Holiday notes
Thanksgiving guests, the dog and a jar of liver
Updated
Liver treats for Thanksgiving give guests something to hand the dog other than food from their plates. Set out a small jar holding the day's measured share of broken liver, because the ASPCA lists onion, garlic and chives, which turn up in plenty of holiday dishes, among foods to keep away from pets.
Why give guests a liver jar instead of a rule?
Because a rule needs everyone to remember it, and a jar only needs someone to reach for it. Guests want to share the day with the dog. Telling them not to feed it leaves that urge with nowhere to go, and a crowded kitchen is not where anyone reads a note on the fridge.
A jar gives the urge a destination. Set it on a counter near where people gather, tell your guests it is the dog's share, and let them take turns. The dog gets plenty of attention, and the plates stay with the people.
This is our idea, not a rule from anyone else, and it is a host's trick more than a training method. It works because it is easy to follow, with a label on the jar if your relatives are the type to wander off with the lid.
How much liver goes in the jar for the day?
Work it out before anyone arrives. Enter your dog's daily calories in our treat budget calculator and it gives back a weight of liver, worked from the label's energy figure. Its default is 10 percent of daily calories for every treat and snack together, the ceiling VCA Animal Hospitals sets, which leaves 90 percent for complete and balanced food.
Liver is only part of that treat allowance, and a holiday is the day other treats tend to sneak in, so leave some of the allowance unspent. Weigh the liver on a kitchen scale, break it into small pieces, and put exactly that much in the jar. When the jar is empty, the day's liver is done. That is the whole system, and guests tend to respect an empty jar more than they respect a rule.
Pieces are medium sized and break apart by hand, so filling the jar takes a minute.
Which holiday foods does the ASPCA say to keep from pets?
We will stay inside what the ASPCA actually says, which is less than a full holiday menu. The page calls onion, garlic and chives members of the Allium family and says they can cause gastrointestinal irritation and red blood cell damage, with dogs at risk depending on the amount ingested. These are the kind of ingredients that get cooked into a dish, where nobody at the table can see them.
The same page says dogs might sustain injury or obstruction to the gastrointestinal tract when they swallow bones, which could be serious and require surgery. Bones come off the table at carving time, so someone should be told where the scraps are going.
We are not going to rule on the rest of the table, because we do not have a named source for it. If you are unsure about a dish, the dog does not need it. Liver in the jar is the answer you already have in hand.
How do you keep the dog out from underfoot while you cook?
Give the dog a place to be. A baby gate across the kitchen doorway, a closed door to another room, or a settled spot on a bed with a chew of its own all work. Which one suits depends on your house and your dog.
Choose the spot before the cooking starts, not in the middle of it. Practice it on a quiet day, with a few pieces of liver, so the spot already means something when the house is full.
Hot pans and a dog moving between your feet are a poor mix, so this is as much about your elbows as about the dog.
What about leftovers in the days after?
Leftovers made with onion or garlic stay off the dog's plate, however much they are asked for. Liver is the dog's treat. The pan scrapings are not. If something does get eaten, the ASPCA's advice is to note the amount ingested and contact your veterinarian or poison control.
Keep the jar of liver for the days after, too, if there are guests staying over. An open bag should be used within 30 days, and the bag says: "Store in a cool, dry place. Reseal after opening for maximum freshness." The freeze-dried beef liver page has the sizes, and our guides hub has the rest.
If someone at the table offers a slice of something processed, such as liverwurst, our liverwurst page explains why the ingredient list comes first.
Questions
Can guests hand my dog liver straight from the jar?
Yes, that is what the jar is for. Ask them to offer one piece at a time on a flat palm, and let the dog take it. The bag says to supervise while feeding, so keep an eye on the dog and on who is at the jar.
How do I tell guests the dog has had enough?
Let the jar do it. When the weighed share is gone, the day's liver is gone, and you can say so in one sentence. A small card on the jar that says "this is the dog's day" does the explaining before anyone has to.
What if my dog grabs something off the table?
Note what it was and roughly how much, then call your veterinarian or poison control. That is the ASPCA's advice for any food on its list. Make the call at the time, rather than after the dishes.
Can liver keep my dog busy during the meal?
Not for long. Treats are quickly gone, and the bag calls this intermittent or supplemental feeding. A chew of its own in a quiet room does more for the length of a meal than liver does. Use the liver to get the dog to its spot.
Should children be the ones giving out liver treats?
Yes, with an adult close by, since the bag says to supervise while feeding. Pieces break apart by hand, so a child can offer small ones. The label also says to wash hands after handling, so send everyone to the sink afterward.
Does the jar of liver need a lid?
Yes. The bag says to keep it in a cool, dry place and reseal after opening, so a lid on the jar is in the spirit of that. Fill it with the day's share only, and put the rest back in the bag and reseal it.