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Celiac.com 01/23/2024 - In the bustling world of Instagram, among the memes and selfies, a star has emerged, and her name is Suki. But Suki is not your typical social media sensation; she is a three-year-old Portuguese water dog with a unique talent — she can detect gluten. This ability is not just a party trick; it's a crucial skill that keeps her owner, Kendra Williams, safe from the perils of celiac disease. Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition, affecting about one in a hundred Americans, where the ingestion of gluten triggers the immune system to attack the body's tissues. For Kendra, a resident of San Diego, California, managing this condition was particularly challenging, especially when dining out. In a video that quickly went viral, garnering hundreds of thousands of views, Suki showcases her gluten-detection skills. The video captures the duo in a restaurant setting, with Suki carefully sniffing plates presented by Kendra. A subtle poke of the nose indicates a gluten-free dish, while a raised paw signals the presence of gluten, as demonstrated dramatically at the end of the video, when a macaroon is revealed to contain the troublesome protein. How Suki is Trained to Smell Gluten and Alert Owner Watch Suki check food for trace gluten Kendra was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2017 and, like many with the condition, found dining in restaurants to be a source of anxiety due to the risk of inadvertent gluten exposure. "There were many instances where food in restaurants contained gluten, even though it should have been gluten-free," she shared. Faced with the challenges of unpredictable restaurant experiences, Kendra decided to take matters into her own hands, or rather, into Suki's capable nose. She embarked on a journey to train Suki as a gluten-detection dog. The process, with the guidance of a gluten detection trainer, took 18 to 24 months. See Suki in training Suki's role goes beyond the dinner table; she diligently checks all of Kendra's food, medicine, and personal care products. In an interview with Newsweek, Kendra expressed the profound impact Suki has had on her life: "I would be lost without Suki." The duo, inseparable travel companions, has explored nine states together, offering Kendra not just a loyal friend but a vigilant guardian against gluten-related mishaps. While Suki plays a pivotal role, Kendra emphasizes that she still reads labels and communicates with restaurant staff about ingredients. Suki, in essence, adds an extra layer of security, eliminating the fear of accidental gluten ingestion. "With Suki, I can enjoy a meal at a restaurant without fear that I may be out of commission for a week or longer," Kendra shared. See Suki at work The heartwarming video of Suki in action has resonated with the online community. Suki's unique skill not only showcases the incredible abilities of service animals, but also brings attention to the daily challenges faced by those with celiac disease. For Kendra, Suki is more than just a companion, she's a lifeline, sniffing out potential health risks and allowing her owner to savor the simple joy of a worry-free meal. Follow Suki the Portuguese Water Dog on Instagram at: instagram.com/sukipwd/

Celiac.com 07/14/2022 - We get a lot of questions from celiac community members wondering if certain products are gluten-free. Lately, we've seen a lot of questions about brands of dog treats. Specifically, what brands of dog treats are gluten-free? Just like people, dogs can be sensitive to ingredients in their dog treats, including gluten, and other known allergens. Some pet owners like to make sure they are getting dog treats that are free of grains, gluten or other known allergens. These dog treats contain no grains, or gluten additives. Many are specially formulated for dog with particular health or medical issues. Note: The FDA has expressed concerns about potential dangers of a grain-free diet for dogs, so please consider consulting a veterinarian before taking your pet gluten-free. Read more at AKC.org. For anyone looking for gluten-free dog treats, they will find that you have many options to choose from. To help you get started in your search, consider some of these top-rated brands of gluten-free and grain-free dog treats. If we missed a favorite brand of gluten-free dog treats, please share it in the comments below. Top brands of gluten-free, grain-free dog treats include: Acana Acana makes a number of grain-free