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Garlic for DogsThis page looks at garlic for dogs - Is garlic safe for dogs? What are the health benefits of garlic for our dogs? Read on and find out!
Garlic for Dogs - Is Garlic Safe for Dogs
Garlic has long been used as a safe medicinal plant in holistic medicine for people and pets as well. However, recently, the safety of garlic on dogs (and cats) has come
under close scrutiny due to its properties as a member of the Allium genus, a branch of the lily family, along with onions and shallots.
A compound found in onions (and in lesser amount in garlic) called n-propyldisulfide can, in large doses, cause oxidative damage to red blood cells, creating Heinz
bodies and triggering the body to reject these cells from the bloodstream. If large doses of this compound are ingested on a regular basis, the process can lead to Heinz-body
anemia and even death.
Does that mean garlic is unsafe for dogs? Not quite. The key to safe use of garlic on dogs is the dosage level and frequency of use. For a dog to develop
Heinz-body anemia, he would have to eat over 0.5% of his body weight in onions to even begin the oxidative process. It means a healthy 60-pound dog would have to eat a whole
5-oz onion, or several cloves of garlic, to start the Heinz-body process. Since red blood cells are constantly regenerated from the bone marrow, a dog would likely need to
ingest this much amount of onion or garlic on a repeated basis to cause permanent harm.
However, garlic should NOT be fed to pets with a pre-existing anemic condition or to those scheduled for surgery. Also, young puppies before six to eight weeks of age should
NOT be given garlic because they do not begin reproducing new blood cells until after 6-8 weeks.
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Garlic for Dogs - How Much and How Often?According to Gregory Tilford, (author of All You Ever Wanted to Know About Herbs for Pets), dogs can quite safely consume 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder per pound of food 3 to 4 times a week. Dr. Martin Goldstein (author of The Nature of Animal Healing) recommends adding garlic to home-made pet food and he himself feeds garlic to his own cats and dogs on a regular basis. Dr. Pitcairn (author of The Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats) recommends the following amount of fresh garlic for dogs, according to their size:
Garlic for Dogs - Health Benefits
Garlic has been used for thousands of years in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine. It contains at least 30 compounds that have been found to be useful for a variety of
conditions from skin disorders to cancer. In fact, holistic veterinarians have been recommending garlic for many years for its multiple health benefits.
Below are the main health benefits of garlic for dogs:
Garlic for Dogs - Which Form?Not all forms of garlic are the same - garlic that has been cooked under high heat (boiled, roasted, sauteed, etc.) is likely to lose its medicinal properties and a high percentage of its nutrients. Allicin, the compound in garlic that gives it the strong odor, is very unstable and dissipates quickly when exposed to air, moisture, or heat. However, it is also allicin that gives garlic its powerful antibiotic properties. Therefore, if you want to use garlic as an antibiotic, the best form is raw garlic or raw garlic juice (to be used within 3 hours of chopping or pressing). If you want to use garlic as a cancer preventive agent, immune-system enhancer, cardiovascular tonic, or nutritional supplement, other form of garlic (e.g. powder) should also give you the desired results.References M. Goldstein, The Nature of Animal Healing (Ballantine Books, 2000). S. Messonnier, The Natural Vet's Guide to Preventing and Treating Cancer in Dogs (New World Library, 2006). Pitcairn and Pitcairn, Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (Rodale, 2005). M.L. Wulff-Tilford and G.L. Tilford, Herbs for Pets (Bowtie Press, 1999). TOP of Garlic for Dogs |
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