Dog Supplements
What to Look For In a Dog Supplement
The market is exploding with products claiming to improve the health and wellness of individuals using vitamins and nutritional supplements. People are now seeking the same products to complement the health of their pets. The benefits of appropriate nutritional supplements are overwhelming and can add several healthy years to your life, as well as your dogs.
Dogs Age Faster Than People
Longevity is attributed 30 percent to genetics and 70 percent to lifestyle. Up to 90 percent of diseases in dogs are due to the degenerative processes associated with aging.
Does Your Dog Act His Age?
Because dogs age seven times faster than people, major health changes occur in a short amount of time. Dogs are considered puppies for about one year, adults from age two to six, and seniors at age seven. Giant breeds, like Great Danes, age even more quickly and are considered seniors at age five. Signs of aging in dogs occur slowly, but generally begin at maturity, somewhere between age one and two.
Dr. Denham Harmans Free Radical Theory of Aging, applies to people and pets, including dogs. This universally accepted theory states that aging is a process in which the bodys systems deteriorate faster than the body can repair them.
The changes occur due to oxidative damage caused by harmful compounds called free radicals. Free radicals are toxic, electrically unstable molecules. As we age, they are produced more quickly.
Free radicals damage your dogs body similar to the way oxygen causes iron to rust. They are detrimental to your dogs genetic material, his DNA and RNA, his cell membranes and enzyme systems.
Free radicals are formed each time we take a breath. Exposure to the suns ultraviolet rays, as well as to environmental toxins, pollution, heavy metals and stress contribute to free radical formation. Your dogs diet and drugs, such as antibiotics, are also factors.
Free radicals weaken your dogs natural defenses and have been associated with the development of up to 90 percent of the age-related degenerative conditions we associate with aging:
Cancer
Heart disease
Arthritis
Diabetes
Cataracts
Premature aging
Our life span, as well as the length of your dogs life, is ultimately determined by how quickly free radicals cause harmful oxidative changes to occur. Therefore what you feed your dog, as well as the supplements you choose for your dog are both very important.
Help Your Dog Enjoy a Longer, Healthier Life
Your Dogs Diet
You are what you eat, and thats just as important for people as it is for dogs. What you feed your dog directly affects his health and wellness. The longer and more consistently you give your dog an optimally balanced diet, the greater his chances are of living a longer, healthier life.
Dogs, like people are omnivores and can naturally exist on a diet of meat, fruit and vegetables. Consult with your vet to determine the best diet for your dog. Commercial varieties worth looking into include organic, natural diets such as Prairie made by Natures Variety.
Homemade, natural diets take more time and effort but in many cases are well worth the extra effort. Vegetarian and raw food diets are another option that, with careful supervision, may provide complete and balanced nutrition for your dog.
According to the Guinness Book of Records, a Border Collie in England named Taffy, lived to the spry age of 27 eating an all-natural, organic diet.
Healthy Dog Snacks
Fruits and vegetables are healthy, low calorie snacks many pets enjoy. Those rich in antioxidants are especially beneficial for your dog:
Oranges
Tomatoes
Sweet Potatoes
Carrots
Cantaloupe
Asparagus Tips
Oranges are rich in Vitamin C, tomatoes are filled with Lycopenes and sweet potatoes are a source of Vitamin E and Beta Carotene. Carrots and cantaloupes also provide Beta Carotene for your dog.
Antioxidant Supplements for Your Dog: Sooner Not Later
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