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Someone at work (I work at a dog kennel) brought in their dog to the kennel. They feed their dog a cup of dog kibble and a half a can of special kitty cat food. Basically my question is, is it healthy to feed their dog kibble with cat canned food. I am guessing that maybe the special kitty canned food was on sale and that's why she was giving it to her dog.
It's not ideal, but as long as most of the diet is actually dog food, it won't hurt the dog. It would be more harmful to feed dog food to a cat on a long term basis.
My dogs love canned cat food. If I have one who's been ill or won't eat for some reason, a can of stinky cat food on top of their kibble gets their appetite going almost every time!
Canned cat food works great for hiding pills in too!
I ran out of food lastnight so I improvised with canned cat food this morning lol.
I would not suggest that for two big reasons- one is that even canned cat food is higher in protein than dog food is, and too much is too much.. Secondly- cat food ( or at least good ones do) are high in taurine, which a cat needs for eye site, but a dog doesnt.Quote:
Originally Posted by Flatcoatluver
I am sure the dog would love the taste= they cant fool a cat with bad food source ingredients or poor quality ingredients, = however- I wouldnt do it..
Old Charlie got cat food pretty regularly. His weight wasn't a problem (cat food has more fat and calories), so even the vets said it was OK. The reverse is NOT true, however; as you've heard, a kitty diet of solely dog food is likely to be a recipe for disaster.
A few years ago, when we got femka, I was told she was eating pedigree where she was. I regretfully got a small bag to help this 4 year old do the transition in a new home and new food. I was told she was a highly picky eater which was why she was at least 15-20 pounds underweight. Anyway the first night I ran some raw chicken through the food processor and gave her a little bit in her pedigree- well she ate the chicken and left the pedigree ( rofl..) soooooooo I was stuck with this 8 pound bag of pedigree. At the same time, we were having some problems with the creative raccoons. A friend of mine that lives out where I do, said to put a cup of dog food in a bowl out in the yard- they would eat it and move on leaving the house alone especially the screen porch where they torn into twice at that point. As stupid as it sounded- I did it and it worked. Later I found out if you feed raccoons they should have cat food.. ( I wasnt planning on feeding them anyway- ) but I did notice in 4 days they didnt want the dog food- and this house no longer had possiblities.
My point is=- cat food can be good for alot of things- with all the points mentioned above about protein etc, however- long term affect on giving a dog cat food could make liver problems etc. Some tuna fish packed in water would be a better snack for the dog if you must..
How big is her dog? If its a small dog, that is NOT a good idea. A dog will love the tatste but its not formulated for their bodies. Cat food has a whole lot more fat in it too, which will make hte dog gain weight and not build muscle.
Now, all that said, Miss Nicki will usually get one teaspoon of cat food a night when I'm giving the cats their treat. I don't like it, but she decided to bark for hours on end at the cat food bowls if she didn't get any herself :rolleyes: One teaspoon per night, at 100 pounds.... she's ok. But if she were teacup poodle? Bad idea.
With my older dogs I sometimes have to encourage their appetites with something that smells a lot. A teaspoon of cat food works well. Half a can with a cup of dog food is a bit much for a steady diet. If she was trying to be sure her dog ate while being kenneled, I can understand that. (Some dogs don't like to eat anywhere but at home). It's still a lot of cat food for the amount of dog food.
He is a german shepard/pit bull mix, and a little under weight.Quote:
Originally Posted by catnapper