The fact is that dogs love eggs. But are they good for them?
Question: Is it OK to mix a raw egg with your dog’s food?
Well there seems to be 2 schools of thought, one being that raw eggs are great for dogs and the second is that they are very bad for dogs. This is not an article on biochemistry but I will try to explain the information into basic terms.
Let’s look at the plus side of giving your dog raw eggs. Eggs are one of the best sources of protein as well as amino acids and fatty acids which are needed for your dog’s skin and coat. They also provide a great source of vitamins and minerals for the body.
All of this doesn’t sound so bad, does it?
Now let’s look at the minus side. Ingestion of raw eggs in both dogs and humans can cause Salmonella which is sometimes called “food poisoning”. That’s a term that we’ve all heard of and want to avoid. Salmonella is a bacteria that causes diarrhea, fever, vomiting and abdominal cramps. Not something that you or your dog would want!
Another deleterious effect on dogs from eating raw eggs is an inhibition of biotin and trypsin which are found in the small intestine. These are enzymes are necessary for normal digestion. Let’s just say that a deficiency of these two enzymes can cause a number of bad effects on your dog, including chronic diarrhea, malnutrition, alopecia (severe hair loss) and other consequences.
So it looks like giving raw eggs to your dog is not a good idea. However, cooked eggs are great for your dog as a source of protein.
Cooking eggs properly denatures (kills or lessens) the effect of the two bad inhibitors of the necessary enzymes. Just make sure that your eggs are completely cooked – runny scrambled eggs would be a no-no.
Dogs love eggs and would eat them any way they could get them, whether raw or cooked and it’s up to you, his owner, to watch what he eats because the effects of his eating raw eggs can be very painful for the dog as well as being very upsetting to you.
My opinion of raw eggs is I don’t give them to my dog but if you really feel it’s OK, then please consult your vet before adding them to your dog’s diet.
There are many other foods that humans eat that are hazardous or toxic to dogs that I will be speaking about in upcoming articles. Be sure to watch for them.