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Trying to start giving Honeygirl some suppliments, mainly containing the omega fatty acids and such to help her out with her dry skin and coat. We bought a liquid kind, but she will not touch her food with it in it. Tried mixing it with some peanut butter (one of her favorites) and that didn't work either. Any suggestions? A treat recipie perhaps that I could make and put the oil in?
Thanks!
How bout some beef broth. Also when you run out of it try a different brand such as Solid Gold Seameal
http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/produc...er/140027.aspx
Or Try Nupro Gold Suppliment
http://www.doggy-gifts.com/s.nl/it.A...8&category=344
I personally use the Solid Gold Seameal. My dogs love it and eat up thier dinner quickly. The results in a month will make you very happy.
The best Omega-3 supplement is fish oil. I've yet to see a dog pass up fish oil gel caps. The smell alone will do the trick. It doesn't matter if its fish oil, cod liver oil, or salmon oil as they all have the same concentration of Omega-3sQuote:
Originally Posted by mikkehla
Do not feed products containing flax oil. Flax contains the preclusors to Omega-3 fatty acids (Alpha-LNA), and Omega-6 fatty acids (Linoleic) which have to be converted by the host to long chain fatty acids that can be utilitzed. The conversion rate of the Alpha-LNA in humans yields approximately 4.6-34.5 mg/ 1 gm flax oil of Omega-3 fatty acids. Compare to the fish oil where you have 180 mg of EPA plus 120 mg of DHA per 1 gm of fish oil. Both are of the Omega-3 fatty acid class. But there's another kicker to flax oil. The ratio of the preclusors of Omega-3 to Omega-6 is 46% to 26%. Why should one care? Because Omega-6 fatty acids are pro-inflammatory, countering the beneficial effects of the Omega-3 fatty acids. Then there is the fact most dogs do not enjoy the taste of flax oil. Flax oil does not deserve its hype.
Another thing to add in for the skin is Vitamin-E. But be sure you get the succinate salt or "dry" form which is water soluble and easily absorbed into the body. The standard oil form will probably need additional fat in the diet to increase absorption. Over all the oil form is poorly absorbed.
I have found the supplement products from this company to be extremely palatable to my dogs, and the results are no less than astounding.
http://www.naturesfarmacy.com
I use the Dogzyme's Ultimate, the Dogzyme's CCM+ Super Bone and Joint Health, and the Calcium KA.
My dogs with joint issues do majorly better when on these supps.
Thanks for the info thus far. Reading one of the replies: I started reading the ingredients to what we bought:
Brand name: Lipiderm for Dogs by IVS - purchased at Petsmart.
Ingredients: Fish Oil, Citric Acid, Linoleic Acid, Zinc Sulfate, d-alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Safflower Oil, Potassium Sorbate, Vitamin A Palmitate.
Is this stuff no good?
I have found Lipiderm to help my old dogs skin and fur a lot. The fish oil is the first thing in the ingredients list and the most beneficial. Our shelter recommends it so I tried it. Unfortunately, Samson doesn't like the liquid's taste so I switched him to Drs Foster & Smith Vitacaps. He's been on them for four years and has stopped scratching so much (and grown hair back on previously bare spots).
but not as good as straight fish oil. The Linoleic acid for the small amount that gets converted to Omega-6 fatty acids will counter balance or cancel out the beneficial effects of the corresponding amount of Omega-3 fatty acids from the fish oil ingredient. In addition Safflower oil is also a source of Linoleic acid. You're sort of like giving the fish oil, and then taking a part of it away due to the effects of the Linoleic acid.Quote:
Originally Posted by mikkehla
Stick with the fish oil- it's cheaper, more beneficial and tastes great to a dog.
Did your vet recommend the suppliment? What kind of food are you feeding her? Does she get only the dog food, not any treats (particularly ones with red/green/yellow dyes in them?Quote:
Originally Posted by mikkehla
At our hospital (I work as a vet assistant 5+ years) we've noticed the pets eating good premium foods (Science Diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Purina One etc) always have smoother coats, shed less and have a glossier appearence than dogs eating lesser brands of food (ie. store brands etc.). As a general rule our hosp. doesn't recommend suppliments (as a good food should provide all they need) unless there is a medical reason to give them.
If your dog has severly dry skin/hair and you are already feeding a premium food, it might be a good idea to have a check up done at the vet, as some health problems/allergies can show as dry or itchy skin/hair.