Dogs will eat just about anything they can get their paws on, which is a problem because several common household foods are poisonous to dogs. Some of these foods will cause vomiting, dehydration, and liver failure; some can even prove fatal.
Depending on what type of toxic dog food your pet eats, you may have to take them to your vet immediately. If you need to know about a food quickly, use the FIND function in your web browser to skip to the food you have questions about. So, let’s try to find out what foods are toxic to dogs in the article below:
Chocolate
What You Need to Know
- Chocolate is harmful to dogs because it contains theobromine.
- Unlike cats, who cannot taste the sweetness of chocolate, dogs can develop a taste for this potentially toxic treat.
- The amount of chocolate ingested is related to how strong the poisoning is. For instance, a 44 lb dog will begin to have digestive troubles after eating just a chocolate bar but will only experience the more severe symptoms after ingesting over a pound of the sweet.
Symptoms of Chocolate Poisoning in Dogs
- Seizures
- Heart attacks
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Death
Symptoms of this disease can last as long as 72 hours.
Treatment of Chocolate Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may attempt to induce vomiting if it is still within two hours of the dog eating the chocolate. If too much time has passed, the vet will treat your dog's symptoms, such as seizures and heart troubles, with specialized medicines. However, Hill’s Dog Food for a healthy heart can also be a solution to recovering from heart issues gradually.
Caffeine
What You Need to Know
- Whether in tea, coffee, or chocolate, caffeine can cause heart problems for your dog.
- A few sips of a caffeinated beverage may not poison your pet, but eating coffee grounds or tea bags can have grave consequences.
Symptoms of Caffeine Poisoning in Dogs
- Hyperactivity
- Vomiting
- Elevated Heart Rate
- Seizures
- Collapse
Treatment of Caffeine Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may induce vomiting and give your pet a dose of activated charcoal. Other options, depending on the symptoms, include sedatives, heart pet medication to lower the heart rate, and giving your dog IV fluids.
Garlic and Onions
What You Need to Know
- Garlic and Onions contain sulfoxides and disulfides that are poisonous for dogs in all forms, be it raw, cooked, or powder.
- Sulfoxides and disulfides damage your dog's red blood cells and can cause anemia
- Onions have larger quantities of sulfoxides and disulfides than garlic, but your pet should avoid both.
Symptoms of Garlic and Onion Poisoning in Dogs
- Anemia
- Lack of energy
- Pale gums
Treatment of Garlic and Onion Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may treat your dog's anemia by using corticosteroids, immunosuppressants, or even some dog vitamins that can do the trick.
Gum
What You Need to Know
- Gum and types of pudding and dog toothpaste contain a sugar-free sweetener called xylitol that can be toxic for your dog.
- Ingestion of more than .1 grams of xylitol can cause a severe and life-threatening type of low blood sugar for your dog within 10 minutes of eating it.
- Significant ingestion of xylitol can cause liver failure.
- If your dog has ingested xylitol, you must act quickly and call your veterinarian.
Symptoms of Gum Poisoning in Dogs
- Lack of energy
- Vomiting
- Seizures
- Jaundice
- Coma
- Death
Treatment of Gum Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may treat your dog by inducing vomiting and monitoring their blood sugar levels. If the sugar is positive, then consider giving your pet Hill’s Prescription Diet for diabetic dogs to control the sugar levels. Other treatment options include providing sugar to your pet through IV Fluids and prescribing drugs to protect your dog's liver from failing.
Alcohol
What You Need to Know
- Your pet can ingest alcohol in other ways than just through drinking it. For example, eating rum cake or unbaked dough with yeast can also end up in your dog suffering from alcohol poisoning.
- Unbaked bread dough can also result in a bloated and twisted stomach, leading to Gastric Dilatation and volvulus syndrome, known as GDV. GDV is a life-threatening surgical emergency that needs immediate medical attention.
- Alcohol from yeast in your dog's belly is absorbed into your dog's bloodstream quickly, meaning the effects of alcohol poisoning happen soon.
Symptoms of Alcohol Poisoning in Dogs
- Drooling
- Vomiting
- Dry Heaving
- Low Blood Pressure
- Coma
- Death
Treatment of Alcohol Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may induce vomiting in your pet to deal with alcohol poisoning. For GDV, there will have to be a surgical procedure and treatment with IV fluids and antibiotics for dogs.
Raisins and Grapes
What You Need to Know
- Raisins and grapes can be poisonous for your dog in all products, from trail mix to juices.
- It is not currently understood why grapes and raisins are toxic for dogs, but even a tiny mouthful of grapes or raisins could cause your dog much discomfort.
Symptoms of Raisin and Grape Poisoning in Dogs
- Lack of energy
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Dehydration
Treatment of Raisin and Grape Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may treat your dog by inducing vomiting and giving doses of activated charcoal. A vet may also monitor your dog's kidney and supply IV fluid to your pet. The vet can prescribe Vetoryl to support your dog’s kidney health.
Salt
What You Need to Know
- Salt can be very poisonous for your dog and lead to dehydration and sodium ion poisoning.
- In the past, salt was even used by some pet owners and veterinarians to induce vomiting in pets. However, this is no longer an accepted practice.
Symptoms of Salt Poisoning in Dogs
- Vomiting
- Lack of energy
- Large amounts of thirst
- Damaged kidneys
- Seizures
- Coma
- Death
Treatment of Salt Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may treat salt poisoning by giving your dog a dose of IV fluids while monitoring their dehydration levels. The vet can suggest Dasuquin for reviving the energy levels of your pet dog.
