# More On Menhaden Fish



## EmmaRoo (Apr 3, 2016)

Hello All!

One day last week I wrote about the VeRus Cold Water Fish formula. I got this formula for my little rescue mutt who was ALWAYS itchy. Two things were very important about this trial. One, VeRus dog foods have NO corn. I know that corn has very little – if any – nutritional value for dogs as they cannot digest it the way that people digest. I don’t know why it never occurred to me that many dogs are allergic to corn.

So, the first thing, as I said, is that VeRus has no corn. That was the first positive step. Second, the Cold Water Fish formula dog food is high in Omega-3 fatty acids because the two main ingredients (Salmon and Menhaden fish) are very high in Omega-3’s. Now, we know why Omega-3’s are good for people but we also know that not everything that is good for a person is good for a dog. So I did some research.

Omega-3 fatty acids are good for dogs in the following ways:	

•	They boost immunity
•	Improves the health of skin and coat (reducing the risk of bacterial skin infections)
•	Counteracts the effects of an overactive immune system (remember, active is good; overactive is bad)
•	Regulates blood-clotting 
•	Slows the growth of yeast (another cause of itching, especially in the ears)
•	May help alleviate swelling due to arthritis and may help with other inflammatory diseases such as colitis
•	May help reduce high blood pressure and reduce the risk of other heart-related problems
•	May help slow development of certain types of cancer

I’m sure a lot of these benefits sound familiar. They are some of the same benefits humans receive from Omega-3’s. Humans can more easily take a supplement to reap the benefits of Omega-3’s. Dogs, however, don’t process the supplemental forms as readily as humans. Therefore, it is more important for dogs to get their Omega-3 fatty acids directly from a food source. And THIS is where a dog food that is naturally high in the right types of fish is so important.
If you do a Google search for Menhaden fish, you’ll find that it is most often praised for its Omega-3 content. In fact, you’ll see that almost as often as you’ll see that Menhaden fish like to make more little Menhaden fish. Menhaden is a sustainable source of Omega-3 AND it has a much, much lower concentration of mercury as it is NOT a farm-raised fish. Now there’s a happy surprise!

So you see, VeRus Pet Food’s Cold Water Fish formula is not only a great idea for an itchy dog, it’s a great idea for any adult dog. Better skin and coat, higher activity levels, lower risk of circulatory and inflammation issues, longer and happier life for your dog!
Works for me! Give it a try!

Special thanks to motherjones.com, southernfriedscience.com, and whole-dog-journal.com, as well as, VeRus Pet Foods Cold Water Fish webpage.

BTW - in case you couldn't tell, I really like the "Menhaden". Not to name anything but it stays in my mind and it rolls nicely off my tongue.


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## Dr Dolittle (Aug 2, 2013)

Hey EMmaRoo, don't have time to write but just wanted to say that corn is not an allergen for dogs! NOt even in the top 5 ingredients like egg and dairy, etc. And corn offers great nutrition, such as protein, energy, fatty acids, antioxidants! ANyone saying different is lying or doesn't know better. OMega 6s are actually the omegas that nourish and restore the skin barrier while Omega 3' help with the chronic inflammation. salmon is another great ingredient for Omega 3s but to deliver enough omega 3s a company has to add fish oil, above the amt from the named ingredients. YOu can call companies and get the amt of 6's and 3's but it can be confusing since other ingredients deliver omegas, such as corn and flax seed. ITs a bit more complicated trying to compare. SOory if al I did was confuse you! AS far as that food you mentioned, I would want to know is it life staged and has gone thru feeding trials and what the actual nutrient profile was, not just the Fatty acids, especially if my fog was 7 or older. God Bless!


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## EmmaRoo (Apr 3, 2016)

Hi Doc!
I stand corrected! I did some [more] research today (including contacting VeRus to clarify some information). I seriously hate to be wrong but will admit it when I am! So here's what I found out...
You are absolutely right regarding the positives about corn, specifically corn gluten meal (which is when the outer layer is removed to provide a very concentrated protein source). HOWEVER when not cooked properly is not easily digestible by anyone or anything. Investor owned companies cut corners, decreasing the amount of time cooked to be able to make more throughout a day. The same applied to what happened in the industry with brown rice. It wasn’t brown rice that was the problem. Less than 10% of dogs actually have a grain allergy. It is the way it is cooked that the body wouldn’t tolerate. Not all brands are created equal. Try cooking rice for only half the recommended time and try to eat it. Back to corn though… Years ago, VeRUS used to have corn gluten meal (fully cooked!) in the Feline life advantage but removed it due to how corn has evolved over the years. Corn in the US has Gmo’s, which causes leaky gut. Even if the corn is organic, it is very high in sugar.

Omega 6’s are from formed such as vegetable oil which is hydrogenated (soybean, cotton seed, etc). They are genetically modified. Some foods are so high in omega 6 that it actually causes inflammation, anything above a 1:6 omega 3 to omega 6 ratio. The ideal omega 3: omega 6 ratio is 1:1, if not higher for omega 3s. Good sources of omega 3s are menhaden and krill. If using a plant source such as flax seed, you must use a fish source to reach optimal omega 3s. DHA and EPA only comes from fish fats. Salmon is actually not as high in omega 3s as almost all salmon in pet food is farm raised. Those wild caught are much more expensive are usually used in the human industry. VeRUS uses menhaden as it’s main primary fish source, which is wild caught in mid range waters, which is the most pure of water levels.
Can you tell I really like this dog food and this dog food company? They're great!


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## Dr Dolittle (Aug 2, 2013)

EmmaRoo, You're doing good research. That is why sometimes you see corn, which is a carb source, verses corn gluten meal, which is a highly digestible protein source. I cannot disagree with you that our unnatural processed GMO grains here in America could be the worst thing we are doing with our food supply! HUmans and dogs! I will tel you most folks in the food industry, animal and human, disagree with us. as far as ratios of Omega 6s and 3s, it depends on the condition. FOr most diets, higher in 6s is good but as you said we need to watch inflammation with 6s so in arthritis diets we actually have to increase the 3s higher than 6s. there are only a few special vet diets that do that. ANd you are right. EPA/DHA is what you are looking for and you can't beat fish oil. FLax seed provides high levels of 6s but the 3s are ALA, not EPA. but for the dog, not cats, their body will convert 10 to 20% of ALA to EPA, so you still can get EPA from things like flax seed but it takes a lot more. IN a GI diet where you want high Omega 3s to reduce chronic inflammation yet effective fiber to aid in GI distress, flax would be better than fish oil. SEe how the specifics of the condition and the specifics of ingredients may be different rather than just labeling ingredients good or bad? BTW! We all are always getting corrected as we learn and dig more! the worst is when we get blinded by our bias and stop learning!


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