# Do you supplement your dog's food? We went through a lot of research and worked from advice of a canine holistic practices and care specialist and our veterinarian to choose the right diet (holistic kibble + raw) for our dogs according to age, breed, weight, lifestyle, etc. However - the breeder of our latest addition believes that… ## Thread In Health · started by tsukitsune · 7 replies - **Category:** [Health](https://nihonken.org/community/c/health) - **Forum:** [Nihon Ken Forum](https://nihonken.org/community/) ## tsukitsune (moderator) · 2008-05-30T15:43:25.000Z We went through a lot of research and worked from advice of a canine holistic practices and care specialist and our veterinarian to choose the right diet (holistic kibble + raw) for our dogs according to age, breed, weight, lifestyle, etc. However - the breeder of our latest addition believes that no diet can ever be fortified enough to carry a dog's total health through its lifetime and therefore we should seriously consider adding a vitamin supplement to their daily diet. The vitamins she suggests are called Nu-Vet Vitamins (http://www.nuvet.com/) From how I understand the process - no dog food is seriously lacking from a nutritional value standpoint since they have to pass federal regulated standards. they might not include every vitamin, mineral, antioxidant and supplement that the vitamins contain, but do dogs really need that sort of supplementation? Does anyone give their dogs vitamins? Do you see a real improvement in their quality of life? Coat? Teeth? Bone and muscle structure/usage? ## brandon_w (admin) · 2008-05-30T15:59:44.000Z All foods have different levels of nutrition, yes they meet the basic standards for keeping a dog alive, but they do not offer a variety. That is why I switch types of food every 3-4 months. I also give Nemo supplements along with his kibble. He always gets a glucosamine supplement and fish oil. His other supplements rotate. Currently he is on acidophilus, and two supplements from Standard Process. One is the canine Hepatic Support formula and the other one is Whole Body Support. After those two bottles finish up I'll be starting him on canine Cardiac Support, Joint and Ligament support, and when the acidophilus runs out I'll start him on the Enteric Support. I rotate 90 days on acidophilus and then a bottle (70-80 days) of Enteric Support. Nemo has Grade 1 LP, and we have never had an issue with it while keeping him on glucosamine, I really believe it helps. His coat is as nice as any dogs, and he is very healthy. Without support for his stomach and digestive system he tends to get the runs frequently, but while on supplements, everything always comes out just fine. I wouldn't plan on feeding just one vitamin forever, you will run into the same problem that you have with feeding the same food forever. ## tsukitsune (moderator) · 2008-05-30T16:08:16.000Z Did you do independent research when deciding to do your supplement regimen or was it suggested by a vet or other animal professional? Luckily - we don't have any congenital structure/health issues to be concerned with but we did pick our food specifically because of its added glucosamine and omega-3. ## brandon_w (admin) · 2008-05-30T16:26:17.000Z I was giving Nemo glucosamine, fish oil and acidophilus before I ever talked to anyone about it. Since then I have talked to a Wholistic vet, who also works for Standard Process, and he has been helpful deciding what is best. ## brada1878 (admin) · 2008-05-30T16:33:46.000Z Kona's breeder swears by Nu-Vet... we gave it to our pups for a while but have switched away from it because they sopped liking the tabs. ---- We supplement our dogs food with Solid Gold MultiVitamin, Solid Gold Seameal, a digestive enzyme [switch between Solid Gold Dyzyme, Call of the wild, and natural things like cocanut], and a Probiotic. We also give Salmon oil. ----- We worked with our vet and a nutritionist to come up with our dog's diet and then have slight altered it over time. ---- ## Leonberger (admin) · 2008-05-30T21:01:12.000Z I give Kuma Acana Puppy Large Breed, and for what I read of it, it has a good diversity of vitamins and also glucosamine and chondroitin. For now, the only thing I'm adding is peanut oil, following a tip from Michael to help with bloat, and once a day or so, a bit of tuna cause he's crazy about it and it adds some flavour. His poops are fine, so far. ## ddowdemers · 2008-05-31T01:01:46.000Z I supplement Tenji's diet with Sea Pet fish oil and Eagle Pack digestive enzyme. I have Syn-flex glucosamine complex but my vet told me that Tenji is too young and that I should wait at least a year before adding it to his diet. ## tsukitsune (moderator) · 2008-05-31T16:28:48.000Z We use the Eagle Pack digestive enzyme too - I think it works well! Why did they want you to wait to give the Glucosamine complex? Until he was done developing? --- **Navigate:** [Forum home](https://nihonken.org/community/?format=md) · [Sitemap](https://nihonken.org/community/sitemap.xml)