There are lots of human foods that are safe and tasty for dogs. But like us, dogs need to watch their calorie intake!

Meat, fruit and vegetables can all make good treats and healthy additions to your dog’s diet. It’s important to avoid too much salt, fat and sugar – and anything with artificial sweeteners as they can be dangerous for your dog.

Another thing to consider is, if you feed your dog while you’re eating or preparing food, you’re training them to watch you eat or prepare food. Not something you want to encourage! If you want to give your dog a few tasty titbits, give them in their bowl or an enrichment feeder – or during a training session.

Safe foods to try

The following foods are ok for most dogs. Let your dog try a very small amount to start with, to make sure they don’t get an upset tummy:

• Meat: chicken, lamb, beef, pork, tuna or salmon
• Vegetables: carrots, peas, sweet potato, broccoli, spinach or sweet pepper
• Fruit: blueberries, raspberries, strawberries or bananas
• Dairy: cheese, natural yogurt or goats’ milk
• Natural peanut butter
• Eggs

If your dog has complete dog food (with all the nutrients they need), make sure any extras don't make up more than 10% of their daily intake.

Foods to avoid

The following foods are dangerous for dogs – you should never give them:

• chocolate
• raisins, currants, sultanas and grapes
• raw dough
• avocados
• Xylitol (a sweetener also known as birch sugar)
• alcohol
• onions, garlic and leeks
• coffee, tea and other caffeine
• nuts
• rhubarb.

You can find out more about the food that’s poisonous for dogs, as well as which plants they should avoid, in our poisonous foods article.

If you think your dog has eaten something toxic, call your vet immediately. You might find Animal Poison Line useful as well.