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Dogs are our best friends and should be taken care of the way we cherish and take care of our human friends. Having a well balanced and nutritious diet is imperative to both our health and that of our canine friends. Many times as we age or our health shifts it calls for more of certain nutrients to help combat those changes. This is the same in dogs as they age. Your senior dog’s diet may already be different than it was in their younger years. There are specific nutrients and vitamins that will help keep your aging dog healthy that can be added with the best senior dog supplements so they can continue to enjoy life with you.
What Benefits Do The Best Senior Dog Supplements Have?
The most important benefits for your dog to take supplements is the promotion of natural body function without as many negative side effects. It has been found that even adding supplements to pharmaceutical treatments can increase their benefits. Each nutrient you find in the best senior dog supplements has something that will benefit the dog a different way. Once you have spoken with you vet to figure out what might be ailing your senior dog and how it can be addressed you can consider the different benefits. Adding these different nutrients each help the dog differently:
- Fatty Acids – these benefit the cardiovascular system of the dog. Adding fatty acids can help promote kidney function, neural health, skin conditions, allergies and other inflammatory issues. This is due to a shift in the body’s prostaglandin levels in order to reduce the bodies natural inflammation.
- Liver Supplements – These can help with the detoxifying of the liver, especially when struggling from other diseases in the body.
- Urinary Health – As the dogs age these natural functions become more difficult for them to maintain. Adding supplements can help the overall musculo-skeletal function and make urinating easy again.
- Joint Health – This is definitely a concern when the dog is aging, years of running and jumping for weaken the joint and cause inflammation. Joint supplements help to move the joint fluid more smoothly and decrease inflammation.
How Do I Know Which Is The Best Senior Dog Supplement?
This is the tricky part, we have established that supplements can be beneficial and necessary for your aging dog, as well as what specific nutrients might help. However, finding a satisfactory product is not always easy. There are many different variations of supplements for your dog as well as different companies making them.
As a general rule the supplement you choose should have an FDA approval. Supplements can be fairly unregulated and reporting on the label are not held to a high standard so making sure you find a quality, proven brand is important. The best senior dog supplement brands and specific products that fit the many criteria you may be looking for. Quality, proven benefits, specific ailment the supplement benefits and if it’s easy to get your dog to take it. These are all things that dog owners spend too much time trying to figure out.
- Nutramax is a company that has proven themselves with many different supplements and formulas. With specific formulas for various ailments and dog types and sizes, they are able to create product that works more specifically for type of issue your dog may be dealing with. They happen to offer one of the best senior dog supplements, highly rated. Nutramax Dasuquin with MSM is exactly what your dog’s joint pain has been looking for. They come in chewable forms, varying sizes of packaging and varying formulas for the sizes of your dog.
- Vetri-Science is another great brand that has proven their reliability across the board. They also have a top rated senior canine supplement formula that is beneficial for many aspects of the aging process, including the fatty acids discussed above to keep their skin and cardiovascular systems healthy. Vetri-Science Canine Plus Multi-Vitamin Senior Supplement
- Thorne Research is an amazing company coming up with some fantastic products that are not only praised in the veterinary community but also by dog owners. They provide a specially formulated product for geriatric canines to create a well rounded nutritional balance that helps your dog maintain health in their later years. Many dogs come across gastrointestinal issues as they age and this formula is known to help with digestion and comfort. Thorne Research Veterinary – Canine Geriatric Basics
- Ageless Pet has also created one of the more popular well-rounded, best senior dog supplements. This is great for those of us who are watching our four-legged friend struggle with multiple ailments. Specifically the Ageless Pet – Joint, Heart and Brain Health Supplement For Dogs promotes continued brain health in your animal as well as some of the other bodily ailments they may be experiencing.
What To Do After I Buy The Best Senior Dog Supplements?
After you have decided on which brand and product you would like to try there will be a little bit of trial period as sometimes it can be tough to get your dog to eat something new like this. Luckily, most of the products listed above come with a chewable option that is also flavored, like a treat they may already enjoy. However, it is not always the case and mixing the best senior dog supplements in with their food can be effective. If it is a capsule you can open it up and sprinkle in the supplement the amount you desire.
Once you have figured a good system for getting our pup to ingest the supplement, there are some techniques that always help the ability of the best senior dog supplements. For example, consistency is key. Make sure someone is around to give the supplements the same way and same time everyday, this helps the body adjust to the presence of the nutrients. After you have created a routine, give it some time and start noticing if there are changes, benefits or negative effects from the supplements. Maybe nothing is happening at all.
This is when you can start modifying the doses, or types of products you are giving to your animal. In communication with your veterinary team there will be an optimal point at which you will see the benefits of the best senior dog supplements you have researched so hard to help your best friend feel great again.
