Thank you SO much for your post along with the two links - - it allows much needed discussion, as i am sure, many are still worried about this.......especially with their EPI dogs and the recommendation to feed food with little or no grain in it to start with until the dog is stable and then try grain food if you want..........
I have tried to address things by key topics that i hope helps others that may be concerned...
PEAS
Peas have clinically been proven not to be the best for our EPI dogs..... there is research on this that i have had on this website for a couple of years from performed by Dr. Mosseler/Hannover UNiv in Germany who worked with EPI mini-pigs and cystic fibrosis.... however even when clinically proven peas cause the most problems for EPI dogs vs. other starches/fiber..... that still does not mean every single EPI dog cannot tolerate peas.... as we can attest to this from over 10 years of 24/7 data. But because we do know too many peas cause an upset in too many of our pups.... we strongly suggest to avoid too many peas in any of our EPI dogs diet until the dog is really stable and then (only if you want to) try other foods (including peas, rice, etc) to see what/how much they can tolerate, if any. Most people, once the dog is stable don't like to rock the boat.... i am sure you know what i mean
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LECTINS
Regarding the lectins causing an issue..... that all makes sense, except for the fact that, as they did mention in this article, you can remove virtually all the lectin toxicity by cooking..... and you have to consume large amounts.... so this doesn't really apply either.
The fact that they are also saying that this may drive gut permeability and trigger an autoimmune disease.... our EPI dogs already have the "autoimmune" condition first and THEN we suggest low fiber content food found in the grain free section due to the fact that grains can inhibit the efficacy of the enzymes... which are needed by the EPI dogs to live..
HEART PROBLEMS
Regarding the heart problems that is all over the news now. I urge you to read the post we have here regarding that information :
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=62&start=10&hilit=S ... 96455769b4
in more relevant detail and how, sadly, so many details of this has not been fully shared with the public and then how the public takes sound-bites and further scares the public... sometimes with some warrant, but more often needlessly.
Just a FYI we can also attest to over 10 years of data with well over 5,000 EPI dog cases (who usually are on grain-free food) that i can only recall at the most, maybe 5 or less cases of heart problems. And i have no idea what triggeed these heart problems .. genetics, or some other health condition or what.....
LEAKY GUT
Although i can easily see how some might think that there is a connection with our EPI pups and Leaky Gut, per various internet drs/vets.....( i too wondered years ago if tnhis was a possibility) ... HOWEVER.......... research has recently been done at TAMU with EPI dogs and SID (small intestinal dysbiosis) formerly called SIBO.... that it has nothing to do with leaky gut syndrome.... but rather they now know that all EPI dogs have SID, even when we do not see any SID signs..... what they have discovered is that the gut flora of an EPI dog is really messed up- -more so than IBD dogs, and more so than any other dog with any other gastrointestinal condition. Yep... our dogs are pretty special and in a class all by themselves!!
EPI dogs do not have enough bacteria and they do not have enough of a variety of bacteria to name a few things wrong with their gut..... this has nothing to do with peas or leaky gut, etc..... ...... the problem is that these reports is that they are generalizing......they are lumping all dogs together.... WELL... EPI dogs have a health concern that can be impacted with grain. The fact that their gut flora is different, the fact that they HAVE to be on enzymes with every piece of food that passes their lips, the fact that grain can inhibit the enzymatic activity anywhere from 0% to 50% depending on the individual EPI dog.... the fact that our dogs NEED enzymes to live. When you look at the whole picture automatically avoiding all grain food should be at the bottom of consideration with an EPI dog- -but maybe what each of us should do is do a better job of researching the components of any commercial dog food we are feeding our EPI pups AND we should also be taking these news reports and doing our own research for more details to see what really might be going on and then make an educated decision.... to the best of our ability with the data we have for now.
KIBBLE
IMHO i am with you 110% regarding kibble..... again after being excessively immersed in this dog business for well over 10 years.... i have seen some commercial dog foods help some dogs, especially when they were sick, but i have also seen many commercial dog foods actually make many, many dogs sick...and even cause death. I am all for home-feeding if you can... at least that way you KNOW what your dog is getting, or at least you have a better chance of knowing what your dog is getting by preparing it yourself. Nothing is 100% fool proof.....But i also realize, that some folks are just not in a position to home feed their dogs.... so they do the best they can with commercial foods. So we all do the very best that we can......
