Should dogs have breakfast?

Yes please!  Porridge is lovely!   We always give our dogs breakfast, it’s hard not to when we have it ourselves and they always have an eye on the food bowl.   In their natural state  dogs wouldn’t have anything to eat in the morning though – unless they’d caught it.  Dogs are programmed to eat with long intervals in between food.  They are naturally hunters and scavengers and would sleep for hours in their den then get up and go on the prowl to see what they could find or catch.

The close contact with humans over many years has altered their make up and it’s been shown in scientific surveys that their dietary requirements are changing.  They have become adapted to digest more carbohydrates and eat more frequently, so breakfast is now officially on the agenda.

We have a variety of food on offer, a small portion of their regular food is fine.   Toast and scrambled egg is a favourite for either a young or an elderly dog.  Only use ‘proper’ bread though, stoneground and preferably organic.  The steamed soft mushy sliced stuff isn’t so good.

Porridge is a favourite and is an excellent start to the day, just as it is for us.   Some dogs like their oats raw which is so easy, just put a handful in their dish and they’ll wuffle it up.   Our sanctuary resident, Miss Nolene, has this for her breakfast every day, she won’t eat cooked porridge.   Jack Spratt, is always different, he likes his porridge cooked, no sugar though  (goats milk is best as dog’s don’t digest cow’s milk so well).