Giving your dog food from your Thanksgiving meal can be a tasty treat while enforcing proper table manners.
While Thanksgiving gatherings may look different this year, one thing that remains the same is prepping a feast of turkey, mashed potatoes, and various other holiday favorites. A discussion many dog owners have is whether or not they should be feeding their dogs table scraps; especially on a day like Thanksgiving where there is an overabundance of leftovers and an urge to share the love with their fur babies.
When making the decision to feed your dog “people food”, it is important to understand that it is an all or nothing habit. Sharing food from your plate creates an expectation in your dog’s mind that you will be sharing more food with them in the future.
Dogs are natural scavengers. When they find a “point of resource” they’ll identify that spot as a place where they get food from. Whether it’s a person, place, or thing, they will check that every time they pass it to see if there’s food there. Places like garbage cans, kitchen counters, even our hands are all places where dogs are conditioned to find food.
Below are some tips on the proper way to share food with your dog in order to avoid finding them underfoot throughout the day on Thanksgiving, as well as what kinds of food your dog can and can not eat.
Setting Expectations
Both in your day to day life, and on Thanksgiving, there is a right way to give your dog people food without forming a bad habit. It is important to remember that whatever expectation you want your dog to have around getting food from you, should be a behavior that you like. For example if you feed your dog from your table, you can’t be upset if your dog is always there every time you eat because you have given them the expectation that they are going to be fed in that location.
Giving your dog a treat where you want them to go to receive food gives them the opportunity to learn your expectation around food. If your dog does not have a ‘place’ or send away command, it is best to tie your dog down while you’re prepping for and eating dinner. Make sure your dog has a bed to lie down on, then using a leash or lead you can tie them to a door handle, couch leg, or can merely put them in their crate. Once in their ‘place’, you can bring them whatever food you have set aside for them. This reinforces the idea that they get a treat if they are laying in their place versus whenever you are cooking or eating.
Enforcing The Behavior
There is going to be plenty of opportunities to feed your dog on Thanksgiving. The best way to set the expectation around food scraps for your dog is to start enforcing the behavior at the very beginning of the day. While you are cooking, introduce their ‘place’ or where you want them to be during dinner, and give them scraps there; throughout the day this makes it really easy to teach the behavior and get it locked in before dinner time.
It is important to completely ignore and not respond to any form of solicitation from your dog. This includes whining, drooling, pawing, or any other action that is meant to get your attention. On the other hand, if your dog is being good and calmly waiting on their bed, bring them something right at that moment. The dog will understand that what they were doing (laying in their place) led to them getting a tasty treat and will continue to do that in the future.
While you are prepping food throughout the day, and your dog is doing the behavior you want, bring them whatever you have handy. Having a bowl set aside to throw dog friendly food scraps into while prepping is a great way to ensure your dog gets a special and nutritious treat, without risking things that could be harmful to them!
Setting Boundaries For Your Dog
Even if you never allow your dog to have table scraps, you can’t ensure other people will respect that and not try to give your dog people food. If you leave your dog out, chances are food is going to be dropped, scraps will go unsupervised, food will be available, or someone might give your dog food without your knowledge or permission. The best way to avoid this entirely is putting your dog away so people don’t have access to them.
Another option is to get others on board with your training process. When people arrive, make your boundaries with your dog clear, and then figure out a way to include their efforts into your end goal. For example, if you are training your dog to stay in its crate at dinner time, you can let others know where the scraps for the dog are being kept, and if they wish to give your dog something they can as long as your dog is in its crate/place.
Make sure to watch children closely if you are letting them be a part of this process, and letting others know when your dog has had enough is important. At the end of the day you need to advocate for your dog. Clearly communicating your boundaries and then removing your dog if necessary is your job as a dog owner.
What Can I Feed My Dog?
So it’s Thanksgiving day, you have decided to give your dog some special treats, and they are waiting patiently in their ‘place’… what foods can you give them? Below you will find the list of safe and toxic foods for your dog.
Dog Friendly Thanksgiving Foods:
- Carrots
- Peas
- Green beans
- Cooked sweet potatoes
- Turkey
- Cooked potatoes
- Celery
- Apples
- Pumpkin
Avoid These Thanksgiving Foods:
- Garlic
- Onions
- Pecans
- Raw and cooked bones
- Salt
- Dairy
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Raisins
- Chocolate
Teaching table manners with your dog is also a great time to implement and practice your ‘place’ and send away commands like ‘off’. We cover this material and more in our Companion Dog Package!
From all of us at The Canine Mind, we wish you a very happy and safe Thanksgiving!
If you believe that your dog has eaten something toxic, please call the Pet Poison Helpline at (800) 213-6680 or contact your vet immediately.
The Canine Mind 