It still contained a good amount of meat, and this is what prevented taurine deficiencies from occurring. ![]() However, metal was needed for the military, and by the time the war ended, 85% of pet food was dry kibble. The answer lies in a part of the history of pet food that the big manufacturers don't want you to know.īefore WWII, more than 90% of commercial pet food came in cans, and contained mostly meat. The lack of taurine in the diet caused serious eye and heart diseases to develop.īut what happened to the cat food? Thousands of cats had been eating the same "complete and balanced" cat food since it came on the market in the 1960's, so why should they suddenly start dying a decade later? Taurine Sources Taurine is found primarily in muscle meat, and is completely absent in cereal grains. In humans and dogs, taurine is not essential, but it turned out that in cats, it is. Animals can manufacture many of them in their liver, but some must be obtained in the diet - these are called "essential". There are 22 amino acids, the basic building blocks of protein. Finally, in the late 1980's, the problem, in cats at least, was traced to the deficiency of a basic amino acid called taurine. But within a few years, the same problems were discovered in cats eating a "premium" cat food sold by veterinarians. At the same time, there were reports of cats going blind that were often associated with cats being fed dog food. Back in the 1970's, thousands of dogs and cats were mysteriously dying due to a form of heart failure called dilated cardiomyopathy.
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