The Nutritional demands of breeding youngsters.

Most animals breed seasonally.  In other words they breed at the time of year when the food is good enough for them to successfully rear youngsters.  For many animals this means spring and summer but for animals from drier areas this probably means breeding in the wet season.

The key issue for these animals is "is the food quality and quantity adequate to raise a family?"  So how do the needs of young growing animals differ from those of adults?

Because of the rapid growth of the young animal all the biochemical processes are going on at a break neck speed.  In order to fuel these processes the animal requires a great deal of vitamins and minerals.  So it makes sense, if you wish to breed your animals, to increase the dose of supplements supplied to your would-be parents.  This is then provided to the young through the mothers' milk.  These extra vitamins should in fact be given for a few weeks prior to breeding, as they will help to stimulate the adults into breeding condition and improve fertility.  These vital nutrients can simply be supplied by adding Dr Squiggles Daily Essentials to the drinking water or Dr Squiggles Essentials Plus to their food.

One of the major mineral requirements of the young animal is calcium.  Calcium is not only involved in the formation of good quality bone but also in the actions of both muscle and nerves.  Insufficient calcium in the diet leads to deformities.  Ensuring the diet is adequately supplemented with a highly available calcium such as Dr Squiggles Calcivet, will ensure that the body's natural ability to manufacture bone properly will be fully realised.

One of the major problems associated with a lack of calcium is poor jaw formation leading to incisor teeth that do not meet properly and therefore require trimming for the whole of the animals' life.

For most lactating animals we would recommend DrS Calcivet be added to the diet for between three and five days a week.  For rabbits, who have a particularly efficient mechanism for absorbing calcium, two to three days a week may be perfectly adequate.  .

Because young animals have a poorly developed immune system they are quite vulnerable to infections. Dr Squiggles Essentials Plus has added "Flourish" herbal extracts. These natural ingredients act to stimulate the immune system, create a good gut environment for beneficial bacteria and have anti-protozoal characteristics so reducing the risk of an outbreak of coccidiosis.