With all the craze about the health benefits of coconut oil these days and all the reasons being thrown around as to why we should be incorporating it in our diets and day to day lives, we can only wonder whether the same can be said for our pets.
After all, it’s only normal for you and I to think about giving our precious little beings whatever we discover to have tremendous health benefits for ourselves, which is the case when it comes to the benefits of coconut oil for people.
The amount of emails we get being asked about supplementation with coconut oil for dogs and all pets alike is a great deal of emails to say the least, so we’re dedicating an entire post (a fairly long one as well) to cover all there is to know about this subject.
So, how safe is it actually to give your pets coconut oil as dietary supplementation? And how safe is it to use coconut oil as topical application on our pets for various reasons? Is doing either beneficial or are you just practically throwing away coconut oil without your little ones getting much benefit?
Let’s have a look at the answers to all of these questions and many more you may have in this definite guide to coconut oil for dogs, shall we?
INFOGRAPHIC: Coconut Oil For Dogs – (29 Reasons Why It’s Awesome!)
Can Dogs Have Coconut Oil? And Is Coconut Oil Good For Dogs?
For those of you reading this who want to get a quick answer to this question without necessarily getting into all the juicy details we’ve provided you with in later sections, then the quick answer to this question is YES – dogs can be given coconut oil safely.
As a matter of fact, coconut oil is safe for consumption/usage on all pets alike.
So whether you have a dog at home, a cat, a horse, ferret or whatever little fella you have laying around the house, coconut oil is definitely an addition you should look into.
Throughout the remainder of this article, however, we’re going to be talking mainly about the benefits of coconut oil for dogs.
We strongly suggest that you don’t take it from here, and that you continue reading the rest of this article to learn about the best ways you’re able to give coconut oil to your dog without it backfiring in health problems and negative repercussions later on down the line.
As they say, even the best things in life, taken to an extreme, lose their value and can very well become harmful.
How Does Coconut Oil Come To Be?
Before we kick off this go-to guide for everything you need to know about coconut oil for dogs, let’s cover a few introductory points about what coconut oil exactly is and how exactly it comes to existence.
Coconut oil, an ingredient found in many products out there on the market ranging from food and all the way to items like cosmetics, is basically just consumable oil (and oil that can be topically applied on the skin) that’s extracted from mature coconuts.
What Kind Of Fat Is Coconut Oil Mainly Comprised Of?
Coconut oil is mainly comprised of saturated fat (saturated fat makes up 90% of coconut oil).
From this 90% of saturated fat that makes up coconut oil, over 40% of this saturated fat is comprised of medium-chain triglycerides.
The remaining 10% of unsaturated fat that makes up coconut oil is divided between monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Much of the health benefits that are associated with coconut oil, for humans and pets alike, are often attributed by professionals in the field to the fact that they are significantly made up of medium chain triglycerides (often referred to as MCT’s).
Contrary to what you may have heard in the past about saturated fats being “the devil” and how you should keep them as far away from your diet as possible, this isn’t entirely true, especially when it comes to pets.
As a matter of fact, the majority of health benefits that are attributed to coconut oil (both for humans and animals alike) are credited to these saturated fats that make up more than 90% of coconut oil.
The majority of saturated fatty acids out there are primarily made up of long-chain fatty acids, which are often attributed to many possible health risks.
Medium-chain fatty acids, however, are credited for dozens and dozens of different health benefits, both for pets and humans alike.
Think about the food your dog would be eating if they were still in the wild and hadn’t been domesticated yet, what kind of food would that be?
Would they be eating quinoa for one meal and low fat yogurt the next?
No, dogs would be eating other prey in the wild, with these prey being rich in saturated fats, the same case we have on our hands here with coconut oil.
So, rest assured, giving your dog coconut oil is by no means you going against nature’s will.
Now, since this isn’t biology class and possibly only 1 out of a 1000 people reading this are interested in getting lectured about what kind of fats make up coconut oil, let’s get to the parts that you actually came here to find about.
The Ultimate List Of Coconut Oil Health Benefits For Dogs
So, why exactly is there all this hype around the benefits of coconut oil for humans and pets alike?
