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Dog supplements: what to buy for each job

Pick the job your dog needs, then open its guide: each one names the product to buy, how much your dog gets a day at its weight, and what it costs (388 labels read, 322 with a dose by weight).

A Great Dane, a border collie and a dachshund sitting side by side

Start here: not sure which guide? Type your dog's weight and a brand or job in the dog supplement lookup to see what every product gives a day and what it costs.

Joints

  • Best joint supplement for dogs
    For most dogs, Cosequin Chewable Tablets with MSM: 600 mg of glucosamine and 300 mg of chondroitin a day for a 50 lb dog, at $0.26 a day.
  • Best joint supplement for large dogs
    For a dog 60 to 90 lb, Cosequin Chewable Tablets with MSM: the label says 1 to 2 tablets a day, which is 600 to 1,200 mg of glucosamine for $0.26 to $0.53 a day.
  • Best joint supplement for senior dogs
    For most senior dogs, Cosequin Senior Soft Chews: at 50 lb, 1 chew a day gives 600 mg of glucosamine, 300 mg of chondroitin, 55 mg of omega-3 (EPA + DHA) and 250 mg of yeast beta-glucan for $0.45 a day.
  • Best joint supplement for small dogs
    For most small dogs, Cosequin Chewable Tablets with MSM: ½ tablet every other day for a 10 lb dog and ½ tablet a day at 20 lb, about $0.07 and $0.13 a day.
  • Cosequin vs Dasuquin
    Cosequin, for most dogs: a 50 lb dog gets the same 600 mg of glucosamine a day from either one, for $0.26 a day against $0.43 for Dasuquin, about $61.61 a year less.
  • How much glucosamine for dogs
    A 50 lb dog needs about 330 mg of glucosamine a day, and Cosequin Chewable Tablets with MSM gives 600 mg for $0.26 a day ($0.53 a day for the first 6 weeks).
  • Green-lipped mussel for dogs: dose
    Give a 50 lb dog 225 mg to 450 mg of green-lipped mussel powder a day; in the dog dose test, 225 mg worked as well as 450 mg.

Gut and digestion

  • Best probiotic for dogs
    For most dogs, Purina FortiFlora: one packet a day for any size dog, $1.03 a day.
  • FortiFlora vs Proviable
    For most dogs, FortiFlora: one packet a day gives 100 million CFU of one strain, SF68, for $1.03 a day, and a 2011 lab test found 2.6 times the bacteria on its label, one of 2 of 25 products to pass every check.
  • Best anal gland supplement for dogs
    For most dogs, Vetnique Glandex Anal Gland Soft Chews: the best seller of the 9 here (Amazon sales rank 43) from a NASC-sealed maker, $1.17 a day for a 50 lb dog; its label says allow 3 to 5 weeks, with half the dose for the first 5 to 7 days.
  • How much pumpkin for dogs
    Most dogs get 1 to 4 tablespoons of plain canned pumpkin per meal; a vet nutrition table gives up to 1/4 cup per 25 lb, or 8 tablespoons for a 50 lb dog.

Skin, coat and fish oil

  • How much fish oil should I give my dog?
    Give a 50 lb dog about 1,560 mg of EPA + DHA a day (69 mg per kg), the dose a 2016 arthritis trial used.
  • Best fish oil for dogs
    For most dogs, Deley Naturals Fish Oil: 2 pumps (1 teaspoon) a day gives a 50 lb dog 1,370 mg of EPA + DHA for $0.24 a day, and the bottle lasts 192 days.
  • Best skin and coat supplement for dogs
    For skin and coat, Deley Naturals Fish Oil: ⅓ teaspoon to 1⅓ teaspoons a day gives a 50 lb dog 500 mg to 1,930 mg of EPA + DHA, the amounts skin trials used, for $0.09 to $0.34 a day.
  • Best allergy chews for dogs
    For most dogs, Nature Target Allergy & Itch Relief Advanced Immune Chews: 2 chews give a 50 lb dog 600 mg colostrum, 6 billion CFU probiotics and 166 mg EPA + DHA a day for $0.30.

Teeth

  • Best dental chews for dogs (VOHC accepted)
    For a 50 lb dog, Virbac VeggieDent FR3SH Medium: VOHC accepted for both plaque and tartar, $1.13 a day.
  • Greenies vs Dentastix
    Greenies, because it has the VOHC seal for plaque and tartar in every size: $0.42 a day for a 10 lb dog to $1.54 for a 50 lb dog.
  • OraVet vs Greenies
    Greenies, for most dogs: the VOHC seal for plaque and tartar at $0.42 a day for a 10 lb dog (OraVet $1.27) and $1.54 for a 75 lb dog (OraVet $1.92).

Calm, liver, bladder and vitamins

  • Best calming chews for dogs
    For most dogs, Greenies Calming Chews: 2 chews give a 50 lb dog 220 mg of L-theanine a day, more than the 100 mg dog studies used, for $0.85 a day, with the NASC seal.
  • How much melatonin for dogs
    A 50 lb dog gets 2.3 to 6.8 mg of melatonin per dose, which is 0.1 to 0.3 mg per kg, and Freeice Organic Calming Chews (Duck) gives 6 mg a day for $0.22, the lowest cost of the chews inside that range.
  • Best liver supplement for dogs
    For most dogs, Denamarin, the SAMe and silybin tablet vets commonly use for the liver: a 50 lb dog gets 425 mg of SAMe and 35 mg of silybin (in a 120 mg silybin complex) a day for $2.50.
  • Best urinary supplement for dogs
    The best seller, Zesty Paws Urinary Tract Bites, gives a 50 lb dog 400 mg of cranberry concentrate and 200 mg of D-mannose a day with the NASC seal, for $0.73 a day.
  • Best dog multivitamin
    For most adult dogs, Nutri-Vet Multi-Vite Chewables: 9 vitamins and 9 minerals on the label, NASC seal, $0.28 a day for a 50 lb dog.

Brands

  • Is Zesty Paws good?
    Yes. Zesty Paws carries the NASC Quality Seal, and its Daily Probiotic Bites give a 50 lb dog 6 billion CFU a day, more than 23 of the 34 other probiotics we compared, for $0.73 a day.
  • Is Pet Honesty good?
    Yes. Pet Honesty carries the NASC Quality Seal, and its probiotic chews give a 50 lb dog 6 billion CFU a day for $0.59, the third-cheapest NASC-seal probiotic we compared at that dose.
  • Is Native Pet good?
    Yes. Native Pet carries the NASC Quality Seal, and its Probiotic Powder gives a 50 lb dog 6 billion CFU a day for $0.50, the lowest cost of the 4 NASC-seal probiotics we compared at that dose.
  • Zesty Paws vs Pet Honesty
    Buy by job. Pet Honesty for probiotics: the same 6 billion CFU a day as Zesty Paws for $0.59 instead of $0.73.

Tools and lists

  • Dog supplement lookup
    Type your dog's weight and a brand or product to see how much of each main ingredient it gives a day, how many servings that is, and what it costs a day. We read 388 labels; 322 give a dose by weight, and all 322 (from 152 brands) are here.
  • Dog supplements with the NASC seal
    The NASC seal means the maker passed an independent quality audit and has its products randomly tested by an independent lab to confirm they match the label. 32 brands we priced hold it, among them Native Pet, Zesty Paws, NaturVet and Wonder Paws.