Many people have have dogs that experience lots of dander and shedding, bad doggy smell and lacklustre fur would benefit greatly from the added nutrition. That extra boost ensures your dog is getting everything it needs every day and that reflects on their physical condition. Nutrition truly does show itself on the outside and a good way to judge whether or not a dog is getting exemplary nutrition is to look to their skin, coat, ears, eyes and muscle tone.
When it comes to selecting the right whole food supplement or multivitamin, there are several things to consider. I first check where the product is made, selecting only products produced within North America. Secondly, I want to see whole food ingredients as opposed to added vitamins and minerals. Whole food ingredients supply whole vitamin and mineral complexes, meaning you get the entire "nutritional picture" as opposed to one part of a vitamin added synthetically to the formula. An example of this is vitamin C; Vitamin C is more complete when it comes "with rosehips" as it contains bioflavonoids, flavonoids and tannins. Adding rosehips also increases vitamin C absorption. Another benefit of whole food supplements is that the nutrients are derived naturally from real food sources, which is better accepted by the body with a higher level of nutrient absorption.
Ingredients: Desiccated liver, Norwegian kelp, amino acids & enzymes, imported yeast cultures, flaxseed, lecithin, garlic concentrate, lactobacillus acidophilus, calcium citrate
My first recommendation is a whole food supplement called Nupro. This comes in two varieties; the Gold is their original formula and the Silver is their original formula with the addition of joint supplements. Nupro contains vitamins, minerals, amino acids, essential fatty acids and enzymes that come from the live, unprocessed, raw human grade ingredients that they use.
Ingredients: Carob powder, ground sunflower seed, dried parsley leaf, kelp flakes, alfalfa greens, ground almond, hulled oil rich hemp seeds, hemp seed flour, dried red and green pepper, dry celery leaf, dried blueberry, dried cranberry, dry dandelion leaf, ground pumpkin seed, powdered carrot, stinging nettle, barley grass powder, dried mint leaf, powdered rosehip, paprika, burdock root powder, garlic powder, ground walnut, ground flax seed, sesame seed, Prozyme, glucosamine, MSM, dried dill week, coriander, anise, fennel, goat mild whey powder, powdered marshmallow root, blue Hawaii spirulina, rosemary, ascorbic acid, Primal Defense probiotic, oregano, ginger, cumin, marjoram, thyme, savory, basil, sage, cayenne, powdered yucca, turmeric, fenugreek, bilberry, vegetal silica.
Feed-sentials is a whole food, complete nutritional supplement made in Canada. This is the perfect supplement for raw feeders to incorporate for a nutritional boost, but works just as well when mixed in with homemade dog food or a high quality commercial kibble diet. Once again you see whole food ingredients and a complete nutritional picture.
Ingredients: Dried Seaweed Meal, Flaxseed Meal, Dried Lemon, Dried Aspergillus Oryzae Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Niger Fermentation Product, Pineapple, Lactose
SeaMeal is also a whole food supplement deriving a lot of its nutrition from seaweed. SeaMeal contains 60 trace minerals, 12 vitamins, 22 amino acids and digestive enzymes. Not as complete as the others mentioned above, but still good quality.
Ingredients: Dried seaweed (19 different types), dehydrated bioflavonoids, ground flax meal, beta-carotene, chlorophyll, complex vitamin B, digestive enzymes, probiotics.
Holistic Blend's Seagreens Powder is also a whole food supplement, but unlike the Solid Gold product it also contains a good dose of probiotics.
For more information on creating true health and vitality in your dogs by means of diet and nutrition, visit my nutrition consultation page or contact me!
Angel Leandres
K9 Instinct
www.k9instinct.com