Many human foods are indeed safe for dogs. What about vegetables? Are they safe and ok or these pets shouldn’t eat them?
Understanding vegetables
Vegetables refer to plant food material, especially roots and leaves consumed by humans. However, the term may include some flowers like broccoli or savory fruits like cucumber, okra, squashes, courgettes, avocado, tomatoes, etc.
They can be classified into leafy and non-leafy, starchy and non-starchy, and so on. Non-starchy is low in starches and calories such as green vegetables, cucumber, zucchinis, carrots.
On the other starchy ones include taro, yam, sweet potatoes, butter squash, peas, cassava, lentils, and so on, they are high in starches and, consequently, calories.
Can dogs eat vegetables?
Yes. Dogs can eat vegetables as a treat in moderation. They are a healthy and beneficial snack. However, not all are safe, and not everyone supports the idea of letting your canine pal munch some vegetables. Most who support raw diets, and some veterinarians don’t seem to agree.
Yes. Indeed, dogs don’t need veggies or even fruits in their diet, i.e., they don’t have a physiological requirement. However, they can efficiently digest them, and including the various safe vegetables that won’t hurt your dog.
Their ancestors also eat their prey’s content, which being herbivores their stomach has mainly plant materials.
Finally, if you looked at some commercial dog foods, you will see tapioca, peas, lentils, leafy veggies, carrots, and so on, which are veggies.
Benefits
We don’t give our dogs vegetables just for the sake of it or because they may like them. They do have many benefits, which include the following:
Nutritious and healthy
Veggies are a nutritional powerhouse with vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and antioxidants. Some like lentils, edamame, beans, peas, chickpeas, and so own having some protein. Therefore, they will provide supplemental nutrients to boost dogs’ immunity and keep them healthy.
Antioxidants will counterbalance free radicals generated during metabolism or by environmental and dietary factors. Free radicals can damage cells, tissue, or even DNA.
On the other side, some phytonutrients in veggies are antioxidants. Others have inflammatory properties and other bioactive compounds that will help fight or reduce the possibility of some chronic illnesses like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, etc. They also support brain and eye function.
To support their health benefits, a study on Scottish Terriers concludes that consuming “certain vegetables may prevent or slow the development of transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) in Scottish Terriers,” especially the green leafy and yellow-orange vegetables.
Dietary fiber
Veggies are a good source of dietary fiber (fermentable and non-fermentable). Some of the benefits of fiber in dogs include:
- Promotes gut health (nourishes good gut bacteria that has many benefits) and boosts immunity.
- It helps with diarrhea and constipation, which is why you see people recommending pumpkins in case of diarrhea.
- May help in weight loss
- Slows rate of nutrient absorption, reducing the chances of sugar spikes in diabetic dogs. Similarly, short-chain fructooligosaccharides may improve blood sugar and insulin control.
- Work as a remedy swollen to anal sac glands
- Supports cardiovascular health by lowering cholesterol (1) and inhibit its absorption (2)
Weight management
As low starch, low-calorie treat veggies may help in weight loss, especially in overweight and obese pooches. Also, since they have dietary fiber and calories, they will help them feel full while ensuring they don’t consume too many calories. Haven’t you heard of green beans and their help in weight management?
However, if you intend to use vegetables to manage dog weight, let your vet be aware. He or she can help develop a good diet plan or assist you in adjusting your diet and how to include them in their diets effectively.
Healthy low-calorie treats
Since they are low in fats, going for a low-calorie vegetable treat instead of the commercial high-calorie, high carbohydrate treats. By so doing your pet don’t gain weight and get various nutritional benefits while making a saving.
Help alkalize diet
Since your liver, pancreas, hormone, heart, gallbladder, and kidney work in alkaline conditions and too much acid may cause inflammation. Therefore, some alkalizing diets like leafy greens and watercress asparagus, alfalfa sprouts, peas, broccoli, and some herbs, maybe of help.
However, please don’t overdo it as excessive alkalinity may not favor a healthy kidney function.
