Bread and bakery products are one of those products that are present in large quantities in the diet of each person. Many people know from school that bread is the head of everything. However, does this rule apply to animal nutrition? Is it possible to give a dog bread and which grade is better to choose?
Dog diet features
Many dog ​​owners when feeding pets prefer natural food. At the same time, not everyone prepares for the dog separately, quite often the dog eats the same foods as the person. In this case, breeders need to remember: animals have different food needs and their digestive system is slightly different. For this reason, some foods that are beneficial to humans can be extremely harmful to the dog.
Veterinarians do not give an unambiguous answer to the question of whether it is possible to give the dog bread, but they recommend that, if possible, reduce the amount of this product in the diet of the animal. To understand this issue in more detail, it is worth studying the useful and harmful properties of bread.
Useful properties of bread
It’s worth starting with the benefits of this product. This will help evaluate the appropriateness of using bread in a dog’s food. As a result, each owner can decide for himself whether it is better to give the dog bread or not.
- Fast saturation. In every bakery product there are carbohydrates, only their quantity varies depending on the type of bread. This characteristic can be considered as an advantage and disadvantage. So, adding bread to the dog’s food will help the animal get enough, however, this contributes to the rapid weight gain.
- Brushing teeth and oral cavity. Hard bread crusts or crackers are natural dog brushing methods. This is especially important for those animals that feed mainly on soft foods.
- Immune System Support. Some breads have lysine. It has a positive effect on the cardiovascular system and maintains the immune system at the right level.
What is harmful bread for dogs
Despite all the useful properties of the product, it has several significant drawbacks. And in order to understand whether it is possible to give dogs bread, it is necessary to deal with the negative consequences.
- High carbohydrate content. As noted earlier, a dog’s menu with a high content of baked goods often causes a pet’s obesity. This, in turn, threatens joint diseases (with increased load on the paws).
- Diseases of the heart and gastrointestinal tract. Digestion of bread products requires a large amount of energy and intensive work of many organs.
- Indigestion. A large amount of bread in the diet can lead to constipation.
Allergic reaction to bread
Bakery products with additives (sugar, raisins, cornmeal) often cause allergic reactions in pets, accompanied by itching, irritation on the skin, the appearance of sneezing and coughing, and swelling of the paws.
The following dog breeds are prone to allergies:
- Cocker Spaniel;
- bulldog;
- Dalmatian
- terrier;
- Irish Setter
- mittelschnauzer;
- Labrador Retriever;
- miniature schnauzer.
When forming a diet for such dogs, you should extremely carefully choose products, including bakery products.
Some tips on giving your dog bread
Considering all the pros and cons of flour products, we can conclude: you can give bread to dogs, but in very limited quantities (especially since many pets are happy to absorb this product). In this case, owners must consider several rules.
- don’t give flour products every day;
- if the dog has a weakness for loaves and bread, this product can be used in the form of goodies or rewards;
- pets prone to overweight are not recommended to introduce this product into the diet;
- stray dogs, on the contrary, bread will help create a small layer of fat and thus survive;
- you need to abandon starchy foods if the pet is already at the age or differs in poor health.
What kind of bread to choose
To identify the benefits and harms of bakery products in a dog’s diet is only half the story. It is equally important to choose the type of product.
To begin with, it’s worth figuring out whether it is possible to give a dog white bread, which many people love so much. The peculiarity of white bread is heavy and long digestion. For this reason, white varieties should be discarded. In addition, soft bread and pastries (buns, loafs, rolls) when they get into the liquid medium quickly become sour and turn into a sticky paste. This can not only disrupt digestion, but also cause choking if the flesh gets stuck in the throat or esophagus.
Here it is worth considering the question of whether it is possible to give a dog brown bread. This is the kind of product that veterinarians recommend. Black and bran bread is well digested and does not cause digestive upsets.
Rusks and dry biscuits are a great treat for dogs. They have low carbohydrates and help cleanse the mouth.
Diet of puppies, pregnant and lactating dogs
As for the preparation of a special menu (for puppies, lactating and pregnant dogs), the leading veterinarians recommend abandoning the inclusion of bread in the animal's diet.
In such cases, the food should be as useful as possible, and bread does not bear any particular benefit for dogs. Various porridges may well become an equivalent substitute.