Solid Gold Seameal, Prozyme, and Nutritional Supplements in General
Has anyone tried nutritional supplements for their dogs? To be honest, I've tended to think that many of them are just snake oil with a couple of exceptions. I've heard Prozyme is great but it's not generally available from my local pet stores. Sure I can order it online. I just haven't bothered since I know very little about supplements.
However, I saw Solid Gold Seameal at Petco one day. I would have just past it up since it's a supplement but I have a lot of respect for the quality of Solid Gold products. I took a look at it and saw that it contains Prozyme. Though I'm still not sure how useful these products are, it seems that a lot of people on various forums feel they have had great results with both. I haven't found any negative comments so far.
Most of the comments were from owners who had dogs with problems such as dull fur, balding, itching, and other possibly digestive issues. But some owners didn't have dogs with serious problems at all; they used it for a healthier coat, for their show dogs, etc. I found some recommendations by vets and some nutritional articles and while all them are persuasive to a degree, I wouldn't say I was totally convinced.
There's nothing wrong with my dog, healthwise. He always gets complements about his coat being shiny and soft. But I like to think there's always room for improvement since on several occasions, I have stumbled onto products that give good results on an otherwise healthy dog.
So, I decided to buy a one pound container of Solid Gold Seameal at Petco. It's pricey but the recommended dosage for a 25+ pound Corgi isn't that much - 1/4 teaspoon per meal, twice daily for dogs up to 25 pounds, 1/2 teaspoon per meal, twice daily for dogs up to 50 pounds. I emailed the Solid Gold with some questions. They said that 25% of Sold Gold Seameal is Prozyme. The rest of it has other supplements though, such as omega 6 essential fatty acid. Both companies say it's safe to increase the dosage to at least twice that which is recommended normally. I'll probably try 1/2 teaspoon per meal since Prozyme gets a lot of great reviews too.
For those of you have tried these products or similar products, what do you think? Is this stuff worth it?
BTW, I'm posting my experience with Solid Gold Seameal on my blog about raising and caring for dogs: http://thepracticalpooch.blogspot.com/
However, I saw Solid Gold Seameal at Petco one day. I would have just past it up since it's a supplement but I have a lot of respect for the quality of Solid Gold products. I took a look at it and saw that it contains Prozyme. Though I'm still not sure how useful these products are, it seems that a lot of people on various forums feel they have had great results with both. I haven't found any negative comments so far.
Most of the comments were from owners who had dogs with problems such as dull fur, balding, itching, and other possibly digestive issues. But some owners didn't have dogs with serious problems at all; they used it for a healthier coat, for their show dogs, etc. I found some recommendations by vets and some nutritional articles and while all them are persuasive to a degree, I wouldn't say I was totally convinced.
There's nothing wrong with my dog, healthwise. He always gets complements about his coat being shiny and soft. But I like to think there's always room for improvement since on several occasions, I have stumbled onto products that give good results on an otherwise healthy dog.
So, I decided to buy a one pound container of Solid Gold Seameal at Petco. It's pricey but the recommended dosage for a 25+ pound Corgi isn't that much - 1/4 teaspoon per meal, twice daily for dogs up to 25 pounds, 1/2 teaspoon per meal, twice daily for dogs up to 50 pounds. I emailed the Solid Gold with some questions. They said that 25% of Sold Gold Seameal is Prozyme. The rest of it has other supplements though, such as omega 6 essential fatty acid. Both companies say it's safe to increase the dosage to at least twice that which is recommended normally. I'll probably try 1/2 teaspoon per meal since Prozyme gets a lot of great reviews too.
For those of you have tried these products or similar products, what do you think? Is this stuff worth it?
BTW, I'm posting my experience with Solid Gold Seameal on my blog about raising and caring for dogs: http://thepracticalpooch.blogspot.com/
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Sam & Shelby on
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I've never heard of that stuff but I use Brewer's Yeast with garlic and then some calcium. The dog breeder I got Shelby from said Brewer's Yeasrt with garlic kept off fleas (?). On the bottle it says it's for a shiny coat, healthy skin, and helps alleviate sensitive, itchy, irritated skin. The calcium's just for Shelby because she has thicker bones - or it seems - than my other dogs ( both miniature schnauzers).
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Permalink Reply by Michael on
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Interesting. Regarding Calcium, I was thinking about buying Green Tripe. There were Solid Gold Green Tripe cans right next to the supplement but I didn't buy it for now. I heard it stinks badly but is good for dogs. Supposedly it has an ideal balance of Calcius and Phosphorus; but I don't know whether that means that the meals he already gets doesn't have that.
My dog Mac probably has big bones too. He generally looks robust to me. His legs and paws are much thicker than my last dog Eedee, who though a relatively small dog too was sill taller than him.
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I'm not sure if Green Tripe stinks (or what it is), but I am pretty sure that the Brewer's Yeast and garlic work. The Brewer's Yeast with garlic, calcium, and heart worm prevention meds all smell the same. It smells kind of weird, but it's very faint.
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Permalink Reply by Sylvia & Timmy on
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I've used this supplement since Timmy was a pup. Great company and I respect their food also. I've used the Seameal to keep digestion issues to a minimum and it apprears to be working. Timmy never has a problem with the food changes we do every couple of months. In addition to the Seameal, I add wild salmon oil to keep his coat in excellent condition. I often get compliments on his coat sheen and condition. Since he needs frequent baths (therapy dog requirements) I am extra vigilant with his coat and skin condition.
I also feel that both of these supplements have helped keep him in excellent physical condition overall. He's never had an ear infection, skin condition, allergy, digestive issue, stomach problem or dry skin. Only medical issues have been congenital (orthopedic-mild hip dysplasia and arthritis) and these supplements, especially the wild salmon oil (containing the Omega 3's and 6's help with inflammation).
