkey, duck, fish, lamb, venison, and bison.

Another problem with feeding a vegetable/starch based diet to a dog is that it can over work their pancreas. The pancreas of a carnivore produces enzymes used to process fats and protein. When you feed plant material it produces more enzymes to try to break it down. A long term over production of enzymes overtaxes the pancreas making it more likely to malfunction. A malfunctioning pancreas can lead to pancreatitis and/or diabetes and not so surprisingly can lead to obesity.

So for those of you eating a vegan or vegetarian diet for your health, you must realize that your digestive system is that of an omnivore and is different than that of a carnivore. Your dog is a carnivore and it needs a meat based diet. Please for the health of your dog, feed it what it was biologically created to eat.