Why Organic for your Dog?

Guest post from Arcanatura LLC, a pet care company specializing in holistic veterinary products.

U.S. sales of organic food and beverages have shot up from $1 billion in 1990 to $26.7 billion last year in 2010. The terms “natural” and “organic” have become a growing trend, the shelves in supermarkets increasingly stacked with more of the foods we should be eating. Organic foods mean more nutrition and less antibiotics, pesticides and environmental degradation; simply put, organic foods are grown and raised in harmony with the earth, rather than in factory farms that destroy the land and pollute the environment. Eating organic not only means supporting your own healthy diet, but a conscious effort to better understand how the 2,000 pounds of food the average American eats each year impacts the environment. View a cool infographic about food consumption in America here.

So, what makes pet food natural?

“Natural” foods have more recently crossed over into the pet realm with brands promoting their products showcasing images of smiling dogs and grassy fields. The truth is, the only way to ensure your pet’s food is entirely natural and wholesome is to take to the kitchen and make it from scratch. According to Dr. Karen Becker of the Huffington Post, “living foods” are important: “‘Living foods’ are simply uncooked foods in which the natural enzymes necessary for proper digestion have not been heated or otherwise processed ‘to death.’ These enzymes are considered the ‘energy’ or ‘life force’ of food.” The best way to deliver these types of nutrients to your pet is to feed them nutritious, fresh foods prepared at home. It doesn’t take a canine or feline culinary master to care for a healthy, organic pet, though – this merely means feeding your pet human-grade foods like organic meats, fruits and vegetables.

The Problem with Commercial pet foods is…

They often contain ingredients like “beef tallow,” “poultry fat” or synthetic proteins in place of real, nutritional ingredients. These cheap additives are hard for your pet to digest and difficult for their little organs that are put into overtime trying to process the bologna. If you’d rather purchase prepared pet food, before you buy, check the label for processed ingredients like these that are used as fillers, binders, and offer little to no nutrition.

Pet Food Ingredients to Avoid:

1. “Animal Fat” (animal source unspecified)
2. Artificial colors
2. By-products
3. Corn/Wheat Gluten
4. Sugar, Salt or Corn Fructose

Visit The Dog Food Project to view a complete (and seemingly endless) list of what to avoid and why when buying pet foods. By choosing to feed your pet organic meats rather than processed, fake ones, you have made the wise decision not only to better your pet’s health by delivering them the proper natural nutrients their body needs, but also to conserve the environment. In our country with over 93 million cats and 77 million dogs, each organic pet pledge counts.

Unsure what to feed your senior pet? Read more here to make sure they’re getting the right nutrition for their needs.

In our house, there’s a LOT of kissing thanks to Tiki! Just how much should we all worry about dog germs and how can we live closely with our dogs and, at the same time, avoid germs? We’ve got a guest article today courtesy of The Dog Daily with details on how you can keep from sharing germs–in both directions–with your dog.

The Dog Daily: Safety

How Dog Germs Spread

By Kim Boatman for The Dog Daily

If you share food with your beloved dog, make room in your bed for the happy tail wagger or allow a face lick or two, you’re not alone. Many dog owners share in this close-proximity manner with their beloved pups. But are you placing your health at risk when you do so? A study by a Kansas State University assistant professor offers insight into how germs are spread between dogs and their owners.

Good News and Bad

Kate Stenske, DVM, Ph.D., found that owners who bond in such ways with their dogs are no more likely to share the same strains of E. coli bacteria with their pets than dog owners who are more reserved in their interactions. Just 10 percent of the dog-human pairs shared the same E. coli strains, says Dr. Stenske, whose findings have been accepted for publication in the American Journal of Veterinary Research.

However, Dr. Stenske and other experts point out that this study focused on just one type of bacteria. Dogs can transmit other diseases, such as ringworm, hookworms, roundworms and campylobacteriosis, an infectious bacterial disease. Aside from keeping your dog in prime condition with regular veterinary visits, a good diet and exercise, there is one thing that you can do by yourself to safeguard against both dog- and human-spread diseases: wash your hands. Dr. Stenske documented an association between antibiotic-resistant E. coli and owners who didn’t wash their hands after petting their dogs or before cooking.

