When talking in chat, Jean suggested I put this in the blog section since so many of us are fortunate to be owned by a dog/s. So, for Jean, Bonnie, Bill, Perry, Bessy (?), our newest adopted "mother" - Sarah, and anyone I may have missed.

(Sorry Bill, this is a long one but print it and read a section at a time- I know you prefer short blogs)

 

The Bad Foods For Dogs List

 

Here is a list of common foods that are bad or poisonous for your dog. If you suspect that your dog might have eaten any food that might be toxic, contact his/her vet immediately.

 

NAME

INFORMATION

 

Alcohol

Do not give your dog sips of any alcoholic beverage. Ingestion can lead to injury, disorientation, sickness, urination problems or even coma or death from alcohol poisoning. Some dogs may be attracted to alcoholic drinks so don't leave one setting where a dog can reach it.

 

Anti-freeze

The Dangers Of Antifreeze

 

Apple

The seeds contain cyanogenic glycosides which can result in cyanide poisoning.

 

Apricot

The seed pit contains cyanogenic glycosides which can cause cyanide poisoning.

 

Avocado

Avocado contains a toxic element called persin which can damage heart, lung and other tissue in many animals. Avocados are high in fat content and can trigger an upset stomach, vomiting or even pancreatitis. The seed pit is also toxic and if swallowed can become lodged in the intestinal tract where it may cause a severe blockage which will have to be removed surgically. Since avocado is the main ingredient in guacamole be sure and keep your dog out of the dip.

 

Baby Food

Before feeding any baby food to your dog check the ingredients to see if it contains onion powder, which can be toxic to dogs. Feeding baby food in large amounts may result in nutritional deficiencies.

 

Bones

Cooked bones can be very hazardous for your dog. Bones become brittle when cooked which causes them to splinter when broken. The splinters have sharp edges that have been known to become stuck in the teeth, caused choking when caught in the throat or caused a rupture or puncture of the stomach lining or intestinal tract. Especially bad bones are turkey and chicken legs, ham, pork chop and veal.

 

Symptoms of choking are:

Pale or blue gums

Gasping Open-mouthed breathing

Pawing at face

Slow, shallow breathing

Unconscious, with dilated pupils

Raw bones (uncooked in any way) like chicken necks or beef knuckle bones are generally considered safe and help keep your dog's teeth healthy by removing plaque. A caution - bones have a high calcium content and too many can cause severe constipation.

 

Bread Dough

When bread dough is ingested your dog's body heat causes the dough to rise in the stomach. During the rising process alcohol is produced as the dough expands. Pets who have eaten bread dough may experience abdominal pain, bloat, vomiting, disorientation and depression. A pet needs to eat only a small amount to cause a problem, because bread dough can rise to many times its size.

 

Broccoli

The toxic ingredient in broccoli is isothiocynate. While it may cause stomach upset it probably won't be very harmful unless the amount fed exceeds 10% of the dogs total daily diet.

 

Caffeine

Beverages with caffeine (like soda, tea, coffee) acts as a stimulant and can accelerate your pet's heartbeat to a dangerous level. Pets ingesting caffeine have been known to have seizures, some fatal.

 

Candy

Sugarless candy containing xylitol has been recognized by the National Animal Poison Control Center (NAPCC) to be a risk to pets (first published July 2004). This compound can cause liver damage and death in some dogs. This information is recent and some vets may not be familiar with xylitol poisoning. If your dog has eaten sugarless candy you can contact the NAPCC by telephone, 1-888-426-4435 for more information.

 

Cat Food

Cat food is not formulated for canine consumption. It is generally too high in protein and fats and is not a balanced diet for a dog.

 

Cherries

The seed pit contains cyanogenic glycosides which can cause cyanide poisoning.

 

Chocolate

Chocolate contains theobromine, a compound that is a cardiac stimulant and a diuretic. When affected by an overdose of chocolate, a dog can become excited and hyperactive. Due to the diuretic effect, it may pass large volumes of urine and it will be unusually thirsty. Vomiting and diarrhea are also common. The effect of theobromine on the heart is the most dangerous effect. Theobromine will either increase the dog's heart rate or may cause the heart to beat irregularly. Death is quite possible, especially with exercise. Symptoms of chocolate poisoning include: vomiting, diarrhea, tremors, hyperactivity, irregular heartbeat and seizures.

 

Larger quantities of chocolate can poison or even kill a medium or large dog. An ounce or two of chocolate may not seem like much but it can be lethal to a small dog that weighs 10 lbs. or less. After their dog has eaten a large quantity of chocolate, many pet owners assume their pet is unaffected. However, the signs of sickness may not be seen for several hours, with death following within twenty-four hours.

