The Many Health Benefits of Turmeric for Dogs

For over 4,000 years Ayurveda healing has been a part of Indian culture. Turmeric is perhaps the most well-known spice that’s been recently dubbed as the "cure-all" herbal treatment for dogs.  

In this article we’ll briefly cover:

• Is Turmeric Safe for Dogs?
• The Benefits of Turmeric
• Doggy Side Effects of Turmeric
• How to Give Your Dog Turmeric
• Turmeric Dosage for Dogs

Is Turmeric Safe for Dogs?

So, the big question! Can my precious pooch have turmeric? Absolutely!

Turmeric is indeed a healthy and safe space you can add to your pups' food! It's become such a favourite spice due to its active compound is known as curcumin. (1)

The Benefits of Turmeric

Many studies show the potential benefits turmeric can have for your dog! Listed below are just a few advantages of turmeric.

Turmeric: The Anti-cancer treatment

Believe it or not, in both human and animal trial studies regular consumption of turmeric has been shown to kill cancer cells. In fact! It will even slow down and prevent cancer cells from growing!

Turmeric: A natural anti-inflammatory

The main active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin. Curcumin is considered to be a natural anti-inflammatory and painkiller; this is because curcumin regulates two key enzymes (cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase) that play a role in the inflammatory response.

Turmeric: Antiviral, Antibacterial, and Antifungal

Various studies have demonstrated that turmeric can have anti-viral, antibacterial and antifungal properties. In fact, some studies showed that turmeric was able to eliminate bacteria and fungal infection within hours of consumption.

Now, if you've got a pooch with a severe bacterial infection, it's highly recommended that owners continue with the prescribed antibiotic treatment. This is just because turmeric may not be a strong enough antibiotic that can eliminate infections.

Untold Benefits?

So, though there is no substantial concrete evidence. There's been much research that shows that turmeric can indeed regulate blood glucose levels and reduce arthritic pain. However, most of these studies have been done on humans. Nevertheless, there is a potential for turmeric to benefit your arthritic dog.

Doggy Side Effects of Turmeric

There's no such thing as the perfect medicine. So, unfortunately even something as beautiful as turmeric can have its doggy side effects.

Because turmeric is a natural binding agent, once consumed it can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and constipation. Secondly, turmeric can react negatively with other drugs. This means that if your dog is on any medication, you should always consult your vet before you administer turmeric. Thirdly, turmeric is not suited to dogs that tend to overheat. This is because turmeric is considered a hot spice and so it has the potential of increasing your dog's body temperature.

How to Give Your Dog Turmeric

Now, that you’re well equipped with the many benefits and possible disadvantages of turmeric. Let’s discuss the many ways you can incorporate it into your dog's diet. 

Method 1

An old classic way is to merely create a paste. You can create this golden paste by adding ½ cup of turmeric, 1 ½ to 2 teaspoons of black peppercorns, ¼ cup of cold-pressed coconut oil and 1 ½ cup of water. Voila! There you have it, your very own cure-all paste that can easily be stored in the fridge.

Method 2

If you're a dog owner who prefers to make their pets food at home, then that's no problem. You can just add a few teaspoons of turmeric directly into your doggie's food!

Why Do We Add Coconut Oil and Peppercorn?

The active ingredient, curcumin may not absorb well. So, if we want to make sure that each dose of turmeric is completely absorbed, then we need to add two key things: Coconut Oil and Pepper. This is because both these products will increase the rate of absorption.

Turmeric Dosage for Dogs

For those small little dogs, less than 20 lbs trying to give approximately ¼ teaspoon per day.

For a medium-sized pooch over 20 lbs, you can give ½ teaspoon per day.

For a large dog, over 50 lbs you can give ¾ teaspoon per day

For a giant breed dog above 100 pounds, you can provide one teaspoon per day.

Turmeric is genuinely a cure-all spice; whether you decide to use it as a supplement for your dog or as a treatment, your dog will surely benefit in the long run. (2)

Got any questions about turmeric for your pooch? Still not sure how much you should add? Leave us a comment below.

Author Bio: Hamza Shahzad is a freelance writer, experienced blogger. Currently, He’s working with certapet.com. Furthermore, Hamza assists in the business creation and control of social media content planning.