Everything You Need to Know About Easter Eggs for Dogs

Every year when Easter is just around the corner, the search for chocolate bunnies and eggs begins all over again. And we can also make the Easter season extra special for our dogs and let them join in the fun. We have put together everything you need to know about it.

Eggs are highly valuable, nutrient-rich, and also tasty food. Their protein is particularly high-quality, and they are low in purines. So there is no reason not to let your pet take part in the Easter egg hunt. The egg yolk is particularly rich in fat and contains many essential fatty acids, fat-soluble vitamins, and also biotin.

Eggshell is an excellent natural source of calcium. It is present as inorganic calcium carbonate and is very well available to the body. But be careful: Your dog must not eat dyed Easter eggshells! If you want to feed the undyed eggshell once, please wash it thoroughly with hot water beforehand. This removes any potentially adhering bacteria. You can also dry the shell in the oven and then grind it. The calcium powder is extremely high-quality and long-lasting.

ATTENTION: Calcium can also be overfed! If your four-legged friend already eats a perfectly balanced dog food, you should not add much more calcium. Otherwise, they will have a calcium excess, which can lead to problems such as bone spurs. For your information: 100g of eggshell contains 37,000mg of calcium.

Dogs love eggs, and they even get a beautiful coat from them. However, it is important to feed the eggs boiled or cooked. Otherwise, poisoning and digestive problems can quickly occur. Although the risk is greatly minimized by today's controls (e.g. for salmonella) in our chicken coops, better safe than sorry. Raw egg white also contains a trypsin inhibitor, which inhibits protein digestion, and avidin, which binds biotin. So from this point of view as well, it is better to heat the egg before consumption. This does not apply, however, if you only want to feed the yolk.

Egg Nudging

Of course, there should be plenty of fun at Easter too. One game that every dog is sure to enjoy is "egg nudging". You only need a regular egg and small treats. For clumsy and mischievous four-legged friends, you can hard-boil the egg beforehand to prevent any accidents.

Have your dog sit and place the egg in front of them. Place the treat underneath or in front of the egg as best as possible. To get the reward, your dog has to gently nudge the egg away with their snout. You can repeat this step a few times until you are sure they have understood the task.

At the next difficulty level, the treat is no longer under the egg, but the dog only gets it after nudging. It is important that they get the reward immediately after nudging the egg. Gradually, you can then combine the trick with the word "nudge".

In the long term, of course, you can develop the trick even further, the possibilities are endless. For example, you can build a small slalom course through which the dog nudges the egg. Or you can vary the objects – the main thing is that it can be rolled well. Dogs love being challenged, which also has a positive effect on your bond.

Cracking Eggs

Another fun activity for your dog is a soft-boiled egg in the shell. Cracking it requires skill, is fun, and sometimes also looks funny. And this "toy" also provides your dog with valuable nutrients.

Tip: Some of our four-legged friends have especially much fun throwing the egg into the air and jumping around it. Then it is often better to try this fun game outdoors or in a garden – unless spring cleaning is already on the agenda anyway.

At Easter, of course, eggs are not the only thing on the menu. But are there more "Easter traditions" that the dog is also allowed to eat? For many people, spicy, freshly grated horseradish, savory bacon, and an Easter sweet bread are just as much a part of it as the eggs. But these very foods are not recommended for our pets. The horseradish is too spicy, the bacon too savory, and the Easter sweet bread too sweet. Special caution is also required here with other "sweet bread types" such as the Carinthian Easter Reindling. Because raisins are usually processed in the dough. Raisins can lead to massive kidney failure in dogs.

For the sake of completeness, it should also be said that chocolate in any form must not be fed under any circumstances! Whether it is a chocolate egg or a chocolate bunny – anything with theobromine is forbidden. It is a neurotoxin and leads to severe poisoning in dogs.

Anyone who still wants to pamper their dog on Easter Sunday can fall back on lean, rather unseasoned ham. A piece of smoked meat is also certainly allowed once in a while. As mentioned above, the undyed Easter egg is also a special, fun surprise for your pet.

In this spirit: HAPPY EASTER AND STAY HEALTHY!