Grazing dogs

[Maralynn]

I take my 3 for a run in a large field next to my house a couple times a day. Right now the cover crop of rye grass is sprouting up nicely. Every time we go out in the field the dogs start grazing on it. They stand there and munch away on it. They'll run for a few minutes and go back to munching. They don't munch on yard grass this way, only the field grass.

 

If it were just one of them, I'd be concerned that something was missing from their diet. If they were all eating the same thing, I'd be concerned. But they all eat a bit differently - Missy is on grain free kibble and raw. Kipp and Kenzi are on Diamond Naturals, but Kenzi gets added egg, cottage cheese, or yogurt toppers with a handful of Missy's kibble several times a week.

 

I guess there is just something about that rye grass....

[Ooky]

Odin loves to munch on new spring Italian ryegrass (Lolium) and wild oats (Avena). Sometimes he eats so much I worry he'll get a blockage, but it always seems to come out on the other end. He's on origen with supplemental raw, including green tripe.

[Izzysdad]

Toby, since coming to our house in July 09 has loved a few sprigs of grass when he goes out. I've never seen him do it anywhere but our yard....I think it's natural for them. He eats grain free food as well

 

Tim

[flyer]

Both of mine graze daily right now. Field grass as you say.

[luv2napp]

Lacee has always eaten grass. Neighbors laugh at her, and ask if they can borrow her to mow their lawn. Of course, I always make sure the grass she's eating doesn't have chemicals on it.

[jrhodo]

My BC has been known to ask to go out just to eat grass. As the snow melted she was excited to find grass.

[Sue R]

Mine are like the cows in spring - excitedly seeking out those fresh, succulent blades after a long winter without. I think the fiber is good for them. Them seem to think it just tastes good.

[nancy]

Fergie likes fresh grass and freshly rained-on grass so much that some neighbors consider her breed to be Holstein.

[Alaska]

Yippie demonstrates how it's done...

 

First, you study the menu:

 

 

Take a sample taste:

 

 

Ah yes, that will do fine!

 

 

Now the dining commences in earnest:

 

 

Phew, I think I'm starting to get a bit full....

 

[Lewis Moon]

Wow...glad I saw this. Cerbie eats grass at a prodigious rate. I was starting to wonder.....

[SecretBC]

My oldest dog was raised around horses, so I always blamed that for his grazing habits. Then I just figured the other two picked it up from him.

 

My dad is always pestering me to spray weed/grass killer along my fence line and I have to keep telling him that my dogs EAT that grass and that there is no way to keep them off it until the chemicals go away.

[BustopherJones]

Unlike cats, dogs are omnivores. Most experts see no danger in letting a dog eat grass; in fact, grass contains essential nutrients that a dog might crave, especially if it's on a commercial diet. If you notice that your dog has been munching away on grass or houseplants, then you may want to introduce natural herbs or cooked vegetables into its diet. (Dogs aren't too fond of raw veggies; they're kind of like big furry kids that way.)

[sluj]

Yippie demonstrates how it's done...

 

Yay! I was wondering when we'd get to see Yippee again.

 

Allie's a grazer, too. She also like most veggies, raw or cooked. I think asparagus is her favourite.

[Anda]

Hehe, thanks Yippe for a fantastic demonstration of the grazing process Ouzo occasionally grazes, usually when he's got a tummy acke, and it's always the same type of grass that Yippe is enjoying above, having a preference for fat juciy leafs, but he stays away from any other green or vegetable-related objects

[Maralynn]

(Dogs aren't too fond of raw veggies; they're kind of like big furry kids that way.)

 

:D tell that to Kenzi - I can use raw veggies as training treats with her. And since Kenzi is eating them, Kipp wants them too

 

Missy has one other certain patch of grass she eats. It's next to the corncrib and she has grazed on it for years.

[Lewis Moon]

:D tell that to Kenzi - I can use raw veggies as training treats with her. And since Kenzi is eating them, Kipp wants them too

 

Missy has one other certain patch of grass she eats. It's next to the corncrib and she has grazed on it for years.

 

 

Our late bull terrier used to LOVE raw broccoli! She would do tricks for it.

[eclare]

I don't mind the dogs eating grass, per se. It's the part where the grass has to come out again, one way or another. Ugh.

 

 

tell that to Kenzi - I can use raw veggies as training treats with her. And since Kenzi is eating them, Kipp wants them too

 

 

Daisy looooves raw vegetables, especially carrots, broccoli and cauliflower. Seamus gets really excited when the veggies come out because Daisy get so excited, but he'll just take a couple bites and then spit it out.

[luv2napp]

I don't mind the dogs eating grass, per se. It's the part where the grass has to come out again, one way or another. Ugh.

Daisy looooves raw vegetables, especially carrots, broccoli and cauliflower. Seamus gets really excited when the veggies come out because Daisy get so excited, but he'll just take a couple bites and then spit it out.

 

Luckily, I never have a problem with that. Lacee never throws it up and I don't see any when she goes potty. She must have a good digester!

[alligande]

We were just out walking in a field that will be planted with corn, and there was all that nice fresh grass, Brody was doing his best Holstein impression, selecting the best bits, then Rievaulx copied. It was great sight to grazing dogs.

PS Don't tell Rievaulx about not liking veggies he loves zucchini.

[RaisingRiver]

All four of my dogs eat pasture grass daily. And I have 4 acres of it.

[JBlackburn]

Is Yippie a Kelpie or BC? Adorable!

 

Yippie demonstrates how it's done...

 

First, you study the menu:

 

 

Take a sample taste:

 

 

Ah yes, that will do fine!

 

 

Now the dining commences in earnest:

 

 

Phew, I think I'm starting to get a bit full....

 

[nancy]

Dogs aren't too fond of raw veggies; they're kind of like big furry kids that way.

 

I wish my kids ate as many fruits and veggies as my Fergie does.

 

Broccoli (the stems are better than bones) , carrots, radishes, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers (oh my, peppers!) - apples, bananas, pears, peaches, melons (any we can get), strawberries, blackberries, blueberries. And that's just off the top of my head.

 

Heck, she's even convinced Maggie Da Cat about tomatoes, strawberries bananas, pears, and apples.

 

So much for my carnivorous kids.

 

The only green thing our middle kid ate willingly was zucchini. Guess what veggie the other two hated.

[Frogs & Dogs]

Good to know it's not just Kit who likes to eat grass. I was starting to get a bit concerned, too.

 

She's very food motivated, and when we're outside doing some training/tricks/agility/frisbee/whatever and I don't offer a treat when she thinks she deserves one, she'll treat herself to a blade of grass. She knows it's off limits during training, so sometimes she'll prance/run around with it just to show it off. She also eats a lot of grass during the zoomies, which usually happen after baths or swimming.