Nutrition For Active Dogs - Supplements To Help Your Working Dog

Welcome to the wonderful world of doggy nutrition! Active dogs especially those sporting and working breeds don’t always get everything they need from even the best commercial dog foods. Supplements should be given to all dogs and for the athletes of the canine world, you will want to give them extra supplements! Dogs who are moderate to extremely active need nutritional boosts to keep up with their high energy and stamina needs. A healthy active dogs needs a ratio of 40% - 45% fats and close to 50% protein. Supplements to give your active canine are : Antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, fruits and vegetables, Omegas 3 fatty acids, and Probiotics and enzymes. All this a bit much? Well let’s take them one by one! While your looking around at supplements you will also want to check out these very nice pet carriers for your dog right away.

Antioxidants are substances that control oxidation or reactions promoted by oxygen, peroxides, or free radicals. Simply what that means is that when your dog whether they moderately active or intermediatly to highly active dogs exercise regularly or intensly their bodies increase the amount of free radicals( produced in the body by natural biological processes or introduced from an outside source (as tobacco smoke, toxins, or pollutants) and that can damage cells, proteins, and DNA by altering their chemical structure) and oxidative damage to the body. Antioxidants are necessary to any dog’s diet regardless of breed or activity level. Antioxidants are also going to boost the immune system, promote coronary and vascular health, as well as improve circulation! Antioxidants can be found in fruits and vegetables that are rich in colors. Antioxidants can also be found in supplements such as Vitamin C, E, flavenoids, and Beta Caratene. You will definitely want to take a peek at these airline dog crates right now for your pet. The pet needs one of these badly.

Vitamins and Minerals are a no brainer! It is common sense that your dog needs them in order to be healthy and making sure your dog is getting the essentials means more than reading commercial dog food labels! Increases in activity and exercise means more demands for Vitamins C and B-Complex. These two vitamins are two major players to the team of Healthy Dog! Vitamin C supports the immune system and Vitamin B- Complex is going to give your dog healthy skin, muscles, and blood. In alot of high quality commercial dog foods already come enriched with many vitamin and minerals but there are also natural foods that should be added to their diets. If you are still unsure that your dog is not getting their vitamins and minerals or they have a sensitivity to some natural food sources, then always consult with your veterinarian and he or she should be able to give you vitamin and mineral supplements that are for dogs!

Right off, you wouldn’t think that fruits and vegetables would be foods you’d give your dog. Dogs by nature are carnivores but they also can tolerate some fruits and vegetables added to their diets. There are even some owners of whom are vegetarians that provide their beloved pets with vegetarian diets as well. Fruits and vegetables are just as high in vitamins and minerals as organ meats(livers, kidney,ect.). Not every dog though will embrace vegetables and fruits added to their diets so you will want to get a pill supplement. If your still a little confused on how to use pill supplements for vitamin and minerals here is a good guide: Small dogs should take 50 mg of Vitamin C per day and 500 mg for large dogs. B-complex vitamins should contain 4-5 mg of niacin for a dog weighing 35 lb. You will also want to view these products right now for your dog. Take a look at dog dresses right away for your doggie. Your dog really needs these items, pick them up today!

Probiotics and Enzymes, just to hear those words probably has you thinking of some sort of lab experiment, huh? Well I assure you they are much more simpler than that! When your dog eats, as he chews the digestion process has already started! Saliva and enzymes in the mouth and stomach are already dispatched to break down the food. Not all foods react well with your dog’s system. So to combat vomiting, diarrhea, and other stress related digestion disorders, Probiotics and Enzyme supplements is the answer! What these two combinations do for your dog is they replace the depleation of enzymes that your dog loses when they exercise, are sick, environmental issues such as pollution, pregnacy, stress, or even accidents can cause your dog to have a depleation of enzymes. Probiotics and Enzymes are best given in the form of a chewable tablet but can also come in powders. Again, this is a great topic for your veternarian who can help steer you to a great product as well as give you a food list to incorporate in your dog’s diet.

Fatty acids aren’t acids like acid in the stomach, but are sequences of strings of carbon molecules linked with single or double bonds. The location of the double bond determines whether it’s called an Omega 3 or an Omega 6 fatty acid. Omega 3 fatty acids have the first double bond at the 3rd carbon: ALA (alpha linolenic acid), EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). Omega 6 fatty acids have the first double bond at the 6th carbon: LA (linoleic acid) and GLA (gamma linolenic acid). Whew! That is a lot you probably didn’t learn unless you took biochemistry! Don’t worry, basically Omega 3s are unsaturated fats that are found in most green leafy vegtables, eggs, fish, and other sources. Your dog can either get their Omega 3s in an enriched high quality dog food, a raw diet, or in a supplement! These are really important for your dog’s hormonal health and for the health of their hearts. Omega Fatty Acids are going to give your dog longevity, increased intelligence because the neurons in their brains are going to fire and be more productive, a reduction in many health related conditions such as arthritis, atopia, and cancer, and the list goes on! From anything physiological to emotional and behavioral health; Omega’s will have your dog covered! Excellent sources of Omega-3 include cod liver oil, fish oil, flaxseed oil, and animal sources. These are essential to add to your beloved canine companion’s diet!

As you can see, adding supplements whether naturally in food sources or in pill or powder forms are essential for their overall health and wellbeing. By utilizing supplements and healthier foods you are giving your pet the very best in care and you are giving them a longer life!