Proper hand washing tops these best health practices recommended by experts:

1. Wash your hands Hand washing is the most important thing we can do to minimize the spread of any bacterial infection. It seems pretty basic, right? However, it’s a matter of remembering to do so at the right times and in the right manner. Wash your hands after petting sessions with your pup, as well as before and after handling your dog’s food. Too many of us tend to give a quick wash of the palms. “My favorite is good ol’ soap and water and a good 10-second scrub,” Dr. Stenske says. Don’t forget to wash the tops of your hands and your nails, then dry very well.
2. Avoid face licking Experts still advise against that exuberant, sandpaper-rough face licking dogs occasionally deliver. “I don’t encourage it in my dog, and I always try to wash my face afterward,” says Dr. Peter Rabinowitz, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine at the Yale University School of Medicine. Young people, the elderly or the immunocompromised can be more at risk for obtaining an illness from a face-licking pup. Young puppies and sick dogs are more likely to acquire germs from you in this manner as well. For instance, human noses can carry the germs for certain bacterial infections and may pass them along to our dogs. The young are at risk because their immune systems aren’t fully developed. The elderly and the ill might have weakened immune systems.
3. Maintain your dog’s hygiene Give your dog regular baths to help minimize the spread of germs. Keeping your dog free of ticks and fleas further plays a role in ensuring your pal’s health and your own.    
4. Maintain your dog’s good health Regular veterinarian visits, updated shots, and deworming when necessary, are all very important.     
5. Feed smartly Avoid sharing food with your pup and don’t allow it to hunt; feed on garbage; or eat raw or undercooked meat, milk or eggs. In addition, feed your dog inside. Food fed outdoors can attract wildlife, increasing your dog’s risk for rabies or other diseases that can be spread by wild critters.     
6. Scoop the poop safely Cleaning up is one part of dog ownership no one relishes, but being fastidious about how you clean up your dog’s waste is critical, say the experts. After all, E. coli is spread through contact with contaminated feces, or by contact with something the contaminated waste has touched. Use a scooper and gloves, making sure to wash your hands afterward. Be sure to also clean your dog’s fur if your pal happens to mess his coat a bit.

We don’t live in a sterile world, and you want a loving relationship with your dog. Numerous other studies report that owning a dog has positive health effects for us, humans, so this one area of cleanliness concern represents a rare, yet important, exception to the general rule. “We should not be afraid of our dogs,” says Dr. Stenske. “I’m very close with my dog. You use common sense. We should be clean ourselves, and we should keep our pets clean, too.”

Kim Boatman is a journalist based in Northern California. She is also the managing editor of ExceptionalCanine.com. Boatman’s work has appeared in The Miami Herald, the Detroit Free Press and the San Jose Mercury News. She is a lifelong lover of animals, and a frequent contributor to The Dog Daily.

Q: My dog is on Prescription Diet J/D food to help its mobility. I had been giving him beef trachea chews because I understood they were a good source of chondroitin and glucosamine…but am I now giving him too much chondroitin and glucosamine with the chews?

A: Hill’s® Prescription Diet® j/d® Canine Mobility works through high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, including EPA. Supplementing additional glucosamine and chondroitin through these chews shouldn’t be an issue. While the product contains significant amounts of glucosamine and chondroitin to help maintain healthy cartilage, the prime benefit of the product is linked to the omega-3 fatty acid.

Be sure to enter to win one of four $49 coupon codes to try the new Hill’s grain-free foods. See our giveaway post for details.

Q: My senior dog really, really wants to eat my cat’s food (my cat eats Hill’s Science Diet, not Prescription Diet). Someone told me the cat food has more flavor than the dog food–is this true? Is it OK to sprinkle a little of the cat’s food on top of my dog’s food to get him to eat? He is a really picky eater and I’m just looking for a way to get him started eating (once he starts eating, he’ll go ahead and eat his own food.)

A: Mature adult dogs are at increased risk for kidney failure, so the higher phosphorus and protein of cat food would potentially be a negative factor. If you keep the cat food to less than 10 percent of his total calories per day, it probably won’t have a significant effect. The higher protein levels of cat foods tends to be very palatable to dogs.

