ProDerma Powder Supplement

[Jack Monzon]

My vet gave me a tub of this powder supplement recently, for my dog's skin and coat, and to treat his itchiness. He says he uses a scoop of it on his dogs' food each meal and likes the results. I haven't started using it yet and was wondering if anyone had any experience with it or opinions on the ingredients. Here's some info on the side of the tub:

Product Description: ProDerma Optimum Skin & Coat is a highly concentrated nutritional supplement scientifically formulated to provide a balanced, palatable blend of specific nutrients known to be helpful in producing healthy skin and luxurious hair coats in dogs. ProDerma's unique protein and fatty acid blend help to eliminate inflammation, calm itching and chewing, while providing the high quality protein needed to repair and rebuild strong, healthy skin and hair.

Ingredients: ProDerma Proprietary Skin & Coat Blend: Spray-dried lecithin, wheat germ, spray-dried bacon fat, beef protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, spray-dried vegetable oil, calcium caseinate, beef liver, spray dried fish oil, milk protein isolate, beef plasma, egg yolk, chicken liver, choline bitartrate, pacific kelp, taurine, spray-dried sunflower oil, spray-dried evening primrose oil, powdered yucca, DL-Methionine, spray-dried black current seed oil, inositol, L-Tryptophan, L-Phenylalanine, & Biotin. Additional Nutrients: Calcium carbonate, magnesium amino acid chelate, bioflavonoid complex, potassium citrate, ascorbic acid, zinc methionate complex, iron amino acid chelate, dicalcium phosphate, copper lysine complex, manganese glycine complex, DL-Alpha tocopheryl acetate, d-calcium antothenate, niacinamide, vitamin A palmitate, riboflavin supplement, thiamine mononitrate, chromium amino acid chelate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, potassium iodide, sodium selenite, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement

[RawFedDogs]

I think you would get the same results if you just gave fish body oil or salmon oil to your dog and it would be much cheaper. This sounds like something the vet would sell to make money.

[magicre]

My vet gave me a tub of this powder supplement recently, for my dog's skin and coat, and to treat his itchiness. He says he uses a scoop of it on his dogs' food each meal and likes the results. I haven't started using it yet and was wondering if anyone had any experience with it or opinions on the ingredients. Here's some info on the side of the tub:

Product Description: ProDerma Optimum Skin & Coat is a highly concentrated nutritional supplement scientifically formulated to provide a balanced, palatable blend of specific nutrients known to be helpful in producing healthy skin and luxurious hair coats in dogs. ProDerma's unique protein and fatty acid blend help to eliminate inflammation, calm itching and chewing, while providing the high quality protein needed to repair and rebuild strong, healthy skin and hair.

Ingredients: ProDerma Proprietary Skin & Coat Blend: Spray-dried lecithin, wheat germ, spray-dried bacon fat, beef protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, spray-dried vegetable oil, calcium caseinate, beef liver, spray dried fish oil, milk protein isolate, beef plasma, egg yolk, chicken liver, choline bitartrate, pacific kelp, taurine, spray-dried sunflower oil, spray-dried evening primrose oil, powdered yucca, DL-Methionine, spray-dried black current seed oil, inositol, L-Tryptophan, L-Phenylalanine, & Biotin. Additional Nutrients: Calcium carbonate, magnesium amino acid chelate, bioflavonoid complex, potassium citrate, ascorbic acid, zinc methionate complex, iron amino acid chelate, dicalcium phosphate, copper lysine complex, manganese glycine complex, DL-Alpha tocopheryl acetate, d-calcium antothenate, niacinamide, vitamin A palmitate, riboflavin supplement, thiamine mononitrate, chromium amino acid chelate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, potassium iodide, sodium selenite, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement

the bacon fat, the milk protein isolate, the l-phenylalanine alone would be enough to make me not use this product....oh, and wheat germ....and whey.....and vegetable oil, which is usually soy....

Inositol is a carbohydrate, though not a classical sugar. It is almost tasteless, with a small amount of sweetness.

i can see some ingredients in here that may or may not help with coats....

but i agree with RFD in giving salmon caps...and maybe some canned salmon or sardines or mackerel.....

even a raw egg or cooked egg....would probably help...

what are you feeding your dog now? are there ingredients that you feed that may be contributing to itchiness?

instead of bacon fat, which is way too rich in nitrites, perhaps a teaspoon of chicken fat or beef fat....

or real chicken livers...as an additive...

[Jack Monzon]

the bacon fat, the milk protein isolate, the l-phenylalanine alone would be enough to make me not use this product....oh, and wheat germ....and whey.....and vegetable oil, which is usually soy....

