Everyone wants to eat healthier, but what about your dog? While most dog food is healthy, even dogs need a special treat.
Many healthy food options are perfect for a new puppy or older dog. Let’s look at the best human food for dogs, what makes it so healthy, and what foods you should never feed.
Human Food For A Healthier Dog
Choosing the best human foods for dogs is easy once you know what foods are safe for them to eat. What’s safe for puppies to eat is also the best human food for your dog. While you don’t want to feed them all these foods daily, you can share a treat with them while you both binge your favorite show.
Supplementing a dog’s diet with healthy snacks ensures he gets the needed vitamins and minerals to keep him active and healthy. Healthy snacks, a good diet, and daily exercise are crucial to keeping your best friend in the best health and increasing his longevity.
Lean protein
Beef, chicken, pork, and turkeys are healthy proteins and the best human food for puppies. Protein is vital in repairing muscle, bone, hair, and skin. It boosts your dog’s immune system and allows it to continue producing hormones, enzymes, and antibodies.
All meat you feed your dog should be fully cooked, seasoning-free, and boneless, especially chicken and turkey, whose bones tend to splinter and tear the stomach and colon. Remove all the skin as well. Not even dogs need that extra fat!
Bananas
Bananas aren’t just for monkeys. While they are high in sugar, they are also rich in biotin, copper, fiber, potassium, and vitamins. Chop it into bite-size pieces or let him steal it from the peel, they’re low in sodium and cholesterol, so they are perfect for weekly snacks.
Cheese, please
Even dogs can be lactose intolerant, but cheese is an excellent snack for you and him if your dog doesn’t have a milk allergy. Cheese is a fattier protein, so opt for lower fat versions like mozzarella or cottage cheese. Cheese is excellent for hiding medicine as it masks the bitter taste. Cheese is food even puppies can eat. Given in small amounts, it is a healthy snack for puppies and mature dogs!
Blueberries
These yummy little berries pack a healthy wallop. Full of phytochemicals, fiber, and antioxidants. They are the perfect reward for a well-done trick, and blueberries inhibit cell damage. Make sure to wash the blueberries first to remove any pesticides that can harm you and your canine.
Carrots
These crunchy orange veggies are great for your dog’s teeth and full of beta-carotene and fiber. Forget the sticks, let that puppy fetch a carrot, and watch him chow down on healthy food puppies can eat!
Peanut butter
Peanut butter is another ideal protein source for your puppy or older dog. It’s also another way to get medication in them if needed. Not only is peanut butter full of vitamins B, E, and niacin, it is a heart-healthy fat too. Make sure your peanut butter is sodium-free and not sugar-free. The xylitol in sugar-free peanut butter can cause your dog’s kidneys to fail, create excess insulin production, and ultimately cause death in your beloved pooch.
Fish
Salmon-free of bones and sardines are terrific sources of protein, amino acids, and healthy fat for dogs. If you’re looking for the best human food for dogs, sardines are it. Not only do they great taste, but dogs can also digest their bones, and sardines do double duty by supplying canines with calcium to ensure their bones stay strong and healthy. Be sure the fish is fully cooked and free of seasonings like salt, garlic, or MSG, and only give those fish twice a week at the most!
Watermelon
Nothing is better than a slice of cold watermelon on a hot summer day! It provides potassium, and vitamin C, B-6, and A. It is the perfect human food treat when your dog plays in the heat because watermelon is 92% water, so it is as rehydrating as it is refreshing. A dog’s digestive system can’t tolerate the rind and seeds, so remove them before serving. Cube the watermelon and freeze it for an even cooler, healthy snack!
Mango
Who knew a dog could eat mango? Mangos are packed with alpha and beta-carotene, potassium, and vitamins E, C, B-6, and A. Their sugar content means your pooch can only have mango once a week. Be sure to remove the pit so your dog doesn’t choke or ingest the small amounts of cyanide the pit harbors.
