Help overcome dog food dangers: which oils for cancer??
Dr. Demian Dressler is internationally recognized as “the dog cancer vet” because of his innovations in the field of dog cancer management, and the popularity of his blog here at Dog Cancer Blog. The owner of South Shore Veterinary Care, a full-service veterinary hospital in Maui, Hawaii, Dr. Dressler studied Animal Physiology and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Davis before earning his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University. After practicing at Killewald Animal Hospital in Amherst, New York, he returned to his home state, Hawaii, to practice at the East Honolulu Pet Hospital before heading home to Maui to open his own hospital. Dr. Dressler consults both dog lovers and veterinary professionals, and is sought after as a speaker on topics ranging from the links between lifestyle choices and disease, nutrition and cancer, and animal ethics. His television appearances include “Ask the Vet” segments on local news programs. He is the author of The Dog Cancer Survival Guide: Full Spectrum Treatments to Optimize Your Dog’s Life Quality and Longevity. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Avian Veterinarians, the National Animal Supplement Council and CORE (Comparative Orthopedic Research Evaluation). He is also an advisory board member for Pacific Primate Sanctuary.
Updated: December 12th, 2018
Rochelle Lesser, who created and manages a great site for Golden Retrievers (and dogs in general), asked about krill oil on a recent post. Here’s the skinny on why I like its cancer-fighting benefits (krill are those tiny shrimp that whales eat).
First, krill oil helps offset the omega 6 fatty acid excess I wrote about in the post before last, by supplying needed omega 3 fatty acids. This helps block the inflammation and suppression of cancer-fighting white blood cells caused by excess omega 6’s. Too much omega 6 fatty acids are found in many commercial dog foods in corn products, vegetable oils, meat fats and more.
Other good sources of omega 3’s are fish oils of various kinds, with Chinook salmon, mackerel, menhaden, and sardine also being up there. So giving these oils stimulates cancer-fighting white blood cells, and decreases inflammation (inflammation is a central part of cancer development). Omega 3’s can also help fight cancer weight loss (cachexia), slow tumor growth, and lessen spread in many cases. So krill and fish oil both are good in these regards.
However, with our understanding of the link between depression in people and cancer, it becomes obvious that this is a massively overlooked problem in dogs. To my knowledge, this is an area that has not been addressed in any formal way and will be viewed at as “out there” by many conventional vets. I firmly believe that this line of thought is on the leading edge of a whole new way of looking at dog cancer.
With this in mind, back to krill oil. Krill do not accumulate heavy metals, so this is not a concern in their oil. Additionally, they are rich in EPA, the omega 3 fatty acid that has been shown to fight depression and inflammation. Krill has more EPA than fish oil. Here is more info. Since depression in people increases cancer, addressing this in dogs is very logical. On top of this, Krill has the capacity to actually restore the size of brain parts that have literally shrunk in depression. This may be due to its phospholipid content, of which krill has more than fish oil. Amazing!
Yes, krill oil costs more than fish oil. However, you can get away with less, probably about 1/4 less than fish oil. I would recommend about 4-6 of the 500 mg krill oil capsules daily for a 40 lb dog, costing roughly $3 daily. Not cheap, but good!
To be safe, stop fish oil or krill oil about 10 days before your dog has any surgery.
Thanks to Rochelle of The Land of Pure Gold for the great question!
Best to all,
Dr Dressler
Dr. Demian Dressler is internationally recognized as “the dog cancer vet” because of his innovations in the field of dog cancer management, and the popularity of his blog here at Dog Cancer Blog. The owner of South Shore Veterinary Care, a full-service veterinary hospital in Maui, Hawaii, Dr. Dressler studied Animal Physiology and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Davis before earning his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University. After practicing at Killewald Animal Hospital in Amherst, New York, he returned to his home state, Hawaii, to practice at the East Honolulu Pet Hospital before heading home to Maui to open his own hospital. Dr. Dressler consults both dog lovers and veterinary professionals, and is sought after as a speaker on topics ranging from the links between lifestyle choices and disease, nutrition and cancer, and animal ethics. His television appearances include “Ask the Vet” segments on local news programs. He is the author of The Dog Cancer Survival Guide: Full Spectrum Treatments to Optimize Your Dog’s Life Quality and Longevity. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Avian Veterinarians, the National Animal Supplement Council and CORE (Comparative Orthopedic Research Evaluation). He is also an advisory board member for Pacific Primate Sanctuary.
