As pet owners many of us are wanting the best for our pets yet, with all the conflicting information on the Internet, a person can become confused with so much information. The key is to base your decisions on information from credible sources and those that openly back up the statements made, then use your own fine common sense based on what you’ve learned. This will be an introduction to the differences between giving our dog fish oils or cod liver oil. Links to credible sources will be provided so you can learn more.
If You Feed Your Dog Commercial Dog Food
For those of you feeding a commercial dog food that meets AAFCO requirements those products contain vitamin D. For that reason, feeding cod liver oil (or cod liver oil products) is risky and really not advised. Cod liver oil increases the dog’s calcium uptake and therefore there is a definite possibility of causing bone and joint problems. This is particularly harmful to growing pups. So it is strongly advised not to feed cod liver oil to pups or dogs being fed commercial pet foods. (The exception is if the dog has a specific health condition and requires it on a temporary basis but your veterinarian or qualified holistic practitioner would subscribe this if that was the case.)
vitamin E plus salmon oil capsules
Fish Body Oil
Fish body oil (such as salmon oil) contains the essential omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) and does not include vitamins A or D. Omega-3 fatty acids are extremely healthy — essential — and are seldom found in the diet. For that reason, feeding fish body oil (salmon oil, for example) is recommended whether you feed commercial foods or real foods.
Cod Liver Oil
Cod liver oil (CLO) contains vitamins A and D. Some brands of cod liver oil also include the omega-3 fatty acids, BUT by supplementing as much of those combination brands as suggested it means you would be giving excessive amounts of vitamins A and D. For that reason if you’re giving the oil for the dog to benefit from the essential oils, feeding fish body oil (salmon oil) is definitely the safer choice.
Vitamins A and D (in CLO) are fat soluble and can be overdosed. Only if your dog has specific health issues (liver or kidney disease for instance) do you need to be concerned about adding vitamin A (under the direct supervision of a veterinarian or qualified holistic practitioner). As mentioned above, excess amounts of vitamin D can cause bone problems and other health issues. For that reason vitamin D should only be used under direct supervision of a veterinarian and for a specific health issue. Since CLO contains vitamins A & D it is very easy to give toxic dosages of vitamin D. Visit the Pet Education page to learn more.
I also highly recommend this article by Hans R. Larsen, Msc, ChE about Essential Oils. This scientist is one of many credible sources who also backs up the next bit of information I’m going to share.
Vitamin E (natural source, not synthetic)
Be sure to include natural source vitamin E (d-alpha-tocopherol Not dl-alpha-tocopherol) whenever you supplement with oils. The reason for including vitamin E is that oils deplete the supplies of vitamin E in the body unless they’re replenished. Due to the antioxidant nature of vitamin E and the tendency of fats (oils) to oxidize, it could be compared to the oils ‘using up’ the natural supply of vitamin E in the body. For that reason, the vitamin E needs to be replenished when giving oils — a simple thing to do.
“Fish oil supplementation does, however, lower blood concentrations of vitamin E so it is a good idea to take extra vitamin E when adding fish oils to your diet.” ~ H.R. Larsen, Msc, ChE.
There is really a lot more that can be said about fish oils and cod liver oil. To keep this somewhat brief, I do encourage you to follow the provided links to learn more about the science behind these important points.
Essential oils (fish body oil) are vital to many aspects of a dog’s wellness. In future posts, I’ll cover information that demonstrates how beneficial fish body oils are for dogs (humans too, by the way).
Note About Plant Based Oils
Dogs do not efficiently convert the fatty acids in plant oils (flax oil for example) into the form most readily utilized by the animal’s system. For this reason, animal sourced oils such as the fish body oils are more efficient and give you more bang for your health food dollar.
Additional Suggested Reading written by credible sources:
- The Different Forms of Vitamin E by Dr. George Obikoya
- Fats and Fatty Acids by Lew Olson, PhD Natural Health
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Hey Diane, thanks for your explanation about oils and vit E. I have learned so much from you in the past few weeks, glad you are still adding more new articles!
We started our dogs on a raw diet a little over a month ago. They get a combination of ground meats (with bone), puréed veggies & fruit, fish oil, and Vitamin E (in capsules that look exactly the same as the ones in your picture!!) And 1/4 tsp salt once a week.
Their fur has gotten softer and silkier, there’s less poop, and most important of all, they LOVE their new diet!! Our Husky has always been a picky eater, but even she gobbles everything down and licks her bowl clean at every meal
Then our Lab licks her bowl too, just in case some more food magically appears if she licks it enough 
We’re still learning about the raw diet, and it looks like your blog is going to be a good source of information for us
Kelly
[...] a lot of itchiness, rather than buy some ineffective and expensive supplement, try giving your dog real salmon oil capsules (about 5 times/week). That at least is a real food devoid of heat or chemical processing and [...]