The Best Dog Food for Congestive Heart Failure Could Save Your Dog’s Life
Any pet owner wants the best for their dogs. Unfortunately, sometimes we have to face that our beloved dog has medical conditions that must be addressed. For this particular article, let us focus on what is canine congestive heart failure and how to make nutritionally sound choices to avoid the congestive heart failure in your dog.
Congestive heart failure is the result of an aberration in the dog’s heart structure and function. Usually, what happens is that this deficiency causes the dog’s heart to decrease its ability to pump blood effectively which leads to ultimate cardiac failure for the already weakened dog. There are often no telltale signs of this ailment until it is in its final stages so we would do well to learn the best dog food for congestive heart failure – it is one of the most effective tools to avoid this from happening to your pet.
As with humans, a reduced salt diet will greatly help in maintaining the health of the cardiovascular system. Try cooking ¼ lb of lean beef ground meat with 2 cups of unsalted rice and 2 teaspoons dicalcium phosphate in vegetable oil. You can also use premium commercial pet food but check the nutritional content and consult with your vet before making any changes in the dog’s diet and lifestyle.
Another essential nutrient that should preferably be compounded in your dog’s daily meal is Omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 seems to not only reduce the risk of congestive heart illnesses for dogs, but with other equally critical heart ailments as well. Common and accessible sources of Omega-3 fatty acids are sea food and fish oils.
Vitamin E can also raise the antioxidant levels in the dog’s cardiovascular reserves. Studies have constantly shown that Vitamin E helps animals suffering from heart complications. When you are using a particular pet food, be sure to check that it has not been in storage for a very long period of time – especially if it has a high unsaturated fat content. This is one contributing factor in depleting the pet’s Vitamin E leve.
Other nutrients that aid in improved canine cardiovascular function are L-carnitine and Taurine. L-carnitine enhances the dog’s heart rate, exercise tolerance and protection against some heart diseases. L-carnitine in partner with Taurine is acknowledged as good helpers in maintaining heart health for animals. Taurine in particular is thought to extend the life expectancy of dogs with congestive heart diseases.
When considering the best dog food for congestive heart failure, do not forget also the importance of exercise in relation to preventive measures of canine congestive heart failure. A symptom of this ailment is the animal’s extreme exhaustion after exercising; so when you notice that the dog is exhibiting signs of labored breathing and extreme tiredness—take him to the vet for diagnosis right away.
Hearing news of a dear pet’s life threatening condition is often heartbreaking. A little effort and learning about the best dog food for dog congestive heart failure will go a long way in keeping your dog’s heart health. Bear this in mind and enjoy your dog’s best years yet.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 29th, 2009 at 4:24 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.