Is it okay to give my dog sweets?

It is hard to resist giving your pet a lick of ice cream or some table scraps. How harmful is it really? The main problem I have is that you probably aren't brushing your dog's teeth twice daily. And if you are brushing, how effectively are you getting under the gumline and removing plaque buildup before it becomes tartar? 70-80% of all dogs have periodontal disease. The mouth is a hidden world in dogs. Few people venture in to take a look.

A lot of teeth end up rotting out or can cause chronic pain if not identified. It is the nature of dogs to hide signs of pain and often a lot of them suffer in silence. There can be disease that hides below the gumline that we cannot see from the outside. Dental xrays are important to completely identify the extent of the disease.

The other problem with table scraps is gastrointestinal distress. If your pet is not used to a food it may cause some intestinal issues.

Avoid high fat foods since it can cause pancreatitis, which can sometimes be severe and require hospitalization. Miniature schnauzers and other small breed dogs are predisposed to this disease. Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas. When the pancreas gets angy it causes abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy. It sometimes can randomly occur but the common trigger is a high fat meal.

I won't discuss weight control, but  that is another problem.

I hate to be a downer but if you ask me, I have to tell you not to give table scraps or buy your pet ice cream.

Moral of the story is to brush your dog's teeth twice daily and avoid candy.