Be sure to enter to win one of four $49 coupon codes to try the new Hill’s grain-free foods. See our giveaway post for details.

Have you looked in your dog’s ears lately? Your dog’s ears, especially long, floppy ears, can hold dirt and moisture and be a fertile ground for the growth of fungus.

In the above video, you can watch as I clean out our dog Irie’s ears with Facebook page. Irie is part lab and part coonhound so she has long ears that can really hold the dirt (plus she loves rolling in the dirt!)

Just as with cleaning our own ears, it’s important to never poke anything down into the ear itself. You’ll just use the Q-tips to clean the outside folds of the ear. It’s fast and easy to do, and it’s amazing the amount of dirt this quick cleaning will remove from the ear. With just a few seconds of work, you’ll be saving yourself the potential risk (and expense) of treating fungal infections in your dog’s ears.

For more tips on using Q-tips for your dog’s needs, be sure to see our “Dog Show Beauty Tips with Q-tips” post and over 260 suggestions from our readers on all types of ways you can use Q-tips for all kinds of pet care!

Disclosure: This is a post sponsored by Unilever, the makers of Q-tips®, written as part of our role as Q-tips Ambassadors. All tips and comments are our own!

Dr. Serge Martinod, DVM, PhD, is the CEO of Arcanatura LLC, a green pet care company specializing in holistic veterinary products for dogs, cats and horses. He is a practiced veterinarian who specializes in natural pet health and healing pet allergies. Here, Dr. Martinod discusses the importance of Omega-3 in the canine diet, even at the puppy stage.

Raising a new puppy is an exciting time filled with tail wagging, training, teething and lots of kisses. Among all of the fun and chaos of bringing home a new furry friend, knowledge of the correct health care for baby animals is crucial for new pet owners. Omega-3 DHA is a vital supplement for developing animals since it is not supplied elsewhere in most normal pet diets.  Read on to learn more about Omega-3 and it’s super health benefits for your puppy.

So, what exactly is Omega-3?

There are three major Omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids: alpha linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and DHA.

• ALA is not produced by your dog’s body. It is found in leafy plants, flaxseed, walnuts and canola oil. -Humans and dogs have limited ability to convert ALA in EPA and DHA.

• DHA and EPA can only be found in fish oil, fish and other seafood and some types of algae. Omega-3 DHA sourced from algae (plant-based Omega-3) is proven to be healthier and more eco-friendly.

Why does my puppy need it?

DHA is one of the major building blocks of the brain, an absolutely essential nutrient for the developing brain, and is also crucial for optimal retinal function (eyesight).  Supplementation with high-quality Omega-3 DHA is recommended at a daily dose of 8mg/kg for young dogs and should be continued at least until 6 months of age. The processing of commercial food makes any pet foods claiming to contain DHA and EPA inactive, so unless your puppy is getting an Omega-3 supplement, they are not getting enough of this essential nutrient.

What to look for:

Eco-friendly Omega-3 Always provide your puppy with a reputable product that uses a quality, sustainable source with a high DHA content. Relying on fish oil as an Omega-3 source has two major issues: toxicity (mercury, pesticide etc.) and sustainability (promotes overfishing). The oceans have become over-contaminated with industrial and human waste like heavy metals and chemicals like pesticides.

By going directly to the source and drawing DHA from algae, the plant through which fish obtain DHA, your pet is provided with a clean, concentrated supplement. Puppies are extremely sensitive to toxins, so it is vital to provide your little one with the most pure, concentrated Omega-3 supplement available.

For more information on plant-based Omega-3 for puppies, please visit the Arcanatura website.

Dear Dr. Audrey,

I have a 2-year-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who has seizures regularly. We give her 32.4 mg of phenobarbital twice a day as well as potassium bromide. I feel as if these pills don’t really do much but drain the life out of her. She’s always tired or out of it. I know they are suppose to control her seizures but she still has them and lately she has been doing this thing where her muscles will tighten up out of nowhere and she falls to the ground and then a minute later she’s herself again. I don’t know what to do. She’s the sweetest dog you’d ever meet as well. Do you think I should take her off of the pills?

