If you know us and our business, by now you'll know that we are big advocates of quality, natural and holistic supplements. In fact all of our personal team dogs are on some sort of supplement or have been at some point, despite all being on good quality, well rounded food. So today, we're going to talk about why a dog may (or may not!) need to be on supplements and some of the ones we use and why.
Now I want to start off by saying that if you have a good food that is a complete diet (i.e. contains everything your dog nutritionally needs) you do not HAVE to add supplements unless you want to or your dog is showing that they may need an extra top up of something. In most cases, adding a supplement is not going to cause any harm if you are following the proper feeding guidelines and so it can't hurt to try something and see if your dog could benefit from it or not. There are lot's of different supplements on the market and it's important to do your research or speak to someone qualified in supplement advisory before just jumping and adding anything and everything to your pets food. It's also important to do your research on the company and the ingredients they use to make sure the supplement is good quality and has good quality ingredients in it so that it is actually going to benefit your dog and not either be a waste of money or for it to have negative impacts on your dog.
We personally love and work with Dorwest Herbs as their products are good quality, full of great, natural ingredients and are tried and tested by professionals so we know the products we choose are going to be good and beneficial! So with that being said, here are some of the supplements we use with our pack and why.
So, let's start off with the products that we use every day for all of our dogs. For each i'll talk about what they are for and why we use them so you can fully understand what each is about.
1. Keepers Mix (Dorwest Herbs): Keepers Mix is a great all round supplement for boosting and adding extra nutritional support for dogs. It contains 8 herbs, is completely natural and there is also a sensitive version for if your dog has a sensitive stomach.
We give all of our dogs this supplement every day as an all round supplement to boost their immunity and overall health and make sure they are getting all the vitamins and minerals that they need to work each day. This is something we would encourage anyone to use as a every day supplement as it really is beneficial in keeping our dogs healthy and happy!
2. Easy Green (Dorwest Herbs): the Easy Green powder is a mix of green vegetables that is a great nutrient boost and also helps with skin and fur health. It's great for dogs with skin issues as it's got great cooling properties and helps to soothe itchy and hot skin.
All of our dogs get this supplement each day, especially India and Kira as both of them have issues with their skin and so it's been a great addition to helping with their skin issues.
3. Apple cider vinegar with garlic extract (Hilton Herbs): Both apple cider vinegar and small amounts of garlic have shown to have great health benefits in both humans and animals and has been particularly good as a natural repellent for fleas and ticks.
All of our dogs get a teaspoon or two (depending on size) each morning, especially during the summer months to keep their body topped up and have seen great benefits with our dogs since using this supplement each day.
4. Verm-X treats (Verm-X): Verm-X are a natural treat created by a vet team that help restore and maintain gut vitality and has shown to have great parasite repelling properties. They are a natural supplement that can be given each day to aid worm repellent.
All of our dogs get between 2 and 4 of these treats each day in their feeds split up between their morning and evening feeds to maintain the supplement levels in their bodies. As a side note, we also regularly worm count at a minimum of every 6 months to make sure our dog's don't have a high worm count or any worms and treat accordingly.
So onto the supplements we have only for certain dogs or ones we only use on occasion as some of our dogs have particular needs or we have supplements that we use for certain things and not regularly.
1. Tree Barks Powder (Dorwest Herbs): Tree Barks Powder is a great digestive supplement that is a life saver for digestive issues. It helps to soothe the digestive system, bind the gut and help settle digestive issues like sickness and diarrhoea.
We always have Tree Barks Powder on standby for if and when our dogs have a bit of sickness or are showing digestive issues. You can add it to their food or if your dog has already eaten or you aren't feeding a meal due to sickness, you can make up a liquid form for them to drink that helps to settle the stomach and deal with the sickness quickly and effectively.
2. Digestive tablets (Dorwest Herbs): This is another great supplement for settling stomach issues but is something that can be given more long term in tablet form. It contains several calming and soothing herbs to help soothe the digestive system and aid digestion.
India and Kira both have minor digestive issues that seem to be caused by certain foods and so they get the digestive tablets in their food each day to help settle their stomachs and help them to digest the food better. We also use these alongside the Tree Barks Powder for any of the other dogs if they seem to show signs of a digestive issue, Peanut in particular can occasionally bloat randomly with some food so she gets these to help settle that too.
3. Skullcap and Valerian Tablets (Dorwest Herbs): Skullcap and Valerian are a great natural anti-anxiety supplement. These are tablets that can be given each day to help reduce anxiety levels and maintain a calmer mindset.
Odin gets a couple of these tablets each day as he has a lot of anxiety issues that we are working through and Nova often has a few tablets if she is struggling to settle as it just takes the edge off of any anxiety and helps them to calm down. We also use these tablets for some of the dogs during fireworks season or if we're having a big change in routine that could stress the dogs like a holiday ect.
4. Valerian Compound (Dorwest Herbs): Another great anti-anxiety supplement but this is a fast acting liquid that can be used as a stand alone or a top up alongside the tablets. You can add this to their food but can also give straight into their mouth before an event that can cause anxiety which is generally our preferred method.
Odin often gets this as an extra supplement for situations we know are going to be more difficult for him. The same for the other dogs, if we know something is potentially going to be stressful for the dogs, they can have this supplement to help them settle and take the edge off of any anxiety. It's great for dogs with travel sickness, vet visits or any other situations that could make your dog anxious and we've seen great benefits with our own dogs since using it.
If you've not looked into any supplements before but would like to know more, I recently passed the Dorwest Get Trained Programme and am able to offer recommendations on any of the Dorwest supplement products so if you're not sure if your dog needs something or would like to find out more - please do get in touch and I'd be happy to help!
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