4/5/12

A Must Share From "ASKSPIKE"

Posted on 12 April 2011 by Spike

Easter has many different meanings to people. Just like all human holidays, us dogs celebrate by learning the various types of foods associated with a particular day.

Christmas usually brings turkey, Thanksgiving apple pie and summer holidays bring cook outs with hot dogs and steak.

But Easter not only brings good foods, often there are games to be played with the food: Egg hunts.
Humans color eggs in many colors and then hide them all over the yard. Other humans, usually the smaller ones, now have to go find these colored eggs!  If a dog hangs around to observe the hunt, perhaps he may be able to cash in on finding the eggs that the humans left behind. What a fantastic idea!

Let’s spend some time discussing a dogs consumption of eggs.  Cooked vs. Raw:  There is a myth floating around that feeding raw eggs to your dog will make his coat shine. This is really just a myth. In fact, raw eggs whites will combine with biotin and render this essential vitamin unavailable in a dog’s body. Raw eggs may contain salmonella. Not god for humans or dogs.  Eggs should be cooked prior to feeding them to us dogs and, even then, we should only consume them in moderation. Cooked eggs contain a digestible protein and is safe in small quantities. We really don’t care how they are cooked. We like them scrambled boiled and poached.  Some humans are quite concerned when a dog finds a tasty Easter egg. You see, we are not known for removing the pretty colored shell prior to eating the egg. That’s OK! Consuming egg shells will boost our calcium intake.

A favorite Easter treat has now found its way into other holidays. My Mom says that the practice of eating Peeps on holidays other than Easter is not acceptable. Therefore, we only have Peeps in our house at Easter.  So, the question now is: should you allow your dog to eat Peeps?  Peeps are wonderful concoctions containing sugar, corn syrup and gelatin. I have been known to indulge in the consumption of a Peep! Well, maybe a few Peeps.  The problem with Peeps is the amount of sugar. Sugar consumption does not concern most dogs. However, it is a concern for our owners who have to pay the vet bills.  This year, I embarked on a study to decrease my intake of sugar through the ingestion of Peeps. The following is the result of my study:  If you want to indulge in consuming the Peep Chicks, 5 of them results in 34 grams of sugar. Four Peep Bunnies, only contain 26 grams of sugar. Either way, Peeps = sugar. Sugar = bad.

As for chocolate: It has been said that the darker the chocolate, the more deadly it is for us dogs to consume. Some interpret this statement as “milk chocolate is safe for dogs.”  Once again, my Mom consulted a vet and – once again – he ruined my plans for that hollow milk chocolate bunny sitting on the dining room table.  The vet suggests that if you simply must feed your dog chocolate, then visit the pet store or search the internet for carob treats.
As stated above, chocolate rabbits, hollow or solid, dark or milk are not good for us dogs. Rabbits, however, seem to be extremely good for dogs. So good, in fact, that some leading premium dog food contains rabbit. If you happen to own a rabbit, or are considering to purchase a live rabbit for Easter, I suggest that you keep your bunny away from your dog. Rabbits are quite tasty and a lot of fun to chase.


Lamb is another favorite Easter food and is a primary ingredient in some premium brand dog foods. Many dogs enjoy a nice lamb bone. Cooked bones can often become brittle and splinter in a dog’s stomach. Some people like to steam bones so that their dog is not eating raw bones.

Easter Grass is another no-no for us dogs.  Easter grass is not really grass. This is colored, plastic, stringy stuff people use to fill the bottom of an Easter basket. The vet suggests that you keep this “grass” away from your dog as consuming large quantities may cause a blockage.  Real grass is quite tasty and humans cannot explain why us dogs love it so much. Perhaps I should eliminate the mystery and explain why we love to eat grass. But then I would have to kill all of you. That is a secret that must remain forever only known to us dogs!  (By the way, I ate grass yesterday afternoon and I haven’t vomited one time!)

Ham should not be fed to a Great Dane, Boxer or Doberman Pincher or, for that matter, any large breed dogs. It may cause bloat.  Bummer! I love ham. I really love the ham bone. I generally get the ham bone even though I put one in the toilet bowl a few years ago. My vet said that I could have a ham bone. However, ham should be fed to dogs very seldom as ham contains a lot of fat and salt!

No comments:

Post a Comment