foods and treats for dogs, including: Duck & Pear Treats Lamb & Apple Treats Beef & Pumpkin Treats Blue Buffalo Blue Buffalo makes a number of grain-free treats for dogs. Check individual products and labels for details. Products include: BLUE Wilderness Denali Biscuits Salmon, Venison & Halibut Biscuits Denali Stix Salmon, Venison & Halibut Stix Flatland Stix Turkey, Quail & Duck Stix Rocky Mountain Recipe Bison Recipe Biscuits Rocky Mountain Recipe Red Meat Recipe Biscuits Snake River Stix Trout, Venison & Rabbit Stix Trail Treats Duck Biscuits Trail Treats Turkey Biscuits Trail Treats Salmon Biscuits Trail Treats Chicken Wild Bites Trail Treats Salmon Wild Bites Trail Treats Chicken Jerky Trail Treats Turkey Jerky Trail Treats Duck Wild Bits Trail Treats Chicken Wild Bits Trail Treats Salmon Wild Bits Wild Bones (medium) Wild Bones (small) Wild Bones (mini) Merrick Merrick makes more than two dozen gluten-free treats for dogs. Fresh Kisses Coconut Oil - For Extra Small Dogs (5-15 lbs) Fresh Kisses Coconut Oil - For Small Dogs (15-25 lbs) Fresh Kisses Coconut Oil - For Medium Dogs (25-50 lbs) Fresh Kisses Coconut Oil - For Large Dogs (50+ lbs) Fresh Kisses Mint Breath Strips - For Extra Small Dogs (5-15 lbs) Fresh Kisses Mint Breath Strips - For Small Dogs (15-25 lbs) Fresh Kisses Mint Breath Strips - For Large Dogs (50+ lbs) Fresh Kisses Mint Breath Strips - For Medium Dogs (25-50 lbs) Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw-Coated Biscuits Real Beef + Bison Recipe Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw-Coated Biscuits Real Salmon + Whitefish Recipe Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw-Coated Biscuits Real Turkey + Duck Recipe Backcountry Big Game Real Lamb + Buffalo Sausage Cuts Backcountry Big Game Real Lamb + Venison Jerky Backcountry Game Bird Real Duck Sausage Cuts Backcountry Great Plains Real Beef Jerky Backcountry Great Plains Real Steak Patties Backcountry Pacific Catch Real Salmon Jerky Backcountry Wild Fields Real Chicken Jerky Backcountry Wild Fields Real Turkey + Sweet Potato Patties Big Bites Real Beef Recipe Big Bites Real Chicken Recipe Lil' Plates Bitty Beef Recipe Lil' Plates Lil' Chunky Chicken Recipe Lil' Plates Small Salmon Recipe Lil' Plates Teensy Turducken Recipe Power Bites - Real Beef Recipe Power Bites - Real Chicken Recipe Power Bites - Real Rabbit + Sweet Potato Recipe Power Bites - Real Salmon Recipe Power Bites - Turducken Recipe Nutro Nutro makes a number of pet foods and treats that are made with no corn, wheat or soy protein. They do note that trace amounts could be possible from manufacturing. Nutro Crunchy Treats with Real Mixed Berries Nutro Mini Bites Chicken Flavor Nutro Crunchy Treats with Real Apple Nutro Crunchy Treats Peanut Butter Nutro Mini Bites Berry and Yogurt Flavor Nutro Mini Bites Peanut Flavor Nutro Crunch Treats Chicken & Carrot Flavor Portland Pet Food Company Portland Pet Food Company makes several grain-free, gluten-free treats. Bacon Biscuits Grain-Free & Gluten-Free Dog Treats Gingerbread Biscuits Grain-Free & Gluten-Free Dog Treats, Pumpkin Biscuits Grain-Free & Gluten-Free Dog Treats Stella & Chewy's Stella & Chewy's makes more than two dozen grain-free, gluten-free dog treats, including: Beef Carnivore Crunch Beef Heart Treats Beef Liver Treats Cage-Free Chicken Raw Coated Biscuits Cage-Free Chicken Wild Weenies Cage-Free Duck Raw Coated Biscuits Cage-Free Duck Wild Weenies Chicken Breast Treats Chicken Carnivore Crunch Chicken Heart Treats Duck Carnivore Crunch Game Bird Wild Weenies Grass-Fed Beef Raw Coated Biscuits Grass-Fed Beef Wild Weenies Grass-Fed Lamb Raw Coated Biscuits Grass-Fed Lamb Wild Weenies Just Jerky Bites Real Beef Recipe Just Jerky Bites Real Chicken Recipe Just Jerky Bites Real Salmon Recipe Lamb Heart Treats Lamb Liver Dog Treats Red Meat Wild Weenies Turkey Carnivore Crunch Wild Red Jerky Nuggets Beef & Lamb Recipe Wild Red Jerky Nuggets Chicken & Duck Recipe Wild Weenies Bac’n Me Crazy Recipe Stewart Pro-Treat Stewart Pro-Treat beef liver treats for dogs are locally sourced and manufactured in the Midwest. Stewart Pro-Treat Beef Liver Freeze-Dried Raw Dog Treats Zignature Zignature makes several tasty treats are formulated without grains or gluten ingredients, and with healthy, wholesome ingredients like turkey, pumpkin, lentils, and garbanzo beans, including: Zignature Turkey Ziggy Bars Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Duck Ziggy Bars Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Guinea Fowl Ziggy Bars Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Venison Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Whitefish Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Zssential Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Trout Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Turkey Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Pork Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Catfish Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs Zignature Duck Formula Biscuit Treats for Dogs