So a dog taking pain medications such as Metacam, Tramadol, Gabapentin etc. for osteosarcoma should not take krill oil, correct? Does this also apply to fish oil?
As I understand it, it is beneficial to supplement the diet of a dog with cancer with EPA and DHA. What is the best way to do this if the dog is taking daily pain meds?
The best value I could find is the Petsmart brand Authority. Best ingredients for the best price. It does have fish oil as well but Im not sure if its safe for dogs after the news on the carcinogens in fish oil.
There are those of us who are struggling financially and who cannot afford the outrageously high prices for the purest of pure fish oil for our dogs. Do you have any suggestions for the financially-challenged? Note: For the last year, I have been feeding my generally healthy 48 pound pit bull Delca Corp. liquid Wild Alaskan Fish Oil that I purchased from Costco. They stopped carrying it and I need to restock. Any recommendations that you can provide would be appreciated.
Regarding the mast cell tumors mentioned above. Here’s a success story from a Lab I had who was diagnosed with recurring mast cell tumors at age 13 … about 11 years ago. We were at the point of trying Prednisone, though it would not bring about a cure, just a slowing down.
I took him to a holistic vet in upstate NY. She prescribed daily injections of Carnivora (along with home made diet, Chinese medicine, etc) and he experienced a complete remission. The Carnivora was obtained from Europe. It has also been used for colon-rectal cancer. This is something you need to work with a vet on, schooled in alternative medicine.
For my Lab now, we use Carlsons fish oil. It’s cheaper online at Vita-Cost. Heartfelt wishes for good health to all and your animal companions.
I forgot to mention that due to Kiki’s thyroid, the vet cannot give her the designer non-steroid anti-inflamation meds like Rimadyl or Prednisone. She is on Torbutrol for pain and Cosequin as supplement. She eats home cooked diet of fish, chicken, puree vegetable, rice, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
I have a 9 1/2 years old Pom, Kiki, that has extremely high liver enzymes for over a year now. She is on Denamarin and Syloxine for her thyroid. Kiki recently had extremely painful episodes that sends her spinning in circles and yelping in pain. The vet took x-ray and diagnosed her with Spondylitis. Kiki hates fishy smell and refuses to eat if I put fish oil in her food. I found the Mega Red Krill Oil softgel at Costco 300 mg with 90 mg Omega 3, 45 mg EPA, 27 mg DHA. Can I give this to Kiki one softgel a day? Kiki weights 9 lbs. Since it is in a small softgel it is easy for me to pop it down her throat without any fishy smell in her food. Should I give her Vitamin E too and how much? I would really appreciate any suggestions you may have. My baby is in so much pain. 🙁
p.s. The cost is not bad. 90 pills for $18.99 at Costco.
June 15,2009 I have been giving my 7lb chihuahua pet cod liver oil for about 6 months now. The recommened dose on the bottle. He has discoid lupus, Is this a safe thing to do? Should I be worried about the mercury content? I also give it to my other dogs.They love it. Joyce Houston
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Hi Dr. Dressler. Some great information. I have one question regarding fish oil…is there a distinction between cod liver oil and fish oil. As in, isn’t cod liver oil just a specific type of fish oil? I have that and am giving it to my 3 yo Goldendoodle (we’ve known about his GI lymphoma for less than a week, so this is all new to us). Currently 1 tsp (the liquid type) a day with plans to begin increasing it. I just read your post regarding krill, so it got me thinking. I thought that perhaps others would be interested as well to know if “fish oil is fish oil is fish oil,” for omega-3 purposes, of if there are distinctions in type (beyond what you’ve written about krill) or other dangers.
Where do I get Menhaden fish oil–I have not seen it anywhere?
The study on dogs with lymphoma used Menhaden fish oil so I would like to try it.
Second Question: Is kipper ok for dogs? I have fed that a couple times in very small doses.
Lilly F.