Feeding & Food Alerts

Contents

Clever Trevor
World 60-weave record holder Wenya Ready Trevor has faced lots of problems in his short life. He will celebrate his sixth birthday this year, but there were times when his owner Traci Gaunt thought he would never make it. Ann Shear tells how Traci battled and got Trevor's gluten allergy under control and how he went on to find his place in the Guinness Book of Records. (03/04/01)

Death by Chocolate Updated
Candy is dandy, but not for dogs. Chocolate made for human consumption can cause death in dogs. It contains a chemical called theobromine which is toxic to dogs. Even small amounts of it can cause: vomiting. diarrhoea. With the holidays coming, it seems an appropriate time to repeat the message, repeat the message, repeat the message...

Know Your Onions
Joyce Dobson wrote to a popular dog magazine to find out if the rumour that she had heard about onions had any truth in it. She was very surprised by their reply. Here's what she found out.

Performance Diets
Agility dogs are considered intermediate athletes and, as such, have special nutritional needs. They are required to jump, climb, stop, start and change direction at the drop of a hat. Whether you do agility for fun or compete seriously, the nutrition of your agility dog plays an important role in his performance. While it is not a substitute for training understanding what we feed our dogs can only benefit their performance. Dr Marge Chandler was commissioned by Purina ProPlan to look into the matter.

Poison Alert
Beware... autumn is toadstool season! Mushrooms may be tasty on pizzas and in omelettes but they can be lethal to dogs. Bernadette Bay was heartbroken when her little sheltie Hex died after eating what was believed to be a deadly mushroom. Initially it caused kidney failure, then systemic inflammatory response syndrome and finally death.

Sour Grapes
Beware. Grapes and raisins can be toxic to dogs when ingested in large quantities. Kate Prosser found out the heartbreaking way when her Vizsla Anya died from acute renal failure after ingesting a 500g. bag of raisins. (18/01/03)

Xylitol Warning
Sugarless gum containing Xylitol is especially dangerous to dogs. Enough Xylitol is seldom eaten by a dog for it to be fatal. But, it can cause still cause coma, seizures, and/or weakness. (04/06/08)