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Thanksgiving is a day of gratitude, family, and hopefully at least one dog in your home. If your dog is anything like our dog, he is doing slow laps around the kitchen island like a shark that has smelled gravy.
That's Cologio. He has opinions about turkey. Snoopy, our 5-year-old mutt, is less interested in the food and more interested in barking at every single person who walks through the door, including people he has met fourteen times.
If your house looks anything like ours on the fourth Thursday of November, this one's for you. We're covering two things: what your dog can and can't eat off the holiday table, and how to keep the peace when the house fills up with guests, kids, and a doorbell that won't quit.
The Thanksgiving Foods Your Dog Can't Have
I know. The eyes. The sad little chin on your knee. Stay strong. Here's what stays on the human side of the table.
Turkey bones. Cooked bones splinter, and splinters do not belong in a digestive tract. Ask anyone who has paid for an emergency vet visit on a holiday. Also watch the trash can. A turkey carcass in an unguarded bag is basically a Lab's Super Bowl.
Turkey skin, fat, and drippings. All that buttery, salty goodness can trigger pancreatitis, which is painful for your dog and expensive for you. Gravy counts here too. Sorry, Cologio.
Stuffing. It's usually loaded with onions, garlic, and sometimes raisins. Onions and garlic damage a dog's red blood cells, and it doesn't take much.
Grapes and raisins. Even small amounts can cause kidney failure in some dogs. Keep an eye on the fruit salad and Aunt Linda's raisin-studded anything.
Chocolate. Pies, brownies, that bowl of candy someone always brings. The darker the chocolate, the worse it is.
Anything sugar-free. Xylitol shows up in sugar-free desserts, gum, and some peanut butters. It can drop a dog's blood sugar fast and damage the liver. Check labels and check guests' purses on the floor.
Raw bread or pie dough. It keeps rising in the stomach and produces alcohol as it ferments. Your dog does not need to experience both bloat and a hangover.
Nutmeg. Pumpkin pie is a no because of the spices and sugar, not the pumpkin. More on that in a second.
Alcohol. Seems obvious, yet every year someone leaves a glass of wine on the coffee table at exactly tail height.
A Few Things They Can Have
Good news: your dog doesn't have to sit out the whole holiday. A small plate of plain stuff makes them feel included, and it keeps them from staging a heist.
Plain turkey breast. White meat, no skin, no bones, no seasoning. A few small pieces, not a drumstick.
Plain pumpkin. Canned pure pumpkin, not pie filling. A spoonful is great for digestion.
Sweet potato. Baked or boiled, no butter, no brown sugar, and definitely no marshmallows.
Green beans. Plain and steamed. Skip the casserole with the crispy onions on top.
Carrots. Raw or cooked. Snoopy treats a baby carrot like it's filet mignon.
Apple slices. Core and seeds removed.
The rule of thumb: if you had to add butter, salt, or a sauce to make it taste good to you, it's probably not for your dog. And keep portions small. A sudden pile of new food can upset even an iron-stomached Lab, and nobody wants that cleanup on a day with company over.
Want your dog to feel like part of the feast without touching the “people food”? Grab a bag of single-ingredient turkey tendons like iPaw Turkey Tendons. They're all turkey, no seasoning, and they give your dog their own holiday moment while you carve. Supervise chewing, and cut them shorter for gulpers.
Holiday Guests, Stressed Dog: Surviving Doorbell Chaos
Food is only half the battle. The other half is the parade of people.
To a dog, Thanksgiving looks like this: the doorbell rings, strangers arrive carrying smells, everyone talks loudly, the doorbell rings again, more strangers, someone drops a coat on the floor, the doorbell rings AGAIN. Repeat for three hours. No wonder some dogs lose it.
In our house, Snoopy greets every arrival like he's announcing an intruder at Fort Knox. Here's what actually helps:
Put a note on the door. "Door's open, come on in, please don't ring!" One sign can save you about forty barking fits.
Gate or leash the entry. A baby gate or a leash for the first ten minutes of each arrival keeps your dog from bolting out the door or launching at Grandma's good sweater.
Give them a job. Practice a "go to your bed" or "place" cue in the week before the holiday. Reward it like crazy. A dog with something to do is a dog that isn't body-slamming guests.
Have treats by the door. Let calm, four-paws-on-the-floor behavior be the thing that pays. A clip-on treat pouch like the PetSafe Treat Pouch keeps rewards on your hip, and tiny soft treats like Zuke's Mini Naturals let you reward a dozen times without overfeeding.
Walk them first. A long walk or a good game of fetch before guests arrive takes the edge off. A tired dog is a polite dog. Mostly.
Kids and Dogs: Love at First Sight (Supervised)
Kids love dogs. Dogs often love kids. But kids are also loud, fast, sticky, and holding food at exactly dog-face level. That's a lot for any dog, even a sweet one.
