No matter how you choose to feed your dog, they can benefit from the addition of fresh vegetables to their diet. You can introduce vegetables as an ingredient in homemade food, a meal topper or as part of their enrichment activities. If you are home making your dog’s meals, adding fruit and vegetables is essential to balance their diet, providing vitamins, minerals and other nutrients which cannot be found in meat alone. We have listed some of our favourite vegetables to feed below:
Peppers (Sweet or bell peppers)
Sweet and crisp, peppers make a tasty and healthy addition to your dog’s meals. Peppers are a great source of beta-carotene and vitamins A, C, E and B6, supporting the immune and nervous system as well as eye and skin health.
How to serve: Remove the core, seeds and stem and cut into appropriate size pieces for your dog. Peppers can be served raw or cooked.
Broccoli
A low calorie and nutrient dense vegetable, broccoli can aid eye health, is a rich source of pantothenic acid and contains more vitamin C than oranges. It also contains an abundance of minerals and is a particularly good source of iron and sulphur.
How to serve: Broccoli can be served raw or cooked, ensure to chop into appropriately sized pieces for your dog. If offering the stem as a chew or stick alternative, make sure to remain with your dog at all times.
Squash, Pumpkin and Courgette
Your dog can enjoy all varieties of summer and winter squash. All are high in fibre, beta-carotene and vitamin A, with different varieties having additional benefits. For example:
- Butternut squash is rich in vitamin C supporting the immune system.
- Courgette is high in vitamin B6 which aids metabolic function.
- Acorn squash is a rich source of magnesium helping to maintain nerve and muscle function.
- Pumpkin is a superfood for dogs and a natural prebiotic with the unique ability to sooth both diarrhoea and constipation.
*Top tip – Pumpkin seeds can be kept, dried and ground to use as a meal topped or ingredient in homemade treats.
Carrot
Carrots are one of the richest sources of beta-carotene, as well as offering good levels of vitamin K and potassium. Carrots also contain large amounts of insoluble fibre which keeps bowl movements regular and helps to remove toxins from the colon. Most dogs love the taste of carrots and will happily eat them as a treat as well as part of a meal.
How to serve: Carrots can be served raw or cooked.
Cabbage and leafy greens
Cabbage and leafy greens, such as Swiss chard and kale, are nutritional powerhouses packed with phytonutrients. They are an excellent source of fibre as well as offering high levels of calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron and vitamins A, C E and K.
How to serve: With cabbage and leafy greens it really is best to buy organic, if this is not possible make sure to thoroughly wash before serving. Serve chopped or pureed, if cooking a gentle steam is the best way to retain the nutrients.
Green beans
Green beans are packed full of essential vitamins and minerals, including manganese, calcium, iron and vitamins A, B6 C and K. Manganese aids the metabolism as well as supporting bone health and promoting healing.
How to serve: Green beans can be served raw or cooked. They also make a great crunchy snack for dogs on low calorie diets.
Cauliflower
Cauliflower is healthy and nutrient dense vegetable, supporting your dog’s eye, liver and muscle function. It also contains sulforaphane which reduces inflammation, detoxifies the liver and helps your dog fight off disease.
How to serve: Cauliflower is best served lightly steamed or pureed.
Mushrooms
Mushrooms are a rich source of prebiotic soluble fibres which feed the good bugs in your dog's gut, helping to maintain a healthy microbiome and boosting the immune system. They are also thought to have anti-tumor properties. Mushrooms are best bought, not picked, so you can be sure you are feeding safe varieties. The best mushroom varieties for disease fighting are thought to be Reishi and Shitake.
How to serve: You should never offer mushrooms raw, they MUST be cooked before feeding to your dog.
Top Tips for feeding vegetables
- Always chose fresh or frozen vegetables, as tinned options can often contain added salt, sugar or artificial preservatives.
- Where possible, select organic vegetables. If organic is not an option, washing your vegetables in cool water with a splash of cider vinegar before feeding will help remove any traces of spray residue which may have been used during growing.
- If regularly adding vegetables to your dog’s meals, choose vegetables in a variety of colours as they each offer different antioxidants and phytonutrients.
- Ensure to serve vegetables in appropriately sized pieces for your dog so as not to pose a choke risk. Cooked vegetables can also be enjoyed mashed or pureed, mixed into food or served on a lick mat.
- If your dog is used to a kibble-based diet, lightly steaming vegetables, rather than offering raw, will make them easier to digest as you gradually introduce them into the diet.
- Vegetables should be served plain to your dog to avoid any digestive upset. If cooking veggies for both your dog and your human family, ensure to set aside a portion for your dog before seasoning or adding any dressings.
- Vegetables, such as a chopped up carrot, can make healthy training treats for dogs on a low calorie diet.
- Vegetable trimmings, such as the bottom of a pepper, can make great stoppers for food stuffed enrichment toys.
- If you grow your own vegetables and have a glut, you can always chop or puree any dog safe vegetables and freeze them to feed at a later date.
If your dog has any existing health conditions or you are at all concerned about adding vegetables to their diet, seek veterinary advice before feeding.