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A healthy year 2017!

First of all, we wish all two-legged and four-legged friends a happy and above all healthy year 2017!

To make that happen, and to keep us all fit in this dingy, dreary January weather, we should watch what we eat and strengthen our defenses!

Fortunately, we have our fur noses, which give us day after day a reason to move outside in the fresh air! Thanks to them, we can romp through the snow (or slush) and are thus already a big step ahead of all non-dog owners in terms of "exercise in the fresh air"!

But we should also make sure that we take enough vitamins! This is true for us and just as for our dogs and cats. Chronic vitamin deficiency can lead to creeping diseases.

We at NATURFUTTER have therefore compiled a small vitamin ABC with valuable knowledge and tips for the bowl and our own plate for you! Have fun reading!

 

What are vitamins important for anyway?

  • Bone development
  • Blood clotting
  • the DNA synthesis
  • release energy from food
  • Radical scavenger
  • Nervous system
  • and much more.

 

What vitamins are there?

  • water-soluble vitamins B and C

We cannot overdose on water-soluble vitamins because the body simply excretes the excess in the urine.

  • fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E & K

Caution is advised with fat-soluble vitamins! Excesses are stored in fatty tissue and can have toxic effects.

Foods containing fat-soluble vitamins should ideally always be eaten together with some oil/fat to enable their absorption.

 

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

Vitamin C is necessary for the body to produce collagen for our bones, connective tissue and teeth. With a deficiency it comes to:

  • impaired bone development
  • Deformities of the bones
  • Anemia
  • Delayed wound healing
  • Capillary bleeding

Unlike us, dogs and cats can produce vitamin C themselves in the liver. However, in the case of diseases, a supplement of host C can still be useful. E.g. in immune diseases, burns or joint problems.

Top Vitamin C Sources: Rosehip powder, sea buckthorn, acerola, black currants.

 

Vitamin B complex

The B vitamins have a variety of tasks in the organism and are important for our energy metabolism. Among other things, they are responsible for the formation of tissue, the maintenance and growth of our cells and for blood formation. In case of a deficiency, depending on the vitamin, diseases can occur such as:

  • Dementia
  • Nervous system disorders
  • Skin diseases
  • Fertility disorders
  • Growth disorders
  • Kidney damage
  • Oxalate stones (cat)

 

B vitamins are found in all animal foods such as:

  • Meat, fish
  • Offal
  • Eggs
  • Dairy products

But also in:

  • Brewer's yeast
  • Chlorella

When feeding with Barf menus, the B vitamin supply is optimal due to the muscle meat and the sufficient proportion of offal.

 

Vitamin D 

Distinguishing the provitamins

  • D2 (from plant sources)
  • D3 (from animal sources)

Vitamin D is essential for the regulation of calcium metabolism and maintains the balance of calcium-phosphorus levels in the organism.

A deficiency of vitamin D leads to problems with the minaralization of the bones and thus to diseases such as rickets, osteoporosis or osteomalacia.

We, as well as our dogs, can utilize provitamin D3 from animal sources better than the plant source D2. It is contained in:

  • Fatty fish
  • Fish oil e.g. salmon oil
  • Cod liver oil
  • Butter, cheese
  • Eggs (yolk)

The conversion into active vitamin D takes place in the kidney.

CAUTION! In case of overdose, e.g. by synthetic Vit D, calcification of tissues and vessels may occur.

 

Vitamin A

You probably know vitamin A as the "eye vitamin". In fact, vitamin A is important for light/dark vision. But also for the:

  • Maintaining the health of the skin and mucous membranes
  • Promotion of bone growth
  • Acceleration of wound healing
  • Synthesis of hormones
  • Reproductive capacity

Cats cannot convert the provitamin beta carotene into the active vitamin A, or only to a limited extent, and must take vitamin A in their food in any case! It is contained in:

  • Liver
  • Cod liver oil
  • Chicken
  • Fish oil
  • Eggs (yolk)
  • Carrots
  • Fennel
  • Spinach, chard
  • Lamb's lettuce
  • Nettle, cress

In the case of a deficiency, there are visual disturbances, changes in the skin and hair, or even fertility problems.

CAUTION: Overdose is also possible here, as it is a fat-soluble vitamin.

Cat: 100 IU/kg KM
Dog: 75 - 100 IU/kg KM

 

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is an important antioxidant. It is therefore often used as a natural antioxidant under the term "tocopherols" in industrial feed. It prevents fat from becoming rancid and counteracts loss of flavor and color. In the body, it protects cells from oxidative stress and plays an important role in reproduction.

In addition, vitamin E also protects the very reactive vitamin A!

Vitamin E is contained mainly in:

  • Liver
  • green leafy vegetables
  • Fennel
  • Black salsify
  • Wheat Germ
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Eggs (low content)

The requirement for an adult dog and for cats is: 2 - 3 mg per kg body weight

 

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is produced by the organism itself in the large intestine and is contained in the following foods:

  • Alfalfa flour
  • Liver
  • Fishmeal
  • Poultry meat
  • Eggs
  • Leafy vegetables
  • Broccoli, cauliflower
  • Spinach
  • Dill

We should only provide an additional supply of vitamin K after antibiotic therapy or intestinal diseases!

Caution is advised with the synthetic Vit K3. It is hidden behind the term menadione.

Quote from the Academy of Veterinary Medicine: "From scientific papers, the following facts can be collected on vitamin K3, the synthetically produced menadione causes, among other things, cytotoxicity on liver cells, causes radical formation from enzymes of leukocytes, can result in mutagenic effects and causes radical formation with an accompanying series of cytotoxic reactions. For this reason, vitamin K3 has not been approved for human use since 1989. It is also no longer allowed to be given to food-producing animals. Only the use in Pet food it is still permitted sometimes does not have to be declared on the label."