How to Tell if a Supplement Is Actually Doing Its Job

If you’ve ever picked up a supplement for your floof and wondered, “Is this even working?”, you’re not alone. We get that question all the time. We live in a world of instant gratification and have become used to how quickly medication works, sometimes within hours or overnight, but nature doesn't work that way.

So let’s talk about how to tell if what you’re using is actually doing its job and why results might take a little time. So many customers tell us their furry family is getting either Cytopoint or Apoquel, these two drugs are often given as an injection for itchiness or allergies. If your furry guy has ever received these injections or taken them as pills, you may have also noticed, once the drug wears off, the itchiness and allergy symptoms return. That's because these drugs are simply designed to mask the symptoms, not fix the problem. If we don't address root cause, we're basically "putting a bandaid on diabetes", but we're not fixing the problem. When we incorporate natural supplements into the diet, we start to provide the body with what it needs to heal.

💣 The Harsh Truth: You Can’t Supplement Away a Bad Diet

Before we talk timelines, we need to talk diet: supplements are meant to support healing, not battle a bad bowl. You've likely heard us talk about diet being the foundation to overall wellness. If our foundation has cracks, we won't be able to build a solid house. Our pets diet is their foundation, the house is their health. 

If a pet is eating low-quality food filled with starches, synthetic additives, or inflammatory oils, no supplement in the world will give you long-term results. You'll see small improvements at best, but they’ll fade fast. A supplement is not a silver bullet, it's a supporting actor in your favourite movie! The movie might still be ok without them, but it's top notch because of them. Supplements are not the main characters in our pet's story, they are there to literally "supplement" the diet.

At House of Paws, we don’t believe in selling supplements just to sell them.
We’ll always start with the bowl first, because diet is the foundation of everything. Once that’s solid, we can use natural supplements to help the body heal, balance and thrive. You've likely heard us talk about a rotational diet and a truly rotational diet will always include a supplement rotation. We rotate proteins, food types, brands and supplements. The last thing we want to do, even if a variety of supplements is beneficial is throw a whack of supplements at a furry guy who needs support. If we see results, we would never know what worked. When we talk to you about a variety of supplements, our approach is always to gradually introduce new items to the bowl and build up from there.

Recently a customer came in to discuss her furry guy's issues. The poor boy had started having seizures, he had yeasty ears, had recently been treated for parasites and was starting to have joint issues. In my mind, the checklist was being created as to what supplements we could incorporate to support his body. But never would I rattle off the list and expect the pet parent to run home and feed a bowl of powder! Instead, I asked questions to make sure I understood all of the symptoms then I asked the pet parent, what symptom she was most concerned with addressing. From there we made a plan to start with one supplement and gradually incorporate the rest over time. These are the supplement plans we see the most success with.

💊 Meds Work Fast — But They Don’t Heal

We’re used to seeing quick fixes from drugs. Itching disappears. Poops firm up. But as we mentioned earlier, that’s because many medications suppress the immune system. They mask the symptoms without addressing what caused them in the first place. Even worse? The longer we suppress symptoms without addressing root causes:

• The more gut health is compromised (with over 70% of the immune system living there),

• The more resistance and drug dependency builds, and

• The fewer options we’re left with when medications eventually stop working.

🌿 Supplements Aren’t Magic — They’re Tools for Healing

Natural supplements work with the body, not against it. They provide support so the body can work to heal itself. If we think about wildlife, Mother Nature ensured our animals have everything they need to be and stay healthy and that includes natural remedies the animals can access themselves. Supplements are not a magic wand that can be waved and fix problems in seconds. That means they usually take a few days to start helping, and a few weeks to fully work, depending on:

• What the supplement is

• How damaged the system is

• What else the pet is eating (or being exposed to)

At House of Paws, we’ve seen most supplements begin showing noticeable improvements in about 4–10 days, especially if the rest of the bowl is clean and the supplement is well-matched to the issue. In some instances and depending on the severity of the situation, sometimes nature takes a little more time.

It may take 2–4 weeks for deeper support systems like the liver, skin barrier, or joints to respond, especially if there’s a long-standing issue or history of medication use.

The most common things we see when we're working with pets who have been suffering with a variety of ailments and being treated with meds is....

• Gut health takes a hit (remember 70% of our immune system (or health) is in the gut)

• Underlying imbalances are left untreated

• Eventually, the drug may stop working

• And you're prescribed another med...and then a prescription kibble...

That’s the vicious cycle we’re trying to avoid.

⏱️ Realistic Timelines for Natural Supplements

💚 Natural supplements don’t override the body they work with it. And that means results might take a little longer but they’re more sustainable and much gentler.

Here’s what to expect: