[Craig K]

I was wondering what is the highest recommended multi-vitamin and probiotic supplement I could give my 7 year old male Shih-Tzu?

Thanks for your help! 🙂

[anonymously]

I no longer use a lot of supplements. I do add a fish oil capsule once a day to meals, I add water to the food, especially a senior male small breed, as they are vulnerable to developing bladder stones, UTIs, take out frequently to urinate….at least every 4 hours.
Exercise/long walks as tolerated.
If you are feeding a decent diet, they don’t need multi-vits….unless your vet has recommended such. The liver has to detoxify all this stuff.
I’m just sharing what I have learned over the years.
BTW: shih-tzu’s have lousy teeth, if the vet that examines your dog recommends a cleaning and extractions, I would get it done. Then daily brushings (see YouTube for how to videos) may help to prevent any more professional cleanings being needed.
My dogs do well on Nutrisca salmon and chickpea (canned and dry) as a base. I often add a tablespoon of cooked chicken or lean meat or scrambled egg…you get the idea.
http://skeptvet.com/Blog/?s=supplements

[DogFoodie]

Hi Craig,

Have you been giving your dog some sort of multi-vitamin supplement since you acquired him?

I have to say, the diet you posted in your other thread concerns me quite a bit, but I’ll post my thoughts there.

If you’re feeding a complete and balanced diet, you don’t really need a multi-vitamin. Some folks like to add whole foods as supplements such as: lean, unseasoned meats from your dinner; pureed dark leafy greens; eggs, either raw or lightly cooked; some cottage cheese; kefir; etc. These are mostly considered toppers. You could also add a fish oil supplement, preferable salmon or krill.

[anonymously]

Every dog is different. My shih-tzu mix vomits 1 hour after eating a little bit of any raw or cooked vegetable, or anything raw for that matter (tried this a few times). My other dogs are fine with them. When trying anything new, just a small amount at first….and don’t be surprised if they chuck it up.

PS: Just this morning I was chopping up carrots to make soup, they were all begging so I gave each one of them a small raw carrot. The shih-tzu mix only had a bite, chucked it up an hour later. No veggies for this girl!

[Craig K]

@DogFoodie – I have not given him a multi-vitamin at all. He was eating dog food mixed with lean chicken until his episode with tapeworms in September. His stomach couldn’t handle dog food anymore, so I started feeding him chicken and white rice at the advice of my Vet.

I’m hoping his stomach has healed up now, and I’m ready to introduce a new diet to him to see how it fares, but also thought a high-quality multivitamin would do him good as well.

Thanks!

[JeffreyT]

After doing a lot of research on purity and effectiveness, we alternate between Dr. Peter Tobias, Mercola and Animal Essentials.

For a multi vitamin mineral we’ve been alternating between Mercola’s Spirugreen and Dr. Peter Tobias’ green superfood multi-vitamin and mineral….both whole food, mostly organic. They’re easily digested and well tolerated by our small picky maltese.

We make a paste out of it, add probiotics (alternate between Mercola, Animal Essentials and Peter Tobias) and other Mercola supplements. They’re really picky but they lick this off my hand like it’s an appetizer.

You may also want to add enzymes to food to help it digest easier and for overall vitality. We alternate between Mercola, Animal Essentials and Peter Tobias.

Standard Process Whole Body Canine Support is another multi I would like to add to the rotation at some point.

For stomach issues we found our pups do best with the freeze dried food to which we add water. We rotate foods as well to keep it varied, healthy and interesting.

Good luck.

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