german shepherd with strange taste

dragonlady

Hi all.
Just looking for a little advice, We have four german shepherds, 3 pups of 6 mths old and a 4 yr old. The baby of the gang has developed an odd taste. he loves potato peelings, raw potato, carrot, beansprouts, onions etc. also banana. Am just wondering is this normal, am I doing him any harm in letting him eat raw veg.
also has anyone used topdog training facility in louth. thinking about sending the 4yr old we adopted off to bootcamp for 2 weeks, he is like a disobedient child, and insists on attacking passing cars. need him sorted asap.
any advice greatly appreciated.

morganafay

dragonlady wrote: »

Hi all.
Just looking for a little advice, We have four german shepherds, 3 pups of 6 mths old and a 4 yr old. The baby of the gang has developed an odd taste. he loves potato peelings, raw potato, carrot, beansprouts, onions etc. also banana. Am just wondering is this normal, am I doing him any harm in letting him eat raw veg.
also has anyone used topdog training facility in louth. thinking about sending the 4yr old we adopted off to bootcamp for 2 weeks, he is like a disobedient child, and insists on attacking passing cars. need him sorted asap.
any advice greatly appreciated.

Raw veg is great for them! My dogs love carrots, parsnip, turnip, sweet potato, anything they can steal from the rabbits

I dunno about raw potatoes though, they should be fine if you cook them, but I don't know if they're digestible raw. Also, I've heard they can be poisonous for rabbits/guinea pigs etc (maybe only if they're going green though?) so I don't know . . . I'd avoid them, but interested to know what anyone else thinks?

EdgarAllenPoo

Just watch the amount of food you give him, no harm in giving a dog a bit of veg....the banana I wouldn't go too overboard with though, the veg should give enough fibre.

dragonlady

Cheers everyone,
They dont get much veg, just when I am peeling the spuds, little sam sits and steals the peelings. funny thing is, he not keen on cooked ones.
thanks again for all your input.
this is a great site, instant answers to all sorts of questions.

ppink

Ialways thought onions and raw potatoes are 2 dangerous food to give dogs, so i never let mine have them........might be worth googling jus tin case.
apart from that our gsd eats all fruit and veg. carrots are a great treat as it keeps them busy but is low in fat and better for them than pigs ears etc i would think

macadam

Hi Dragonlady,
what are you feeding the pups on, also PM sent.

dragonlady

Hi,
They get a mix of dry nuts, we have used a make called nutts, also royal canine puppy, i mix it with pedigree chum, and gravy. thay also get bones a few times a week. have also given them cooked dog mince and spuds. they are all eating well. and the poos are grand. i tried them on the museli type food, but none of them were keen, and it gave them upset tums. they get loads of exercise, and have a big run outside to play in, but they are part of the family too, so come inside and are spoiled rotten.
am also using small biscuit dog treats for training them.

dragonlady

Hi Macadam, didnt get your PM,

crotalus667

ppink wrote: »

Ialways thought onions and raw potatoes are 2 dangerous food to give dogs, so i never let mine have them...

the are toxic to beople as well , no where near as toxic as the flower but still very toxic

dragonlady

Hi all, I took ppinks advice and googled it. yes it appears raw potatoes and peelings are toxic to dogs. so the babies wont be getting anymore. am so glad I asked the question. thank you all for your replies.

lorebringer

Just to add - onions are not the best for dogs either, esp onion skins. My guys eat loads of veg and fruit too, apples being a big favourite! At Christmas we gave all the dogs a mini Christmas dinner and one spat out the sprouts onto the floor :rolleyes:

tk123

Our pups favourite is frozen green beans!

helimachoptor

The lab in my house loves potatoes, generally they get boiled first and then he gets them with a bit of gravy

morganafay

If my dog has lost all her 12 tennis balls somewhere in the fields, and if she's had some boiled potatoes the night before in her dinner and not finished them, then she'll run around with a potato in her mouth and make me throw it! And every time she fetches it, she'll eat a little bit more and more

ghost_ie

My three (all different cross breeds) adore veg and small pieces of apple. The eldest is also addicted to a particular weed which grows in profusion where they go for runs. The other 2 can take it or leave it. The youngest has a very strange obsession with eating toenail clippings (gross, I know)

lrushe

The only thing my three won't eat is banana, I don't think they like the texture, everything else is fair game

daithiocondun

My Cavalier King Charles Spaniel will eat everything veg-wise! What I would say is to chop them up small as (if he is like my fella) he will tend not to chew and this can lead to lodges of large pieces of fruit and veg in the tummy. Blockages can happen!

Secondly, I would not feed a dog anything raw which I wouldn't eat raw myself: potatoes, onions, thick skins (turnips etc)., rind of oranges, skin of kiwi and so on. Just use common sense.

Also, avoid zesty/citrus fruits like lime and orange. Too harsh on the animal's bland tongue and tummy. Bananas can also be a little binding. Also be careful not to give too much of anything. We all know that too many apples lead to cramps and the runs!!

Otherwise, mixing in fruit and veg into his dinner is a great way to please the tastebuds, keep the teeth clean and increase the fibre in the diet.

Good luck!!

TechnoPool

can they really fully digest the carrot? i sometimes give zeus the off half a carrot and i can see specs of orange in his stools usually the day after.