# are any human veg or fruits safe for a dog



## tweety (Apr 13, 2007)

My 84 year old mother lives with me, and she is always trying to give my dog human food to eat...She wont change when I tell her no. Are there some safe human foods, I can tell her she can feed the dog...so at least it wont be detrimental to him
Thanks
Tweety


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## Jaylie (Mar 5, 2007)

I give Jaylie apples instead of commercial treats...They're alot more healthy than the commercial ones, and, it is OK for her to eat. You can also give him small bits of carrots..Not to big, he could choke


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## Alpha (Aug 24, 2006)

I've heard that grapes and raisins are the foods to stay away from. When it comes to fruits and veggies my guys eat it all!

Their faves are: strawberries, cantaloup, tomato (don't ask my why Roxy likes it) and potatoes.

Just like with humans, the way foods are prepared are what can make a good food bad. French fries probably aren't great for a dog, my dogs eat a couple here and there.

Raw fruits are veggies are perfectly fine for your dog! So tell you mother she's right!


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## Lorina (Jul 1, 2006)

My guy loves baby carrots, and enjoys the taste of raw green beans, but doesn't seem to know how to eat them. I find chewed up green bean "skin" all over the floor.


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## healthydog (Apr 16, 2007)

Great question been hearing so many different things so is corn or cornmeal good for dogs or not? Also is canola oil good or not? How about Yucca?
Looking for a good dry food for older dog but very active any suggestion would be appreciated.
Has anyone tried a dog food called Kumpi, Flint River, Homestyle Select, Artemis, Timberwolf, BlueBuffalo?
Thanks this forum is great!!
Hugs to you all


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## icepaws20 (Apr 9, 2007)

Im sure i read somewhere that onions are toxic to dogs and that some root vegetables are hard for dogs to digest. 
Not 100% sure on this though.

Kirsty and koda xx


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## tweety (Apr 13, 2007)

Well, my little guy likes banana, carrotts, apples, melons...so sounds like those would be ok raw.
I wonder about greenbeans and carrots or corn form a can, a bite or two after cooked, and I rinse the can juice off.???
Any ideas on these items.
Thanks
From my doggie and me


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## BoxMeIn21 (Apr 10, 2007)

healthydog said:


> Great question been hearing so many different things so is corn or cornmeal good for dogs or not? Also is canola oil good or not? How about Yucca?
> Looking for a good dry food for older dog but very active any suggestion would be appreciated.
> Has anyone tried a dog food called Kumpi, Flint River, Homestyle Select, Artemis, Timberwolf, BlueBuffalo?
> Thanks this forum is great!!
> Hugs to you all


I would steer clear of anything with corn or corn-by-products, it has no nutrional value and it's only used in kibble as a filler. Corn also happens to be the most problematic grain for dogs and can cause serious allergies. You also want to steer clear of foods that use a lot of wheat, wheat by-products, beet pulp and brewers rice to name a few - dogs are carnivores and don't need 'em! They also are junky fillers and can also cause allergies. Out of the foods you mentioned above - I would go with Timberwolf's formulas. Here is a good site on food analysis - foods are rated 1-6, with 6 being the best. I would say anything above a 4 would be a good choice. It also has a good article on why you should switch foods every so often. I hope it helps! http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/
Here are a couple of articles (that may gross you out) on what really goes into to pet food these days. 
http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/Pet_Food_API.htm
http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=359&more=1
http://www.api4animals.org/articles?p=378&more=1

Also, with regards to veggies - aside from recreational chewing, your dog is not going to realize any nutrional value unless you pulverize them. Dogs lack the digestive enzymes capable of breaking down the cellulose in the walls of the veggies. In the wild, the only vegitation a dog would consume would be in the stomach of his prey or an occasional graze on the grass. So aside from a good teeth cleaning from that carrot, it's going to go out pretty much the way it came in. 
Some one already mentioned grapes and raisins, but also avoid onions and too much broccoli. The pits of certain fruits like nectarines and peaches are also poisonous.


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## healthydog (Apr 16, 2007)

thanks boxmein21 for your reply
it is great to see hear everyone trying to clear it up what is good.
Does any one know if Yucca is good for dogs?
the ASPCA say yucca plant no for pets but some high quality dog food has it in them just wondering what you all hear?
hope you all heard about some Natural Balance got add to the list now because of rice protein.
many blessing to all.


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## BoxMeIn21 (Apr 10, 2007)

healthydog said:


> thanks boxmein21 for your reply
> it is great to see hear everyone trying to clear it up what is good.
> Does any one know if Yucca is good for dogs?
> the ASPCA say yucca plant no for pets but some high quality dog food has it in them just wondering what you all hear?
> ...


Yes, yucca is fine. The yucca that you would purchase for your dog will be in a ground up, powdery form, not the whole root. It works as a natural anti-inflammatory, pain reliever with minimal tummy upsets. 

Oh and to answer your question about cornmeal - it's fine, in fact there are a lot of natural treats that call for it in the recipes, dogs just don't need it - kinda like the sugar in the cookie that I am eating right now.


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## healthydog (Apr 16, 2007)

thanks again boxmein21 to explain if yucca is safe in dog food
that was funny about the cookie you are eating  
what dog food do you use?


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## BoxMeIn21 (Apr 10, 2007)

healthydog said:


> thanks again boxmein21 to explain if yucca is safe in dog food
> that was funny about the cookie you are eating
> what dog food do you use?