What properties and benefits make coconut oil the “miracle ingredient” it’s very often made out to be?
We’ve scoured dozens of sources and have conducted a whole lot of research on the subject to come back to you with the following be-all, end-all list of coconut oil benefits for dogs (at least that’s what we hope we managed to pull of! We’ll leave that for you to decide and tell us what you think about it in the comments section down below).
Benefit #1 – Thyroid Problems
If your dog has any sort of thyroid problems, most common of which are found in overweight dogs that have their metabolisms being as slow as a snail, coconut oil can be a miracle ingredient to help regulate your dog’s thyroid if incorporated into their diet in the right amounts.
Not only will coconut oil help in getting your dog back in shape because of this thyroid regulation, coconut oil can also greatly help elevate your dog’s mood in case it’s been affected as well by their thyroid problems.
Many dog owners have noticed and reported about how their dogs went from depressed and lethargic dogs that want to do nothing but lay around the house all day to happy and energetic dogs that love to play around, have fun and be the joy of the home after a short while of proper and consistent consumption of coconut oil as part of their diets.
Again, this is not to say that your dog won’t need veterinary care if they suffer from a thyroid problem, it’s just to say that coconut oil can help with the situation to a certain extent.
Benefit #2 – Weight Loss & Slimming Down
According to Naturopathic doctor John Dempster, coconut oil is one of the healthiest fats out there that we could incorporate into our diets, and it’s directly responsible for improving fat burning in our bodies by the process of recruiting fat cells.
Besides possibly improving the fat burning mechanisms in your dog’s body, coconut oil also goes a long way in helping your dog to slim down because of its ability to suppress their appetite, resulting in less food consumed throughout the day.
Benefit #3 – Enhanced Digestion
Making a habit of including coconut oil as part of your dog’s diet will go a very long way in making their digestion process a much more efficient one, especially if they have a history of digestion problems.
Much of these digestive aid properties found in coconut oil trace back to the fact that coconut oil is primarily made up of medium-chain fatty acids.
Benefit #4 – Improved Nutrient Absorption
Besides making your dog’s digestion process a whole lot smoother and problem-free, coconut oil also goes a long way in improving your dog’s nutrient absorption process and also making it a much more efficient one as well.
This is especially important and most definitely an advantage you want to capitalize on if you’re already spending top dollar on some of the most premium and nutritious dog food available on the market.
Benefit #5 – Dogs With Sensitive Stomachs
Speaking about dogs with digestive problems, coconut oil is one of the best things you could ever give to a dog that has a sensitive stomach, as it’s really easy for their digestive system to process and tremendously aids in calming it down in case it was agitated by your dog eating something they shouldn’t have eaten given their sensitive stomach condition.
Benefit #6 – Enhanced Energy Levels
Not only will coconut oil help your dog slim down and lose weight if they happen to be a little bit over the scale than they should be, coconut oil can also help your dog get back their high energy levels if they’ve been feeling more lethargic than normal lately.
Again, much of this has to do with the ability of coconut oil to regulate your dog’s thyroid functions and increase their energy levels as a result.
A dog with an improperly functioning thyroid is a dog that’s very likely to be lethargic and sit around the house all day long wanting do to nothing but eat and sleep in between meals – and coconut oil has properties that can help change that.
Moreover, the significant levels of Lauric acid found in coconut oil (Lauric acid makes up more than 40% of coconut oil) mean that the energy boost your dog will get is a very fast one that can be felt just a short time after consumption.
Coconut oil also contains certain levels of capric acid and caprylic acid in addition to lauric acid, but the former two are insignificant in comparison to the latter in terms of the overall composition of fatty acids in coconut oil.
Benefit #7 – Natural Wound/Cut Healer
Has your dog ever come back to you with a wound they sustained while playing around outside and injuring themselves in the process or coming into contact with something sharp such as a fence?
Or did your dog get into a bit of rough (yet friendly) physical play with other dogs and sustained a minor bite in the process?
Not many dog owners are comfortable applying medicine made for humans such as Neosporin to heal their dog’s open cuts and wounds, and would much rather go down the natural route instead.