Apricots
What You Need to Know
- It isn't the fruit of the apricot that's the problem. It's the pit that contains cyanide. The pits of cherries and peaches also have this poison.
- While humans know not to try to chew the pit of this fruit, dogs may try to swallow it.
- Cyanide inhibits the enzyme in dogs that allows their cells to transport oxygen through their body.
Symptoms of Apricot Poisoning in Dogs
- Dilated pupils
- Hard time breathing
- Bright red coloring in the gums
- Death
Treatment of Apricot Poisoning in Dogs
Call your veterinarian and poison control immediately. A vet may treat your dog for cyanide poisoning by administering an IV.
Poisonous Foods for Cats - Chocolate, Yeast, Alcohol, Onions
Cats are curious by nature, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that when you leave some food out on the counter, they often come and take a nibble. However, this could be dangerous for your pet. Several foods are regularly found in a pet parent's home that are poisonous to cats. Some of these foods will cause vomiting, seizures, and liver failure, and some can even result in the death of your pet.
You may have to take your cat to your vet immediately in the most urgent cases. If you need to know if a food is poisonous quickly, use the FIND function in your web browser to locate the food you have questions about. So, let’s find out the most dangerous things for cats to eat below:
Chocolate
What You Need to Know
- While chocolate is a more significant problem for dogs than cats, it still contains theobromine, which can be poisonous to our feline friends.
- Chocolate tops the list of foods poisonous to pets.
- Part of the reason cats are less likely to eat chocolate is that they cannot taste the sweetness of the treat while dogs can.
- The amount of chocolate a cat eats is related to how strong the poisoning is. For instance, just a tiny little nibble will likely not have dire consequences.
Symptoms of Chocolate Poisoning in Cats
- Seizures
- Heart attacks
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Death
Treatment of Chocolate Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. A vet might attempt to induce vomiting if your cat ate the chocolate in the last two hours. The vet will also treat your cat's symptoms, such as seizures and heart troubles, with specialized medicines.
Caffeine
What You Need to Know
- If a cat drinks tea, coffee, or soda, the caffeine in those beverages can cause heart problems and troubles for your pet.
- While a few sips of a caffeinated beverage will not hurt your cat, there could be severe health effects if they eat coffee grounds or tea bags.
Symptoms of Caffeine Poisoning in Cats
- Vomiting
- Hyperactivity
- Elevated Heart Rate
- Seizures
- Collapse
Treatment of Caffeine Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. A vet may induce your cat to vomit and give your pet a dose of activated charcoal. Other options include sedatives, pet medicines to lower your cat's heart rate, and starting your cat on an IV.
Garlic and Onions
What You Need to Know
- The sulfoxides and disulfides in garlic and onions are considered poison food for cats
- Sulfoxides and disulfides, which are in all forms of garlic and onions, including raw, cooked, or powdered, damage your dog's red blood cells and can cause anemia
- Onions have larger quantities of sulfoxides and disulfides than garlic, so they are more toxic for your cat. But both should be avoided by your pet.
Symptoms of Garlic and Onion Poisoning in Cats
- Anemia
- Lack of energy
- Pale gums
Treatment of Garlic and Onion Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. A vet may treat your cat's anemia with corticosteroids and immunosuppressants.
Alcohol
What You Need to Know
- Your cat can ingest alcohol into their bloodstream other than just drinking it. For example, if your cat eats rum cake or unbaked dough with yeast, it can also get alcohol poisoning.
- If your cat eats yeast, then the alcohol from the yeast is absorbed into your cat's bloodstream from their stomach quickly, meaning the effects of alcohol poisoning happen fast.
Symptoms of Alcohol Poisoning in Cats
- Drooling
- Vomiting
- Dry Heaving
- Low Blood Pressure
- Coma
- Death
Treatment of Alcohol Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. A vet may induce your cat to vomit to help your pet with alcohol poisoning.
Salt
What You Need to Know
- If your cat overeats salt, it can lead to dehydration and sodium ion poisoning.
- Salt used to be used by some pet owners and veterinarians to induce vomiting in cats for medical reasons. However, this is no longer an accepted practice.
Symptoms of Salt Poisoning in Cats
- Vomiting
- Lack of energy
- Large amounts of thirst
- Damaged kidneys
- Seizures
- Coma
- Death
Treatment of Salt Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. If your cat has salt poisoning, a vet may treat them with a dose of IV fluids while monitoring their dehydration levels.
Apricots
What You Need to Know
- While the fruit of the apricot isn't toxic, the pit contains cyanide. It is a deadly food for pets.
- Cats may try to swallow the pit, which is toxic for them. It may also happen with cherry and peach pits containing cyanide.
- Cyanide inhibits the enzyme in cats, allowing their cells to transport oxygen through their bodies efficiently.
Symptoms of Apricot Poisoning in Cats
- Dilated pupils
- Hard time breathing
- Bright red coloring in the gums
- Death
Treatment of Apricot Poisoning in Cats
Contact your veterinarian and poison control as soon as possible. A vet may treat your cat for cyanide poisoning by administering an IV.
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Safe Food Options
Bil-Jac Select Dry Dog Food
Taste of the Wild Canned High Prairie for Dogs
Wellness Grain-Free Dry Food for Adult Dogs, Core Original
This information is for informational purposes only and is not meant as a substitute for the professional advice of, or diagnosis or treatment by,your veterinarian with respect to your pet. It has, however, been verified by a licensed veterinarian for accuracy.