"Real" Food that are ok to feed dogs

[NS]

Hi, I was wondering if there is a list of foods on DK that some started that lists foods that are ok to give our dogs?  I tried giving our puppy yogurt and he threw up a few hours later, I mentioned this to our local pet store and she was horrified that I would give my puppy yogurt.  I know many of you regularly give your dogs yogurt for the probiotics and pumpkin for the fiber. Are there any other "clean, nutritious" foods that you give your dog?? 

Thanks!! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Andrea, there are hundreds of dogs with all kinds of health issues who are/were fed prey model raw diets. Some right here on DK. The diets didn't cause the diseases, but they didn't prevent them or cure them either. And that's not anecdotal, I will be happy to give you their names privately and let them tell you themselves what they were feeding. No doubt you will tell them they did it wrong. Maybe they snuck a piece of carrot in there by mistake, God forbid, and that caused their dogs to develop Addison's disease and Hip Dysplasia.

Don't you dare try to make this personal. It's a discussion about food; it has nothing to do with me, or with anyone here thinking for themselves. Unlike you, I do NOT proselytize or tell people what they should or shouldn't do unless they ask me, even though, also unlike you, nutrition was my field.

Anyone who thinks that a flea knows the difference between a healthy animal and an unhealthy animal is not someone who is worth debating about anything having to do with health or science.

Have a wonderful night.

 

 

[Jen and Annie]

Pottenger study aside (cats are still carnivores), what dog or wolf or other carnivore is going to pick up a pot or pan and seek a fire or heat source to cook their food before they eat it? Or shape it with various other ingredients into a cracker like pellet?  I have no issues with people that feed kibble - do what works for you.  My dogs don't have fleas - I dont know if i'm just lucky or if the diet has anything to do with it, but at any rate - Do what works for you - raw, kibble, home cooked.  I truly was not trying to start another heated debate of raw vs kibble - I really was just replying to the original posters request... I'm sure there are other nutritious ways to feed your dog - raw is cheap and easy for me, and my dogs are healthy so I stick with it.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

But what does that have to do with feeding our dogs? I don't eat the way my ancestors did, either. I  eat better. And my life expectancy is a lot longer than theirs was.

If we're going to use "dogs in the wild" as a model for how we should care  for our dogs, I guess we can all save a lot of time and money. Throw out  the bursh, the clippers, the shampoo. Dogs in the wild don't get haircuts,  either. They don't get brushed, they don't get bathed, they don't get their  nails trimmed, they don't walk on leashes, they don't sleep on nice beds  indoors, and they don't live as long as our domestic dogs do. They are  not models of health. They get fleas and parasites and they get sick, too.  Have you ever seen photos of dogs in the wild? Not pictures of  health.

And when wild dogs have the chance, they eat anything and everything. And  they like convenience just as much as we do. With all the rabbits running around  my neighborhood, the coyotes always go for people's garbage, lol. JD has picked  up baby rabbits from their nests and set them back down again.So  much for that prey drive.

Our dogs were never in the wild. Their parents and great-grandparents and  great-great-grandparents were never in the wild. Why insist on feeding them as  if they were? There are things about a raw diet that make a lot of sense, but  doing it just because "that's what dogs in the wild eat" just doesn't make  sense.

Some years back, there was a group of standard poodles and doodles that was  dumped by a BYB out in the middle of nowhere on the Illinois/Missouri  border. IDOG ended up saving them after they were brought to a local kill  shelter. When animal control picked them up, some of the dogs had died and  the others were cannibalizing them. I saw the photos. That's what dogs  in the wild eat. Is that the model we want to follow with our own dogs?

Whole grains are great food for most people, I'm sure no one would  disagree with that. But we couldn't eat that in the in the wild,  either. Our ancestors thousands of years ago couldn't eat it. It has to be  processed, and it has to be cooked. Humans can't eat corn or oats or barley as  it grows. Does that mean we shouldn't be eating grains either?   

It just doesn;t make sense to say that because this is what my ancestors ate  or didn;t eat thousands of years ago, I should do the same, and it doesn;t  make sense to me that we should feed our pets that way either. If I fed raw, I'd  do it for the benefits to the teeth, or some other reason that has a  demonstrable benefit. Or just because I wanted to.

I am really sorry that a simple question about yogurt and what fresh foods  are safe to feed to dogs has led to all this

 

[Chelsie]

I would be a very sad human if I only ate what I needed! I must have a Reese's here and there! My dogs go nuts for peanut butter. We are on the same wave link for sure! Of course I only get a Reese's on occasion and my dogs only get peanut butter on occasion, but those are our special treats!

[Jennifer and Jack]

Karen you are one of the smartest people I know when it comes to nutrition... You are always able to back what you say with scientific evidence. Thank you for all you do..

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Jen. I try. :)

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

I steam carrots and broccoli for Cooper, she has them every day with raw meat. She LOVES it, and thankfully she does not get broccoli-gas! she also loves unsweetened apple sauce, canned pumpkin, fresh green beans from the garden, sweet potato. I dont give her yoghurt or cheese as she doesnt do well with dairy (neither do i!). I also give her and the cats canned fish, turkey, and pork - just make sure you get the unsalted kind.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I love seeing the variety of different kinds of foods people are feeding! Applesauce is a new one for me, although i know many dogs love apples.

JD is basically a carnivore as far as his tastes in food go, but the one plant food he goes crazy for is lima beans! They are all so different!

[F, Calla & Luca]

Calla loves apples, Luca does not.

[Adina P]

Rosco and Boca both show up begging when they hear an apple get cut...or a carrot...or broccoli...or when Rosco smells water falling on asparagus...or pretty much anything that is food.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Same here with the apples. A favorite for my picky eater. Yum yum

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Oh boy... here's what I can think of that Luna eats.  She doesn't discriminate much and will try just about anything at least once.

Regular samples (She's allowed to have 1-2 pieces/licks of these if I'm chopping/preparing them and she knows it!)

- Fresh veggies - Cucumber, bell peppers, celery, carrots, raw spinach, potatoes, sweet potatoes, kale

- Fresh fruits - Bananas, apples, pears, plums, nectarines, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, mango

- Other: Cereal (usually Cheerios), oatmeal, apple sauce

Occasional treats: (Maybe 1-2 times a week and only in small amounts)

Peanuts (or peanut butter), samples of what's for dinner (assuming it's safe - latest was spicy pasta noodles with sauce), other nuts (so far she's tried cashews, walnuts and almonds), dried fruits, cheese

Things Luna has sampled but decided she doesn't like:

- Lemons, Romaine lettuce, green bell peppers, green beans