Thanksgiving Food Safety Tips for Dogs

Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends celebrating. We have a lot to be thankful for.

Keep your furry friends and family healthy and safe this year with a few lessons I have learned with Kilo the Pug. One of them is YES – Most dogs can eat pumpkin and turkey.

Thanksgiving Food Your Dog May Be Able To Eat

I know I should not share my meals with Kilo, but I confess, I do. We both love food and we bond. I only give him teeny tastes if he sits quitely at my feet and does not ask (except with his big brown eyes). I love including him with the family and it makes us both happy.

If you also like to make your dog part of your celebration, here is a list of a few yummy foods from my Thanksgiving Menu that dogs may be able to eat in moderation (as long as they are not allergic or on a specific diet- always check with your vet).

• Turkey breast
• Pumpkin (numerous benefits – Click here to enjoy healthy and yummy pumpkin recipes )
• Broccoli (Kilo and I love cooked and raw)
• Asparagus
• Peas
• Sweet Potato (great for dogs and humans- see our recipe ideas)
• Cauliflower (Kilo and I love cooked and raw)
• Mashed Potato (but no skin, especially green bits as can be toxic)
• Carrots (Kilo and I love cooked and raw)
• Bananas – a daily treat for Kilo
• Berries (Kilo is not a fan of raw berries)
• Apples (but not seeds)
• Dates (my daughter loves them but large amounts could cause diarrhea in a dog)
• Cheese (Kilo and I both really love- but can be rich and fattening)

Things like bread, crackers and Doritos may not make your dog sick, but can be very fattening. I don’t worry if Kilo tastes a little, but we should both avoid them really if we want to lose weight and feel fit.

Check out Kilo’s Thanksgiving menu you can make from our Dog Licks Series.

Free Recipe Giveaway including Turkey Mutt Loaf, Pumpkin, Sweet Potato, Mashed Potato and Apple.

Things to Avoid

• Cooked bones
• Turkey skin and fatty meat
• Garlic
• Onion, even in sauces. See our article on Kilo’s scary Onion Incident.
• Chocolate
• Nutmeg
• Grapes and wine
• Certain seeds or pips
• Certain nuts like Macadamia Nuts
• Other products that can be dangerous or toxic to your dog- check with your vet and the ASPCA

Things we have learned the hard way:

• Tidy up appetizers before sitting down to dinner
• Clear the dinner table before everyone leaves
• Make sure counters, cupboards, garbage and dishwashers are not accessible

Guilty Dog – Kilo’s “Crimes”

Kilo is very food motivated and can climb and jump quite high. He is quite resourceful when it comes to finding food.

• He was trying to be “helpful” and went and cleaned up the appetizers when we moved to the dining table from the living room at a dinner a few months ago. Luckily he only got a cracker, a carrot stick and some tiny bits of smoked salmon. He did grab a seed of an olive but did not swallow it. He knocked over and smashed a wine glass but did not drink any wine or cut himself.
• He washed the dishes at another dinner when someone left the dishwasher open,
• He stole and ate a whole tray of chocolate brownies off a shelf we thought was out of reach(vet trip required- see video above).
• Another time he stole a whole quiche off a high counter by jumping up and grabbing the end of the plastic bag and pulling until it fell  (scary Onion Incident)
• He has eaten the remains of extremely smelly salad dressing and other scraps when the recycling bin was not sealed tightly enough. We now have to put any garbage bins out of reach as he loves the challenge of knocking them over when we are out.
• He has started cleaning up the dining table of leftovers as we were saying goodbye to guests several times (luckily fruit/cheese and crackers not chocolate).
• He has stolen Doritos off that same table and got caught on camera. He can even move furniture to reach.

Too Much Turkey, click here for some healthy tips to stay fit! HERE

If your dog does eat something dangerous – call your vet and the 24-hour ASPCA emergency poison hotline 1-888-426-4435 (fees may apply- I had an excellent experience during the onion scare).