Garlic

[Guest donatella]

i was under the impression it was a NO NO but some are saying its good?

confused

[Dame Aussie]

I wouldn't feed a lot of it and have also heard it is bad, but in saying that I give my dogs leftovers sometimes which have garlic in them and have never had issues.

[Guest lavendergirl]

I have read too that some people feed a small amount as a "flea deterrent" Don't know how valid that is though.

[Salukifan]

Ok in moderation but I don't feed it.

Who really knows what "moderation" is and its hardly necessary.

[minxy]

I've heard arguments saying it's good for them, and arguments saying it's toxic. Kyojin has had it before in very small amounts of left overs, but I don't feed it to him. I think I'd prefer to be cautious and just not specifically give it to him.

[JRzipper]

I've been feeding garlic to my dogs as part of a raw diet for more than a decade with no ill effects. I know a lot of people pooh-pooh the idea of garlic as a flea deterrant, but I haven't seen a flea on my guys since I started feeding garlic despite living in dry dusty areas - so I'll keep doing what works for me and the naysayers can believe what they like. :-).

This little article might be of interest.

Humans have been using garlic as medicine for at least 5,000 years.  And for as long as people have been using garlic, they have also been feeding it to their animal companions.

A key function of garlic is to stimulate white blood cells to increase immunity to infection, but it also has antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic and antiviral properties.

A compound in garlic assists in reducing cholesterol levels and fat build-up in the arteries which makes it an excellent cardiovascular tonic for older dogs. Because it improves circulation, dogs who suffer from arthritis will benefit from periodic garlic supplementation.

Human studies have demonstrated that allicin, the active ingredient in garlic, increases the levels of important antioxidant enzymes in the blood. Garlic also contains the powerful antioxidant, selenium. Selenium activates enzymes which protect against cancer.  Garlic is thought to increase the activities of killer cells (cells that seek out and destroy invading microbes and cancer cells) and to boost the immunity and assist in preventing cancer in healthy dogs.

For the skin, garlic it makes its way through sweat glands and pores.  Garlic has a high sulphur content and since insects are 10,000 times more sensitive to its smell, it is thought that the sulphur excreted through the dog's skin, repels fleas, ticks, mites and other biting insects as well as bacterial or  fungal microbes, helping to heal itching, irritated skin.  It is also thought that worms in the gut are repelled by garlic.

Sulphur excretion also occurs in the dog's lungs, making garlic a strong expectorant.  It encourages the expulsion of irritants such as dust, spores and pollen from the lungs, and helps kill any bacteria that may be present in the lungs.  This makes it a helpful remedy for hay fever, seasonal allergies, kennel cough, or any other respiratory problems.

Garlic is renown as a powerful natural antibiotic and fresh garlic fed as part of a dog's diet can fight infections of the mouth, throat, respiratory tract, stomach, or intestines. Crushed garlic diluted in olive oil can be used as a topical antiseptic for minor injuries, ear infections, or ear mites.

Unfortunately in recent years, the feeding of garlic to dogs has been getting bad press because garlic is related to onions.  Onion - cooked or raw – is toxic to dogs because of its high concentration of thiosulphate that can trigger haemolytic or "Heinz factor" anaemia. Garlic, on the other hand, only contains tiny concentrations of thiosulphate, so for garlic to be dangerous to a large dog you would have to feed them multiple bulbs daily on an ongoing basis (since red blood cells are constantly regenerated from the bone marrow) to cause permanent harm.

Recommendations for dosage rates vary but most holistic vets consider one crushed clove a day for large dogs well within safe limits. If you feed dried garlic, whether in a powdered or granulated form, make sure the garlic has not been heat-treated which will destroy the active compound allicin.

As with any drug or herb, it's important to watch for any sensitivities particular to your dog's body.  Do not feed garlic to pets with a pre-existing anaemic condition, or to those scheduled for surgery due to it’s natural blood thinning properties. Very young puppies should not be given garlic because they do not begin reproducing new blood cells until after 6-8 weeks.  Feeding garlic to bitches who are nursing puppies is also not recommended as it can change the taste and smell of the mother's milk and may also contribute to colic because it passes from breast milk into the puppies’ gastrointestinal tract.

JR

[Tralee]

Hi :)

I have just seen the effects of garlic on E.coli on Wednesday and Thursday at our Macquarie University Science Experience day at school.

Garlic strongly inhibits the growth of E. coli on agar plates.

I am told nutmeg, cloves and bread mold also have the same effect.

