Lucille. I thought ham and all pork was very bad for dogs??..

I agree with mamapinkyo, any vet will tell you that, the same applies to turkey according to my vet

Many years ago, I made some chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting. I left the plate on the table and ran an errand. When I got home, the dog had eaten all 10 that were left.

I panicked and rushed her to the after-hours emergency vet. She was fine. They said it is mainly baker's chocolate in larger quantities that are harmful. The frosting was milk chocolate.

Anyway, after that panic, every tiny piece of chocolate was kept under lock and key. But I also enjoyed sharing small treats with her.

I used to share everything with Sammy. My vet had no qualms about it as long as he wasn't overweight. No chocolate,grapes or raisins,thats it.The 4 we have now split our scraps and leftovers. They're FINE!

Sammys favorite was Cheetos cheese puffs. Not the curls,the puffs. Mine too.

He did get ahold of some Reeses cups once. My vet told me not to worry about it. It's the size of the dog and the amount of cocoa solids in the chocolate that determine the risk. He was fine. Not even a belly ache.

My vet told us no pork or ham for cats and dogs. I didn't want to be the first here to say so . :-)

Curious while I can see ham for some dogs why not pork?

I have a large breed. No harm in single bite of just about anything. Pork is not inherently bad for dogs. It's the pork fat that is bad. Pork is actually a great source of protein for dogs. Vets say no to a lot of things because they realize many people will feed the fatty trimmings off their plate instead of the nice center-cut of the chop.

We do avoid raisins,grapes,avocado, onions.asparagus and cherries.

If I'm eating something I often save her the last bite. She doesn't beg food off the table and she knows her good behavior will pay off.

My dog adores lots of fruits and veggies. Blueberries and frozen green beans are favorites of hers.

What people must watch out for is low fat/low sugar/sugar free foods. Many contain the artificial sweetener xylitol which can be deadly. Low fat peanut butter often contains it. Read those labels.

https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/nutrition/8-myths-about-dog-food/

Tee hee. I tried to trick Sammy once by feeding him 2 cheese puffs in a row, then tried to slip in a baby carrot. Didn't work. He spit it out immediately and never fully trusted me again. :)

No, no, no, no, no! It is SO easy for a dog to get pancreatitis eating human food. At the very least, it will make your dog VERY ill; at worse, it can kill your dog.

It's really best to train a dog to not beg, and to avoid treats between meals. You don't want a fat dog.

Anglophilia - You can do both. My dog never begs at the table and she gets treats in moderation. She know that last bite may be saved for her if she's good. My dogs are never fat because I don't overfeed. Obviously you cannot give a Chi the same treat portions as a Rottie.

I managed a Lab with diabetes over 6 years without change of diet and he got treats. He was extremely healthy and active despite his condition and he stayed at a steady weight until he was 13 years old. Just like with humans it is moderation and portion control not outright avoidance.

Turkey is ok for dogs.

Plain lean cooked pork is fine for dogs. Ham is not the healthiest due to salt and fat content for humans or beasts but in moderation it won't harm a dog without a condition.

I share everything with my dog, who is 8. I did the same with my Golden who lived to be 15 and 1/2.

Not only will my dog get turkey, but he will get all the trimmings! But tiny portions.

Most of the dogs that I have had all ate some people food and lived into their mid to late teens. Once they are that old they got lots of human treats. The only one that did not live that long was a CKC that slipped a disk and we had to let him go at about 10. The vet we had advised the humans looking after his patients to let them eat any and very veggie that they wanted to eat.

I looked up the pork and all the things I read cautioned about feeding undercooked pork and avoiding the fat but the fat was for digestive reasons. The pork sounded strange because the warning was about Trichinosis which is now rare in this country. The warning to humans about eating under cooked pork is now considered unnecessary in the US by many authorities because of the way pigs are now raised. Both freezing and cooking will kill the eggs and larva.

We had a Cocker Spaniel when I was a kid. My dad fed him Oreos. I can still hear my mom yelling, "stop feeding Billy those Oreos!" Didn't stop my dad though. I also remember my dad taking ground meat and rolling it into a little ball and feeding it to the dog.

Bad diet and all, that dog lived until he was almost 15.

We had a spaniel mix like that. Loved chocolate. Got a small piece off the giant Nestles candy bars that were a staple in our house growing up every evening. Used to go to Fosters Freeze and get it it's own little chocolate sundae. Perfectly healthy. I think dogs were a hardier back then when people didn't fuss over them so much and treated them like dogs. Especially little mutts.

