BC Crazy Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 (edited) Hi everyone, Was just wondering if it is safe to use human kelp capsules for my Border Collie. And if so how many caps/grams daily. Have heard you can over dose them & it can be dangerous???? So thought I'd better ask just in case. Thanks in advance for you help :) Edited January 17, 2014 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piper Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 No idea on capsule. I used to add kelp powder to their veggie mix once a week and it was only ever like half a teaspoon or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 Thanks piper. I wasn't sure. I'l buy some kelp powder then. It's for Sonny,his coat throws a lot of copper/ reddish tones for some reason & I am wondering if this may help his coat. He does swim lots but I always rinse both of my guys off daily. Hopefully this may help :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piper Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 I stopped as I found it made no difference at all for my guys. I know others who say it works though. If it is the ends that are red they are possibly sun bleached or old dead ends. I think it is in that situation that the kelp won't do much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 Oh bugger LOL. It is mainly on his pants/tail. He does have some through his shoulder area too. I have got rid of a lot of his dead coat but the reddish /rusty tones reappear unfortunately. I guess it must be due to the elements. I would just love his coat to be nice & black is all. I do give him all the vit. Omega 3,6 &9 which does seem to help a little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piper Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 Give it a go, I just think it depends on why the coat is like that. A friend had a border collie years ago that had 1 section on his back that would go really red as soon as the weather started to warm up. She used a leave in conditioned/suncreen spray on it and it did make a difference. It was a human 1 but I can't remember what it was called. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted January 18, 2014 Author Share Posted January 18, 2014 Sonny has the exact same thing on his back as well during the summer months. It happens every year too, right on top of his rump. & it's about 3 inches in diameter. I use a sunscreen on both of mine but it doesn't seem to help with this red issue unfortunately. Stella's coat is good compared to my boy. His brother & sisters are show dogs & have beautiful coats. I mean Mig has won best coated numerous times. A lady that shows BC's said when she saw Sonny that he looks like he may have a food intolerance because his coat isn't right His diet is good. I am very careful what I feed them. Strange really... I'm hoping to find the cause though. I can't do much more than I'm doing. It may just be him but I can't help but think he may be lacking in something in his diet. I had his thyroid checked & that all came back perfect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 Oh bugger LOL. It is mainly on his pants/tail. He does have some through his shoulder area too. I have got rid of a lot of his dead coat but the reddish /rusty tones reappear unfortunately. I guess it must be due to the elements. I would just love his coat to be nice & black is all. I do give him all the vit. Omega 3,6 &9 which does seem to help a little. Doesn't kelp bring out the red tones? I was told to avoid it for my black boy who has red/brown patches as it would highlight them more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted January 18, 2014 Author Share Posted January 18, 2014 Oh minimax really ? I read that Livermol can do that & Kelp was suppose to help keep the coat dark because of the iodine content. Now I'm really confused Believe me it doesn't take much :laugh: Hopefully some of the folks on here knowledgeable about this can shed some light on it & set me straight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 Oh minimax really ? I read that Livermol can do that & Kelp was suppose to help keep the coat dark because of the iodine content. Now I'm really confused Believe me it doesn't take much :laugh: Hopefully some of the folks on here knowledgeable about this can shed some light on it & set me straight. Haha it's ok, I could be completely backwards which wouldn't be unusual :D But I was told not to feed my boy kelp, although it could have been for another reason and I just assumed it was his coat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trifecta Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 I don't know that iodine would influence coat colour per se, it is a mineral that is needed for general well being....... growth, reproduction, & of course a constituent of thyroxine needed for thyroid function & control of metabolism. True, hypothyroid dogs are usually sparsely coated with little undercoat & dilute in colour so I wonder if this where the belief of adding kelp to a dog's diet will stop the coat from turning copper? Importantly, over supplementation of kelp can cause the thyroid gland to overproduce T3 & T4 hormones causing hyperthyroidism. Interestingly, over supplementation over a longer term can also be a factor in hypothyroidism; if hormones are overproduced it can cause an immune response where the immune system may start to attack its own thyroid gland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 I agree with Trifecta. Supplementing a dog who is already diagnosed with hypothyroidism can help towards reducing the amount of thyroid medication the dog would otherwise need (although this needs to be carefully monitored to ensure correct levels) but conversely, over-supplementing an otherwise 'normal' dog can induce hypothyroidism. So whilst kelp can be a really beneficial supplement, you do need to be careful not to over-do it. Have you considered that there may be an underlying cause for the loss of coat colour your dog is exhibiting? Maybe it is unbleached, or perhaps it could be symptomatic of hypothyroidism in itself? Just a thought. If this was the case or if you believed it could be possible, you'd need to confirm via bloods and for that I would highly recommend that you do so via Dr Jean Dodds in the USA, rather than running the test and analysis via Aussie laboratories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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