Plaster of Paris as a Calcium Supplement!?

[Laura]

I was on a FB page and people were asking about Calcium and what to use. I went with Cuttle bone and we discussed Egg shells as well. But one person, who has been inthe Biz for Years, said they used Plaster of Paris...! so.. I googled it.. love google.. and found this article: http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/calcium.htm

Here is what they say On P of P: Turtle Blocks

One form of calcium supplement often sold in pet stores is known as “turtle blocks”. These are mostly made of Plaster of Paris (calcium sulfate hemi-hydrate) combined with calcium carbonate, often in a 50-50 combination. Plaster of Paris itself contains almost no useable calcium, and is merely used to adhere the block into shape. Weight-for-weight, therefore, “turtle blocks” contain 50% or less calcium carbonate, of which, in turn, only 40% may be bioavailable. There are also concerns over heavy metal contamination in gypsum, from which Plaster of Paris is derived. This is not a form of calcium supplementation that we therefore recommend.

Very interesting Article.

 

[Madkins007]

In the old days of turtle keeping- just after 'death islands' were popular, it was pretty common to put blocks of plaster of Paris in the tank, along with a chunk of copper tubing (to boost copper content, of course).

But, of course, plaster of Paris was never meant to be or packaged as a dietary supplement. It has all sorts of nasties in it, much like bags of lime from the garden store. Sure, it is almost all calcium carbonate, but you can get nice, pure stuff so easily and cheaply there is no reason to put the animals at ANY risk with this stuff.