Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Recently, I purchased a calcium product called ABSOLUTE Calcium. Some of you probably also use this. On the container it states that it contains Equisetem hyemale which is Scouring-Rush Horsetail. I became alarmed after finding a website (http://web.fccj.org/~dbyres/horsetail/horsetail2.htm, among others)that says:

"Horsetails are poisonous to horses and while it is said to be poisonous to livestock in general, sheep and cattle are reported to be less affected than horses. All parts of the plant, fresh or dried, are toxic."

If ALL parts of the plant are toxic, than how can ABSOLUTE calcium be safe for our reptiles?
Is it just poisonous to horses and nothing else? How can that be?

Also, this product contains Avena Sativa, which I found out is used as a sexual desire (libido) enhancer. Why do our lizards need this?

I'm not going to use this product anymore until I get some answers. I tried e-mailing the company but the address does not exist. Kinda fishy to me, not to mention they only had 2 testimonials on their website (http://www.absolutecalcium.com/).

Jessica

I dont know where this information came from and I guess you can find anything you want to hear on the internet, but I can assure you that the type of horse tail that is in Absolute Calcium is not toxic. It is high in organic silica which is what gives the skin its elasticity. The egg shell of reptile eggs are very high in silica. I gave my pregnant daugher a formula which contained a much higher amount of horse tail than absolute calcium does. She took it from day one and untill the delivery with no ill effect. The proof is in the pudding. Absolute calcium has and will reverse the effects of the lack of calcium when all other forms have failed. No other forms of calcium can or will make this statement. It has only been available for a short time and most people are slow to change from the popular brand, but those who have used absolute calcium on reptiles that need calcium bad know there is nothing like it any where at any price. We went through the same thing with Parazap in the beginning. We expected to run into the same misinformation with absolute calcium as we did with Parazap and with the same out come- that being that it is a far superior product to anything else available. Val Newell

Sorry, just had an after thought. I do not want to get into a huge debate here but consider this...if you have tried other forms of calcium and your reptile still has problems then try the absolute calcium. If a reptile has a hard time assimilating calcium but readily assimilates absolute calcium wouldn't that tell you that the absolute calcium is the easiest form of calcium to assimilate? I have said this before when there was big debates on Parazap-results are what we are after and we want the best for our reptiles so use your own judgement and common sense.

I have 6 adult dragon, 1 juvie and a veiled Cham. I've been using Absolute Calcium for about 2 years, maybe longer. All my dragons are thriving.
Val is an expert herbalist, the advancements that he has made with the creation of Parazap speaks for itself. Before Parazap, there was nothing we could do except them give them meds that were very hard on their livers and destroyed gut flora. I trust him and his products ...and so do my beardies.
IMO, val deserves some sort of beardie humanitarium award.
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www.classylizard.com

Is Absolute Calcium made by the same people that make Absolute Vodka? (just joking..just couldn't resist though, sorry)

Absolutely...lol
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www.classylizard.com

WHAT WOULD A DRUNKIN BEARDIE ACT LIKE ?
WHAT WOULD HE DO?

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH A DRUNKIN SAILOR, WHAT DO YOU DO WITH A DRUNKIN SAILOR ETC ETC ETC