If that describes you in any way, then topically applying the right amount of coconut oil to your dog’s wounds is one of the best natural methods you could follow to sanitize and promote the rapid healing of your dog’s open cut/wound.
Benefit #8 – Natural Sore Healer
Even if your dog doesn’t necessarily have an open wound or cut on their body but a sore or a certain area on their body that’s swelling, coconut oil applied topically has the ability to naturally heal that area and get it back to normal.
Benefit #9 – Skin & Coat Condition
It’s been proven time and time again that dogs given proper amounts of coconut oil to consume as part of their diets, and those that are subjected to topical coconut oil application on a regular basis, have much healthier skin and coat conditions than dogs that aren’t.
Not only will you notice an obvious difference in how smooth and moist your dog’s coat starts to feel like after some time instead of that dry and flaky coat you’re used to feeling, the difference in how glossy and glowing your dog’s coat becomes can be the difference between night and day in many cases.
This is a prime reason why many dog owners that have difficulty brushing their dog’s coat resort to using/giving their dogs coconut oil, because they know how easy brushing their dog’s coat can become when the coconut oil takes its toll on the coat and it becomes heavenly-silky.
Skin conditions like hot spots have also been proven time and time again to be treatable with the proper application of coconut oil on the skin, so you may want to give this a consideration if your dog has such a condition at the moment.
The good thing about topically applying coconut oil on your dog’s coat is that you don’t have to use a ton of it so it results in the desired effect, you only have to apply a tiny amount and that would be enough.
This is important to note since many people shy away from applying coconut oil to their dog’s coat thinking that they’ll need to buy bottle after bottle on a weekly basis, but that’s not the case at all.
Also, it’s not like you’ll need to rub coconut oil on your dog’s coat on a daily basis, it should be looked at as a once-a-week routine in most cases.
For a visual illustration about how to rub coconut oil on your dog’s skin, have a look at the following video (skip to minute 1:37, since before that mark there’s not much learning to be done).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAFBblxSros
Benefit #10 – Itchy Skin (Paw Itches, Anyone?)
One of the most annoying occurrences your dog can experience is an itchy feeling on their skin (a very common and annoying area for them is their paws), which drives them to lick away at them like crazy and, as a result, only lead to the itch increasing and an eventual development of a rash or the possibility of cutting that area open and having it bleed.
If you notice any symptoms in your dog that suggest their paws or any other area on their body is giving them an itch, topically applying coconut oil on that area (the same way you saw being done in the video above) will greatly soothe it and help rid them of this uncomfortable feeling.
One of the most common uses of coconut oil for dog skin is when dogs have eczema – to say the least, it works wonders with this problem.
Benefit #11 – Reduces Allergic Reactions
Coconut oil applied topically on your dog’s skin goes a long way in reducing the chances of potential allergic reactions from happening.
Benefit #12 – Flea Protection
On this site, we’ve discussed several different methods that you can use when it comes to treating your dog from fleas and ticks that may develop on their skin.
From flea and tick protection products to flea and tick collars for dogs, you’ve probably heard it all already.
And, while there are products out there that most certainly work wonders when it comes to treating your dog’s flea and tick problems, some of you may prefer to remain within the DIY and natural realm of things, which is perfectly fine as well.
For that reason, it’s important to note that coconut oil applied topically on your dog’s skin in the right amounts and for the right period of time will tremendously help get rid of any fleas & ticks that may be present and developing in different areas.
Not only can you apply coconut oil topically on your dog’s skin and coat in order to get rid of any ticks and fleas that may be present there at the moment, you can also make a frequent habit of this practice in order to greatly minimize the chances of fleas and ticks developing on your dog’s skin at any given time in the near future as well.
Summertime is an especially popular time among dog owners where applying coconut oil on their dogs’ coats becomes a more frequent habit, done once every 2-3 weeks.
Thanks to the high amounts of Lauric acid present in coconut oil, (which we should mention again that much of coconut oil’s benefits are attributed to these medium chain fatty acids that make up the majority of it), coconut oil is excellent in preventing the development of bacterial and viral infections in your dog.
