The spring is here, so it’s also time to support immunity and focus on body detoxification. In winter, most toxins accumulate in our body and the weather change is also a burden. What should you do in order not to burden the dog’s immunity and to support it?
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Our immunity as well as dogs’ immunity suffers goes through a lot every day. We compromise it with unnatural and unbalanced diet, artificial vitamins, flavourings, preservatives and colourants. It’s true what they say – a strong immune system = healthy bowels. Stress and lack of sleep don’t help as well. However, we also encounter toxins that weaken our immune system everywhere in our environment. It may be cleaning products, artificial fragrances, outdoor dust or smog.
The first thing you can do for a dog’s immune system is providing it with high-quality food. Such food that doesn’t burden its organism and therefore doesn’t consume its energy needed to fight bacteries and viruses. Prevention is always easier that solving an existing problem. Therefore, you should avoid gluten in the contents (gluten-free food ranges). It might cause food intolerance, allergies or autoimmune diseases in some individuals. Cereals containing gluten are the so-called empty calories – carbohydrates which are problematic to digest and don’t have any great nutrition values.
However, gluten-free cereals such as rice or corn are easily digestible for dogs and full of substances beneficial for their health. Both these ingredients can be found in hypoallergenic dog food. Even potatoes can be a good side dish in dry food (grain-free food ranges). If they are processed the right way, they even improve the health of the digestive tract, and therefore also the health of the immune system.
Besides a well-picked side dish, dog food might support the immune system with other components as well – e.g. fruits, herbs, lactobacilli, salmon oil and others. The more natural and less processed ingredients there are, the better. Or you can give them to your dog companion on your own. For example, cranberries contain a great amount of vitamin C and antioxidants, flax seeds are rich in fibre and omega-3 unsaturated acids, Beer yeasts are one of the best sources of vitamin B which is important for a whole bunch of organism functions, such as digestion, and it also has antioxidant properties.
We may support detoxifying body organs (i.e. kidneys and livers) by milk thistle, nasturtium, parsley, nettle or dandelion. These and other herbs are often contained in holistic dog food, such as Brit Fresh, that take into account the overall condition of a dog, including all medical aspects. With regard to wet dog food, monoprotein cans are a good choice for allergy prevention. Thanks to the fact it only contains one kind of meat, it is also suitable for dogs with sensitive digestive tracts.
We should particularly pay attention when picking dog food for little dogs. They are the ones who are exposed to the environment toxins the most as they are closer to the ground where all the dirt stays. Therefore, they breathe in more harmful substances and they can also absorb them through skin. Their digestive tract is also significantly shorter, so they have less time to get nutrients they need from their food. So, easily digestible food is way more important for them.
We can also boost their immune system with carefully selected treats. If you opt for functional treats, it will not only be easier for the dog’s organism but it will also be a reward. You’ll support its immune system, supplement necessary minerals and help it to stay in shape. It only takes to pick well -– based on the current situation.
We should also not forget about regular deworming and remember that ticks are also waking up after winter. Therefore, you need to protect your dog against them as well. Do you detoxify yourself and your dog companions? Do yo do it throughout the whole year in the form of prevention or is it a once-a-year thing for you, for example in spring?
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