The role of salt
Table salt, chemically known as sodium chloride, is a mineral crystalline substance. Its main components, chloride ions, and sodium ions are two minerals that are essential to the animal body, and dogs are naturally no exception. The chloride ion is one of the components of hydrochloric acid in the gastric juice of dogs. Not only can stimulate the activity of pepsin in the gastric juice, but also can play a role in enhancing digestive function and sterilization.
Sodium ions are mainly found in bones, tissue fluids, and plasma and play a very important role in nerve conduction, regulating the safety level of body fluids, regulating acid-base balance, and the stability of osmotic pressure values.

I. There is no real data to support that salt in dogs is harmful

Nowadays, national pet institutions, and pet hospitals, as of now, we don't seem to have heard of any reports of any bad situations due to excessive salt consumption. And according to one institution's experiments, as long as pets are provided with plenty of clean water, pet dogs and cats are still relatively adaptable to salt, with little to no safety ceiling.
Of course, you can't grab a large amount of salt and mix it into pet food, even if you do a strong astringent feeling, pets will refuse to eat. It's like our everyday food, if we have too much salt we can't eat it either.

II. Salt explained and its effects

Table salt, chemically known as sodium chloride (NaCl), is a mineral crystalline substance. The main components, chloride ions, and sodium ions are two minerals that are essential to the animal body, and dogs are naturally no exception.

1, chloride ion is one of the components of the dog's gastric juice hydrochloric acid. Not only can stimulate the activity of pepsin in the gastric juice, but also can play a role in enhancing digestive function and sterilization.
2, sodium ions in the body of mammals are second only to calcium ions and potassium ions, accounting for 0.13% of the body weight of mammals, which are mainly present in the bones, tissue fluids, and plasma, for nerve conduction, regulation of body fluid safety levels, regulation of acid-base balance and the stability of osmotic pressure values play a very important role.
3. In addition to its mineral effects, salt can also improve the palatability of daily dog food and promote your dog's appetite.

Three: How too much salt is bad for your dog

The most important thing for dogs is salt, but we all understand that "what goes around comes around", and even if we consume too much salt regularly, it will affect our health. So, if the dog has consumed too much salt, what are the hazards?
1, the tear ducts are too developed, stimulating the tear ducts
The intake of too much salt will make the dog's tear glands too developed, thus increasing the secretion of tears, leaving deep tear marks in the corner of the dog's eye socket, not only damaging the dog's face, but the situation may also induce eye disease if serious. So when the dog appears with tear marks, the owner should promptly take the dog to the vet for eye cleaning care, and adjust the daily diet to a light focus.

2, anorexia
Long-term consumption of food with too much salt will make the dog also become "heavy", and over time the dog will feel the taste of dog food becomes bland and tasteless, and thus choose to refuse to eat.

3, the loss of calcium elements in the body
Dogs' bodies only have sweat glands on the soles of their feet, so no matter how hot it is, we never see dogs sweating. Then the dog daily salt out of the body is through what method? That's right, urine. When a dog consumes too much salt, the number of urination will increase, and calcium ions will be excreted along with the excess salt when it is excreted.

4, the dog appears kidney failure
Food with high salt content will make the kidneys in a long-term "three high" (high pressure, high perfusion, and high filtration) state of work, thus increasing the burden on the kidneys and accelerating kidney failure. Once the dog's kidney failure occurs, it is irreversible.

IV. What happens when dogs don't eat salt

Dogs We've talked a lot about the dangers of excessive salt, so is it possible that we can rest easy if we don't let our dogs eat salt? The answer is of course no. The author wrote above about the positive effects of the elements chlorine and sodium in salt on the animal organism, so the dangers are just as great if we don't give our dogs salt.
1, there is dehydration, weakness
The sodium ion produced by salt melting water can regulate the water balance in body fluids, salt deficiency will cause the loss of water in the body that can not be stored, along with the loss of some trace elements in the body, resulting in dog dehydration, depression, weakness fainting situation.

2, the emergence of osteoporosis
Salt deficiency is one of the main causes of osteoporosis symptoms in dogs, if the dog's blood does not have enough salt, then they will draw salt from the bones, the lack of salt in the bones will reduce bone density, making the dog bone pain, very easy to fracture.

3, growth slowdown, or even stagnation
Salt is a necessary substance for metabolism in the dog's body, if there is no salt intake, the metabolic progress of the dog's body will slow down, thus affecting the normal growth and development of the dog, and bringing great potential risks to the later health.

What are the benefits of salt for dogs?
1銆丒nhance appetite
In addition to its mineral effects, salt can also improve the palatability of daily dog food and promote the appetite of dogs.

2, sterilization and disinfection
Chloride ion is one of the components of the hydrochloric acid of the dog's gastric juice. Not only can it stimulate the activity of pepsin in gastric juice, but it can also play a role in enhancing digestive function and sterilization.

V. Just how much salt is right for your dog

Indeed, salt intake should not be too high, much less in the extreme case of no salt at all. So how much salt should a dog eat each day? The daily salt intake of dogs can be calculated according to their weight, if a 10KG dog, the daily salt intake should not be greater than 1g, maybe you pooper scoopers have no idea about 1g of salt, make a comparison the daily salt intake of dogs is 1/6 of the human, cut not our taste to measure the food that dogs eat, for us the salty moderate or slightly light food, for the dog is too salty. Dogs are too salty

Cautions.
1, depending on the choice of dog food supplemental salt
If the feeding is the purchase of dog food, then there is no need for additional supplemental salt, because the dog food contains salt, enough for the dog's daily needs of salt to maintain normal body functions. If it is homemade dog food, you need to add the right amount of salt according to the amount of food.

2, to ensure that the daily supply of sufficient water
Whether for the prevention of excessive salt intake of dogs need water relief, or for the normal bodily functions of dogs, water is essential, as the saying goes, "water is the source of life".