Cuddle Bones

[dsteamn]

Someone told me they grind up cuddle bones and give to their reptiles for calcium. Thoughts?

[Richard.C]

cuddle bones?

do u mean cuttlefish back bones?

ive heard of people using that grinded up for reptiles,alot of folk use it for birds to chew on

[El Lobo]

Cuttlefish bone is the internal shell of cuttlefish and has a Ca:P of around 5:1. I would rather use ground oyster shell with no phosphorous for BTS.

Some choose to provide these bones to parrots to ensure they are receiving enough calcium. It also provides a source of natural gnawing entertainment for the bird as well as aiding in wearing down any beak overgrowth.

[Jeff]

I give them to my tortoises who naw on them, but I have never offered them to my skinks. It's easy to add calcium in powder form to their food, so I'm not sure why you would ever need to use cuttlebone.

[Lea]

Cuttlefish bones are also rich in iodine, which could be harmful when used long term in reptiles, which can cause iodine induced hyperthyroidism or iodine toxicity, which can be lethal.

[dsteamn]

Thanks for the info. I had never heard of them before, as you can tell by how I spelled cuddle rather than cuttle. I appreciate the info.