Is Garlic Safe for Dogs?

There is a great deal of information on what foods are dangerous to dogs, and invariably garlic appears on the list next to its cousin the onion. Holistic veterinarians recommend including a small amount of garlic for its valuable anti-microbial and anti-bacterial properties provided by the phytochemical allicin and the cancer fighting power from the coumaric acid it contains. With 50% of dogs developing cancer,   a fact that I confirmed with Dr. Sue, The Cancer Vet, I really want to get a reasonable amount of garlic in your dog's bowl. In addition, garlic can contribute to the prevention of fleas.

The argument against garlic is a little medieval in its thinking and is based on two elements:

Onion and Garlic are Relatives:  Onions are loaded with thiosulphates which can cause a condition known as Heinz Body Anemia - causing your dog's red blood cells to break down.  Garlic on the other hand has a trace amount of thiosulphates so it would take a lot of garlic to cause the same issue.

A Research Study Found that Garlic is Dangerous:  A Study by a Japanese University gave 4 dogs "1.25 ml of garlic extract/kg of body weight (5 g of whole garlic/kg) intragastrically once a day for 7 days." 

There are a number of things about their protocol that cause me concern:

• The dogs were given an extract of garlic, not the garlic on your kitchen counter. What parts of garlic were extracted and used is not specified.

• There was no chewing involved, the garlic extract was injected directly into the dog's stomach.

• Since they were given the equivalent of 5 g of whole garlic per kilogram of body weight, the dogs were overdosed on garlic to over 60 times the recommended amount.  

I have a chicken recipe (for people only) that uses 40 cloves of roasted garlic and it's delicious, but it's a dish that I only make once a year. I couldn't imagine eating the whole recipe every day for a week, or worse yet giving the equivalent to my 60-pound dog. 

Looking into other foods that could cause problems when fed at 60 times the normal amount, I saw that one of our dogs' favorite treats, baby carrots, would cause Vitamin A toxicity.  Eggs are one of the best sources of protein for dogs, but the fat in 60 times the normal amount of eggs would certainly risk causing pancreatitis. Good foods in moderation provide tremendous support to our bodies, as long as we don't overdo a good thing. However, if you never put them in your body, or your dogs, they can't do their work at all.

The japanese study confirmed that garlic is dangerous, but only if you're taking your dog to a garlic festival. In a reasonable amount, garlic is a safe addition to your dog's bowl.  However, because garlic comes in many different forms and strengths, I put together this chart to show you how much is safe.

When we get down to the smaller dogs it's just a smidge or sprinkle, but that's all it takes to Feed Your Best Friend Better. As long as your best friend isn't also a vampire.

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