Best Dog Vitamins for Longevity

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Dogs very often don’t get all of the vitamins and minerals they need in their diet, particularly if they rely exclusively on a kibble diet. Some dogs require probiotics to aid with digestion. Some dogs require antioxidants and other dog vitamins and supplements to help brain function, the natural aging process and even energy levels.

Some dogs require more vitamin E or Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids (with essential dog vitamins) to help their skin or coat. As dogs age they need arthritis help, and some dog vitamins and supplements are designed (with the help of Glucosamine and Chondroitin) to help with inflammation, joint pain and to promote better joints. In fact, multiple studies have shown that about one in three dogs in the United States routinely take dog vitamins today, with each pet owner spending about $60 a year per dog.

Dog vitamins can be an important component of the health and welfare of your dog for a number of important medical and nutritional reasons. Vitamin sales are expected to grow by 35% year over year for the next several years, as more dog owners start providing their dogs with needed vitamins, minerals and supplements. This study was undertaken to identify the two best dog vitamins and supplements on the market, and 2 honorable mentions based on cost, content, nutritional value, and health benefits that the dog vitamins and minerals provide.

Best Dog Vitamins: Top 3 Best Dog Vitamins

#1 Dog Vitamins (Premium): MightyBites Dog Vitamins: Complete Liquid Multivitamin with Digestive Enzymes, Glucosamine & MSM Promotes Superior Absorption for Healthy Joints, Teeth, Coat, & Skin

• Dog Vitamins and Minerals: This comprehensive dog vitamin has over 127 essential vitamins, supplements, minerals, and digestive aids and enzymes that will help your dog in a number of ways. The vitamins, minerals and supplements include, among others: Glucosamine (100mg), Vitamin A (500 iu), Vitamin B Complex (20mg)
Ester C (150 mg), Vitamin D (50 iu), Vitamin E (20 iu), Vitamin K (10 mcg), Calcium (150 mg), Potassium (30 mg) and Zinc (2 mg), plus Amylease and other enzymes that help with digestion.
• Benefits: This premium product is filled with healthy dog vitamins and minerals, along with enzymes and supplements that help your dog in a number of ways, promoting healthy digestion, including healthy joint function, dental benefits (teeth and gums), skin, coat and bone support, better digestion and immune system strength.

• Cost: This dog vitamin and supplements costs $45.97 for 32 ounces. Broken down to a per ounce cost at 32 ounces, MightyBites Dog Vitamins: Complete Liquid Multivitamin costs about $1.46 per ounce.

• Form and Duration: This is a liquid vitamin that varies in serving size based on the size of your dog. If you have a miniature dog a bottle will last about for months. A 100 pound plus dog will go through just under 2 bottles a month, and sizes in between use, a bottle at rates between these two durations. • Customer Satisfaction: Reviews of this product are excellent based on the value of the content, ease of use, ease of storage and the fact that dogs tend to enjoy the flavor and do not fight taking the dog vitamins.

• Company Reputation: Xlnce is a highly reputable company with over 30 years of experience developing and creating dog vitamins and supplements. The company boasts a large staff of scientists and researchers that constantly work to improve and monitor the quality of the products that they produce.

• Added Benefits: The biggest added benefit of these dog vitamins is that the company offers a 100% money back guarantee on them. But that is not all, if you are your pet are dissatisfied with the dog vitamins, not only do you get your money back, you get a free bottle of MightyBites Dog Vitamins: Complete Liquid Multivitamin to give them one more try at no cost.

• Dog’s View: This liquid dog vitamin is easy to use and enjoyable for dogs as it can be served in a few different ways. It has a natural beef flavor and shellfish additives (more for nutrients) that can be applied easily over food, on a treat, or frozen as a stand-alone dog treat.

#2 Dog Vitamins (Budget): NaturVet VitaPet Adult Daily Vitamins Plus Breath Aid for Adult Dogs

• Dog Vitamins and Minerals: This dog vitamin contains many essential nutrients, vitamins and supplements (as well as a breath aid), including: Calcium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Magnesium, Iron, Copper, Manganese, Zinc, lodine, Vitamin A, Vitamin D3, DL-alpha-tocopheryl acetate (Vitamin E), Thiamine (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Niacin, Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6), Vitamin B12 and Cobalt and Lineolic Acid which is an Omega 6 Fatty Acid. All flavors are taken from natural sources (such as brewer’s yeast, whey, non-fat dry milk and vegetable oil)

• Benefits: Aside from helping dogs with bad breath, these dog vitamins and minerals help with essential nutrients, and especially with a healthy skin and coat thanks to the Omega 6 Fatty Acids and small doses of oils present in the tablets.

• Cost: NaturVet VitaPet Adult Daily Vitamins Plus Breath Aid for Adult Dogs cost $28.36 for a bottle of 365 tablets. That means that, per tablet, each one of these budget dog vitamins costs about eight cents apiece.

