You may not think that fruits and vegetables for dogs would be controversial … But that's it!
Many conventional veterinarians do not think they are necessary for dogs – although some may say that you should add canned green beans to kibble if your dog needs to lose weight!
Some raw feeders also do not give dogs vegetables and believe that an all -meat diet is sufficient to provide a complete range of nutrients. Others like to give their dogs a colorful selection of vegetables and fruits. It seems that everyone has a different opinion about vegetables in a dog's diet.
(Note: Healthy foods approach your dog from the inside and give its immune system what it needs to stay strong.)
#1 Evolution – dogs eat vegetables naturally
Check out where dogs are on herbivore-carnivore continuum. They are not mandatory or pure carnivores and they are definitely not pure herbivores … they are halfway between onmivores and carnivores.
Dogs, wolves and dingoes have been eating vegetables for hundreds of years.
- Wild dogs eat the bowel in their prey
- They cleanse fruit and other vegetable material
- Dogs clean up at junk dumps
- Modern dogs eat household residues and can even eat on your compost pile!
#2 Vegetables help to alkalize the body
Balancing the diet's alkalinity and acidity is important for your dog's health.
Organ such as the liver, pancreas, gallbladder, hormones, heart, kidneys work better in a more alkaline environment. Too much acidity can contribute to inflammation that is responsible for very chronic disease.
Proteins like meat make the body more acidic, while most vegetables and some fruits have an alkalinizing effect on the body.
#3 Shipment of Nutrients
Vegetables provide proteins, lipids, fats, carbohydrates, phytonutrients and fiber, making them a complete food – at least for herbivores such as cows, sheep and rabbits.
But that does not mean that your dog can thrive as a vegetarian.
First, it would be difficult to feed enough vegetables to completely nourish him.
Secondly, you need to add some grains and legumes to provide a correct balance between amino acids.
Protein sources such as meat and muscle meat provide a complete array of amino acids.
#4 Water
Fruits and vegetables are an excellent water source. Many dogs today live in a chronic state of dehydration, which contributes to problems such as kidney disease or formation of urinary stones.
#5 Vitamins
Raw vegetables provide most vitamins, including:
- Most B vitamins (but are low in B12, B1 (thiamine) or choline, so your dog needs food that lives and eggs to deliver these nutrients)
- Vitamin C and co-factors: dogs make their own vitamin C but need the co-factors that help the body use it
- Vitamin A, E and K
There is not much vitamin D in vegetables and dogs do not have enough bare skin to absorb it from the sun as we humans do. So again, dogs need liver to deliver vitamin D.
#6 Minerals
Dark leafy green vegetables contain important minerals such as calcium, potassium and magnesium.
Vegetables such as alfalfa and seaweed are also good sources of minerals. Alfalfa roots go 40 meters into the underground and absorb minerals from the earth. Seam picks up minerals and micronutrients that are washed in the sea.
Make sure that these foods are organic, not produced with synthetic fertilizers. In the United States, alfalfa is an important genetically modified (GMO) crop so it is even more important to find a certified organic source.
#7 Omega-3
Grass and algae (phytoplankton) have a complete complement of essential fatty acids and are rich on omega-3 (even more if they are grown in a cold climate).
Omega-3 reduces inflammation and supports the brain and central nervous system, as well as breathing, circulation, digestion, immunity and reproduction.
When dogs are too high in omega-6, it can impair these functions, so balancing the omega-3 diet is important.
While many people feed fish oils, they are very unstable and can easily turn around, so feeding herbal omega-3s as phytoplankton is a great way to give your dog these essential fatty acids. Omega-3 helps to slow down degeneration and aging.
#8 Phytonutrients
Phytonutrients are only in vegetable material.
Phytonutrients are protective. They include enzymes, antioxidants and anti -inflammatory molecules (read more about these below).
Phytonutrients are antiviral, fungicidal, antibacterial, antihelminthian (anti-masks), anti-aging, degeneration and, most importantly, anti-cancer.
And yet most kibble-fed dogs get none of these nutrients!
Enzymes
Enzymes in food help digestion. Tropical fruits such as pineapple (containing bromelain) and papaya (papain) are particularly advantageous.
Some enzymes avoid the hydrochloric acid in the stomach and absorbed the whole. When this happens, they are also anti-aging, anti-degeneration and pro-health in your dog's body!
Antioxidants
Vegetables, fruits and herbs are shock full of antioxidants.
Antioxidants protect against free radicals (unstable molecules that are an important cause of aging) and again you can only get them from fruits and vegetables.
Anti -inflammatory molecules
Anti-inflammatory molecules include herbs such as turmeric, all types of berries and omega-3 fatty acids.
Omega-3 is not anti-inflammatory on its own, but it drives the anti-inflammatory effects of omega-6, which is why dogs need both.
#9 Fiber
Raw vegetables deliver fresh fiber.
Vegetable fiber is much better and much healthier than fiber from barley. Vegetables contain soluble fiber, which is melted by microbes in large intestine. Insoluble fiber bulks out the food and help it pass through the colon.
Fiber is crucial for older dogs during treatment and prevents degenerative disease.
#10 Vegetables help treat disease
Most importantly, vegetables help treat all degenerative disease processes. He says that vegetables are particularly important for treating serious illnesses such as cancer and kidney disease.
How to feed vegetables
We recommend that you feed vegetables for your dog, starting with puppies of about six weeks old. Feed vegetables as about 10% of your dog's diet.
Feed them raw and powdered
Vegetables should be fed raw for maximum benefits, but you have to crush or powdered them in a juice press or mixer, otherwise your dog may not melt them. Chopping or jerking is not enough to make them digestible.
Use regardless of vegetables that are during the season and feed a lot of variety. Avoid onions, legumes, macadamies and avocado, which can be toxic to dogs.
If you are wondering about garlic, it is safe when used in dimensions and has many health benefits …
If your dog is not on a raw diet, he can still benefit from getting the extra nutrients from some fresh whole foods.
It is not absolutely necessary to feed dogs fruits and vegetables, but there are many stages of life and health conditions where the feeding of vegetable material can have great advantages.
