New Evidence Connects Grain-Free Diets with Canine Heart Disease. Here’s How To Avoid Harmful Dog Foods

Dog owners across the US were shocked when the US Food and Drug Administration released a report that indicated a potential link between 16 brands of popularly available dog food, and canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), or canine heart disease. As a refresher, while the FDA did not mandate for owners to change their pets diets, the FDA’s Dr. Martine Hartogensis said the FDA is “concerned about reports of canine heart disease, known as dilated cardiomyopathy, in dogs that ate certain pet foods containing peas, lentils, or legumes or potatoes as their main ingredients.” 

 While we wrote about this report when it was first released by the FDA (see this post), we were somewhat surprised to find that the FDA has no new updates “planned at this time” on the link between DCM and certain dog food brands. 

As a group of concerned dog lovers, we’re always looking for the most up-to-date information on our pups’ health! We discovered that there is a new study, published on May 15, 2020, that actually corroborates the FDA’s previous findings.

In this study, conducted on a group of 86 golden retrievers, researchers discovered that “non-traditional diets, which were typically grain-free and contained legumes…were significantly associated with and have increased relative risk for the identification of taurine deficiency and echocardiographic abnormalities consistent with nutritionally-mediated DCM.” Perhaps most importantly, these updates “support the findings of multiple previous studies and the ongoing FDA investigation.” 

What does all this mean for you? One of the scariest parts about DCM is that it won’t show any notable symptoms until your dog is very sick. Because of this, you should take preventative measures against DCM and other heart diseases by consulting with your vet about diet choices.

When it comes down to it, commercial dog food that lacks nutritional balance isn’t a healthy option for a member of your family. If you’re looking for an alternative option, fresh dog food subscription companies are a healthier, higher quality option for dog owners who want to feed their dogs fresh, homemade meals, grain-free or not. Recently, there have been a lot of new companies on the scene, and while the products they’re selling are more expensive than traditional, dried dog food, a lot of people have made the switch. To help you understand your options, we’ve evaluated some of our favorite fresh dog food brands below:

What we love about Nom Nom is that they don’t sacrifice quality to give you the food your dog needs at an affordable price. Their recipes are developed by their own veterinary nutritionist, with fresh, whole, and natural ingredients in mind. Their food is never mass produced nor frozen, giving your dog fresh food made just days before it arrives in your dog’s bowl. 

Why we chose it

Personalized Expertise from Field Professionals:

Your dog will receive their custom formula after answering questions about their age, weight, body condition, and health issues. From there, Nom Nom will pick the best formula for your dog through an algorithm created by in-house veterinarian, Dr. Justin Shmalberg. If your pet has specific needs, you can work directly with Dr. Shmalberg to see if Nom Nom is the right fit. We love how hands-on this company is!

Cost Effective:

If your furry friend is a small dog, you can get Nom Nom for $41.28 for two weeks; for medium-sized dogs, $91.47; and for large dogs, $165.28. We know the price for larger dogs isn’t the lowest, but for the quality and amount of food, you can’t beat it.

Fresh and Easy Delivery:

Your food will be prepared just days before it arrives to you, and will be portioned in individual meals for easy feeding. You can choose your delivery frequency, and if you ever want to skip a delivery, you can do that, too. Nom Nom also works to reduce their carbon footprint, so packaging is all either recyclable or made from recycled materials.

Meal Diversity:

We love that with Nom Nom, you get four recipe options of beef mash, turkey fare, chicken chow, and pork potluck. Now that’s the buffet your dog wants to be at. If your dog didn’t like their first food recipe, you can always rotate recipes for no additional charge! You can also add additional recipes to your delivery for $5 per order. Not satisfied with Nom Nom after 30 days? You’ll receive a full refund.

Nom Nom is extending a limited time offer to our readers. Buy Nom Nom through this article and receive 50% off your first box for a limited time only.

The Farmer’s Dog puts an emphasis on vitamin and nutrient-rich foods. They want your dog to have a healthy, enjoyable life, versus giving them less nutritious food, just to make it through the day. Their focus is on fresh and natural food with an emphasis on environmentally friendly packaging.

Why we chose it

High Quality Ingredients: 

This company takes your dog’s well-being as seriously as you do. All ingredients are human-grade, from well-known food suppliers and local farms that comply with USDA standards. The ingredients are never processed and never feed-grade, giving your dog the highest-quality food possible. The recipes themselves are created by a team of board-certified veterinary nutritionists, ensuring each meal is balanced with proteins, vitamins, and minerals, all to AAFCO standards. Meals are prepared in a USDA kitchen and cooked at USDA-facility standards. The food is quickly frozen, so that it can be shipped as safely as possible, without adding preservatives. 

