Is Milk Okay for dogs?

[gotalonglildoggie]

My dog seems to love milk. Whenever my husband or somebody sets his down for a minute he just laps it up. (of course dogs do this with a lot of things), but he really seems to be fond of it. I don't allow him to have very much though if any because I don't know if it is good for him or not.

Can anybody tell me if it is safe? Drake (puppy) would really appreciate it Im sure!!! Well, unless you say it's bad for him! LOL!!! ;) :rolleyes:

[wolfsoul]

Dairy isn't good for dogs. I would only give it for a treat...

If you look at the rate of lactose intolerance in people, it's very high. This is because no animal, even humans, evolved to drink milk after being an infant.

[Karen]

I think it varies, dog to dog, just like it does people to people. My very first dog, Sheba, (best-smartest-dog-in-the-whole-wide-world) would get to have my leftover milk from my cereal bowl every morning, to no ill effect. Though we never knew how old she was, she lived a long, long time.

[tatsxxx11]

My girl Star loves the leftover cereal milk too! But only a bit because she seems to gag if she drinks too much...it makes her very phelgmy, especially if it's not skim. She seems to tolerate cheese just fine. I'd say a little bit of dairy, in moderation!:)

[gotalonglildoggie]

Great!! Thanks!! Im sure Drake would love it as a treat once in a while!!

[dragondawg]

It differs from dog to dog. So far I've yet to run into lactose intolerance with mine, but as Wolf suggests there is a high incidence of it in puppy dogs. The milk fat can also cause some GI problems.

My previous dog expected a small bowl of carnation instant milk every morning. My current oldest puppy doesn't think much of it, while I suspect the younger one would gobble it up. So powdered milk is another option.

[gotalonglildoggie]

hmmm... powdered milk! Maybe I will give that a try. He doesn't seem to react to it at all, but I really try to make sure he only has a very little bit if any. He just really seems to love it and will do anything to get it. Thanks!! I think I will definatly give that a try!!! :p