All of us who have family in a town know that dogs have always been fed with leftovers from food that humans do not eat.
However, it is not as good an idea as many think, implying that being natural food is better than pre-made feed.
Let’s see what are the benefits and the possible dangers that this practice entails, what type of food leftovers can we give them and which are not. Ready?
Index of contents
- 1 Types of leftovers that a dog can eat
- 2 Types of leftovers that we should NEVER give a dog
- 3 Can I mix leftovers and feed?
- 4 Dangers of giving a dog leftover food
Types of leftovers that a dog can eat
Leaving sick dogs, puppies and the elderly aside, most dogs tolerate eating human food scraps as long as they are healthy.
As we all know, there are many foods that dogs should not eat, so we should focus on foods that they can eat:
- Remains of natural yogurts
- Grilled, steamed or cooked meat without spices (or salt)
- Bread (if it’s hard bread, the better)
- Grilled, oven or steam fish without scrapes or scales (avoid heads if cooked)
- Boiled rice / pasta without salt or spices (and without sauces)
- Cooked vegetables
- Fruits (apple, melon, watermelon, peach, blackberry, pear, banana)
These foods are generally well tolerated, without causing digestive disturbances and providing beneficial nutrients for our dog.
Types of leftovers that we should NEVER give a dog
Not all the leftovers of food serve, as much as they make eyes and faces of wanting to eat them all. Since many of them can cause serious digestive disorders and even some intestinal obstruction.
These are examples of leftovers that a dog should not eat:
- Cooked bones
- Sauces
- Fritangas
- Food with traces of oil / fritanga
- Fish heads, scales or scrapes
- Raw vegetables
- Products in poor condition that we were going to throw away
- Preparations / Sausages (pate, chorizo, sausage, etc …)
- Some fruits (grapes)
Any of these foods can cause diarrhea, vomiting and even serious digestive and / or general health problems. Don’t put your dog’s health at stake for a few leftovers.
Can I mix leftovers and feed?
How can you, but it is not the most recommended. You can mix, for example, boiled rice and feed, since they do not directly influence the type of digestion.
However, if you are going to provide a large amount of homemade food, if they are leftovers suitable for dogs, the best thing is do not mix with the feed and give one meal with leftovers and the next with feed.
Or a couple of days with leftovers and when there are no leftovers, I think. Leftovers generally provide most of the nutrients the dog needs, provided they are administered in an adequate amount.
This means that a dog can live by eating only leftovers. Although if what you want is to eat well, the best option is to give BARF natural food. It contains all the benefits of fresh food.
Dangers of giving a dog leftover food
In reality the dangers are the same that you or I can have, choking on eating too fast. Or if we eat something that we shouldn’t, have some good indigestion.
The most serious danger It occurs when cooked bones are given, since they are harder than uncooked bones and chip easily. Furthermore, they are more complex to digest.
At general levels, there are usually only some diarrhea or vomiting when they eat something that feels bad, such as sauces or stir-fries. Although sometimes they can suffer more serious problems that require veterinary attention.
To give an example, our dogs eat leftovers whenever there is, if not, then I think or BARF (depending on the season). Nothing has ever happened to them, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. That is why we are concerned with evaluating what leftovers can or cannot eat.