Feeding veggies to your dog
A wrong diet may result in long-term health problems or even cause death to your dog. Therefore, it is good to ensure they have the right diet and in their right proportion. When feeding vegetable to your dogs, consider the following:
Vegetable amount
Dogs should eat vegetables only as an occasional treat. Furthermore, all the treats they have should contribute to no more than 10% of their daily calorie intake. When fed at this level, they are unlikely to cause any problems.
Otherwise, too much will prove detrimental as your dogs may eat less of their food since they are full, something that may cause nutritional deficiencies. Also, they may suffer from diarrhea, vomiting, gas, and other gastrointestinal distress.
Some like Brussels sprouts may make your dog gassy, while those high in Isothiocyanates are known to irritate a dog’s GI if fed in huge quantities.
Finally, for the starchy or those high in sugars, especially root vegetables, limit amount as they may contribute towards weight gain.
Preparation
When offering vegetables to your dog, clean them, and cut them into bite-size to make eating easier. Otherwise, it will be impossible for them to eat some foods like celery stalks or asparagus. Also, cutting some veggies like Brussels sprouts which often present a choking hazard.
If offering them fresh corn, ensure you remove kernels from the cob since they may swallow it, something that will result in a blocked digestive tract.
Introduce slowly
If they have not eaten a particular vegetable, ensure you introduce it slowly over a week or more to give their stomach time to adjust to the new food. Start with a small piece and gradually increase the amount. Otherwise, these pets may end up with diarrhea, gas, vomiting, and so on.
Raw vs. cooked
Most dogs will enjoy raw, blanch, baked (makes them crunchier), steamed, grilled, dehydrated, or boil vegetables. Cooking makes vegetables easier to eat and digest but shouldn’t additive like oils, salt, spices, or any other additives.
However, raw vegetables present several health benefits since cooking degrades their nutritional composition, including phytonutrients, vitamins, and enzymes. However, they will be harder to digest, and some are tough to eat. Therefore, consider pureeing them. However, whether pureed or not, some will need cooking, such as potatoes.
Canned and frozen
Both canned and frozen veggies are safe for your canine pal. You can freeze pureed vegetables or add small pieces to your ice cube tray and add water or low sodium chicken broth and freeze them. A ratio of about 1:1 is ok. They will make a good treat during hot summers.
For canned veggies, ensure they don’t have any salt or additive as they will render them unhealthy. Go for those canned in water only.
More feeding ideas
For picky or fussy eaters who don’t like vegetables, consider adding pureed vegetables to their food or add peanut butter that doesn’t have any sugar.
To make things more fun, hide them in their puzzle toy and let them find and eat it. Clean the toy after using it. Unfortunately, unless frozen, pureed veggies cannot work as a puzzle toy treat.
Finally, don’t rush your dog and avoid raw tomatoes, mushrooms, rhubarb, garlic, onions, chives, leeks as well as any other alliums
When to avoid veggies
If your dog is eating therapeutic diets to help manage a particular health condition or is currently being treated for any illness, don’t give her any vegetable unless your veterinarian allows you to do so.
Allergies
While corn may cause allergies, it doesn’t do so often as beef, dairy, wheat, or chicken. However, if it causes allergy or any other vegetable, discontinue its use.
Common signs of allergies include diarrhea and vomiting, skin problems, chronic ear problems, and so on. Talk to your vet for further help.
FDA warning
“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an alert to “pet owners and veterinary professionals about reports of canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs eating certain pet foods containing peas, lentils, other legume seeds, or potatoes as main ingredients.”
However, this doesn’t include green beans, which many people feed their dogs since they are easy to digest. They are not classified as beans, and the alert doesn’t affect them.
Vegan dogs
While dogs can survive on vegan diets or vegetarian regiments since they are omnivores and not carnivores, we don’t recommend them. However, allergies to animal protein may make some vets recommend vegan diets.
However, it needs careful planning and preparation to ensure they meet dogs’ dietary requirements since meat is one of their critical nutrients.