How Diet Affects the Heart Health of Dogs
How Diet Affects the Heart Health of Dogs: Take care of a dog’s heart through good food.
by Paul Andrews

Many dog owners must learn there is a critical dog food heart health connection. This link means that what a dog eats affects how healthy its heart becomes. Unintentionally giving a dog the wrong foods can cause heart problems.
You can manage heart problems in dogs by closely monitoring what they eat and modifying them when necessary. Certain heart disorders, such as Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) and Canine Valvular Disease (CVD), have no cure as of now. Still, vets and dog owners can manage these diseases through medication and nutritional changes.
Diet is an essential contributing factor to heart health. If your dog has heart disease, you can expect the treatment to include dietary changes.
How Does Diet Affect Heart Health?
Anything a dog consumes will either be distributed to the organs via the bloodstream or eliminated through waste material. So not only is there a dog food and digestive health connection, but there is also a connection between its diet and overall health.
When substances obtained from food circulate, some unhealthy substances will affect the heart negatively.
Some of them include:
- Fat and cholesterol: Forms blockages and clots in the blood vessels and heart.
- Salt (sodium): Increases water content in the body, which puts pressure on the blood vessels, causing the blood pressure to rise.
- Sugar: Sugary diets increase cholesterol levels by blocking a substance that breaks down fats. It increases insulin levels, which increases heart rate and blood pressure. In addition, sugar causes inflammation, which damages organs.
The three main food ingredients that harm a dog’s heart are fats, salt, and sugar. Eliminate these substances from your dog’s diet as much as possible.
Food to Avoid to Prevent or Manage Heart Disease In Dogs
Certain foods have unwanted effects on a dog’s heart:
Peas, Potatoes, and Legume Seeds
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted warnings about dog food with peas, legume seeds, and potatoes (in flour or whole form). They discovered these ingredients might cause Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs.
Although experts are not entirely sure about the connection between peas and heart enlargement, it’s better to avoid feeding your dog these ingredients. These are usually in products marketed as “grain-free.”
Overly Salty Food
Dogs with heart disease have difficulty excreting salt, also known as sodium, in their urine. So, refrain from giving ill dogs salt.
Restricting the amount of salt consumed will slow down or prevent the progression of heart disease. However, it would be best to reduce your dog’s salt intake as soon as possible.
Some examples of salty food:
- Cheese
- Canned Fish
- Processed Food
- Some Dog Treats
- Table Scraps
Phosphorus-Rich Food
Heart disease and kidney disease often appear together. When the heart can’t pump well, the kidneys may not receive enough blood supply, and when the kidneys are malfunctioning, they can’t filter the blood well, so the heart gets impure blood.
When the kidneys are damaged, they can’t eliminate phosphorus from the body. This results in a buildup of this substance, which draws calcium from the dog’s bones and into the blood.
Calcium-deprived bones are brittle and prone to fracturing. At the same time, calcium deposits in the heart, lungs, blood vessels, and eyes will damage the organs.
Because of this, you must ensure that the foods your dog eats do not contain a lot of phosphorus. Beef, chicken, salmon, eggs, and whole wheat are just some foods with a lot of this substance.
What Foods Promote Heart Health in Dogs?
Healthy dog diets contain all the nutrients a dog needs. In particular, omega-3 and taurine are beneficial to heart health.
Omega-3
Dogs can obtain omega-3 fatty acids from fish oils. This nutrient helps improve heart health by decreasing triglyceride levels, lowering blood pressure, preventing blood clots, reducing heart failure risk, and encouraging regular heartbeat. Omega-3 is ideal for dogs with heart problems.
Taurine
Taurine helps maintain a healthy heart by reducing cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood vessel stiffness. It also protects heart muscles and cells from damage.
Consider giving your dog taurine-rich food or taurine supplements if it has heart disease. Some foods rich in taurine are fish, meat, and dairy.
Diets that may cause taurine deficiency are those that are rich in fiber and low in protein. Purely vegetarian dishes are also not recommended. Taurine is one nutrient that dogs cannot get from plants, so if you are feeding your dog purely plant-based meals, you must switch to a diet that contains meat.
You can still feed dogs veggies, though. Eating more vegetables can help a dog feel fuller without consuming too much, reducing its weight to healthier levels. Aside from that, a low-fat, high-fiber plant diet can reduce the risk of heart disease. Consider giving it vegetables like cabbage. Why Is Cabbage Good For Dogs? It is a low-calorie treat packed with nutrients.
However, make sure that you also give your dog meat. Also, avoid peas, potatoes, and legumes.
Take note that most dogs that ate potatoes and legumes and developed an enlarged heart did not have a taurine deficiency. Thus, rather than just a taurine deficiency, potatoes and legumes were the main culprits. Therefore, it is best to avoid giving your dog these foods.
How Can I Improve My Dog’s Heart Health?
Certain breeds are prone to heart disease. For instance, small breeds are prone to having diseased heart valves. Cocker Spaniels, English Setters, Irish Wolfhounds, Newfoundlands, Golden Retrievers, Portuguese Water Dogs, and Saint Bernards are prone to Dilated Cardiomyopathy (enlarged heart) because of Taurine deficiency.
Large breeds such as Boxers, Doberman Pinschers, and Great Danes also tend to have dilated cardiomyopathy, with Boxers more likely to have a genetic carnitine deficiency. In other words, aside from poor diet, both genetics and inherited nutritional deficiencies can cause heart disease.
You must ensure that your dog’s weight is appropriate for its size. Like humans, dogs have ideal weight ranges based on how tall they are. Having a weight lower than what is healthy will result in muscle wasting, which makes heart muscles weak.
Dog owners must feed overweight dogs a diet low in carbohydrates and fat. The best diet dog food has the approval of the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).
Supplements
Sometimes, a dog’s diet falls short of what it needs. Make your dog food healthy by adding supplements.
Some supplements for improving a dog’s heart health include:
- Arginine: Improves blood vessel function
- Coenzyme Q10: Strengthens and protects heart cells
- L-Carnitine: Helps cells produce energy
- Vitamins C and E: Increases antioxidants
- Potassium and Magnesium: Helps regulate blood circulation
Consider giving your dog these supplements if it belongs to a breed susceptible to heart disease or has a heart ailment.
Consult your vet before giving your dogs any form of supplement, especially if you give them medications, to avoid side effects.
The Best Dietary Advice for Dogs with Heart Problems
It may be tempting to do everything on your own because a lot of information is readily available online. However, heart disease is a complicated issue that is best left to experts.
If you want to address your dog’s heart problem through dietary strategies, seek the help of a dog nutritionist and vet. Doing so will help you solve problems beyond dog food heart health connections.