Dogs are widely assumed to be carnivores, and while this belief has stuck is not strictly true. Dogs, and indeed wolves are omnivores meaning they generally eat both animal and plant-based foodstuffs. This in contrast to cats who, as obligate carnivores, can only eat and derive energy from meat. For optimum health, dogs should be offered a balanced diet which we will aim to outline and explain.

Dogs need to be provided with water, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. Commercially available feeds such as Purina aim to combine as many of these nutrients as possible, but another alternative is raw feeding with added supplements.

Ideally, diets should be balanced to provide dogs with their nutritional requirements and not so calorie-dense that they cause obesity. A good guide is to buy the highest quality feeds you can afford. With so many companies manufacturing dog food, it pays to shop around. Small companies are often happy to engage with potential buyers, and you may be surprised at how much information they will provide. If you require any advice on canine nutrition or suggestions for how your dog can benefit from nutritional supplements, feel free to email [email protected]. Our team will be happy to

Nutrition is of paramount importance to dogs and in fact all animals (including humans). A good diet is required for adequate energy production and supports normative healthy life and bodily functions. Many health problems can stem from poor nutrition, especially obesity and associated conditions. However, with a little education, this can be easy for owners to control.

Not dissimilarly to humans, calories can either provide dogs with energy or if not used be stored and lead to weight gain. Put simply, a surplus causes weight gain while a deficit is usually required for weight loss. Calories are absolutely necessary for your dog’s health, and one should not assume they are inherently negative. Rather, consideration must be given to the best way to manage calorific intake.

A combination of good nutrition and regular exercise are usually the best way to help maintain a healthy weight in your dog. Your vet will be able to advise on which feeds are most appropriate, but those with higher protein contents are usually good choices. Large amounts of sugars and carbohydrates are commonly found in dried feeds as they can be used for cheap “filling”.

Rejuvenate, our flagship supplement, can support joint health and exercise tolerance in dogs of all ages, especially those who have been suffering issues such as inflammation and osteoarthritis. To order, please [email protected] or DM us on any of our social media accounts.

Ageing is a process none of us can avoid. While inevitable, it can often be distressing, especially for dog owners who observe behavioural changes and perceived reduction in their quality of life. However, this does not need to be the case. Here are just a few suggestions of how you can support your dog as it ages, and help improve its quality of life:

1. Provide quality of nutrition. Nutrition is enormously important to overall health and wellbeing, and a poor diet can reduce a dog’s quality of life however old it is. Appropriate nutrition will support all of your dog’s normal functions such as joint, digestive, and coat health. Supplements such as Rejuvenate can be useful for dogs of all age, and may help protect joints as an animal ages
2. Ensure that your dog has adequate amounts of exercise. Dogs are inherently active animals who need to walk and run on a regular basis if they are to remain mobile and healthy. Adequate exercise is a natural safeguard against weight loss which can cause significant health complications as a dog ages. Exercise tolerance may also be a useful barometer of overall wellbeing. So, if your dog is suddenly unwilling to move or exercise normally, it is usually worth a trip to the vet to investigate
3. Observe your dog’s behaviour and establish a baseline of normality. Behavioural changes are often the first indications of health problems that owners notice. By being aware of your own dog’s baseline, even small changes can be noticed and properly responded to in good time.

Our supplements, especially Rejuvenate, can help support all of these outcomes. To order or for more information, please email [email protected] or DM us on any of our social media accounts.

Trying to choose a supplement for your pet or working dog can be an overwhelming experience. There are any number of companies selling and producing nutritional supplements, with Google literally offering millions of suggestions. Instead of taking a generalist approach to finding your ideal canine nutritional supplement, we believe it may be easier and better to first identify why you want a supplement. This will then help you narrow your search down as it may be determined by specific vitamins based on their particular benefits. The following are just five of the many vitamins your dog needs for a healthy life:

1. Vitamin A is something that should be offered to all dogs to help them have a normal and healthy life. It is required for the nervous system, muscular, skin, and coat function. Common symptoms of a Vitamin A deficiency are weakness and deterioration of coat quality. Supplements containing fish liver oil are a good source of Vitamin A
2. Vitamin B is important for dogs but often destroyed by the high heats used when manufacturing conventional feeds such as kibble. Deficiencies are surprisingly common but relatively easy to resolve with supplementation. Vitamin B’s key function is regulating and managing energy and carbohydrate metabolism, so essential for normative digestive function. Weakness and a lack of energy are two common symptoms of a Vitamin B deficiency. Dark green vegetables, fish, and organ meats are good sources of Vitamin B
3. Vitamin C is an antioxidant which also supports dogs’ immune systems. While dogs can naturally synthesise it (unlike humans), it is easily depleted by stress or illness. Colourful vegetables are a good and readily accessible source of Vitamin C for dogs which are often used when manufacturing supplements
4. Vitamin D is required to maintain healthy calcium levels and support bone function. More so than humans, dogs derive their Vitamin D from what they eat rather than direct synthesisation in the sun. Organ meat, fish, eggs, beef, and dairy are all potential dietary sources of Vitamin D
5. Vitamin E is another antioxidant which also supports dogs’ immune systems, muscles, heart health, liver, skin and coat, and nerve cell membranes. Similarly to Vitamin B, it is often destroyed by the dog food manufacturing process leading to surprisingly common deficiency levels. Eggs and oily fish are popular and readily accessible sources of Vitamin E

As working dog and pet owners, it is reasonable to assume that you have your animal’s best interests at heart. You will want your dog to live its healthiest and most fulfilling life, and likely be doing everything you can to facilitate this. You will take your dog for walks every day – sometimes more than once – and play with it as often as possible. You will enjoy spending time together and value each other’s company. You will also have found a trusted veterinarian to provide your four-legged friend with all-important medical care and providing it with nutritious food. Or so you think.

While most working and pet dog owners mean well, they actually have a poor understanding of canine nutrition. This is all too often exploited by the pet food industry. In the UK, the most common type of dog food is dried biscuit-like kibble. It is certainly convenient and affordable, but is often nutritionally suboptimal or even dangerous. Loaded with carbohydrates, additives, and empty calories, it provides far too little protein which is what dogs actually require to be healthy. Poor portioning and high calorie content commonly lead to obesity and a wide range of further health complications.

As there is very little in the way of regulation for pet and animal feeds, this gives producers a wide margin to dilute nutritionally valuable ingredients with cheap “fillers” that may actually be unhealthy. Even when advertised as being healthier because they are “grain free”, these feeds may well be dangerous with linkages to the potentially fatal condition of dilated cardiomyopathy. Furthermore, most mainstream dog food producers are large corporations rather than actual animal owners meaning that they are more motivated by profits than genuine wellbeing.

In a similar vein, dog supplements are also unregulated and seldom quality controlled or assured for the discerning owner. Dog nutrition is a complex subject, and perhaps best not left to large corporations which do not specialise in it. We would suggest that it is better to source your dog food and supplements from small companies run by dog owners and handlers. They understand dogs’ nutritional needs better than anyone else, including at high levels when they have experience working dogs. Rather than profit, they will have their dog’s best interests as a primary motivator.

MyDog Nutrition is one such company. Founded by a collection of working dog trainers and handlers, your dog’s health is our mission. Years of nutritional experience and expertise have gone into our products, all of which have been rigorously tested on our own pets and working dogs. Our specially formulated organic dog supplements are available on our website, and we welcome any questions you may have about them.