The holiday season brings good tidings and full plates, but think twice before you serve the family dog any leftovers or scraps from the table: you may be doing more harm than good.
Here are the foods you can — and shouldn’t — feed the family dog during the holidays.
Can I feed my dog turkey?
If you like giving your dog a few scraps, you need to consider how the turkey is prepared, or you’ll risk your dog coming down with digestive disorders.
The American Kennel Club advises that turkey prepared and cooked without fat, salt and seasonings should be OK for your dog, but warned that most turkey dinners aren’t prepared that way.
“To people eating the meal, all of the flavors, aromas, and textures can be delicious. But for our dogs, some of these seemingly healthy ingredients can actually be toxic,” read the American Kennel Club’s advice. “Even if some common Thanksgiving ingredients aren’t exactly toxic to dogs, they can still be a recipe for unpleasant digestive upset or pancreatitis.”
Can dogs eat ham?
Dogs can generally eat ham in very small quantities, so you should shy away from feeding your family pooch a hunk of holiday ham.
“Ham is not toxic to dogs, but it’s also not a healthy treat for them,” read the advisory from PetMD. “So if your pup eats a little piece that fell to the floor, they should be totally fine. But feeding ham to your dog as a regular snack can cause some long-term health issues.”
Giving your dog too much ham can lead to heart disease, hypertension, kidney disease and obesity.
You can feed your dog beef during the holidays
Beef, a common staple in prepared dog food, is fine to give to your pet dog, as long as your dog isn’t allergic.
There a re a few caveats, however.
Dog care website Raised Right advised that pet parents can serve their dogs lean beef muscle, but shouldn’t feed them fried beef, nor beef with a high fat content.
Additionally, do not give your dog any preserved beef, and never give your dogs beef bones.
Don’t feed your dog any cookies or chocolates
You will need to resist the urge to slide your dog a few holiday cookies or purposefully dropping a few chocolate chips on the kitchen floor as a treat.
The scrumptious spices included in holiday cookies can be toxic to dogs.
“Common human cookie ingredients that are toxic to dogs are nutmeg, chocolate, raisins, and macadamia nuts,” advised The Dog People website. “If your dog has snatched a sugar cookie or another dessert that is high in sugar, butter, and flour but doesn’t have the above ingredients, it’s probably not toxic, though unhealthy.
“Refined sugar isn’t the best for your pet, but your dog will likely be all right.”
The American Kennel Club warns that feeding your dog chocolate could lead to a serious medical emergency, also due to toxic ingredients.
“Chocolate contains both theobromine and caffeine. If your dog consumes food or drink with caffeine or theobromine in it, these chemicals can speed up the heart rate and stimulate their nervous systems,” read the American Kennel Club’s advisory. “The risk of your dog becoming sick from ingesting chocolate depends on the type and amount of chocolate consumed and your dog’s weight.”
Damon C. Williams is a Philadelphia-based journalist reporting on trending topics across the Mid-Atlantic Region.
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