While some human food is perfectly fine for dogs, there are others that are quite dangerous to your dog. In fact, in certain amounts, these foods can prove to be quite fatal to your Dog. As most dogs will eat pretty much everything in sight, it is a good idea to keep these foods away from them at all times. You should also inform other people in the household or dog sitters to never give these things to your dog. Here is a list of foods to avoid for dogs:
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Chocolate
This is an old warning but a lot of owners do not know why it is so bad for their dogs to get their paws on chocolate. This is because chocolate is composed of several chemicals known as methylxanthine alkaloids. Each type of chocolate has different percentages of chemicals. Regardless of the dosage, however, these are quite bad for your pup. In small amounts, they can cause arteries to constrict or your dog’s heart rate to increase. In larger doses, they can even lead to death. It is a good idea to keep all types of chocolates away, even the substitutes of the sweet.
Sugar
While you should take extra care to make sure that your dog does not have access to chocolate, it is a good idea to omit sugar completely. This is because sugar, especially over a long period of time, affects dogs in a similar manner to humans. However, in these smaller animals, the reaction may be more extreme. Sugar can cause your dog to put on too much weight, develop diabetes, and even have dental problems.
Onions, Onion Powder, Garlic, or Garlic Powder
All of these common ingredients are major no-nos for your dog. While you might find them delicious additions to your meal, these are quite unsafe foods for dogs. This is due to the presence of disulfides and sulfoxides in onions and garlic. What these components do is destroy red blood cells, and they can cause anemia. Raw onions, in particular, tend to pose quite a threat. They can be responsible for liver damage in your dog.
Certain Bones
You may think that most bones are quite harmless for your dog. However, several types of bones can be quite harmful to a dog. This includes fish bones and chicken bones as they are quite small and can cause an obstruction or pierce your pup’s digestive system. Similarly, bones that splinter quite easily are also a threat. Cooked bones can splinter so you should give your dog only raw bones.
Tomato Leaves and Stems
For the most part, ripe tomatoes are considered to be okay for your dog to eat. You should make sure that your dog does not have access to tomato leaves or tomato stems at all, however. This is because these parts of the tomato plants contain something called solanine which makes it count among toxic foods for dogs. This can have potentially harmful effects on your dog’s nervous system as well as his or her digestive system.
Nuts
For humans, nuts are a great source of nutrition and protein. This is not the case with dogs. The high content of fat in the nuts have a bad impact on your dog. This can include gastrointestinal distress and can even cause pancreatitis. In particular, macadamia nuts and walnuts have been found to be especially dangerous. You should also avoid nuts that have been coated with salt or other additives.
Fruit Pits
Some fruits are quite good for your dog. What you should take care to avoid, however, are fruits with pits. At the very least, you should remove the pits before giving them to your dog. You should certainly keep your dog away from peach and plum pits. These can become an obstruction in your dog’s digestive tract.
Rhubarb Leaves
Neither humans nor dogs should eat rhubarb leaves. This is because they are quite poisonous. This is due to the level of oxalates found in the leaves. Once ingested, they can cause several problems with the urinary, digestive, and even nervous system.
Raisins and Grapes
These are two things that you should definitely keep away from your dogs at all times. This is because grapes and raisins have been known to cause sudden and severe kidney failure in dogs. It is unclear how much of the fruit triggers this reaction, so it best to make sure your dog does not eat any.
Milk
While this may seem surprising to some, milk is actually not a source of nutrition for dogs, particularly not cow milk. This is because dogs have not developed the ability to process the enzyme lactase. As such, the presence of milk in their digestive systems can cause allergy-like symptoms or other digestive issues. Dogs are in general lactose intolerant.
These are the foods that you really should not give to your dog under any circumstances. If you dog does eat any of these items you should consult your vet immediately.
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