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This blog post was originally published on November 14, 2014. It has been updated with new information and republished.
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Every other day I crack an egg over our dogs’ food. Back in my kibble days, I heard that this habit was great for skin and coat health. Today, I add raw eggs because this is a superfood for dogs; basically, a natural multi-vitamin.
But what about the shells?
There are many dogs that'll eat the shells, my dogs aren't interested so I save the ones from a friend's local farm, dry them out, grind them in a coffee grinder, and feed them with meals that don't have bone (emu and venison) and I don't have duck necks on hand (which is what I feed my dogs to add bone to their meal).
The Benefit of Raw Eggs for Dogs
Eggs are a good source of…
- Protein
- Vitamin A
- Riboflavin
- Folate
- Vitamin B12
- Iron
- Selenium
- Fatty Acids
Raw Egg Whites are Bad for Dogs
Many people will tell you that feeding raw eggs is bad for dogs. Nope, it's feeding ONLY egg whites that can cause a problem; a diet of egg whites only can lead to a biotin deficiency. Biotin is necessary for proper cellular growth, processing fatty acids, and promoting skin and coat health. This is why feeding the whole egg is important.
The biotin deficiency scare is hard to shake because some people have told me that you have to avoid feeding too many eggs and have warned me not to feed them daily because this can still lead to a biotin deficiency. I've checked with veterinarians, nutritionists, and experienced (10+ years) and found that this isn't the case. So I continue to feed my dogs a raw egg (each) every other day (or about 3-4 days a week).
Raw Egg Shells are a Good Source of Calcium
Raw eggshells are an excellent source of calcium, however, raw eggs are not a substitute for bone.
If you have a dog that is showing no interest in raw bones (recreational or raw meaty bones), it may be tempting to skip the bones all together. Before kicking the bones to the curb, take a moment to understand the role of calcium and phosphorus.
- Eggshells are very high in calcium
- Meat is very high in phosphorus
- Bones are high in calcium and phosphorus
Together, calcium and phosphorus do more than help to develop strong, healthy teeth and bones. Calcium also boosts muscle health, heart health, and the immune system. And that's just the start. Phosphorus optimizes the use of carbs and fat while promoting cell repairs.
So I don't feel comfortable using eggshells to replace raw bones unless I have a clear understanding of how much phosphorus a meat only diet is bringing to the table. You can learn this by looking up the proteins you feed in the USDA database. Ideally, you'll want a 1 to 1 ratio of calcium to phosphorus. You may want more calcium if you're feeding a puppy, however, that's a discussion to have with your vet to make sure. I didn't make any changes to Scout and Zoey's diet when they were puppies; they ate the same meals as Rodrigo and Sydney, who were 4 years old when we brought puppies home.
Green Tripe
Green tripe is an alternative to eggshells and raw bones that I like because it contains the perfect balance of calcium and phosphorus. However, it's important to know that green tripe is a high-fat protein, so if you do feed more of it to your dog (I like to feed green tripe at least one day a week), then make sure that your dog is getting more exercise or that you have a good understanding of the keto diet should you want to go that route.
Food Grade Bone Meal
Food grade bone meal is another alternative and I'm linking to a product that was recommended by a holistic veterinarian. The only issue I have with feeding bone meal is the sourcing and manufacturing. If the bones come from an animal subjected to toxins, then the bone meal may contain trace toxins – so know your source.
Bone Broth
Despite some rumblings in the raw feeding world to the contrary, I don't believe that bone broth is a substitution for bone in a raw diet for dogs. I feed my dogs bone broth to support gut and joint health.
DIY Calcium Supplement for Dogs
Long story short, when I'm feeding a raw meal that doesn't contain bone and I'm between duck neck orders, then mixing ground eggshells into my dogs' meals is an option. This is an easy recipe that I follow…
Ingredients
12 or more eggshells from a local farm, cleaned and dried. I do not use grocery store eggs for a calcium supplement because I'm not sure what was used to rinse them clean.
Directions
– I store clean eggshells in the carton, in the fridge; I leave them there until I have enough to make a batch of eggshells.
– I grind the eggshells in my Nutribullet (it will stain the container white after the first use) or coffee grinder until I have a fine powder.
– I then store the powder in an airtight Rubbermaid container in the fridge until I use it or for up to two months.
Serving Recommendation
When adding ground eggshells to a raw diet as a calcium supplement, I've read that our dogs need 400 milligrams of absorbable calcium per one pound of boneless meat (muscle meat + organ meat). 400 milligrams is approximately 1/2 teaspoon. This is what I would feed to my dogs:
- Rodrigo: 1/2 teaspoon per meal
- Sydney: 1/4 teaspoon per meal
- Scout: 1/2 teaspoon per meal
- Zoey: 1/4 teaspoon per meal
How I Add Bone to My Dog's Raw Meals
My four dogs get duck necks as their source of bone year around. In the spring and summer months, they also enjoy recreational bones and raw meaty bones that they can eat outside:
- lamb necks
- duck frames
- beef knuckle bones
- buffalo knuckle bones
- lamb femurs
Haven’t tried eggs yet, my Parker is just a puppy and only on a raw diet for a few days now. Would i just crack the egg over his meal leaving the shell in case he does like it ? should i break it all up or let him do it ? or toss in the whole egg and let him have at it ?
Yep, I’d just crack it open and add it to your puppy’s dish. You can add the whole shells to see if your puppy will eat them or you can crush them up.
Why does it need to be, after saving then in a large glass. bowl w/ paper towels, then grind to bits and almost semi-fine, as I always seen on websites to put in oven 10 minutes at whatever degrees?
I been doing it all but the heat.
OKAY?
You know, Gary, I don’t know why the heat is necessary, to be honest. I think if you plan to use the shells right away, you shouldn’t bother baking them. Now that I’m thinking about it, doesn’t baking the shells take away some of the benefits?
As a non DIY raw-feeder (I feed my dog a commercially available frozen raw food) I’ve always been nervous about adding raw eggs to his diet. For one, I’ve read some crazy things about the stuff they put on the outer shell of non-organic eggs, so it’d have to be organic all the way. But I’m mostly nervous about adding them to his diet because I don’t want to over do it. He’s about 19lbs and eats 2oz of food per meal, so he’s a little guy. I guess I’ve always been afraid that 1 whole egg would be too much for a meal/day for him.
That’s a valid concern. I have big dogs (55-75#) and what I do is cut back a little bit of their food when I’m going to add an egg. I only get fresh eggs in the summer; in the winter (when the days are shorter and farm chickens aren’t laying as much), I buy organic eggs at Costco. Those shells have been washed too, but I’m not sure with what so I don’t feed them to our dogs.
If you eat eggs, you can always split one of your eggs with your dog. But that’s the only thing I can think of. I’m going to ask the raw food group their thoughts.
Try quail eggs. Smaller portion with all the goodness!
oh wow, I didn’t know you could give egg to dogs that often. I do once a week, maybe I would be doing more.
While I sometimes feed egg to Honey, I’m jealous about my egg shells. They go on top of my asparagus beds.
But perhaps Honey gets the benefit when she gets to eat the asparagus. 🙂