VITAMIN B COMPLEX DOG

THE B GROUP - VITAMINS FOR NERVE REGENERATION

The group of B vitamins plays an important role among the essential nutrients, because dogs and cats need them to maintain optimal function and regeneration of nerve cells and nerve cords. All B vitamins must be ingested by dogs and cats through food. If the dog is deficient in these important vitamins due to an unbalanced diet, this can lead to various nerve disorders in the long term.

Especially with older dogs, their owners often observe that their dog shows various symptoms of nervous weakness, such as. B. visual disturbances, abnormal movements, restlessness, nervousness, dementia or incontinence. In old dogs, nerve performance and the ability to regenerate decrease as a side effect of the aging process, and it is precisely here that supplying the dog's body with B vitamins is important.

WHICH VITAMINS BELONG TO THE B GROUP?

The group of B vitamins includes several nutrients, each of which fulfills specific tasks in the dog's body. So that the dog owner can get an overview of the individual functions of these essential nutrients, a detailed list of the individual vitamins of the B group and their functions and effects follows.

VITAMIN B1

Vitamin B1 is needed to extract energy from the dog's body from the ingested food, which is then passed on in the nerve cells with the help of this essential vitamin. This ensures that the cells of the nervous system are always supplied with a sufficient and constant amount of energy, which is absolutely necessary for their proper functioning.

VITAMIN B2

Vitamin B2 is also actively involved in generating energy in the dog's body; this nutrient is needed primarily for the metabolism of proteins, fats and carbohydrates. In addition, this vitamin is responsible for maintaining the optic nerve and therefore the dog's vision. Puppies need vitamin B2 for optimal and healthy growth.

VITAMIN B3

Vitamin B3 is generally required for the dog's metabolism and ensures that all metabolic processes in the animal's body run at an ideal level. This also ensures that the nerve cells of the dogs are constantly supplied with an optimal amount of energy.

VITAMIN B5

Vitamin B5, pantothenic acid, activates and controls the nervous metabolism in dogs, which optimizes the energy supply to nerve cells and nerve fibers and regulates the puppies' growth processes. In addition, this vitamin has an extremely positive effect on maximum resilience in terms of stress in dogs.

VITAMIN B6

Vitamin B6 is needed primarily for the dog's protein metabolism. Without this vitamin, the dog's body cannot obtain energy from the proteins contained in the food. In addition, this nutrient ensures a constant release of this energy in the nerve cells.

VITAMIN B12

The nutrient called vitamin B12 helps the dog's body to make red blood cells and also new nerve cells on a regular basis. Therefore, this vitamin is a very important nutrient for both nerve function and overall dog health.

FOLIC ACID

The last vitamin B group is called folic acid and has the important task of building and maintaining cells. This function primarily relates to both the blood cells and the nerve cells of the dog.

VITAMIN B DEFICIENCY SYMPTOMS IN DOGS

Dogs may show the following symptoms:

Excessive shedding

Flies bother him in the summer
Dirty and/or decayed teeth
motion sickness
weight gain and constipation
hair loss
premature greying
Anxious and stressed

The B complex vitamins work more efficiently when there is sufficient vitamin C in the dog's diet, and both are crucial for protein and fat absorption.

WHY B COMPLEX INSTEAD OF VITAMIN B12?

The B vitamins can be purchased as individual components for dogs. It is possible to buy B-1, B6, B12, etc. Many people use these vitamins without using the whole complex. None of these vitamins occur in nature. Foods that contain B vitamins contain several of them, and no food is known to have them in isolation. So if you decide to feed your dog extra B6, for example, it should always be fed together with the complex powder. No part of the vitamin should be fed to your dog in isolation for more than a month without re-evaluation.

VITAMIN B COMPLEX FOR CATS

B vitamins play a very important role in every cat's life. These water-soluble nutrients are essential for cellular metabolism needed for proper growth, development, and energy production. Since they are water soluble, they are not stored in the body but are excreted in the urine. Consequently, deficiencies can occur, especially in animals with excessive drinking and urination due to diabetes, kidney disease, and other health problems. Vitamin B deficiency can be difficult to diagnose. For this reason, the diagnosis is based on clinical signs. Because many of the signs of a deficiency in a particular B vitamin overlap, deficiency is typically treated with B complex since all B vitamins are relatively nontoxic.

Almost all recipes for home-cooked cat food call for the addition of B complexes rather than adding each B vitamin individually. Remember that in a balanced, homemade cat food recipe, the B complex is added to supplement the vitamins already present in the meat and organs. The vitamin B complex usually, but not always, consists of eight B vitamins:

Vitamin B1 - Thiamin
B2 - Riboflavin
B3 - niacin, niacinamide or inositol hexanicotinate
B5 - pantothenic acid
B6 - Pyridoxine
B7 - Biotin
B9 - folic acid
B12 - Cyanocobalamin or Methylcobalamin

Most products have inactive ingredients added as flavors, binders, and flow aids. Some may also contain other active ingredients such as vitamin C, choline, inositol - vitamin B8 or PABA - vitamin B10. Please note that the B complex you use does not necessarily have to contain vitamins B8 and B10.

B vitamins can be found in animal and plant sources. For example, lean meat is a good source of B3 and B5. Liver, on the other hand, is a good source of B2, B5, B7, B9, and B12. Adding just 4 percent liver to your cat's raw meal will provide adequate amounts of all of these nutrients. Thiamine is the only vitamin that is difficult to obtain in adequate amounts from natural sources. It is also one of the most "sensitive" B vitamins, as it is easily destroyed by cooking/heating, exposure to a neutral or alkaline environment, or oxidation. The richest source of thiamine is nutritional yeast.

So unless we want to use at least 2 percent nutritional yeast in our homemade recipe, we need to add thiamine in some other form to prevent deficiency. The easiest way to do this is by using vitamin B complex.

Almost every vitamin B complex has a specific smell. Some cats like it, others are not so crazy about it. As the product ages some ingredients will begin to degrade and the odor will increase. To slow down this process, vitamin B complex should be stored in a cool, dry place. However, if the smell gets too strong, it may be time to buy a fresh product.

To minimize the loss of these water-soluble vitamins once they've been mixed with the meat, it's important to retain any liquids that come out of the meat, especially after it's been frozen.

CONCLUSION

Vitamin B complex is rightly a popular supplementary feed for dogs and cats and offers numerous benefits. Vitamin complex is rich in B vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, vitamin B6, B7, B9, B12) that can help:

Improvement of skin and coat
improvement in nerve function
Supports digestion
muscle support
Supports the metabolism