Should You Add Olive Oil To Your Dogs Daily Diet?

When you talk about olive oil you probably think of its wide array of benefits for your children. According to a new study carried out by researchers in France older persons who consumes olive oil daily are less prone to have a stroke. The snippet of this study, which is part of the Three-City Study, an ongoing multi-center study of vascular risk factors for dementia, could be found in the online issue of Neurology. Moreover the Greeks and Italians have been using olive oil for several centuries now as a therapy for dry and bad skin.olive-oil-dog-diet

Fact is olive oil is not only beneficial for humans, but it is also a wise addition to your dog’s daily diet. Veterinarians often ask adding olive oil to dog’s diet to help subjects with itchy dermal allergies. As long as your dog doesn’t have any underlying diseases that affect his skin or or allergies, treating flaky, dry and itchy skin with olive oil is a great option.

Here are many other reasons to add olive oil to your dog’s diet

Treating flaky dry skin: If your dog is suffering from flaky, dry skin you can apply olive oil both externally and internally. Applying olive oil externally and with your dog’s food will only mitigate the flakiness. For a permanent result it is important to look into your dog’s internal health including the liver and digestive system. Poor quality food, dry weather, heavy infestation of internal and external parasites, allergies (inhalant or food allergies), autoimmune disorders, hormonal imbalance (lack of thyroid hormones) are some of the other things that contribute to the dryness of your dog’s skin and these conditions need to be addressed alongside applying olive oil. The omega 3 fatty acids in olive oil improves the skin quality of your dog.

Health of connective tissue and coat: Olive oil is rich in vitamin E that supports the health of connective tissue like muscles and skin by minimizing the loss of muscular and dermal elasticity. Dogs that get a teaspoon of olive oil will have a healthier skin and coat condition.

Strengthening dog’s immunity: Olive oil is one of the richest natural sources of high levels of antioxidants, polyphenols, carotenoids, chlorophyll and natural vitamin E (as already mentioned above). This is a unique blend of most important micronutrients that helps in prevention of degenerative diseases and various diseases associated with oxidative stress, for instance neurodegenerative disorders (Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCL) or Batten didease), cancer and cardiovascular ailment in your dog.

Fights Osteoporosis: Olive Oil effectively fights osteoporosis in dogs, as in humans. In a study researchers have proved olive oil’s benefit in fighting the decreasing bone mass in dogs and females that have given birth to puppies. Olive oil helps in thickening of bone mass and prevent. However, alone olive oil may not be a great solution. A balanced diet plays a very important role in maintaining healthy bones. It is important to introduce foods rich in calcium and Vitamin D, as well as those containing minerals including: zinc, magnesium, phosphorus, iron in your dog’s daily diet. It is advised to check with a registered veterinarian or nutritionist for help in determining what, if anything more, is needed to be added in your dog’s daily diet for healthy bones.

Fights High Cholesterol Level without compromising on desirable fats: Olive oil controls cholesterol level on your dog without compromising on the desired requirement of essential fats.

Support improved blood circulation: Olive oil improves blood circulation and soothe breathing. A controlled daily dose of olive oil may be beneficial for breeds like bull dogs that suffer from distress breathing.

How much of olive oil is enough for your dog may depend largely on the type of dog you have. It is advisable to check with your vet and an experienced canine nutritionist who can help you in determining how much olive oil should you add to your dog’s diet.

Olive Oil To Your Dog’s Diet Is a Wise Decision If your dog Is Not Allergic to This Oil