leaughxp said:
Thanks that doesn't seem too bad, not much more than the Science diet. I was reading that many dogs are allergic to their food and the many ingredients that are known or suspevted to be carcinogens or lead to liver and kidney failure. It makes me curious if the Science diet could have contributed to my Westie's death. I know things can always go wrong, but learning about how bad the food was we feed him makes me wonder if it had anything to do with it.
Believe me... I do understand your concerns! Our Jack Russell Terrier, Lucy recently went totally blind (early September) from something called SARD's (Suddenly Acquired Retinal Degeneration) at only a little over 2 1/2 years old! Lucy had always been very healthy, other than having itchy skin (non-flea related)... and mild, as far as she didn't have skin infections, scabs etc. but just seemed to constantly be scratching. We changed her kibble to Nutro Lamb & Rice (recommended by our vet... not the brand... but "a" lamb & rice food) which she had been on since she was about 10 weeks old. The only other thing in Lucy's life that I can pin-point as a health issue would be a reaction to her last rabies vaccination. She lost all of the hair on her hip in a 3 inch circle... and the skin looked very scabby for a long time. The vet said this was a problem most common to small dogs, and that she might not grow hair back (probably a 90% chance she wouldn't!) but after about 1 year she did grow all the hair back in that spot.
So... after Lucy went blind... and learning that the cause of SARD's is "unknown" (and it is not known to be inherited like some other eye problems in specific breeds) I wanted answers to what MIGHT be the cause of this! The only answers I've found are only "guesses" and are poor diet, over-vaccination, yard chemicals, flea treatment chemicals etc., and stressful events. I started with diet, and while I had always "thought" Nutro was just a wonderful food, I learned there were many others that would have been better... and not much more money (as you mentioned) and I know all of us would spend more on our dog foods... if we just KNEW back then... before our dogs had health problems!
Lucy has had all of the "normally" given vaccinations. As far as I "know" the rabies shot was the only reaction Lucy's had, and this vaccine is required by law here, every 3 years. There is something called a "titers test" that is a blood test to check the levels of certain vaccines in the system... and will tell whether dogs need to be re-vaccinated with certain vaccines. I have a name, and am planning to switch Lucy to a holistic vet before she is due for anymore vaccinations. I plan to do the titers test, and will not vaccinate her unless it is needed. She also has been on "Advantage" for fleas off and on, because of her itchy skin. Other than when she came home from the breeder at 8 weeks (she had terrible fleas then!) there has been no sign of fleas... and we used the Advantage (also vet recommended!) as more a... just in case thing!
As far as the other things that might be connected to possibly causing SARD's... we don't use chemicals on the lawn, weeds etc. We have also been with Lucy every day since she was 8 weeks old. There was no stress at all in her life (that we can think of) but was told that when we adopted Holly (our Rat Terrier in July, 1 1/2 months before Lucy went blind) it COULD be a sort of "good" stress! Hmmm... and this could still be considered stressful!
So.... from all of the things I've learned... diet by changing kibble has been my best start! I also went through all the research on feeding a raw diet, home-cooked diet etc. I totally overwhelmed myself with all the information out there! From what I've learned, feeding a raw, or home-cooked diet has risks... worry about choking on bones, bacteria, including the right vitamins/minerals etc. to the diet. After being on several information lists on the pro/cons of these diets.. my own observation was... even dogs on raw, or home cooked meals still have health problems!
Just like humans... we can't explain how a man/woman on what would be considered a "perfect diet" for the most part, plenty of exercise etc. could have been diagnosed with a certain cancer?? We can only do the best we know for ourselves... and there are still no guarantees! This seems to be pretty much the same with our beloved pets... we can do everything we know how to do... and can only hope this will be enough to keep them healthy & happy... and anything else is beyond our control!
Karen
http://www.dogster.com/?81610
Lucy & Holly