Environmentally Conscious:

The Farmer’s Dog tries to make each shipment as environmentally-friendly as possible. They deliver their food in a recyclable cardboard box, and biodegradable insulation. You can dissolve this insulation in the sink, or, if you have a compost pile, you can add it in! The food storage containers are also biodegradable, and the packs are BPA-free and non-toxic. If you’re looking for eco-friendly, it doesn’t get much more eco-friendly than The Farmer’s Dog.

Customization and Flexibility:

The Farmer’s Dog customizes your dog’s meal plan through questions including those about your dog’s size, activity level, and dietary needs. Afterwards, you’ll receive your dog’s food plan, which includes the nutritional info about each recipe. You can remove any recipes you think your dog won’t like. Now that’s a plus!

Worried your dog won’t love their new food? No worries necessary. The Farmer’s Dog can send you other recipes for your dog to try, or you can be refunded, if you donate the food to a shelter. Either option seems like a stellar one to us!

Convenient Delivery:

Depending on your plan, you can choose a flexible or recurring schedule. The Farmer’s Dog wants deliveries to be most convenient for you, so you can easily change your address, shipping times, and amounts of food. Meals come in serving packs, making it easy and convenient to feed your pup. You can store your dog’s food in the freezer and thaw in the fridge when it’s mealtime. You’ll receive a guide with your box on the best way to store your food, so you won’t be left with any questions when unpacking your box.

The Farmer’s Dog is extending a limited time offer to our readers. Buy The Farmer’s Dog now through this article and receive 50% off your first box for a limited time only.

Their focus is on human-grade ingredients for your dog–– because why shouldn’t your dog eat the most nutritious food out there? Ollie creates their recipes with hormone-free chicken, high-quality beef and turkey, and pasture-raised, free-range lamb. They also love throwing superfoods into their food, like chia seeds, and sneak in fruits and veggies, like blueberries and spinach, for the highest nutritional density.

Why we chose it

Ethical Sourcing and Food Process

Ollie’s formula is formulated by a team of specialized veterinarians and handmade in small batches in a USDA certified facility. Cooked with a kettle cooker at low temperatures for maximum nutrition and freshness, Ollie’s dog food is then sent to third-party testers, who check for taste and quality. Ollie makes sure all your dog’s individual needs are being catered to in their personal dog quiz where Ollie asks about breed, weight, activity, and health conditions such as allergies and skin conditions. Ollie offers a variety of homemade style recipes (Healthy Turkey Feast, Hearty Beef Eats, Chicken Goodness, and Tasty Lamb Fare) that serve each of your dog’s specific needs.

Ordering Experience and Customer Satisfaction

To make sure your Ollie dog food is customized to your dog’s needs, Ollie customers take a quiz asking about their dog’s age, breed, weight, activity level, and allergies. Then, Ollie customers get to choose from a variety of flavor options and whether they want to feed their dog’s meals to be completely Ollie, or whether they want to use Ollie as a supplement to other dog food. The easy customization process and amount of choice here really blew us away! Ollie also really seems to care about customer satisfaction. If for any reason your dog doesn’t like their recipe, Ollie also offers to send you a different recipe or refund your starter box.

Convenient Packaging and Storage

The Ollie packaging stuck out as the best of any of the other competitors. The individual food packets peeled open easily, unlike the pouches from The Farmer’s Dog which needed scissors to open (I know this sounds lazy, but not needing to clean scissors every time you feed your dog is a life-saver!). The Ollie box came with a cute and convenient branded resealable box that makes for easy and clean storage within your fridge. Ollie’s custom portion scooper makes getting your dog’s serving size perfect every time.

Education and Ease of Transition

Transitioning your dog to a new brand of dog food can be difficult, especially if they’ve never eaten real, whole ingredients before. The box included a super helpful information packet on how best to transition your dog to fresh food, which is especially useful for those transitioning from kibble for the first time. Additionally, only Ollie offered a free probiotic pack to help your dog’s shift to a higher-quality diet. The probiotics ensure your dog’s smooth transition at no additional cost.

Ollie is extending a limited time offer to our readers. Buy Ollie now through this article and receive an exclusive 50% off your first box for a limited time only, if you buy though their site you’ll only receive a 20% discount.

Our team at Insider Envy are not veterinarians, we just care deeply about dogs. We participate in a small number of affiliate programs, meaning we may receive compensation when you buy items after clicking a link on Insider Envy. Please consult an expert such as a veterinarian or pet nutritionist if you believe your dog needs a change in their diet, or may be at risk for DCM or any other disease.