How Apple Cider Vinegar Can Help Your Dog

Apple cider vinegar has numerous household uses as a self-care product, a kitchen staple, and a wellness aid. Its long been used as a natural, at-home remedy fortreating wounds, losing weight and improving heart health.

The beauty of apple cider vinegar is it can also benefit your dog. In 2014 we published ablogon how apple cider vinegar can be used for feline holistic healing, and it continues to be one of the most read pages on our site almost four years later. This time, we’re focusing on how apple cider vinegar can help your dog.

Dogs can benefit from apple cider vinegar in many ways. Apple cider vinegar can help a dog with itchy skin,flea and ticks, and with joint pain.

Itchy skin

If your dog suffers from itchy skin, raw and organic apple cider vinegar could do the trick for easing his discomfort. As a powerfulantiseptic, antifungal and antibacterial agent, apple cider vinegar can help alleviate symptomsof eczema and other skin conditions.

To use apple cider vinegar to help treat your dog’s itchy skin, fill a spray bottle with a solution that’s equal parts water and vinegar. You can apply the solution directly by spraying it onto patches of your dog’s itchy skin. Plus, misting this solution onto your dog’s fur helps promote ahealthy, shiny coat.

However, do not spray apple cider vinegar on your dog if they have any open wounds from a bite or scratch--vinegar may sting and irritate any broken skin that is not yet fully healed.

Flea and Tick Repellent

Not only can apple cider vinegar help soothe your dog’s itchy skin if they’ve been bitten by a flea or tick, but it can help prevent bites altogether. The acidity present in apple cider vinegar helpsnaturally repel biting insects.

You can use the same 50/50 solution we previously mentioned to help fend off ticks and fleas from Fido. To apply the vinegar and water solution, simply spray it onto your dog topically before letting them outside to play.

Easing joint pain

Apple cider vinegar can also be used to lessen joint pain from illnesses like arthritis. You can use a warm compress soaked in apple cider vinegar and hold it to your dog’s joints tohelp alleviate pain. For older dogs, apple cider vinegar ingested directly can helpbreak down calcium depositsthat form around joints.

If you add apple cider vinegar to your dog’s food or water, we recommend using about 1 teaspoon per 50 pounds of your dog’s body weight twice per week. However, if you add the vinegar to your dog’s water, be sure to have plain water available as well. The taste of vinegar can sometimes cause dogs to drink less water, so you’ll want to have plain water available to avoid dehydration.

Apple cider vinegar is a great item to keep in your pantry to help bolster your own health as well as your pet’s and can be a valuable addition to your pet’s health regimen.

Please note, if your dog is showing signs of illness, it is important to take them to your veterinarian to make sure you get an accurate diagnosis and course of treatment. Once you know the medical status of your dog, you can decide whether to use an holistic or pharmaceutical treatment.