Dog people: Do you feed grain-free or food with grain to your pet?

[milestogo]

My pup is ready to move to adult dog food. When I got my last dog "grain-free" was all the rage. Now some think that is not the best diet.

What do you feed?

[SheltieLover]

1. The absolute best food I have ever found is Honest Kitchens dehydrated

It is human grade, tastes beyond amazing, is reasonably priced, easier to put in car & store.



Hugs to your pupper!

On edit: just mix with a bit if warm water & wa-la, a gourmet meal.

[milestogo]

7. Thanks, I will check it out.

[SheltieLover]

9. Yw!

My last precious Sheltie princess was a seizure dog so I had to be very careful with food. This never triggered a seizure, unlike Blue & a few others.

Some stores have sample packets as well.

And Chewy, Amazon etc. Give a discount for auto ship. 👍

They also offer grain free & whole grain varieties.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

15. Thanks. Think I've ever seen that in the grocery store

But will look

[cilla4progress]

2. Grain-free

But you should research it.

[milestogo]

4. This study came out a couple of years ago:

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.

Sixteen brands of dog food may be associated with a heightened risk of heart failure in dogs, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

I fed my last dog grain free but I don't know if its riskier than food with grain.

Link to article: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/fda-names-16-brands-dog-food-linked-canine-heart-disease-n1025466

[Tadpole Raisin]

6. Years ago working in a veterinary hospital we had young cats

Coming in with idiopathic cardiomyopathy. People were stumped until they figured out that the cat food did not have taurine in it which they must have and can’t produce outside of their natural diet, taurine being a (conditionally) essential amino acid.

Some cardiologists have incorporated the use of amino acids in their practices (e.g., Sinatra, Braverman).

[milestogo]

8. Thats the culprit.

It seems like it should be easy to give a taurine supplement.

[zuul]

11. Should be easy. I take taurine supplements.

They are supposed to help with migraines and, to my surprise, they also make me a little sleepy. I take them before going to bed because I have trouble staying asleep.

[milestogo]

14. Good to know.

I also have migraines and trouble falling asleep.

[zuul]

16. I read an article several years ago that mentioned taurine and energy drinks.

The gist of the story was "why do energy drinks help if you have a migraine?" Energy drinks do work for me, but good god, what the heck is in them?

The article stated that it's partly because of taurine, but also caffeine. I have a migraine prescription (fioricet) that contains a lot caffeine and it does help with migraines, but my migraine doctor thinks it can also contribute to rebound migraines. Who needs that? So I knew caffeine was a factor in getting migraine relief (I think it helps to speed the delivery of medication throughout your system.) But what about taurine by itself?

So I decided to try just taurine. Like a dumb ass, I tried it during the daytime without doing any research and found that I was almost falling asleep at my desk. When I looked it up, taurine is said to have some sedation properties.

I've been taking taurine regularly for several years. My migraines tend to occur between 3:00 am and 6:00 am, when I wake up and can't get back to sleep. I can't be certain that the taurine is making a difference since I'm also getting botox injections every 3 months, monthly Ajovy injections, and I have a couple of 'rescue' medications in case I get a migraine that can't be contained, but I am doing MUCH better. About 5 or 6 years ago, I was getting migraines almost daily.

I don't believe the taurine is harmful, whereas taking fioricet is, I believe, detrimental. My family doctor thinks that one of my rescue drugs (diclofenac potassium) is harmful to the kidneys, even though I don't have kidney disease. It is one of the few medications that will knock out a migraine in an hour or two. I also have a prescription for Ubrelvy, for the really bad migraines that can't be stopped (wow, I sound like a drug addict.) Migraines suck!

[The Jungle 1]

3. Check this site out.

Dog Food Advisor
Once you sign up they send you alerts.

[The Jungle 1]

5. Grain free puts your dog a risk of DCM.

A life-threatening heart problem called dilated cardiomyopathy, or DCM.

[zuul]

10. A vet once told me that grain-free food

usually has more calories per ounce. Don’t know if it’s true.

[Polly Hennessey]

12. I go with grains for my

Great Pyrenees and Pit Bull/German Shepherd mix. I try to stay away from grain-free after reading about all the problems. I have also read that pets require a certain amount of grains for a healthy diet. I also understand that a certain number of pets may be allergic to grains. Understandably, this would mean a grain-free diet.

[mdelaguna]

13. I feed my shipoo a mix of high end brands

Canned. Some Blue, some Froms (his favorite, but $$$), and a few others. He likes variety. Don’t focus on grain free, more on quality/price. Fortunately he’s small so just a can a day, in two servings. And occasionally a bowl of rotisserie chicken (lasts 4 nights, at ~ the same cost as canned food.