Do u believe the "Only you have control over what your dog eats" crap?

Question

I asked a question about my dog eating toxic foods - SOME of which I had given to him - and I got one of those replies and I've seen them in other questions. I know for a fact my dog eats what he wants and not only what I give him. I take him for walks he eats plants, he eats my clothes, he eats spiders. Now I didn't FEED him those things so how do I have control? Am I sposed to throw away all my clothes and kill all the spiders in the world?

Can I really be in total control, barring locking him in a cage forever and hoping he doesnt eat that?

ETA: Can people please note the capitalised "SOME" in the question. Yes I feed my dog choc chip cookies (that dont contain much chocolate and definately not that much cocoa solid which is actually the dangerous bit) and the "USED TO" in the previous question concerning raisins, which BTW was an honest question. I DON'T feed him clothes, spiders and the other random things he chooses to eat whilst I'm out or we're walking. You really think I buy £100 shoes to feed to my dog to watch the consequences??? If I wanted to know if you believed the "Only you have control over what you FEED your dog" crap? which is what some people seem to be answering, I would have asked it. This queston stems from the fact I've turned and found my dog licking "mysterious" substances that I have not deliberately placed outside of my house for him to find HENCE "what your dog eats". I feel the need to clarify and explain this because some people like to throw hissy fits about everything. Happy?

Answer 1

Oh God, the patrol got you too? You do what you can to protect your dog when you can protect him. If you have to work to support that nasty kibble habit he's built up, you're not with him 24/7 so you do the best you can do. My dog has worms; He's my zillionth dog AND he's 13; I've never had a dog with worms before. I love this dog more than most of my relatives, so when I take him to the vet and get the " What have you been feeding him?" quiz so I can be treated like the monster that I am, I am told that dogs mostly get worms from bird crap. That's Right!!! ding ding ding!!! That's what I feed him!!! Clearly I am feeding my dog bird crap and them taking him to the vet so I can be charged a hundred dollars to be accused of that! Again, all I can say is, you do the best you can do given the means you have

Answer 2

I had to laugh when I read this, if I were to tell you what my dog ate once that gave him food poisoning I'd get the answer deleted and you'd be sick. It was the most expensive walk we ever went on.
No, some dogs will chow down on the chocolate husk garden mulch that kills them, they used to sell dog choccy drops until recently and you can still get chocolate covered chewsticks. So how could you possibly guess chocolate is toxic? And who would have guessed that grapes are toxic? There is no central source of information that tells us things like that; yet we are expected to know. My old lad used to have a hilarious Xmastime routine with a grape; he'd throw it around, stalk it, pounce on it then eat it. He died of old age at 18.
All you can do is keep learning whats best and do the best you can; some dogs are easier to train than others, especially where food is concerned.
As for feeding your dog on bird droppings I bet you save a fortune on dog food, but isn't it difficult to find enough of them every day...?
Anyhow, now you've had the advice, lay off the chocolate and stick to dog food.

Answer 3

Didn't you originally ask about GIVING your dog toxic foods? Seems like you're switching things around now and blowing smoke about your dog eating things that you DON'T give him. If he happens to eat a spider and it's poisonous, you're going to have a vet bill...if he eats a toxic plant, you're going to have another vet bill. I find it rather bazar that you take him on walks and he just up and eats plants. Have you had him checked by a vet to see if he might have a medical problem where he's lacking something in his diet? You don't have to lock him in a cage, but you should take him to basic obedience training and learn how to focus him and get him to respond to your commands. He should be able to "drop it" when he has something in his mouth that he shouldn't. He shouldn't be tearing up clothes either. Generally, a dog that is well exercised will not indulge in destructive behavior and you'll learn more about that when you make an effort to get him in a training class. I think that could end up being really rewarding for both you and your dog.

Answer 4

I have a dog (1 of 3) that is an eating machine, he is not fat but he could eat all day everyday, we appear to have broke him from eating from the trash can but we still fight to keep him from the table.
We only feed them indoors before walks so they are more apt to poop during the walk and, to curb his hunger as we walk.
It seems to work for the most part.
I can and will not say it is a cure all, due to the fact this dog would eat me out of house and home if given the chance.


Edited after further reading:

I now have read the posting of the original posting and it appears you do deliberatly feed your dog things that will make it sick or kill it. even after the fact you heard it is harmful to your K9.
Do you believe the old saying "What dose not kill you makes you stronger." BS.
Stop feeding it this stuff and stop getting on the defense when you are guilty.

Answer 5

Have you trained your dogs properly? I doubt it! If your dog eats your clothes ... Then he has no idea of what is acceptable V unacceptable!

Indeed i control what my dogs eat because they know! have been taught to only eat what i give them. They would never accept anything from other people because know ... it's unacceptable. As for eating plants, my dogs will only eat grass when they know they need to! But anything else, plants, spiders, whatever ... They do not touch simply because i taught them not to.

And no! you do not need to keep your dog in a cage! Mine are never kept in a crate! They come in and out of the back garden as they please but do not touch anything that is not in their own little patch (Grass) Because!!! They know that, doing as they're told is worth praise, cuddles and treats, not doing so is worth being ignored and they really hate it when this happens, so ... Maybe you can achieve the same with your dog ... I had better warn you though ... It takes a lot of time as indeed much dedication and you need to have your dog's trust and respect as well otherwise ... it won't work.

Answer 6

You can control what they eat to a point. Some dogs like people like the darnest things to eat and they are not always good for them.

My dog loves junk food... he eats a lot of leftovers, so do we acutally.. we give him dry and wet dog food and will give him a treat of people food as well.

Yesterday I wanted pizza.. when I was eating he looked at me like "why can't I have some too" I gave him a piece and he was so happy.. ok you might say, it is not good for him and I am being a badddd person giving it to him...

My dog is very healthy, not overweight and happy....

If your dog eats plants then let him... most will eat grass when they have an upset stomach....

Eating clothes is a behavior problem.. he most likely isn't eating them only tearing them up.

Answer 7

My mum has got a golden labrador and that greedy fat mut would slit it's own wrists to eat something. It's the only thing it lives for. The fat cow is deaf as post except it can hear the fridge door or the can opener at 500 yards perfectly.

Answer 8

One of my dogs has a habit of eating geese poo, another will eat wood, and the other will eat anything... to be honest I don't think anyone can control what they eat because even if you were with them 24/7 you have to also be staring at their mouths the whole time getting ready to take whatever it is away from them. and who knows, maybe it's healthy that they learn from experiance what makes you sick.

Answer 9

Wait a minute. You are the one that said that you feed your dog poison.
you CAN control chocolate chip cookies and raisins and grapes and the quality of his kibble.
Of course, when he dies, you can blame it on the spider he ate.

Answer 10

Training your dog to not eat what is bad for him is easy. Reward him with treats for good behavior and gently tap him on the nose and scold him with a loud firm voice. You are responsible for him as he is not intelligent enough to be responsible for himself. If you do not have the time to properly y train him, perhaps you should not have a dog.