You love your dog so why not add a few healthy vegetables to their diet? Surely sharing some can’t be a bad thing, or is it?
Well, this topic is not without debate!
Many folks are adamant that dogs are carnivores and therefore requiring protein-packed meats and little else. Others routinely feed human foods including wholesome vegetables.
There is a middle ground!
Certain vegetables nicely complement regular canine chow.
You Can Add Vegetables To Your Dog’s Diet
Just be selective and feed them in moderation.
Vegetables provide extra fiber, minerals and other nutrients. Your dog may have more energy from eating them.
While they actually are not required, a small mount makes good sense from a dietary standpoint. And sometimes vegetables are super helpful for clearing up constipation.
With that being said, not all veggies are appropriate! Keep reading…
Which Vegetables Are Best?
Basically the most desirable vegetables for dogs are those that do not disrupt digestion or bowel movements.
Being low in calories is also a bonus!
Quite often pets get diarrhea after consuming new foods. If a particular vegetable has this effect, it’s an obvious sign to stop feeding it.
Another important aspect is caloric intake.
In that sense, peas, carrots, ripe tomatoes, carrots and cucumbers are great choices.
The thing is vegetables should only complement your dog’s regular chow.
Watch this information video!
FYI: Many quality dog foods actually contain veggies.
Skipping Certain Varieties
Lots of potatoes, corn, avocados, onions and garlic are best avoided.
Yes sir!
Certain vegetables can be toxic for dogs. Others are just mediocre such as radish.
But you can be sure that, from a general standpoint, both fruits and vegetables are furry friend friendly!
Serving Canines Vegetables
We steam vegetables before serving them to our dogs.
They are noticeably softer and this helps the digestive process.
Our dogs are eager to try new foods due to these preparation efforts.
Some people like to simply blend up veggies.
In any case, never add spices!
So if you have leftover broccoli, like from Chinese takeout, you probably should not let your dog clean it up.
Balance Your Dog’s Nutrition
There are vegetables are nutritious and also fantastic remedies.
An example would be pureed pumpkin!
It works miracles for dog diarrhea by absorbing excess water and hardening soft stools.
But using vegetables, because you’ve purchased inferior dog food, is not a great plan.
Your pooch probably will not receive a balanced diet. And nutritional deficiencies are possible.
Provide a well-balanced protein-based chow. Only then can you start thinking of veggie supplementation.
The Bottom Line
You can selectively give your dog veggies.
Doing so is healthy. Low calorie vegetables are a great addition to regular chow.
Just do not overly depend on them.
Fido needs lots of protein from their meat-based diet.
Consider incorporating healthy foods with a quality dog food that includes vegetables.
I have a 7 year old Jack Russell Terrier. He eats BBQ chicken, but no veggies. When I grate carrot, sweet potato and spinach leaves he only eats the meat and leaves the veggies. He won’t eat kibble or any dry food, but he does like marrow bones and pig’s ears.
He likes to chase the ball and bring it back to me. He sleeps most of the day — very placid with a lovely nature.
He had a complete vet check-up when I got him, also micro-chipped and desexed, etc. Do I need to take him back to my vet for another check up? Also, what I should feed him!
It turns out dogs are omnivores, not carnivores, and can thrive on a complete and balanced plant-based diet.
In addition to the potential health risks related to feeding your dog animal products (especially raw meat), there is something most dog parents have in common: we’re animal lovers. As animal lovers, it’s important for us to consider this ethical inconsistency: Why love certain animals, but eat others?
Just like pandas, dogs don’t need to eat meat: “The concept of ‘evolutionary nutrition’ ignores the simple fact that taxonomy and phylogeny are not destiny, nor do they reliably predict the specific details of a species’ biology, including its nutritional needs. Sure, dogs are in the order Carnivora, but so are giant pandas, which are almost exclusively herbivorous.” -Dr. Brennen McKenzie, MA, VMD.
My dog Bessie loves chicken and home-made stew with vegetables. She has a good diet. I leave out dry food for her during the day. She nibbles away at the dry food but prefers our food.
I try and investigate what is good for Bessie and what is not good. I do my best to stay clear of chocolate and ice cream but it’s them sad eyes that get me all the time.
My Bichon lost weight with diet and exercise. He was cuddly but overweight. Now he is fit and active. He is almost a vegan-vegetarian Bichon Frise. I feed him twice daily with 2/3 of a cup of reduced fat kibbles plus a variety of veggies.
He loves carrots, Brussels sprouts, cucumbers, Bok Choy, green beans, celery, cabbage cauliflower, sweet potatoes, strawberries and bananas. Treats are fruits including watermelon, apples, Fuji persimmons and pears. These are all given moderately.
Do you feed raw veggies? I started my mini Dachshund on small scoops of dog food and cut up raw vegetables. I just want to make sure raw is okay. Thanks. Any tips would be appreciated!
Awesome diet! I will mirror Koa’s meals and treats based on your post. Thank you!
Some vegetables are better given raw and veggies should always be blended to a puree as this aids in digestion. Also, they shouldn’t be given every day! Food in medicine, medicine is food.
Thank you so much the information. I feel much better knowing that I can give my Daisy (Yorkie) steamed vegetables. Her favorite is carrots. At times she does get tried of eating the same dried dog food every day. Per her vet, once in awhile I can give her steamed rice cooked in chicken broth and unspiced soups. But most of all, she loves pumpkin mixed in her dried food.
We have always supplemented our dogs food with vegetables. Spinach, cabbage, cauliflower leaves, zucchini squash leaves, etc. made into a soup using beef or chicken stock. They have always been healthy with shiny coats.
We have just made a huge batch of spinach and onion. Thank goodness I read the article about onion being dangerous. We will just have to eat it ourselves!
Don’t you give them protein/meats?
Our dogs have actually become much healthier, stronger and active since switching them to a vegetarian diet. They also have no more allergy problems. I do not think there is any science showing that dogs, unlike cats, need meat to be healthy.
I am one of the folks who have gone to human food and my dog loves it. Chicken, beef, fish, carrots, green beans, rice and small amounts of sweet potato. There are wonderful things that we humans eat that are good for dogs as well. My dog is much happier since I switched. There are tons of great recipes online which can make sure they get every good thing they need.