To supplement or not to supplement.......... - Page 1

I have been researching this question on whether to provide supplements and have seen so much contradictory information that I am frankly at a loss.

Here are the facts: I have a 4 month male GS puppy and am feeding him Canidae All Life Stages. He is doing well and appears to be in good health. My question is whether I should add any supplements. I have heard so many viewpoints as I have browsed the net - some of them contradictory.

Does a GS puppy require ANY supplements? Some say that it should not be necessary if one feeds a decent commercial pet food - I assume that Canidae would be viewed as fitting that description. We know someone who gives calcium supplements to her GSD and she was urging us to do the same. But I have also read that it is not advisable to do so. I have also read of others who urge Vitamin C, fish oil, flax seed oil, glucosomine, etc. Also, if you do recommend any supplement, what would the appropriate dosage be?

Any guidance from the experts on this forum would be very appreciated.

Yes your GSD puppy is only 4 months he she needs to be on structure until 6 months  young. That and the Vertex will do just fine for him or her. Stop giving Structure by the time he she is 6 months of age and keep up with the Vertex.  Ok now then  give 2 tsp full of Structure everytime you feed and two tsp. of Vertex ones a day.Also start him her on the Timberwolf Salmon Oil, one tsp. ones a day.Don't forget the Olewo Carrots(German).  Give him her Garlic snack ones a day it is good for all kind of things such as fleas, and ticks plus keeps him her very healty.      Go to" DogTown USA.com"  You can verify all of that I am writing to you .  Hopefully it will give you a good way of choosing the right needed stuff for your puppy.  I am a breeder of  DEUTSCHE SCHAEFERHUNDE 100% old German Bloodlines VA,V1and so on.  I recommend all of it highly.   Sincerely    Me  : )

I feed RAW so I do use supplements to give myself the added assurance all is well in my dogs diet. That said the two supplements I would highly recommend to people using commercial dog food is "digetive enzymes and probiotics" to get the most out of your dog food. Even though some dog foods say they are included in the food they are way down on their list. Most likely not enough to do much benefit. Canidae is a good food but most all dog foods with grains, have them in the majority and grains are harder for dogs to digest.

OFA and most links for bones of large breed animals  say    do not give calcium supplements.....too much calcium out of a bottle . is not needed as we need slow growth and calified spurs and deposits tend to appear in many places,

Instead feed yougurt  , cottage cheese, and biotics,,  salmon oil (wild) or fish caps, and olive oil...  raw meat lliver ,and chicken wings and necks and backs added four or five times a week....feed those first when pup hungry....

Then give what ever dry food you use ,   My vet says there is no need to give a pup glucosimine Chrondrite , as it doesnt do any good.....you wait to do that when dog is x-ray age , or if dog has hip problems.

Ester C is a must. You can determine the bowel tolerance of your canine regarding the Ester C.

From that point, you can then determine how much C you want to offer per day. As you up the daily dosage of C and notice that your dog's stools are becoming a bit loose, then you have reached Bowel Tolerance. Any higher dosage will cause loose/watery stools, and even diarrhea.  Start with 250mg per day.
http://www.workingdogs.com/doc0039.htm

For a 10-11 week old male pup,how much yogurt and cottage cheese should they get?...the pup is eating

1 pound chicken necks for breakfast,8 ounce of ground beef for lunch,1 cup canidae for dinner...thanks.

I feed raw and supplement with Missing Link.

For a 10-11 week old male pup,how much yogurt and cottage cheese should they get,the pup is eating

1 pound chicken necks for breakfast,8 ounce ground beef for lunch,1 cup canidae for dinner...thanks.

I give my pups a big tablespoon for a treat starting at 6 weeks old  then increase by  2 tablespoons each week to 1/4 cup every three days or so....you can switch out   yogurt one time   cottage cheese next....I use it lilke a treat      when I eat my ice cream  they get  cc or yog....

I just listened to a researcher talking about the extra   Omegas 3 and the importance of omegas to healty blood vessels and hearts in people and animals.....A Dr. Levin   was unaware his wife had taken his dog to the vet with itchy skin and always sratching....the vet told Mrs Levin to  start the dog on Fish oil  for the omegas and  she repllied  Oh I can get lots of Fish oil    her Husband is a researcher who was instrumental in the Berry - fish oil cap by Purity....and its great for digestion tract and healthy hearts and joints are even effected by fish oil and omegas.

In 90 days his dog was almost fully void of itchieys....