If you’re a dog owner that uses garlic in your recipes and your dog likes to beg for table scraps, you may wonder whether dogs can eat garlic? In fact, there is some controversy on whether dogs can safely eat garlic or not.
Some people will say that giving your dog garlic has health benefits such as preventing heart disease, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, some cancers, or even as a flea repellent. They believe that you can sprinkle garlic powder on top of your dog’s food, or crush garlic cloves and put it in the dog food to impart these benefits.
Some veterinarians or researchers believe that garlic is dangerous for dogs and extremely toxic, even in small amounts, and can sometimes be fatal. There are compounds found in garlic that can cause your dog’s red blood cells to oxidize and burst or cause a rare form of anemia. As a responsible pet owner, you need to be aware of the risks if you allow dogs to eat garlic.
Can Dogs Eat Garlic Raw?
Some people believe that dogs can eat raw garlic and it does provide some health benefits. They believe that Allicin, a compound that can be found in garlic, gives the garlic its antibiotic properties, and they use garlic as a sort of antibiotic. Raw garlic is crushed, chopped or pressed and is believed to be the best form.
However, other people like researchers and some vets, believe that garlic is very harmful for dogs in any form. They say that even the smallest bit can be toxic and if ingested for long periods of time, it can cause serious health issues for your pet.
Can Dogs Eat Cooked Garlic?
While there is some debate on whether dogs can eat garlic, there doesn’t seem to be any debate on whether they can eat cooked garlic.
Some people argue that raw or fresh garlic has some medicinal properties for dogs, but once that garlic is cooked it loses most of those properties and nutrients, meaning that poisoning is more likely. In other words, try not to feed your dog anything with cooked garlic in it. So, if that fresh garlic bread is catching your dog’s eye, you need to keep it away from your pooch!
Can Dogs Eat Garlic Powder?
Again, the argument remains on whether garlic powder or garlic pills are beneficial for dogs to eat, or poisonous. Ultimately the decision is yours whether to use garlic powder as a kind of health supplement in your dog’s food. You should talk with your vet before setting any kind of regiment and be properly informed of the risks and benefits. Garlic is more powerful than onions, so it is said to take less garlic for toxicity to occur.
How Much Garlic Can Dogs Eat?
If you decide to give your dog some garlic in their diet, you’ll need to check with a veterinarian to determine how much is safe. Though the debate still goes on about how little that amount is. Some doctors and scientific studies believe that just one clove of garlic can cause health problems in some dogs and that any dog who consumes garlic should be brought to a veterinary clinic for immediate health care.
Other pet owners give a small amount of garlic to their dog daily to receive some health benefits. These pet owners say that a half of a clove of garlic for every ten pounds of the dog’s weight is safe to eat. But again, please do not let dogs eat garlic without first consulting a vet.