Yes, these days tomatoes are referred to as vegetables. But, technically, they're a fruit.
Dawn and Katie posted about tomato-eating dogs this morning, and I of course had a response.
I’ve grown tomatoes only once, and only inadvertently: A tomato bush volunteered in one of my planters. Fifteen to twenty years ago. That might go back to Remington and Jake, but answer is hazy; try again later.
It grew and grew and covered itself with little green cherry tomatoes that then started turning red and I checked eagerly daily for ripe ones. Got a couple–really good–and then, shortly thereafter, I looked out my kitchen window and espied one of the dogs plucking the ripe-ish ones off the bush. Grrr!
I didn’t try setting up a fence and I never got more tomatoes for myself.
Other fruit--
 |
| If pears really looked like this, maybe the dogs wouldn't eat so many |
Tika used to stand on her hind legs and even jump from that position to get low-hanging pears or plums or apples off the trees. Jake loved oranges. All of my dogs would get fat on plums that drop constantly during their ripe season, and now I know that that happens for pears, too--Zorro has added 4 pounds in the last month or so, which a 31-lb dog should never do if he wants to keep his boyish figure (and do agility and jump on and off beds safely).
 |
| Zorro chewing a bit of pear while protecting the rest. |
Zorro doesn't eat the stems from pears; they now litter the back yard and deck and the house (although I pick those up as soon as I see them.
 |
| Boost also didn't eat the stems--but made sure that every speck of pear belonged to her. |
 |
| Tika enjoyed pears, too--nibbling off a bit, licking her lips, and continuing. |
But I get all of that, because pears and plums and apples are sweet. I wouldn’t necessarily guess that dogs would like the slight tartness of tomatoes. Shrug. What do I really know about dogs, anyway?
Do your pups steal your tomatoes?
Katie would steal plums and apples and probably pears if we had any growing. Not oranges though. Did your dog est the rinds from the oranges?
ReplyDeleteThe only dog who like oranges actually was Jake (that I'm aware of). He would eat the orange out of the rind, I think, but not the rind itself. I'm amazed at details that I forget over the years.
Delete