Lauric acid, which makes up more than 40% of coconut oil, is able to break down the cellular walls of such harmful bacteria and viruses that make their way into your dog’s system, which ultimately renders them useless and unable to infect your dog and have them fall ill.
Lauric acid is an element you’ll generally find in fairly high amounts in a mother’s breast milk, so you can imagine why many health attributes coconut oil has are attributed to this specific element.
One of the most common conditions that coconut oil is able to help treat in dogs is kennel cough, again much thanks to the antiviral properties this ingredient boasts.
Benefit #14 – Improved Immune System
The credits for this benefit also go out to the Lauric acid being present in fairly high amounts in coconut oil, something which leads to tremendous improvement in your dog’s immune system and the ability to fight off different diseases and illnesses in a fraction of time than the case would normally be with an average immune system.
Benefit #15 – Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reducer
Unlike other oils out there that have been greatly damaged and have had their chemical structure greatly altered due to being subjected to a high temperature of heat, coconut oil (especially if you choose virgin coconut oil) is pure, unprocessed and chemically un-altered oil, making it one of the most heart-healthy oils your pet can ever have.
While studies about coconut oil actually improving the cardiovascular conditions in pets are scarce, it’s already been proven that coconut oil can help keep cardiovascular diseases at bay before they develop in your pet.
Benefit #16 – No More Bad Breath
Even though we’ve discussed how you can greatly solve your dog’s bad breath problems in this article about the best toothpaste for dogs, you should also know that coconut oil is filled with properties that greatly help getting rid of your dog’s bad breath and replacing all that nastiness with a fresh-smelling and clean breath instead.
Many dog owners have found that brushing their dog’s teeth with some coconut oil practically eliminated their dog’s bad breath right away, with the effect lasting a significantly long time as well.
Benefit #17 – Less Brushing Difficulties
You can also make great use of coconut oil if your dog gives you a bit of a hard time when having their teeth brushed.
Because dogs find coconut oil to be so tasty, adding a little bit to the toothbrush you’re using for their teeth will go a long way in reducing their stubbornness during brushing, and will actually make your dog look forward to this practice instead of resenting it.
Benefit #18 – Improved Dental Health
Besides improving your dog’s breath, coconut oil may very well be able to improve your dog’s overall dental/oral health as well.
Because coconut oil is very rich in anti-microbial properties, it may be able to help stop dental infections from developing in your dog’s mouth due to a host of different reasons, as well as treat any ongoing dental infection and minimize its consequences.
With that being said, you shouldn’t rely on coconut oil by itself to treat any possible dental infections or problems your dog may be suffering from at the moment, as that would be wishful thinking.
Coconut oil may very well be able to help to a certain extent with these cases, but it’s by no means a complete course of treatment for such problems, and it’s most certainly by no means a viable replacement for proper and professional animal care in serious cases.
Benefit #19 – No More Bad Body Odor
Just like coconut oil is able to greatly improve your dog’s breath, it’s also able to greatly improve the overall smell of your dog if they have a history of emitting unpleasant body odor.
Many dog owners would much rather apply something like coconut oil on their dog’s skin and coat in order to get rid of their bad smell if they emit strong body odor, rather than have to get a special product for this task, which may include some chemicals and/or unnatural ingredients that not everyone is comfortable subjecting their precious pup to.
Not only is making use of coconut oil a very smart idea if your dog has a history of emitting bad body odor, but it’s also a great way to deodorize their coat if they happened to play somewhere they shouldn’t be playing (i.e a pond of mud that got their entire coat dirty and smelling awful).
Benefit #20 – Getting Them To Eat Their Food Just Became Easier
You won’t have the least bit of difficult time trying to give your dog coconut oil or brush their teeth with it, as the majority of dogs out there go absolutely bonkers over some coconut oil after trying it for the first time and finding out how tasty it is to them.
Sometimes when you’re out of dog treats or want to spice things up a bit and introduce a new item to the toolkit of treats you give your pup, coconut oil is actually one of the best and tastiest treats you could ever give your dog – they’ll love you for it.
