Thanksgiving is a great time to sit back and relax with family, friends and a good meal. Your dog is part of your family, so safely extend some of the bounty and watch how grateful your dog will be.
- Serving sizes should be a teaspoon for a small dog, and a tablespoon or two for a large dog. If you want to hand feed some turkey, make the experience last longer by hand feeding one tiny morsel at a time.
- If you're in charge of making pies and you have some left over pumpkin (that's plain pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix) - this is a great addition to your dog's dry food. Pumpkin is low in calories, high in fiber and vitamins.
- Mashed potatoes are great, but the butter and cream isn't. Set aside a chunk or two of cooked potato for your dog and mash with a fork.
- A little chicken broth over dry food changes both the flavor and texture.
- Turkey skin is a definite no-no; it tends to give dogs pancreatitis and this can be a huge problem not only on Thanksgiving Day, but days or weeks afterwards. Instead, peel a little of that white meat right next to the chest bone off for your dog - it hasn't had a chance to absorb much of the added salt or fat we add to the outer part of the turkey.
- Feeding at the table encourages begging, so all thanksgiving samples should go in the dog bowl or fed away from the table.
- If you're having guests over, have a bowl of dog treats available that guests are allowed to give your dog rather than scraps from the table.
- Don't feed any food with onions, raisins or grapes and keep chocolate on the counter, not the coffee table.
- If your dog should have diarrhea or constipation, add some of that plain pumpkin to their food for a couple days. If your dog has eaten something that doesn't agree with him, watch for other signs such as vomiting, fatigue or lack of appetite and contact your veterinarian.
Happy and Safe Thanksgiving to you all.
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