Gluten Free Dogs

We got our dog, Buddy, 6 years ago today. Although I don’t consider myself a ‘Dog Lover’ I felt that it was important for my girls to grow up with a dog. We love our dog and we treat his diet with the same care that we treat ours. About a year after we had Buddy, I realized by accident that he does much better on wheat free dog food. What happened was I wanted to buy some food for him that I did not have to worry about during Passover. Then I realized that the wheat free dog food was so much better for him that I never went back again. You see, cats and dogs are by nature meat eaters. Dogs and cats are carnivorous animals that need little or no carbohydrates in their food. The wheat gluten in many commercial dog and cat foods is unnatural to their diet and may be harmful, contributing to chronic illnesses and degenerative diseases in dogs and cats. An increasing number of dog and cat food manufacturers are producing gluten-free varieties of pet food. Many experts also started realizing that gluten may be linked to increases in diabetes in dogs and cats. Studies prove that specific dog breeds can develop celiac disease, a serious illness caused by gluten intolerance. With celiac disease, their body mistakenly identifies the gluten starches as an invader and attacks them. The result is damage to the intestines and digestive tract. Irish Setters remain the only breed diagnosed with true celiac disease. Symptoms include anemia, diarrhea, vomiting and weight loss from malnutrition. Additional research finds that pet owners who switch their dog to a gluten-free dog food find their dogs become more active, allergies stop, arthritis pain decreases and intestinal complaints, such as irritable bowel syndrome, cease.
A gluten allergy in your dog can result in itchy dry skin, dull coat, loose stools, foul-smelling gas, lethargy, loss of appetite, and frequent dog ear yeast infections. If you observe these symptoms in your dog then it is best to stick to gluten free dog foods to cure the allergy and restore the health of your dog. Through my research I came upon a doctor referred to as Dogtor J. He has amazing views on celiac disease in dogs AND their owners. Check out this well written article that sums up all that I try to tell my readers each week in my articles. http://dogtorj.tripod.com/id32.html. In his article he refers to the 4 glues or ‘the big 4’ in the diet: gluten, casein, soy and corn proteins, that stick to our duodenum, or small intestine, making it impossible to absorb nutrients from our food and how this effect leads to many of the diseases dogs face today; diabetes, arthritis, thyroid problems, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel diseases, and cancer. He even believes that a gluten free diet will eliminate seizures in dogs as well.

Gluten Free Dog Treats

Tamra Johnson, founder of Distinctive Dog, an all-natural dog-treat company in Seattle, created this recipe exclusively for Ladies’ Home Journal readers.

Ingredients:
2 cups Certified Gluten Free Oat flour
½ cup Potato starch
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla
¼ cup honey
¼ cup canola oil
¾ cup peanut butter
¼ cup mashed banana
Cold water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 290 degrees.
Mix flour and potato starch in mixer.
In separate bowl, blend egg, vanilla, honey and oil. Slowly add to dry mixture.
Add peanut butter and banana and slowly add cold water until dough begins to stick together.
Remove dough and roll to ¼ inch thickness.
Cut with cookie cutters (I only had dreidels 🙂  and place on ungreased baking sheet.
Bake 50 minutes.
Turn off oven and leave treats inside for 2 hours to harden.