Reptile & Amphibian Forums

The more I look into herbs and supplements for my Chihuahua, the more "daily" supplements I find. Supplements for joints, vitamin pills, skin, etc etc... If I gave him all the supplements and herbs, as instructed, every day, it would be enough to be a meal for him.

I tend to rotate supplements. Multivitamin one day, fish oil the next, glucosamine afterwards, and round we go.

This is because of 2 reasons: First, I believe in "ALL things in moderation." Second, everyone is always overestimating the size of my 7lb Chihuahua. Plus, the herb and supplement companies want you to buy more. So I assume the recommended dosage is always too much.

On the other hand, I've heard opinions where people say one MUST stick to the instructed dosage or I might as well not be giving him any herbs or supplements at all.

Also, thank G-d, my dog is healthy. He's only 2 years old. So I can't really tell if the supplements are doing their job or not. He could just have a strong constitution.

What do you think? Is there such a thing as too much? Not enough? What's a good resource for proper dosage of herbs and supplements?

--Roni

Get a pill holder. I have one for my 2 dogs that has 4 compartments for each day- 1 for each dog, each meal, and I only have to get out the pill crusher and all those bottles once a week. That makes things a lot easier. For such a small dog, certainly you don't want to give the full human dose. A high-quality food is enough for the dog to be reasonably healthy, so don't worry too much about the supplements. For my beagle, who is young and completely healthy, I give her a few things I feel will be beneficial in the long run- garlic to keep the fleas off, plus garlic is just a super thing anyway (and being a natural, pure supplement it is very safe); the same multivitamin as I take, made for women so it's got calcium; flax and salmon oils for EFAs (I take the same flax oil myself); and alfalfa for trace minerals (again, it's a natural, pure supplement so it's very safe). Kelp is good too, and I might add that in the future. Just dose them according to what your vet says and what you feel is safe. If you really don't feel like something is necessary, throw it out (unless, of course, your holistic vet says to keep it around!).
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Kadee Sedtal
home of old lady Lucy (boxer/lab/garbage disposal), and the lovely new addition, Fancy the Wonder Beagle!