As I am planning to host the family Thanksgiving dinner, I have to remember to keep in mind any family member allergies or meal preferences such as vegetarian.
Can Our Dogs Safely Eat Thanksgiving foods?
This planning got me to thinking about our dogs. They are family too! Can I share our feast with the dogs?
We have 2 Labs and a Yorkie. Although we rarely feed them people food, I’m sure there will be some sneaking of a bite of this and a bite of that 🙂
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So I did my research and found several Thanksgiving foods you can share with your dog and some you CANNOT share.
Foods That Are Dog Safe and Not Dog Safe
Some basic common sense can rule out several foods – dogs don’t do well with spices, high-fat foods, onions, and bones.
Turkey
Our dogs would jump the fence for turkey meat! Feeding small amounts of cooked, skinless, unseasoned turkey is OK. Remember – no bones! Bones can splinter and lead to choking and internal issues.
Stuffing
Stuffing is on the Bad list. The bread in it is OK, but other ingredients can cause serious problems. In fact, onions are poisonous to your fur baby!
Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin pie is a favorite of my family, but it’s not good for the dogs. The high fat crust and pumpkin spices can cause upset stomach and pain. But – you can feed fresh or canned pumpkin. Turns out, pure pumpkin is good for a dog’s digestion.
Sweet Potatoes
This is another favorite that you can share – if you give them raw pieces. Don’t give them canned sweet potatoes and never give them the sweet potato dish you make with marshmallows. Marshmallows contain an artificial sweetener that is very dangerous to dogs.
Rolls and Bread
The dinner is not complete at our house without bread 🙂 Plain bread without nuts or spices is OK to share. Just remember there is no real nutritional benefit in bread and it can add on unneeded weight.
Carrots, Celery and Green Beans
These are all good foods for your fur baby as long as they are raw and unseasoned. Dogs will get a lot of nutrients with low-calorie intake.
Ham
For our Thanksgiving dinner, we serve turkey and ham. Gotta please everyone! It is OK to feed pieces of ham to your dog, just remember to give it in moderation because of the fat and salt in ham.
Apple Pie
Apple pie is another Thanksgiving staple at our house. Like other pies, the crust and filling ingredients are not good for your dog. They can have plain raw apple slices. Just remove seeds first.
A Few Other Foods To Avoid
As humans, most of us like chocolate and also a good cup of coffee. Dogs can get really sick or die from either chocolate or caffeinated drinks.
We like salty snacks like chips, pretzels, popcorn, and nuts. These are not good for your dog – so no sharing!
Grapes and raisins are toxic to dogs! Something I did not know! They can lead to kidney failure.
Should not have to mention this – but – no alcohol. Even small amounts of alcohol can be poisonous to dogs!
If your dogs will be around guests (and their food), be sure everyone understands what is OK to share with the dogs and what is NOT OK.
Keep your fur babies safe and have a great Thanksgiving celebration!
I also have a post where you learn how we plan for family get-togethers and you can get a FREE Dinner Planner!
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