Lemons!!!!
 

I was wondering if anyone knew anything on Lemons.. I came across this website.. Is what they say true :confused: This website is saying Lemon's can prevent help quite a bit of things..


Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Lemons - Good for Dogs, Many Health Benefits and Uses

IDK, I love lemons... offered a lick of one to Sapphire (I thought she'd make a weird face like I do, Lol) but she licked it and liked it!

LOL she really licked it?? I can't even lick it without making a face!!

I wonder what Peanut would do..

I found this comment, this is the lady owns that website:

There are many foods that when provided in moderation (to a dog) have many health benefits, but when provided in large amounts can have less than beneficial effects...for example:
- Garlic (http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blog...enefits.html);
- Fats (http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blog...omega-6.html);
and so on
- Fish, eggs, organ meats, etc. (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Foods That Dogs and Cats Should Not Eat, Foods That Require Caution - Dangerous, Toxic, Lethal)

The key is to provide these foods within a threshold where the food retains its healthful contributions - just as we would approach foods in the human diet.

So, when fresh lemon or other fresh citrus is added to the daily diet in reasonable amounts toxicity is not an issue. If instead your dog drinks a couple of tablespoons of lemon oil - I would say you truly have something to worry about.

All of my dogs eat a little citrus on a daily basis, they also eat garlic on a daily basis. The ASPCA also lists dairy products as a food that dogs should not eat. One has to wonder where they did there research. Dogs have for 1000's of years eaten 'people' food including dairy products such as kefir and yogurt (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Foods, Rich in Probiotics - Beneficial For Your Dog and Cat, hard cheese, cottage cheese. My dogs eat (in reasonable beneficial quantities) yogurt hard cheese and cottage cheese every day. My dogs (My Pack, Dog, Cat, Rabbit, Pack, Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer) are very healthy :>)

The ASPCA also lists raw meat as dangerous for dogs - funny that raw meat is a species appropriate food for dogs. It is not that raw meat id bad for dogs, it is that when the raw meat is not stored and handled properly it can BECOME a source of e-coli, etc.

Prior to the 1950's when most dog's ate 'people' food dog's lived twice the life span that they live now.

I find it ironic that the ASPCA does not include on their list of foods that are bad for dogs - items such as...

- Ethoxyquin (http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blog...nger-do.html);
- GMO Corn and soy (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Corn and Soy are Very Bad for Your Dog’s (Cat’s) Short and Long Term Health)
-The many ingredients listed in this article (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Is the Prescription Dog (Cat) Food Sold in Veterinarian’s Offices Good or Bad for Your Dog (Cat)? Hill’s Prescription Diet, Royal Canine Veterinary Diet, Purina Veterinary Diet, etc.)
- And the many ingredients (approved by the FDA and AFCO) listed in this article (http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blog...r-dog.html)and all commonly found in Dry and Wet commercially manufactured dog and cat food.

In my opinion a proper list of dangerous foods for dog should be based on common sense, logic and a proper explanation such as this one is Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Foods That Dogs and Cats Should Not Eat, Foods That Require Caution - Dangerous, Toxic, Lethal

As well the ASPCA fails to mention all of the toxins commonly included in dog care products such as dental chews, toothpaste (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Foods That Dogs and Cats Should Not Eat, Foods That Require Caution - Dangerous, Toxic, Lethal) and shampoo (Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer: Dog, Cat, Pet Shampoo - Unsafe, Harmful Ingredients to be Avoided).

So is lemon bad for dogs - only if you serve it to your dog in unreasonable quantities.

Does lemon provide great benefit for your dog when provided in reasonable quantities, as evidenced by my own dogs - I would have to conclude yes, lemon when used properly, is beneficial.

Interesting I have some reading to do thanks for providing all the links.:thumbup: :)

I'm reading too!! Very interesting!!

Max is scared to death of lemons! I cut one in half and showed it to him a while back and he ran and hid under a chair. He's been afraid ever since!

LOL WHAT??!?!? How does that even happen?? Maybe the smell scared him LOL :rolleyes: Silly Max.

I really want to show Peanut a Lemon!! I bet anything he will act like Max!

Max is so skittish. I was like "Max, look!" and he almost ran into a chair turning around to escape the scary lemon. I have some in the house. I'll have to record him :D

Poor guy.. Peanut has some skittish behavior as well.. If you flick your finger in his face he will run for the hills, if the battery in the smoke alarm goes off he will run to the closet, get this: one went off on a movie I was watching and he ran for the hills!! He is horrified if a water bottle cracks on it's on.. :rolleyes: The list goes on!!

Buster HATES the smoke alarm as well. I think that the pitch of the battery alarm is possibly painful/uncomfortable for them as they are more sensitive to higher pitches.

I haven't read the article on lemons yet, but I DID read the article on GMO corn and soybeans, and it was a garbage article filled with misinformation. The merits of feeding corn and soybean products to dogs are debatable, but it has absolutely nothing to do with whether they are GMO or not. The author seems to think that Round-Up (glyphosate) is the same as Agent Orange. It is not. Round-Up is the safest herbicide on the market, and quickly breaks down in the environment to carbon dioxide and water. I also read the hatchet job article on Hills Science Diet and Royal Canin (which they misspell in the article), and they repeat the same stuff about Agent Orange. Sorry, I just can't get past that. If Royal Canin or Blue Buffalo decide to put lemons in their dog food, fine, but I'm not going to go out of my way to feed Bella lemons, even in moderation--the Ottawa Valley Dog Whisperer has really turned me off.

