Sharon M. Albright, DVM, CCRT Manager of Communications & Veterinary Outreach AKC Canine Health Foundation December 2019
Diet-Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy Trisha Brenner was shocked when her active, five-year-old Weimaraner named Charlie collapsed on a walk in November of 2018. “Charlie had been healthy, except for some allergic dermatitis symptoms he experienced as a young dog,” she states. Those symptoms resolved after a diet change recommended by a board-certified veterinary dermatologist. Unfortunately, the same diet that helped his skin disease was now believed to be the cause of Charlie’s collapse. Trisha shares that “Charlie was diagnosed with suspected diet-related dilated cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle that led to congestive heart failure.”
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) occurs when the heart muscle becomes weak and loses the ability to contract normally and pump blood throughout the body. A genetic predisposition is suspected since some breeds, such as Doberman Pinschers, Great Danes, and Boxers, are more commonly affected. Deficiencies in some amino acids (such as taurine and carnitine) are believed to influence the disease in some breeds such as Boxers and American Cocker Spaniels. However, in the past few years, veterinarians began to diagnose DCM more frequently and in breeds such as Golden Retrievers and mixed breeds not typically predisposed to this disease. A common thread among affected dogs was the consumption of foods containing peas, lentils, other legume seeds, or potatoes as main ingredients. This led the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to initiate an investigation into the potential link between DCM and these foods in July 2018. The veterinary community, along with the FDA, has been compiling and analyzing data on diet-related dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs to get a handle on the frequency, severity, and cause of this disease. While dog-owners are anxious for answers, the problem is complex, and the cause is likely multifactorial. Several research studies are underway to explore these factors, including a multi-institutional, prospective study supported by the AKC Canine Health Foundation (CHF). CHF Grant 02661: Investigation into DietAssociated Dilated Cardiomyopathy in Dogs provides funding to determine the extent of diet-related heart problems in dogs. Investigators
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