And, thanks to how awesome coconut oil tastes, you can use this to your advantage if your dog is giving you a bit of a hard time eating some of their food, as (for example) happens when you’re switching from one dog food formula to another after a fairly long time.
All you need to do is mix in some coconut oil with whatever food they’re giving you a hard time to eat, and watch how your dog will suddenly want do dig in deep.
However, it must be said that you want to first make sure that whatever dog food formula you’re giving them to eat isn’t of poor quality, which is a very common reason dogs sometimes refuse to eat their food.
In these cases, mixing in some coconut oil with your dog’s food will actually do more harm than good, so be careful!
Benefit #21 – Homemade Dog Treats
Speaking about dog treats, did you know that there are tons of incredible recipes out there you can use to bake some of the tastiest homemade dog treats for Fido with coconut oil?
There’s most certainly no shortage on this subject online, run a quick search about it and you’ll come across 100s of delicious dog treat recipes made with coconut oil right away.
Benefit #22 – Help With Taking Medicine
Does your dog give you a extra hard time when it comes to taking their medicinal dosages in the form of tablets on time?
Coating the medicinal tablet you want to give your dog with something they like (such as we suggest with peanut butter in this article) has been a popular practice among the community of dog owners for many years now, and that’s exactly something you can take advantage of with coconut oil, given the fact that most dogs absolutely love its taste.
However, and before you go ahead and make use of coconut oil in order to use it as a coat for your dog’s medicine, you have to make sure that any medicine you’re giving your dog along with it is fat-soluble (an example of this would be something like a vitamin D pill).
If you give your dog a medication that’s not fat-soluble along with coconut oil, their body won’t be able to properly benefit from the medication and that will be much like a medication dose missed.
Benefit #23 – Parasites, Begone!
Parasite infestation in dogs is a more common occurrence than we would like to see, as (for example) seen in dogs that suffer from different types of worms, such as roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and tapeworms.
Thanks to the medium chain fatty acids that make up a great portion of coconut oil, this means that coconut oil has a strong ability to fight off any parasitic infestations forming inside your dog’s system, as well as prevent them from forming in the future.
Another very common parasite infestation in dogs is Giardia, an intestinal infection that coconut oil is able to greatly help out in curing as well, much thanks to the heavy presence of medium chain fatty acids in coconut oil.
If your dog likes to play outside the house for significant amounts of time and/or you’re afraid they may make their way to unsanitary places at times, making use of coconut oil in such cases is an excellent choice as far as preventing these parasites from making their way into your dog’s system and multiplying is concerned.
Benefit #24 – Anti-Oxidant Rich
Did you know that coconut oil is packed with antioxidants that help prevent against cell-damage that leads to life-threatening illnesses?
Benefit #25 – Insulin Regulator
Coconut oil is an excellent ingredient to include in your dog’s diet especially if they suffer from diabetes, as coconut oil is notorious for its properties that help in regulating insulin levels in your dog’s body, which in turn also helps in keeping your dog’s blood sugar levels from getting too high or too low, both of which can be detrimental to their health and well-being.
Benefit #26 – Bone Strength
Regardless whether you’ve got a young and growing puppy at home, an adult dog that’s at their physical prime or a senior dog who has started suffering from bone mass loss a long time ago, coconut oil has properties that can greatly help your dog when it comes to keeping hold of their bone mass and bone strength.
Benefit #27 – Joint Problems
And, just like coconut oil can be great help for strengthening your dog’s bones and ensuring bone mass loss is minimized as much as possible, coconut oil is also great for your dog if they suffer from any sort of joint problems/arthritis and need help with improving their mobility capabilities, since coconut oil is packed with anti-inflammatory properties that help greatly reduce the excruciating pain and stiffness felt in these situations.
Benefit #28 – Cognitive Functions
It’s been scientifically proven through many studies that thanks to the fatty acids found in coconut oil, this ingredient has the potential to greatly improve cognitive functions and brain health in dogs, preventing related aging effects that come along the way (such as memory loss, coordination difficulties, etc ..).
Benefit #29 – Money Saver
As you may have noticed, even by just taking a look at only a few pointers on this list, giving your pet coconut oil or using it on their skin can save you tons of money down the road that would have been otherwise spent on veterinary bills and trips to solve potential problems that this special ingredient is very well able to prevent and heal on its own.
