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Vitamins for Pets - How Essential Are They?

A vitamin supplement for pets is essential to your pet’s wellbeing unless you’re already feeding your pet its natural raw diet in precisely the proportions it would eat in the wild. If not, your pet is, to a greater or lesser extent, deficient in vitamins which it needs for optimal health. Certainly, your pet may get by without them, but if you want to ensure a long and healthy life for your pet, your pet needs a vitamin supplement. Vitamins can also be of enormous assistance if your pet already has an illness or health problem of some kind.

Just like humans, almost all pets do benefit from a vitamin supplement. And just as there has been considerable controversy in the medical fraternity over whether humans need extra vitamins, so too do many vets dispute the need for nutritional supplements for pets.

The argument usually goes something like this: “The majority of commercial petfoods contain added vitamins. So even though your pet’s diet may be inadequate, the vitamins added to pet food compensates for this.”

Wrong! Many human breakfast cereals contain added vitamins - they’re sprayed on after the processing. And it has been established that you would ingest more vitamins by eating the packaging than you do by eating the cereal inside. It’s a gimmick. A gimmick to get you to buy the cereal and feel comfortable in the “knowledge” that you’re getting some vitamins even if you don’t eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. But guess what? It doesn’t compensate. Even the fruit and vegetables we buy today have very little in them by way of vitamins and minerals, by comparison to what they should ideally contain. Unless you’re buying organic fruit and veges direct from the farm and eating them the same day, you’re not optimising your vitamin intake from fresh food.

This is why many of us now routinely supplement our diet with vitamin tablets, even when we eat a balanced diet. If we don’t, we’re likely to be vitamin deficient to some degree. That’s why cancer, heart disease, and other degenerative conditions are at an all time high, and are still on the increase. A hundred years ago these conditions were unknown.

It’s the same for our pets. In fact, they’re generally in a worse position than us in relation to an adequate intake of vitamins. That’s because, contrary to what many of the so-called “authorities” will have you believe, the garbage that’s sold to us as pet food is causing your pet irreparable harm. So the fact that it may have some “added vitamins” is just a complete gimmick, and absolutely worthless from your pet’s health’s point of view.

It’s vital that you feed your pet something as close to its natural diet as possible, and in most cases that’s still not enough. Supplementation is essential.

Your pet’s natural diet is exclusively raw food. Is that what you’re feeding your pet? Or do you opt for the convenience of commercial pet food some or all of the time? Unless you can replicate what your pet would eat in the wild, you owe it to your pet to give a vitamin supplement. And who can replicate exactly what they’d eat in the wild? In exactly the same proportions?

No one. So you know what that means? You do need to give your pet a vitamin supplement.

For information on vitamins for pets, go to:
http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com/Vitamins

Vitamins for pets have produced remarkable results in animals with specific health concerns such as allergies or other skin irritations, dull coat, lack of energy, as well as much more serious problems like cataracts, epileptic seizures, tumors and leukemia.

Naturally, you should ALWAYS consult your vet with ALL health concerns, but if your pet does have a serious health problem, ask your vet whether a vitamin supplement could help. And if your pet is already reasonably healthy, keep him/her that way by giving a vitamin supplement. It can’t do any harm! And you could well be ensuring that your pet has a longer life practically overflowing with health!

To read some truly amazing stories, go to: http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com/HPTestimonials or for general information on healthy pet vitamins, go to: http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com/Vitamins

(c) 2005, Brigitte Smith, Healthy Happy Dogs

Brigitte Smith is a dog lover with a special interest in holistic dog health. Her site, Healthy Happy Dogs, has pages and pages of information on improving your dog’s health naturally. Brigitte is the author of several reports, articles, and the Healthy Happy Dogs newsletter

For your special FREE report - “How to Improve Your Dog’s Health Within 30 Days - Maybe Even Lengthen Your Dog’s Life!”, Click Here: http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com

Tags: dog natural health, dog supplements, dog vitamins, holistic dog health, pet supplement, pet vitaminsdog natural health, dog supplements, dog vitamins, holistic dog health, pet supplement, pet vitamins

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One of the newest health foods for pets and people is “coconut oil.” Coconut oil is a saturated-fat vegetable oil. Coconuts have always been a staple of tropical cuisines and people following a coconut-based diet. These people rarely suffered from heart disease, cancer, diabetes or other illnesses that haunt modern America.

