I've just learnt that Broccoli is toxic to dogs. I've been feeding it to my girl to bulk her meals out in trying to control her weight. Now I wonder what raw veg are suitable for dogs. I've got to get some weight off her, she's been spayed so its even harder to do so.

Peanut, Broccoli is not toxic for dogs at all.......... the information you have is incorrect. :-)

Some other veg you can give your dog are below, but better to cook things like broc, cabbage etc as it makes them easier to digest, but honestly broccoli is safe to give to your dog. :-)

Asparagus, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Cucumber, green beans, lettuce, pumpkin, spinach, sweet potato...... I'm sure there are many more but these come to mind at the moment.

Phew, glad to hear that, my dogs love broccoli as well as carrot, cucumber, in fact most things.

LOL, If you feed your dog broccoli it's only toxic to you.  Even a little bit tends to make them gassy.  :)  All the cole crops do.

Don't feed onions, garlic or grapes/raisins.

Find  a glycemic index chart if you are feeding vegetables for weight loss.  Green beans, I think, are 0 on the index.  Carrots and red peppers are quite high, you can tell, they taste sweet.  Peas too.

Peanut, just to add, although I do give my girl the odd bit of veg, I just cut her food down after she was spayed with no need to bulk out meals, it has kept her weight really in tip top condition and she is very fit and healthy, don't feel guilty, her body needs less food now, your girl will get used to it. Less food and more exercise to take her mind off any hunger whilst she settles into her new routine works well.  Too much of anything is not good for a dogs stomach and too much veg will probably have the same affect  as they are primerially carnivores. One or two pieces of broccoli is enough and I would mix with green beans, but it should only take up 10% at the most of her diet, to avoid any reactions.

Making sure that all veg is thoroughly washed as you can get toxins from pesticides, broccoli in small doses is good for a dog as are many other veggies.

But, personally I see no point in bulking out to make the meals the same size but with less protein, better to just cut the meal down and allow her stomach to get used to the reduced size. :-)

Mine got broccoli, cauliflower and green beans last night, they get nuts and seeds from time to time and all my dogs have had the odd grape now and again.
Half the time it's "garlic will kill them" and the other " I've given garlic as a flea preventative for years".

Moderation!

That's a weird one, someone on a friends FB list claimed Broccoli was toxic a wee while back, my friend got in a right panic about it.

Cruciferous vegetables can exacerbate thyroid problems in a dog that suffers from them, it's not toxic, and is fine in moderate amounts. 

http://www.whichdogfood.co.uk/articles/5-human-foods-you-should-never-give-to-your-dog.php

> Cruciferous vegetables can exacerbate thyroid problems in a dog that suffers from them, it's not toxic, and is fine in moderate amounts. 

Tarimoor,
Any cruciferous veg or just larger than moderate amounts?

Celli, many foods can cause reactions to us and other animals given in large quantities, for broccoli to affect the thyroid in a dog the dog would have to eat a barrel full every day. It's a bit like saying that apples will make your dog drunk so avoid them, the statement is only true if again you fed a barrel full.

No-one would feed such large quantities of any fruit or veg to ourselves or any other animal so the statements are irrelevant and a little bit scaremongering. There are some very dangerous fruit and veg that a dog should not be given in small amounts, but broccoli is not something anyone should ever worry about. ;-)

The effect on thyroid applies to humans as well.  And blood pressure medication, it tends to lessen the effect of the med.  Moderation is key, as with most things. 

Thanks for replies. Since posting I've googled broccoli and dogs and discovered as long as its under 10% of the meal it's safe. I take ur point about just cutting the feed down and not bothering to "bulk" the meal. My girl appears to be continually starving tho, so I don't know what the answer is really.

I've been told any cruciferous vegetables, I can't remember what it is in them that is *toxic* but it is pretty low level, you'd have to give a lot of *broccolli* or similar consistently to cause a problem for most dogs.  That said, it's like anything else, for us and dogs, anything in moderation.  It will have it's benefits in moderation, but like most things, if you give too much of it then there's the potential for problems.