Holiday Dog Food – The Good and The Bad

Just plain dog food kibble, especially the same kind of dog kibble every day can get a little boring. Since we love our dogs so much, we tend to give them a special treat during the holidays. Usually something from the more than fabulous holiday dinner being prepared to share with friends and family.

The truth of the matter is a little “real” food isn’t a bad thing for your dog. Most commercial dog food is REALLY scary and knowing the facts on some premium dog foods quickly explains why our dogs are getting fat, acquiring health problems and dying younger.

That being said, not all food good for humans is good for the dog either. In fact there are some very common foods that can be harmful, even deadly to our dogs’ long and short term health.

Because these foods are so common and many of them a good healthy choice for humans yet not well known to be harmful or toxic for dogs here is a list to help spread the word to dog lovers. *Send this article to all your dog people friends so they know!

• Turkey Skin – Tis the season for this food item in most households. A little turkey for the dog. What a great idea. Just remove the skin first. Turkey skin is known to cause pancreatitis dogs.
• Bones – Cooked bones can be a real problem for your dog. Small or large they become brittle once cooked, causing the bone to splitter and lodge in the throat or even worse yet the intestines. Bad news. Uncooked larger soup bones are not a bad thing for the dog and can be gotten from your local store meat counter.
• Grapes/Raisins – This is one that is not commonly known and surprises most dog owners. This fruit is extremely toxic to dogs. Grapes and raisins contain an unknown toxin and as little as a handful can cause kidney failure in dogs.
• Nuts – Macadamia nuts are known to cause tremors, weakness or paralysis in the hindquarters or your dog. The good thing it isn’t deadly and the symptoms wear off after a short while, still not a good thing even short term. Walnuts are considered poisonous to dogs and can cause gastroenteritis.
• Chocolate – Bakers chocolate or dark chocolate contains the substance Theobromine. The substance is similar to caffeine and is described as poisonous for dogs but the most common toxic effect is heart attack.
• Nutmeg – Is a hallucinogen in dogs. Some may have the thought cross their mind… “cool”…. However your dog might not think the altered state is that cool really!

Enjoy your holidays. Get some exercise with your dog, and drink lots of water.

©Jt Clough and K9Coach, Inc. www.SitK9Sit.com www.GoTrainYourDog.com

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