A few house rules we lay down before the cousins arrive:
No hugging the dog. Kids show love with hugs. Dogs mostly tolerate them at best. Teach kids to pet the side of the neck or the back instead.
Let the dog come to you. No chasing, no cornering under the table, no pulling tails or ears.
No feeding the dog. Kids are the number one source of contraband turkey. Make this rule loud and clear, and tell the grown-ups too.
Leave a sleeping dog alone. If the dog walks away, the visit is over.
And watch for the quiet signals that your dog has had enough: lip licking, yawning, turning away, tucked tail, or showing the whites of their eyes. Those mean "I need a break," and it's our job to listen before the dog has to say it louder. Even the most patient family dog shouldn't be left unsupervised with visiting kids.
Every Dog Needs a Quiet Space
This is the single best thing you can do for a stressed dog on a busy holiday. Set up a calm, guest-free room where your dog can decompress.
What goes in it:
Their bed or crate, with a blanket that smells like home
Fresh water
Something to work on: a KONG Classic or a LickiMat Buddy smeared with plain pumpkin and frozen the night before buys you serious time, and a puzzle feeder like the Outward Hound Nina Ottosson Dog Brick turns dinner into a brain game
White noise, a fan, or soft music to muffle the chaos
A closed door or a gate, plus a "Dog Resting, Please Don't Open" sign for the curious
Here's the key: make it a reward, not a punishment. Set it up a few days early and toss treats in there so your dog already likes it. Then use it before your dog gets overwhelmed, not after. If you wait until they're barking, jumping, or hiding under the dining table, you waited too long.
For dogs who get extra wound up around crowds, calming chews like Zesty Paws Calming Bites can help take the edge off. Start them a few days before the holiday so you know how your dog does, and check with your vet first, especially for seniors or dogs on medication.
Cologio takes himself to the bedroom around the time the pie comes out. Honestly? Respect. Some of us wish we had a quiet room too.
The Part Nobody Talks About: After Everyone Leaves
Here's a twist. The holidays aren't just hard on dogs because of the crowds. They're hard because of what comes next.
For a few days, the house is full and someone is always home. Then Monday hits. Everyone goes back to work and school, and the house goes quiet. For a lot of dogs, that sudden switch from "constant company" to "home alone" is rough.
You're not imagining it if this worries you. In a 2025 SATELLAI survey, 61% of dog owners said separation anxiety was their top behavioral concern for their dog's mental health. That's more than aggression and disobedience combined, which topped the list for only 19%.
So in our next post, we're digging into separation anxiety: the signs to watch for, why some dogs struggle more than others, and what actually helps (spoiler: it's not more guilt). Make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss it.
Over to You
We want to hear your Thanksgiving dog stories. The good, the bad, and the turkey that mysteriously vanished off the counter.
Drop a comment below and tell us:
Is your dog a doorbell barker, a guest greeter, or a hide-under-the-bed type?
What's the sneakiest thing your dog has ever stolen off the holiday table?
Got a trick for keeping the peace that we didn't cover? Share it so other readers can steal it too.
Snap a photo of your pup in their holiday best (or their post-feast nap) and tag us @thedogbuzz so we can share our favorites. And if you know someone hosting a crowd this year with a dog in the house, send this post their way. Their pie will thank you.
Until then, happy Thanksgiving from all of us at The Dog Buzz. Guard the pie.
Products Mentioned in This Post
Here's everything we mentioned, all in one place.
Dog-safe treats and turkey chews
iPaw Turkey Tendons: All-natural, single-ingredient dog chews. Made in the US from humanely raised turkey tendons. Contains no artificial flavors, colors, preservatives, chemicals or rawhide material. These are marketed as hypoallergenic and grain free.
Zuke's Mini Naturals Training Treats: Great option! These are bite sized dog treats specifically designed frequent rewarding. These are a low calorie treat which makes them ideal for high repetition without the added weight gain. They come in a variety of flavors. We use peanut butter which is listed here.
For the front door
PetSafe Treat Pouch: This is a great option for dogs at anytime. This is an item you can use on walks or during training sessions.
Lick mats and KONG toys
KONG Classic Dog Toy: A good option for your mouthy dogs or dogs who like to chew. We use this with some kibble, dog treats, and some peanut butter for our dogs. Put in the in the freezer and it will keep them occupied for quite a while. If you are using peanut butter and have a Cologio, give it to them in their crate or on an easily cleaned surface. The living room carpet is not recommended-ask me why.
LickiMat Buddy: This is a vet-designed, textured slow-feeder and enrichment mat for dogs (cats too). Licking a textured surface stimulates saliva production and helps release calming endorphins for your pets, which will help reduce anxiety, especially with 29 people at Thanksgiving. You can smear the mat with foods like yogurt, penaut butter, or broth and freeze to make it last longer.
Calming chews
Zesty Paws Calming Bites: These are functional soft chew to help reduce anxiety and stress in dogs. These are made with all natural supplements and available in a variety of flavors.
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