# Chelated Minerals - Any thoughts?



## EmmaRoo (Apr 3, 2016)

There are many things I love about VeRus dog food so I visit their website frequently. One of the things that caught my attention was the term “chelated minerals”. First of all, I pronounced it wrong, calling it chell-ated instead of key-lated. Once I saw the correct pronunciation on Wikipedia, I remember that my favorite uncle used to undergo chelation. I looked up the process of chelation and almost immediately my eyes glazed over. When used for medical reasons – like removing heavy metals from the human body – it gets a little complicated and very technical. I kept researching and found an article on dogfoodadvisor.com. They simplified it for me. Chelation is the process of bonding some ions (minerals) to other ions to accomplish a goal – in this case, to improve the absorption of minerals during digestion.
According to the dogfoodadvisor.com article, chelation is both expensive (to perform) and incredibly valuable to a dog’s digestion. They even go on to say that if you are shopping for good dog food, chelated minerals is a sign that you are looking at a quality product.
Yippee! I love it when I get confirmation on a suspicion! Of course, I didn’t need to outside confirmation that VeRus is a quality dog food. My dogs already told me how much they love it. And their energy levels and lack of itchiness clearly illustrate the benefits of this dog food. 
One final thing (today) I found today that I loved. In the first section of the discussion “Why VeRus” on their webpage, they say that the best diet you can feed your dog is a home-prepared diet. I just like that kind of affirmation. It’s giving a lot of credit to people who have the time to make their own dog food. They then go on to say that if you aren’t comfortable with the idea of making your own food and would like a nutritionist-formulated food, they “invite” us to try their food. INVITE! How humble! And polite!!
Great dog food! Wonderful customer service! Politeness!


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## Dr Dolittle (Aug 2, 2013)

EMmaRoo, You are such a great cheerleader I will have to check out their website! MY own experience of what I have heard from the experts might differ a little though. HArdly an expert in this area but I think of it this way. minerals all have their own digestibility for the dog. they also act on each other. in other words, too much calcium depletes phosphorus, too much calcium depletes zinc, which could make a black coat turn red, etc. To balance all those micronutrients in a diet is no easy task. I would suggest very few companies have the ability to manage such optimal levels consistently in a kibble, but you hope and pray they do. NOw chelation improves the absorption of these minerals. great, but different substances work at different levels on different minerals so you need to adjust to that and you still have quite a touch job that may be even more complicated. WHy not just use the correct, natural amount of each mineral and let the body absorb naturally? WHy spend the extra money? AGain, I don't have a problem with chelation but my main concern is does the food company have the chemists on staff to formulate it right and the ability to maintain and test those levels in the food. minerals, or should I say the imbalance/excessive levels really come into play once the dog is over 7 and age related issues increase in risk.


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## EmmaRoo (Apr 3, 2016)

It's true that any label can read almost anything. You have to have confidence in the manufacturer's honesty and their pledge to meet or exceed the standard. In this instance - due to the huge differences I've seen in my own dogs - I HAVE confidence in VeRus. I believe (based on my observations) that they chelate/proteinate to ensure optimal absorption. Apparently, chelation can improve absorption by up to 300-500% efficiency over inorganic mineral oxides.


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