Chocolate is and has always been poisonous for dogs.

Many dogs don't tolerate changes in their food intake which is why food type changes are typically phased in over a week or longer and why human food can make them sick. Also, some common human foods are similarly poisonous or can cause digestive problems or upset stomachs. Many elements of human food are too rich and difficult for dogs to digest

If you want to be good to your dog, limit the treats to small extra portions of their normal food or limited amounts of dog treats. Giving what you think is special for them may be doing them harm.

When I was a kid, my dad fixed the dogs their meals every day. My mom would scrape the plates and he would whip them up a feast every single day with those leftovers and some water mixed with their food. They all lived to be OLD and were never fat or sick EVER! I don't know why all of a sudden it's so horrible to give a dog some people food every now and then?

NOW...with my dog, she can only have just a tiny piece of meat such as baked chicken. I allow her to lick the empty plate and sometimes even rinse off the plate of anything spicy before she licks it. I may save some ends off the chicken leg bones for her...a healthy source of glucosamine. She loves it so much and will lick an empty plate for 5 minutes. :) I have to be very careful with her because if she gets more than a spot of people food, she will get diarrhea from it.

I think that if you educate yourself as to what food is dangerous to give a dog and avoid those foods. Keep the people food to a minimum and make sure they aren't gaining weight. I would avoid dessert/sweet food completely as this will make them gain weight and shorten their lives. They are much happier with a piece of chicken than a cookie anyway!

Just in general, I think reasonable advice/opinion is far more effective than dire warnings of imminent harm that people know aren't true. At some point, scare tactics simply affect the warner's own credibility.

That's in general and goes for pet care, child care, politics, and whatever. Certainly some actions do indeed have immediate and dire consequences and warnings are appropriate to give, but scare tactics that are not valid just earns the scarer a place on the 'ignore' list.

My mom's long gone cat liked to eat banana and pizza. I think they made her really happy. Which was good since her mom died during birth and my sister who bottle raised her was gone by then. It's nice to make pets happy :) Happy Thanksgiving puppy!

I have always fed my dogs people leftovers. Not as a primary part of their diet but just to flavor up their kibble a bit. My vets over the years have never told me to avoid this practice but just to keep it in moderation and use some common sense with what I include. In fact, most admitted that they too fed their dogs tables scraps from time to time. My last dog lived to 18.......and all other previous ones lived well into their teens with no serious health, weight or allergy issues.......so it can't have been too detrimental.

I once had a rescue schnauzer mix that ate an enitre bag of Hershey's kisses, foil and all. I immediately called the vet and they just told me to keep an eye on him (milk chocolate - not as bad). Other than a long lasting sugar high and a serious case of the runs, he was fine. Bu I no longer leave out any chocolate candies unless guests are expected.

My Aunt gives her Cavalier Spaniel people food, bites off her plate etc, and he very seldom will eat his dog food no matter what she buys. Of course. One day she told me she fixes him a peanut butter sandwich every night before bed!

Needless to say he is overweight and the vet gets so upset.

I am wondering if any of the no human food people have looked at the ingredients of the "grain free" foods. The list is mostly human food with lots of fruits and veggies.

I do get a chuckle when I read the ingredients and there is rice and other grains listed but it is still allowed to be labeled as grain free because of the percentage that they contain.

The Grain-free food is loaded with carbs and fillers.

I know a lady who's cat would dance in front of the microwave when she was nuking brussels sprouts.

The only people food my 2 get is when I'm prepping meat. Bud (cat) begs for it. So he's my taste-tester......chunks of pork, beef roast, hamburger, chicken, etc. All raw. If it passes his inspection and taste buds, it's good enough for me.

Schoolhouse, I have had Cavaliers now for nearly 35 years. They are the greediest little dogs in the entire world! All would weigh at least 50 pounds if we allowed it (Breed Standard says 13-17 pounds). Your aunt is doing her Cavalier no good allowing her to dictate what she will and won't eat, and allowing her to be overweight. Cavaliers have a genetic predisposition to mitral valve disease and being overweight puts a significant strain on the dog's heart. Tell your aunt that when the dog gets hungry enough with NO TREATS, he WILL eat what is offered. It can take a week with a truly stubborn dog and some Cavaliers are just that.

