Conker eats prey-model raw. I give him Grizzly Salmon Oil and K9 Liquid Health glucosamine/chondroitin/MSM every day and Ark Natural's Gentle Digest (probiotic) every other day. I'm going to add a Vitamin E once I find one that I like.
Dogs who eat kibble usually don't need supplements but a lot of people add fish oil. If you give fish oil it's a good idea to give vitamin E like Jujee does.
Bella who is kibble fed gets a raw egg every so often Saya gets a egg once a week sometimes twice, but not often.
Saya is raw fed she gets solid gold seameal whenever she gets ground meat or with her eggs or caned fish. She mostly eats bone in and boneless items which I don't add anything to it.
When she was new to raw she got fish oil, but now I stopped when it ran out she seems to get enough omegas from her red meat and whole fish she gets.
I think what your feeding is fine is Tochi doing good on it firm poop, likes food, playful etc.?
I'm not a fan of science diet I mean I'm sure their prescription kibble works well, but for a healthy puppy I'd feed good quality kibble..
When Saya was on kibble she got grizzly salmon oil you can use different brand I liked grizzly's though..
She also go solid gold seameal too..
Now she doesn't get solid gold seameal much only in her ground meat.
She does get cranimal very berry(antioxidents) and cranimal vibe(Detoxification).
I no longer give her salmon oil because she gets raw saury, mackerel, smelt, and caned salmon, sardines, and some grass fed/free ranged meats and organs.. I read grass fed have lot more omega then feed lot meat.
I think with kibble if it's good quality then there's not much need to supplement with vitamins don't want to over do it..
I think salmon oil is good enough, vitamin E is good too if your giving salmon oil.
I like cranimals I think it's good and helps boost Saya's immune..
Condrotine and glucosamine might be good to give dunno at what age is good to start.
Saya gets chicken feet, beef gullet, trachea and scraps with cartilage on it I read those are good natural sources. Chicken feet are yummy treat to give even to a kibble fed dog shouldn't cause issue with digestion lot of it is bone, tendons, skin, and tiny bit of meat.
Saya also gets coconut oil with her meals she loves the taste and will lick it off my hand. I read it's good for their coat and some other benefits. I just give a table spoon a day most sites say to give small amounts and work up to table spoon For a puppy less then a tablespoon should be fine.. Like teaspoon or something.
Maybe give some caned sardines(in water kind), caned salmon, or caned dog food there's even caned tripe though being cooked probably doesn't have same digestive benefit of raw tripe..
Saya loves beef tripe caned or raw. I need get her some more..
Tochi likes his Acana food (first Wild Prairie - chicken, beef and fish, and recently Pacifica - 3 different type of fish) He is VERY playful and his poops are mostly firm, although sometimes (maybe once every two or 3 days), they get a little runny. No diarrhea though, so I haven't been concerned.
He is getting very few treats (only when he goes potty in the right place), as we are using his kibble to train him and we feed it to him 3 times/ day while we practice.
I give Sukoshi "Get Naked" Joint Health chew treats. Takes care of her teeth and allows her to get glucosamine and shondroitin. There are other chews and biscuits as well under the "Get Naked" label:
thanks for sarting this thread!! we were curious as to what should be given to a shiba,since hes on blue buffalo puppy kibble still we are going to start fish oill next month w/vit.E and looking for a good join supplement i saw lots of suggestions here but whats a good one that you guys trust with your healthy shiba? Brewster in 5 months old on the 18th of this month(if thats a factor)
That's what I'd like to know. =) Took Hiro to the vet this past weekend...the vet said that she can feel that his left knee cap is slightly loose. "Barely a stage 1". So I wanted to see if anyone's owner uses Glucosamine supplements.
I've used: K-9 Glucosamine made by Liquid Health and liked it's results. A 32 ounce bottle lasts a Shiba a long time. I have also used Zuke's Hip Action treats. I like them as well but don't use them often due to price. I'm currently trying out The Honest Kitchen's Lithe Tea but don't have an opinion on it yet. I don't give Grizzly salmon oil anymore since it's expensive. Instead I buy human-grade salmon or fish oil capsules in the store or in bulk online (cheaper!) Same with Vitamin E capsules, go with what's cheapest but still good quality. I try to find stuff that's not got ingredients Conker reacts to, but for the most part, any human-grade capsules work.
Keep in mind that supplements will not cure LP. It might help, might not, but the only surefire "cure" is surgery, and prevention. That's what I give joint supplements for, prevention, to lower the possibility of future arthritis and/or protect the joints against what damage may have already occurred.
I supplement Grizzly's Salmon Oil into Etsuko's kibble feed of TOTW Pacific Stream... I do not supplement Vitamin E, what is this supplement for? I see over and over in this thread that people pair the two supplements together, can someone elaborate on this for me?
Also, I know shibas are known for luxating patellas and hip dysplasia... What are some mandatory supplements to include in my shibas diet to try to prevent these joint ailments?
@mattz: There seems to be some research indicating that fish oil will lower the amount of vitamin E in the blood stream. That's why we should supplement it with fish oil (for humans as well).
