When Giving Thanks, Include Your Dog
If you find your dog sitting in front of the oven watching the turkey roast, or under foot when you’re cooking sweet potatoes, you can also bet that your dog will want a share in the feast. The good news is that you can share without too much care and include your dog in Thanksgiving festivities as long as you follow a few simple guidelines.
For people who already feed their dog a raw food diet, I won’t have to explain much about the benefits of giving your dog real meat and vegetables, raw bones and natural oils and supplements. Meat is a natural canine food, so go ahead and share some turkey, beef, lamb or fish. However, some “human” foods we use in cooking are toxic to dogs.
Here’s a brief list of foods to avoid giving to your dog:
- Onions. Toxic to dogs. Don’t give your dog any stuffing or gravy if there are onions in them.
- Chocolate, especially dark chocolate, is toxic to dogs. Don’t leave any tempting chocolate treats out that your dog might get into.
- Too much fat. Avoid giving your dog gravy (high fat) which can stress the pancreas and lead to pancreatitis and/or diabetes.
- Sugar. Well, we can do with less sugar! Sweet potatoes are fine and very nutritious… but without the added butter and sugar.
- Cooked bones. Though raw bones are great for dogs, cooked bones can splinter and become a choking hazard. Instead of giving your dog any cooked bones, get a raw beef femur bone for your dog.
Finally, give your dog a big hug and extra turkey bites, go for a long walk and sleep well knowing your dog is on guard.
For more information about how to prepare a natural, raw canine diet, please visit my website, http://rosemaryssolutions.com/caninediet.html