Lucille, my "dire warnings" about pancreatitis are fact based. If you don't believe me, read the AKC web site on this subject <https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/pancreatitis-in-dogs/>; You will notice that the day after Thanksgiving is the busiest day for ER visits due to feeding the dog table food.

I know - for generations, dogs were fed what was left over or had spoilt and they were "just fine". Maybe yes, maybe no. But I can promise you that there is a risk today. The problem is that we don't have anyway of knowing which dogs are at risk. I had a Cavalier (my beloved Godfrey), who several years in a row (inattentive family members), managed to get up on the kitchen table in our summer rental house and consume nearly a full tub of whipped butter. This could have killed many dogs, small or large. But this dog never even burped, never had diarrhea, vomited - nothing at all. But I know of another Cavalier who was given a very tiny bite of bacon from the owner's BLT sandwich. She became so ill that she lost the litter she was carrying and nearly died herself.

So, yes. Some dogs could eat the contents of an entire garbage can and be unaffected and die at a ripe old age. Others can end up very sick from just a bite of food that is high in fat or they are not accustomed to eating. Me? I'm not playing Russian Roulette to find out which kind of dogs I have. And a fat dog is never a healthy one.

People food back in the day was probably much better for dogs than food many people eat these days. If you avoid dangerous foods and obvious junk like fast food, I don't see the harm in people food treats now and then. But if your dog is eating a steady diet of McDonalds along with you, obviously that is no good. It's probably just easier for vets to say "no people food" so cats and dogs stay on diets that are [supposedly] nutritionally appropriate.

Sorry folks but your anecdotal comments like "I haven't killed a dog yet, the last one lived to 15" aren't a replacement for the science and clinical experience of animal medicine. My grandfather lived to be 82 and smoked all his life, so how could smoking be bad for your health?

The worst example of kindness that's easy to see on a daily basis is grossly obese dogs and cats. If only people paid more attention to advice they (should) get from their vets about how being overweight can limit the lifetime and years of happy mobility of their dogs and cats, they wouldn't allow it to happen. Those people also say things like "Little Spot loves getting hot dogs for lunch", or, "he always seems so hungry, we just keep a full bowl ready for him", not knowing or caring that what they consider to be kindness is really killing their animals. But, they don't want to hear that, because "Little Spot is so happy when I open the fridge, or put down the scrapings from the dinner plates".

Lucille, my "dire warnings" about pancreatitis are fact based.

I have no doubt that they are. I also have no doubt that an occasional teaspoon of ham is not going to lead pancreatitis. That is the point many have made here (some who say they have checked with their vet), that feeding is not a black and white, all or nothing proposition.

My vet (my old one who I trusted before he betrayed me and retired,the monster) wholly approved of my method for getting the fur heathens to take their medicine: hide it in a chunk of a honeybun. Works every time.

Lucille, the human foods that are too rich or are poisonous for dogs and cats (different items for each) ARE a black and white matter. Whether people want to hear it or not. Here's an example - onions and garlic. Also for dogs, raisins and grapes, a small amount can be very dangerous. There are many, many others.

amylou, when trying to get a dog to take a needed medicine, I often use Velveeta cheese - only a tiny bit. They love it! I have also used a tiny bit of peanut butter on a spoon with the small pill hidden in it. They lick it right off, pill and all.

This is very different than regularly feeding/treating dogs with human food. They simply must take their medicine. But NEVER use one of the foods Elmer mentions above - they can be very dangerous for dogs.

There is also a fairly recent product out there called a "pill pocket". They're readily available and very good if the dog is going to have to take the meds "forever".

Our late dogs always got their own Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. Mostly lean meat, a bit of the sides, minus anything with onions. They loved it and never had any problems. We did, however, have a neighbor who fed her dog lots of fatty turkey skin one Thanksgiving and that did not turn out well.

My dogs have all hated the pill pockets. There is no telling what they use to make them. And they stink to high Heaven...

I don't think Velveeta is healthy to give man or beast.....

The danger of feeding a dog chicken or turkey is the bones. If you toss the dog a chicken breast, its full of bones that are thin enough to break into sharp shards. Dogs do not chew their food. They chomp and tear it into manageable bites and swallow. A broken bone can poke the interior, or worse yet, get stuck in their throat.

I have to step in about hiding medications in pill pockets or food. I abhor this practice. A pet owner should be able to give medication to their dog without trickery. Pilling is not that difficult and pets need to know who is in charge. Pop to back of tongue, close mouth, stroke throat. The whole process takes less than 15 seconds. I have seen dogs eat whatever the pill is in and discard the pill. If you can't reach into you own pet's mouth your problems are a lot greater than inability to pill. Time for some serious retraining.

