I used to feed my doggy poison. :D

[Jazi]

I suppose it depends on the "human food" though. My father feeds our dogs banana slices, apple slices, and some other healthy fruits at least once or twice a day.

"Healthy" fruits in what context? Dogs are carnivores, we're omnivores. They don't need the same things as us. So many people believe that if we can digest it, so can dogs, if it's good for us, it's good for dogs, etc. That's not the case at all. And the quotes about corn being digestible in humans and causing fewer food allergies, that's a laugh. After having two dogs with severe allergies to corn and being told by multiple breeders and animal nutritionists that corn is one of the worst things to feed dogs and even herbivores such as cows (cows grow fatter on corn, but are healthier on more "grassy" grains, farmers feed them corn to beef them up which is NOT healthy for the cow), I'm willing to bet they just fell into the trap of "if we can eat it so can they". By the way, corn syrup isn't even good for HUMANS to eat, and we're omnivores. How are things such as apples and bananas healthy for a carnivore, an animal that benefits nearly primarily from meat?

This isn't to say that your dogs will die or even grow three heads if you feed them a banana slice. Heck, Mocha's (lab/chow/golden/???) not food motivated but she'll do almost anything for some baby carrots. I liken it to candy and cake for us. Super tasty and certainly a lot of people eat a lot of it with little to no adverse effects (except maybe getting fat, but even then that depends on metabolism and exercise), it's even good as a treat every once in a while. But that doesn't make it healthier than a full meal that provides all of our required nutrients.

Let's put it this way. Some of the healthiest people in the world are athletes, right? Do you think an olympic swimmer eats pizza all day every day? No, they'd eat foods to keep them slim and fit and keep an exercise regimen to give them the muscle tone and strength they need for optimal performance. Same with a dog; the dogs that do the really strenuous work are usually some of the healthiest dogs out there because they're fed high quality food made from mostly meat sources (or are on a raw diet) and kept up with some nice training to keep them lean and strong. The fat lab down the road might make it to 16 and only suffer some expected arthritis as an adult, but it'll never be as healthy as one of those dogs.

[Junsui]

Occasional fruits still boost their health, it's not like its the only thing they eat. *shrug*

[Jazi]

Again, how does a carnivore benefit from being fed plants? Many people will argue that the optimal diet for a carnivore is made of meat, organs, and bone. Others will say that carnivores do benefit from the very little plant matter they'd digest when eating the stomach and intestines of their prey, but do not require more and certainly not in as large amounts as people feed their dogs.

It's just like for cats, who are obligate carnivores and have a much harder time digesting any plant matter, but pet food companies will advertise that they have "full servings of fruits and vegetables". Umm, what? Cats don't need 8 servings of plants per day, they're not kids, they're carnivores and would get all the "fruits and vegetables" they need if they ate mice and birds instead of cat food.

[Lupen]

Hey, can I feed my dog a raw, boneless skinless chicken breast every once and awhile? (I'd like to get maybe some turkey, or a whole chicken, bones and all eventually, but right now all I have is the chicken breast) I can't do a strict raw diet right now but I'd still love to treat her to something healthy. I read it can upset their stomach if they eat both kibble and raw, so would maybe three hours between the raw meat and the kibble be enough time? or should I just feed her one or the other in a day? If that made any sense >< I've asked on another site, but sense I know you guys are pretty experienced as well I thought it wouldn't hurt to post here too.

[IAmLink]

It is possible to do a partial raw diet, however keep the amounts of raw meat low otherwise it could mess with their systems. It does not matter exactly when they eat it, if you feed too much it would still give them loose stools. However it is definitely possible to give raw every so often. If your dog tolerates raw meat well, then you can give it a bit more often (though do not give too much because if you give meat too often, you're going to need to start adding organs and bone to make the diet balanced). But if your dog's stomach is not very strong, it may be a better idea to hold off the raw feeding unless you can completely switch the diet over.

Just make sure that, if you do feed any type of raw food like chicken, the meat must not be enhanced. Most of the meat you find in normal grocery stores is enhanced because it is for human consumption and they enhance the meat to keep it fresher longer.

Edit: This is a good starting point:

http://dogster.com/forums/Raw_Food_Diet/thread/743967

[HeartOfCoal]

Occasional fruits still boost their health, it's not like its the only thing they eat. *shrug*

Since I don't want to quote the ginormously long rant, I figured I'd just say Junsui is right. Fruits and veggies are beneficial to a dog's health. My proof. Could this be wrong? Yes. However, I think I'm going to believe them over you, Jazi. So please, before you shoot someone down, kindly do your research. I've talked to my vet about it earlier today, and he said there is nothing wrong with giving dogs fruits and veggies, as long as they aren't harmful (such as grapes, though my dog eats them fresh off our vines and so far hasn't been harmed. However, I highly don't suggest feeding your dog any seeing as how mine only got ahold of the grapes because she broke into our garden.) It can help your dog more than you think.

Now, I could have misunderstood the argument, and if I did then I apologize. But from what I read, I don't think so. I'm going to leave the argument after this, so if you have any interest in replying, please note that I most likely will not see it.

[antarct1ca]

My mother always feeds my dog Pro Plan. What Is exactly bad about this particular brand?

[IAmLink]

Occasional fruits still boost their health, it's not like its the only thing they eat. *shrug*

Since I don't want to quote the ginormously long rant, I figured I'd just say Junsui is right. Fruits and veggies are beneficial to a dog's health. My proof. Could this be wrong? Yes. However, I think I'm going to believe them over you, Jazi. So please, before you shoot someone down, kindly do your research. I've talked to my vet about it earlier today, and he said there is nothing wrong with giving dogs fruits and veggies, as long as they aren't harmful (such as grapes, though my dog eats them fresh off our vines and so far hasn't been harmed. However, I highly don't suggest feeding your dog any seeing as how mine only got ahold of the grapes because she broke into our garden.) It can help your dog more than you think.

