Can I Give My Dog Human Food as Treats?
Short answer: yes. A lot of human food makes a perfectly good treat, and often a cheaper and lower-calorie one than a packet. The catch is that 'human food' in most Indian kitchens arrives cooked with onion, garlic, salt and oil, and that is where dogs get into trouble.
So the honest version of the rule is: plain human food, yes. Food from your plate, mostly no.
The budget still applies
Treats of every kind should stay under about 10% of a dog's daily calories (UC Davis). The other 90% comes from a complete and balanced diet. WSAVA counts home-prepared food as a treat in exactly the same way as anything from a shop.
That means a piece of paneer is not a free extra just because it came out of your fridge. WSAVA lists 28 g of cheddar at 120 kcal and a tablespoon of peanut butter at 81; for a 10 kg adult dog, its table puts the whole day's treat allowance at 47.
Human foods that make good treats
UC Davis recommends fruit and vegetables for many dogs, because they are usually low in protein, fat, sodium and phosphorus. Its handout lists them with calories, which is more useful than any 'healthy treats' list:
- 50 g of raw baby carrots: 18 kcal
- 63 g of boiled green beans: 22 kcal
- 31 g of raw apple with skin: 14 to 16 kcal
- 76 g of diced watermelon: 23 kcal
- 28 g of mashed banana: 25 kcal
- 51 g of baked butternut squash: 21 kcal
- Half a cup of plain air-popped popcorn: 16 kcal
Most of these are easy to find in India. Carrot and pumpkin are probably the most practical: carrot raw or boiled, pumpkin cooked plain, both cut small.
Plain cooked chicken breast is another common choice, with WSAVA giving 47 kcal for 28 g lean, skinless. Plain means boiled or steamed with nothing added: no salt, no masala, no marinade, no bones.
Two cautions. Remove apple cores and seeds, and watermelon seeds and rind. And introduce one new food at a time, in small amounts; a dog can get an upset stomach from something entirely non-toxic just because it is new.
The Indian kitchen problem: onion and garlic
This is the part that matters most, and it is easy to underestimate.
Onion, garlic, chives and leeks belong to the *Allium* family. ASPCA Animal Poison Control says they can cause gastrointestinal irritation and red blood cell damage that can lead to anaemia. A review by Cortinovis and Caloni in Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2016 describes the mechanism as oxidative damage to red blood cells and puts the onion dose that causes clinically important blood changes in dogs at 15 to 30 g per kilogram.
The line in that paper that matters for Indian homes is this one: cooking, drying and processing do not eliminate the toxic effect.
Think about what that rules out. Most dal has a tadka with garlic or onion. Most sabzi starts with onion. Gravies, biryani, pulao, khichdi made the family way, leftover curry poured over rice for the dog: all of it. Onion powder and garlic paste count too. One spoonful is unlikely to reach that dose, but a dog fed family leftovers every day is getting some every day, and there is no good reason to run that experiment.
If you want to share rice or roti, take it out plain, before anything is added. Separate the dog's portion first.
The never list
Pulling together ASPCA, WSAVA and UC Davis, these should not be given at all:
- Chocolate, coffee, tea and other caffeinated drinks
- Grapes, raisins, currants and sultanas
- Onion, garlic, chives, leeks and shallots
- Macadamia nuts
- Xylitol, sometimes labelled birch sugar, found in some sugar-free sweets and peanut butters (VCA)
- Alcohol and raw yeast dough
Grapes and raisins deserve a note. Cortinovis and Caloni's review collects cases across a wide range of doses and concludes that any quantity should be considered a potential clinical problem. No amount is known to be safe, so treat a single raisin from a dropped mithai as a reason to call your vet.
The 'probably not' list
Not toxic, but often trouble:
- Dairy. ASPCA notes milk and dairy can cause diarrhoea or digestive upset. Small amounts of curd suit some dogs; our post on [whether dogs can eat curd](/blogs/news/can-dogs-eat-curd) goes into detail.
- Salty food. Namkeen, chips, papad and pickles. Salt causes increased thirst and can upset blood electrolytes.
- Fatty and fried food. Pakoras, puris, samosa, ghee-heavy anything. ASPCA notes nut fats can cause vomiting, diarrhoea and potentially pancreatitis, and the same worry applies to any very rich food.
- Sweets. Sugar and ghee, often with raisins or nuts, sometimes with xylitol. Our piece on [Diwali sweets](/blogs/news/can-dogs-eat-diwali-sweets) covers the specifics.
- Cooked bones. WSAVA warns that bones, cooked or raw, can do significant damage.
When to see a vet
Call straight away if your dog has eaten anything on the never list, even if he seems fine; do not wait for symptoms to decide for you. Go the same day for repeated vomiting, diarrhoea with blood, weakness, pale gums, unusual tiredness or a dog who stops eating. Our guide on [when to see a vet](/blogs/news/when-to-take-dog-to-vet-digestive-problems) covers the wider list.
Where ChewCheer fits
Loosely. ChewCheer is a packaged soft chew with chicory root fibre and inulin, not human food, and it sits in the same 10% treat budget as a carrot or a cube of paneer. It is not a substitute for any of the foods above and does nothing to offset a dog eating the wrong thing.
It contains chicken. If your dog reacts to chicken, that matters more than anything else on the label.
If your dog gets plain vegetables as treats already, you are doing well. Nothing here needs our chew.
The short version
Plain human food makes a good treat: carrot, pumpkin, green beans, apple, watermelon, a little banana, plain boiled chicken. Keep all treats under about 10% of calories. Food from a typical Indian plate is different: onion and garlic stay toxic after cooking, and salt, oil, sugar and spice add their own problems. Never give chocolate, grapes, raisins, onion, garlic, macadamia, xylitol, alcohol or raw dough. Take the dog's share out plain, before the tadka.
Frequently asked questions
Can I give my dog human food as treats?
Yes, if it is plain and kept small. Vegetables, some fruit and plain cooked meat are common choices, and UC Davis lists several with their calories. Treats of every kind should stay under about 10% of daily calories, and the food should be free of onion, garlic, salt, sugar, spice and oil.
Which human foods are safe treats for dogs?
Plain options that vets commonly list include raw or boiled carrot, boiled green beans, cooked pumpkin or squash, apple without the core, watermelon without seeds or rind, a little banana and plain cooked chicken breast. Introduce one at a time in small amounts, because a dog can still get an upset stomach from a food that is not toxic.
Can dogs eat dal, roti or rice from our plate?
Plain rice and plain roti are not on the toxic lists. The problem with sharing from an Indian plate is what goes into the cooking: onion and garlic, salt, ghee or oil, and spices. Dal and sabzi almost always contain onion or garlic, and cooking does not remove their toxicity, so keep those off the menu.
Is cooked onion or garlic safe for dogs?
No. A review in Frontiers in Veterinary Science states that cooking, drying and processing do not eliminate the toxic effect of onions and garlic. They damage red blood cells and can cause anaemia. That includes onion powder, garlic paste and gravies made with either.
Which human foods should a dog never have?
Chocolate, grapes, raisins and sultanas, onions, garlic, chives and leeks, macadamia nuts, xylitol, alcohol, raw yeast dough, and coffee, tea or energy drinks. For grapes and raisins there is no amount known to be safe. If your dog eats any of these, call a vet straight away instead of waiting for symptoms.
Is paneer or curd a good treat for dogs?
In small amounts some dogs handle them, but ASPCA notes dairy can cause diarrhoea or other digestive upset, and cheeses are calorie-dense: WSAVA lists 28 g of cheddar at 120 kcal. A cube of paneer for a small dog can use up most of the day's treat allowance.