Elmer, toxic foods and allegedly 'too rich' foods are two different issues and have been addressed as such throughout this thread. One poster here says she has consulted her vets and has received the vet's blessing to feed some human foods in moderation, it is interesting that you, a non vet, are now speaking as an authority and trying to override some of the veterinarian advice people have received.

Watchmelol, no it's not hard to give a dog a pill like you described. But it's not pleasant for the dog either. Honeybuns and other treats are. There is nothing wrong with the proverbial "spoonful of sugar."

It's the same reason there are so many flavored medicines and vitamins for kids. I suppose everyone could shove bitter meds down their kids throats to show them who is in charge, but its sometimes kinder and easier to make it as pleasant an experience as such things can be.

LOL Father in law was a Veterinarian. Their dogs ALWAYS got scraps of all sorts. They loved them all. Never had any issues.

Having a dog that has had at least 4 bouts of pancreatitis, we do not give any table food! It is an absolutely miserable illness and can lead to death. Yes, they need to eat a low fat diet (even prescription dog food) for the rest of their lives.

Years ago we were visiting a friend who was renting a barn and some fields for his horses for a couple of months in Florida. He took us to see the other barn on the property which was super fancy, and the property-owners dogs came waddling over to us. One was a Black Lab that was extremely obese and the other two were Jack Russell Terriers that looked like marshmallows with feet.

Just then the owner drove up and started unloading groceries from the car, the dogs ran to her and she reached into a bag and pulled out an entire wedge of Brie, unwrapped it and gave it the the Lab, and then pulled out another and split it between the JRTs.

I was flabbergasted but fortunately (for our friends sake) managed to squelch my outburst.

I have a friend that gives her dog a freakin' doughnut every single day! UGH! I have told her that she should not give this to her dog and that it can lead to diabetes later in life but she didn't listen and even got snippy with me when I said something! She snaps back and said "a doughnut isn't going to hurt anything!" I just said "I beg to differ!"

When some hear "doing X" or "eating X" or some such things may have negative consequences, they avoid doing so if reasonably possible and not a big deal. Others will deny or ignore anything that interferes with what they want or prefer to do.

Oh Elmer, you can't stand not making proclamations, how funny. You constantly tell people to follow instructions from their vet, and when it has become clear that vets differ on this subject and not all of them think "doing x" is a problem, you throw the vets under the bus and make the proclamations yourself.

Not all vets are created equal. And many have not read a veterinary journal since graduation day. Choosing a vet is like choosing ones physician - choose wisely.

Of course one can train a dog to be "pilled" (not as easy with cats), but in my own situation, the dog in question was usually quite elderly and quite ill so that is not the time for this. A tiny bit (I'm talking about the size of ones fingernail!) of Velveeta can make things far less unpleasant.

Amylou, even though I grew up eating Velveeta in various forms, I don't eat it unless it's to make chile con queso - makes a nice smooth one. It's not actually "cheese" but it will not harm one unless salt is to be restricted.

Mine gets the occasional pill in a dab of liverwurst.....one of his favorite treats! He never even knows he has taken it :-)

Just an fwiw but Velveeta slices also make the best grilled cheese sammies - smooth and creamy and very 'melty'!! I do gourmet as well but Velveeta grilled cheese is my fave!!

Try gruyere or emmenthal instead, I think either is much tastier than velveeta. Real cheese too.

I make my dog's food and the two proteins I use are chicken and turkey along with occassional fish....all proteins are lean since my dog has Cushings and is prone to pancreatic episodes. Never heard of turkey being a problem for a dog, and I assume no one is feeding bones.

People that raw feed have to be careful using raw pork due to parasites, otherwise I've never heard that cooked lean pork is a problem for dogs. If it were, it wouldn't be used as the protein in Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Low Fat canned food.

Regarding meat: the high fat, salt, seasonings, and whether the meat should be cooked, are what pet owners need to watch out for.

Enjoy your day with your dog and family Lucille. :)

My dogs got a few pieces of turkey and some sweet potatoes. They loved both. Emily has had bouts of pancreatitis in the past, mostly after eating the garbage that I sometimes forget to put away when I leave the house.

I am not knocking Velveeta, for the record. I love it. The point I was making was that its not any better for a dog than the occasional honeybun chunk or piece of meat or anything else to give it a pill.