# Did your pets eat turkey for Thanksgiving? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 25, 2016, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951 "2016-11-25T06:26:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![NeonMadman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/58f4c7/32.png) [@NeonMadman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeonMadman)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2016, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/41 "2016-11-26T17:14:29Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Some small dogs are allergic to poultry, is what I’ve heard, but for big dogs, it’s fine. That’s interesting; maybe that is what the vet was talking about. Lady was a big Sheltie, but Shelties are still relatively small dogs. One of my wife’s previous Shelties definitely had an allergy to chicken. She had to be fed dog foods that contained no poultry at all. I don’t think Lady had that particular allergy, since she would eat anything that was food or food-like, and I mean _anything_. But I think the vet was speaking in general terms when she told us about feeding the dogs turkey, and not about Lady specifically. ---
**Author:** ![Anny\_Middon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc79bd/32.png) [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2016, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/42 "2016-11-26T17:57:32Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I get around this by mashing up the morsels with a fork and mixing them with the gravy. I should try that. Problem is, when I feed them in the morning it’s before I have that first cup of coffee and I’m on auto pilot. Plus of course I don’t want to delay getting the first sip of joe. In the evening I’m always busy getting the human dinner ready and just slop the food in the bowls. I’ll attempt to remember to try this next time I feed them the gravy-style food. I did once add water to the minced no-gravy type it in the hopes it would be gravy-like. (Vet suggested this to get more fluids in Lucy.) Neither cat would eat it. ---
**Author:** ![Anny\_Middon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc79bd/32.png) [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2016, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/43 "2016-11-26T18:01:47Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Hestia used to constantly beg for any chicken or turkey. Now she comes by when we’re eating but doesn’t ask. If we give her something, she usually just sniffs at it and doesn’t eat anything. Sometimes she still does eat. Yesterday she didn’t. > > Hermes turns his nose up at all “people food”. He eats canned food, kibble, and “treats”, especially Temptations. The woman who comes to feed our cats when we’re out of town calls Temptations “kitty crack.” Our cats would subsist on treats if we let them. OK, Lucy pretty much does subsist on treats. Sometimes, if I’m given them Temptations a couple of times to stop their begging (I admit it – I’m pussy-whipped), I’ll give them some different kind of snack. They’ll sniff it and walk away. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2016, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/44 "2016-11-27T01:44:24Z")
The Maine Coon got fed some bits of turkey while we ate, as he does every time there’s turkey to be had. The tabby has never been interested. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2016, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/45 "2016-11-27T02:13:09Z")
My cat and dog both got a small amount of turkey leftovers. There’s still a family story from when I was a kid, at Thanksgiving we were feeding turkey bits to my aunt’s cat, who was scarfing them down as fast as he could. Then, suddenly, it all started coming back up. Kind of explosively too. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2016, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/46 "2016-11-27T03:09:13Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > Yes. I ate at my parents’ and one of their cats has terminal cancer and has been losing a lot of weight. Her appetite has been poor and she’s supposed to be fed on demand at the moment, so when she began circling the table and showing interest in our meal, we were relieved and fed her turkey right out of the serving dish. It was received with an enthusiasm that has been absent lately, so more has been saved for later. Poor kitty. Good for you. When we invite a pet into our house, or accept one, it is our job to take care of them. Our rescued dog Kricket, is now 12 doing great but getting along in years. She looks like she’s 8 or 6. She traveled with us to my moms house and she got a bit of turkey with her normal meal. Away from home, she doesn’t have her normal appetite. It was really good to see my 87yo mom eat well too. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2016, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/47 "2016-11-29T15:21:33Z")
No pets here at present, and the pets we had in the past 2 decades were rodents (guinea pigs or hamsters) so no. Years back when I had cats, of course they got a little bit of the turkey, AND a can of smelly gooshyfood. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2016, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951/48 "2016-11-29T17:25:54Z")
Our dog hung out near the table during the feast and got a few items from me. After dinner my wife stripped the remaining meat off the bird for leftovers. She put the plate down on the counter for a minute, then turned around to find our cat next to the plate digging into the pile of turkey. The dog, who normally barks whenever the cat is near, just stood there in awe and watched. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-pets-eat-turkey-for-thanksgiving/772951.md?page=2)