Feeding Dogs Table Scraps
If I had a pound for every time I’ve heard someone say table scraps are bad for dogs, that feeding dogs table scraps will make them ill, I could treat myself to some nice trendy dog walking gear at last.
The fact is, dogs have been eating table scraps for perhaps as long as 35,000 years. That’s roughly how long the domestic dog has been man’s best friend by the way.
Okay, people may not have been eating off tables all that time ago, but surplus scraps of food from human settlements was one of the key attractions that brought the distant ancestor of today’s domestic dog, the grey wolf, in from the cold in the first place!
Not all table scraps are equal
The interesting thing about table scraps is that the healthier the diet we human beings eat, the better the quality of table scraps our dogs will be able to enjoy.
Certain foodstuffs are known to be toxic to dogs. These include:
- Onions, leeks and chives.
- Grapes and raisins.
- Macadamia nuts (not strictly toxic but contain way too much fat).
- Chocolate and anything containing the artificial sweetener xylitol.
- Alcohol.
Add to that list obvious things like takeaway foods (which are not healthy for us either), and excessive amounts of animal fat, and just about everything else that we eat and enjoy, our dogs can do the same. And that includes garlic by the way!
So it’s not table scraps that are bad for dogs, it’s just the wrong type of table scraps that are a potential problem.
Feed your dog good table scraps
Establishing the difference between good and bad table scraps is fairly straightforward. If your table scraps include any of the foodstuffs so far mentioned, don’t feed them to your dog.
But it’s a good thing to boil up your surplus vegetable trimmings and give them to your dog, providing there are no onion peelings in them.
Especially beneficial are:
- The outer leaves of any leafy greens providing they haven’t turned brown.
- Carrot and parsley tops (the leaves).
- Vegetable peelings (most of the nutrients in vegetables are close to the surface).
- Celery greens.
- Cauliflower and broccoli stems.
- Cabbage and cauliflower leaf ribs. (Cauliflower leaves are actually more nutritious than the florets we humans choose to eat).
It’s not a good thing however to simply pour into your dog’s food bowl the leftovers from your Sunday dinner, especially heavily-salted gravy, anything that might have onion in it, cooked bones and the fatty offcuts of your inch-thick pork chops.
Dogs love fat. They need fat in their diet — it’s their main source of energy. But as with everything else you feed your dog, it has to be fed in moderation.
Feed table scraps in moderation
So by all means feed your dog table scraps. Definitely boil up and feed your leftover, unsalted vegetables, leaves and peelings as a special treat. By all means add them to your dog’s homemade food, homemade broths or stews if you like.
The same goes for unseasoned lean proteins, legumes and grains.
But never feed your dog takeaway leftovers, crisps, cakes, anything with raisins, and anything with too much fat in it. There’s nothing like a hefty helping of fat for bringing on a painful bout of pancreatitis!
Giving dogs table scraps is great. Just be sensible about it!
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