Many owners switch to homemade dog food for a variety of health and lifestyle reasons. However, one of the terrifying questions is, do I need to give them supplements if I’m using a homemade diet? Your dog’s health depends on the quality and freshness of ingredients used and the supplements you give them. In this blog, we will be looking at the top 7 supplements to balance homemade dog food and maintain a healthy digestive system.
Why Give Supplements to Your Dog?
If you’ve owned a dog before, you already probably know the importance of giving them a good diet. We know that not all dogs are so fortunate to get fed the right assortment of food and supplements, but now, more and more dog owners are conscious of their pets’ health, especially as they age. As such, nutritional supplements for dogs have become popular because of how beneficial some can be for your furry friend’s overall well-being.
Not all dog supplements are created equally, and it’s important to keep in mind that some may have a greater impact on your pet than others.
It’s best to consult with your vet before you begin overhauling his diet, so he can best assess any particular needs your pet might have. Here is a list of 7 popular supplements to balance homemade dog food:
7 Supplements to Balance Homemade Dog Food
1. Glucosamine
Glucosamine is a naturally occurring compound found in humans, which is the building block for cartilage and can also be used to make both human and canine joints healthier. A new study has found that it can improve symptoms of arthritis in dogs by strengthening the joint function of their hips.
Glucosamine can reduce joint damage and inflammation. If given to dogs with osteoarthritis, glucosamine supplements proved to be as effective as painkillers and other treatments. The body naturally produces glucosamine, but its amount is so less, and with the increasing age, its production also gets lower.
It’s important to add glucosamine to your dog’s homemade diet especially if you have a senior dog.
2. Chondroitin
Chondroitin sulfate is a cartilage component that helps ensure elasticity and shock absorption. This component’s theoretical framework of action is that it inhibits the production of joint-destroying inflammatory mediators. Chondroitin sulfate is used as part of a formulation with glucosamine to help more effectively nourish the lining of a joint, promoting healing and reducing swelling due to fluid buildup in the joint.
3. Probiotics
Probiotics are kind of like the immune system’s secret weapon.
These supplements help your dog lead a healthier lifestyle by strengthening its digestive system and fighting infections with few side effects.
Probiotics can also make vitamins for dogs in addition to helping your pup’s microbiome flourish.
Probiotics have long been used to improve health by improving digestion, curing diarrhoea and constipation, and preventing inflammation in addition to other health problems like obesity and cramps. To harness the benefits of probiotics, make sure your dog is getting the daily dose.
4. Antioxidants
It’s thought that antioxidants prevent diseases and illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease, and even the common cold.
Antioxidants usually attack free radicals before more serious diseases take place.
These free radicals are victims of oxidation byproducts, like toxic metals and pesticides. Most importantly, you should know if you don’t make sure your furry friend has the necessary dietary requirements for his body, he will be left defenceless against these free radicals.
While all fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants, it’s important to include high-antioxidant food supplements to balance homemade dog food regularly.
Not all antioxidants are made the same. You’ve probably heard about Vitamin E, C, and Selenium when it comes to being good for your furry friends. The most common antioxidant used in pet foods is beta carotene, which helps keep your pet healthy and helps your pet’s coat stay healthy.
5. Fish oil
Fish oil is not only used as a supplement by humans. Dogs can benefit greatly from fish oil as well. Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA / DHA) found in fish oil are so helpful in maintaining good health and immunity in dogs that their owners will often say they act like puppies again. They become more eager to play and generally want to be more energetic and happy.
Fish oil for dogs comes in two forms, usually liquid or capsule, which comes with a dropper, depending on the brand. Most pet owners prefer the liquid form for a couple of reasons: tablets tend to be larger and harder for their pets to ingest, and some pets also do not enjoy chewing or swallowing pills/capsules compared to liquids.
6. Gut Health Supplements
Supporting your dog’s optimal gut health will leave them feeling better. There are many great options, whether they consume commercially prepared or homemade food as part of their diet. Either way, it’s important to ensure that the ingredients your dogs are eating can be properly assimilated into their system so their gut doesn’t become inflamed, leaving you with a dog who constantly has tummy troubles and is in pain for no apparent reason. The best solution for this issue is to pick out a product designed specifically to help support your dog’s GI tract.
If your pup has a sensitive stomach it is necessary to add these supplements to balance homemade dog food.
For instance, Black Balance by Medrego digestive supplements are veterinarian approved, natural snacks for dogs. They are filled with multi-beneficial ingredients such as fluvic and humic acids, which have been used for a long time in traditional human medicine and have a scientifically approved positive impact on dog digestive health.
Thanks to these ingredients, this solution improves the work of the stomach and intestinal microbiome. In addition, the product enhances the absorption of nutrients from the gastrointestinal tract. It removes heavy metals and free radicals from the body, thereby helping to manage healthy digestion and deal with problems like vomiting, diarrhoea, gastritis, ulcers, and others.
Read more about Black Balance’s success regarding pet digestive health improvement here.
7. Calcium
Feeding homemade dog food can be problematic because of the low availability of calcium. There are many reasons for this, and one major reason is that it isn’t realistic to think you can provide your dog with enough calcium using only homemade food. While eating yoghurt a few times a week might help, ultimately, your dog would have to eat an unrealistic amount of yoghurt to secure any significant amount of calcium in their bodies.
Conclusion
With so many choices on the market, it can be overwhelming to figure out what supplements your dog needs. We hope that this blog post has helped you narrow down the supplements that your dog needs. If you have any further questions regarding the supplements your dog needs, consult your vet about this.
