Supplementing (Calcium)

VON KIRCHER · #1 04-30-2003, 12:39 PM

I wanted to find out about supplementing. What suppl. does everyone use, how administered, where to buy etc. Can I give my 5 month old Zeus human calcium. I figured I would give him a quarter of a human dose, about 200mg. All info would be great.

unyverse2000 · #2 04-30-2003, 12:51 PM

i'm gonna respond for others, even though i'm a rookie, or soon to be rookie.

why do you want to provide supplements? is your dog not getting a good diet?

then they will suggest you read up on supplementing pros/cons before proceeding.

VON KIRCHER · #3 04-30-2003, 12:55 PM

I was told he is not getting enough calcium. You can see that he is standing flat footed, and his toes are splayed.

Gretta · #4 04-30-2003, 01:02 PM

Did your vet recommend to supplement the calcium?

I may be totally wrong here, but it was my understanding that you want to be careful giving a large breed pup calcium supplements (he is a pup, right?). Too much calcium can contribute to the bones growing more rapidly than they should, causing potentially serious problems down the road.

Again, I'm not positive about this- hopefully some of the well informed senior members can clarify- but I would hesitate to start adding calcium to a growing pups diet. A quality food should provide the proper amounts...

Cori

VON KIRCHER · #5 04-30-2003, 01:04 PM

thanks for the replies, and please let me know if I should not give him calcium.

1StRott · #6 04-30-2003, 01:06 PM

Being flated footed is probably a genetic trait that calcium would not change much. Also you should be carfeful on the amount of calcium given to a young rottie, it could eventualy cause you joint problems if given in excess.

VON KIRCHER · #7 04-30-2003, 01:11 PM

The flat footed condition has develpoed, during the past couple of months. Our vet said it was due to him being on hard wood floors and slipping. Our obedience trainer said it was due to him needing more calcium.

spidey · #8 04-30-2003, 01:33 PM

Well, I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that the vet may know a bit more about things like medicine than your obedience trainer, and that your obedience trainer may know a bit more about training than your vet. I'd take the vet's advice over the obedience trainer's. I've never heard of splay-footedness being related to anything other than weight, genetics and possibly flooring. Supplementation is not benign, if there's no solid reason for it (like you've had his blood checked and his calcium is low), it can be harmful, especially in a growing puppy.

VON KIRCHER · #9 04-30-2003, 01:54 PM

Spidey,
I agree with you regarding vet and med. and trainer and obed. When he saw Zeus, the first thing he asked was if he spent alot of time on hard wood, or slick floors.
He said Zeus needs to send more time on grass. We've already seen an improvement, but I thought I'd ask since our "new Trainer" just saw him last night.

Sharon Marples · #10 04-30-2003, 04:31 PM

A splayed foot is partially genetic and can be partially environmental.

What we have found to be of good use in splayed feet or a dog that is down in the pasterns is the use of Vit C.

If he is not already on it, start him at 500 mg am and pm and increase it by 500 mg each week until he is getting 2000 mg a day. We keep all our dogs on this doseage throughout their lives.

Sharon Marples

rottnkidd · #11 04-30-2003, 10:23 PM

I follow the same Vit C regimen as Sharon, and have been doing so since my pup was 8 wks old. She turned 3 yrs on Tues and has never had splayed feet or been down on her pasterns. I know of others who had much success using a daily mix of Vit C, kelp and alfalfa also.
Also, a 5 month old pup is not only going through teething, but also a heavy growth phase. These things can have an effect on the pasterns.
Here's a good, but technical article "Calcium - providing the right balance". http://www.speedyvet.com/NIP/CALCIUM/default.htm
The entire article is good, but to answer your immediate question,
scroll down the page a bit more then half, and read "Effects of
over-supply of Calcium"
Best wishes -
kathy

Rott-Wiley · #12 04-30-2003, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by VON KIRCHER
The flat footed condition has develpoed, during the past couple of months. Our vet said it was due to him being on hard wood floors and slipping. Our obedience trainer said it was due to him needing more calcium.

Did your vet do any bloodwork to see if the dogs calcium level was in fact low? It is most important that the calcium and phosphorous be in the proper ratio for thd dog to utilize. Bone meal is often used to increase the amount of calcium a dog needs while providing the correct amount of phosphorous. But I would not reccommend you use it without the proper tests done first. You could do more harm then good. Is the dog already on a complete and balanced diet? If it is, there may be a problem with it's ability to absorb one or more things it needs in it's diet.

lblax · #13 05-01-2003, 12:27 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by VON KIRCHER
The flat footed condition has develpoed, during the past couple of months. Our vet said it was due to him being on hard wood floors and slipping. Our obedience trainer said it was due to him needing more calcium.

genetics genetics genetics