Can dogs digest raw vegetables? Do they need processing for nutrients?

If you feed a high quality complete dog food for medium sized dogs, you do not need to supplement her food as it has everything your dog needs. You do not need to purree steamed vegetables. Dogs do not need extra veggies or fruit when they have a good quality complete food. They will digest what the body can use, and eliminate extra fiber and whatever ingredient the body cannot digest. As dogs are not herbivores, they do not have the capability of completely digesting vegetables and fruit, even if you steam and purree them.

It is important to monitor her body weight, condition and coat health and stool quality in order to assess how well balanced her nutritional state is. Many vegetable and grain particles can retain size and structure of the fiberous nature even though the dissolvable nutrients may have been absorbed. Dogs digest neat based products much easier

Hi there. Frozen/mashed/microwaved/raw/ or any other way you prepare it peas and carrots will be fine for your dog. Avoid toxic vegetables like onion and garlic, and don't serve with butter or other fatty oils or foods. Vegetables like peas and carrots are a great treat for your dog. Her teeth will crush it up so you don't have to mash it, and if she doesn't have any teeth cut it into small pieces so she doesn't choke, but the stomach acid will do the rest.

While dogs can eat plant material, they are carnivorous. This is show in the design of their teeth. They have sharp, blade like molars that are designed for slicing food rather than grinding it. Herbivores, like cows, have molars that are flatter and are made to grind up the plant material. In addition, their digestive system is designed to digest protein and fat, and due to that, they have trouble digesting produce. Produce should therefore be pureed to help them fully digest it.

Dogs are omnivores and require an appropriate balance of nutrients as a part of a healthy diet. Most dogs do well with twice daily feedings. Typically, I recommend commercially prepared foods, such as Science Diet, Royal Canin, and Purina ProPlan. However, many people prefer preparing their dog's food at home. Balanceit.com is a website out of UC-Davis that has a wide variety of recipes for home cooked diets with appropriate vitamin and mineral supplementation. I am not aware of any appropriately balanced vegan diets for dogs, but a vegetarian diet is certainly possible. Common fruits and vegetables that Pelu could consume include green beans, peas, carrots, beans, and apples. I don't understand your question about "dollops" of fruits and vegetables. Simply follow any home cooked recipe closely and be sure to supplement so that Pelu does not experience any mineral deficiencies.

It's difficult for dogs to digest raw carrots, which is why you are seeing chunks of them in your dog's stool. You can puree them, which will help her digest them better, or you can very lightly cook them to make them easier for her to digest :-)

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is to some extent a matter of opinion. However, it is well known the possible risks of eating raw meat just like it is possible health risk to a human for the same exact reasons like the development of an infection from ingesting raw protein. Also, it does not offer any benefit over cooked food. I personally do not recommend raw diets. Good luck!