9 Dangerous Foods For Your Dog

9 Dangerous Foods For Your Dog Graphic © herbsheaalthhappiness.com. Images – Pixabay (PD)

These warnings are not “urban myths” – they are real, as we will detail below.

I encourage you to print out our pic and keep it in your kitchen. Make sure your kids know never to feed these things to your dog(s) – and be sure to check labels carefully for these ingredients. Also, be sure to keep these foods out of reach of your dogs so that they cannot eat / drink them when you are not looking!

Never feed your dog any of these:

Caffeine. Dogs (and cats) are more sensitive to caffeine than us humans. The amount of caffeine found in one or two caffeine pills is reported to be potentially fatal, especially to smaller or older pets. Some of the more serious symptoms can include dangerous cardiac arrhythmia and seizures – and may begin as soon as 30 minutes after ingestion.

Xylitol. This is a sweetener that is notoriously highly toxic to dogs, even in small amounts – and potentially fatal! It often found in chewing gum, some vitamins, “low sugar” products and even some peanut butter brands! Check labels carefully! The majority of reported cases are thought to have been caused by dogs eating chewing gum, so please keep it out of their reach.

Alcohol. Very dangerous! Dogs’ livers are not able to metabolize alcohol very well, which means they can experience alcohol poisoning much more rapidly and severely than humans – and then when their typically much lower body weight than humans is also taken into consideration, the effects of a unit of alcohol are multiplied many fold.

Grapes (including raisins / sultanas) – can cause kidney failure in dogs! This effect of ingesting grapes is reported as highly variable from dog to dog, with some not experiencing ill effects but some becoming very ill after eating just a few. Some fatalities have been recorded.

Chocolate – this is not an urban myth! The theobromine in chocolate is toxic to dogs as they are unable to metabolize it and it can make them quite unwell. Symptoms manifest between 4 and 24 hours. Depending on the breed and the amount eaten, they can have vomiting, diarrhea, elevated heart rate, hyperactivity and even seizures. Fatality from chocolate poisoning is recorded as rare but possible.

Onion (and other members of the allium family, which includes leeks, shallots and garlic). Onions contain a compound called N-propyl disulphide which is poisonous to dogs! The American Kennel Club reports that 100g of onion per 20kg of dog’s weight can lead to toxic effects. In rare cases onion can be fatal to dogs. Out of curiosity I went to the kitchen, picked out a very ordinary-sized medium onion and weighed it; it was 125g. So this means that less than half an onion could be harmful to a small dog! The greatest danger in this case is possibly from leftovers containing onion, given to dogs, however I am not sure how much of N-propyl sulphide is metabolized by cooking.

Avocado. This one is generally regarded as “probably best avoided”. Avocado contains persin, a substance which has seriously harmful consequences to horses and cows. The effect is less on dogs. Persin is greater in the skin and pit of avocado than the flesh, and the level is higher in unripe avocados than in ripe ones.

Cooked bones (yes, dogs are natural carnivores, however bone becomes hardened by cooking and dangerously sharp for their insides.)

Walnuts (and macadamia nuts!) – small amounts of fresh walnut may be ok. Black walnut – definite no. Also I just read that macadamia nuts should be strongly avoided!

Here are some “human foods” that HAVE been approved for dogs:

Apples
Apricots (remove the stone!)
Asparagus
Bananas
Blueberries
Broccoli
Carrots
Green beans
Peas
Pumpkin
Raspberries
Spinach
Watermelon