Ever since the internet has been around, it has become increasingly easier to search for information on just about any topic. However, when it comes to our beloved pets, there can often be conflicting information about the best practices for their health and safety. One of the more common questions posed online pertains to the use of meat tenderizer on a pet’s food. Is it safe to put meat tenderizer on dog food? This blog post aims to provide an informative and professional answer to this age old question.
Meat tenderizer is a common ingredient used in many kitchens, typically to make tough cuts of meat more tender and flavorful. As such, it would make sense to think that it could be used to improve the texture and flavor of a pet’s food. However, there are a few key points to consider when it comes to using meat tenderizer on dog food.
How Much Meat Tenderizer To Put In Dog Food Last Updated:
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Meat tenderizer is a staple in many kitchens. Meat tenderizer serves two purposes and is typically found in the spice section of your neighborhood grocery store. It not only makes tough meat more tender, but it can also season your food to give it a delicious flavor.
All right, but what connection does meat tenderizer have to dog food?
This behavior, also known as coprophagia, is surprisingly prevalent in dogs. Its a disgusting sight and often leaves owners feeling uneasy. This is especially true when dogs come over to give you tender face licks!
An old trick is to season a dog’s food with meat tenderizer seasoning. While not always successful, many people experience success and train their dog to stop acting out in this negative way.
Having said that, how much meat tenderizer must be added to dog food to produce results? The basics of meat tenderizer and how it affects canine coprophagia are provided here.
Using a powdered meat tenderizer to combat poop eating may seem like an odd choice. However, its surprisingly effective at making the feces unappealing.
There are several explanations for why dogs eat their own feces, which we’ll discuss later. But ultimately, the taste is still a significant factor.
While we find feces to be absolutely disgusting, your dog may enjoy the taste. The purpose of meat tenderizer is to render the excrement tasteless, even to dogs!
There are a few essential components in meat tenderizers that do the job. The first is the primary active ingredient: Enzymes.
Essentially, meat tenderizers are nothing more than naturally derived enzymes. The preferred enzymes are typically bromelain from pineapples and papain from papayas.
When enzymes are added to meat, they start working right away to break down tough fibers. Consequently, the muscle softens and becomes chewable.
The enzymes added to dog food don’t significantly change the flavor. However, they will change the taste of the stool later.
The same goes for another critical ingredient:
MSG. Also known as Monosodium Glutamate,
Meat tenderizer frequently contains MSG to add extra flavor.
Check the meat tenderizer’s ingredients list twice and make sure MSG is present if you want it to have the biggest impact.
MSG is a bit of a controversial food additive. But you can rest easy knowing that the FDA considers it to be generally safe. A tiny amount of MSG in your dogs food shouldnt lead to any issues.
Before making any dietary changes, speak with your veterinarian if you’re still concerned about its effects.
The combination of MSG and those vital enzymes will make your dog’s feces taste horrible.
Regular use can make the unpleasant taste so repulsive that your dog stops paying attention to their feces altogether.
How Much Meat Tenderizer to Put in Dog Food?
Don’t use too much meat tenderizer when using it.
All you need is a light sprinkle. That’s it; if you do anything else, you risk experiencing negative side effects.
In this application, a little bit of powder goes a long way.
Apply the tenderizer to every meal and monitor your dog. Keep up the applications until your dog no longer even considers consuming their droppings, as consistency is crucial.
Most dogs can be discouraged from eating poop by adding some meat tenderizer to their food. It addresses the taste factor right off the bat.
However, it doesnt tackle any psychological or mental issues.
Coprophagia is just one of the many ways that dogs, who are complex beings, express their emotions. Let’s examine some of the causes of dog feces consumption.
The thought of it sends shivers down the spines of most owners, but some cases of coprophagia are simply a matter of enjoying the taste. But to dogs, its nothing but a tasty snack!.
This behavior is most noticeable in dogs who eat high-protein foods.