Hi, I totally agree with you: Cavaliers are the most adorable little dogs! I don’t think you should take your little girl off her pills. They are probably preventing her from having even more seizures. Epilepsy can be tricky to manage, because we need to find a balance between stopping the seizures and, as you’ve described, causing too much sedation.

Phenobarbital and Potassium Bromide are the most common medications used to treat epilepsy in dogs, but they can lose their effectiveness. There are other options for treating epilepsy in dogs; some of the human medications are quite effective. Before you change any drug doses, have a chat to your veterinarian about whether a change is appropriate, and what can be done about her tightening muscles and falling over. This too could be part of her seizure disorder.

Every week we run a column from Dr. Harvey. If you have a question about your dog’s health, send in a question on our Ask Dr. Harvey form!

The purpose of this column is to educate. DogTipper shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this site. This column does not replace the importance of specific advice from your own veterinarian. If you have any concerns at all about your dog’s health, please make an appointment with your vet.

You’ve probably dog-proofed your house…but have you thought about what’s in your purse? Today we received a very helpful press release from the Pet Poison Helpline about five common purse items that can be harmful and even deadly to dogs. I don’t have all these items in my purse but I do usually have hand sanitizers and an inhaler, both which can cause major problems. Please take just a moment to run through this list or watch the above video to see if you might have some of these dangers in your handbag. Also, during this busy holiday season, it’s very important to keep an eye on your guests’ purses, too, to make sure a curious dog doesn’t find his way into trouble!

Here’s a look at the top five most hazardous handbook contents:

Sugarless chewing gum and breath mints

Many women carry chewing gum in their purses and don’t realize that, if ingested by a dog, it can be fatal. Most sugarless gums, including some Trident™, Orbit™, and Ice Breaker™ brands, contain xylitol, a sweetener that is toxic to dogs. Some sugarless mints and flavored multi-vitamins may also be made with xylitol. When ingested, even small amounts of xylitol can result in a life-threatening and rapid drop in blood sugar, and if large amounts are ingested, dogs can suffer from severe liver failure. Signs of xylitol poisoning include vomiting, weakness, difficulty walking, collapse, tremors and seizures.

Human medications
Many purses contain pill bottles and dispensers. They are irresistible to some dogs, as they resemble toys that rattle. Each year, nearly half of the calls to Pet Poison Helpline concern ingestions of potentially toxic human medications. Common drugs including NSAIDs (e.g. Advil®, Aleve® and Motrin®), acetaminophen (e.g. Tylenol®) and antidepressants (e.g. Effexor®, Cymbalta®, Prozac®) can cause serious harm to dogs and cats when ingested. NSAIDs such as Advil can cause stomach and intestinal ulcers as well as kidney failure, especially in cats. A single Tylenol tablet containing acetaminophen can be fatal to a cat, and in dogs, a larger ingestion can lead to severe liver failure. Of all medications, antidepressants account for the highest number of calls to Pet Poison Helpline, and can cause neurological problems like sedation, incoordination, agitation, tremors and seizures.

Asthma inhalers (albuterol)

While asthma inhalers are often used in veterinary medicine for cats and dogs, when accidentally chewed and punctured by dogs, they can cause severe, life-threatening, acute poisoning. Because inhalers often contain concentrated doses (often 200 doses in one small vial) of beta-agonist drugs (e.g., albuterol) or steroids (e.g., fluticasone), dogs that chew into them are exposed to massive amounts of the drugs all at once. This can lead to severe poisoning, resulting in life-threatening heart arrhythmias, agitation, vomiting, collapse and death.

Cigarettes

As few as three cigarettes can be fatal to a small dog, depending on the strength or “lightness” of the cigarettes. After ingestion, clinical signs of distress can become apparent in as little as 15 minutes. Cigarettes, chewing tobacco, and even gum (Nicorette®) contain nicotine, which is toxic to dogs and cats. Exposure causes high heart and respiratory rates, neurological overstimulation, uncontrolled urination/defecation, tremors, seizures, paralysis and death.

