This Christmas, many of us will share our Christmas dinner with our dog – a survey shows that over 60% of dog owners will let their dog eat a Christmas dinner. Most owners are aware of the toxicity of human-grade foods, such as chocolate and grapes, but unfortunately there are other more harmful foods we potentially could be giving – some of which can be severely damaging for dogs.
You may be surprised to know that dogs have about six times less the number of taste buds compared to humans – which probably explains why they eat the disgusting things that they do! Dogs are omnivores, so they eat a variety of food of both plant and animal origin – this means they are attracted to eating virtually all sorts of organic matter, despite what it is or what it looks like. An enhanced sense of smell makes up for a dog’s lack of taste. Dogs ‘eat’ with their noses – if it smells good then it can be eaten, literally!
Is it lunchtime again?
Despite us feeding our dogs every day, likely twice a day, domestication seems not to have taught our dogs that we will feed them again and again. Because your dog is unlikely to refuse any festive food you offer them, even after having eaten their breakfast and lunch, make sure you know which foods are a hazard to your dog’s health – you don’t want an emergency visit to the Vet’s on Christmas Day. Our dogs, even though they might seem to want to persuade us otherwise, are not food waste disposal units!
Avoid feeding foods containing chocolate, macadamia nuts, raisins and sultanas, nutmeg, avocados, cream and other dairy products, as well as sharing salty snacks, and sugary sweets and cakes – no matter how hard it is to ignore those puppy-dog eyes. And beware of fat trimmings, as these can lead to pancreatitis.
Instead of sharing your Christmas lunch, why not give your much loved canine companion a special treat by buying them festive food for dogs, such as Lily’s Kitchen ‘three bird Christmas dinner in a tin’, and as treats for good behaviour, their fabulously festive turkey and cranberry biscuits. Or if you prefer to feed raw, Natural Instinct’s Christmas Feast.
You may want to indulge your dog, but at the end of the day, Christmas is just another day to them!