You probably paid a lot of attention to your dog in the moments that followed if you’ve ever freaked out when you saw your dog eat poop.
Unfortunately, that extra attention only reinforced the behavior. Some dogs might continue to eat their poop just to be with you.
Dogs are capable of acting in odd ways when under stress, anxiety, loneliness, or just plain boredom. Eating poop is just one of them.
It’s an emotional reaction brought on by being in an unfamiliar or unsettling environment. During housetraining, puppies may eat their own poop to cover up accidents.
Digestive problems in dogs fed poor-quality food can become common. Some dogs have trouble processing protein-rich foods, too.
Poor digestion may leave some foods unchanged after your dog passes them, for whatever reason. This can lead to your dog mistaking the unprocessed food in their feces for their regular meal.
Heres an issue that you should discuss with your vet.
Dogs who lack the calories and nutrients they require frequently turn to eating poop. Re-digesting the food in an effort to obtain more nutrients
If so, you should reexamine your dog’s diet and make any necessary adjustments to enhance their health.
Your dog probably witnessed their mother eating feces when they were puppies. Mother dogs frequently consume their pups’ waste to keep the nest tidy.
Usually, the behavior ends when the babies leave the nest to go to the bathroom.
Young puppies can pick up the behavior and replicate it. They have no idea better, so you’ll need to use behavioral training to address it.
Your younger dogs may eat the poop of the older dogs as a form of defense if you have an elderly or sick dog in the household.
This instinctual behavior is meant to protect the pack. To prevent potential predators from discovering their weak companion, they eat the poop.
Consult a veterinarian and behaviorist if you believe that your dog is eating poop due to a more serious issue. They can assist you in locating the source of the issue and determining solutions.
Otherwise, you can give meat tenderizers a try. They may be the answer you need to permanently stop your dog’s repulsive behaviors because they are affordable, simple to get, and surprisingly effective.
Does Meat Tenderizer Have Any Health Benefits for Dogs?
Coprophagia is a behavior that some animals engage in due to innate curiosity and likely nutritional deficiencies. This condition is where giving dogs meat tenderizers to make poop less appealing originated. This condition is just part of a dog’s behavior, and there is no way to determine if a dog will engage in it.
What meat tenderizers do to fix this problem is found in one of the enzymes in the substance called bromelain. This enzyme comes from a pineapple plant’s stem and helps people and dogs digest proteins more efficiently.
If a protein deficiency is the cause of the behavior, the stool becomes less appealing to dogs because protein digests thanks to this substance. Giving a dog meat tenderizer has no inherent health benefits aside from this issue. Let’s examine the components of meat tenderizers in more detail and how they impact dogs.
Typically, meat tenderizers come in unseasoned varieties, which dogs prefer, or seasoned and flavor varieties. The blander and less-seasoned the food, the better it is for dogs and people. The ingredients that make up unseasoned meat tenderizers usually include:
So as you can see, the sodium content is the most cause for concern in tenderizers. Dogs should only consume about 200 mg of sodium per 33 lbs of body weight. This is fine if you are willing to heavily reduce the sodium in your dog’s daily meals.
To reduce sodium since one teaspoon of meat tenderizer would exceed your dog’s daily limit, you could feed them a raw diet that day while giving them a meat tenderizer. How much meat tenderizer should you actually give your dog, though?
FAQ
Will meat tenderizer harm my dog?
As long as you give your dog the recommended dosage of meat tenderizer, it should be safe for dogs and have no negative side effects. Check the ingredient list before buying this product, and look for a meat tenderizer with lower sodium and MSG levels.
What can you sprinkle on dog food to stop eating poop?
Add canned pumpkin, meat tenderizer, or another deterrent to his food. These substances make poop taste disgusting to dogs even though they taste fine to humans.
What are the side effects of meat tenderizer?
In addition to having active enzyme agents, most meat tenderizers also have sodium and monosodium glutamate (MSG), which can cause high blood pressure, nausea, headaches, or body flushes if you use it excessively.