Respiratory Disease Killing Dogs
I am not a doctor, scientist, or expert in anything. This content should not be construed as advice or recommendation, but is intended for entertainment and informational purposes only.
A mystery illness was “sweeping” across the nation a couple of months ago sickening thousands of dogs and even killing some of them. I haven’t dug deep into this illness to see if they ever actually nailed down the cause, but some experts were pointing to a previously unknown bacterium as a potential cause of the disease.
This respiratory disease mimics many other respiratory diseases so it could actually be any number of viruses or bacteria that are sickening dogs and isn’t a new illness at all. I’m sure many have forgotten, but a number of years ago dogs and cats were getting sick in droves due to food being contaminated with a cheap ingredient from China that pet food processors were using.
This most recent illness is somewhat oldish news, and was a hot topic for a minute or two around Thanksgiving. I’m guessing it had more to do with a slow news cycle than the severity of the illness impacting dogs, but it’s a good lead in to a larger topic about our pets.
First, every animal has the potential to get sick, and just like in humans, illnesses tend to go in waves when a new pathogen is encountered or an old one comes back around. How an animal fares when it does encounter a pathogen is similar to how humans respond. We are all animals after all, and share similar physiology.
If a dog or cat is healthy prior to infection from a pathogen, odds are very good that they will be minimally impacted, if at all, and should recover fully. If they are unhealthy prior to infection, odds are much higher that they will suffer greater distress and possibly die.
But do we know what makes for a healthy pet? We don’t seem to know what makes for a healthy human so I can’t imagine we know what is a healthy pet.
If we take our pets to the veterinarian on a regular basis, get all the vaccinations, and feed them their respective designated pet foods and treats then they should be healthy, right?
If we do all of those things and our pets still seem to get sick or have physical or behavioral issues, then they must have lost the genetic lottery. It’s really the same mindset most us in this country have about ourselves.
If you are a longer term subscriber to this blog, you know by now that I’m convinced this line of reasoning is pure bullshit for humans, and it’s also bullshit for our pets.
Without doubt some animals come from family lines that have been so inbred to maintain purity that they do have some genetic issues. But anecdotal evidence gleaned from my own life, and the lives of my pets serves as proof for me that it mainly boils down to lifestyle.
Most pets’ lifestyles resemble that of their owners. In America, the average person spends a lot of time indoors, gets little physical activity, and eats poorly even though they may think they are eating somewhat healthy.
I’ll avoid the vaccination topic for the moment, but undoubtedly our pets are over-vaccinated just like their human counterparts.
Our pets spend most of the time indoors because we think the outdoors is dangerous, therefore they don’t get much sun exposure and physical activity.
Probably 95%+ of pet foods and treats are absolute garbage even though they are formulated for pets. For example, here are the ingredients in the Adult Chicken & Barley dog food from Science Diet:
Chicken, Cracked Pearled Barley, Whole Grain Wheat, Whole Grain Corn, Whole Grain Sorghum, Corn Gluten Meal, Soybean Meal, Chicken Fat, Brewers Rice, Chicken Liver Flavor, Chicken Meal, Dried Beet Pulp, Soybean Oil, Pork Flavor, Lactic Acid, Calcium Carbonate, Flaxseed, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Iodized Salt, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of Vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), Taurine, minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Oat Fiber, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, Natural Flavors, Beta-Carotene, Apples, Broccoli, Carrots, Cranberries, Green Peas.
First, this is a dry kibble which means these ingredients have been ground to powder and heated at extremely high temperatures destroying any living nutrient content. Chicken is a mainstay ingredient in most dog foods not because it’s healthier, but simply because it’s cheaper.
7 out of the top 10 ingredients are grains or are grain derived, and a multitude of poorly absorbed synthetic vitamins and minerals are thrown in because this burned up nugget of food would be absolutely devoid of any actual nutrition whatsoever without them.
Grains and legumes such as peas and chickpeas are nothing but filler added in to hit protein and calorie targets regardless of their inferiority.
This food is little more than empty calories, and full potential allergens that most animals would consume very little of in the wild. It's relatively inexpensive, but it results in nutrient deficiencies and is a far cry from a dog or cat's ideal evolutionary diet.
If you have a pet suffering from allergies, excessive shedding, joint problems, gut issues, behavioral issues, halitosis, teeth and gum issues, diabetes, kidney problems, hormone or thyroid issues, obesity, etc., odds are very good it’s related to the food and treats they’re consuming.
Cats are even more affected by these ingredients than dogs, and you often see diabetes and kidney issues as they age. The worst thing to do is fill a bowl up with dry kibble for cats and let them snack throughout the day.
