Background: Proper nutrition is the foundation of long-term pet health. Unfortunately, most commercial pet foods do not provide adequate vitamin levels for some of the most important essential vitamins. While this is problematic, correction is easy with a simple Test & Treat strategy through VDI. Identify and correct nutritional deficiencies to improve health. Tip 1: […] Read more »
Fur mineral analysis can provide a lot of information about long-term exposure to environments and to the impact a diet is having on the nutritional status of the dog or cat. For many, fur analysis may be unfamiliar so here is a basic overview of some important information on fur. In this article: How “stuff” […] Read more »
Vitamin D is one of the most important yet overlooked nutrients in our pets’ diet. Raw diets, natural diets, grain-free diets, specialty diets, and the list continues, but none of them address a huge problem in their nutrition: Vitamin D levels. Here are 5 reasons why you should be testing Vitamin D levels in all […] Read more »
Background Protein-losing syndromes, specifically protein-losing enteropathy (PLE) and protein-losing nephropathy (PLN), are disease conditions when albumin and other protein-rich materials leak into the intestinal cavity or urine. Left untreated, there is a high mortality. Both PLE and PLN involve significant inflammation which is a part of the pathogenesis and treatment often includes the use of […] Read more »
Background The digestive tract is responsible for the absorption of nutrients and the elimination of waste; hence with chronic enteropathies (CE) and especially protein-losing enteropathy (PLE) these diseases can severely impact a patient’s health and may even result in death. Studies in companion animals have shown that patients with CE and PLE have low stores […] Read more »
Background:Magnesium, an essential vitamin, is required for the proper & efficient function of over 600 biological pathways. Think of it like motor oil for an engine; Without proper magnesium levels, these pathways aren’t going to work at optimal efficiency. Testing magnesium levels in your patients is the first step, and when deficiency is identified, corrective […] Read more »
Health of a pet starts with the quality of food they eat. It’s why we so often look to diet for general wellness, and for the management of acutely ill animals. Nutrition serves a critical role in patient care, and improving diets often helps our pets live longer and healthier lives. Unfortunately, too many commercial […] Read more »
While many dietary vitamins are easily cleared or do not threaten toxicity in high concentrations, Vitamin D stands apart. Too little, and sufficiency is not attained; too much and the threat of toxicity triggers close patient management. Multiple factors impact the vitamin D status, which makes simple weight-based dosing ineffective. To achieve sufficiency, VDI has […] Read more »
It’s clear magnesium (Mg) is important – it’s a cofactor to over 600 enzymatic processes within the body, and the second most abundant intracellular cation. Mg is required for DNA, RNA, protein synthesis, and energy metabolism through its involvement in cell receptor processes. Receptor DysfunctionEvery receptor needs Mg to function. It is involved in the […] Read more »
Cobalamin (B12) and 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25D) are dietary derived in both cats and dogs. Studies have shown 25D insufficiency to be a major problem in both species and worsen with age (1,2). B12 malabsorption is strongly associated with both chronic enteropathies (IBD) and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) (3,4). But is there a relationship between the two? […] Read more »
