John Rush (veterinary cardiologist from Tufts University), Dr. Darcy Adin (veterinary cardiologist from North Carolina State University), Dr. Lisa Freeman (veterinary nutritionist from Tufts University), Dr.
Stern, Fascetti, Larsen, and veterinary cardiology resident Joanna Kaplan have been working together to understand the dietary link in golden retrievers with taurine deficient DCM and are in the process of submitting a manuscript documenting these findings.Īdditionally, Dr. Andrea Fascetti and Jennifer Larsen, two of the world’s experts in veterinary nutrition and specifically taurine studies. It is important to realize that in the population of golden retrievers that Stern studies with taurine-deficient DCM, the condition is not able to be explained by inheritance, as many of the dogs are completely unrelated with no familial history of prior DCM. He is the proud pet parent and veterinarian of a golden retriever enrolled in Morris Animal Foundation’s Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, as well as a researcher into genetics of cardiac disease in purebred dogs including golden retrievers. Stern is no stranger to golden retriever research. Although golden retrievers appear more commonly affected by a taurine deficient form of this condition, the problem was noted in dogs of many breeds eating similar diets across North America. Stern alerted the veterinary cardiology community to his finding, leading to the formation of a larger collaboration between multiple institutions and clinicians.
He has observed that the vast majority of these patients respond favorably to taurine supplementation and diet change, a prognosis that is not usually noted with traditional, genetic DCM. Since this initial observation, Stern has been recruiting and studying golden retrievers with DCM and taurine deficiency. Although dogs have the ability to manufacture taurine, it has been known for some time that low levels of taurine are associated with a potentially reversible form of DCM. Taurine is an amino acid that dogs get naturally in their diets and manufacture from other building blocks contained in the food. This diagnosis of DCM was coupled with another finding that many of the dogs were eating the same grain-free diet and had blood tests confirming low taurine levels. Golden retrievers were being diagnosed more frequently with DCM-a disease not commonly associated with this breed. Josh Stern, a veterinary cardiologist and geneticist at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, began seeing an alarming trend in cases at the veterinary hospital two years ago. While the most common cause of DCM is genetic, on rare occasions other factors can also result in the condition, particularly in breeds that are not frequently affected.ĭr. The alterations in heart function and structure can result in severe consequences such as congestive heart failure or sudden cardiac death. DCM is a disease of the heart muscle that leads to reduced heart pumping function and increased heart size. Food and Drug Administration recently issued an alert about reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs eating certain pet foods containing peas, lentils, other legume seeds, or potatoes as main ingredients.
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