is fresh liver harmful for dogs to eat?

Question

i have a pug and a terrier mix. both dogs will not eat dog food dry or canned. not even the pouches with gravy added. they will only eat frest liver that i steam. then i cut it up in small pieces for them to eat. our vet this week said that liver is dangerous for dogs and can break down their panchreas. is this true? i am worried as our ogs have been eating liver for a couple of years now. my terrier also enjoys scrambled eggs which i have read is not good as dairy is bad for dogs so we stopped that. my husband and i have tried everything and the dogs will literally go without eating unless they have liver. they also eat dog treats like beggin strips,liver dog crackers and chicken jerky dog treats. regards.

Answer 1

I would consider a raw diet, at the least a very high quality dog food.

Liver isn't harmful, other than being very rich and possibly causing a bit a diarrhea if fed to often. However to reap the most benefit it needs to be raw. Eggs are also not harmful, they are very healthy, raw and with the shells. The shells are full of calcium. Some people will say it will make them unable to absorb biotin, an essential vitamin. However your dog wouldn't possibly be able to consume enough eggs for that to happen.

Liver and eggs alone also aren't nutritionally balanced. If you wish to feed them, feed them raw, and along with raw meaty bones. There is more information on raw feeding below.

Here's some information on high quality foods and raw diets.

Nothing you find at a grocery store is going to be a good food. High quality foods can be found at large pet store chains, or online. A couple of foods I like are Nutro Natural, Innova, and Cannidae.

There are other high quality dog foods. Here's how to spot them:

A high quality food will have little or no fillers such as corn, wheat or soy. These aren't very digestable for dogs, and are common food related allergens. Since you were seeing corn meal in the first few ingredients, those are not high quality foods. Foods list ingredients by content, with the ingredient it contains most of at the top.

A high quality food will not contain BHT, BHA or Ethoxyquin, these are all chemical preservatives that have been linked to cancer.

A high quality food will not contain by-products of any kind. Meat meals are ok as long as the source of the meat is listed, such as Chicken Meal.

A high quality diet should have meat as at least the first ingredient., and be made from human grade ingredients. Foods that don't use human grade ingredients often get their ingredients from less than desirable sources, such as meat from animals that were diseased, or euthanized.

There is another diet option other than dog food. Some people choose to feed a raw diet. This involves feeding the dog raw meaty bones and organ meat. However it is not as simple as throwing a couple chicken bones in a bowl everyday. If you wish to feed this type of diet, do lots and lots of research first. Switching to this diet without knowing what your doing can lead to nutritional problems for your dog. I'll give you some links as a starting point in research if you are interested in this type of diet.

http://www.willowglen.com/barf.htm

http://www.bestfrisbeedogs.com/diets.html

http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html

http://www.rawfed.com/myths/index.html

http://www.rawdogranch.com

What's Really In Pet Food
http://www.api4animals.org/facts?p=359&more=1cat=286

Vets sadly to say are not the greatest source of information for nutrition advice. The receive very little in the way of nutrition classes, what they do get is taught by major dog food companies. They also get many "kick-backs" as well to get them to promote certain foods.

If raw just isn't for you, I suggest finding a high quality food and sticking with it. Switching foods often can cause picky eating. Put your dogs food down for 20 mins, pick up the bowl when time is up. Later in the day put the bowl down for 20 mins again. Pick it up whether they eat it or not. A healthy dog will not starve itself. They will get the point that they better eat what they are offered when they are offered it, or they can be hungry for a few hours. Make sure you don't give any other things between meals, no treats etc unti lthey are eating their meals well. Its tough love, but it works. By switching foods often you teach the dog that if it holds out long enough it'll get something new.

Good luck.

Answer 2

Raw liver is wonderful for dogs! You don't need to steam it, just give a bit raw. Too much of anything is bad, a meal of liver (or the equivelent) once or twice a week is fine.

You can feed raw egg to your dogs too, shell and all.

I would suggest a totally raw diet, your dogs will find it delicious, and its generally cheaper than a commercial diet.

I will include a few links to sites about a raw diet, but if you don't totally switch, you can always include a few raw chicken necks or so as a treat.

Vets in general don't know too much about dog nutrition, the dog food products they are paid to recommend (and the dog food companies that write their nutrition classes in vet school) include euthanized dog and cat meat (flea collars, regular collars, and ID tags included), chicken feathers, and tumors from cattle. YUM!

Answer 3

Wow, you have spoiled your dogs into not eating food thats for them. I give my dogs liver maybe once a year and a few table scraps. But, everyday? No! I don't believe thats good for them either, alot of those treats are high calorie too.....are your dogs overweight? I would definitley start them on real dog food. They'll eventually eat it when they're hungry enough. My dog is on a low fat diet right now and at first she snubbed her food. But, if thats all she gets in a day, she eats it. I think your vet would know best too. Good luck!

Answer 4

-- Grapes and raisins. -- Macadamia nuts. Only a few can and will make a dog sick/ill. -- They SAY raw egg whites, but if you mix the egg whites with the yolk, it should be okay (something about the biotin in egg white, but the yolks offset that). -- Onions in any form and fresh garlic. This then excludes lots of baby food, because they use onion powder. I've seen people use garlic powder and lots of treats and food use garlic powder, and I've read that there is little of what makes a dog sick in garlic powder (compared to onions, all forms of onion). -- Raw/green potatoes. -- Raw bread dough (the yeast...a dog can get alcohol poisoning from raw bread dough!). -- Too much sugar/lots of sugar. An occasional sweet treat is okay, but if you want to give a dog something sugary, fresh fruit (natural sugar) is okay. No pits or seeds, ever. My dog likes fresh apple (without the skin). -- Anything with caffeine or nicotine in it. -- Antifreeze. Sounds stupid, but antifreeze has hurt and killed many dogs/cats because it's sweet. -- Be careful around other peoples' gardens. I know a dog that went into seizures because she ate a tiny bit of some kind of...I think it was snail repellent. Though it clearly says it's toxic to pets, sometimes if you're in a "foreign" garden and the dog has no idea what it is, it might get ingested by accident. This dog was (is, she isn't dead) a BIG dog, too. It only takes a little bit to cause a dog to go into convulsions. -- Any time of human medications, naturally. Also, chocolate (as you know). Different dogs have different reactions to chocolate, so if your dog accidentally got into a LITTLE bit of chocolate and doesn't have a reaction, he should be okay. But just keep it away from him to be safe.

Answer 5

A little bit every now and then is okay, but they shouldn't be having whole meals of liver. Trust your veterinarian.

I had a picky eater once too. Have you tried putting a little broth on the dog food and heating it in the microwave? It intensifies the smell, which makes it more appetizing. My baby would only eat hot food.

You can also put a little seasoning on it. My dogs like parsley and dill.

Answer 6

Liver in small quatities would be a wonderful occasional treat. Very good for an anemic dog, but to feed it as the only food would yes be quite toxic to dogs. Scrambled eggs is good for dogs. Our dogs get a few bites each of scrambled eggs whenevevr we have them. I have never underdstood why eggs would be considered a dairy product. Dairy products come from cows, eggs come from Chickens.

Answer 7

Well if liver is bad for dogs why do so many companies make dried liver treats. My dog gets chopped raw liver twice a week with her food so she doesnt get bored with her diet. I swear she knows when tuesday and friday roll around. Scrambled eggs should also be alright just make it with water instead of milk. Have you tried the rolls of dog food like prota pak its like polony for dogs. My fussy dobe loves it.

Answer 8

I think if your vet says it is bad for them then it definetely is. He may have been referring to the fact that on a liver only diet your dogs will not be receiving all the vitamins they need. Are you sure that they won't eat anything otherwise? have you left the food there for several days to see if they will eat it when they are really hungry?

Remember to introduce them slowly to new foods and give a mixture of the old foods

Answer 9

To try to get your dogs use to dry or canned dog food put some of the treats on top of the food. Yes, it is true liver is bad for dogs because of to much iron in their panchreas. However, as far as the eggs go we do now and than give our dog an egg because it is good for his coat.

Answer 10

I've heard of liver being bad for dogs when fed in large quantities. Have you tried other cuts of meat? Dogs are omnivorous so you should mix in blended up veggies as well with their food. And you shouldn't cook the meat, give it to them raw instead. You can look up raw feeding on the Internet under the BARF program. As for eggs and milk-milk is bad for dogs because they are lactose intolerant. Eggs are good for them but when you give them it's better to give them only the yolk rather than the white. I forget what but the white leaches something from their body and the yolk replaces it.
Yogurt and cottage cheese are good for dogs.