I feed raw food.


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## zyclonenuz (Feb 25, 2007)

tweety said:


> My 84 year old mother lives with me, and she is always trying to give my dog human food to eat...She wont change when I tell her no. Are there some safe human foods, I can tell her she can feed the dog...so at least it wont be detrimental to him
> Thanks
> Tweety


same with my mom she likes feeding her cocker spaniel with human food and everytime i tell her it's not good for the dogs we always argue. _*(and old folks say that younger generations are stubborn)*_ so i came up with a backup plan. I just tell her if ever her dog gets sick because she is feeding human food it will cost her a small fortune taking the dog to the vet.


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## BoxMeIn21 (Apr 10, 2007)

zyclonenuz said:


> same with my mom she likes feeding her cocker spaniel with human food and everytime i tell her it's not good for the dogs we always argue. _*(and old folks say that younger generations are stubborn)*_ so i came up with a backup plan. I just tell her if ever her dog gets sick because she is feeding human food it will cost her a small fortune taking the dog to the vet.


Hmmm - kibble was only brought to the shelves some 60 years ago...what do you think our family pets ate then?


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## For The Love Of The Dog (Apr 22, 2007)

I feed my dogs mostly homemade now, especially with this recall, or organics that I know I can trust. But I do feed them veggies, usually break them down in a food processor and steam them lightly, otherwise they don't really get any nutritional value at all from them. They love carrots, green beans and cauliflower to name just a few and especially love fresh tomatoes.

To add to the 'stay away' from list of things such as chocolate, grapes, raisins and onions, do not let dogs get macadamia nuts! There have been reported cases of paralysis due to ingestion.

My dogs also eat alot of venison which is extremely healthy for them as it is a natural game meat and is basically organic, eggs; which are basically 100% digestible protein, cottage cheese; high in protein, vit A and calcium, yogurt (plain, nonfat); high in calcium and vit B with the added benefit that many friends I know who feed it to their dogs find they experience a much lower rate of infections and ear problems. Try to keep to organic as much as possible to keep them away from all the additives which are no healthier for them than it is for us.


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## minischnauzer (Apr 23, 2007)

No offense to anyone here, but the words "human food" drive me nuts! My applause to BoxMeIn21 - dog food has been around for about 50 years, but humans and dogs have lived together for about 10,000 years, hunting and sharing food. It is incredible how successful the dog food lobbies have been at convincing people that somehow, foul smelling corn, meat by products (euphemism for tumorous tissue, feather, leather, fecal and/or hair and hoof meal) and artificial flavors are good when fried beyond recognition (which, by the way, destroys all nutrients that have accidentaly gotten in)... while fresh fruits and vegetables are bad. Where's the logic, people? Just compare cancer rates in animals in the States to those in countries where people don't use dog food. 

That being said, make sure to put the veggies/fruits through the blender because feline and canine intestines are much shorter than human ones, and they cannot break down complex plant fibers as well.


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## Faelon (Apr 20, 2007)

I find that the topic of feeding dogs is very contraversial. There is alot of information here. I would like to add that I read in a farmers magazine a few years ago that canola oil is sprayed so heavily with pesticides several times a year that it is very unhealthy for consumption. A farmer experience death in his cows when they licked up the canola that had been washed out of the bottom of a truck nearby where the cows watered. Ever since then I don't buy it at all. Also an interesting thing is that although grapes are supposed to be deadly to dogs, my own 7 month old puppy ate all the lower grapes of our vines one night. I found the seeds in her droppings. I was horrified. Didn't know she would do that. She didn't suffer any ill effects. She also eats a wide variety of foods, even hot pickled peppers and salsa. She WILL eat it but I don't feed it to her. She will eat almost everything but does not like dog food. This tells me something.


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## minischnauzer (Apr 23, 2007)

The reason people say grapes/raisins are dangerous is because we have no idea what makes them poisonous. Some dogs that have eaten grapes all their lives will suddenly develop kidney failure and die within a day or two, and sometimes, a dog will have this problem the first time it tries a grape or raisin. My own dogs have eaten grapes before we found out about this and never had problems, and the odds are your dog will not have a problem, either. I think the reason they're off limits is that you never know... there is no correlation between kidney failure and eating young, old grapes or raisins, red or green, etc. It just happens to some and that is why it's better not to even risk it. I worked with the ASPCA for a few years and heard some truly heartwrenching stories about how difficult it was for the owners. Very sad 

But, I don't think it's all that controversial to say that if you eat foods that are full of vitamins and minerals, you will be healthier, on the whole, than if you eat nothing but junk. If that's a truism, then eating a natural diet is better than eating that stuff that sits on the shelf without rotting for 3 years. <The reason I'm so passionate about this topic is that I saw what this did to my own dog, and it was truly horrible watching a once beautiful dog suffer so much.> 

Good luck with your pup!


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## buzzbomb (Apr 3, 2007)

My vet said i could sub a cup of cooked green beans for a cup of dog food to help my lab/chow mix lose some weight so cooked green beans are ok


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## SparkleGold (May 17, 2007)

have you guys tried Homestyle Select? Its got visible veggies in it but is overall 70% real meat. I think thats a really good balance for a dog's deit. Homestyle rolls must be refrigrated to avoid spoilage, so it seems to be more natural and healthy than other products. My dogs have been on it for awhile now and they seem to enjoy it. Anyone have any comments about this new product?


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