salt??
 

Has anyone ever heard of dogs lacking or needing salt??

I was at the mall with my BF and Avery today.. this chick(probably about 18) was petting Avery(who kept licking her hand and giving kisses!:p) And she was like "you know, this means she is lacking salt." -HUH?? i have never heard this!! i DID know that salt(probably table salt) is bad for dogs, even the smallest amount.. so this didnt make sense to me?? anyways.. this chick was a little weird and asked some other random questions-like "oh is she a yorkie or a silky?" (avery is 3.5lbs and doesnt look like a silky to me??) i dont know.. weird.

But has anyone ever heard of the salt thing??

idk but London does like to lick a lot. I heard salt was bad for them :confused:

i know Avery always licks(but she has done this since she was a baby and we first got her) we call her our little lizard. :p And YES i do KNOW salt is BAD for dogs(even the smallest amount). i dont know.. thats what i was wonderring too. (i didnt take this chick too seriously at all-but still i thought i would ask)

o no i wasn't saying you didn't know. I'm curious too actually, im wondering why SHE said that :) London likes to lick a lot but sometimes i think it's just cause my lotion smells good and she think she's eating fruit :p But i always stop her cause i don't know what kind of chemicals my lotions have and if they can be bad for her

oh yeah i know.. i didnt think that at all!! no worries babe.
(haha-Avery is always licking me and others, but she ALWAYS licks me after i put on my lotion, as well-when i put on a certain lotion that is kinda strong.. avery will go all crazy on the bed-like she can smell it.. its funny) :D

Dog's have ions in their body just like we do (Sodium, Potassium, Chloride, etc. ) so technically a dog could be lacking sodium in it's body but I highly doubt your dog has a sodium deficiency. We humans do sweat through our skin which means we normally do have a slight "salty" taste to the surface of our skin. Dog's do seem to like the saltiness of our skin, but it's not because they're lacking sodium - they just like the taste of the salt. Dog's don't only lick our skin because they like the taste though - a lot of them just like to give kisses.

LOL They have such a strong sense of smell!

Awww they just want to give kisses :p Although i still think London thinks she eating fruit :rolleyes:

Dog's do actually need some salt intake per day, but it's a very small amount.

Here is an article about Sodium & Chloride requirements for Dogs:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?articleid=686

Adult dog foods should contain at least 0.06% sodium and 0.09% chloride (on a dry matter basis). Puppy foods should contain 5 times that much. Kitten and cat foods should contain at least 0.2% sodium and 0.3% chloride (on a dry matter basis). Most pet foods contain levels much higher than these minimum daily requirements.

Deficiency:
A dietary deficiency of sodium and chloride would be extremely rare because most pets today are fed commercial pet foods. A sodium or chloride deficiency is more likely to occur because of an excess loss of these two minerals from the body. This can result from prolonged (or chronic) severe diarrhea and/or vomiting.

Toxicity: Sodium and chloride toxicity generally does not occur in normal animals with access to good quality drinking water. Any excess intake of sodium or chloride is filtered through the kidneys and excreted into the urine. If good drinking water is not provided, however, the concentrations of sodium and chloride can become too high. Signs of sodium chloride toxicity include seizures, blindness, dehydration, loss of appetite, and death within 24 hours.

yeahh. i know-its really cute!! i tell her.."you should be thankful ur mama smells good!!" hahahaha.

yeah i figured they needed some and i did know that salt was bad for them(which i figured was table salt). We have Avery on a really good dog food(canidae), so i dont think that would be a problem? And we give her either bottled or purified water only.. i NEVER give her tap water. (not that its not ok.. but I Dont drink it.. and dont like it at ALL, so i dont give it to Avie either.)
Thanks, you are so imformative, i love it. :) you will be fabulous as a vet. (probably MUCH MUCH better than most vets out there now!!) like i said in another thread.. you can always move to California, once you graduate. haha. you would do so well here-and make lots of $$$ doing what you are so passionate about!! :D

I hope I'll be a good one. I just had my first vet school exam today - Histology. And I have Anatomy tomorrow (I'm taking a study break) and then physiology on Monday. I've been to several places but I've never been to California yet. Who knows..maybe I will end up there :)

My one dog was lacking salt in it's diet, and the doctor gave me some medicine for it. I think all dogs like to lick the salt off of your skin.

good luck!! you'll be great!! XO. how long will it take you to finish??

really? how is ur lil one doing now?? did you have any signs that led you to have this checked, or did the vet find this??

i dont think Avery has anything wrong.. but next time i take her in ill ask the vet some questions. thanks all!! :)

My dogs love licking sweets off the fingers too, but they aren't lacking in sugar! :D That's a myth. I do add a little salt to the meat when I cook it for them.

[QUOTE=AVERYxo;1356580]good luck!! you'll be great!! XO. how long will it take you to finish??QUOTE]

Vet school is 4 years and then if I decide to specialize in an area (which I probably will) I will have a one year internship and then a 3 year residency to become a board certified specialist.

haha. true. :p
maybe thats a good excuse for us though, when we're craving sweets.. we can just pretend we're "lacking sugar"!! ;)

you'll be great.. good luck!! <3