| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
For some of us, coconuts conjure up images of palm trees and tropical locales. For others, they take us back to mouth-watering memories of our mother’s home-baked coconut cream pie—or even the sweet, gooey center of our favorite childhood candy bar! But did you know that besides tasting delicious, the oil pressed from the meat…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
In a post on garlic toxicity I listed the known toxic food to pets, with avocados among them. But people often approach me, insistent that avocados are not toxic to companion animals. Clearly, there is much debate on this topic among both pet parents and veterinary professionals. So, let’s clear up the confusion and settle…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
As those of you who read my posts and follow my work are aware, I advocate that optimum health begins with optimum nutrition. This is not just an opinion—it is a fact born out by the latest scientific research, which is focused on functional foods designed for the individual person or animal. This is also…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
Our discussion of food transitioning begins with an assumption: You plan to transition from one commercial formula that you have fed exclusively to a new commercial formula that you will feed exclusively (until the time you want or need to transition for some reason to yet another formula that you will feed exclusively.) Now, even…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
A publisher of market research in the food, beverage, consumer packaged goods, and demographic sectors—Packaged Facts—reported that 89% of pet owners surveyed purchase kibble, 10% steer towards natural/organic and 6% buy grain-free foods. I was surprised by these findings since the grain-free trend is skyrocketing, and did not think these figures accurately reflected what…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
The earlier chicken jerky crisis and the prior and current pet food recalls— mostly from bacterial or other contamination, presence of heavy metals, and toxic levels of vitamin D — have raised consumer awareness levels about food sourcing. The pets who became critically ill or passed away are truly angel sentinels who saved thousands…
| By W. Jean Dodds, DVM | 0 Comments
Animals with kidney disease or kidney dysfunction should not eat lower protein diets; as this commonly held belief is misleading. As long as the protein source in their diet is of high quality, such as white fish and eggs and easily digestible, it helps kidney function and overall body nutrition. It is the lower quality, poorly…
