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Treat Your Pet Right
By Tamara Sevigny
We love showing our pets how much we love them with an occasional special treat, but the variety of treats available is overwhelming! It’s hard not to feed our pets a little of everything with all the fancy packages, frozen treats, pet bakeries and even home made treats.
There is nothing wrong with the occasional treat. Tiny bits are excellent motivators for training a great reward for reinforcing good behavior. Plus the reward helps strengthen your bond with your pet.
But just as with humans, too many treats will gather at the hips, so watch those calories. Nearly half the pets in the U.S. are overweight. Obesity can contribute to other health problems, including arthritis, diabetes and heart disease. Large biscuits can easily contain well over 100 calories. The average 20 lb. dog burns only about 700 calories a day.
A treat your pet may love devouring are those table scraps. Human food scraps tend to be high in calories and fat and low in vitamins and other nutrients. Table scraps can cause upset stomachs and picky eaters, not to mention a relentless beggar.
With all the food recalls and recent availability of natural and organic pet foods, pet owners should be aware of the ingredients on not just their pet foods, but also their treats. Many of the companies that make healthy foods make treats as well, so check the labels. Some even offer benefits, such as dental, hairball control, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and more. Fresh veggies are excellent treats for all types of pets, but be careful as some types can be harmful to dogs, especially grapes and raisins.
As for the gourmet treats and enticing pet bakeries simply use your judgment. If you have an overall healthy pet a little indulgence once in a while won’t hurt. But if you should have any questions about what kinds of treats are good for your pet talk to your vet. And keep in mind that treats shouldn’t make up more then 10% of your pet’s diet.
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