Now, I could have misunderstood the argument, and if I did then I apologize. But from what I read, I don't think so. I'm going to leave the argument after this, so if you have any interest in replying, please note that I most likely will not see it.

I don't believe that Jazi's intention was to say that fruits/vegetables were harmful (because they are not, save for a few kinds), but more that they are not necessary so long as you meet the other demands of a dog's natural diet. Sure, you can still give them to your dog as a snack or treat if they like them, but they are not absolutely necessary to their diet.

[Ourpawprints]

I'm in the possess of switching my dogs to raw. So I'm giving them some kibble with some of the raw food in it. But my dogs, the moment they saw food that looked far tastier then the kibble they'd been having they ate it in a matter of seconds. Then my little girl started backward breathing (sometimes little dogs will make little weird noises when they eat far too fast) and I was wondering, now that I'm switching them how can I get them to eat slower? They obviously prefer raw food but I don't want them to get health problems for eating too fast. (not sure if this exactly belongs here, I dunno has to do with raw feeding)

[Jazi]

Occasional fruits still boost their health, it's not like its the only thing they eat. *shrug*

Since I don't want to quote the ginormously long rant, I figured I'd just say Junsui is right. Fruits and veggies are beneficial to a dog's health. My proof. Could this be wrong? Yes. However, I think I'm going to believe them over you, Jazi. So please, before you shoot someone down, kindly do your research. I've talked to my vet about it earlier today, and he said there is nothing wrong with giving dogs fruits and veggies, as long as they aren't harmful (such as grapes, though my dog eats them fresh off our vines and so far hasn't been harmed. However, I highly don't suggest feeding your dog any seeing as how mine only got ahold of the grapes because she broke into our garden.) It can help your dog more than you think.

Now, I could have misunderstood the argument, and if I did then I apologize. But from what I read, I don't think so. I'm going to leave the argument after this, so if you have any interest in replying, please note that I most likely will not see it.

While you said you might not see it, I'd like to point out two things. One, Animal Planet is not an end-all to discussions and has been wrong in the information they give on multiple occasions. You wouldn't believe how many times their Dogs 101 show has given very incorrect information about the breeds (for instance, saying that pits snap, showing a GSD in a picture for the Malinois, not giving the full side of the story on why the asian spitz breeds are considered aggressive, etc), their Swamp Wars show has pulled small snake species such as Rats, Corns, and Ball Pythons out of people's homes and stated that they could grow to be 8+ft long monsters and eat people (none of those species gets past 6ft, and even reaching THAT is noteworthy... most are around 3-4ft, and there is no current snake species that can eat an adult). Give me an actual scientific journal saying that plants are beneficial to a dog's health.

Second, I said no where that some fruits and vegetables (so long as they are simpler to digest [no corn, no grains] and not toxic [no grapes, no onions]) occasionally would harm the dog. Like I said, I'm not saying that a dog will die or grow three heads or develop incurable cancer from the occasional plant in their diet. I liken it to candy, cookies, and cake for us. Do we actually need candy and cake? No, not if we eat a proper diet from the start. Do we benefit from eating candy and cake? Aside from a sugar rush, we'd get what little nutrients sugary treats have to offer if we ate a proper diet. But candy, cake, cookies, twinkies, butterscotch krimpets, whathaveyou are delicious and tasty, quite a few people eat quite a lot of them on a daily basis and as long as they have a high enough metabolism and aren't couch potatoes, they can eat as much as they want with little to no adverse effects. Same for dogs. Do they need fruits and vegetables? Not if you supply with with a good solid diet made of mostly meat sources (or raw) from the start. Do they benefit from fruits and vegetables? While plants have nutrients in them, meat is a much better source of the nutrients that dogs need, and if a diet of mostly meat sources (or just plain raw) is fed then you don't need to feed them the plant matter at all. Do nontoxic digestible fruits and vegetables harm the dog? If they did, they wouldn't be considered "safe to eat". Depending on the plant you're feeding them, it might make them a bit fat (fruit has sugar), but with proper stimulation outside you can keep a lot of that weight to a minimum.


Remember, surviving is not thriving. I'm allergic to several fruits and vegetables (and most other plants... my diet is sort of like the opposite of a vegan... most of the things they can't eat are the only things I can). I eat mostly meats and some grains, and a whoooooole lot of candy because candy is tasty and I have absolutely no self control. As expected, if I don't take a vitamin that gives me the nutrients I'm missing from plant matter in my diet because I'm an omnivore just like the rest of us humans, my immune system and my digestive system start yelling at me. Am I outwardly healthy? Aside from some genetic health problems, yes! I'm fit, athletic, and thin. I'm actually a bit underweight according to the BMI. Most people would be content with that, but I'm not nearly as healthy as someone who can and does get all of their nutrients for every meal and keeps a stricter exercise regimen (and doesn't have any genetic dispositions to bad health) like an Olympic swimmer.

Dogs that do strenuous tasks such as racing, sledding, military, and police work are not fed kibble. Many hunters don't feed their dogs kibble. Some are fed "slop", made of fish and intestines and all sorts of gross stuff that carnivores like. Some are fed raw, whether it's processed meat or whole prey items depends on the people feeding the dogs. Why is that? Because their handlers don't want the dogs wasting time digesting things that might be harder on their stomach than what a carnivore needs. Because the dogs have a job to do and need to be at the top of their game, which means no putzing around with anything other than what is directly needed by the dog. The fat lab down the road fed might live to be well into his double digits and only suffer expected problems from an old fat dog and be fed Science Diet every day of his life, but he'll never have been as healthy as one of those dogs.