Feeding and Nutrition

With the scare of the tainted dog food recall from Menu Foods, many, many people are buying cookbooks that have recipes that you can prepare yourself for your dog or cat. These books are good, but remember that salt is bad for your dog. Of course, chocolate is a NO, NO! This will kill your pet. Remember, that even a small amount of chocolate can kill your dog or cat. It takes a smaller amount to kill cats than dogs. Even if you have given your dog part of that chocolate chip cookie you were eating and it didn't do anything, the toxin in the chocolate is being stored and will build up to devastating proportions. Cocoa and chocolate products may be toxic or lethal to dogs and other domestic animals such as horses because these animals metabolize theobromine more slowly than humans. The heart, central nervous system, and kidneys are affected. Early signs of theobromine poisoning in dogs include nausea and vomiting, restlessness, diarrhea, muscle tremors, and increased urination or incontinence. The treatment at this stage is to induce vomiting. Cardiac arrhythmias and seizures are symptoms of more advanced poisoning. My dog Chance, will eat anything I eat. He loves all raw vegetables, including hot cauliflower. I fix him white rice to go along with his Biljac dry pellets. Brown rice is even better. It gives more fiber to your dog. Try to give your dog the most balanced diet you can. Meat is an excellent source of easily digested protein, but dogs can also digest plant protein, such as soy. Cheese and eggs also provide good digestible protein. Carbs in the form of cereals, bread, pasta, rice and potatoes provide dogs with energy. Scrambled is the best way to do your eggs. Don't use any grease or non-stick spray. Carbs are converted to glucose-essential fuel for the body. Fat consists of fatty acids. Some of these are converted to glucose for energy; others are beneficial for different body functions. Certain fatty acids are necessary to keep skin and coat in prime conditions. You can go to any drugstore and get Fish Oil capsules in the 1000mg. and put one over your dogs food once a day. This is a good supplement. Vitamins and minerals are needed for a variety of body functions, such as building teeth, bones, and new blood cells, assisting absorption of food from the intestines, and aiding tissue repair. Remember, excess of anything is harmful. Never leave old or stale food in the bowl and always have fresh, clean water. Serve food at room temperature, and dispose of any canned food that is not immediately eaten. Soft, moist food, such as Moist and Meaty, can be left in the bowl for several hours, and dry food can be left all day. One more thing, do not feed brittle bones such as lamb or chicken. If you want to give your dog a steak bone, boil it for 20 minutes and then let it cool. Boiling kills any bacteria that is on the bone.
The information about chocolate poisoning came from: www.chemistry.about.com/library