Does Pet Food Cause Health Problems?
Hello Dr. Barchas,
Don’t you think that the pet food that is
available for our dogs and cats is one of the
major reasons they have huge health problems?
Kimberly
Mt Maunganui, Bay Of Plenty, New Zealand
In a way, I do. But it’s probably not the way that you’re talking about.
In developed countries, diseases such as thyroid conditions, kidney failure, cancer and heart failure are becoming more common among pets. There is rampant speculation about what causes many of these syndromes. Breeding, chemical body burden, and yes, diet probably play a role. But there is one factor that is not in dispute. All of the problems listed above occur most often in older animals.
Another thing that is not in dispute: on average, animals in developed countries are living longer than in the past. There is no doubt that the increased life expectancy that animals now enjoy is playing a role in the increased prevalence of cancer, hyper(and hypo)thyroidism, heart failure and kidney failure.
I am not saying that increased life expectancy is the only factor involved in this phenomenon. But it definitely is a factor.
Now, consider developing countries. In recent years, I have observed dogs and cats in Nicaragua, Mongolia, Laos, El Salvador and Botswana (among others). The diseases that are so common in the US, New Zealand, and other developed countries are basically unheard of in developing nations. The explanation is simple. Animals in developing countries don’t live long enough to develop these problems.
Animals in developed countries live longer, on average, for a number of reasons. Cats are more likely to be kept indoors. Pets are more likely to be spayed or neutered. They are more likely to receive vaccines. They are more likely to receive basic medical care and be treated for parasites. And they are more likely to be fed pet food.
I am not saying that the pet foods on the market now are perfect. History may reveal tremendous problems with them. There is always room for improvement. We may discover in the future that certain ingredients in pet foods promote some of the diseases mentioned in this post.
However, there is no doubt that the currently available pet foods represent a massive improvement over the diets that animals receive in developing countries–table scraps, garbage and prey animals.
The widespread use of pet food has contributed to increased life expectancies for pets. So yes, in that sense pet foods are contributing to the increase in health problems that we are seeing in the developed world.
For those of you who want my opinion on which food is the best: I weighed in on that matter a while back. Click here to see what I had to say.
For more information on dogs in developing countries, I recommend the book Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior, and Evolution by Raymond Coppinger and Lorna Coppinger (Scribner, 2001).
You have questions. 
I never thought about that. All these new and unusual ailments our pets suffer became common around the same time it became common for dogs and cats to live long lives.
Very interesting.
Have you seen a dog get lathargic after administering Advantage20 flea medication?
Aw, c’mon. Answer the question!
Someone with a 17-year-old cat or dog loves that animal no matter what her age and wants her to live as long and healthy a life as possible. So given that these geriatric-related disease are more likely to occur in our well-cared for animals, what foods do you feel are best for them?
Is wet better than dry? Raw better than canned? Grain-free better than grain-filled? What about the inclusion of wheat, soy, corn (common allergens)? What other ingredients do we need to look out for?
This topic is hot because it’s one that people care about greatly. So please don’t punt. What do you recommend?
Andrea, did you click on the link in the second-to-last paragraph?
you need to have more infornation !
WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF GIVING MY G SHEPHERD ABOUT 2TBL 2 TIMES A WEEK..OF ” EV OLIVE OIL”IS IT BENEFICIAL ,OR CAN IT CAUSE PROBLEMS.. I MIX IT WITH HIS FOOD
We have a 5 year old Cane Corso. Can the brand/ type of dog food make a difference on his teeth? They started bleeding lately and he will only eat his food if we put water in it and leave it to get mushy. Please let us know if there is anything we should be doing differently.
[...] recent comment caught my [...]
So, Dr.B,
Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Brewers Rice, Ground Whole Grain Corn, Animal Fat (preserved mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Powdered Cellulose, Chicken Liver Flavor, Soybean Mill Run, Soybean Oil, with added supplementation (SD “hairball light maturity” for male Tuxedo Cats :))
is better for a cat than eating natural prey???
Cats as they age should not be getting so many diseases like diabetes, obesity, FLUTD and UTI’s, CKD, IBD, cancer. And actually we are seeing these diseases with younger and younger cats. We don’t know for sure why cats in underdeveloped nations don’t get some of these diseases, and not all of them die younger.
Something is amiss with what we have been told to feed our cats.
Certainly, the conventional dry food diet is not the only factor in many of these diseases, but if it is a factor (and it is one), that is certainly something we can control. So why not address proper diet as a proactive, health-promoting choice for our felines?
Do you know why Cornell U recommends feeding canned food as the one food to prevent a number of diseases? This was recommended in one of their Cat Alert newsletters (sorry don’t have the link)?
It is time for the vet profession, including you, to take a stand on some of the issues with the conventional dry food diet that we have been told to feed our cats. And you must look at and address your association/relationship with some of these pet food companies. Neutrality may be damaging many precious cats.
Lots of healthy purrs from the kitcat gang.