# Calcium free grit



## Farmer Lee (Jul 13, 2012)

Anyone know of a brand of grit that contains no calcium? 

I have to halt the calcium because it binds to tetracycline ... but I can't halt grit for that long!

I actually went to my friends granite shop today and pounded a chunk of granite into grit and it worked fine and the pigeons took it fine... but it was a lot of work for a little amount.


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## nancybird (Jan 30, 2011)

I have not heard of calcium free grit.I always get the kind with as many minerals that I can find.Have you tried contacting a vets office that deals with birds maybe they could make a suggestion on a brand low in calcium or calcium free?


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## sreeshs (Aug 16, 2009)

Red bricks, laterite, can be also used as grit. Might affect the poop colour.


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## abluechipstock (Nov 26, 2010)

there's poultry grit at tractor supply that is crushed granite


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## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

You can hold off on grit for the duration of the antibiotic treatment. It won't hurt them.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Yes, just pull the grit. It isn't going to hurt them. I always pull it while giving the med. We have hard water which contains calcium in it, so I use distilled while giving the med. If your water is hard, you should consider that.


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## nancybird (Jan 30, 2011)

Jays got a good point there.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

I agree, hold off on the grit. If the birds have had a good enough supply prior to treatment then the week or so they are without should not cause any harm or ill - health.

I recently treated with turbosole, I am unsure if you can give them grit with that or not but for the five days they had the treatment I took it away. They had young in the nest and even the young did fine even though they tend to need more grit to help digest the masses amount of food that pumps through them each day.


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## hamlet (Oct 26, 2004)

I have heard of glass as grid for some other fowl. My chickens ate it, no problems. I agree about witholding the grit.


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## george simon (Feb 28, 2006)

Farmer Lee said:


> Anyone know of a brand of grit that contains no calcium?
> 
> I have to halt the calcium because it binds to tetracycline ... but I can't halt grit for that long!
> 
> I actually went to my friends granite shop today and pounded a chunk of granite into grit and it worked fine and the pigeons took it fine... but it was a lot of work for a little amount.


 Hi FARMER LEE, How long will your birds be on Tetracycline,if 5-7 days just pull the grit and a day after the birds come off the meds put the grit back in the loft. ..GEORGE


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## nancybird (Jan 30, 2011)

Hi George how are your birds doing?


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

hamlet said:


> I have heard of glass as grid for some other fowl. My chickens ate it, no problems. I agree about witholding the grit.


Glass can and does kill many birds that eat it. That's a terrible idea.


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

hamlet said:


> I have heard of glass as grid for some other fowl. My chickens ate it, no problems. I agree about witholding the grit.


Your chickens will bleed internally.


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## hamlet (Oct 26, 2004)

I can not tell about internal bleeding, but they have been alive for more than three years. Funny thing: the ordinary bottle glass come out looking like crystal that has been ground smooth. Even the sharp corners are gone. These chickens are not the bantams, and I did not force them to pick up glass, I just watched them do it, and later found the jewls in the dry poop.


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## thepigeonkey (Oct 12, 2011)

Thats crazy! There is glass in sand (silica) but I don't think broken bottles are good.


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## Msfreebird (Sep 23, 2007)

Farmer Lee said:


> Anyone know of a brand of grit that contains no calcium?
> 
> I have to halt the calcium because it binds to tetracycline ... but I can't halt grit for that long!
> 
> I actually went to my friends granite shop today and pounded a chunk of granite into grit and it worked fine and the pigeons took it fine... but it was a lot of work for a little amount.


You can hold of on grit while treating. I had to treat for 30 days this spring with tetracycline and they were fine. I have sand in my flight cage and noticed they were picking at that.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Well glass will also cut the insides of a bird before being ground smooth. That would take a lot of grinding. I rescued a pigeon who did the same thing. It caused a blockage, and cut up the insides of the bird, who did die. Common sense would tell you that sharp glass would be bad for birds to eat.


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## nancybird (Jan 30, 2011)

Broken bottles will be very bad for your birds.I would be very concerned if my doves ingested glass.


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