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Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System

 
By Josie F. Turner, Journalist specialized in Animal Welfare. April 26, 2017
Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System

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Does your dog have recurring infectious diseases? In so, it is essential to go to the vet. With that said, it is important that treatment goes beyond the correction of the symptoms and therefore focuses on the primary cause. Which, in this case is usually a poor immune system.

Keeping our pet's immune system in optimum condition is essential for our friend to enjoy a good quality of life. So, as owners, this should be a priority for us.

In this AnimalWised article we will give you the best tips to strengthen the immune system in dogs.

You may also be interested in: Can I Give Anti-Inflammatory Drugs to my Dog?

Feeding as the foundation of good health

Food is a determining factor for a dog's health and for a proper functioning of the immune system. If the defense cells or white blood cells do not have the nutrients they need, they cannot effectively protect our dog.


It is not only a nutritional deficiency that decreases the immune response, but also the intake of toxic or poor quality substances. This is something that usually happens when we give our dog low-quality commercial food.


If you want to feed your dog's defenses you must choose one of the following options:

  • High-end dry feed
  • Organic food
  • Home made food under nutritional supervision
  • BARF diet (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food)
Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System - Feeding as the foundation of good health

Daily exercise

A dog needs daily exercise (within its capabilities and limitations) for many reasons. One of the most important is stress management. A dog that is not exercised can become stressed very easily.

Stress in dogs is a condition which directly decreases the activity of the immune system. Why? The dog's body releases various hormones, which occupy receptors in white blood cells and prevent them from recognizing and dealing with a pathogen agent. Daily walks and exercise must be one of the most important measures offered when caring for your dog.

Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System - Daily exercise

Beware pharmacological treatments

Natural therapies should always be seen as a first option for treatment. Although we do recognize that for this, the most appropriate professional is the holistic veterinarian.

Usually pharmaceutical drugs decrease the body's own curative resources and act as toxic agents for the liver. Furthermore, when corticosteroid drugs are involved, there is a significant drop in the immune system.

When drug treatment is carried out using antibiotics, the most affected defense structures are the beneficial bacteria that are part of the intestinal flora. To prevent this damage, in parallel with taking the antibiotics, probiotics for dogs should be administered.

Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System - Beware pharmacological treatments

Strengthen your dog's defences using natural methods

As well as taking into account the aforementioned advice, if your dog has an incompetent immune system, this condition can be treated using different alternative therapies. Such as:

These should not be implemented without adequate professional supervision. If used correctly, they will help your pet by increasing their defenses and preventing future conditions

Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System - Strengthen your dog's defences using natural methods

This article is purely informative. AnimalWised does not have the authority to prescribe any veterinary treatment or create a diagnosis. We invite you to take your pet to the veterinarian if they are suffering from any condition or pain.

If you want to read similar articles to Tips to Strengthen a Dog's Immune System, we recommend you visit our Other health problems category.

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