There're also articles I read saying that vitamin E will increase the chance of cancer for humans, especially prostate and lung cancer. However, I haven't found any research about the negative effects on dogs yet.
@Mayama I believe that the Vitamin E and cancer thing was when it was in unusually high doses, like when it was being used to treat something? I saw a study on it but I can't remember where, and for the most part, as long as you don't overdo it, Vitamin E is okay. If I find it, I'll let you know.
@mattz LP and HD can be caused by genetics, joints not forming properly, or injury. I dunno exactly what caused my Shiba's LP but my guesses are bad genetics and early neuter by the shelter (it can mess up growth in dogs). A dog without LP can get it by twisting their leg wrong and wrenching the joint out of place, and when it does that, it scrapes against the cartilage and bone and can make it easier for it to pop out again. If your pup doesn't have it or HD, then you don't really need to supplement anything regularly.
So, I just wanted to post and say that GRIZZLY'S SALMON OIL is the BOMB! We've been using it for close to a year now and just yesterday I REALLY noticed the difference it has made in Etsuko's coat and nails. Her coat is more on the coarse side, but after this almost year of Grizzly's she is as SOFT as ever and her coat is SO SHINY!!! Great stuff for the better health of your pup! TRY IT OUT if you aren't already!
I give my Shibas whatever I have on hand, that is inexpensive, but it is usually human stuff. I buy fish oil capsules from Trader Joes or Sams Club. I used to give them this great glucosamine that was these little chewable squares that i got from walmart. They were orange flavored or something and my dogs liked them a lot. (They get so many pills anyway, I prefer not to have to add pills that have to be disguised in cheese or something, so chewables are better for us). However, those little chewable glucosamine squares are harder and harder to find, so one day I bought a bunch of dog treat type online, and that's what they have now.
Both my Shibas have/had LP. One had surgery and the other has not, but it's good to keep the joints in good shape, and glucosamine helps.
@shibamistress, its recommended to start giving the glucosamine around 1 year right? My babies are 9 months and I was being a paranoid parent trying to give them everything that is good, but was told to just wait until they turn 1 year. According to the vet they're fine now. No health/joint problems. I've been giving them salmon oil (everyday) and probiotic pills (once a week) I'm looking to get the glucosamine treats by zukes, but if its cheaper, probably going to give them pills.
Sadie & Elwood get Animal Naturals Joint Strong, which has glucosamine & chondroitin. My agility instructor recommended it. We just add a scoop to their food every day.
I've also been adding a tablespoon of Stonyfield Plain Yogurt lately because I have a few agility friends who swear that it helps prevent tooth decay. I saw an older Sheltie's teeth improve significantly after he started getting it daily, so I'm trying it out on my guys.
I need to add salmon oil to their supplement list, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.
I just found out a few days ago that Ryu has LP on both his back legs, i talked to my breeder and she recommended glucosamine and chondroitin supplements. She specifically mentioned Fidoflex from Farmacy Supplement and to look on www.kingwholesale.com for joint soft chew supplements. She uses them on her dogs and she knows other breeders that use them as well. I plan on looking into these products further but I would aslo like to know what other people are using to deal with mild LP?
Hiro has a lp on his left hind leg. the vet said he's barely a stage 1. what stage did you vet say? i'm going get Liquid Health Glucosamine and Chondroitin. It received good reviews. You can get it from Amazon.
Conker's got LP (barely grade 1) but like I said above, supplements will not cure it, only help in the prevention of future arthritis caused by the kneecap slipping out of place.
Funny thing about joint supplements. A couple studies have found that glucosamine, chondroitin, and MSM don't really do all that much in a healthy animal. They did find, though, that green lipped mussel extract worked quite well. Unfortunately it's a bit expensive, so I don't give it to Conker. I do on occasion experiment with the g/c/MSM stuff to see if I notice anything. So if your dog doesn't have an actual need for it, I wouldn't really bother, unless you want to be super really sure about preventing arthritis. Or something.
ok so i just called my vet's office and I am a little surprised, the file says he is a grade 2-3 on the right and a grade 2-4 on the left rear. They are supposed to call me back to discuss further. I am very surprised Ryu's would be so severe especially because he is from breeding stock that do not have joint problems.
Also to clarify from my other post i am putting links to the products my breeder mentioned:
Saya gets chicken feet for natural source I used give raw beef gullet, but ran out need order more.. I plan to get beef trachea too for her.
I read green lipped mussel stuff is good for joints I'm hoping find somewhere local for it if not I'll try the one hare today sells..
Saya doesn't have LP or HD, but with her spinal issue and way she walks I like give her some preventive.
I got some glucosamine condrotine chewables from our last dog Dink so I'm using that up also got 90 chewables of these one joint health chew ables not using them till Dink's are gone..
I never used the ones your breeder use, but you can give them a try if your breeder says they're good.
was wondering if anyone had any news/info on the "new" solid gold seameal formula since they were bought out? i know that was a while back, but i can't find anything in previous discussions about whether the newer version is ok to use.
we are running out of our stock from before the change, and i'm wondering whether we should switch to missing link? any thoughts/suggestions for new supplements would be awesome!