 

Cocoa powder and cooking chocolate are the most toxic forms. These forms of chocolate contain ten times more theobromine than milk chocolate. Even licking a substantial part of the chocolate icing from a cake can make a dog sick. The next most dangerous forms are semi-sweet chocolate and dark chocolate, with milk chocolate being the least dangerous. A dog needs to eat more than a 250 gm block of milk chocolate, however the high amount of fat found in milk chocolate can lead to an attack of pancreatitis.

 

1 ounce per pound of body weight (2 ounces per kg of body weight) for milk chocolate.

1 ounce per 3 pounds of body weight ( 1 ounce per 1.5 kg body weight) for semi-sweet chocolate

1 ounce per 9 pounds of body weight ( 1 ounce per 4 kg) for baker's chocolate.

During many holidays such as Christmas, New Year's Day, Easter and Halloween, chocolate is often accessible to curious dogs, and in some cases, people unwittingly poison their dogs by offering them chocolate as a treat or letting them lick a frosting bowl.

 

Cigarettes

see Tobacco Products

 

Citrus Oil Extracts

Citrus oil extracts ave been known to cause vomiting.

 

Corn Cobs

Many dogs have suffered and, in some cases, died after eating corn-on-the-cob, because the corn cob caused a partial or complete intestinal obstruction. Never allow your dog access to corn cobs.

 

Dairy Products

Most dairy products are digested poorly by dogs who have little or none of the enzyme required to digest the lactose in milk. Just like lactose-intolerant people, lactose-intolerant dogs can develop excessive intestinal gas (flatulence) and may have foul-smelling diarrhea. It is best to avoid most dairy products altogether, although small amounts of cheese or plain yogurt are tolerated by most dogs, since these products have less lactose than most.

 

Food Preparation Items

When chewing food remnants from

 

aluminum foil or pans

candy wrappers

paper plates and cups

plastic forks, spoons, knives

plastic beverage rings from six-packs

roasting bags

turkey skewers, lacing

a dog may swallow pieces which can cause abdominal discomfort, intestinal blockage, internal bleeding and in some cases, death. There is also a possibility if choking or suffocation. Dispose of food preparation items in a manner that your dog or another animal cannot get to it.

 

Eggs (Raw)

Raw egg whites contain a protein called avidin, which can deplete your dog of biotin, one of the B vitamins. Biotin is essential to your dog's growth and coat health. Additionally, raw eggs are often contaminated with bacteria, such as salmonella, and you could end up giving your dog food poisoning in addition to biotin deficiency.

 

Symptoms of biotin depletion are hair loss, weakness, growth retardation and skeleton deformity. If your dog is suffering from these symptoms the situation is urgent, and veterinary treatment is needed. Cooked eggs are high in protein and make an excellent treat. It is only the raw eggs that should not be given to your dog.

 

Grapes or Raisins

Although the minimum lethal dosage is not known, grapes and raisins can be toxic to dogs when ingested in large quantities. The symptoms are gastrointestinal signs including vomiting and diarrhea, and then signs of kidney failure with an onset of severe kidney signs starting about 24 hours after ingestion. The amount of grapes eaten varied between 9 oz. and 2 lbs., which worked out to be between 0.41 and 1.1 oz/kg of body weight. It has been reported that two dogs died directly from the toxicity, three were euthanized due to poor response to treatment and five dogs lived.

 

Due to the severity of the signs and the potential for death, the veterinarians at the National Animal Poison Control Center (NAPCC) advocate aggressive treatment for any dog believed to have ingested excessive amounts of grapes or raisins, including inducing vomiting, stomach pumping and administration of activated charcoal, followed by intravenous fluid therapy for at least 48 hours or as indicated based on the results of blood tests for kidney damage.

 

Hops

Spent hops as used in making beer.

 

Household Products

Bad Household Items List

 

Liver

Many dog treats and prepared foods contain liver so it may surprise you to find liver on the bad foods list. In small amounts liver is good for your dog, but if the liver intake is too high it can cause nutritional problems because liver has a high content of vitamin A. Consumption of this vitamin in large amounts can lead to vitamin A toxicity, or hypervitaminosis A. If your dog eats raw liver or consumes three servings of cooked liver a week it could lead to bone problems. Feeding liver to a dog taking Vitamin A supplements can lead to an overdose of Vitamin A.

 

Symptoms of hypervitaminosis A are deformed bones, excessive bone growth on the elbows and spine, weight loss and anorexia. If left unchecked, hypervitaminosis A has in some cases caused death.

