FACEBOOK GROUP RULES
Be Kind and Courteous
This group is a civil and informative place for discussion. Being respectful of others is necessary to foster this type of environment.
No Bullying or Hate Speech
Bullying of any kind, including inappropriate comments about things like race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity, are strictly prohibited.
Stay On Topic
This is a group about taurine deficient DCM. Unrelated topics should be discussed elsewhere.
No Blocking Admins
Blocking admins prevents them from doing their job. Anyone found to have blocked an admin will be removed from the group.
No Advertising or Spam
Self-promotion, advertising, spam, and irrelevant links aren’t allowed.
No Medical Advice
Leave the medical advice to the Phd’s, DVMs and specialists. This includes advice regarding taurine supplementation.
If you would like to participate in the group discussions, we ask you to accept certain conditions:
- We believe that the FDA’s advisory is real, factual, neutral, and based on solid science. We know there are still big questions about exactly how and why the taurine deficiency is occurring, and we look forward to discussing them, but we will delete any comments that assert that the FDA advisory is untrustworthy or invalid.
- You may not recommend any foods that do not meet the requirements in the WSAVA Global Nutrition Committee’s and the Cummings School’s recommendations (found in the files). These are (paraphrased):
- The company employs a full-time qualified nutritionist (PhD in animal nutrition or board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist)
- The person who formulates their food (if it’s not the same person as their nutritionist) has the same qualifications as in #1
- Ideally, the manufacturer should own the plants where their food is manufactured
- The diet is tested using AAFCO feeding trials (ideal) or is subjected to analysis of the finished product (less ideal)
- The company is clear and transparent about where the foods are produced and manufactured
- The company is clear and transparent about the quality control measures it uses to assure the consistency and quality of the ingredients and the end product
- The company can provide a complete nutrient analysis for the food – this is different from the “guaranteed analysis” on the food bag
- The company discloses its caloric value per gram, cup, or can of their food
- The company is willing to answer whether any product research has been conducted, and to provide links to peer-reviewed journals
- The company does not bash other pet food companies (especially using information based on myths such as by-products are bad, corn should never be fed, etc.) on its website or in advertising
- You may not recommend a feeding program (such as rotating brands) or supplement that does not meet the criteria in the WSAVA/Cummings recommendations.
- You agree to respect the time, effort, and expertise of the veterinarians who have kindly agreed to be members of this group.
- You agree to treat other group members with kindness and consideration, remembering that each of us deserves respect and to be listened to. You don’t have to agree with everyone; we encourage discussion. But we will not tolerate any name-calling, belittling, or bashing on any topic.
- Our membership is enormous and growing by the day. That means there will be people on the group that have a “dog lifestyle” you don’t agree with. We are all passionate about the right way to care for dogs, but in the context of this group we will not accept arguments about breeding, training, exercise, care (aside from feeding), etc.