Do Nutritional Supplements Work for Dogs and Cats?

Over the past 18 years in my veterinary practice, I’ve been using trustworthy and reliable nutritional supplements and have been quite pleased with the clinical results. Often I’ve found that when using supplements it’s possible to use fewer or lower doses of prescription nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) early in degenerative joint disease, arthritis, and back pain cases in my patients.

The important point that animal guardians need to understand regarding the use of such products, is that because of inadequate regulation of the supplement industry not all supplements are created equal. And although a label may say that a particular supplement has a certain amount of product, such as glucosamine or chondroitin sulphate in them, one can never be sure of the exact amounts in a particular product. That’s why it’s important to obtain product recommendations from reliable sources and veterinarians who are more familiar with those companies who put out trustworthy products.

In my practice I often use a combination of good quality glucosamine/chondroitin/MSM supplements such as Super Joint Enhancer from PetMeds ^®. I’ve also found that using Omega-3 fatty acids, such as Nordic Naturals Omega-3 Pet, along with joint supplements can enhance clinical response. With most of my patients I’ll also prescribe an antioxidant such as Proanthozone, which assists in reducing pain and inflammation by decreasing free radicals produced during development of arthritis. In addition, all natural Yucca Intensive by Azmira can also help because of its natural plant based sterols that are powerful anti-inflammatories.

Through such a multipronged approach and the judicious use of NSAIDs when needed, most pets can indeed live an enhanced quality of life when suffering from arthritis, degenerative joint disease, or spinal disc problems.

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