With Thanksgiving still fresh in our minds, breath, and tupperware, and with two more holidays still ahead, we’d like to identify some of the foods around the kitchen that your dogs and cats should not be eating, and those they most certainly can. The holidays are almost never a time of perfect planning, so we hope that with a little mental preparation and some tips, we might help you give your pets a healthier, tastier holiday experience.

Canine Don’ts

Dogs will be dogs, and they will scavenge. You can bet on it. Keep in mind that not everything passing through your kitchen would be good for your dogs to gobble up. Keep a close eye on your bread dough and chocolates, as these would be none to good for a canine to catch. Easy and traditional as it might be, fat trimmings can cause major digestive upset, a problem worth avoiding. Another tradition is to give the dog a bone, but beware, cooked bones are brittle and can cause a range of catastrophes from choking to digestive obstruction and would be none to good for your pooch to pass. Last, but certainly not least, watch your cups!Caffeinated and alcoholic beverages are detrimental to canine health.

Canine Do’s

Give the dog a RAW bone, a bone before it’s cooked. In fact, give them those organ meatsand maybe a chicken neck (supervision for puppies or small breed dogs recommended), and give it to them raw. These are great, healthy alternatives to the hazardous foods mentioned earlier. Might anyone be cooking up some sweet potatoes* for the big dinner? This would be a wonderful snack for your dogs while everyone else nibbles on the finger foods. For a real treat, consider dishing up a bowl of raw goat’s milk, something you can find in frozen or dehydrated form at Thomas’ Tails. These suggestions should help you include your canines in the festivities without compromising their stomachs or depriving their taste buds.

Feline Don’ts

Cats will be cats, and they’ll be on the prowl. We all know how cunning they can be, sneaking about like a ninja in the night, looking for their inevitable prey of take-home sushi and milk from this morning’s cereal bowl. Let’s take a look at some foods to avoid placing in your cat’s path of prowl. Lock up the onions and chives. In fact, any vegetable in this family can cause serious problems for your kitty. Just as mentioned for dogs, watch where you rest your cooked bones and fat trimmings, as these too will set your feline’s tummy to turning and present a very real choking hazard. Once again, find a safe spot to set your caffeinated or alcoholic beverage as these will surely throw the cat for a loop, and not in a fun way. Lastly, and contrary to age-old cat instruction, don’t feed your cats store-bought dairy milk. We surely understand the desire to set out a bowl of something special for the kitty, so if you do…

Feline Do’s

Give your cat some raw GOAT’s milk. Now there’s a treat, both nutritious and delicious. Justass with our canine companions, consider a little sweet potato* for a snack, a great grab that’s sure to grace some dinner tables this holiday season. It probably comes as no surprise that organ meats come just as highly recommended for our cunning cats as for our darling dogs, providing excellent nutrients and an explosion of flavor for your kitties. When it comes to raw bones, an excellent treat, it is important to feed only those bones that are small enough for your cat to chew on, for example chicken wings, chicken necks, Cornish Hen cuts, and cuts from small rabbits. Size-appropriate raw bones are a great way to support oral health in your cats. Never cook or microwave bones for your pets. These suggestions should give you a great start to spoiling your felines this year without compromising on their dietary do’s and don’ts.

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We hope you’re able to gather this year with your family and friends, human and four-legged, and make the most of your time together. May love, laughs, and generosity abound. And may the suggestions above allow you to treat your furry family to some delicious gifts with the peace of mind that comes with a hardy, healthy meal. As always, if you have any questions, please ask our Thomas’ Tails staff. We love questions.

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*When feeding your pets sweet potato, be sure to leave out the marshmallow and brown sugar.