Green beans for doggies... Too much of a good thing?

[Sparkly]

Our little Shih-Tzu "enjoys her food." She also enjoys the big dogs' food, our food, food that falls on the floor, and any non-food items she can dig out of my purse. (The only thing she won't eat is "weight control" dog food!)

Consequently, she's overweight.

I heard the advice to give her green beans, from several sources including this forum, I think. At this point, all three dogs want all the green beans they can get. The little one will eat a dish of them and want more.

They're cooked from frozen, so no salt or butter or anything, but still -- I'm afraid to give her as much as she wants. Could too much of it make her sick, or make her sick of them such that she won't like them any more?

(Also, does anyone know of a chewy treat that doesn't have a lot of calories? She looooves rawhides but I'm not sure they're good for her diet. I've tried plastic things, but she shreds them and/or ignores them.)

Thanks in advance!

[uppityperson]

1. Rawhide can't be digested well, try pizzle sticks.

My puppy loves them, has chewed through one in the last month. They are made from bull's, well, they come one to a bull but are cut, cooked, dried so they get more pieces out of them. According to what I've read, they are digestible.

[Sparkly]

3. What's a pizzle?

[irisblue]

11. pizzle=dried bull penis

dr foster and smith has an article on them. i do find their prices a bit high, so if you decide to try them, online shop around.

[Broderick]

2. We have given the dogs green beans as a treat in the past

Here is a neat slideshow of what not to feed and the last five are what you can.


http://pets.webmd.com/dogs/ss/slideshow-foods-your-dog-should-never-eat

[Sparkly]

4. Good to know, thanks!

And the pictures of the dogs in this slideshow are precious.

I've given her carrot sticks, too. Gonna try a piece of banana just to see if she likes it.

[Sparkly]

6. Tried banana.

None of them will eat it!

[livetohike]

8. I have spoiled my dogs with peanut butter on a slice of banana

They love it....I don't give them but one or two small pieces though.

[PotatoChip]

5. Hey, that is a great link

Most of it is common sense and/or well known, but I was unaware of some of the listed. Like grapes for example.

Thank you for that.

[livetohike]

7. Thanks!

That was really informative. My dogs love raw fruits and veggies .

[Sparkly]

9. I've been afraid to give the little one raw carrots, except cut up.

I'm always afraid she'll choke, especially when she runs around with a little "baby-cut" carrot in her mouth. (I'm a little over-protective.) Is it safe for them?

[livetohike]

10. I think carrots are probably one of the best treats you can give them

My dogs (an ACD) and a Catahoula Leopard love them....in fact, they can hear me scraping them no matter where they are in the house. They come running and sit down waiting for me to give them their share. For your little guy, I would cut it up into a manageable piece. My dogs love to chew them as opposed to just swallowing it and I guess I give them probably a 1/2" thick round piece of carrot. Cindy - the Catahoula Leopard, has huge jaws and could take a bigger piece no problem.

[Curmudgeoness]

12. Let's think about this....

everything in moderation. Do you think that it would be good for you to eat only green beans? They are good for you, but you need more.

You don't want your dog to eat one thing only, so lots of green beans are probably not a good idea. I would use them only as treats. Your well-balance dog food should be the main diet, with other items limited.

I think it is great that you are finding ways to get the weight down though. Good luck.

[Sparkly]

13. I just don't understand how she can fit that much food in her tummy.

The idea, as I understand it, is to fill her up with veggies like green beans because they have few calories and lots of vitamins. But good gracious, she will eat dish after dish of them (and cooked broccoli, carrots, etc. I've discovered) to the point I don't know if it's messing with her appetite calibrations even more, you know?

The girl loooooves to eat!!

[Curmudgeoness]

16. Sounds like you need another strategy.

If the dog will eat and eat until YOU want to puke just watching, it must be more of a habit than a need......doesn't that happen to a lot of us?!?!?!

I think that you will have to use the veggies as a treat----and a treat is in small portions between meals or when you want to reward for good behavior. I have had cats for years, not dogs, but it is the same thing---I just have to learn to ignore the begging and have set times for meals, period.

[TorchTheWitch]

14. I think you answered your own question

"Too much of a good thing" is how dogs get overweight to begin with. Some dogs will only eat what they feel they need while some other dogs will eat whenever food is available. Just because a dog wants to eat doesn't mean it should be fed. What overweight dogs need is pretty simple - less food, more exercise. Low calorie snacks are good, but less snacks or no snacks is far better. Any dog is better off fighting a weight problem with less of their regular well-balanced food and occasional snacks combined with more exercise as long as they aren't so overweight that exercise could be dangerous.

My next door neighbor's Bull Mastiff until very recently was fat as a ship. We're talking FAT. Hugely fat. He is also ALWAYS hungry and ALWAYS looking for food, stealing food, and figuring out ways to break into where food is. Recently he's finally lost some weight because the neighbors finally figured out the reason that he got so fat is because he is permitted to eat too damn much combined with his non-excersize program. Since the autumn he gets regular walks almost every day at a pace he can deal with and they're being a LOT more careful about how much food he gets and what food may be in his realm that could be cleverly swiped by him. Of course he still always acts like he hasn't eaten for a week but no more than he ever did before. He probably always will because that's just how he is... one of those dogs that doesn't know when to quit eating and that food does not equal love and affection. Now instead of grudgingly going for his walks only to get a treat afterwards he enjoys his walks for their own sake... now he doesn't even expect a treat afterwards and doesn't care. They replaced the afterwalk treat with the afterwalk game of tug which makes him just as happy. Perhaps it was never really food he always craved but more attention and he was associating being given food with being given attention.