 

Macadamia Nuts

The toxic compound is unknown but eating as few as six nuts without the shell has been known to cause elevated body temperature, accelerated heartbeat, tremors in the skeletal muscles, and weakness or paralysis of the hindquarters. Affected dogs have difficulty or are unable to rise, are distressed and usually panting.Some affected dogs have had swollen limbs and showed pain when the limb was manipulated. Dogs did recover from the muscle weakness and pain and it is not known if there have been any fatal cases. Macadamia butter is included in this warning.

 

Moldy or Spoiled Foods

The common mold found growing on many foods contain toxins such as Penicillium mold toxins or tremorgenic mycotoxins. Symptoms of poisoning include severe tremors and seizures that can last for hours or even days. This is considered an emergency and medical treatment is needed to control the seizures and detoxify the dog.

 

Spoiled foods can cause food poisoning. Symptoms of food poisoning are severe vomiting, diarrhea and shock.

 

Prevention is the best course, don't feed your dog moldy food left in the refrigerator and don't allow him to raid your garbage cans or compost bin (or your neighbor's).

 

Mushrooms

Mushroom poisoning can be fatal if certain species of mushrooms are eaten. The most commonly reported severely toxic species of mushroom in the US is Amanita phalloides, but other Amanita species are also toxic. They can cause severe liver disease and neurological disorders. The recommendation is to induce vomiting when these mushrooms are ingested and to give activated charcoal, as well. Supportive treatment for liver disease may also be necessary.

 

Nutmeg

Nutmeg is reported to be a hallucinogenic when ingested in large doses. Nutmeg has been known to cause tremors, seizures and in some cases, death.

 

Nuts

Nuts in general are not good for dogs as their high phosphorus content may lead to bladder stones.

 

Onions

Onions cause hemolytic anemia, which means that the red blood cells break down leaving the dog short of oxygen. Onion poisoning can occur with a single ingestion of large quantities or with repeated meals containing small amounts of onion. The condition generally improves once the dog is prevented from eating any further onion. The poisoning may occur a few days after the dog has eaten the onion. At first dogs affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhea, weakness and show little or no interest in food. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appear in an affected dog's urine making it dark colored. The dog will experience shortness of breath because the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number. Other symptoms are elevated body temperature, confusion, and increased heart rate. Seek veterinary care immediately.

 

The quantity of onions, raw or cooked, required is high enough that dogs can generally tolerate small doses of onions without any problem and moderate amounts of onion without apparent signs of onion poisoning. All forms of onion can be a problem including dehydrated onions, raw onions, cooked onions and table scraps containing cooked onions and/or garlic. Left over pizza, Chinese dishes and commercial baby food containing onion, sometimes fed as a supplement to young pets, can cause illness.

 

While garlic also contains the toxic ingredient thiosulphate, it seems that garlic is less toxic and large amounts would need to be eaten to cause illness.

 

Peaches

The seed pit contains cyanogenic glycosides which can cause cyanide poisoning.

 

Pears

The seeds contain cyanogenic glycosides which can cause cyanide poisoning.

 

Plants

Dogs can become extremely ill or even die from eating poisonous plants. Keep all unknown types of plants and any plants suspected of being poisonous out of reach of your pet.

 

Common Poisonous Plants List

 

Plastic Food Wrap

Dogs have been known to ingest pieces of plastic wrap while trying to eat food remnants left on its surface. Plastic food wrap can cause choking or intestinal obstruction. Dispose of plastic wrap in a manner that your dog or other animals cannot get to it.

 

Plums

The seed pit contains cyanogenic glycosides which can cause cyanide poisoning.

 

Play Dough

Home made play dough contains high levels of salt. When ingested this can cause salt poisoning which can be fatal.

 

Potatoes

Solanum alkaloids can be found in green sprouts and green potato skins, which occurs when the tubers are exposed to sunlight during growth or after harvest. The relatively rare occurrence of actual poisoning is due to several factors: solanine is poorly absorbed; it is mostly hydrolyzed into less toxic solanidinel; and the metabolites are quickly eliminated. Cooked, mashed potatoes are fine for dogs, actually quite nutritious and digestible.

 

Raisins or Grapes

See Grapes

 

Rich Fatty Foods

Rich, fatty foods can be very dangerous to dogs susceptible to attacks of pancreatitis. Often you may not know that your dog is susceptible until he is very sick with his first attack. It is often the smaller, more energetic breeds like miniature or toy poodles, cocker spaniels, miniature schnauzers, and other small terrier-type dogs who seem particularly prone. However, any dog may have a problem. It is best to avoid these foods altogether.

 

turkey skin

bacon, sausages, hot dogs

 

 

 

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By the way, this list was sent to me by a friend who works with all sorts of animals and also breeds dogs. She is extremely knowledgeable and would not have sent anything which wasn't completely true.[/color][/b]