Not all human foods are good for our dogs. This is the subject of my recent article for our local magazine, Gilroy Today. My editor has graciously allowed me to reprint the article here. Bone Appetit!
I’m not sure why — if it’s because Gilroy is famous for garlic or that the smell of it being processed is so much a part of our daily lives here in Gilroy — but I am often asked about ridding pets of pesky fleas by feeding them garlic. The truth be known, I eat a clove of Christopher Ranch garlic daily for its heart and other healthful effects. However, even in small amounts, garlic and onions are not as healthful for our pets. Unfortunately, both onions and garlic do bad things to our pets’ red blood cells. And, fewer red blood cells means less oxygen for their bodies, which can be dangerous. Fortunately, there are easier ways to deal with fleas. I often recommend Advantage (topical drops) applied monthly.
Garlic is not the only healthy human food that is not good for our cats and dogs. Here’s a short list of some foods and food ingredients that have been known to cause medical problems: chocolate, bread dough, macadamia nuts, grapes and raisins, and xylitol sugarless gum sweetener. Avocados are also on many lists, but I have yet to see or hear about a dog with guacamole toxicity. I know other dogs besides my lab take any opportunity to enjoy some guacamole! Curious about this, I looked into the background for this toxicity claim. It seems two dogs suffered medical problems after eating a straight avocado diet for a year or two, in Kenya, Africa. I guess the lesson is to use common sense and not feed your pets a single food ingredient for a year.
I support giving dogs and cats healthy food and treats right out of our human diet. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this as well as testing my theories on my own pets and my patients, as many of you who are clients know. The last few years I have come to realize that all commercial foods are not universally healthy for all individual dogs and cats. I don’t have space to go into everything here, but consider how a piece of shrimp is tasty to one person, an itchy nuisance to another and downright deadly to someone who goes into anaphylactic shock. Some ingredients and preservatives in dog and cat food may cause itching, red ears, puking, diarrhea, and frenzied grass-eating nausea.
Dry skin is a common and chronic problem for many pets. If you’ve ever suffered from dry, itchy skin, you know how uncomfortable it can be. Your pets can be just as miserable, and commercial pet food may be the reason for their discomfort. It may have allergic-prone ingredients like over-processed, hormone-fed beef and wheat, or not enough of the healthy fats and oils dogs and cats need for a lustrous coat and good skin.
The good news is there’s a lot you can do to maintain your pet’s health, and many of those solutions are as close as your kitchen. For more information go to Dr. Greg’s Diet First Aid. You’ll find tips for healthy food you can prepare at home and safely share with your pet. Pet eating habits vary but pets are very adaptable and appreciative. Don’t forget that pets can be very healthy and happy with a mainly vegetable diet and just a little meat protein.
I’ve become fascinated with this subject and am so thoroughly convinced that good animal nutrition is the key to better pet health that I have written a book on the subject, Dr. Greg’s Dog Dish Diet, Sensible Nutrition for Your Dog’s Health. Copies and information are available at Gilroy Veterinary Hospital or at DogDishDiet.com.
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I didn’t know garlic was a problem. But I don’t let my dog have chocolate. This is an interesting site. Is the book coming out soon?
Yes we are in the final edit. I am really exicited about sharing my experiences. So many of our dogs suffer needlessly because common sense and nutrition have seemed to part ways about 150 years ago when kibble was invented
Garlic was found to cause a problem in quantity to a few dogs, a little seasoning shouldn’t cause problems.
I’ve just started making my own pet food, and this will be VERY helpful! Thank you!
from reading around your site – it seems that you cook your dog food? (The videos weren’t working when I was looking) When I made mine, I cooked the vegies and them put them in the processor to ease digestion, but left the meat raw. I was under the impression that the raw meats were better for dogs, and that their short digestive track made it perfectly safe. Even was told that the fats in meats were easier for them to assimilate when raw, and when cooked they were bad.
The theory goes back to them eating raw meats in the wild.
Would you mind sharing your thoughts on this subject a little more?
Peggy,
From what I have experienced it is the type of protein and grain and lack of oils and moisture in dry food that affect health more than cooking or not. If you give dogs chicken, pork, fish, rice, potato, carrot, green bean, squash and add oils(canola, olive, fish, safflower), and avoid beef wheat corn if they react to it many skin, ear, bowel, and weight problems will improve.
I give my dogs cooked and raw chicken and fish, along with raw veggies like carrots and green beans as treats
A varied diet to provide important amino acids, vitamins, and essential fatty acids is very important to them as it is to us
Because I believe so strongly about this I have dedicated the last few years to writing a nutrition book for pet owners that is understandable, informative, and hopefully fun to read. The word needs to get out there that good food can be economical and easy.
I usually use a good canned food of chicken and veggies(halo Spots Stew) or chicken and rice(costco has good brand), and duck and potato. Then I add oils and the other ingredients 3-4 times a week. Some weeks I will prepare them chicken and green beans in a crock pot. Some nights they get a raw piece of chicken or fish.I think it is very important to vary the diet, but always test a bit to make sure that they are tolerant of it. It takes some dogs a few weeks to get used to new ingredients
Thanks Dr. Greg,
I recently lost my Great Pyrenees to nose cancer that had metastasized to her lungs before we saw any symptoms (profuse nose bleeding). I started feeding my other dog home-made dog foods after that – It started as a way to spoil her because she was depressed, and not eating, but the more looking I did for recipes, the more I have found about home made foods.
Then it occurred to me that it doesn’t seem natural for dogs to be dying of human diseases. They have diabetes, and thyroid disease, and cancer – all along people had been claiming that it was because people were feeding their dogs table scraps, and people eat so bad, that the owners were making their dogs unhealthy.
But – dog food companies are run by humans, and they use ingredients that they can’t put in human food anymore because the quality is so bad. I NEVER gave my dog table scraps – strictly a dry food diet (was preached to that it would keep her teeth healthy) & a high quality brand at that. She was always overweight, and she died too young and in a gory horrible way. But, her teeth were nice.
I’ve just started, but I plan to eventually have differing blends of meats, veggies, and some grains in baggies in the freezer so that their diet stays well rounded. I’ve also started adding Olive oil, Flax meal, brewers yeast, bone meal, and co-q10.
I have just adopted another Pyr that is 9 months old, and thin as a rail (she was neglected and abused), and boy does she ever gobble up the foods I make! Some Pyrs are living to 12 & 13 now, and I would sure love it if my new one was one of them.
Peggy,
Many dogs and cats seem prone to the same diseases and health issues we are. In Michael Poulens book,”In defense of food”, he states that when indigenous populations take up western diets they become prone to more cancer, diabetes, and heart issues.
Could the high carbohydrate, dry, low omega, low antioxidant diet be doing the same thing to our pets?
Scraps or leftover that are healthy are much better and fresher than the processed ingredients available in many brands of commercial dog food.
That argument only holds water with beef, wheat, corn and other allergenic or processed ingredients