Please don't make the mistake of associating food with love and affection for your chunky dog. Find out from the vet how much food she should be getting for her size and level of activity, give snacks sparingly and as a reward, and get the dog exercising more. And everyone in the household has to be on the same page with the dog's eating habits... nobody can be secretly giving the dog extra food.

Also, feed your dogs only good food, not the cheapo kind that has mostly fillers and crap in it that doesn't provide them with enough nutrition. It's more expensive, but in the long run they eat less because they aren't constantly hungry craving what isn't provided enough of in the cheapo foods. Since I've only been feeding my dogs the good foods they don't eat nearly as much, so the food lasts a whole lot longer, which actually makes it cheaper in the long run. It took me ages to figure out why the same pound bag of cheapo food didn't last anywear near as long as the good food.... they both had the same amount of food in it, so why was the better food lasting nearly twice as long? After months and months I finally figured out he was naturally eating a lot less of the good food but he looked and acted much healthier (he also made much less poops and they were always so perfect I was secretly envious).

As others mentioned, stay far away from rawhide... they're much too dangerous for their worth.

[fadedrose]

15. A lady at the grocery store parking lot....

admired our beagle, and I told her that Ginger was a huge problem because all she thought of was food -awake, asleep, before eating, after eating, food, food... and she is overweight. What this lady does is give her beagle vegetables in addition to her regular food to make the dog feel "filled up," so I tried it and went one further. I take yesterday's salad and all the stuff I trim off the celery, lettuce, green peppers, the stuff you usually throw away - put it in the food chopper - bring it to a boil to kill germs, and give her about 3/4 cup a day in addition to her food. I throw in leftover carrots and green beans too....

Now our problem seems to be her dog food. Staying with that dog food that Rachel Ray sells, she was losing weight.

Then, a friend's dog died, and she gave us a huge bag of Beneful and our dog went nuts over it, so I started to buy it all the time. She is back to gaining again, so I may go back to Rachel Ray's food.

[michaz]

18. Our vet told us that one of the worst foods to feed a dog was Beneful.

He mentioned 3 but I can only remember 2: Beneful and Old Roy. He said it has no or little meat and way too much junk which is not good for them. Just a statement about what he said. We feed Taste of the Wild.

[fadedrose]

19. When we first got the dog from the shelter, a few years ago...

I asked the vet what to feed her and they said "no" to the Beneful I had bought for her. After I finished the bag, I looked up meat-based diets and Rachel Ray's was one of the top ones. For a long time I used it, then the bag of Beneful was given to us by the owner of a dog that died - of old age. But it was a male, in the country, and had plenty of exercise - no fences, etc.

I am so glad you reminded me of what my vet also said of Beneful. In this past 9 months, the dog has put on weight...

Will go to grocer's today and get Rachel Ray again. Wish I could remember the brand name - it's got her picture on the bag...

I will look for Taste of the Wild, but have never seen it anywhere here in Michigan. What state are you in?

I'll look it up on the web and check.

Thank you so much....

[michaz]

20. I am in NYS. Taste of the Wild is a grain free food. Fairly expensive.

But it has worked well with my dogs. You have to buy it at a PetCo, a pet store or Tractor Supply. The problem with dog food that is bought in a grocery store is that it doesn't contain a whole lot that is good for the dog. It is usually high in sugars and corn. If you research the foods on google you will see which ones are the best.

[fadedrose]

21. I checked with the vet

and she said that Taste of the Wild is a very good dog food. I found it online at our local Tractor Supply and will be going there shortly. I just don't know what flavor our dog would like best. any suggestions?

The vet said that Beneful is not a good dog food.

I checked Pet Supplies Plus and PetSmart, both very nearby, and they don't have Taste of the Wild ....

A few years ago, I did research dogfoods, and Rachel Ray's came up very high on the list. I'd still be buying it if it weren't for that bag given to us. Our dog actually pawed at the cupboard door begging for Beneful - I don't know what's in it but they figured out how to hook the dog... She's going to have to go to meetings to get over her craving for it.

Thanks again...

[michaz]

22. Google Taste of the Wild and check out what the have.

I have been feeding the lamb because one of our dogs had a bit of a sensitive stomach. You can find one that works with your dog for sure.

[TorchTheWitch]

23. Taste of the Wild is a good one

My general rule of thumb is that if it can be purchased in a grocery store it's probably crap.

[Stinky The Clown]

17. It would be so easy to control the little one's food. The issue is the Big Dogs, really.

The big dogs are in reasonably good shape. Both have steady weight. The GSD is at a very healthy weight. The Border Collie is akin to a human that "needs to lose 5 lbs" - generally okay but a little chubby, maybe.

Both big dogs have self regulated all their lives. We just always kept their food bowls filled and they ate what they needed and never ate more.

So along comes the little blimp and she eats their food, too. We put their food up on flower port stands, hoping to keep it out of the little one's reach. No such luck. She can reach it by stretching. Raising it higher would make it a little uncomfortable for the big dogs.

Where we are now is putting down everyone's food several times a day, the bigs getting theirs in as much a quantity as they want, and miniblimp getting a few morsels of her diet food.

Plus Sparkly's vegetables.

What I'm worried about is food competition. So far that is totally a non-issue. They share very, very well, sometimes even deferentially. I worry that could change if food volumes get too restricted.

[Sparkly]

24. "The miniblimp?!?"