Coconut
Next time you have a pina colada, share the coconut and some pineapple with your pooch. While a dog can drink coconut milk, the fruit of the coconut has anti-inflammatory properties that can help heal dry, itchy skin, yeast infections, and allergies to fleas while eliminating bad breath (no one enjoys dog breath!) The fatty acids in coconut will keep your dog’s coat soft and shiny.
Don’t forget the water!
Water helps your dog stay hydrated, especially on hot summer days. It is also a vital component of their blood, carries nutrients they need, and helps remove toxins and waste. Water also helps aid in digesting food and keeps their joints lubricated and cushioned. A healthy dog should drink one ounce of water for every pound they weigh. Ensure your dog has fresh water every day and in the hot weather, add some ice. Dogs love cold water too!
Skip These Toxic Snacks
Macadamia Nuts
Macadamia nuts are a healthy human snack, but they are poison for your pooch! They can attack your dog’s nervous system, increase body temperature, make your pup lethargic and cause vomiting. Macadamia nuts are a never-feed food for your dog!
Avocados
Avocados contain persin. Persin causes abdominal distress, diarrhea, and vomiting in dogs. Persin is in the avocado skin, pit, and fruit itself. If that isn’t bad enough, the pit is a choking hazard and can cause an intestinal blockage if ingested. If Fido wants something green, opt for peas or green beans.
Mushrooms
If you are hunting for mushrooms, leave the dog at home. With 50 – 100 varieties of poison mushrooms hiding in the woods, your dog only has to eat one mushroom to get deathly ill. Toxic mushrooms can kill a dog, so avoid them at all costs.
Ice cream
Ignore the sad puppy-dog eyes when you eat ice cream. The sugar in ice cream is horrible for your dog, but if your dog is lactose intolerant, he will also have cramps and diarrhea. Offer your dog frozen fruit or a savory snack instead. While you and I scream for ice cream, your dog will scream!
Grapes
Grapes are deadly for dogs! Raisins (old dried-up grapes are just as lethal.) Consuming grapes or raisins can cause sudden kidney failure in your dog. The toxin doesn’t discriminate. It will kill any size, shape, or breed of man’s best friend! Give the grapes to the kids and keep them away from the pups!
Chocolate
While the caffeine in chocolate is not healthy for a dog, the methylxanthine, which is slow acting, is poisonous to dogs. Once ingested, methylxanthine can cause pancreatitis, fever, hyperactivity, tremors, and vomiting. Never give any dog chocolate!
Cage those tomatoes
A tomato plant’s green leaves and stems contain solanine, making your dog very sick! Make sure your garden has a fence or the plants have cages to keep your curious puppy away from this plant. While the fruit shouldn’t make your dog sick, why take any chances?
Bacon
Besides being loaded with fat, bacon can cause pancreatitis – an inflammation of the pancreas in dogs. The high sodium level will cause water retention in dogs with heart issues. If you want your dog to have bacon, opt for bacon-flavored dog treats in the canine aisle!
Keep The Spices To Yourself
If it is too spicy for you, it is exceptionally spicy for your pup. Spices, especially the hotter ones, will irritate the lining of a dog’s mouth and intestines. While you and I love our regular food with some sauce, spices like cinnamon can irritate a dog’s mouth and lower its blood sugar to dangerous levels. Onion and garlic powders taste great on meats, but the allium plant they harvest it from is highly toxic to dogs and cats. Enjoy your spices, but keep them away from your canine friends!
Ending Your Dog’s Bad Snacking Habits
Now that you know the best people foods for dogs and puppies and the ones to avoid at all costs. Choosing fresh fruits, vegetables, and proteins over less healthful snacks will help your dog maintain a healthy weight and prevent diabetes or heart conditions in his later years. Your dog loves you unconditionally. Love your dog back by feeding him the best human foods puppies can eat, so he can stay with you for years to come!