Benefits of Spirulina in Dogs

Spirulina is a single-celled organism from the species Arthrospira platensis and Arthrospira maxima, a type of blue-green algae with incredible nutritional and medicinal qualities for both humans and animals.

We'll explain what spirulina is and what benefits it can have for our fur babies, what its medicinal and nutritional properties are when used in appropriate doses, and when it's recommended.

What Is Spirulina?

This is a natural, spiral-shaped algae (hence its name), blue-green in color. It's grown in both fresh and salt water, with optimal growth in alkaline water receiving plenty of daily sunlight.

The algae itself isn't sold fresh — it's dehydrated and sold or bought by weight once dehydrated. Normally we can find it in powder or tablet form, since these are the most common formats.

Spirulina is a highly beneficial algae for health due to its nutritional and medicinal properties, backed up by numerous scientific studies worldwide.

Nutritional Benefits of Spirulina

The benefits spirulina can offer our dogs are so many we should split them into two categories, nutritional benefits and medicinal benefits. The nutritional benefits are simply fascinating, since it's practically a perfect nutritional supplement.

Once dehydrated, spirulina algae is made up of around seventy percent high-quality protein, along with the corresponding amino acids so it's usable by the body.

The remaining thirty percent is made up of carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals such as vitamin B12, A, D, iron, zinc, or magnesium, among many others. Beneficial fatty acids like Omega 3 and Omega 6, chlorophyll, natural antioxidants, carbohydrates, and lipids.

So nutritionally, it's not comparable to any other nutritional supplement, since it's practically perfect. And as if that weren't enough, it also has numerous medicinal qualities.

How Does It Benefit Dogs?

Chlorophyll is a powerful natural cleanser for the body, and spirulina algae contains the appropriate doses for consumption. That said, spirulina helps the body detox naturally.

Spirulina is a perfect ally for the dog's defenses, its immune system. It stimulates its defenses and gives it energy, making our dog much more resistant to external diseases.

This works great for fighting allergies, especially seasonal or undefined ones, which usually have no treatment. It also helps improve digestion and repair the dog's digestive system.

As if all this weren't enough, spirulina algae has been shown to help prevent some types of cancer and also improve pigmentation of a dog's coat. Some people think spirulina is used to make dogs lose or gain weight, but it's simply a nutritional supplement with medicinal properties.

All these effects of spirulina are clearly noticeable after just a few weeks of use — spirulina has no known side effects and is recommended by highly respected nutritionists.

What Dose of Spirulina Algae Should I Use With My Dog?

We shouldn't make the mistake of thinking the more algae we give our dog, the greater the benefit. As with all foods, the right dose is beneficial, but the wrong dose can be harmful.

Depending on our dog's size, the spirulina dose will be higher or lower, with these being the most recommended amounts:

• Small dogs, 10 kg: half a small teaspoon.
• Medium dogs, 25 kg: one teaspoon.
• Large dogs, 40 kg: one and a half teaspoons.

These are the appropriate daily doses if we use natural spirulina in powder form, once dehydrated. If you have a scale, it's best to use between one and one and a half grams of spirulina algae per every ten kilos of the dog's body weight.

It's best to mix the daily spirulina dose with the dog's food so it eats it naturally, since being a powder it can cause a bit of dryness. We can also use it in a small cheese cube or dog cookie, to disguise the powder.