Thanksgiving Food Safety: Dog Guide

Thanksgiving Day is upon us and while we certainly look forward to quality time spent with close family and friends, we most definitely look forward to feasting on delicious food and desserts. Whether you’re prepping, cooking, or finally sitting down to eat, you can be sure that your dog will be at your feet the whole time looking for droppings or a little slip under the table.

While the occasional bite of human food is generally okay for dogs, it’s important to make sure that the type of food you are feeding your dog is safe. Because there are so many different ingredients and foods around on Thanksgiving, it’s crucial to make it a point to understand what your dog can and can’t eat in order to keep it happy and healthy.

Foods Your Dog CAN Eat

Bread: As long as it’s plain and given just as a small treat, bread is perfectly safe for dogs to consume.
Carrots & Celery: These veggies serve as great snacks for your pups and are packed with nutritional value too! Before you slip them a piece, make sure you cut them into small, bite-size pieces so that they’re easier to chew and swallow. 
Cheese: While fine as an occasional treat, make sure to avoid high and full-fat cheeses.
Corn: When cut off the cob, corn is a healthy food for your dog to eat and is often included in packaged dog foods.
Ham: A little goes a long way with this meat. A small cube or two is fine, but the high fat and salt content of ham is the reason not to over-do it. 
Sweet Potatoes: Sweet potatoes are awesome for dogs, just make sure you serve them plain! They promote healthy skin, a healthy coat, healthy nerves, and muscles, and are rich in Vitamin A.

Foods Your Dog CAN’T Eat

Apple Pie (or any pie): While apples on their own are healthy for dogs, feed them in pie form and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. The high-fat content in the crust combined with the many spices used can cause stomach pain, liver disease, high blood pressure, and seizures. As a good rule of thumb, don’t feed your dog any type of pie. 
Chocolate: Most dog owners already know that they shouldn’t give their pups chocolate. As you work your way from milk to dark varieties, the toxicity increases greatly and consumption can lead to diarrhea, vomiting, seizures and even death. 
Caffeinated Drinks: Caffeine is a big no-no for dogs! It overstimulates the nervous system and causes elevated heart rate, vomiting and seizures. 
Garlic and Onions: These are highly toxic to dogs even if a very small amount is consumed, with symptoms sometimes surfacing a few days after ingestion. Consumption can result in elevated heart rate, anemia, and weakness. 
Grapes & Raisins: These guys are bad, bad news. Even if a very small amount is consumed, it can make your dog severely ill and lead to kidney failure and death. 
Raw Potatoes: Like we mentioned above, sweet potatoes are fine for dogs to eat, but raw potatoes contain solanine, which is toxic to dogs. If you’re feeding your dog a piece of a potato, make sure it’s thoroughly cooked.