Why Does My dog eat Grass?
Posted by Teri in Dog Food, Dog Health, Dog Health Issues, Dog News, tags: carrots, dog health, dog health questions, dog health1, dogs eat grass, ginber orange juice splash., grass, Juice for dogs, juice recipe for dogs, pesticides, vegetables, why does dog eating grass
Every cat or dog I have ever owned has eaten grass at some point in their lives. It seems to be a natural event for animals to eat or graze much like larger animal’s cows, bulls, and herds of buffalo. Why would dogs be different since they are descendants of the wolf family when most people assume they only eat meat.
Giraffes eat grass, and just about any animal or pet will eat grass and the question is why the concern if your dog is eating grass? The number one reason is that pesticides that are sprayed on lawns these days every one is spray happy. Spray this or spray that and kill it. Too many chemicals are already endangering pets as we would not put an infant on the ground and let it eat grass it would be just as harmful as for pets.
Pesticides contain poisons and carcinogens which are extremely harmful to human or animal health. There are countries that have banned pesticide use for lawns both in residential or commercial use such as in parks or parkland in cities. If you catch your dog eating grass that has been sprayed with pesticides it will surely get very ill from the experience.
Your dog eats grass because it wants to vomit or it needs more vegetables in its diet and as the debate goes veterinarians do not seem to know the answer to that question. Your pet may be craving greens and as other animals they do eat vegetables counter to popular belief.
Dogs are not just meat eaters, they eat grains and vegetables, and somehow they seem to know this naturally.
Vegetables can be easily added to your dog’s diet from selections such as: carrots, beans, peas, spinach, squash and especially pumpkin which can be steamed, stewed or lightly sauteed in olive oil.
In as much as we juice vegetables for we we can use the pulp and give some juice to your dog it is extremely nutritious in a raw state since the enzymes are still alive and useful. Some dogs have recovered from kidney inflammation or malignant tumors with carrot juice. Vegetables such as collard greens are high in vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and important minerals.
Any green plant has a certain amount of chlorophyll which is the essence of plant life like blood is to our own bodies. Magnesium is very essential to human and animal life and have dramatic healing abilities. Herbs can also be healing for dogs from dandelion to oregano they all have healing qualities and are used for different problems. Ginger for instance will settle your pet’s stomach if they have been sick or vomiting as it does with humans.
Next time you are chopping some raw veggies or juicing for good health give some to your dog and see the benefits. Here is a healthy juice recipe for dogs you can make in minutes.
Ginger Orange Juice Splash
4 large carrots
1 orange, rind removed
2 thick slices of ginger
Run all ingredients through a juice extractor or juicer and serve fresh to your dog. Juicing any type of vegetable or fruit can be very helpful to your dog’s health especially if they are struggling with a disease, or to prevent disease. If you have any dog health questions -just leave your question or comment below each article, we will be sure to answer it for you.
Tags: Juice for dogs, pesticides, dogs eat grass, grass, vegetables, carrots, dog health, why does dog eating grass, dog health1, juice recipe for dogs, ginger orange juice splash, dogs eat grass, dogs health, dog health questions.
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Good for you -your dog will thank you for it and you will be saving thousands of dollars in vet bills, sorry to hear about your cat – I hope you were compensated for your loss. Pet food company’s are deplorable while trying to cut costs and endangering the pet population.
I started feeding my dog and cat home cooked meals during the pet food scare when the cat got ill and the dog had puffy circles around his eyes. I started feeding them ground beef, ground turkey or shredded chicken, adding white rice (sorry), and peas ground to a paste or string beans. I found out by accident that my dog loves collard, mustard, turnip greens. I was so tickled by that I intentionally give some to him whenever I make a pot for the family. The cat not so much. She did not recover from the food poisoning.
My dog decided to steal one of my tacos and ate it all including the lettuce and tomatoes. I think its coincidence that I named her Potato in lieu of a traditional name for a dog.
As long as your dog does not eat “pesticide” sprayed grass it is not harmful for your dog. Carrots can be either steamed very slightly or chopped up, not in big chunks. You can use a grater to fine chop the carrot into your dog’s dinner. If you use a ratio of :
70 percent protein, 15 percent grain, 15 percent vegetable it is a very good home made diet for your dog. The carrots will not only provide vitamins and good nutrition but also fiber. Use cooked grains like brown rice, or barley not corn or wheat based ingredients.
Onions, grapes, raisins, chocolate are all not recommended for dogs -although not always poisonous they will make your dog very sick that it will cost you a trip to the vet. I would therefore avoid those on the list.
Good vegetables are: broccoli, green beans, peas, carrots, potato, sweet potato, apples, pears, and whatever they will eat on this list is safe. Hope this helps you provide a good diet for your dog. By all means health grass without chemicals is what dogs eat in the wild and have for centuries. Enjoy your dog.
Hi TherebMy Name is Brandi ,
and I have a pitbull boxer cross and he is always tryin too eat grass , is this okay ? Also i did not know they could have carrotts and all those veggies. thats great I will start giving him those things. But I was told that onions , grapes , raisins are poisonis too dogs is this true?
No not at all carrot pulp is good for your dog in many ways, other veggies I use are : peas, broccoli, parsnips, peppers, dandelion, collard greens, herbs, wheat grass -all finely minced or pulsed through the blender.
I would add that giving your dog a digestive enzyme will help in the absorbing of nutrients in its food, and there will be less to pick up from the other end. …ah..chumm….if you know what I mean.
Yes I do have a dog – she is on the header of my blog -the black one in the middle- she is a Puli-a hungarian sheepdog breed…and her name is Whoopie.