Even the higher quality dry foods are still inferior and contain too many filler ingredients. Some of the wet foods are slightly better, but most are still highly processed and contain a lot of filler products.
Now let’s envision for a moment the life of a dog or cat in the wild. Are they siting on couches eating dried out kibble or maybe some wet slop from a can? Are they finding Greenies that grow in the wild or some other wheat based treat? Pretty sure not.
They spend much more time in the open outdoors. They still rest a lot, but their survival is based on finding sources of food and shelter so they move far more.
First and foremost, they are carnivores and meat is the optimal food for carnivores. Cats in the wild eat mostly animals they kill, but dogs are more opportunistic and will consume some plant foods in order to survive.
Grains as we have known them for the past 20,000 or so years do not just grow on their own, but need a great deal of human intervention.
If we removed humans from the scene, wild cats and dogs would not have grain to consume, at least certainly not in the current form and quantity they are consuming today.
They also aren’t going to eat peas, chickpeas, beans or other legumes except what might naturally grow and drop to the ground.
Dogs will eat some fruits that drop, and berries that are accessible when available. It’s unlikely they would find a field of broccoli or kale growing nor would they be likely to eat it unless they were desperate, but vegetables such as wild squashes (which are really fruits) would be a source of food. Some insects might end up on the menu.
Dogs would probably eat some nuts when and where available if they can crack the outer husk to get to the flesh. Moose, one of our dogs, seems to love acorns although he eats far fewer than he did when we first got him from the shelter. He still loves the tiny cherries that drop on sidewalks though.
But animal meat will be their primary preference. Since they have to consider how much energy they expend, they are going to go after the biggest bang for their energy buck.
Most birds provide very little beyond a small amount of protein and are harder to catch, but will do in a pinch. Small critters such as mice, rats, squirrels, rabbits, etc. will be better sources of protein and critical fat. Larger dogs will take down larger prey.
They will eat almost every part of whatever they catch including the prized organs which have the highest nutrient content. They will gnaw on bones to get every bit of flesh and break larger bones to get to the marrow.
Shep, our 15 year old dog, suffered for several years from intermittent gut problems that became more consistent to the point I was getting up most nights to let him out so he could unload a pile of soft serve poop outside instead of in the bed.
The noises coming from his gut sounded like a circus was happening, and his breath was also atrocious which is usually a sign of a bacterial imbalance in the gut.
I had already changed to what would be considered a higher quality dry food, and was giving him what I thought was higher quality wet canned food, but the problems persisted. About a year and a half ago, I started making food for our dogs and changed their treats.
Almost immediately, Shep’s gut issues resolved, and I can’t remember the last time I had to get up during the night to let him out.
Admittedly, both of our dogs are small and smaller dogs tend to have longer lives than large breeds, but that doesn’t mean that small dogs thrive in their later years. Most of the small dogs I’ve seen at 15 years of age are in poor health.
Shep (L) and Moose (R)
Shep is losing his hearing, and he may have picked up the respiratory disease this past summer that’s hitting other dogs. He has a cough that sounds like Bordetella (kennel cough) but he still runs around, jumps on the couch, likes to play, and people are blown away when they find out he’s 15.
Real food is not inexpensive, but I’m all about quality of life and I want my animals to be happy, healthy, and thriving so why feed them food and treats that do the opposite?
Plus, how much do those vet bills and medications cost? And, what did dogs and cats eat prior to pet food processing companies anyway?
There are more high quality wet food options available now. What I make for my dogs ends up costing less, but it does take some time to prepare. I still feed our dogs some kibble (Acana Limited Ingredient), but it only makes up about a third of their daily food intake.
The food I make is a mixture of ground beef, eggs, apples, blueberries, raw honey, coconut oil, beef organ supplements (the same ones I take), and a bone matrix supplement. I drop in 1,000 IUs of vitamin D3 3-4 days a week, and add some bone broth to their food on occasion.
They also eat some pork, bacon, fish, chicken and beef liver every once in a while. Their treats are freeze dried organ treats such as liver, lung, and spleen which I get at Scheel’s, but they’re easy to find online and at most pet retailers. They also get marrow bones and beef knuckles bones.
The body and its physiology, whether it is human, dog, cat, cow, horse, etc., is infinitely complex, but good health is not complicated. Our pets will still get sick and sometimes die earlier than we want, but just like us, the closer we can get our pets to their evolutionary diets and lifestyles, the healthier they will be and the better their quality of life.
Cheers to your and your pet’s good health!