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Puppy Basics Keeping Your Puppy's Skin and Coat Healthy
Puppy Basics Keeping Your Puppy's Skin and Coat Healthy

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Puppy Basics: Keeping Your Puppy’s Skin and Coat Healthy

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Keeping your puppy’s skin and coat healthy is as easy as 1-2-omega-3. Feeding studies have shown that dogs thrive on high-quality animal proteins from chicken, fish, lamb and eggs.  IAMS™ ProActive Health™ Smart Puppy Original and other IAMS formulas are made with these highly digestible proteins, which promote excellent skin and coat condition and enhance your dog’s overall health and well-being. When your dog’s coat looks good, the rest of his body will likely be well nourished, too.

 

Learn more about two important nutrients that can maintain your puppy’s skin and coat health.

 

Fatty Acids Keep Your Puppy’s Skin and Coat Healthy

Fat plays a key role in keeping your puppy’s skin and coat in top condition. Fat not only provides energy, but it’s also a source of essential fatty acids that are necessary for the skin’s healthy structure. Fatty acids in the diet keep the skin moist and supple. They also contribute to a thick, lustrous and healthy coat. The lack of or imbalance of fatty acids can cause dry, scaly skin and brittle hair. A diet with vitamin-rich fish oils is vital to your puppy’s coat health and appearance.
 

Although there are many kinds of fatty acids, a few are important to coat health and appearance:
 

  • Linoleic acid is an essential omega-6 fatty acid for dogs and is necessary for healthy skin. It is found in beef, pork, chicken and some vegetable oils.
  • Omega-6 fatty acids, including linoleic acid, can be found in the fat or oils provided in ingredients such as chicken and corn in your dog's food.
  • Omega-3 fatty acids are found in cold-water fish oils and in flax. Although not essential to a dog's diet, they have been found to help manage skin and coat conditions and promote a shiny coat.
     

An appropriate balance of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids helps maintain your dog’s healthy skin and coat. An optimal range of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty-acid ratios is between 5:1 and 10:1 to enhance skin and coat quality and help nutritionally manage skin and coat conditions.

 

Natural DHA Supports Proper Brain Development

DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is a key nutrient found naturally in breast milk and is important for a baby’s neural development. And just like a baby, a puppy’s ability to learn depends on healthy brain development.
 

At 6 weeks, a puppy's brain mass is approximately 70% developed. At this stage and in the months ahead, feeding your puppy a diet rich in DHA can help support neural development. Premium puppy foods such as IAMS™ ProActive Health™ Smart Puppy provide DHA in their formulas.

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  • Caring for Your Dog’s Joint Health
    Caring for Your Dog’s Joint Health

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    Caring for Your Dog’s Joint Health

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    The Role of Diet

    Traditionally, owners of large-breed and mature/senior dogs have known that their dogs may be predisposed to common joint and skeletal conditions—problems that may affect their mobility and overall wellness. The good news is that specially formulated diets and dog care products can help promote skeletal and joint health and assist in maintaining healthy cartilage.

     

     

    Special Nutrients

    Including specific nutrients in your dog's diet can help maintain healthy joints. Optimal levels of vitamins and minerals are found in IAMS™ dog care products and promote the efficient production of cartilage.

     

     

    Controlled Fat Levels

    IAMS has formulas that are lower in fat and calories compared with our other adult maintenance formulas. Bones are the framework of the body, and the more weight added to the frame, the more stress joints experience. IAMS formulas such as IAMS™ ProActive Health™ Mature Adult are designed to help keep large-breed or mature dogs at an optimal weight to minimize joint stress.