What should feed my doggie??

[Mini's Mom]

When I first owned my dog, I serfed internet and learnt that dogs do not a variety of food. Just feed them dog food only. But I feel sorry for Mini, y doggie, whenever we eat - her begging look makes me feel that I should share my food with her. Should I feed her human food?? If so, what kind of food is good for a dog??? Please share with me what you feed you dog.....

[Heather Wallace]

Firstly welcome to pet talk.

I am not a dog owner but I think it is ok to give some human food. Dogs need a balanced diet with vitamin and minerals, dog food is fine but make sure it is good quality, you could also give your dog wholemeal doggie biscuits as a mixer.

[Presley]

I do not feed Presley table scraps at all.. She does get carrots,green beans, celery, apples, oranges, bananas, radishs, turnip... Also cottage cheese (thanks Candy she loves it!) and yogurt Also a huge hit with her.. She wears it nicely :D
Also once and a while a ice cream...
Also watch what is in your dog food.. things like soy,wheat,corn i am staying away from with Presley..
you should maybe talk to your vet about a good brand of dog food and go from there. But i wouldn't feed Presley things we eat.. She also begs.. It is so gross.. Big lines of drool hanging from her mouth but i can't give in.. I tell her to go to her bed and she will..

Melissa & Presley

[mruffruff]

I think most vets would recommend a good grade of dry dog food as a base. Not a grocery store brand. They are mostly fillers and while your dog will survive on it, problems can occur. Try something like Flint River or Nutro. If you want to supplement the dry food, use raw vegetables. Most dogs like carrots, brocolli, green beans and cauliflower. Mine even like lettuce. Just don't overdo it. I use vegetables as treats instead of commercial stuff. I do give them small "cookies". Canned food isn't very good for their teeth.

A poor grade of food can lead to allergies and a dull coat.

It's hard to say NO to those begging eyes, but you'll be happier in the long run. And your dog will be fine--Mini will still love you!;)

Mary

[Dixieland Dancer]

My dogs are very spoiled. I do not give them TABLE SCRAPS that I would not eat. I give them table food that I prepare just for them. If we have chicken breasts, a extra one is cooked for Dixie and Dusty to split. Same with lean hamburger and even steak! We also mix in green beans, carrots, cottage cheese occassionally. All of this is mixed with their Innova dog food to make sure they are getting a balanced portion of needed nutrients.

I do not give them ham, hot dogs, fatty processed foods. Actually, I am more conscientous about what the dogs get than I am about what I get!

Please note that I said in addition to their Innova. It is a super premium food with no soy, corn fillers added. Only human grade meats and whole grains (not processed) are used.

They are very calm at the dinner table laying under it or near it while we eat. When we are finished though, they know it is now their dinner time and they give you the big puppy dog eyes until their food is put down for them! :rolleyes:

[manda99]

My pup gets Purina Puppy Food. Tried "better" brands but he just didn't like them. By a fluke we got a bag of Purina and I had never seen him eat like that before!

He does get some people food - but just a little bit since he's still so young. I can't give the older dog something without giving the baby a little something, too.

[Cincy'sMom]

We feed our dogs Nature's Choice, by Royal Canin. The dogs love it and it it has helped corrected some issues Cincy was having with other brands of food. We also feed them people food, usually as training treats, fruits, vegetables, cheese. And we do give them table scraps, but not things that we wouldn't eat, just what we choose to share, and they get it when we are finished. (In packs, the higher ranking group members eat first and the lower ranking members get leftovers)

[anna_66]

hi & welcome! We feed our dogs Eukanuba, used to feed Pedigree, never again! Our Angus does so so so much better on Eukanuba. He doesn't loose as much hair, his teeth are definately cleaner and he likes it, alot!

[stonewind]

Well along with my dogs dog food I feed her food from the table. I feel that wolvs, which dogs originate from, can eat the foods that we can so why can't dogs. Although I make sure I don't feed her too much and give her lots of exercise so that she doesn't bcome over-wait. I don't think it matters what kind of table scraps you feed them, just make sure you watch out to see if any makes your dog sick. I know my dog has a weak stomach so I can't feed all kinds of food. Remember to watch your dogs weight if you decide to feed him/her table scraps.

[Kumquat]

Joey (Joe Cocker Spaniel) gets some table scraps (from our plate). In general we stick to the dry dog food (Iams). We find that if he gets too much "human" food, he gets the runs.

I have also found some recepies on the web for dog treats. They are great. Joey, and his friends love them. We have tried two of the ones from dogskitchen and they were real easy to make.

www.dogskitchen.com
www.foodfunandfacts.com/doggoddies.htm

have fun baking the goodies.

:)

Kumquat

[Dog Days]

How come no one on this site that posts, feeds their dogs a raw diet?! Ever wonder what dogs closest cousin, the wolf, feeds on? When you look into the digestive system of canines, you'll see that their system is very different from humans (very short intestinal tract) and definitely not equipped to handle the amount of grains and/or processed (read: cooked) meat (?) that many people feed their pooches in the form of kibble or canned food. On that note, even cooked meats (fats) are not great for dogs. Dogs can't process the cooked fats very well and this will lead to many future problems. Cooking veggies will only boil away nutrients (same for humans) raw veggies pack more of a punch!

I am sold on the raw food diet and many of our dog friends have switched over as well. There are many raw food companies in our area now and I just saw Fargo raw food - frozen in a local pet supply store. We do our own 90% of the time. I won't go into great detail about what and how much to feed, because that would take way to long. Look into the books suggested below, surf the web or ask questions of people that know what it is all about. I take great pride in doing something wholesome and natural and what nature intended, for my pooch.

Please do look into it. Books entitled 'Reigning Cats and Dogs' and 'The B.A.R.F. Diet' are great places to start, or surf the web and do a few searches. Your pet will be happier, healthier, less prone to canine diseases, have cleaner teeth, less poop and less smelly (most of the time) and it can also help with curbing behaviour problems associated with some allergies to grains.

If it seems like I am preaching, I am! When you believe in something so strongly that you want to share it with others, then you do so - LOUD and PROUD! Ultimately you will do as you choose to but please take a sec to learn about it a bit more than you already know. For those of you who have purebred dogs from breeders (and your breeders told you what kind of dry dog food is best) read on.....

Our friends have a 2 yr old Chesapeake Bay Retriever from a very reputable breeder in Canada. They swore by the dry dog food that the breeder recommended. We got our dog and put her on the raw diet last July and they looked into it. Now they are feeding their dog only raw food and are so happy that they changed. Their vet obviously had concerns regarding their choice but they stuck to their convictions.

Just thought you all should hear the other side of the story. Hope it sheds some light on it for some (many).

Cheers,
Lisa & Talus