Canine Cancer

Cancer is the leading cause of death for dogs in America at an incredibly staggering 47%. An AVMA study estimates that 1 of every 4 dogs in America will be diagnosed with cancer at some stage in their life and AAHA estimates that approximately 6 million dogs are newly diagnosed EVERY YEAR! The good news is that, when detected early, half of all canine cancers are treatable! Unfortunately I have, like so many others, experienced the loss of a dog due to cancer. My last three Golden Retrievers all died from cancer (Kaylin at age 10 from osteosarcoma; Riley from Hemangiosarcoma at age 11 and Charlie (4 years ago at age 10) from lymphoma. Today, I have an English Cream Golden Retriever (Louie, age 2) and I'm keeping the faith that with good exercise, plenty of play time and quality nutrition, he'll be around to see me into my retirement years.

LET FOOD BE THY MEDICINE - When it comes to our dogs, just like with ourselves, we don't really focus on health wellness and preventative measures we instead deal with disease mitigation and treatment. What do I mean by this? There is a pretty solid body of evidence that states high and ultra processed foods can lead to a variety of health issues; cancer being one such issue. Ultra-processed foods are defined as "mostly or entirely from substances derived from whole foods or synthetics that typically contain little or no whole foods. These ingredient components undergo various food processing steps (heat, pressure, chemical/synthetic additives, hydrolysis, hydrogenation, etc) in order to make the food palatable, edible and shelf stable". Carlos Monteiro from NUPENS in Brazil argues that, "the issue is not food nor nutrients so much as processing" that determines the "quality" of the food.

PET NUTRITION - When it comes to pet food, the largest format (not coincidentally) is also the least expensive to manufacture; extruded kibble. The majority of dog food falls under the ULTRA-processed category as a significant amount of the ingredients are components derived from whole foods. The balance of ingredients are usually artificial, chemical, synthetic in nature and are used to fortify what is lost during the high temperatures and pressure exerted during the manufacturing process (the denaturing of proteins and loss of nutritional values). In addition, kibble requires a high amount of starches and carbohydrates to "hold" everything together. The majority of kibble contains between 40-60% carbohydrates. Are you shocked? Maybe now it makes sense why there is no requirement for pet food companies to report carbohydrates in their food, especially since canines have no biological requirement for carbohydrates. The bottom line is that carbohydrates are a low cost unit of energy and can be easily manufactured in large quantities.

Hill's Prescription Diets recently launched their ONC Care dog food to "encourage a healthy appetite, with easy to chew kibble that promotes muscle mass maintenance with high quality protein and healthy digestion." So, let me get this right, in order to help dogs with a healthy option when fighting cancer, Hill's decided to make a "high quality protein in a small sized kibble that is tasty and easily digestible." The ingredients for Hill's ONC are above and they don't look a whole lot different from their other kibble diets with the possible exception that a 6lb bag only costs $49.99 (the 15lb bag is $94.99)

Here is where it gets interesting...VCA, as well as just about every oncologist in the world, says "Tumor cells love carbohydrates" (emphasis is theirs). They go on to say, "Tumors use carbohydrates to promote cancer cell growth, so high levels of carbohydrates in a dog's food will actually feed the tumor and starve the patient!" According to the latest research, a dog with cancer should eat a nutrient profile with no more than 25% carbohydrates on a dry matter (DM) basis. Because cancer cells have a difficult time using fat as an energy source, cancer patients should be fed 25-40% DM fat and a protein DM % higher than "normal adult maintenance" foods (30%-45%). Protein intake, in dogs with normal functioning liver and kidneys, is critical to maintain lean body mass. So how does the new ONC Care measure up? Well, according to the Hill's website, ONC is 34.3% CARBOHYDRATES, 26.4% FAT and 30.8% PROTEIN and the Omega-3 content is 1.25%. Current research suggests that Omega-3 for cancer patients should be 3x what Hill's is using but more data is needed to validate. I couldn't find any information about the amino acid profile (to determine if the protein was high quality or just high) or anything about digestibility of ONC Care just that it was "healthy". I would think if you're going to say that digestibility is key to your diet, shouldn't you share the numbers?

PREVENTATIVE vs DISEASE MANAGEMENT - It seems that with MORE information and data, we (as people and pet owners) do things that are contrary to that ever deepening and widening body of knowledge. For example, in 2002 when Purina reported the finding of their life time study on caloric intake, roughly 28% of dogs in America were considered obese. The study showed that by reducing caloric intake by 25%, dogs outlived their littermates by a full 18 months - these were quality months with less disease and fewer health issues! The "action item" seemed simple and straight-forward. We have had this information now for over 20 years and you know what....obesity in American dogs is currently at 56%!!! Despite the knowledge and scientific support of a 14 year study and an additional 20 years of supporting documentation and trials, we have DOUBLED the obesity rate in dogs!

In 2017, 26 years after I started with Ralston-Purina, I decided to start Guardian Pet Food Company. I didn't do this because my dog was sick or because I imagined needing a "hazmat" suit to go into pet food production facilities, I did it because I know we (the collective) can do better for pets. If we start with what dogs need to thrive (AAFCO covers the "survive" part) and deliver it in a simple, clean and convenient manner, we will enjoy more years, more laughs and more love with our pets! Hill's markets this ONC Care diet as way to "nourish and support" your pet with cancer. They are also the preferred "veterinarian diet" yet they don't follow the current research and knowledge of veterinarians on how to "nourish and support" canines with cancer. It would be like Marlboro coming out with a cigarette that was "loaded with tasty, healthy tobacco that will make you want to eat more!"

For the record, the likelihood of you needing a veterinary diet for your dog dramatically decreases if you feed them less processed, higher quality nutrition throughout their lives. Guardian's NOBL Canine Food Bar Turkey & Duck Recipe is all natural with no artificial or synthetic ingredients. It is over 90% digestible and designed to help your dog THRIVE (see chart below comparing essential amino acid guidelines from FEDIAF and AFFCO vs what NOBL delivers). In regards to ONC Care, here is how NOBL stacks up (in DMB): Carbohydrate is 11.0%, Protein is 46.6% and Fat is 33.8%; the Omega-3 level is 2.6% (208% greater than ONC Care) and the Omega-6 level is 6.5% (vs Hills at 4.31%). I hope you never have to fight canine cancer, but if you do, please know that we are here for you and your dog.