people vitamins for dogs?

[riorider]

I know a lot of people give their dogs people supplements. It got me thinking, is there any reason why you can't give your dog everyday vitamins (like children's vitamins) instead of paying the rediculous prices for "dog vitamins"?

[rjvamp]

Good question!

If you are feeding a complete and balanced diet there is no need for extra vitamins UNLESS a vet has recommended it.

Check with your vet as dogs have different daily requirements than humans.

[3K9Mom]

Quote:
complete and balanced diet

Assuming you think there is such a thing.

Let's also compared apples to apples.

QUALITY human vitamins aren't any cheaper than QUALITY dog vitamins. Flintstones for Kids have fillers same as PetTabs. Flintstones run $7 for 60 and PetTabs $35 for 365 (at Amazon.com). So the PetTabs are cheaper, but they're formulated for dogs.


But as he says, talk to your vet about dosing. If you're feeding a commercial diet, you do need to be careful that you're not overdosing on certain vitamins in particular. I think PetTabs and quality dog multivitamins are rather safe, but if you're going with specialized vitamins (or human vitamins), you need to know what your dog needs before you just hand him a tablet.

This book is very useful: http://www.amazon.com/Natural-Health-Bib...61176074&sr=1-1

[riorider]

I was thinking instead of something like NuVet, which I've never given, but I know some people swear by.

[LisaT]

I dunno, I found every vet I've had kinda useless regarding any vitamin questions - most of them believe in that "complete and balanced" myth.

I've got a thread somewhere in this forum about multivitamins...

[RubyTuesday]

3K9Mom, I thought the Pet Tabs were dosed according to weight. Am I wrong on this? IF not, I believe they are more expensive for large dog owners b/c it takes more than 1.

Regardless, I wouldn't trust human vitamins for canines b/c the nutritional requirements might be very different b/w the species.

The only supplements I currently use are omega 3 oils, krill oil, vitamin E & glucosamine with chondroitin or MSM. Sam recently turned 11 so I should probably consider a muti vitamin for her since she's a senior.

[onyx'girl]

I wouldn't use a "one a day" type vitamin, but I do use supplements from the human pharmacy for my dogs.
Human needs/dog needs are different, so I would not want to give my dogs something that may cause issues down the road...I feed raw, so there is no packaged "complete and balance" in the diet, I decide what is complete.

[LisaT]

Here's the thread:

http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum...=1#Post1289394