Now about your veterinarian -if I may say I would look for an alternative vet- there- if you go to this website
you will find one in your area- http://www.ahvma.org/
The American Holistic Veterinarian Medical Association will be able to help you out to find a suitable vet that will attend to your dog’s needs. You are a good dog owner to give your pet the omega’s because they are vital to maintaining so many functions. I believe you are in the Tampa vicinity and there is a holistic vet right in Tampa.
For a 147 pound dog: Flax Seed Oil – 100 I U per 20 pounds of weight
Vit D or Fish Oil – 100 IU per 20 pounds of weight
is the vet recommended dosage – that is if they return your phone call. Are you giving your dog both flaxseed and fish oil? I would recommend you find a holistic vet -and get the right dosages depending on the age, breed and other factors of your dog -Sebastian. He sounds like a real gem.
No, I am not a veterinarian but I do consult with holistic veterinarians and have done research in holistic health for over twenty years.
Thanks for your question-and I hope it helped.
Teri
Thank you for your reply, Teri. So carrot pulp will not hurt him … What other veggies are good for him … other than the obvious such as onions, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower?
I read somewhere that spinach was not a good thing but read another where it was.
The crazy thing is that when I called my vet to see how much fish oil or flax oil to give a dog his size, they treated me as though I was nuts and asked why I would do that. In fact, the Dr never returned my call. I give Sebastian one capsule of fish oil broken open and placed over his food each morning anyway.
Do you have pets? Are you a veterinarian?
I had to chuckle when I read your reply …. “… the pulp would add some extra fiber to your dog’s diet, … ” Believe me …. fiber is not needed when the beast is 147 lbs. But ya gotta luv him! …LOLLLLLLLL
Have a good evening!
Great idea Brenda- the pulp would add some extra fiber to your dog’s diet, excellent! Since the juice is out of the veggies- I would add some of the juice also to his dish since it is very nutritious. Keep on juicing!
Teri
Hi … I juice for health reasons and have a problem throwing away the pulp. It seems so wasteful.
I understand the benefits of the juicing for my dog. I am wondering if anyone knows whether there are benefits from the carrot, green beans, pea PULP?
Given he is a healthy 147 lb Rottweiler and age 5 yrs, I thought mixing the pulp in with his regular dog food might be a bit of a treat … HE LOVES THE CARROT PULP.
Thanks for any advise
Hello Stacy: There would be a concern for your dog not eating regular dog food, has it been tested for any illnesses firstly I would check on this with your vet. I believe you are speaking of the dandelion seeds which are the white tops of the dandelion plant itself when it goes to seed. Dogs will eat dandelions and the stems have a sweet sap in the center which dogs like to eat. I would keep an eye on your dog to make sure it doesn’t eat a thistle or thorn bearing plant but I do not see any danger with dandelions. The dog will get some added fiber and nutrition from eating plants. Hope this answers your question and thanks for dropping by.
my dog will not eat dog food but instead he will go out and eat the dandelinens and the white fuzzy flowers. Are they good for a dog?
Hi Dee: Thanks for the question! While I am not a vet, I cannot completely diagnose your dog’s problem but from what you are saying I would look towards your dog’s diet. Most dog health problems are traced to or related to the diet. To a dog -carpeting is indoor grass. My dog loves to eat her biscuits on the carpeting as she would do outdoors. By eating carpeting you dog will become very sick so I would try to stop her from doing this. If you can introduce some green vegetables into your dog’s food bowl I am hopeful this will work. Vegetables also helps their elimination processes for instance if your dog has constipation or a similar affliction -natural vegetables just might do the trick.
You can introduce little bits of raw carrot, green beans, peas, broccoli or sprouts which can satisfy your dog’s needs. When a cat or a dog starts to eat grass it is trying to find some natural relief from either something missing in the diet or they are trying to expel something they ate. I do hope this helps your dog get better. Please let me know how your dog is doing and thanks for dropping in.
Teri
Everything I read on the internet doesn’t seem to answer our situation. My dog is not a casual eater of grass, nor does she vomit after eating it desparately for a half an hour. When she is sick, and I do not know all of the triggers yet, she starts desperately licking the carpet. She used to eat the carpet until I learned her signs. Despite the anit-nausea medicine from the vet, she will seriously eat grass like there is no tomorrow with her tail tucked and her eyes watering. When she is done, she is ok. The triggers are many foods which is why she is now on a simple diet of California Natural Chicken and Rice. But are some other triggers like change in routine. It is heart-breaking to watch her go through this! She has been tested for everything under the sun by our Vet and everything is negative. Do you have any suggestions because my Vet doesn’t?
Thanks. Dee
Hello David: As you saw from the two videos dogs eat grass which means its totally fine for them to eat vegetables. The corn could contain too much sugar and that will be a problem for diabetic dogs and balancing blood sugar. I would stay with the green vegetables, such as peas, green beans, and carrots. My dog as a puppy loved to play with and eat baby carrots. Vegetables will add needed nutrition and enzymes to your dog’s diet. Thanks for the comment.
Teri
Hi Barbara:
Some dogs will eat oranges some not, but the Vitamin C is good for their immune system. My dog Whoopie will not go near bananas, but loves peas, brocolli, green beans and carrots. I guess its a matter of taste but I am glad she does eat her veggies.
Thanks for the comment.
Hi Teri,
This was fascinating. I did know why dogs eat grass, and I knew they like vegetables, but in your juice recipe, I didn’t know about oranges. One large dog that we had ate everything, even salad green, but no bananas or oranges!
I am a vegetarian and my dog always eats what i eat. The rest of my family(im 17) tells me its unhealthy to toss my dog the occasional veggie. I want to teach my pug to eat corn like this dog does
Is it safe to feed my dog that much corn?