What should Kelly Blue Terriers eat to supplement calcium? Due to the needs of dogs’ physical development, it is necessary to properly supplement certain nutrients. So what is the best thing for dogs to eat to supplement calcium? Let’s take a look.
First of all, after the dog is born, the calcium supplement is mainly obtained from the mother dog’s lactation. Some friends believe that the dog does not need calcium supplement during this period. So is it really true? My personal suggestion is that if the female dog has a good physique and does not give birth to many puppies, she does not need to supplement calcium. However, if the female dog is malnourished and feeds too many puppies, or the puppies do not have the strength of the female dog, For feeding, it is necessary to give the dog some calcium food. Generally speaking, for newborn puppies, you can give them some goat milk powder specially designed for pets, which is beneficial to supplement nutrition, not only calcium.
Secondly, in the months from 2 to 3 months to within 6 months after weaning, the puppy’s food composition will determine its lifelong eating habits. If you plan to continue raising your dog with specialized dog food in the future, you must allow it to adapt to the taste of specialized puppy dog food during this period of time.
Many dog friends have mentioned that puppies do not need to supplement calcium when eating dog food. In fact, this is a misunderstanding. There are many types of dog food, and not all dog food can satisfy dogs’ need for calcium. The main function of most dog food is to meet the dog's food and clothing needs. If your dog has symptoms of calcium deficiency:
1. Bone deformation and fracture
Rib valgus, forelimb wrist and elbow joint deformation, intervertebral disc disease, bone spurs and fractures, acute postpartum calcium deficiency and osteoporosis directly affect and threaten life span.
2. Talk about bad teeth and bad breath
Loss of deciduous teeth, slow growth of permanent teeth, thin enamel layer, double rows of teeth or uneven permanent teeth are prone to bad breath and gingivitis.
3. Decreased appetite and weight loss
There is a decrease in appetite, lack of energy, weight loss, a clear preference for digging into walls, playing with the soil and floor, and eating one's own feces, accompanied by digestive disorders such as diarrhea or constipation.
4. Calcium deficiency shows irritability
Calcium deficiency in adult dogs manifests as irritability, hot flashes, easy fractures, and laziness. The symptoms are similar to humans.
Regarding the issue of calcium supplementation for puppies, many people have the same view as the editor mentioned earlier that medicinal supplements are not as good as food supplements. I would like to summarize some experiences and share them with you.
1. Egg yolk is rich in nutrients. Give your dog the yolk of a cooked egg. You don’t have to eat it every day, but 3 times a week.
2. Many dog friends like to give their dogs bones to supplement calcium. The editor believes that the bone soup cooked in daily life contains calcium, but it is mainly bone marrow, and most of the bone marrow is fat. Drinking bone broth mainly supplements fat, not calcium. Even if a dog eats bones, it does not guarantee that it is not deficient in calcium, and puppies have weak digestion and cannot eat bones. It is recommended that in addition to bone soup, your dog should eat more foods high in calcium, such as beef,Shrimp skin, kelp, seaweed, marine fish, shark bone meal.
3. You can buy some calcium tablets and calcium powder to put into dog food or feed them separately, but one thing to note is to see if the calcium product has a calcium-phosphorus formula. According to the editor, it is more suitable for puppies to eat calcium tablets, such as Gudenggao calcium tablets, while large dogs can eat some calcium powder, such as super calcium shark cartilage powder.
In addition, it is recommended that dogs eat more vegetables or Golden Vitamin to supplement vitamins, which can promote the absorption of calcium, especially vitamin D.
4. Sunbathing is a required course for calcium supplementation. Sufficient sunshine can enable dogs to absorb more calcium. More exercise can increase intestinal motility, promote digestion, enhance the dog's appetite, and the calcium absorption rate will also be improved.
