flame ryder Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 We have a new Rotty puppy (12 weeks old). I am feeding him Advance large breed puppy dry food, raw mice and 2 chicken necks a day. Other large breed owners have advised I should add calcium powder to his feed. I wouldn't have thought he would need any extra calcium seeing as I am using a good quality dry food? Should I add calcium, and if so how much? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 i don't think he needs calcium at all - esp as he's getting raw mice :P :p Seriously - he should not need it - also - I would advise swapping chicken necks for semi frozen - or frozen whole wings - less of a chance they will be swallowed whole and pose a choking risk :) and we need photos!! What advice did the breeder send him home with regarding feed & supplements? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flame ryder Posted April 30, 2014 Author Share Posted April 30, 2014 Breeder fed and recommended Advance dry food. I have had dogs both large and small all my life....and I have been an avid reader on here for many years so you'd think I'd know it all by now lol. I vaguely remember someone else asking the same question on here and I think someone may have said that one can feed TOO MUCH calcium and it is overused and un-neccassary so I have not bothered, but now hearing otherwise. If I go with my gut instinct I'd say no as chicken necks contain enough bone matter. This is my first Rotty though so probably the heaviest breed of dog I've ever owned so far :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yonjuro Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 This is quite interesting as I feed my Husky pup very very similar to tesla as advised by the breeder. However the Vet told me that the addition of mince to the meal has a negating effect on the calcium. I don't fully understand it, but I suppose if you have a handful of mince in one hand, and a handful of kibble in the other, the kibble is balanced but the mince isn't. So 2 hand fulls of the mixed food is not balanced - according to the vet?? I would think that the chicken necks would balance out the calcium over the day? I also keep crushed eggshells and add a pinch or two to the mince. I really can't say if this balances things better, but I really can't see it doing and harm. I would imagine that some pet mince probably has bone/calcium content, but it is more convenient for us to buy high grade lean mince for humans from our butcher, so this is why I add the pinch of ground shells. I feed the chicken necks frozen and stuck together, Ronin needs to chew them this way(well a bit anyway :) ). I would have one p'd off Husky if I removed them from his diet - he goes nuts for them and has had them fro 8 weeks to now 6 month :D Anyway, the vet said at last visit to not change a thing with his diet as he looks super. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yonjuro Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 oh bugger, I lied... I also add Augustines Approved Super Boost to his meals at a slightly lower dose than recommended as I reckon he eats very well. ...and as far as the eggshells go, I have no real basis for adding this, it is just my logic which may indeed be flawed :D Hopefully others can advise you better than I. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Spotted Devil Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 (edited) Put simply, meat is high in phosphorous, low in calcium and bone is high in calcium, low in phosphorous. Correct growth requires the appropriate ratio of Ca:P in the diet - approximately 2:1. Dry food should be balanced already. I prefer to feed RMB that are a nice balance of edible bone and meat eg frozen chicken wings, lamb necks and meaty chicken frames. Unless there is a medical reason (or I'm stuffing a Kong) I would much prefer to feed RMB rather than mince (even if it's minced RMB) - puppies need to learn to chew. Better for teeth and mental activity. Adding calcium to a diet is hit and miss unless you understand what you are already feeding. Edited April 30, 2014 by The Spotted Devil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra777 Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 What TSD said... minced meat is not balanced, for me it would be better to feed a chicken Maryland or something that size and dry. Or if you want to feed mince then instead of necks which are mostly cartilege feed wings which have more bone. Nope don't randomly add calcium, especially with a large breed puppy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted April 30, 2014 Share Posted April 30, 2014 Put simply, meat is high in phosphorous, low in calcium and bone is high in calcium, low in phosphorous. Correct growth requires the appropriate ratio of Ca:P in the diet - approximately 2:1. Dry food should be balanced already. I prefer to feed RMB that are a nice balance of edible bone and meat eg frozen chicken wings, lamb necks and meaty chicken frames. Unless there is a medical reason (or I'm stuffing a Kong) I would much prefer to feed RMB rather than mince (even if it's minced RMB) - puppies need to learn to chew. Better for teeth and mental activity. Adding calcium to a diet is hit and miss unless you understand what you are already feeding. :) puppies certainly have teeth ..and they are there for a reason - to chew food ! It also makes mealtime more than a 2 minute scoff ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystiqview Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 If a dog is on a balanced diet it should not need extra calcium. most commercial grade foods have calcium in them now. If you feed bones - they will get calcium from those. Feeding supplimented calcium shuts/slows the glad down as it does not have to work any more to get it from the food. If the dog is then requiring calcium the gland is not operating fully to be able get the calcium it needs. Calcium additives should only be directed by your vet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 2 chicken necks, give him half a carcass ;) Depends how much mince you're feeding. If just meat mince is the major proportion of the diet then yes, add a BALANCED puppy supplement like Vets All Natural Health Booster to it or Sprinter Gold Whelp n Grow. Just calcium is quite useless unless you're making up your own home made diet and you need to be a little more precise with your ratios. If in doubt, follow the breeders sheet and call them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flame ryder Posted May 1, 2014 Author Share Posted May 1, 2014 2 chicken necks, give him half a carcass ;) Depends how much mince you're feeding. If just meat mince is the major proportion of the diet then yes, add a BALANCED puppy supplement like Vets All Natural Health Booster to it or Sprinter Gold Whelp n Grow. Just calcium is quite useless unless you're making up your own home made diet and you need to be a little more precise with your ratios. If in doubt, follow the breeders sheet and call them. Well he's just a little tacker atm. Of course I'll feed more as he grows. Got some chicken wings today, he chews them a bit more :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmo&Zoe Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 0 Sent from my GT-P5110 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystiqview Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 You can also give soft bones like lamp flaps as they eat the whole meat and bones. The bones are nice and soft. Even half a chicken carcus at 12 weeks a day or two is fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 half a carcass for a rottie pup is not too big at all. For a chihuahua maybe ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted May 3, 2014 Share Posted May 3, 2014 (edited) I've fed half smallish chic carcass to my Border Collie pup's at 12 weeks no prob's at all. Love them Edited May 3, 2014 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystiqview Posted May 3, 2014 Share Posted May 3, 2014 I have fed smaller sized whole chicken carcuses to 12 week bc pup/s before going to work - they make great all day suckers for them. A pup will eat what it can eat.. You have to keep an eye on the quantity anyway - it needs to be increased and decreased slightly as they are growing to keep an even weight gain on them as they go through their growing phases. Their weight gain or loss will soon tell you whether you are feeding too much or less. One or two chicken necks or wing are only really only treat toppers when added to the top of their meal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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