Some of the affected dogs with diet-related DCM had low blood taurine levels and improved with a diet change and taurine supplementation. Certain breeds (Golden Retrievers, Cocker Spaniels, Newfoundlands, English Setters, Saint Bernards and Irish Wolfhounds may be more at risk (genetically susceptible?) to taurine deficiency. The FDA took care to note that the diets themselves have adequate taurine levels, but dogs being fed these diets did not. The current theory is that something within these ingredients is binding taurine or its building blocks within the gut or that they are interfering with normal metabolism of taurine, causing patients to become deficient. We still don’t know what is causing dogs to become taurine deficient on these diets. In July 2018, the FDA issued a warning that these boutique, exotic ingredient and grain-free diets may be contributing to taurine deficient DCM. Many dog and cat foods add taurine to their diets. Taurine is an amino acid that dogs are normally able to synthesize from other amino acids in food. Not all dogs with taurine deficiency have DCM, and not all dogs with diet-related DCM have measurable taurine deficiency, but these cases may respond to a diet change and taurine supplementation.If cost is an issue, measurement of whole blood taurine is thought to be a better indicator of long-term taurine status. Taurine deficiency is diagnosed using a blood test, either on whole blood or plasma.If DCM is diagnosed through an echo cardiogram in a dog that is eating a boutique, exotic, grain-free, vegetarian or home-prepared diets, then discussion of testing for taurine deficiency is warranted.Dilated cardiomyopathy is diagnosed by an echo cardiogram by a board-certified cardiologist.Diet-related Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)ĭr. The other observation is that the companies implicated do not employ a board-certified nutritionist and often these foods have not been subjected to feeding trials on dogs. The common link is that these diets contain one or more suspect ingredients: Legumes (peas, chickpeas, lentils, soybeans, beans) and Potatoes (Red potatoes, White potatoes, Sweet potatoes). The FDA has been compiling cases and has issued a warning that these diets may be contributing to the development of nutritional-related DCM. It has been suggested that there are dogs with genetic/non-diet related DCM, dogs with DCM related to a deficiency of an amino acid taurine, and dogs with DCM associated with other, unidentified dietary factors. Some of these dogs were unrelated yet came from the same household and there was a trend that these dogs were mainly eating food categorized as grain-free, boutique, or exotic ingredient. However, the recent concern is that veterinary cardiologists have been diagnosing more DCM in breeds of dogs that are not commonly genetically predisposed. Many dogs will not display symptoms until the heart disease gets very advanced.ĭCM is commonly caused by a genetic/inherited predisposition in certain breeds of dogs as they age (Doberman Pinschers, Great Danes, Irish Wolfhounds, Cocker Spaniels). This can lead to signs like exercise intolerance, collapse, problems breathing, coughing and even sudden death. Diet-related Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)ĭilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a form of heart disease in which the heart muscle shows poor contractility and enlargement.
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