Dog Nutrition and Table Scraps
T.J. Dunn, Jr., DVM, at ThePetCenter.com, says that it’s fine to feed your dog table scraps:
Many of my clients, when I query them about what they feed their dog, will proudly offer this statement, “… but we never feed table scraps!” And I respond, “Why not?” Dogs can eat anything humans eat, with the occasional exception of milk sugars (lactose) being poorly digested. You, at home, could feed your dog a perfectly fine diet if you knew the right amounts of meats, vegetables, fruit, etc. to feed and in the proper ratios. But why bother when there are good diets already prepared for you by companies employing highly knowledgeable scientists with years of research backing them up?
Table scraps are perfectly acceptable to give to most dogs under certain conditions. And it is better to feed them to the dog than throw good food in the garbage. But you must remember that sudden changes in some dog’s diet may promote diarrhea, vomiting and in the instance of providing too much fat all of a sudden, pancreatitis. Most dogs eat more consistently, are less finicky, and are less likely to have digestive tract upsets if they are fed consistently every day. If you choose to feed table scraps, try to do it on a fairly consistent basis.
I am not a proponent of feeding bones to dogs. For one thing there is almost no food value in bones (although there is plenty of good nutrition in the attached muscle and fat). Don’t believe me? Take a look for yourself at this page to see just how little food value there is in bones. I’ve actually had clients brag to me how their dog “Eats ‘em right up.” As dogs chew on them, animal bones are apt to splinter and if the dog swallows them, the dog may get into a situation requiring surgery to save its life. I have surgically removed bones and bone fragments from dog’s anatomy ranging from bones caught between the upper molars in the mouth to razor-like fragments from a lacerated rectum. Many dogs have died as a direct result of eating bones; if you feed your dog any kind of animal bones, you’re asking for trouble. There’s very little nutritive value, they are NOT quickly digested by stomach acids, and there are infinitely better ways to keep your dog’s teeth clean! For more info about this controversial topic, see some actual cases of bone obstruction.
Here are a few notes relative to “table scraps” or “people food”:
Dogs do not get worms from drinking milk! Loose stool is fairly common, though, due to the dog’s inability to break down lactose which is milk sugar.
Dogs do not get worms from eating candy. Chocolate, because it contains a caffeine-like chemical called theobromine, in large amounts can cause heart problems and other potentially dangerous effects.
Garlic is not an effective de-worming substance; there are much more effective wormers available. Scientific studies have recently proven that neither yeast nor garlic will repel fleas.
Spaying (ovariohysterectomy) female and neutering (castrating) male dogs does not cause them to “get fat.”* In healthy dogs that are overweight the only reason they are overweight is that they are consuming more calories than they are burning up. Simply put…somebody’s feeding the dog too much! See this about pet weight loss.
“Hard bones are okay to feed, but never soft ones like chicken or turkey bones.” FORGET IT! NO bones of any kind, ever, if you want to avoid the chance of obstructive digestive tract disorders.
Dogs manufacture their own Vitamin C internally so it is not required in the diet. You can safely give dogs Vitamin C, but please don’t believe all the stories about it curing hip dysplasia, arthritis, cancer, fleas, mange, cataracts, diabetes, allergies, etc. Dogs under stress of intense exercise, disease or aging may benefit from some supplementation.
Vitamin/mineral supplements for 99.9% of dogs are not required if the dog is on a high quality diet. Extra calcium given to large breeds of dogs on a good diet will do harm. It is incorrect to give extra calcium just because “it’s growing up so fast.”
Dogs frequently develop allergies to corn, wheat, soy and other foods. Allergies are manifested usually by dry, itchy skin; reddened, swollen ears; itchy face and chin; compulsive licking of the paws. (Caution! These signs also are present when a dog has Sarcoptic Mites so these parasites must be considered in any dog that seems to have a food allergy.) Vomiting and or diarrhea may result if the dog develops food intolerances. Food allergies and intolerances can be a challenge for the veterinarian to properly diagnose.
Dietary deficiencies may take months to develop. I’ve seen dogs eating poor diets where it took 6 months before deficiencies became evident. Start feeding a high quality diet and you will see improvement in three weeks.
*Other evidence disagrees with Dr. Dunn about spaying and neutering — in fact it seems to be well-known that the hormonal changes often lead to weight gain. See our previous entry with Christie Keith’s article.
I know many people will also disagree with Dr. Dunn about feeding dogs bones.
At any rate, he is presenting an alternative view about feeding table scraps — he’s all for it.
I do agree with him when it comes to whether to supplement good quality food or not. I can’t count the times that I have seen theories about nutrition and supplements for dogs change in the last 20 years. I have seen people load their dogs up with one supplement or another that was supposed to be a wonder drug, only to hear a few years later that there were serious health consequences associated with giving the supplement. People used to give their dogs lots of garlic, but now it’s been linked to Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia for Dogs — a deadly condition. Small amounts of garlic are fine, but if you go overboard and your dog is sensitive to it, you could be killing him. It’s the same way with other supplements. I heard about a highly-regarded nutritional supplement this week that has now been linked to infertility. Who knows how much damage it may have done in the last ten years because people were so eager to use it.
The current rage is to feed dogs grain-free, high protein diets. Some of these foods are over 40 percent protein and only 3-4 percent carbohydrates. As far as I know, there have been no scientific or nutritional studies at all to find out if this kind of diet is healthy for dogs. It’s all based on theory and marketing. And people are rushing out to buy the food. What do you do with a dog who eats 40 percent protein? A dog like that should have enough energy to pull your car through the snow.
The best thing you can do for your dog is to observe him. Is he overweight? Underweight? You should be able to feel, but not see, his ribs. Look at the condition of his skin and coat. Are his eyes bright and clear? Does he have good energy? Remember that dogs do sleep more as they get older. You shouldn’t expect an eight year old dog to behave like a puppy — but he shouldn’t act like an invalid either.
Sometimes I think we are trying to feed dogs the equivalent of filet mignon at every meal. Humans have a varied diet. We eat a lot of different things in order to meet our nutritional needs. But not every human meal is a five star dining experience. Yet many people are focusing on feeding their dogs a diet that’s so rich and extreme, I can’t help wondering if it’s good for them. I certainly want my dogs to eat an excellent quality food. I want it to be “complete and balanced” as described by AAFCO. I’m just not sure that some of these grain-free, high protein diets supply everything I want my dogs to have in a food. Can you have too much of the good stuff all the time? Is it good for a food to have just a few basic ingredients like meat? Even if these foods are also complete and balanced, I think I like my dogs to get their nutrition from more things in their food. That’s probably all wrong according to the experts, but it feels right to me.
