Mike called my attention to this article that was too incredible not to share.
Can you believe it? The First Complete Home Glucose Monitoring System Designed for Cats and Dogs!
And what next? After you check Fifi’s blood sugar and find it elevated is it a lower fat higher carb ‘diabetic’ pet food regimen? Then what? Insulin shots for Tinkerbell, of course. Where will it all end? Insulin pumps for poodles? Inhaled insulin for Rover? Metformin for Muffy? Then of course, more delicous whole grains to treat Hugo’s hypoglycemia? Sure, since just as with humans, the risk of clubbing blood sugar into submission with medications is fraught with errors of absorption, of measurement, and of response that will always run the risk of the blood sugar’s going dangerously low.
This whole awful travesty–by that I mean turning pure carnivores into de facto omniherbavores in need of such monitoring devices and, thus, into obese, diabetic caricatures of the sleek, frisky animals they should be–would be funny if it weren’t so pitiful.
It reminds me of the sad tales you hear about of the 1200 pound person who hasn’t been out of bed in three years and when his or her health goes into a downward skid has to be lifted by a crane through a hole in the side of a building. The question I always want to ask is: Who the heck keeps bringing them the Ding Dongs? A bed-ridden obese individual can’t get out of bed to get something to eat. Can’t even get to the door to meet the pizza delivery guy. Obviously, he or she must rely on someone else to bring in the food that maintains that amount of corpulence.
The same is true of pets. Except for the occasional capture of the unfortunate bird or squirrel, domesticated dogs and cats generally rely on their owners to feed them. And if the food is a low fat, high carb, grain based chow, or if it’s too much in quantity, or if it’s (worse yet) people treats, such as candy, ice cream, donuts, and the like, then these little neotinized wolves, bears, and lions–carnivores all–will do just what people do: become obese and diabetic.
Next on the pet Syndrome X hit parade will be widespread reports of dog and cat atherosclerosis and high blood pressure and then we’ll no doubt be treated to articles about little pet home blood pressure and cholesterol monitors. These poor dependent creatures will be placed on low salt diets (another idiotic nutritional myth recently exploded) and lipid lowering medications (see our writings in the Protein Power LifePlan
Heaven help them!
As I wrote about in a previous blog, these diseases occur in our pets because of their being fed an unnatural diet. If you’ve got a carnivorous pet–a dog, a cat, a wolf hybrid–for heaven’s sake, please feed them what nature intended them to eat–meat and fat and bone and gristle. Let them chew on some sweet grass if they want, but don’t pretend that their ancient metabolisms were any more designed to eat grains and sugars than ours were. Put the right fuel in the tank and Fluffy and Fido will have no need of the latest blood sugar monitoring device…or whatever absurd instrument comes along next.
Hey Fluffy, hey Fido, save yourselves! Boycott carbs now!