Thanks. Just curious: What exactly about these ingredients turns you off? Are they just crappy things to give to a dog? Do dogs commonly have allergies to these? I'm holding off on giving it to my dog until I see if his new food correct his itchiness issues, because I'd like to be sure that he's not having a reaction to anything in this supplement.

As for food, I'm switching him to California Natural from Nature's Variety Prairie, which he was eating for about 6 weeks. Today is the last day of the transition; I'm hoping he does better on CN. People on other threads have said NV didn't work for them either, and that their dogs had similar itchiness issues. I doubt eagerness to eat has anything to do with anything, but my puppy is MUCH more interested in eating the CN than he ever was eating NV.

[magicre]

bacon fat - has nitrites in it....there is a relationship between nitrites and cancer.

there are better fats, i believe.

inositol - as i stated, is a carb, although not a classical sugar, it can affect teeth health, because it is used as a sweetener.

l-phenylalanine - is converted into L-tyrosine, which is a DNA encoded amino acid. the L-tyrosine is then converted to l-DOPA. in reading about this, i don't see the why of it....and until i see the why of this.....the sources of this amino acid are found in most foods that contain protein, so i don't see the need.

wheat germ....i'm not much of a grain person myself...nor do my dogs eat grains....wheat germ, i believe, tagged along during the health craze this country went through and i simply have never seen the benefits...plus, wheat is a grain that is number one on the list for allergies in both humans and animals....

soy is another one of those controversial products....whilst fermented soy is an excellent source, american soy is not....we began to grow soy because it was cheap....there are connections between soy and female functions, male functions...it's becoming one of those ingredients that, well, until the jury comes in, i stay away..

when i fed kibble, it was always no soy, wheat or corn.....

in looking at the formula....i see other ingredients that i would not feed my dog or myself......

i honestly think if your dog is itching, adding oil or a healthy animal or fish fat to the mix is a good idea.....

and see if grain free kibble is something you'd be interested in....

or a limited ingredient....i think wellness has limited ingredient kibble....

[whiteleo]

Depending on where you live, as to how dry it is and it looks like you have a dog that may like the water? If your dog has been in the water a lot and your not rinsing him off after, this could be a problem if their are any issues with icks in the water source. CN is a better kibble in my book than NV, and hopefully will help but I'd look at adding in a salmon oil cap as ALL dogs benefit from this.

[magicre]

Depending on where you live, as to how dry it is and it looks like you have a dog that may like the water? If your dog has been in the water a lot and your not rinsing him off after, this could be a problem if their are any issues with icks in the water source. CN is a better kibble in my book than NV, and hopefully will help but I'd look at adding in a salmon oil cap as ALL dogs benefit from this.

oh, that's a good one....lakes and rivers and swimming pools....can dry skin out....

[Jack Monzon]

Thanks for the breakdown, Mag -- that's what I was looking for.

No swimming yet, but it's good to know for the future.

I tried NV Instinct first, which is grain-free, and he was a complete mess -- diarrhea, etc. Much worse bowl movements than on the Prairie. Of course, it might not have been the absence of grains that caused it, but others have said that they've had GI issues with grain-free, so it's possible. I chose CN because I thought it was a safe pick with a different meat source (lamb) than I'd been using (chicken and salmon), and it has few ingredients. It also helps that the local pet store carries it! I'm hoping after 6 weeks or so on CN, I'll be able to see whether there are improvements.

Leo: I'm not opposed to using salmon-oil caps at all, but should I hold off, to see if the cause of his problems are dietary?

[magicre]

i know you addressed this to whiteleo, but i wouldn't add anything until you find the cause.

if anything, i'd do an elimination diet to see if it is the food causing him to itch....

something else that's in the food you talked about is whey isolate...which is used in protein shakes for body builders or whomever....and whey is dairy.....many people and dogs don't do well with dairy....

i know there are kibbles that are limited ingredient kibbles...maybe a good idea to check them out?

that way, you're not sorting through 20-50 ingredients to figure out if your dog is allergic to blueberries, which is added as an anti oxidant....(just an example)

personally, i would probably put my dog on a very bland diet...maybe hamburger and brown rice or quinoa.....which are low glycemic grains....and yes, whilst i am not pro grain, even dogs need something to bind their stools....

but two ingredients at a time.....just for your own purposes....you might find that home cooking is the way to go with your guy....it doesn't take long to make a month's worth of food and then you would supplement....and your dog would get all that he needs...there are lots of good recipes that don't involve grains or veggies.....but are cooked, so that your dog can utilise the goodies..without going through the uber processing....it's another road to think about...i know...

[Mtndewman]

It also contains "beef plasma".
That is a by-product of the meat packing industry and is manufactured from blood that is collected from slaughterhouses. It's blood to entice the animal to eat.
Why would anybody want to feed their animal blood?