Veterinary Prescription Diets

This year, the Doctors of Knollwood Hospital for Pets attended nutrition seminars at the Chicago Veterinary Medical Association and the North American Veterinary Conference.  More and more, there is a buzz in the veterinary community at meetings like these about whether the current Veterinary Prescription Diets (VPDs) we often use are really the best ones available today.  This topic first came up in the mid-90’s at an American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine meeting Dr. Mitchell attended.  A group of Georgia veterinary researchers presented data suggesting that Hill’s K/D diet was not an appropriate or necessary diet for dogs and cats in the early stages of kidney disease.  This was quickly followed by data suggesting that Hill’s H/D was not the best for patients with early heart disease, followed by more data about R/D, W/D, C/D, and other VPDs.

Initially, Hill's flatly denied that their diets weren’t the best available.  They reiterated that they were the originators of veterinary prescription diets, that they had carefully evaluated each diet, and that their ongoing research indicated that they were still the best products for the treatment of specific health issues in dogs and cats.  They reminded veterinarians that they were one of the largest sponsors of veterinary conferences in the nation, and that they were the source of much of the education on nutrition provided to veterinary students.  But the new data kept coming, showing that other, better VPDs existed to treat some health conditions.

Today, we know that while Hill's remains a good choice for some health conditions, it is not the best choice for many patients who need or who prefer a VPD.  Other companies, particularly Eukanuba and IVD, have really been much more in the forefront of current nutrition research and have produced diets far superior to the old ones.

What is a Veterinary Prescription Diet anyway?  A VPD is a diet developed to meet the needs of a very select segment of the pet population.  Each VPD that has been developed was selected either to help treat a specific disease condition, to slow its progression, or to keep the disease from returning once it has been treated.  Since proper nutrition is the basis for good health, use of an appropriate diet makes absolute sense.

What is in a VPD?  It depends on the purpose of the diet.  For example, a VPD for pets in kidney failure used to be significantly protein restricted, as Hill's diets still are.  But modern research shows that it is much more appropriate to use higher levels of extremely good quality protein, and to use special fibers to trap the toxins that accumulate in kidney disease.  That’s what Eukanuba developed for their Early and Multi-Stage VPDs.  Similarly, the VPD for obese animals is (obviously) very restricted in calories.  Hill's does this by adding huge amounts of peanut hulls to their food.  Eukanuba does it by adjusting the types of fiber in the diet. Both VPDs achieve good weight loss when used correctly, but Hill's can cause a pet to have huge, frequent BMs and a dry coat, and sometimes causes the appetite to become ravenous, while the Eukanuba diet does not.  And while both Hill's C/D and Eukanuba ph/S work well to control urine crystals in cats, the extremely high fat content in the C/D causes many kitties to become quite chunky.  Eukanuba achieves great taste without all the fat calories.  Another example?   While Hill's developed T/D to reduce dental tartar, all Eukanuba diets reduce dental tartar.

Are there some pets that should stay on their current VPD, rather than switching to a new one?  Definitely - for example, it can be very hard to switch cats that have become "addicted" to the taste of one VPD.  Especially in the case of a very ill or old pet, it may be best to not mess with a diet that the pet eats and digests well.  After all, even the ideal diet isn’t a good choice if your pet refuses to eat it.

Are there some cases where it would be better to switch to Eukanuba’s VPD or another VPD?  Absolutely, positively, YES. Especially if your pet is currently using Hill's C/D, D/D, H/D, I/D, K/D, W/D, or R/D, there are probably better and healthier choices in Eukanuba or other VPDs that you need to know about and to try.  And in some cases, your pet may not need to stay on a VPD at all.  Be sure to make time to discuss this with us at your next appointment, if your pet is currently using one of the mentioned diets.