So garlis is an antiseptic but it is also bug specific and has no effect on some other germs.

That's an excellent article JRzipper but a reference to your source would be helpful.

[k9angel]

I have been feeding garlic to mine for years without ill effect. They don't get it everyday but do get it on a regular basis.

I just found this on one site;

When used in moderation, garlic can be a healthy supplement. Garlic can be used to stimulate and support immune function, trigger gastric juices for better digestion, encourage the growth of friendly bacteria, and prevent infections. Garlic reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer as well as improves blood sugar regulation and promotes detoxification.

Historic use of garlic as a condiment and herb has always been via oral ingestion and not via direct delivery into the stomach or intestines, in the form of a concentrated, standardized surprise! The safety of such delivery systems for garlic is unknown not to mention totally unnatural!

For centuries, garlic has been a primary remedy relied upon in a majority of cases. For as long as people have been using garlic, they have also been feeding it to their animal companions. Empirically, its medicinal properties have been strongly proven, along with its safety of use.

In the United States for the last 50 years, garlic has remained in the forefront of holistic medicine. Every text written by the founding fathers of holistic veterinary medicine recommended it, and revere its incredible anti-parasitic and anti-bacterial properties. Research shows, garlic has also benefited animals with cancer, diabetes, liver, heart and kidney disease, skin/staph infections, ear infections and a myriad of other conditions. It has grown to be a staple in preventative protocols for pets. For years it has been safely used by thousands of companion animal owners with no reports of negative side-effects - up until now. All of a sudden; garlic is an offending "suspect," without being proven the offender. The majority of people are allowing mass hysteria to determine a holistic care program for their dog or cat.

There are over 51,000 sites on the web devoted to warnings about the "toxicity" of garlic, even though there is little scientific data to back the claim other than the fact that thiosulphate is found in garlic. Yet, there are also upward of 4000,000 internet sites, many of which are reputable holistic veterinarians who have widely used garlic in their practice for many years! In regard to this miracle herb and its hundreds of years of "proven use" I would recommend trusting history over mass hysteria and half truths any day.

And the link

http://petremedycharts.blogspot.com.au/2010/04/is-it-safe-to-give-garlic-to-dogs.html

Edited July 20, 2012 by k9angel

[Guest donatella]

I guess it is really what you're comfortable with, interesting to hear both sides

I'm a little disheartened actually, i'm in contact with a breeder for my next dog and we seem to have opposite ideas regarding feeding.

She doesn't agree with Taste of the Wild (thinks imported is bad as it contains nasties from China), so i'm off to do more research on that. She has just posted a link about how bad raw feeding is http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/very-bad-news-for-raw-feeders.html so I don't think she's a huge fan of that.

I know she doesn't like chicken necks and I feed them frozen supervised.

She breeds excellent dogs and knows what she's doing so I don't know why we have such opposite views regarding food (I get a lot of my tips from you guys here tbh).

She's a garlic feeder too, and i'm not.

Is this not fate anymore?

[Guest english.ivy]

My lot get garlic in their foods but I never add it myself. I don't worry about feeding it, in small amounts.

Hell, I feed them left overs of our food that has cooked onion in it.

All in moderation. If you feed them a lot of garlic everyday they will probably get sick. Same as if us humans ate a lot of garlic in one sitting, we'd feel pretty ill.

Feeding small bits of chocolate is safe but if they eat a whole block, well then you're off to the vets in a hurry. I know if I ate a whole block of dark chocolate myself in one sitting, I would feel very ill and want to vomit.

[Guest english.ivy]

She doesn't agree with Taste of the Wild (thinks imported is bad as it contains nasties from China), so i'm off to do more research on that. She has just posted a link about how bad raw feeding is http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/very-bad-news-for-raw-feeders.html so I don't think she's a huge fan of that.

That link is American. The raw food we buy here would be a lot different in standards.

Every single breeder in the world will have their own views. Both my breeders feed VERY different foods to their dogs. Doesn't stop me feeding what I feed.

[Guest donatella]

She doesn't agree with Taste of the Wild (thinks imported is bad as it contains nasties from China), so i'm off to do more research on that. She has just posted a link about how bad raw feeding is http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/very-bad-news-for-raw-feeders.html so I don't think she's a huge fan of that.

That link is American. The raw food we buy here would be a lot different in standards.

Every single breeder in the world will have their own views. Both my breeders feed VERY different foods to their dogs. Doesn't stop me feeding what I feed.