Celiac.com 11/09/2020 - There are many health experts, including some prominent doctors, who believe that humans should be grain-free, or at the very least gluten-free, because our digestive systems just weren't designed to deal with gluten. For the same reasons that humans should be concerned about whether or not they should consume gluten, it should never be fed to dogs. Dogs are carnivores, and their digestive systems just weren't designed to digest gluten, which, as most dog owners are now figuring out, can cause them a huge variety of negative, long-term health issues. PureLUXE makes an exceptionally high quality line of gluten-free dog foods that are non-GMO, contain no fillers, sugars, chemicals or by-products, and are low-glycemic and include natural preservatives and Omega 3 Fatty Acids. I was simply blown away by the detailed nutritional and other information that was provided on each package, and by the ability to search the bag's code on their site and get a complete set of reports showing heavy metal testing, no chemical or synthetic preservatives, nutritional values, ethics, etc, contained in each individual batch of Pureluxe pet food. They offer the following 5-Star Nutrition rated “Elite Nutrition” formulas which cover all breeds, sizes and ages: Small Breed Dog – Made with Fresh Turkey Adult Dog – Made with Lamb & Chickpeas Adult Dog – Made with Salmon & Split Peas Adult Dog – Made with Fresh Turkey Healthy Weight/Senior Dog – Made with Salmon & Lentils Healthy Activity Dog – for Puppies made with Turkey & Split peas In addition to these great varieties of gluten-free dog food, PureLUXE also makes an equally outstanding assortment of high end gluten-free cat foods. So, if you are a pet lover who wishes to give your dog or cat the very best nutrition available, you can't do better than PureLUXE pure nutrition for dogs (and cats)! Visit their site for more info.

Celiac.com 09/20/2018 - Some people with celiac disease experience extreme symptoms when they eat gluten. These folks adopt various strategies for navigating the world. One of those strategies involves getting a gluten-sniffing service dog. We’ve done a few stories on gluten-sniffing dogs over the years. Dogs like Zeus and Hawkeye are famous for helping their owners sniff out gluten before they can eat it. Can Gluten-Sniffing Dogs Help People with Celiac Disease? The stories are always popular. People love the stories, and people love the dogs. After all, pretty much anyone with celiac disease who has ever read about gluten-sniffing dogs would love to have one. Who could say no to a warm, fuzzy dog that can take a sniff of your food and signal you when it contains gluten? The stories almost always generate plenty of feedback and more than a few questions. To answer some of those questions, we’ve decided to do an article that provides some facts about gluten-sniffing dogs. Here are a few factors to keep in mind about gluten-sniffing service dogs: Gluten-free Dog Status: One thing to remember is that proper gluten-sniffing dogs are professionally trained service animals, much like seeing-eye dogs or hearing-ear dogs. As professional service animals, the dogs must be trained and certified as service animals. The dogs may then accompany their master pretty much anywhere they go, and are available to assess all food and snacks. Gluten-free Dog Training: Proper training takes time, which equals money. Professional trainers might only train one or two dogs, and the training can take about a year. There are very few trainers for gluten-sniffing dogs, and there are also currently no official guidelines or certification. Gluten-free Dog Cost: In our recent story on the gluten-sniffing black Lab, Hawkeye, we noted that the dog cost $16,000, not including food, and vet bills. Gluten-free Dog Reliability: Nimasensor.com notes that “[g]luten-sniffing dogs may detect gluten in amounts as small as .0025 parts per million with 95 percent to 98 percent accuracy.” The Mercola.com website says that Willow, a gluten-sniffing German shorthaired pointer in Michigan, can detect gluten with 95 percent to 98 percent accuracy. Read more on gluten-sniffing dogs: Gluten-Sniffing Dogs Are Game Changers for People With Celiac Disease Gluten-sniffing dogs help people with celiac disease What to Know About Gluten-Sniffing Dogs Gluten-Sniffing Assistance Dog Helps Celiac Sufferer Lead Normal Life

