Pudel air-dried beef liver for dogs on linen

Which nutrients are involved in a dog's coat?

Nothing you can buy in a bag makes a coat shine. What a coat is made of comes entirely from what the dog eats, and the nutrients involved in normal skin and coat are a short, well-known list: protein, fats, vitamin A, the B vitamins and zinc (NRC, 2006). A complete diet covers all of them; a meat treat is a natural source of several. But a coat that has changed for the worse has many causes, most not about food, and the first step is a vet, not a new bag of treats.

Which nutrients are involved in normal skin and coat?

Hair is mostly keratin, a protein. Certain fatty acids are part of normal skin structure. Vitamin A is involved in normal renewal of skin cells, B vitamins in cell metabolism, and zinc is part of enzymes involved in cell division (NRC, 2006).

"Involved in" means the nutrient has a job there, not that more of it makes the job go better. A complete dog food already meets the minimum for each. Treats are the little extra: under about 10% of the day's food.

Where do those nutrients come from?

The complete diet, mostly. On the treat side, raw beef liver carries around 5,000 µg RAE of vitamin A and around 60 µg of B12 per 100 g, and about as much zinc as lean muscle (USDA FoodData Central). So plain beef liver is a natural source of vitamin A, B12, zinc and iron; the jerky in the beef range is the everyday reward. Will liver make the coat shiny? We can't say that.

Liver is very rich in vitamin A, so a little goes a long way — a few small pieces a day for a medium dog, with all treats under about 10% of daily food.

My dog's coat is dull or thinning. Is it the food?

Possibly, but it's well down the list. A dull, flaky or patchy coat can come from parasites, allergies, hormonal conditions, skin infections, age or the season. They look alike from across the room and are told apart by a vet, not by a treat. Beef is also a commonly reported food allergen in dogs (Mueller, Olivry and Prélaud, 2016), so on an elimination diet, ask before adding anything, ours included.

Every dog is different. For an ongoing issue, your vet is the first call — this is general information, not veterinary advice.

Keep reading: Beef liver dog treats: what's in them and how much to feed · Organ meat vs muscle meat for dogs: what's the difference?

Sources

  • National Research Council (2006). Nutrient Requirements of Dogs and Cats. National Academies Press. nap.nationalacademies.org
  • USDA FoodData Central. fdc.nal.usda.gov
  • Mueller RS, Olivry T, Prélaud P (2016). Critically appraised topic on adverse food reactions of companion animals (2): common food allergen sources in dogs and cats. BMC Veterinary Research 12:9. doi.org

Pudel · Reviewed September 2026 · Single-protein, naturally dried dog treats, made in Australia. General information, not veterinary advice.

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