How the furry ones can share in the T-giving feast
While you and your family indulge in the Thanksgiving feast, it might be tempting to share the meal with your pets. But you have to be careful. According to the folks at PETCO, there's a way to give the furry ones a little something, but in a safe way:
1. Creamy mashed potatoes and piping hot stuffing may sound great to you but your pet’s digestive system is designed to handle small amounts of consistently digestible, nutrient rich foods. If you want to give your pet a treat, try mixing a wet food in with their kibble.
2. Consider that a medium-sized dog can thrive on 2 or 3 cups of food per day while you could easily put away 5 to 6 cups in a single Thanksgiving sitting. If you insist on feeding them a healthy treat such as boneless turkey or cooked rice, reduce the amount of kibble in the regular meal accordingly.
3. Pets need a healthy mix of fat, protein, and healthy carbohydrates. None of those nutrients need to come from pumpkin pie or green bean casserole. Even if you stick to a healthy diet for your pet you will need to ensure your family and guests are on board as well to ensure scraps aren’t “accidently” shared under the table.
4. Pets cannot tell you they had too much turkey but they will let you know if they’re in pain. A dog that has abdominal pain may glance towards their belly, bite or lick the area or refuse to leave their bed.
If you’re considering cooking for your dog or cat, the following recipe provided by Halo might be a good way to use any leftover turkey.
Spot’s Stew
Yield: About 8 Cups
2 ½ cups of cooked turkey
¼ cup chopped fresh garlic
1 cup green peas
1 cup coarsely chopped carrots
½ cup coarsely chopped sweet potato
½ cup coarsely chopped zucchini
½ cup coarsely chopped yellow squash
½ cup coarsely chopped green beans
½ cup coarsely chopped celery
1 tablespoon kelp powder
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
11 to 16 cups spring water
For dogs only: Add 8 ounces whole barley and 6 ounces rolled oats, and adjust the water content to a total of 16 cups or enough to cover the ingredients
Instructions: Combine all of the ingredients except the turkey in a 10-quart stockpot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat as low as possible and simmer for 2 hours (the carrots should be quite soft at the end of the cooking time). Remove from the heat, let cool. Add cooked turkey. With an electric hand mixer, or using a food processor and working in batches, blend all the ingredients into a nice puree; the stew should be slightly thicker for dogs and soupier for cats. Using zip lock bags or plastic yogurt containers, make up meal-sized portions. Refrigerate what you’ll need for three days and freeze the rest.
Categories: Assorted pet stuff, Cats Cats Cats, Dogs, dogs, dogs, Health
