Many people despair about the safeness of giving their dog peanut butter. The basis for this apprehesion is probably due to the stories we have read about nuts being deadly for dogs. This is in fact true, many types of nuts, are extremely unhealthy for dogs. These consist of the Macadamian and walnut, just to mention a couple.

The concern with feeding nuts to dogs is that some of these can become toxic over time. This is due to the high phosphorous levels and other ingredients that become more toxic over time. These levels of toxicity may cause both kidney and bladder problems. In the most severe occurrences these levels may actually become fatal. It should also be kept in mind that some mixtures of chocolate also contain nuts.

There is great news for those of us that like to use peanut butter as an aid in administering medication, rewarding our dogs with peanut butter dog treats or just sharing a smidgen on the tip of our finger. Peanuts are not really nuts! In fact, peanuts are actually a species in the legume family (Fabaceae) to be specific. In other words, peanuts are actually a type of bean!

Like many items is life, there is good and bad in most things. To begin with you should dispense only a small portion since dogs may have food allergies just like people. If you feel that your dog has an allergic reaction, stop feeding them peanut butter immediately. One of the great benefits of peanut butter is the fact that it is high in protein, just note that it is also high in calories. Organic brands can be examined if you are worried about preservatives and sugar.

In conclusion, peanut butter is not known to be bad for dogs. Like any consumable or dog treats we provide our dogs, we should look at the label and review the other ingredients used in the manufacturing process. This is exciting information for my dogs since they love a KONG(R) filled with peanut butter from the freezer.