Puppies who are under 1 year of age will need additional calcium each day. This is important for proper growth, especially of the rapidly growing bones.
During the first year or two years, depending on the dog breed, bone development is crucial. This is one reason why owners are warned against over exercising a puppy, as doing so when the bones are quickly growing can be harmful. Therefore, one element that owners may want to keep in mind is the need for extra calcium to be added to the diet of a puppy or dog. Dogs do not drink milk and while they may receive some calcium from cheese and other foods in small doses, supplements can often be the way to go to ensure good health.
Calcium With Vit D
One of the easiest ways to administer this extra calcium to a puppy is to use a liquid supplement and give it to them orally using a syringe that will gently spray it into their mouth.
Calcium works in conjunction with Vitamin D to be absorbed into the puppies' bones. The easiest method to give vitamin D is to add some cod liver oil to the food once or twice a week at the rate of 1 milliliter for toy breeds and bigger breeds may have up to 5 milliliters.
If you see that you puppy's front legs are developing nice and straight, you are giving enough calcium. If our puppy is meant to have button ears, which means ears that fold, and they are going through a stage in which 1 or both ears are sitting upright, an increase of calcium will usually help. If your puppy or dog develops diarrhea, it is best to then decrease the calcium.
Aside from these 2 supplements, many often also recommend Vitamin C supplements for canines. A liquid form usually works well and a brand manufactured for children can be given to dogs. The rate would be 1 milliliter each day. This is often recommended not only for puppies but for dogs of all ages and many times given for the entire life of the canine.
While on the subject of what to offer to a puppy or dog one element that many owners do not know about is raspberry juice. It can be very healthy when added to the dogs' drinking water. It can be an excellent way to prevent or treat diarrhea and is very effective against a lot of other gastrointestinal ailments.
This should not be confused with raspberry leaves which is sometimes given to pregnant dams when they are entering labor. When in the form of juice it works in a completely different way to provide an extra dose of health for any puppy or dog.