Hand Sanitizer

In recent years, hand sanitizer has become a common item in millions of handbags. Many hand sanitizers claim to kill almost 100 percent of germs, and this possible because they contain high amounts of alcohol (ethanol) – sometimes up to 95 percent. Therefore, when a dog ingests a small bottle of hand sanitizer, it can have the same effect as a shot of hard liquor. This can cause a severe drop in blood sugar, incoordination, a drop in body temperature, neurological depression, coma and death.

Whether you are the host or a guest at a holiday party, be sure that purses are placed in a safe location and out of the reach of pets. When in doubt, hang it up.

What To Do If Your Pet Has Ingested a Harmful Substance

If you think your pet may have ingested something harmful, take action immediately. Contact your veterinarian or Pet Poison Helpline at 1-800-213-6680. Pet Poison Helpline is the most cost-effective animal poison control center in North America charging only $35 per call, including unlimited follow-up consultations.

Pet Poison Helpline, an animal poison control center based out of Minneapolis, is available 24 hours, seven days a week for pet owners and veterinary professionals that require assistance treating a potentially poisoned pet. The staff provides treatment advice for poisoning cases of all species, including dogs, cats, birds, small mammals, large animals and exotic species.

Categorizing corn as a protein makes no logical sense to me: every food pyramid I have ever seen has corn in the “grains” or “carbohydrate” section, where it rightly belongs. Corn grows in a field, is fed to feed lot animals, and is always in the vegetable section in a cafeteria or the grocery store! Corn also has a high glycemic index (which in laymen’s terms means it affects your blood sugar levels), which is why human diabetics should not even eat it. On the other hand, the protein section of a food pyramid shows meat, eggs and dairy. That is the protein I want my dogs to be eating.

We all know that we would not comply if a child requested corn chips as her main course instead of a chicken leg. “But I heard Doritos are protein Mommy,” is probably not going to cut it! And dogs are different than junk-food negotiating children – unlike them; a dog would never try to swap corn for some nice chicken or beef! A dog is a carnivore – not a corn-ivore – and his body craves protein and he knows it. Dogs are referred to as carnivores and their diets are referred to as carnivorous, so any way you cut it, he needs protein from meat. Common sense will tell you that even the finest quality corn is not the kind of protein that a carnivore needs.

This Canine Nutrition Tip is from Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and award-winning host of Dog Talk® on NPR station WLIU. Canine Nutrition Tips are sponsored by Proportions, the whole food custom nutrition program for your dog. Visit www.Proportions.com to get a custom 2-meal trial for your dog, or to learn more about canine nutrition from the full Canine Nutrition University classes written by Tracie.

Author photo courtesy www.traciehotchner.com; photo © Ling Li

The highest profit margin for a pet food company is in the dry food, and that profit is even higher if it is a heavily corn-based food since corn is one of the most readily available and cheap ingredients for human or animal food. The other tricky thing about corn is that many of the pet food companies, especially those with less costly products, create their recipes relying on the fact that in pet food, corn can technically be considered a source of protein.

How did corn get counted as protein? This is the determination of the AAFCO (the Association of Animal Feed Control Officials), which was not intended to be involved in pet food nutrition, but was formed to oversee what goes into the food given to animals that are intended for human consumption. My guess is that the folks at AAFCO assumed that if an ingredient like corn was a good basis for the food for chickens, pigs and cows (the species they were originally empowered to oversee) then it must be good for dogs, too?

Pet food companies focused on profits are certainly not going to complain that they are allowed to use corn as a protein source. Those regulations give them free rein to make corn-based dog foods with a cheap primary ingredient – the lower the manufacturing cost of a product, the higher the profit margin. The higher quality dog foods use protein from a meat source – chicken, beef, lamb, fish – and actually shun the use of any corn in their foods. That decision costs them more – costs you more – and should be all the reason you need to make the decision yourself to opt for the most high quality real protein you can get for your dog.

This Canine Nutrition Tip is from Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and award-winning host of Dog Talk® on NPR station WLIU. Canine Nutrition Tips are sponsored by Proportions, the whole food custom nutrition program for your dog. Visit www.Proportions.com to get a custom 2-meal trial for your dog, or to learn more about canine nutrition from the full Canine Nutrition University classes written by Tracie.

Author photo courtesy www.traciehotchner.com; photo © Ling Li