Quote: rei chee

I didn't know garlic has Vit. E

It does have thiosulphate, which, at very high levels, can be a dangerous toxin that can cause hemolytic anemia in dogs.

The level you mentioned wouldn't worry me, but reading about tablespoons of it added to a dog's food made me jump in here to mention that.

For dogs, garlic is NOT a "more is better" thing.

Hi Connie,

Thanks for the refresher!

All I remember is, too much garlic will cause anemia ... but I couldn't remember exactly what the illness is called.

Good caution for everyone. )

Rei
I do not think garlic is a good source of Vita E, but the olive oil and vegetable oils are. I am shooting from memory but I think each Tbs contains about 2 IU. Garlic has other antioxidants that behave like Vita E. But Like Connie said to much of a good thing can easily become a bad thing. Balance and diversity in diet IMO is more important than supplements. Far to often supplements are an excuse not to offer diversity.

Connie thank you for pointing that out. I often forget important information when I am trying to explain things. Properly communicating my intention and thought is most greatest weakness in life. Maybe that is why I like dogs so much, they are forgiving easy to communicate with.

Hi Jeff,

My understanding is that it is important for the dogs to have both Omega-3 and 6 as part of their diet.

I only supplement with fish oil. And it seems that is what the majority of raw feeders (that I know) does.

I consider adding evening primrose oil for Omega-6. But I am doing things slow, and haven't really started researching or seeking advise yet.

I just started introducing spirulina to her diet.

Maybe I should start a new thread on Evening Primrose oil.

Sorry to go OT.

Fish oils are good sources for fatty acids. Fatty acids need to be balanced and I think most cold extracted fish oils do a pretty good job at that. I have no idea what primrose oil is or what the requirement of Omega 6 fats in dogs are. In humans it often argued that we get to much 6 and not enough 3.
Dogs have higher metabolism and thick coat to worry about so they might need a have a higher demand or need different proportions. I hope you start a thread on it I would love to learn more about it.
This site rocks for getting different perspectives, ideas, information. I just there was more vets that posted.

Correct me if not mistaken, but if salmon oil depletes the reserve of vitamin E in the dog's body, shouldn't vitamin E be given regularly if also giving salmon oil? I would think that once or twice a week is not enough. The dosage on this web page for a 75 lb. dog is 400 IU. I have a 120 lb dog with hip stiffness so she gets extra salmon oil, therefore we give her two pills = 800 IU daily. Is this way too much?

Brenda, hopefullY Connie will chime in here, but you are correct. The vitamin E is used in conjunction w/ the salmon oil, (utilized by the salmon oil)

It would make sense that if you give extra salmon oil, then you would want the higher dose of vitamin e to be able to utilize the Omega 3's.

Do you ever give Flax oil? I have been tempted to but didn't know if it would have any benefit for a dog. I have the cold pressed with Lignans.

Also does anyone know if the Salmon oil and Vit.E would be good for a cat? I would think the Salmon oil would be.

Hey Brenda,
Here is the information from this site http://www.leerburg.com/53.htm. It says 75-100 lbs should be getting 600 IU. The trend reccomended by to that link seems to suggest 800 IU for a 120lb dog is perfect. I would think the amount of exercise is a strong determine factor as well as weight.

I think along the lines of the chemistry involved, and anything given in wrong proportions can be toxic. Every few years you even read about people who die from drinking to much water. Penn and Teller made a you tube video trying to get people to ban it. (let me know if you want it I can PM you the link, it contains a few cuss words)

My wife yells at me all the time for thinking too analytically. When we were buying a house my real estate agent was going on and on telling us about this new yoga she does and why we should do it. She goes into a room that is 99 degrees and does her exercises. The advantage was all about raising her body temp. I am thinking body temp is ~98.6 even if you could raise your core temp by .4 degrees is it going to make a difference. I am not saying that there is no difference doing yoga in a 50 degree verse a 80 degree room but, the benefits she was talking about could be met in a 80 degree room. She was doing something extra because it made her feel healthier, not because it made her healthier.
I lost confidence in her ability to make wise decisions and fired her, my wife was upset because she was one of her best friends.

I know the role of Vita E. I know the signs of deficiency and the signs of toxicification. I would like to know the benefits if any of giving 500 IU verse 100 IU.

 Quote: barbara fisher

Do you ever give Flax oil? I have been tempted to but didn't know if it would have any benefit for a dog. I have the cold pressed with Lignans.

 Quote: brenda mitchell

Correct me if not mistaken, but if salmon oil depletes the reserve of vitamin E in the dog's body, shouldn't vitamin E be given regularly if also giving salmon oil? I would think that once or twice a week is not enough. The dosage on this web page for a 75 lb. dog is 400 IU. I have a 120 lb dog with hip stiffness so she gets extra salmon oil, therefore we give her two pills = 800 IU daily. Is this way too much?

Briefly (broken right hand): In this particular POV we are talking about the role of E in protecting delicate PUFAs (fish oil). I use 200-400 IU (based on size of dog; in fact, I use 100 for one small one who gets just a couple of grams of fish oil, at 20 pounds) because the fish oil is also given based on size of dog, unless the dog is on a prescription blood thinner, in which case your vet will advise you.

Flax oil is somewhat useful to humans, who can convert to long-chain Omega 3s at about a 10-15% rate. Dogs cannot.

So-called "balanced" oils (3 to 6) are (IMO) misguided, because we already eat much too much Omega 6 in modern diets (dogs and humans). We need the "balance" of adding 3s, and especially long-chain 3s, and not a supplement of still more 6s.

A diet rich in PUFAs probably needs more E than one that is not.

The 100, 200, 400, 600 IU amounts discussed for dogs getting fish oil are well below lab tests that have shown no adverse effects from high doses. However, I don't believe that anything is "the more, the better," so staying in those ranges is probably wise. JMO.

This has been discussed here in far better detail and with citations. I would use search and the key word OMEGA.

This is all JMO.