You never hesitated to take better care of your dog, did you? You’ve given his favorite food in the food bowl, nice clothing that fits his personality, a feasible and comfortable collar, and whatnot!
Still, you see your little pooch suffering from food sensitivity or some kind of skin disease. That’s unbearable, right? You sure want your pet healthy and disease-free.
You should know that only food with proper nutrition can help your pup stay healthy in such a situation. Veterinarians also advise pet parents to give their pals a good diet. That will eventually improve the lives of cats and dogs and may eliminate the need for medicines. So, does Hill’s zed dog food side effects are dangerous? Let’s have a deeper look into it!
Hill’s ZD Dog Food Side Effects – Everything You Need To Know
Hill’s Pet Nutrition is a reputed pet food company in the United States that produces canned or packed food for cats and dogs. Many veterinarians suggest Hill’s diet food for pets because they provide the exact nutritious and vital ingredients needed for them. Hill’s pet nutrition has been giving its best quality food product for pets for many years.
But recently, the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has investigated the presence of potentially toxic vitamin D levels in some of their food because of some complaints of the consumers who have faced some misery. And after the investigation, Hill’s company recalled some of their canned food. Among them, Hill’s Z/D canned food was also listed there.
Hill’s nutritionists and veterinarians designed z/d food to support your dog’s skin and food allergies. These foods helped you to prevent food allergies of dogs. But it has proven now that these foods have excessive vitamin D, which can be harmful to dogs. These are some side effects that can show up:
- Vomit
- Diarrhea
- Little Appetite
- Drooling
- Bradycardia/ high blood rate
- Allergic Reactions
- Weight loss
- Renal failure
- Kidney failure
- Joint issues
- Death
Vomit
Excess calcium in the blood is linked to several of the negative effects of too much vitamin D. Nausea and vomiting are some of the major side effects of vitamin D toxicity. Though optimum vitamin D enriched food is essential for preventing the skin allergy of pet dogs, a little extra dose of vitamin D causes the indigestion of the dog. This excess of vitamin D is found to be very toxic for dogs. Vitamin D poisoning can be caused by as low as 0.1 mg/kg of vitamin D.
Diarrhea
Besides vomiting, nausea, and indigestion, diarrhea is also another vital side effect of Hill’s Z/D food. Usually, change in diet, travel, boarding, or other changes in environment and attack of parasites causes diarrhea for dogs. Excess levels of vitamin D in dog food also cause diarrhea. Vomiting and nausea can also happen with it.
Little Appetite
Hill’s Z/D dog food contains excessive vitamin D. As this toxicity of vitamin D causes vomiting and diarrhea, it reduces the desire of eating for the pup. This is called little appetite.
Although a loss of appetite in dogs does not always signal serious illness, it is also crucial, as this can be the prior symptoms of other dog diseases. To avoid further complexity, you should seek veterinary help right away since it might be a symptom of serious sicknesses, such as cancer, different systemic infections, discomfort, liver issues, or renal failure.
Drooling
Drool can be caused by anything that inhibits your dog from swallowing regularly since saliva will build up until it drops from his mouth. Consuming vitamin D in toxic levels can result in the excessive drooling of your mutt.
Bradycardia Or High Blood Rate
Due to the toxicity of vitamin D, the blood rate of your dog may change. This can drive the blood circulation either very fast or too slow. Vitamin D deficiency can cause a heart attack or heart failure, but excessive amounts of vitamin d in ZD food also result in serious heart problems for dogs.
Allergic Reactions
If the dog is allergic to a particular ingredient of the food, it will cause an allergic reaction leading to diarrhea and vomiting. So, these are a few of the side effects of Hills Zd dog food. Before giving this food to your puppies, make sure that they don’t have any health issues. After all, if you feed them a proper diet and if they have some health issues, then it will cause even more damage.
Weight Loss
Weight loss of your little furry friend can be caused by many reasons. Vomiting, nausea, and other diseases like kidney or heart problems can result in weight loss. If your dog is refusing to eat, losing weight, or has any other digestive or feeding difficulties, take precautions and have your pooch examined by a veterinarian.
Renal Failure
Vitamin D toxicity can develop in dogs with a pet diet containing too much vitamin D. It can result in a pup drinking and urinating more. Thirst and water consumption are raised to protect the dog from getting dehydrated due to increased fluid loss in the urine.
As a result, increased water consumption and urination are some of the first clinical indications of kidney failure, referred to as compensated renal failure.
Kidney Failure
Kidneys in good shape control hydration, maintain a proper electrolyte balance, release hormones required for red blood cell production, and eliminate pollutants. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps the body absorb calcium and other nutrients.
