Hi, I want to change food for Finn. He has a brand that only contains 16% chicken and it not grain free. I ordered a new kibble, but now I read it contains St John's Wort. Is this bad...?
That sounds like a strange "supplement", Is it a special food for hyperactive dogs or some other "problem". St John's Wort in human medicine is like human "Prozac" and is well known to have interactions with various medicines, including the contraceptive pill. I know that isn't AT ALL relevant to our dogs, but a quick google to look to see what food this might be brought up an article about St John's Wort interacting (badly) with anaesthetic drugs. http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/The-promises-and-perils-of-St-Johns-wort/ That doesn't mean it is a bad food, but certainly something you need to be aware of if your dog has veterinary medicine or treatment.
I decided to try it anyway. As it contains just 0,2% among all sort of other herbs. I think that the amount of St John's is negligible! I knew the problems of St John's Wort in human medicine, I couldn't find on the internet what it will do in dogs. So I thank you for the link drsj@5! This is what it contains: Ingredients: Fresh chicken meat (41%), pieces of potato (dried), poultry protein (16%, partially dried and hydrolysed), venison protein (4%, dried), dried beet pulp (desugared), linseed, poultry fat, brewer’s yeast (dried), sodium chloride, egg (dried), fruits of the forest mixed berries (0.3%, dried: cranberries, blackcurrants, raspberries, elderberries), herbs (0.2%, dried: mugwort, St. John’s wort, nettle leaves, camomile, common yarrow, coltsfoot, dandelion root), yeast extract (dried, = 0.2% beta-glucanes and mannan-oligosaccharides), apple (dried), chicory inulin (0.1%), salmon oil, sunflower oil
I still would not want a dog food that contained St Johns Wort. SJW is quite a powerful and complex chemical, whilst it exerts it's inhibitory effect on various neurotransmitters in the brain, this is not a modulating effect. I am aware of various suggestions that SWJ has an anti-inflammatory effect, however the potential toxic effects leave me scratching my head at why this herb is included in dog food. Granted it appears low dose, but there again this is not a tested grade pharmaceutical. I am not scaremongering, far from it, I just wondering at the need to include all these herbs? Anything included in a dog food should been tried and tested by a animal nutritionist, not just added because, well aren't herbs good for people/dogs? Sorry just my honest opinion, although when it comes to neurotransmitters I am an expert
