Just wondering, does anybody give their dogs anything extra in their food?

I give my dogs glucosamine, to help with their joints. And a bit of coconut oil, for their thyroids.. and it seems to make their coats softer aswell.

I would never feed coconut oil to a dog.

Mine are given 1000mg Vitamin C with Bio flavonoids, 44 iu Natural Vitamin E, Keepers Mix, fresh clove of garlic and 1000mg of Fish Body Oil.

And they are fed raw meat, bones, offal, fish, eggs, fruit and vegetables with a smidgeon of live yoghurt.

Can I just ask why you wouldn't feed them coconut oil?

And can i ask what the benefits are from feeding live yoghut,keep seeing that people give yoghut always wondered. :)

Yoghurt contains bacteria that is useful to the gut.  Personally I don't see any point in giving it to a dog in good health, the gut bacteria multiply themselves very well in a warm gut so it seems a little pointless to me.  However, when the dog has had a gastric upset or antibiotics (which kill both good and bad bacteria) then I think it is very useful to give a little to replace this and get the dog back on track.

I give one of mine with arthritis glucosamine and a tin of sardines in oil about twice a week.

http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/pet_nutrition.htm

The above site doesn't seem to think that there is anything wrong in giving coconut oil.  Quite the reverse so don't worry :)  Everyone has different views.

i give cod liver oil daily to my Shar Pei (they have wonderful coats) and have just started a supplement by NatureDiet called Naturezyme (v.expensive) as one of my boys has bad ear infections and this may (apparently help).

Beware of feeding CLO daily, it contains both Vitamins A & D.  Both are fat soluble and excess can build up in the liver and prove toxic to the dog, especially if you are also feeding a complete food that contains Vitamin A and/or are feeding liver regularly, and should not be given to pregnant bitches.

It is safer to feed Fish Body Oil IMHO

The gut bacteria live in the intestinal tract beyond the stomach.

The high acidity of the fluids in a dogs stomach make it very unlikely that any bacteria in yogurt would survive to reach the gut beyond.

The reason that dogs can eat rotten flesh without ill effect is that the stomach acids are so strong they kill most bacteria, give them yoghurt for the calcium by all means but forget the idea that it contains 'good' bacteria that will benefit them.

Incidentally the same applies to most of the human 'bio-yogurts', but to a slighlty lesser degree.

So when all the bacteria, good and bad, in the gut has been destroyed by antibiotics, for instance, where does the new colony arrive from if not ingested.
I have heard your theory before but the proof is in the pudding (if you pardon the pun ;)) as far as I am concerned and I have seen stable digestion restored many times by the use of live yoghurt either it passes through the stomach too quickly for all the bacteria to be destroyed or the bacteria is unaffected by the acid.  After all dogs are definately affected by some unwelcome things they ingest so why wouldn't good bacteria survive the process too?

My pup gets salmon oil, kelp, Vit E and Vit C.  Does salmon oil have the same effects as CLO?

It has the same effect as Fish Body Oil (FBO) and so is better for dogs than CLO IMHO.

were do you buy fish body oils from, brock is 50kg how much epo and e and c

http://www.healthspan.co.uk/

I buy all my supplements from the above source as they are of extremely high quality.

EPO - you cannot really OD on it so pick one of the choices from here.

Vitamin C I would recommend 1000mg

Vitamin E I would recommend 400 iu

thanks

Poppy gets an oily fish of some description once a week, usually salmon or sardines or pilchards.

Harry25,

Would it be ok for my 13 week old puppy to have fish (sardines etc.) once a week? He always gets very excited if we are having fish for dinner!

Puppies can eat fish straight away from 7 weeks.

Pilchards, mackeral and sardines have the highest amount of Omega 3s, Tinned tuna is very low in these.

Hi do you mix the fish with complete food or just give it on it's own ?? Do you need to do anything to the fish before giving it to the dog ??
Thanks

more info on fish with omega 3
The best sources of omega-3s:

Fish with high amounts of omega-3 include tuna (fresh), mackerel (fresh or smoked), salmon (fresh or smoked), sardines (fresh or canned), herrings, anchovies, pink trout, kippers, mullet, sprats, sturgeon and eel.

Fish with medium amounts include halibut, smelt, shark, oyster, swordfish and trout.

Fish with low amounts include tuna (canned in any way as it is defatted before canning), bass, bream, cod, coley, prawns, mussels, haddock and of course, fish fingers and fish and chips.
-jo

I have some whole herring in the freezer that I intend to give to the dogs. I presume its okay to feed whole (ie. head, tail etc)? YUK!

My Cav gets elderberry & nettle extract and kelp tablets to help his nose pigment which can go a bit off during the winter, and my Yankee gets digestive tablets (all from Dorwest herbs) in the hope it may help the horrible smells he makes, though I've not found anything as good as Pedigree Flatulence control tablets which are no longer made. :-(

Hi, you can feed fish whole, I often do.

Be aware that some dogs cannot cope with raw fish and tend to throw it up and then reconsume it, this is rather smelly...........

However tinned fish such as pilchards, mackeral and sardines, the most widely available and cheap sources can be fed on their own or with food, if it is in brine just drain and rinse.

Also beware of salmon, its source and that some dogs cannot tolerate it.

Of course if money is no object I am sure that sturgeon must be wonderful, (as long as I can have the caviar) :D :D :D

HTH