When a dog gets too much vitamin D, the excess is not exerted rapidly from urine. The stored excess vitamin D in the body damages the tissues. This causes the failure of the kidney and even also the liver of the dog.
Joint Issues
Joint issues would happen to your pets for the deficiency of calcium. Excessive vitamin D in food absorbs the calcium of the dog’s body. Also, dogs with toxicities from vitamin D may have kidney diseases. Hyperparathyroidism may be caused due to kidney diseases. It is a disease of sluggishness and severe weakness of the dog.
Death
Toxicosis from vitamin D is a serious life-threatening disease that can cause death to your pet dog. If your puppy is consuming Hill’s ZD canned food for a long time, it may suffer from many diseases and, after severances that can even lead to death.
Kidney failure and hyperkalemia can happen, and this can cause premature death. If left untreated, dogs will die from a vitamin D overdose within several days.
Pet parenting is not that much tough if you try it in the correct way. To have a healthy pet, you just have to follow a healthy diet food for your pet. You should know which food would be good for the health of your dog. You must consult a veteran to select the food for your dog.
Hill’s Allergy Care Pet Foods
DERM Complete
- Formulated all year long to boost the skin’s defenses against irritants in the environment.
- For dogs with food allergies, visible skin healing may take as short as 21 days.
- In 82 percent of the dogs with environmental allergies, the owners saw a decrease in scratching.
FELINE, d/d
- Protein nutrition is novel to assist prevent negative food responses.
- Nutritional supplements that have undergone clinical testing have visibly improved the skin and coat.
- Aids in enhancing bowel health and digestion.
d/d CANINE
- To assist prevent negative food responses, novel protein nutrition.
- Aids in keeping the skin barrier functioning properly and the immune system strong.
- Clinically proven dietary interventions for skin and coat enhancement.
FELINE, z/d
- Protein that has been processed helps cats avoid negative food responses and supports healthy skin.
- Made with the aim of enhancing bowel health and digestion.
- Lacking whole animal proteins.
Z/D CANINE
- Animal protein that has been highly hydrolyzed helps prevent common food allergies.
- Takes as little as 30 days to noticeably improve derm symptoms.
- GI symptoms are improved after 21 days.
Derm Defense
- Aids in controlling environmental sensitivity.
- Enhances skin barrier function and aids in skin recovery organically.
- Minimizes itching and scratching.
What Our Vets Say About Prescription Diet Dog Food
Prescription dog food that is specially designed to promote your dog’s health during recovery may be prescribed by your veterinarian if your dog has a serious chronic disease or has just had surgery. Veterinarian dog foods, commonly referred to as prescription dog foods, are foods that have been professionally created to satisfy your dog’s nutritional requirements.
Consumers of dog food are only permitted to purchase prescription dog meals with a prescription from a veterinarian. They vary from commercial dog diets that are designed to assist conditions including osteoarthritis, overweight, and food intolerances.
Prescription dog food is designed to provide your dog with the nutrition required to facilitate rapid recovery. While they are specifically formulated for your pet’s needs, many different kinds of prescription diets are available.
FAQ:
1. What Is Hydrolyzed Protein Dog Food?
Ans: When a protein source (such as chicken, fish, or soy) is consumed as part of a hydrolyzed protein diet, it has been degraded into very tiny bits in a manner that resembles how the body usually digests food. The body finds it more challenging to recognize and respond to this possibly allergic component as a result.
2. How Do You Know If Your Cat Is Allergic to Their Food?
Ans: Skin issues, including itchiness, erythema, bald spots, or real skin bruises, which are often brought on by the cat scratching themselves, are typical signs of cat food allergies. Continual ear infections. Fur swallowed when itching or over-grooming oneself, resulting in fur ball issues.
3. Did Anyone’s Dog Get Worse Before Getting Better?
Ans: Yes, it’s possible. And there are a number of reasons why it might happen.
4. Is There A Problem With Hills Dog Food?
Ans: Hill’s Dog Food began a recall of 25 items on January 31, 2019, in response to a complaint of vitamin D poisoning in a dog that consumed canned Hill’s dog food. Hill’s increased the recall on March 20, 2019, to include 19 more cans of dog food.
Final Words
You have to keep that in mind to select foods for your dog. Hill’s Z/d canned food had been a better diet food for dogs before they recalled their products. Due to the excessiveness of vitamin D in Hill’s Z/D food, it becomes toxic and results in fatal outcomes with the death of little dogs.
The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is still looking into how these instances happened and whether or not any additional goods should be recalled. As more information about the recall becomes available, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) will publish public updates. I hope now you know about Hill’s ZD dog food side effects.