Yep, it wont stop me, but she's fairly set in her ways about it and not really willing to understand that I have researched the food I feed and most of it except her kibble is all human grade anyway (eggs, cottage cheese, sardines etc). I hope it doesn't jeopardise my chance at a pup.

[Danois]

But you have to remember she knows her lines like the back of her hand and knows the diet that they do well on.

Disregarding a breeder's advice on diet may rule you out for a puppy. It may also concern them that you'd be unwilling to follow their advice in many other regards.

Why can't you feed the breeder's diet while the dog is growing and then switch later. Personally I would not feed a grain free food to a growing pup.

[trifecta]

Garlic is a member of the Allium family; this family includes onion which we all know can be toxic in large amounts.

There is an interesting article here about the toxicity of the Allium family in dogs.

[Guest donatella]

But you have to remember she knows her lines like the back of her hand and knows the diet that they do well on.

Disregarding a breeder's advice on diet may rule you out for a puppy. It may also concern them that you'd be unwilling to follow their advice in many other regards.

Why can't you feed the breeder's diet while the dog is growing and then switch later. Personally I would not feed a grain free food to a growing pup.

I'm pretty easy going regarding feeding but I don't like people who out and out say raw is bad, imported food is bad, chicken necks are bad etc as this is just not true in all cases.

I haven't been given any advice re feeding just been told what is bad (not what is good). I might ask her what she suggests.

Edited July 21, 2012 by donatella

[Guest lavendergirl]

I guess it is really what you're comfortable with, interesting to hear both sides

I'm a little disheartened actually, i'm in contact with a breeder for my next dog and we seem to have opposite ideas regarding feeding.

She doesn't agree with Taste of the Wild (thinks imported is bad as it contains nasties from China), so i'm off to do more research on that. She has just posted a link about how bad raw feeding is http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/very-bad-news-for-raw-feeders.html so I don't think she's a huge fan of that.

I know she doesn't like chicken necks and I feed them frozen supervised.

She breeds excellent dogs and knows what she's doing so I don't know why we have such opposite views regarding food (I get a lot of my tips from you guys here tbh).

She's a garlic feeder too, and i'm not.

Is this not fate anymore?

Sounds like she needs to do some more research herself about the premium quality imported kibbles. I am curious about what she does feed?

[Guest donatella]

I guess it is really what you're comfortable with, interesting to hear both sides

I'm a little disheartened actually, i'm in contact with a breeder for my next dog and we seem to have opposite ideas regarding feeding.

She doesn't agree with Taste of the Wild (thinks imported is bad as it contains nasties from China), so i'm off to do more research on that. She has just posted a link about how bad raw feeding is http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/very-bad-news-for-raw-feeders.html so I don't think she's a huge fan of that.

I know she doesn't like chicken necks and I feed them frozen supervised.

She breeds excellent dogs and knows what she's doing so I don't know why we have such opposite views regarding food (I get a lot of my tips from you guys here tbh).

She's a garlic feeder too, and i'm not.

Is this not fate anymore?

Sounds like she needs to do some more research herself about the premium quality imported kibbles. I am curious about what she does feed?

I said to research the food and it comes with high ratings and recommendations and definitely doesn't contain nasties from China. I presume she means the cheap treats that were imported causing trouble but I would never feed $2 treats from crazy clarks!

I think she pushes for human grade as much as possible, which is ok being such a small dog.

[karly101]

Taste of the wild is made by Diamond and in the states they have been involved in a LOT of recalls (they are a big company and sell food under a number of different brands) - there were massive recalls in 2007 when product was contaminated with melamine due to importing ingredients from China. I could understand the breeder being against the food but due to limited choice in premium foods here ...

I have also seen a dog that was poisoned with garlic.. but it was a small dog and the owner fed it large amounts of garlic every day because she thought it would keep fleas away (dog also had fleas). I feel its better to avoid it if possible but I have fed it in small amounts and its also in commercial foods in small quantities.

[dancinbcs]

I once successfully used granulated garlic that they sell for horses, to treat a 17kg Border Collie that developed a chronic yeast infection in her feet. She kept licking her feet until the hair all turned deep pink on all four feet. She got one level teaspoon of garlic granules a day and the problem disappeared over a few months and never came back. I was then able to take her off the garlic.

I would be very careful with the dose for a tiny dog though.

[noisymina]

I did my "research" on garlic a while ago in relation to the horse.

In view if the potential toxicity, I came to the conclusion that is was good if used short term for specific conditions, but better left out of the regular diet. I think the same goes for dogs.