Should I Give My Pet People Food?

We've all done it when our pet gives us the sad eyes we will give up a little piece of meat or cheese because "they're just so cute" or "a little won't hurt them".  Well that little bit turns into "why won't they stop begging" or "why won't they eat their own food now; I haven't changed anything".  Should we as pet parents be giving our pets people food?  Does it really hurt anything to give them that "treat"?  I personally believe it does.

Physically it is okay once in a while to do this and give them some people food here and there, but in the long run all this behavior does is create a begging animal that thinks every time you have a plate of food part of it is for them.  This should not be the case.  If you have people at your home for dinner you do not want fido or fluffy (or even worse, both) staring at your guests for food.  Not only is it awkward for your guests, you end up continually telling your pet(s) to go away which is not good either because you cannot enjoy your time with friends.

So what do you do?  Well if you have a puppy you are already training then you should make this part of your training.  Have one place you have the puppy lay down during meal times.  Give him/her

something to chew on like a bully stick or an interactive toy.  Being occupied is the goal in this case so you and your family can enjoy meal time together.  If you already have a dog you have been giving food to then treat the dog like the puppy and train them to go lay down in one spot with their item to occupy them.  Do not give up and do not give them the option to do anything else but stay in that one spot.  You may even want to say something like "place" or "mat" so they will begin learning a command.  Praise them when they stay there throughout the whole meal.  That will help them learn that staying there the whole time is what you want them to do.  Eventually you will be able to use your command word and things will be smooth.  You can NOT give them people food ever again though.  That will ruin what training you have done and you will have to start over again.  If you want to give your dog a treat then get them their own treats and keep them separate from your food.

This is particularly important if you have infants and small children.  If your dog is used to getting people food and your child has food then the dog may go after the food and accidentally hurt the child.  None of us wants that so it's best just to keep human and pet food separate.

If you just can't give up on giving fido or fluffy their human food because you feel they just can't live without it then at least give them their own separate place to eat.  This will save you in the long run once they learn they can't eat from the table or that you aren't going to give them food from your plate.  You will be able to have dinner guests without worrying if your pet is going to beg them for food as if you don't feed them.

If you have any comments or questions please feel free to let us know.  Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook and please tell your family and friends about us.  As always, thanks for reading!