By Sandy Haffner, (Owner of Preskitt’s Pawz n Clawz, and Pet Nutrition Specialist)
When we look at the research into natural ways to give your dog glucosamine for joint support, without resorting to synthetic supplements or harmful non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, we see that there are many natural food options to keep your dog mobile and pain-free!
Trachea is made up of cartilage, which is rich in glucosamine and chondroitin. Beef trachea is the most readily available. An injectable joint medication your vet may suggest, Adequin, comes from beef trachea. And because trachea is food, your pet’s body will recognize the nutrients and absorb them easily.
Most dogs will enjoy chewing on whole raw trachea or you can also give it to them dehydrated as a crunchy treat with joint support as a bonus!
Chicken feet may not sound good to the human, but they are loaded with naturally occurring glucosamine for dogs. And they make a desirable, crunchy snack, that most dogs love. Some dogs even like eating them raw and still frozen. You can also feed other poultry feet such as duck & turkey!
Shellfish shells contain glucosamine for dogs too. Many supplements made in labs contain glucosamine extracted from shellfish. As it might not appeal to the human, your dog can benefit by this natural source of glucosamine, shellfish shells.
After peeling and eating a meal of wild shrimp for dinner, you can give the dog the shells and tails or try simmering water with the shellfish shells for a few hours for a glucosamine-rich broth.
Rich, gelatinous bone broth, is another delicious way to serve your dog natural glucosamine. Bone broth has a lot of health benefits, plus it’s loaded with glucosamine and other joint-supporting nutrients.
A specific recipe for dogs must be followed. Or your local independent pet store should have dog safe bone broth.
Dogs love chewing and gnawing knuckle bones for hours of entertainment. And when they do, they gain several benefits. Beef knuckle bones have lots of cartilage, and it’s a valuable source of glucosamine for dogs.
Green lipped mussels are another excellent source to get high levels of glucosamine added into our dogs. Research has proven that they reduce arthritis symptoms in people and animals.
Green lipped mussels are rich in glycosaminoglycans, or for short, GAGs. Some especially important GAGs are Chondroitin Sulfate and Hyaluronic acid. Most of the arthritis supplements contain them. Naturally they are found in green lipped mussels. This means green lipped mussels can provide powerful help for your arthritic dog or supply the support throughout their life as they age.
They are hard to find fresh. But you can buy green lipped mussel oil or powder supplements for dogs. You can also buy freeze-dried green lipped mussel treats and give two mussels for every 10 pounds of body weight, per day.
An important benefit to giving your dog glucosamine from natural sources, is bioavailability. When you give glucosamine supplements that are not bioavailable, your dog doesn’t absorb all the nutrients.
Bioavailability refers to the amount of any nutrient that gets digested and delivered to the cells that use it. The glucosamine your dog gets from natural supplements and food is absorbed quickly. The body will use it right away. Because it’s food, the body knows what to do with it. Therefore, it will take much less natural glucosamine to be effective, compared to a synthetic supplement. Plus, natural sources are less expensive and much tastier for your pet!
Did you know your dog’s body naturally produces its own glucosamine? It’s a substance that helps create molecules that form the cartilage of your dog’s joints. Glucosamine is a name made up of glutamine, an amino acid, and glucose. It is naturally produced within the joints, where it combines with collagen to produce and repair cartilage.
Healthy cartilage is a naturally spongy or flexible part in the joint. As your dog ages, the body produces less glucosamine. Joints can stiffen up and lose the cartilage that acts as a shock absorber.
When you give extra glucosamine to your dogs, it helps in maintaining their mobility and is also a natural anti-inflammatory. It often helps with improving mobility and range of motion. It can also help slow the aging process in your dog’s joints. This makes it an easy choice as a supplement for people and pets with joint pain or stiffness and is widely talked about.
Dogs need about 500 mg of glucosamine per day, per 25 pounds of body weight. But when feeding the body bioavailable glucosamine regularly, they will get plenty of natural glucosamine. For example, the beef trachea mentioned earlier, is mostly cartilage. It contains about 5% glucosamine.
A 1 ounce piece of trachea will provide your dog with over 1400 mg of glucosamine. Another food source of one chicken foot, for example, contains about 400 mg of glucosamine.
The benefits of feeding food sources for glucosamine, have been proven to be the most effective in the dog’s body absorption, instead of asking the body to use something it doesn’t recognize in a synthetic supplement. Every supplement has a natural food source to feed your dog that will supply them with the nutrients they need. Their body will absorb it and use it for the full benefit. And therefore, the dog lives happier, which makes our world a better place!
