We know the connection between nutrition and health. We want our dogs to be healthy and live long lives. We've seen alot of headlines about what not to feed our dogs, and are left with the question: What do I feed my dog?
Grain-free diets are causing disease. There's definitely a diet link, however veterinarians are just beginning to study this. There's seems to be a taurine deficiency link, but not always. What research has proven for sure is this: Golden retrievers are one of the breeds that's particularly susceptible to Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM). Two of Luna's family members have been diagnosed with it, so Peyton Golden puppy parents have to pay attention to this!! For now, please avoid any food containing peas and potatoes to your English Cream Golden Retriever. There's a new FDA report out listing brands with the highest reported incidences of DCM. It looks like the brands with the worst record are also the brands with the most varieties containing peas. Why are they filling dog food with peas? My guess is that rather than adding more meat, peas are a cheap source of protein. Please note that many dog bones and treats also contain pea products. I'll be watching the latest research and providing updates here.
My conclusion: Look at the first 3 ingredients. They should be some form of meat. Dogs were made to eat meat.
Never feed a dog food with legumes in it. Read the fine print looking for ingredients.
Large companies have vets on staff formulating their foods. Not a guarantee, but better than nothing.
Update: I had the privilege of listening to Dr. Joshua Stern's lecture on Golden Retriever health. He's a geneticist and cardiologist researcher. Perfect! He's personally seeing these cases of DCM. What he emphasized is this:
There's definitely a food connection. He's broken the data down several ways, and the food/DCM connection is always there.
The problem with grain-free is that they replaced the grain with legumes - peas and potatoes.
At one point, he broke through with a plea. I quote "For the love of God, don't feed your Golden Retrievers peas or potatoes!"