On a side note, the green tripe made by Solid Gold, Tripett, is excellent. Dogs absolutely go nuts over it. The smell doesn't seem to bother me much. I only use a couple of tablespoons with his dinner in the evenings.
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Permalink Reply by Lucy Hicks on
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Hi
Just a couple of questions. You mentioned that you change your dog's food every couple of months. You have a vast knowledge of the 'dog' world, so I would like to know if you have a specific reason for the food change. Especially since Timmy is in great shape. I will say though, I am going to start adding wild salmon oil (does it come from the health food store, pet store or Walmart?) to Lilly's meals. I am also going to investigate Seameal.
Thanks for all the information.
Lilly and lucy
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I can't speak for Sylvia and Timmy but some of the reasons I've read in favor of rotating foods include:
To avoid the possibility of developing a food allergy
I'm not sure how that would happen but it is a reason people give. I heard about babies developing allergies from over exposure to certain things early on. I'm not sure if I stated that accurately enough or even if the same concept applies here but that might be the idea.
To allow the dog to get to used to some change in dog food from time to time
If you can't buy one brand or formula due to lack of availability it won't be such a problem since you can just switch to the other food. Likewise, if the dog food company decides to change the formula, perhaps due to economic reasons, there might be a chance that he's already accustomed to the new ingredients. And even if he isn't, you can choose to feed him the other food that he's used to if necessary. I used to feed Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Fish to Mac but for a few months, it wasn't available at my local Petco. He had not gotten used to anything else so it was a bit of pain figuring out whether he was generally sensitive to the food I was having him try or whether he was just going through an adjustment period.
To prevent boredom with food.
If the dog gets bored with eating the same food month after month, that might be less of a problem if he likes two or more brands or formulas and it's added to the rotation so that there's enough variation from time to time.
And heck, I get bored buying the same thing every time ... and I'm not even eating it. Half kidding by the way. :D
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Thanks for the comments. Looking forward to more.
There are different positions on the use of supplements. Like I said before, I look at some of these with suspicion, not that they'll necessarily be harmful but whether they have any real use. This is the first time I've bought a supplement since I'm not the type that buys based on the claims on a label. As I said, I did do a lot of research on it to see if there were good results or whether there were adverse reactions. Admittedly, that's not scientific but I'm pretty confident that my dog won't have a problem with it long-term let alone a trial period to see whether it's worth the additional expense.
I don't think it's good practice to throw numerous supplements into the mix without looking into the possible adverse effects. Certainly I wouldn't shop in that particular aisle in the pet store and pick out stuff that sounds good on the package and then proceed to put my dog on it for years on end. I want to be confident in the results I can expect to see and that it's safe before I decide to burn a hole in my wallet.
But the other extreme doesn't sound too appealing to me either. Though it's generally a good idea not to "fix something that's isn't broken," I'd rather make more proactive decisions when it comes to preventive health care for my dog. The way I see it, if I wait for a problem or deficiency to happen, there's a chance I might not be able to narrow down the source or that it'll be too late to fix it. Example, I don't want to wait until my dog has joint problems before I think about calcium and joint function. Another example, I'd rather take measures to ensure that my dog's coat looks healthy every day instead waiting until it looks dull and asking how I can fix it.
Certainly there's a risk of making the wrong choice when being proactive but I honestly don't see how it's any less risky to try various solutions once a dog does show problems. I'm not saying my philosophy is best for everyone but I think it's reasonable and it makes me confident that I'm making the best decisions I can make for my dog.
I would note however, that I think I'm a practical person. I won't be using supplements no matter how reputable the company is if I'm not convinced of the benefits and that usually means seeing positive changes. I'm going to see if I can find more information on Omega 3's/6's as Timmy has used since I do wonder how what condition my dog's joints will be as he ages. My guess is that my dog's diet is fine but could use more natural sources of Omega fatty acids and possibly calcium and phosphorus from the green tripe I mentioned.
I've raised dogs for over 15-20 years. It's taken me this long to even warm up to the use of supplements as a preventive measure. In this case, the "supplement" is really intended to aid in the digestive process more than add anything missing to a dog's diet. Anyway, I don't think I'm in any danger of making hasty, long-term decisions.
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Permalink Reply by Shippo & Koga Corgis on
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Shippo's breeder swears by the Solid Gold Seameal. Unfortunately, it's very pricey, so I haven't been able to try it for Shippo. I have tried salmon oil and vitamin E and that worked very well.
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Permalink Reply by alynne on
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i have never heard of that either but i use brewers yeast and a joint suppliment. neeka has had no coat problems or joint problems but since we had to travel (before we move in three days) to get her food if we ran out she would eat crap (soo looking forward to being in a town with a good pet store!) my father (who gives his dogs both) told me to put her on them and all his dogs have been healthy with no medical issues and lived WAY beyond their life expectancy, i only do half the reccomended dose.. and i have never had a problem.
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Permalink Reply by Banjo and Starbuck on
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I started using Seameal when Banjo starting developing a sensitive stomach and I've had great results. I did see a positive change in her coat, and also her teeth and breath. I know several people who swear by Solid Gold supplements. I haven't heard much about brewer's yeast as a dog supplement, doesn't it have benefits for humans as well?
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Permalink Reply by Avyon on
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I may try the seameal for Roxi's tummy since every now and then she'll have a loose BM.
When we can I'll also add fish oil to her diet since I've done it with past dogs and love what it does to their coats :D
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The Seameal is expensive $20.00 for the one pound jar last me for about 4-5 months, since I only use 1/4 tsp per day.
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