my dog likes people food!

Question
I have a small lab mix who weighs about 50-55 lbs. We adopted her from a kill shelter and she is one of the most loveable little animals I have ever met.

Recently, I discovered that she absolutely loves everything we eat. So I have started making her dinner when I make my family dinner. I only give her meat (cooked), cheese,  vegetables and fruit- and I mix it with her regular hard food. She does like plain yogurt and strawberries and bananas are her favorite. I do not add the sauces we eat, or the cooked vegetables. She loves it, and I remember when we first got her she was pretty sick and the vet recommended that i give her ground beef mixed with rice.

So, needless to say, is it ok to to "spoil" my dog like this? My husband says it is unsafe, but I don't think it is. And are there any foods I should absolutely avoid?  

Like I said, strawberries with yogurt and bananas are her favorite treat- I would hate to have to stop giving them to her.

Please help!

Thank you,
Ashley in Washington

Answer
Hi Ashley;
Weeell, it is sorta not good for them.
You have to know a lot about what they need in the way of nutrients to see that they get as much proper nutrition as they need, so it takes a lot of research on your part, because they need more of some and less of some vitamins and minerals than people do, or other animals, for that matter.
Some of the foods that are fine for us can be deadly to dogs. Some dogs can eat things that we eat, but cats cannot. Some of the things we eat are poisonous to our pets.
Chocolate, for instance. Some dogs can tollerate a little of it most of the time, and then one bite of it can kill them. ?Some dogs can die if they eat 1/4th or one of the littel squares of a Hershey bar, so you HAVE to leave chocolate alone.
a little too much protein each day for a long period can cause liver failure.
Onions are bad for them, can even be deadly.
That is why so much research os put into the making of their foods, and why some brands are favored and recommended over the others.
You really need a degree in animal ni\utrition, ot the equilivant in an information library at your fingertips.
I have been raising dogs for over 65 yearsm and all that time, I have studied the proper way to feed and care for them, and no way would I want to be responsible for taking complete control of their diet, unless there was no proper dog foods available.
I feed the better brands and they get people treats, but they are calculated in with their daily requirements, and caloric needs.
My dogs love vegetables, especially carrots, potatoes, and each one has other veggies they like better than th others do, but thy don't get a lot of them.
I have to watch cholesterol for my husband and myself, and for the three of our dogs that are in the senior dog range, so I cook our vegetables with Adam's butter flavoring. That brand tastes most like rwal butter.
I make chicken stew for them sometimes. I skin a chicken and DO NOT include the liver etc, because they are so high in protein and iron. That can be very bad for them, especially the seniopr dogs. I trim all the fat off I can, then I cover it with water and slowly cook ituntil it is well done. Then strain the meat off and cool the broth in the fridge till the fat gets hard, so I can remove it.
I use Chicken broth mix packets, or bullion cubes, to get more chicken flavor.
I cook carrote, potatoes a little celery some butter flavoring,( about i teaspoonful)and just enough onion to season it a little in when I cook the chicken. I put some rice in the broth and cook it, and that is their stew.
I divide it up among my four dogs, and add some of their dog food.
They slurp that down right away. I can make more broth by adding more water and more bulion of broth mix packets, and divine that up enough to make two meals for each dog.
They have very acute taste buds, so a little of it makes their food taste very good, without adding more than a fraction of their daily diet, so 80 to 90 % of what they get is their dog food that is balanced for their nutritional needs.
I feed mine twice a day, half their daily need at each meal, and one meal HAs to be all kibble, because thjie helps keep their teeth cleaner and keep down dental diseases.
It would be better if you talk over the feedings you give them with their Veterinarian, so yuou are sure to get all the nutrients they need for better health and long life for them.
What pleases their taste buds most, my not be what is best for their overall health.
Really.etting them have too much prople food and not enough of their dog food that is calculated for their weight and age, can amount to the same thing as letting children have too much candy and junk.
Charlotte