Pets With Health Problems

Many health conditions can result in pets who cannot or will not eat enough calories to maintain weight or will not eat foods that are best for their health conditions. Placement of a feeding tube can help the pet recover faster from short-term illness or injury as well as helping to preserve quality of life and often increasing length of life for pets with chronic health conditions.

Older pets can suffer from Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome, which is similar to dementia in people. While the disease is irreversible, some nutritional alterations have been shown to help affected pets

Two recently published studies suggest that blood and saliva testing should not be used for the diagnosis of food allergies in dogs.

What’s the best diet to feed when your pet has more than one disease? Many dogs or cats have more than one health condition that may benefit from nutritional changes, and this makes selection of an optimal diet even more complicated.

There is no ‘one-diet-fits-all’ approach to diabetes: body condition, pet preferences, and other diseases or medical conditions will guide the best diet for a dog with diabetes. Though there are some differing approaches for optimal nutrition in dogs with diabetes, the one strategy that is most agreed upon is to keep the diet consistent – use the same food, same treats and feed and give insulin at the same times every day!

Many pets may have mild gastrointestinal signs with diet changes or related to being fed certain diets, supplements, or treats. Once major medical issues are ruled out, here’s a step-by-step plan to get to the bottom of things.

While we want pets to have a nice, shiny coat, having a shiny coat does not always mean the diet is best for your pet, since high fat diets, even if they are not good quality ones, will typically give pets a shiny coat. However, in addition to the absolute fat content, here are some other components of a pet’s diet that can help in skin and coat conditions.

Most of us know how important a balanced diet is for our own optimal health. The same holds true for our pets. For Max, a Samoyed suffering from painful hip dysplasia, conservatively managing his orthopedic condition with weight loss avoided the need for surgery.

Dr. Freeman provides tips for getting your pet to eat their therapeutic diet

Dr. Freeman provides an update on diet-associated dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs