Dogs and Avocado, parts 2 and 3

Here are two more stories for the dogs and avocados category.

Part 2
The boyfriend and I went out to sushi earlier this week. We've done a good job of ordering and aren't left with much after sating our appetite. There's one avocado roll left. I am very tempted to pop it in my mouth, but before I do that I have a gem of an LA idea pop into my head. Let's take it home for the dog!

There are so many things that delight me about this idea. It is completely and utterly absurd. Feeding sushi to the dog? Well, if there is one place on earth you could get away with that, it would have to be LA. To prove the stereotype, we decide to wrap it up and take it home. It's partially an experiment. Will the dog eat sushi?

Part 3
A couple days after the sushi incident. (Which we video recorded so you'll be able to see the results!) I came home to a bunch of leathery pieces of avocado skin on the bed. There were no bits of avocado flesh and no pit. I use my deductive powers to figure out the dog must have gotten the avocado out of the fruit bowl. But where was the pit? The boyfriend found the pit in a pile of laundry. It was licked clean.

My earlier assumption about the dog not liking avocado has been proven incorrect. I think he was confused by the skin on his first attempt. I have to admit, that I like the idea of giving him avocado as a treat more than the processed dog treats. He still loves his pig ears (and I do love giving them to him), but avocado is an excellent alternative.

Pls. hold for the dog eating sushi video.

Comments

[TwistedCat]

i realize i'm probably being a wet blanket but feeding your dog avocado is not recommended...

http://www.bdnhumanesociety.com/householddangers.htm

[heathervescent]

hmmm. that's interesting. well the dog has not died yet. he also shows no signs of stress after eating two chocolate bars...

[Dorothy in Oz]

How cute! The reason the pit was in the laundry is because Romeo "buried" it there for later...or maybe he thought it would grow into a tree!!! Do you remember that Button used to "bury" things under the pillows on the bed?

[Heather Morabito]

My mother's friend has a huge avacado tree in her yard and can't feed the dogs much for the they are ripe and dropping off the tree as the dog snuffs them up as quickly as they drop, and gains too much weight from eating avacados and his daily meals.. dogs love them! The seaweed wrap i'm not so sure about....

[Trace]

Hi, I happened upon your site searching for info on the toxicity of avocados to dogs. I had no idea they were bad for them either. Check out a list of doggy no-nos: http://www.lacetoleather.com/fataltodogs.html
However, I have first hand experience with regard to chocolate & dogs... it caused a seizure with my mother's lab, and later required a stomach pumping for her Standard Poodle - (Christmas chocolate theives).
Hope alls well with your pup!

[Trace]

Hi, I happened upon your site searching for info on the toxicity of avocados to dogs. I had no idea they were bad for them either. Check out a list of doggy no-nos: http://www.lacetoleather.com/fataltodogs.html
However, I have first hand experience with regard to chocolate & dogs... it caused a seizure with my mother's lab, and later required a stomach pumping for her Standard Poodle - (Christmas chocolate theives).
Hope alls well with your pup!

[Gregory]

While I am not promoting the consumption of avocados by dogs, many "premium" dog food boast of containing avocado or avocado oil as an ingredient. It is said to be particularly good for skin and coat.

There may be two sides to a discussion of "avocados are toxic to dogs".

[Kim]

I gave my dogs avaocado this mornign and they loved it. then I remembered reading that it was toxic. They haven't died yet. I really doubt that it is toxic. There are some dog foods with avocado as a main ingredient. i think that you have to wathc out that they don't eat too much. On researching this I also found out that onion and garlic are toxic. This is completely untrue as there are garlic tablets for dogs. Other myths: are grapes (I used to feed my dog grapes all the time - he lived to be 17), brocolli and pork.

[John]

I recently started feeding my small dog Avoderm dry dog food. It boosts the benefits of Avocados in a dog's diet for good coat. (That's why I bought it) So, Is it good for them, or am I poisoning my dog?

[linda toscano]

well I'm searching for for good foods and bad foods for my small dog..I'm crazy about this pooch and want the best for her..I am afraid you are in the minority about the avacado..however all dogs are not created equal and some are more easily made sick by human food. My little cavalier loves avacado but I have cut her off from it..It still beats the heck out of what dog food mfger's put in their junk...Thanks for cute info, Linda

[heathervescent]

Since writing this post, I have checked with a variety of sources and all have said it's ok to feed dogs avocados. They myth that avocados are bad for dogs comes from a "standard list" of food that is not good for pets and domestic animals. While avocado is NOT good for cats, pets and other domestic animals, it IS OK for dogs.

It's just easier to have one list of no-nos for all pets, than be specific for each one.

Of course, dogs are individual and yours may indeed have a problem with avocado - but in general - it IS OK to feed dogs Avocado. But if you are concerned, I suggest you ask your vet, as I'm not taking responsibility if something bad happen to your pooch.

I however continue to feed avocado to the pup and he continues to eat it up!

[katygodenakers]

Says don't give your dog avocado in THE DOG ATE IT by Eckhardt & Bradley, but I've been feeding my pit-bull-cross avocados whenever they are affordable. The authors add honey and salt to the recipes to make them compatible for humans, but I don't think dogs need those. Are onions poisonous for pooches? I know garlic is okay and recommended as a flea retardant. I'm waiting for a copy of the THREE DOG BAKERY cook book because the baker's memoir AMAZING GRACIE was so compelling.

[Heather]

My dog went through a phase where he was getting up on the kitchen counter while we were out and eating avocados. We just kept coming home to broken or whole pits and wrongly assumed he'd gotten into the potpourri. We kept finding the pits even after we removed the potpourri and after 5 avocados, realized what it was that he was eating. (we buy LOTS of avocados so we never noticed one missing.) That was over a year ago and he never got sick or died.

[AKaBooM]

It's not the fruit that is the issue, it's avocado leaves, fruit, seeds and bark which contain a toxic principle known as Persin. The Guatemalan variety, a common one found in stores, appears to be the most problematic. Other strains of avocado can have different degrees of toxic potential.

The safety profile of foods and other products formulated with avocado is a difficult question for us to answer definitively, because we do not know specifically how avocados are processed for these foods, what types of avocados are used, or what minimum dose of the toxic principle results in clinical effects. Therefore, we have refrained from making an overall assessment of the safety or toxicity of products that contain avocado.
(from ASPCA site http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/ask-the-expert/ask-the-expert-poison-control/dog-food-containing-avocado.html)

Avoderm assures its product safety - read more here: http://www.breeders-choice.com/dog_products/avoderm-natural-and-avocado-safety.htm

[Tanya]

avocadoes as someone else posted are supposed to also be bad for cats, but I cannot keep them out of them.. They LOVE it and never had any issues...and its been years!

[Get Real]

Kim, your post is full of misinformation. Raisins and onions most certainly ARE harmful to dogs. The former can cause kidney failure, and the latter can induce hemolytic anemia. One grape, or one sliver of onion? No. But in sufficient quantity or over repeated feedings.

The fact that a dog once ate a small quantity of something and "didn't die" is hardly reassuring, nor scientific.

They don't know exactly how much it takes, and it may vary by breed or size. Do you want to experiment on your pet to find out where that limit is?

Making claims about what is "good" and "bad" for dogs unless you are a veterinarian, or have received such info directly from a medical expert, is irresponsible and does a disservice to other pet owners.

And just because an ingredient is used in a dog food or treat doesn't mean it's safe, either. I've found treats that contained raisins. Most manufacturers don't give a shit about anything except making money. That goes 10x if it comes from overseas. You saw how much the Chinese care about dogs, when they sent all that melamine-poisoned food over here.

[Susan]

My dog (female yellow lab/ridgeback mix) has been eating Avoderm along with the fruit from an avacado spooned out over the top for 2 years now and her coat is amazing and she's super healthy. I don't believe that avacado fruit is bad for my dog. She's only 4, so I'll post if anything changes - but I'm not going to stop giving them to her. She loves them. The only thing she loves as much is raw canned pumpkin or the grass "tail" from the wheatgrass juicer - which I also give her on her food if I don't have avacados. I think it's good to give them live food daily - they need the live enzymes and amino acids - just like people.

[Mona Fox]

I think that it is the Gautemalan variety and the pit, leaves and bark are the toxic part of the avacado. The oil is the good part of the avacado. So, do not let your dogs eat the skin or pit of the avacado. The Avoderm processes the oil from a different variety of avacado so they say on their website. I just tried the food for my dog since she has dry itchy skin!! Hoping it works for her.

[C C]

I eat avocados in the skin. I cut them in half, cross slice it in the skin, sprinkle in sea salt, pour olive oil in the pit, mix and eat. Sometimes a little cube will fall to the floor where the dogs are standing in wait. I thought, "You know, I remember seeing a Huell Houser video a couple of years ago where he interviews an orchard guy and his dog is eating avocado. I wonder why the ASPCA says they're bad for dogs." So I came online to search "avocados bad for dogs myth" and came across this blog. And then I went to rewatch the video. All of the guy's dogs eat avocados and for years:

Huell Howser, Avocados and a Dog that Eats Avocados (1:23)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l99Ek4YtTuw