Nutritional Supplements

Nutritional supplements can contribute to your pet’s overall health, vitality, and longevity. Most commonly used natural additives are vitamins, minerals, enzymes and probiotics. There are several reasons why you may want to consider using a dietary supplement for your pet:

• Almost all grain, produce and livestock today is treated with some kind of chemical such as pesticides, growth enhancers, antibiotics or hormones. 
• Many commercial pet foods use ingredients stripped of all natural benefits such as rendered products labeled “not fit for human consumption”.
• Genetic weaknesses (usually caused by over-breeding) are causing more and more deficiencies, pain and other chronic conditions in companion animals.

Raw diets and fresh home-prepared meals require less supplementation than commercial pet food. Fresh diets are more nutritionally complete, having not been subjected to heat processing multiple times.   

Kibble is what the majority of pet owners feed because of its convenience. The compromise we make for a quick and easy meal is diminished or absent essential nutrients. Manufacturing processes alter and destroy amino acids, vitamins and trace minerals. Supplements can bring those levels back up to where they need to be.

ATG believes the best way to supplement a commercial pet food is with the addition of fresh foods. You can substitute up to 50 percent of your pet’s daily ration in fresh ingredients without upsetting the balance of commercial food. Fresh foods we like to use are plain yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs, and canned fish with bones such as sardine, mackerel or salmon.

There are so many dietary supplements on the market today it can be almost as confusing as selecting a new pet food. Against The Grain Pet Nutrition has used and recommends supplements sold by B-Naturals.com. Lew Olson, PH.D, owner of B-Naturals is also the author of the book Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs. Lew states in her December 2009 B-Naturals Newsletter - Feeding Tips for Enhancing your Dogs Nutrition:

"The most important addition would be EPA Fish Oil Capsules. The omega 3 fatty acids found in animal based oils such as fish oil offer renal, heart and liver protection. Omega 3 oils are also good for skin and coat health and they improve and support the immune system. And in neonates and newborns, fish oil helps with eye and brain development. It is best to use capsules rather than bottled fish oils, as light, heat and air destroy the fragile omega 3 fatty acids rather quickly. Recommended dose is one capsule per 20 lbs of body weight daily. That dose can be increased in certain health conditions and to improve skin and coat."

The next important group of nutrients includes the vitamins C, E and B complex. Vitamin C and B complex are water soluble and easily destroyed in storage (i.e., commercial pet food) and cooking. Vitamin E works together with omega 3 fatty acids, and is also an antioxidant (as is vitamin C).

You can find these three vitamins in the Bertes Daily Blend, along with kelp and alfalfa, which offer a rich source of trace minerals. This product comes in a powder and is easily applied to raw, home cooked or commercial foods. It contains flavoring with chicken liver that makes it appealing to dogs.

A third group of supplements are useful for digestion. The two main components are probiotics and enzymes. Probiotics are a blend of beneficial bacteria that help keep the good bacteria thriving in the digestive tract. These help prevent gas and assist in digestion. Enzymes help to predigest fats and proteins in the digestive tract. They also help with better utilization of the food and assist dogs who may have trouble with diarrhea or loose stools.

Bertes Ultra Probiotic Powder is an excellent blend of good flora and fauna and can be easily applied to any food choice. The Bertes Zymes are an animal based enzyme capsule, which can be given whole or opened and applied to food. The Bertes Zymes is helpful for dogs that have trouble digesting fats, or suffer indigestion.

And, if you want both the vitamins and probiotics and enzymes, the Bertes Immune Blend has vitamins C, E and B complex, as well as probiotics and enzymes. While this product is useful for dogs with specific health problems, it is also a good choice for healthy dogs at half dose. The Bertes Immune Blend comes in a powder form, which is also easily applied to any type of food.”   

Just remember, supplements are supplementary to a healthy lifestyle that should include regular veterinary checkups, a premium diet, plenty of exercise, sunshine and love.

Against The Grain Pet Nutrition is a company that does things differently. We are a small business that is excited about offering pet owners better choices in pet nutrition. We believe that choosing appropriate pet food (be it commercial, raw or home prepared) is the most important factor in any pet's preventative health, convalescence and longevity.  Our name - Against The Grain - reflects our strong passion to provide pet owners with the knowledge to make healthy decisions about pet care even if we go ‘against the grain' of popular thinking.