Coconut Oil Health Risks For Dogs
Even though coconut oil is most certainly the miracle ingredient its made out to be, both for us and our pets alike, this doesn’t mean that coconut oil is perfectly suitable for all dogs alike.
Listed below are some of the most important instances you should know about, where something as beneficial as coconut oil results in more harm than it does good.
Allergic Reactions: Just like some dogs out there may be allergic to food like peanuts, chicken, dairy, etc .. some dogs are also allergic to coconut oil.
Unfortunately, and if this is the case with your dog, then there’s not much you can do about it except having to accept the reality of not being able to supplement your dog with this ingredient nor topically apply it on their coat since they may lick the applied area and develop an allergic reaction as a result.
Diarrhea: One of the most common occurrences that dogs experience when their owners give them coconut oil for the first time is diarrhea.
Why so? Because most of the times, the person giving their dog coconut oil doesn’t bother to learn about the recommended doses to start off with and tends to go overboard with the given dose, which many times results in diarrhea and loose stools.
This is why you should always start out by giving your dog only small amounts of coconut oil at first in order to see how their system deals with it and whether or not they develop diarrhea.
Pancreatitis: If your dog is prone to developing pancreatitis, or already has developed this potentially deadly condition, then it’s best that you don’t give them coconut oil on your own.
Pancreatitis, a condition where the dog’s pancreas becomes inflamed, requires the utmost precaution (and most often limitation) when it comes to fat content in your dog’s day to day diet, something which isn’t exactly possible with coconut oil because of the very high amounts of dietary fat found in this ingredient.
In all cases, if your dog has pancreatitis then you should only be sticking to a veterinary prescribed diet, since room for error is minimal if you want your dog to remain healthy in life.
Weight Gain/Obesity: Many dog owners make the mistake of looking at having their dogs supplement with coconut oil as just that, supplementation.
And, when we think about supplementation, we don’t really think about calories that much, which is a big mistake when it comes to coconut oil.
Because this specific ingredient is fairly high in calories and fat content, it should only be fed to dogs within the framework of an overall diet.
Any coconut oil you suddenly incorporate into your dog’s diet should replace, calorie wise, a similar source of dietary fat your dog was eating before you decided to start giving them coconut oil.
The last thing you want to do is continue to feed your dog the same amount of dietary fat they’re getting in their diet on a day to day basis in addition to the daily doses of coconut oil you’ve decided to newly incorporate into their diets, as that just means a rapid increase in calories consumed every day and rapid weight gain that’s just bound to happen.
High Cholesterol: Even though such recorded cases are very few, it’s still possible that the consumption of coconut oil by dogs leads to a significant increase in cholesterol levels over time.
As long as you stick to proper doses of coconut oil you give your dog to consume, though, there’s a very slim chance that this will happen to your pooch.
A plethora of studies have indicated that coconut oil greatly improves the good cholesterol levels (HDL) in humans, something which could also very well happen in dogs given coconut oil in adequate dosages in their diets.
What Kind Of Coconut Oil Should I Give My Dog?
When it comes to giving your dog this “miracle ingredient”, you should know beforehand that not all coconut oil available for purchase on the market is created equal.
Some types of coconut oil are ideal for your pooch, while other types actually do more harm to their bodies than good.
So, which type of coconut oil should you look for if this is the case?
Ideally, the best type of coconut oil you could ever feed your dog or topically apply on their coat/skin is virgin coconut oil, as this is the purest, most natural and unrefined form of coconut oil you’ll ever come across on the market, meaning that it’s the type of coconut oil that’ll give your dog the most benefits upon use/consumption.
If you can get your hands on virgin coconut oil that comes in glass instead of a plastic bottle, that will also be much better, whether you’re planning on using the coconut oil for yourself, any family members or your pet(s).
As long as the bottle of coconut oil you’re considering buying is pure and unrefined coconut oil, you can rest assured that it’s going to make a good addition to your dog’s diet and day to day life when applied on their skin.