According to the people who use coconut oil regularly it can reduce the risk of cancer and other degenerative conditions, improves cholesterol levels and helps to fight heart disease, improves digestion and nutrient absorption, contains antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal agents that prevent infection an disease……..some even use it to brush their and for underarm deodorant. I do believe I have seen the ingredient “coconut oil” in several of my favorite deodrants.

This is good news for people and their dogs since most of coconut oil’s human benefits are the same for canines. Try giving your shih tzu some coconut oil to see if he/she likes the taste. It has been reported that most dogs do love the taste of coconut oil, which makes feeding it to your shih tzu more pleasant. I really don’t like giving my shih tzu anything that is unpleasant even if it is for their own good.

You will need to get the right type. Most health food stores carry at least one brand and you can probably find it online. There are two main types of coconut oil. One is refined coconut oil (might be labeled RBD for Refined, Bleached, and Deordorized). It is made from copra, or dried coconut meat, then treated to remove impurities. Most RBD coconut oil is relatively inexpensive. It does not contain all the nutrients found in unrefined coconut oil and in most cases the coconuts used are lof low quality and chemicals like chorine and hexane are used in the refining process. The other type is Unrefined or “virgin” coconut oil and is made from fresh coconuts. hmmmm, sounds like the kind I would like best. I truly like coconut of anything. I want it to taste good and taste good to my dogs. I would go for the more expensive type.

Of course the better of the two is going to cost you more. Good-quality oil is colorless when liquid and pure white when solid, never yellow or pink and it should not contain residue or have an “off” or rancid odor. If you get hold of some coconut oil that gives you a scratchy throat or like a “catch” in the throat, this is probably a sign of poor quality. A smokey flavor or aroma is another indication of poor quality.

There are also hydrogenated and fractionated coconut oils. Hydrogenated coconut oil is not recommend for your dog because it contains harmful trans-fats. Fractionated coconut oil is a message oil and aromatherapy ingredient and is sold as a cosmetic ingredient.

For your shih tzu, you would need to start out with small amounts and increase gradually to about 1 tablespoon per 30 lbs. body weight daily (no shih tzu weighs this much), so you would need to adjust that dosage and ask your vet for help on that. You need to watch for changes in your dog’s energy, skin, coat, breath and body odor.

You can also apply coconut oil topically to cuts, wounds, infected ears, bites and stings for both you and your pets.

Connie Limon publishes a FREE weekly newsletter. A professional newsletter with a focus upon health and wellness for you and your pets. Discounts on shih tzu puppies are offered to subscribers. Sign up at: http://www.stainglassshihtzus.com

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Should I provide my new puppy with supplements?

In order to ensure the optimal health of your puppy a quality premium diet is essential. However, there are times when your puppy’s diet alone cannot provide the essential ingredients or proper absorption necessary to support their daily maintenance, as well as their vigorous growth. A daily multi-vitamin such as Excel Daily Multi-Vitamins for puppies can help to ensure that your growing puppy get’s all the vitamins they will need for healthy tissues, strong bones, and overall good health.

Should I provide my adult dog with supplements?

In addition to feeding a quality premium diet to your adult dog it is important to remember that just like humans, dogs can benefit from the use of vitamin and mineral supplements. A daily multi-vitamin such as Missing Link provide your dog with the essential vitamins and minerals that their diet may be missing, while providing your dog with fatty acids to improve both skin and coat! Also, Missing Link is specifically formulated with foods, so “over-supplementation” should not be a concern.

Should I give my senior dog supplements?

Older dogs have more specific nutritional needs. Often, even if fed a quality premium diet, your senior dog’s body will not absorb all the essential vitamins and minerals needed to combat the effects of aging. Supplements such as Inhancer Joint Protection correctly balance the joint saving nutrients necessary for older pets to maintain their hip and joint health. Also, products such as Acidophilus For Digestion provide your older dog with the proper nutrients to aid in the reduction of constipation and other bowel related problems, which often occur in older dogs.

It is important to remember, that healthy diets, as well as supplementation are only a couple of pieces to your dogs health. Make sure to discuss these options with your veterinarian and peers. Especially today, there is a renewed interest in treating our pets, as well as ourselves naturally. Because of this, there is a wealth of products available to you, many times with little or no “real” information about them. At Dog.com, we pride ourselves on choosing some of the best, most noted products available today for your pets overall health and well being. We’ve done this since 1969, so that when it comes to your dog’s health, you know you can trust us, and that you can trust the products purchased from us!

Mike Steele

http://www.dog.com/

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