Why Is Calcium In the Batch Lower Than The Full Daily Requirment

Why Don’t We Add the Full 50 mg/kg/day of Calcium to the Batch?

Q: I thought dogs need 50 mg of calcium per kilogram of body weight per day. Why isn’t that full amount added to the food batch?

A: Because the food itself already contains calcium — and we’re building a complete diet, not just a supplement.

When you make a batch of homemade food, calcium comes from multiple sources, not just the powder you add. If you dumped in the full amount on top of everything else, you'd easily end up with too much — and that can cause constipation, mineral imbalance, or even long-term health issues like kidney strain or skeletal problems.

🧩 Where does the calcium already come from?

Your dog’s meal may already contain calcium from:

• 🥬 Whole foods: Dark leafy greens, beans, sardines, canned salmon with bones, etc.

• 🦴 Raw meaty bones (RMB): Chicken necks, wings, or backs — huge natural sources of calcium and phosphorus.

• 🥄 Vitamin/mineral supplements: Most products contain some calcium already.

• 🧂 Eggshell powder or bone meal: These are additional supplements — but we use them to fill the gap, not overload.

• Beans — if you begin adding beans, you’re adding another source of calcium and would need to reduce the amount of supplementation you’re adding to the batch.

📉 So how much calcium do we actually add to the batch?

We typically target 70–80% of the full daily requirement (which is 50 mg/kg/day) in the batch itself, knowing the rest will come from the items above.

That means for a 25 lb dog (11.3 kg), the full requirement is ~565 mg/day.
So we add ~400–450 mg/day worth of supplemental calcium into the batch — and the rest comes from the food and supplement mix.

✅ This approach keeps the diet balanced, supports good digestion, and avoids calcium excess.

⚖️ But how do I know if I'm getting the right amount?

We base batch additions on body weight and batch size.
For example, a batch designed to feed a 25 lb dog for 14 days might contain around 5,000 mg of calcium, assuming:

• Some calcium comes from the food

• You're using a vitamin/mineral supplement

• You occasionally offer raw meaty bones

If you’re not using bones or another supplement, you may wish to raise that to 6,000–7,500 mg for the batch.

❗ What happens if I overdo the calcium?

Too much calcium can lead to:

• 💩 Chalky, dry, or white stools

• 🦴 Imbalanced phosphorus-to-calcium ratio

• 💊 Reduced absorption of zinc, magnesium, and other minerals

• 🧠 In puppies: possible developmental bone issues, so it’s important to be in the right range.

Don’t panic — adjust your measurements based on the total food and supplement intake. Read every label. Adjust your recipe accordingly.

✅ Bottom Line:

We don't add the full 50 mg/kg/day of calcium to the batch because the food already contributes calcium. The batch just fills the gap. Over-supplementation can do more harm than good — so trust the formula, use your labels, and adjust based on your dog’s needs.