• Form and Duration: NaturVet VitaPet Adult Daily Vitamins Plus Breath Aid for Adult Dogs comes in a chewable tablet form with a time release system for controlled digestion, this way the dog vitamins and minerals are absorbed into the body over a period of hours. A bottle of 365 tablets lasts between 6 months to 2 years, based on the size of your dog, as suggested doses range from 1/2 to 2 pills per day.

• Customer Satisfaction: The reviews of this product are generally exceptional, especially with dog owners who have pets with skin and coat issues or problematic gums, which these vitamins help in a myriad ways. Customers also like the fresh breath smell that replaces common dog breath odor. Also, many people praise the extremely affordable price of the dog vitamins.

• Company Reputation: NaturVet is a highly reputable company that specializes in pet and dog vitamins and supplements, allergens, and other health aids for animals. The company has been producing natural, healthy pet health aids for over 2 decades in FDA registered and inspected facilities.

• Added Benefits: Aside from the improved breath (thanks to the breath aid), this dog vitamin is noted for its boosting of healthy skin and coats. It is also safe and recommended for recovering, pregnant or convalescing dogs. Last but not least these dog vitamins and minerals come with a 100% money back satisfaction guarantee.

• Dog’s View: Though the flavors used in this dog vitamin are natural, they are not meat, yet most pet owners report that their dogs eat them like snacks or crushed up in a bowl of food.

#3 Runner up: Dog Vitamins: Pet MD – Canine Tabs Plus 365 Count – Advanced Multivitamins for Dogs

Pet MD – Canine Tabs Plus come in a liver flavored tablet form that pet owners tend to report dogs love, and that most dogs eat like a treat. The tablets can also be crushed up over food. The dog vitamins and supplements in the tablets include: Calcium, Potassium, Iron (3 mg), Zinc (1.4 mg), Vitamin A (1500 IU), Vitamin B6 (0.24 mg), Vitamin B12 (7.0 mg), Vitamin C (120 mg), Vitamin D3 (150 IU), Vitamin E (15 IU), plus some added protein from the liver powder used for flavoring as well. These dog vitamins and minerals are noted for overall health and well-being, boosting a dog’s immune system, helping with a healthy skin and coat and with healthy brain and cognizance functions. These dog vitamins come with 365 tablets at a cost of $34.95, or just under ten cents per tablet. Considering the recommended dosage is ½ of a tablet to a tablet a day, based on size of your dog, one bottle can last 1 to 2 years. The company (Pet MD) is respected and produces all of these dog vitamins and supplements in FDA, USDA and FSIS approved facilities.

Comparison and Data Criteria Definitions for this Dog Vitamin Research

Even if you feed your dog a healthy, balanced, nutritional diet, the animal may still require dog vitamins and supplements for certain nutrients that their body may need or crave more of. This is especially true for older dogs, which need joint relief and nutrients to help fight natural aging effects, and puppies and early stage dogs that are still experiencing an extreme growth rate. The fact is, even healthy adult dogs can gain benefits from a good brand of dog vitamins and minerals. Be it digestive aids, dental aids or simple boosting of a dog’s immunity system, a good dog vitamin can help improve the quality of your dog’s life. More pet owners recognize this than ever before, and overall sales numbers for dog vitamins grows healthily year over year.

Sourced from: American Pet Products Association’s 2017-2018 National Pet Owners Survey

This study was undertaken to examine certain criteria (health benefits, flavor, ease of use, cost, company reputation, added benefits, etc.) and compare the best available dog vitamins on the market. The 3 best dog vitamins found were then broken down by cost per dosage into the budget (under twenty cents) and premium (over twenty five cents) categories. This study utilized hundreds of websites, customer reviews, and recommendations by veterinarians and pet proponent groups as part of the criteria evaluation. Blogs, articles and available research and published studies were also use, along with public facts about the companies for all products considered. Every dog is different and every dog has specific nutritional and dietary needs. Always check your dog’s individual health and diet needs with your vet with any questions.

This research is simply meant to save time by providing the best available dog vitamins found by a consensus of pet owners and through sales numbers, popularity, and all available public data.

Tips For Getting a Finicky Dog to Take Vitamins and Medicine

Even though most vitamins and medicines today are flavored to get dogs to take them in an easier fashion, some dogs have picky palates, or simply fight eating anything but food. Still, as a concerned pet owner you want a healthy dog, so you need to find ways to get your dog to eat their medicine or vitamins and supplements. Here are a few tips:

1. Crush up the pills or pour the medicine over their daily food. Mix it thoroughly and the dog will most likely eat it, trusting the smell of their regular meal.
2. Freeze it in a beef broth. If it is liquid just mix the two, if the dog vitamin or medicine comes in a pill or a tablet form, crush and dissolve it in the broth. Then freeze the mix and serve it as a frozen treat.
3. Hide it in a special treat. This is an old trick but hiding a pill in a healthy treat that the dog likes usually works when all else fails.