Celiac.com 09/17/2018 - Her name is Hawkeye, she’s a black lab, and her mission is to detect gluten for a young man named Toby, who gets terribly sick if he eats food that contains gluten. Hawkeye is up to 98% accurate at detecting gluten with just a few sniffs. Hawkeye was also expensive, costing a princely $16,000, not including food, and vet bills. That may sound expensive, but, says Toby’s mom, Amy "when you think about it trainers are often training only one to two dogs at a time and our trainer, she only trained one dog at a time and it took a year.” In Toby’s case, the community rallied to raise the money to buy Hawkeye, who is a registered service dog, and so can accompany Toby nearly everywhere. Everyone loves Hawkeye and her role in Toby’s life. Amy calls Hawkeye a “life-giver, and says that Amy continued “she's breathed life and confidence into Toby that we haven't seen in a really long time." She adds that the family has “really seen just growth and development in him because he's not getting sick as often and he's now able to learn more. So he can now say his alphabet, learn his numbers and colors, things that just a year ago he wasn't doing." Gluten-sniffing dogs are rare, but their numbers are growing. The Mercola.com website says that Willow, a gluten-sniffing German shorthaired pointer in Michigan, can detect gluten with 95 percent to 98 percent accuracy. The website Nimasensor.com notes that “[g]luten-sniffing dogs may detect gluten in amounts as small as .0025 parts per million with 95 percent to 98 percent accuracy.” Love the idea of a gluten sniffing dog, but maybe daunted by the price, logistics or commitment? There are portable gluten sensors currently on the market, with greater accuracy than Hawkeye, for a few hundred dollars. Disclosure: Nima Labs is a paid advertiser for Celiac.com

Celiac.com 08/15/2018 - Grain-free food has been linked to heart disease in dogs. A canine cardiovascular disease that has historically been seen in just a few breeds is becoming more common in other breeds, and one possible culprit is grain-free dog food. The disease in question is called canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), and often results in congestive heart failure. DCM is historically common in large dogs such as Great Danes, Newfoundlands, Irish Wolfhounds, Saint Bernards and Doberman Pinschers, though it is also affects some Cocker Spaniels. Numerous cases of DCM have been reported in smaller dogs, whose primary source of nutrition was food containing peas, lentils, other legume seeds or potatoes as main ingredients. These reported atypical DCM cases included Golden and Labrador Retrievers, a Whippet, a Shih Tzu, a Bulldog and Miniature Schnauzers, as well as mixed breeds. As a result, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine, along with a group of veterinary diagnostic laboratories, is investigating the possible link between DCM and pet foods containing seeds or potatoes as main ingredients. The good news is that in cases where the dog suffers no genetic component, and the disease is caught early, simple veterinary treatment and dietary change may improve heart function. According to Nutritional Outlook, an industry publication for makers of dietary supplements and healthy foods and beverages, there is a growing market for “free from” foods for dogs, especially gluten-free and grain-free formulations. In 2017, about one in five dog foods launched was gluten-free. So, do dogs really need to eat grain-free or gluten-free food? Probably not, according to PetMD, which notes that many pet owners are simply projecting their own food biases when choosing dog food. Genetically, dogs are well adapted to easily digest grains and other carbohydrates. Also, beef and dairy remain the most common allergens for dogs, so even dogs with allergies are unlikely to need to need grain-free food. So, the take away here seems to be that most dogs don’t need grain-free or gluten-free food, and that it might actually be bad for the dog, not good, as the owner might imagine. Stay tuned for more on the FDA’s investigation and any findings they make. Read more at Bizjournals.com