Refined coconut oil, however, is the type of coconut oil you’ll want to keep as far away from your pets as possible, as this kind of coconut oil is many times packed with chemicals and is of much lower quality than virgin coconut oil.
Coconut Oil Dosages For Dogs
So, now that you’ve read all you need to know about the benefits of giving your dog coconut oil (whether orally or topically), as well as the health risks that some dogs may face when given coconut oil, let’s get to the nitty-gritty that covers all you need to know about the recommended amounts of coconut oil you should be giving your dog on a routine basis.
First off, you can give your dog coconut oil 1-2 times per day with whatever food they’re having, or by itself if your dog prefers it that way as something like a treat.
As for the amount of coconut oil you can give to your dog on a daily basis, we’re going to have to do a little bit of math on this one, since this can greatly differ from one dog to another based on difference in size and weight.
First Time Ever Giving Dog Coconut Oil
If this is the first time you ever give your dog coconut oil and you haven’t tried doing so before, make sure to test the waters first with the least amount possible in order to monitor for any negative reactions your dog’s system might exhibit.
For all you know, your dog may very well be allergic to coconut oil, so you wouldn’t want to test the waters for the first time with a large amount of coconut oil since that will just spell big time trouble.
A general dose you’ll want to stick to if this is the first time ever giving your dog any coconut oil is not more than 1/4 (a quarter) tablespoon of coconut oil a day, and gradually work your way up from there for the next 30 days, as long as no negative reactions have made themselves apparent yet.
Giving your dog a larger dose than that when just starting out will put them at risk of developing problems such as diarrhea and stool with very unusual texture.
While neither case are necessarily fatal, they’re both very messy occurrences that you definitely want to avoid.
Not The First Time Ever Giving Your Dog Coconut Oil
If you’ve already given coconut oil to your dog before and know for a fact that their body can handle it perfectly fine without any negative repercussions, then you can work your way up from there in terms of doses.
Keep in mind that small sized dogs and young puppies shouldn’t be given more than 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil a day, while the range can increase all the way up to giving your dog 1 tablespoon of coconut oil per day if they’re a large sized dog.
Coconut Oil For Dogs Dosage By Weight
Another recommended dose of coconut oil for dogs that veterinarians recommend is 1 teaspoon of coconut oil per day for every 10 pounds (4.5 kgs) your dog weighs.
If you’re just starting out, start with the recommended dosage mentioned at the beginning of this section instead of going with this one since you’ll want to make sure your dog’s system is prepared to handle certain amounts of coconut oil first.
Exceeding these recommended doses will backfire and any potential health benefits your dog will get from coconut oil will be overturned by negative consequences, most common of which is rapid weight gain in a small period of time.
Even if you stick to the recommended doses of coconut oil for dogs we mentioned here or those that are mentioned on other resources out there on the subject, always keep an eye on your dog over a certain period of time to see if they’re gaining weight, in which case you’ll either need to up their exercise levels throughout the day or decrease their caloric intake.
How Can I Give My Dog Coconut Oil?
So, what exactly is the best way to incorporate coconut oil into your dog’s diet?
Your head may already be spinning with a million and one ways you could go about giving your dog coconut oil to consume, but are all these methods equally effective?
The most popular method among dog owners when it comes to feeding dogs coconut oil, and the most effective of them, is mixing two equal parts of their daily dosage with two of the meals they’re having for the day.
Not only will the coconut oil greatly enhance the taste of their dog food, the ability of your dog’s system to properly digest the food and extract minerals & vitamins will also be greatly enhanced this way.
While you technically can offer your dog their daily dosage of coconut oil via a teaspoon or tablespoon by itself, this method isn’t nearly as popular or effective as mixing some with a meal they’re having is.
Your Thoughts & Experiences
Now that you’ve gone through (what we hope is) the best guide out there on the subject of coconut oil for dogs, what are your thoughts and experiences with this issue?
Have you ever thought about having your dog supplement with coconut oil? Or have you ever had them supplement with coconut oil? If so, in what form? Orally or topically? And what were your results/findings?
We’d love to hear your input on the subject in the comments section below, so make yourselves heard, peeps! 🙂