Are dehydrated fish bones safe for dogs?

[SamanthaMarikian]

I was gonna dehydrate whole fish or salmon heads/tails and grind it up as a meal topper/mix in for my dog and cat. Would that be safe for them? Cooked or raw then dehydrated and then ground? Thank you

 

[kingshockey]

to much calcium will constipate your cat i dunno about your dog. you can go to the cat site.com to learn moreabout a good diet to feed your cat

 

[worldsparadox]

I will occasionally feed my dog whole trout, bones and all. She enjoys them a lot, and we have seen no ill side effects, but I only do it on rare occasions.

 

[HooahArmy]

I find that it should be alright for the dog and cat, as long as you keep and eye on your buddies' stools and behaviors.

While researching, I learned that Alaskan sled dogs and other Alaskan Natives' dog subside on whole salmon alone, bones and all, so having fish in a dog's diet seems to be a thing. However, as salmon as their main constituent, versus a kibble-fed pet, the amount of calcium intake for a kibble-pet should be lower due to kibble already being fortified with whole bone meal from its current ingredients. A sprinkling of salmon bone dust should be used sparingly, and try to skip it on a day your pal might be snacking on a large bone as a treat. The best way to assess if your dog is getting too much calcium is to look at his or her stools. If it is chalky or even a bit whitish, its too much.
A dog needs 50mg of calcium per kg of body weight. Read the label of their kibble and other food, do some math, and then measure how much of your bone supplement they might need.

Cats, on the other hand, process calcium differently than dogs. As compared to dogs who are naturally omnivores, cats are carnivores and prefer to ingest whole prey in the while. You may notice that canned and dry cat food often has more meat and much less fillers (like veggies) than dog food. A cat of about 9 pounds will need 150mg of calcium per day. You can look up your pal's food and also assess how much they need.

I hope this helps!

Sources:
Whole Dog Journal Website
Petkeen Website
Me, Academic Researcher with nutritionist experience; pet owner.

 

[DomGom TheFather]

Should be alright. Especially if the bones are ground up. Them becoming brittle through drying seems like the only potential issue. I don't know a whole lot about cats but my three dogs eat venison half the year. All the fat, silverskin, tendons, liver and anything else i don't eat gets frozen in gallon Ziplocs. I pull a bag, boil it and then use the water to cook brown rice. Sometimes I'll throw some carrots or squash in there. They get a small scoop with a handful of meat in the mornings. Good for the winter. Can't imagine the same thing with fish would be much different. Just start slow in case it upsets their stomach.

 

[The Snark]

Just keep in mind concentrated calcium as bone meal needs to be offset with magnesium which may be rare in a canine diet. Rough rule is 2/3rds calcium to 1/3rd magnesium. This especially applies to elderly dogs (and humans). Magnesium deficiency causes muscle cramps. High intakes of calcium contribute to the cramps and spasms without magnesium presence.
Quality dog foods contain bone meal and a magnesium adjunct. Best adjunct source is magnesium citrate. Worst is magnesium sulfate, oxide, glutamate and hydroxide.

 

[DaveM]

Just keep in mind concentrated calcium as bone meal needs to be offset with magnesium which may be rare in a canine diet. Rough rule is 2/3rds calcium to 1/3rd magnesium. This especially applies to elderly dogs (and humans). Magnesium deficiency causes muscle cramps. High intakes of calcium contribute to the cramps and spasms without magnesium presence.
Quality dog foods contain bone meal and a magnesium adjunct. Best adjunct source is magnesium citrate. Worst is magnesium sulfate, oxide, glutamate and hydroxide.

Wise words, @The Snark, and all too true... ...for earthbound creatures. To be forward-thinking, and assuming AB will still exist as a resource for people in the distant future: The ratios quoted above will likely need to be adjusted for space travelers or Mars colonists, they being away from our planet's gravity and radiation-shielding magnetosphere. Some interesting discoveries came from soil microbiota at Chernobyl about how biomolecules in living organisms can be protected by the interplay of these cations: calcium, magnesium, and manganese. Some manganese-linked peptides are under study right now to protect astronaut eyesight, the retina being particularly sensitive to damage from radiation.

Er... sorry OP. Guess you probably just wanted to know about fish bones. I understand if you now have a bone to pick with me

 

[The Snark]

@DaveM What we have here is a couple of stereo typical college student types. You the 4.0 nerds with their shirt pocket liners in the front row, and the psycho stars and planets circling their heads types in the rear seats that deviated from the main course when they got to nitrates, oxides and things unstable and exciting. Ah! Those good old days of ammonium nitrate iodide in the pencil sharpener and the ever popular TNTP. (Tri nitro toilet paper)
Yes, you can make steel evaporate.

2700 tons of ammonium nitrate in an ordinary warehouse? Even I am not wacko enough to pull that stunt.