Okay, I read the article on lemons and found this jewel:

First off, lemons are NOT "very alkaline." They are acidic. And unless you feed massive quantities of lemons to your dog, it's not going to affect the pH of the dog's tissues and organs, which is a good thing, because altering the pH that much would probably kill your dog. The article's claims about the health benefits of feeding lemons to dogs are highly overrated, if not plain wrong. I don't mean to be so negative, but unscientific articles that purport to be scientific really tick me off. I'm sure that feeding lemons in small quantities to your dog will not hurt it, but I don't think it's going to help much, either.

:thumbup: Thanks for your point of view on this.. that is why I posted it on here because I wanted an honest opinion.. it is so easy to write up how something is beneficial for our dogs, but the truth is what matters :D I agree with you.. it is really frustrating how people can write up an article and so many people out there probably started giving their dogs lemon's because of it. That is why I ask and research and then ask some more before giving Peanut anything!!

The acid in lemon is hard on tooth enamel. I would also be concerned with the effects on the stomach. When I drink water with lemon, it gives me a burning stomach.

Actually, lemons are alkaline forming.
This is because their acids, such as citric acid, are weak acid and the Lemon's overall nutrients are alkaline.

:yeahthat:

I like that the kibble I'm feeding my guys have no GMO anything.

I know I've said this so many x's, but Momo was on long term antibiotics when he was a puppy for KC, for a long agonizing 3 months. It brought on yeast problems, he smelled of fritos all the time, licked his paws endlessly. He's been on steroids/ meds, had anti-inflammatory steroid shots, rx shampoos, rx wipes, they all didn't do much. He's on a grain free, no potato (no sugary food bc that's what the yeast eats) diet & is doing fantastic. A simple tweak in diet is all it took for him.

For a yeasty dog, they are extremely itchy, all the time. Homeopathic vets recommend rising them w/lemon & ACV (apple cider vinegar) bc it KILLS the yeast! It helps the pet, that's all that matters.

:thumbup:

Great Info! Thanks!

Ummm, no, that's not how it works, but I'll just agree to disagree.

I can't find the link I had when I was researching pH in foods bc 2 of my guys had struvite crystals. They form when the dog's pH is too high or in conjunction w/an infection. Their pH was 8 & a dog's pH is slightly acidic @ 5-6.5. So I was trying to figure out why theirs' was so high, so was Turbo's but he didn't have any crystals. Anyway, I learned that citrus fruits (lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit) are acidic, but alkaline forming.

Now, I'm not sure about them ingesting lemons...I think mine will run away like Max loll!

According to nutritional science, yes it is.

2 BALANCES PH: Lemons are an incredibly alkaline food, believe it or not. Yes, they are acidic on their own, but inside our bodies they’re alkaline (the citric acid does not create acidity in the body once metabolized). As you wellness warriors know, an alkaline body is really the key to good health.

LEMON JUICE
Lemons have a low, highly acidic pH, which is attributable to their citric acid content. The acidity of a fresh lemon can vary between 2.2 and 2.4 on the pH scale, depending on the fruit's state of ripeness. Canned, unsweetened lemon juice has a consistent pH of 2.3. Compared to lemons, limes are slightly more acidic, oranges and grapefruit are slightly less acidic and cranberries are approximately as acidic. The pH nature of lemons changes during the body's metabolic process, however, and they become highly alkaline-forming. Adding just 1 tbsp. of fresh lemon juice to a glass of water is an easy way to give your body a boost of alkalinity.

Google truly is your friend.

MicheleM is correct. I confirmed this information with my friend that is a Naturopathic Physician.

Lemons are acidic but during the digestive process they become alkaline.

The section below is from the GaiamLife website and I found the same information on the phBalance website.

Fresh lemons: If you prefer not to use baking soda, a fresh lemon added to your drinking water will also, eventually, make your purified drinking water more alkaline. Though it seems counter-intuitive to think that adding an acidic lemon to your purified drinking water could ultimately produce an alkaline result, it's important to remember that fresh lemons are also anionic. Once you drink the acidic lemon water, it will become alkaline as your body reacts with the lemons' anions during the digestive process. Use fresh lemons that haven't been exposed to air for more than 30 minutes -- not lemon juice purchased at the store or lemons that have been cut up and sitting out in the open at a restaurant all day.

I have not read the Ottawa Dog Whisperer article its entirety or the other articles mentioned in this thread so I have no comment or contribution at this time.

Okay, there was a misunderstanding on my part. The pH can be measured in the blood, urine, or saliva, and all these different articles don't always say what they are talking about. The blood pH is in a very narrow range, and there's not much you can do to affect that since the body works hard to maintain a healthy range on its own. However, there are things you can do to affect the urine pH--for instance, if there are urinary infections, cranberry juice is known to alter the urine pH to make it less hospitable for microorganisms. Some of the information in these articles is good, some is not so good. I'd stick to the information that comes from veterinary scientists.

Here are a couple of articles on treating arthritis through diet first, and then medicine when the arthritis can no longer be controlled by diet. This is a fairly sensible approach:

Canine Arthritis Treatment - Whole Dog Journal Article

Arthritis in Dogs l Canine Arthritis l Treatment l Arthritis Dog Walks