Having read a lot on this board about what people feed their dogs I was wondering if anyone feeds their dog on people food? You know, what we would eat?  Just asking!

kat

Depends on what you mean by people food :D  If you mean burgers, pizzas, takeways and other convenience foods etc these are just as bad for dogs as they are for humans.  If you mean freshly cooked food which is suitable for dogs eg meat and veg then IMHO this would be better than commercially prepared dog food. 

In general all life is best fed the food that is appropriate for it; when we start to interfere with nature we reap the results eg scrapie, BSE, obesity, tooth decay, auto immune diseases, diabetes, etc etc etc

Also some food that we can eat with impunity is toxic to dogs eg onions, raisins, chocolate etc!

Of course I didnt mean junk food!!! I meant food like beef, poultry and lamb; minced or diced. Also added veg. After reading about the ingredients in certain doog foods. I do wonder what some of these are. It may sound like one thing and mean something completely different. I must admit I am a great believer in 'you are what you eat' and lets face it there are many things out there that are safe to eat and provide excellent nutrition but would you want to eat it yourself?? I think not.

kat

You can certainly cook home made diets for dogs or feed raw, which is more species appropriate, so that you are in complete control of what goes into your dog with regard to amount, quality and ingredients.

I feed raw but it is not for everyone; the reason I feed this way is because I personally feel this method offers optimum health.

Kat,
     This is a good site.

Well Gus did have  chicken fillets and best steak mince if thats what you meant ? :D

I found a very good book, link below for info. Gives detailed nutritional breakdown of vast variety of foodstuffs that`s required for dogs, easy to understand & a lot more info as well :) Dogs are & always have been scavengers & can take a lot of their needs from a variety of sources ;) Raw meat being the main stay of their diet tho :)
http://www.drpitcairn.com/books/pitcairnbook.html

Christine, Spain.

Another excellent book with regard to diet is Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog by Volhard and Brown with suggested diets etc.

If you want to look at diet from a more detailed perspective Canine Nutrition by Lowell Ackerman is very thought provoking!

Very good book. Personally I think most of us that have been brought up with dogs have followed in our parents foot steps and fed pups on what is termed as people food ie: farex, eggs, meat, in one form or another, brown bread, vegetables,  etc. Also the occasional marrowbone uncooked. This is now sort of called the Barf diet. Nothing really new. Then some of us go on to feed a complete diet for convenience. Also some of us feed a complete diet with a bit of meat thrown in for smell, as dogs go by smell first before taste. Just be careful of to higher protein in some foods with too many colourants as this can cause hyperactivity in some breeds.:)

kmc,

I've always fed my dogs people food and commercial food.  When I had four dogs I would cook food (minced beef or turkey usually) specifically for them to add to a commercial complete. I'd also give them raw vegetables - most of my dogs have loved carrots.  When I've had only one dog (as now) I feed commercial food plus whatever people food is on the menu that day - minus anything dogs should not eat (like onions) and emphasing protein over veg and grains/potatoes. 

Stacey

i do!!!!!!

I do too, My staffie loves cheese, and when she has to take a tablet them thats where i put it, inside some cheese, you can't get it out of the fridge without her mouth watering !!!! oh and sausages or left over roast!!

Emma

Hi Tohme

I was wondering, how much chocolate will be toxic?

Luna has accidentally (spelling?) taken a piece of chocolate - she didn`t eat any of it, but carried it into the bedroom, where I was reading a story to a friends daughter (I'm babysitting)

I get very worried and I've tried finding it here, but couldn't, so now I ask you.

Hope you can help me.

Jeanette and 1 year old Luna (today)

Happy birthday Luna!

Try not to worry Jeanette - a dog the size of a labrador would have to eat a large bar of chocolate to make herself ill.
:)

Hi Jeangenie

Thank you. Isn't it amazing how fast time goes? I still think - "I just got her".

And thank you for the reassurance (spelling?) My brain only remembered "chocolate is toxic" - not the amount!

I'm quite relieved.

Jeanette and Luna

Chocolate contains a xanthine compound, theobromine, that is toxic in sufficient quantities. Examples of other xanthine compounds are caffeine and theophylline. The toxicity from all of these compounds is similar.

It takes a fairly large amount of chocolate to cause problems.

The Lethal Dose 50 (dose at which 1/2 of the dogs exposed to a substance will die) is about 100mg/kg for chocolate.

The dose that causes signs of toxicity, such as excitement, increased urination, muscle tremors and rapid heart rate may occur at a lower dosage.

Using a dose of 100mg/kg as the toxic dose the toxic dosages per pound of body weight for dogs work out to be roughly:

1 ounce per pound of body weight (2 ounces per kg of body weight) for milk chocolate.

1 ounce per 3 pounds of body weight ( 1 ounce per 1.5 kg body weight) for semi-sweet chocolate

1 ounce per 9 pounds of body weight ( 1 ounce per 4 kg) for cooking chocolate.

HTH

Thanx
It seems I can breathe easy now. But you just get completely hysterical, when you see your little girl come walking (real proud I might add) with half a chocolate bunny in her mouth!

Jeanette

This is a gundog? :D  mine would have consumed the lot complete with foil and box if any in one gulp, no walking around for them with morsels visible to the naked eye :D

Hi

Well she's not used as a gundog. She is "just" my family pet.
But I AM quite surprised that she didn't eat it! :-)

Jeanette