Introduction
Nursing dogs need proper health care, attention, and a good diet. They need a proper diet to maintain their health. A proper diet for a nursing dog contains protein, dietary fats, and dietary fibers.
A proper diet helps to increase the energy level of milk production in pregnant or nursing dogs. Nursing dogs lose their weight after giving birth. They need a lot of calories to gain more energy.
As all, we know that eggs are very nutritious but nursing dogs can eat eggs. Keep reading to know more about the healthy diet for your nursing dog.
Are eggs good for nursing dogs? Yes, nursing dogs can eat eggs. Eggs are the most nutritious food in a diet. They are full of protein, fats, vitamins A, E, &, B9, calcium, and minerals. The addition of eggs to a nursing dog’s diet can make her healthy and fit.
Are Eggs Good for Nursing Dogs?
Generally, dogs can safely eat eggs. But being a dog owner, you must have an idea about your nursing dog’s diet. Eggs are non-toxic for dogs. They add nutrients and fibers to a diet.
It is a good plan to introduce a new food in your nursing dog’s diet. Nursing dogs feed milk to little puppies, after their birth.
Eggs help to produce milk for puppies. In this way, feeding eggs to a nursing mother dog is beneficial for her puppies.
Eggs are also beneficial in maintaining your dog’s skin and coat healthy. They provide a high level of energy to your pregnant or nursing dog. You can feed eggs to your dog every day.
Eggs are good for nursing dogs but there is a little chance of risks if you feed them wrongly or feed more eggs. Some common risks are salmonella poisoning, Allergies, and Intolerance.
Nutrients in eggs also provide energy to puppies for their growth. Eggs produce antibodies to fight against various infections. They also support the dog’s immune system.
The yolk of egg contains lecithin, which helps to control the blood pressure and cholesterol level of your nursing dog.
How to Feed Eggs to your Nursing Dogs?
You can feed eggs in many ways to your nursing dog. Like humans, dogs can safely eat eggs. But it creates many questions in your mind such as can dogs eat raw eggs?
Can we feed fried eggs to our dogs? Are boiled eggs safe for dogs? Are scrambled eggs healthier for dogs? Etc.
Each method of cooking food has different healthy nutrients and risky nutrients. You just have to find them. After practical research, we concluded that you can feed eggs to your nursing dog in the following ways.
Scrambled eggs
You can feed a scrambled egg to your nursing dog. Feeding eggs with milk is healthier and full of nutrients for your nursing dog or pregnant. But a scrambled egg is not a healthy food for an upset stomach.
Hard-boiled eggs
Hard-boiled eggs are definitely safe for pregnant or nursing dogs. They are not actually hard to digest. Nursing dogs can easily consume boiled eggs.
Some vets recommended avoiding feeding eggs more than one or two in a day, because eggs are high in cholesterol.
Cooked egg whites
Nursing dogs can consume cooked egg whites. But eating more egg whites than the average quantity will cause anemia.
Cooked egg yolks
The yellow part of eggs is a useful source to produce rich milk for little puppies. Egg yolks contain extra calories that nursing dogs need. Yolks also maintain the mammary glands by functioning properly.
Cooked eggs without oil or butter
Eggs cooked without oil and butter are good for pregnant or nursing dogs. Although it contains less protein and fat than others.
Always feed plain eggs to your nursing dogs. Spices are harmful for a dog’s stomach. Do not feed raw eggs as they cause many health issues.
Remember all these key points in your mind, while feeding your nursing dog.
Can Dogs Eat Eggshells OR Raw Eggshells?
- Pregnant or nursing dogs need a lot of calcium after the birth of puppies. They are a great source of nutrients. But some vets do not recommend feeding eggshells, due to high levels of calcium.
Generally speaking, eggshells are safe for nursing dogs but in small amounts. So, if your dog steals and eats an egg don’t worry. You can also feed them boiled and washed eggshells.
Eggshells are a great source of calcium. If your dog is sick and needs extra calcium, you can add eggshells to his diet. Before serving eggshells to sick dogs, it is a good idea to consult your vet.
Eggshells and eggshells membranes are common supplements of calcium. They can be a healthier part of their diet. Eggshells help to keep the dog’s bones and teeth healthier.
Every food has its own advantages & disadvantages. No doubt, eggshells are beneficial for your nursing dog, but it has side effects too. A broken eggshell has sharp needle-like edges. These edges can hurt your dog’s mouth.
On the other side, calcium is safe for dogs, but an excessive supply of calcium is not. It can lead to different health problems like skeletal growth in young puppies. Vets recommended boiled and cooked raw eggs.
Raw eggshells are not very safe for nursing dogs. It contains salmonella bacteria which lead to salmonella infection in dogs. Signs of salmonella include:
- Diarrhea
- Vomiting
- Low appetite
- Lowered activity levels
If you find any of the above symptoms in your dog, you must consult your vet. Your vet will help you to determine the cause of these symptoms.
Can I Feed Puppy Food to my Nursing Dog?
A pregnant or nursing dog needs too much care. They get weak after giving birth to puppies and need a well-balanced diet to maintain their health.
Be sure before feeding any kind of food to your dog. She needs a lot of water, protein, calcium, fats, and fiber. To make your dog healthier like before, you can try different nutritious foods.
Is puppy food safe for nursing dogs? Definitely, you can feed puppy food to your pregnant or nursing dog. As puppy food is a nutrient-dense diet for breastfeeding dogs.
Always feed puppy food according to the recommended amount on the packet. You can also visit your vet for suggestions.
Do not feed puppy food directly right after the birth. You can add other food like eggs, boiled chicken, or any other healthy food in puppy food for the first 3 to 4 days.
Puppy food contains high calories, fats, and calcium. It is easily digestible to the mother dogs. Some dogs do not eat puppy food right after the birth of puppies. So, you can feed high calories and calcium food like eggs.
Is Over Feeding ok for Nursing Dogs?
Excess of everything is bad. Some vets and dog trainers suggest giving a bowl of food full of calories to your nursing dog. But you can feed her more food if she wants.
During the nursing or pregnancy period, dogs need a high level of energy to survive. It is ok to serve over food to make your pregnant dog healthy. But overfeeding on a daily basis makes the stomach upset.
Nursing and pregnant dogs need double the food quantity as compared to other dogs. They can easily digest high calories in food.
They need more energy to produce milk for little puppies. You can eat 2 or 3 times more food than usual.
Do not forget to consult your vet, before serving food more than the recommended amount.
What Homemade Food is Good for a Nursing Dog?
Homemade food is the best food. Dogs can eat human food and homemade food. Homemade food must be plain and according to the diet plan of your nursing dog.
Spices can make your dog’s stomach upset and cause many health problems.
We have provided a balanced nutritious diet plan for your nursing pup. A nursing dog’s diet must contain the following nutrients.
- Food should be high in calories and fat
- It should have nutrients and be easily digestible.
- It must contain vitamins, minerals, calcium, and protein
- It should be suggested by your vet.
- You can add fish oil to make her diet fatty
- Fresh water and pure milk is necessary for her diet
- You can eat any other nutritious food recommended by your vet.
Final Thoughts
Nursing or pregnancy is very sensitive for all mammals. Like humans, nursing dogs need a lot of energy to survive. Feed them nutritious food when they need it.
