"human" food or dog food?
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I don't think the occasional piece of pizza crust is going to do any harm, but obviously don't overdo it. Dogs evolved as scavengers, and up until fairly recently they mostly got by on table scraps before someone had the brilliant idea of telling us we had to only feed "scientifically balanced" meals to our canine friends. Funny, it is acceptable to feed your children fast food garbage, but God forbid you should feed your pet anything that isn't "veterinarian approved" (most vets know diddly squat about nutrition…...they get a short course provided by guess who? The dog food companies!)
"People" food is fine, IMHO, but beware the known toxic items. Most people know about chocolate, but some aren't aware that raisins and grapes can be dangerous. My Basenjis have always loved most vegetables and fruits, and popcorn is also a favourite. But I feed a good quality dog food for convenience (NRG dehydrated) and supplement with veggies when I am cooking. :)
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.. feed good food that only you yourself would eat. I agree with eggs, tuna, chicken, etc as noted by Buddys Pal…. and many veggies... and/or fruits...
Uhm, well, at my house the rule is I only feed my dogs human food that I should be eating. :rolleyes: Like tonight Zest really, really, really wanted a bite of the homemade peach/blueberry cobbler. But I gave her garden fresh zucchini instead. :p
Yes, I suffer for my pups. -
A lot of the food that people reccomend are just not available in this small area.
You can always order it online, often at a cheaper price and often without any shipping charges. That's what I do when we're in Arizona during the winter since we live out in the middle of nowhere and the closest stores with premium dog food are 120+ miles away. Even when we're in Spokane during the summer, I more often than not order online because 1) The food I use is often cheaper than what I can buy at a store here and 2) I don't have to pay Washington State sales tax of around 8.7%.
The place I order from is PetFlow.com, although there are other, similar, places. Order over a certain dollar amount and the shipping is free, or only $4.99 if you can't meet their minimum dollar requirement for free shipping. You can also arrange for repeat shipments, but it's not a requirement.
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Uhm, well, at my house the rule is I only feed my dogs human food that I should be eating. :rolleyes: Like tonight Zest really, really, really wanted a bite of the homemade peach/blueberry cobbler. But I gave her garden fresh zucchini instead. :p
Yes, I suffer for my pups.A "bite" of the cobbler would not have hurt her - wonderful if she likes fruit - mine totally turn their noses up at fruit - Shaye likes green veggies and carrots, Gemma merely tolerates them because her "sister" is eating them so she must do so, but does like cooked sweet potato.:rolleyes:
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My guy likes carrots so well I can use them as a training reward. :) I carry one in my pocket and bite off little pieces for him, as needed. (I think he acquired his taste for them because he likes to steal them from the horses. Basenjis think anything meant for someone else is great!)
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My dogs eat everything. They aren't too big on carrots though, I used to use them when they went into their crates…..so now apparently they have an aversion to them. But my dogs love broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers (they hear you cut a cucumber and they race to get there), strawberries, watermelon(another FAVE). I have a strawberry patch in my back yard that is fenced in with the dogs. Becca goes and picks her own strawberries (just the ripe ones) when I am away at work.
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@Shaye's:
A "bite" of the cobbler would not have hurt her - wonderful if she likes fruit - mine totally turn their noses up at fruit - Shaye likes green veggies and carrots, Gemma merely tolerates them because her "sister" is eating them so she must do so, but does like cooked sweet potato.:rolleyes:
Oh, no, I think it's best if I safely dispose of the cobbler myself. ;)
In other news, Z is not sure about cantalope
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My guy's absolute favourite is probably tomato. He has been known to "baroo" for it, when I was making a salad. He also loves whatever berries we are having on our cereal. Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and also peaches if I am cutting them up. Not interested in bananas, however. My girls liked them, and also oranges. Of course, everyone has enjoyed broccoli, green peppers, asparagus, peas, beans, most any vegetable on offer. We're vegetarian, so it's a good thing he loves his veggies! :)
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Oh, no, I think it's best if I safely dispose of the cobbler myself. ;)
In other news, Z is not sure about cantalope
Shaking my head. I don't know what is wrong with our fellow poster to not have gotten the importance of you protecting your dog, and OMG THE SACRIFICE!!!, by eating that yourself. <snicker>I too sometimes take the bullet for the dogs by not giving them any lobster or food that I feel dangerous for them to have.</snicker>
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I always shake my head when people suggest "human food" isn't good for dogs. The dog food industry hoodwinked us fast on that one. Kibble is new, not even 100 yrs ago few types were made and few folks fed it. Dogs ate scraps, they hunted, they survived. I am not saying kibble isn't great, especially if you buy the top brands with the best ingredients. What blows my mind is often the same saying people food is bad won't often bat an eye at someone feeding Ol' Roy or Kennel Ration.
It takes thousands of years for things to change even a little bit on the molecular basis. Dogs have eaten REAL food from the beginning of their development. A good balance of their diet doesn't have to be more complicated than feeding your kids or self balanced meals. I am far too lazy to cook for my dogs unless one is sick (and then we're talking bland starch/protein ie rice/chicken etc). But their love of raw meaty bones is almost a primitive joy and again, feed fresh and they are fine for the most part. Want to cook your own food, get a nutritionist recipe or guideline and go for it.
But… many years ago I read a vet's article on sharing bites of your food with your pet. He said not only was it okay, but he felt important. He said in days of old dogs ran free and partook of a wide range of things, not all of them good. Dogs today confined and our keeping them on one food all the time had to be boring for a creature with such developed senses. He said not only sharing a variety (small bites) of YOUR food would give your dog happiness, it also helped their digestive systems to accommodate variety. Being long before the internet, just a newspaper opinion piece, I can't tell you for sure he was right. But it feels right and at no point in my entire life were family dogs as a child or dogs now denied some table food. (Unless it's lobster, especially dipped in butter, or such dangerous foods.)
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I once had a pup under treatment at the Bristol Veterinary hospital. When they finally sorted the problem I was told now you'll be able to give him real food meaning kibble!1
I always feed raw and whatever but never complete dog food. Having said that it seems that over here we get a new dog food manufactutrer every month and all claim that theirs is the best!!
