Vegetables and fruit chunks are great treats to offer your dog. They are low in fat, good tasting, and nutritious (high in vitamins and minerals).
Healthy Treats
Experiment with some of the following and see what your dog likes:
- Fresh Carrots (an excellent source of vitamin A and beta carotene)
- Kiwi
- Apple
- Ananas
- Pear
- Banana (in small quantities because they contain a lot of sugar)
- Celery (chopped or juiced; can help with arthritis)
- Asparagus
- Tofu
- Potatoes (cooked, are rich in potassium and an excellent source of highly digestible carbohydrates for energy)
The vegetables and tofu are also excellent as base ingredients for your home-prepared dog meals.
Wholesome Food Ingredients for your Dog's Meals
Proteins
Chicken, lamb, duck or turkey meat (all highly digestable proteins, which are best suited to breeds with a tendency to skin allergies)
Tuna (fresh or canned in olive oil, not in vegetable oil, as the source vegetables for this oil - and their properties - are unknown)
Herring
Tofu
Carbohydrates and Vegetables
Brown Rice: the bran layer included in brown rice contains important nutrients, such as fiber and essential oils.
Barley
Fresh Potatoes: are rich in potassium and an excellent source of highly digestible carbohydrates.
Oatmeal: an exceptional source of fiber, carbohydrates, thiamin and vitamin E. Ideal for Pugs needing an hypoallergenic diet, because it does not contain the allergy causing glutens found in other grains.
Quinoa grains: the sacred grain of the Incas is another gluten-free source of carbohydreates that is at the same time rich in vegetable protein. Note that processed quinoa (flakes, flour) may contain some gluten. Quinoa contains every single amino acid and is especially well-endowed with the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair. Its high protein content (12%-18%) makes it a healthful, nutritious ingredients for a vegetarian dog diet. It is also a planet-friendly grain as it is easy to grow (very cold tolerant and disease resistant) and takes very little energy to cook.
Spelt is another ancient grain, which is are generally higher yielding in poor conditions. It also contains less gluten than modern wheats.
Carrots, Celery, Alfalfa, Asparagus, Zucchini
Some herbs, such as rosemary, oregano add some favor to your dog's food and are also good for them.
Most of these supplements must be combined in a specific ratio to be efficient, so ask your vet for advice. Oversupplementation can be more harmful than deficiencies, so again, ask your vet for advice. Do not combine different multi-vitamin/mineral supplement tabs, which may duplicate the intake of some vitamins, minerals or fatty acids and unbalance their relative ratio. Never use human vitamin supplements for your dog ! See: Human foods toxic to dogs
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