Doggie Ingredient Tuesday: Garlic

When I was looking into health and nutrition changes for my dog, I wanted to know what foods were ok for them to eat! This is harder to find out than I realized. Then if you do find out, you don't know why it is bad, or why it is good.

So I am going to do my best to help anyone else out, and then also learn more about different ingredients myself.

I am going to "try" to post about a new ingredient every Tuesday, until...I run out of ingredients I guess?

I will be using "Dr. Khalsa's Natural Dog: A Holistic Guide for Healthier Dogs" by Deva Khalsa, VMD as my primary source (seriously guys, GET THIS BOOK!). But I will also probably reference information I find from "Dogs Naturally Magazine" which I subscribe to and is fabulous!! Check into it, here. And any other reputable source I find online.

Today..........(drum roll....)       GARLIC!

So is it good or bad?
When I was going my research, I ran across A LOT of places that said "garlic is bad for your dog!" "garlic = dog killer" etc etc.

Come to find out, it CAN be true.......if over used. However, drinking too much water is fatal as well, but nobody would argue that water will kill you, or that it's bad for you.

To quote directly from Dr. Khalsa's book (because she just says it so well) "Research has shown that garlic has antifungal, antibiotic, antiviral , antiparasitic, and anticancer effects."

It just has to be in moderation. Too much garlic causes damage to red blood cells. So how much is too much? Basically you would have to feed your dog A TON of garlic. Something like 10 gloves / meal to make that kind of impact.

How to use it

Raw garlic is best. It is the allicin in garlic that can inhibit cancer formation and allicin is created when the garlic is freshly chopped or crushed. So take fresh raw garlic and either chop or mince or crush it, wait 10 minutes or so and then top of your dogs' food with it. Do not wait more than 20 minutes because it loses it's "oomph" when exposed to heat or air too long.

Although fresh is best, benefits can still be found in powdered or packaged garlic. The allicin may have been destroyed but garlic still helps flush toxins and has antioxidant powers therefore don't give up on garlic all together.

I use garlic in my dog treats. First of all, they add a wonderful smell and flavor. My dogs absolutely love the garlic treats. And mixed perfectly with some parmesan cheese....YUMMMMM!!! Smells like fettuccine!
Treats are a great way to incorporate some garlic in your dog's diet. Check mine out!

Good luck with garlic and let me know how you use it for your dog!