What human foods dogs cant your dog eat? I know sometimes it can be hard with your dog’s big brown eyes and big cute grin, you may think can it really hurt them? Well, it really depends on what your thinking of feeding them.
One of the most common ingredients you should never feed your dog is sweeteners (Xylitol), it is fatal to your dog. There is a lot of human foods dogs cant eat and should never be given. This is not just because it may cause your dog to put weight on, it is just outright dangerous for your dog to eat.
You will be surprised at what foods dog can’t eat. What you should always keep in mind is that human’s know what food they can’t eat, but dogs don’t…
Below we have listed some foods that are no way intended for dog consummation. By this we mean there is no way should they be fed these types of foods or ingredients.
Foods Dogs Cant Eat
Xylitol
Xylitol is something that you will find in a lot of food you eat on a daily basis, especially if you’re on a diet or a low-calorie diet. Anything that is stated as ‘light’ or lower in sugar will usually have sweetener in it. Xylitol can drop your dog’s blood pressure so low that it will affect their liver, causing severe liver failure, which will cause death.
This can happen within days of them digesting sweeteners. Early symptoms are; lethargy, vomiting and struggling with coordination problems. If not dealt with your dog can have a seizure. Which can cause liver failure if not dealt with within a few days.
Alcohol
Even though it is a pretty obvious thing to say, it must be mentioned. You should never feed your dog alcohol. Alcohol has the same effect if not worse, then it does on a human, it can affect their liver and brain. But it can take a lot less effort to hurt a dog.
If you think just feeding your dog a little bit of alcohol or wine will be ok, you will be wrong, it can seriously harm your dog. It can cause diarrhea, breathing problems, vomiting, coordination problems, coma or even death… The smaller your dog is, the worse the symptoms will be.
Dairy products, such as Milk
When it is a hot day, it is tempting to feed your dog a cool treat, such as ice cream, this is a bad idea. You should feed your dog some cool water.
When it comes to milk it can cause digestive problems, along with diarrhea. Also, they can cause food allergies that can last a lifetime, which can also cause them to have itching. Which isn’t pleasant. Dogs can suffer from lactose intolerance as well.
Macadamia Nut’s
You might be surprised but Macadamia nut’s need to be avoided at all costs. They say just 6 roasted or even raw nuts can make a dog sick. You should look for symptoms that are, high temperature, muscle shakes, weakness in the legs, not to mention vomiting. Not to mention, any cookies or nut’s that have chocolate will make your dog a lot worse, if not cause death.
Cat Food
For obvious reasons, cat food is not meant for dogs… The fat and protein levels in cat food are too high for any dog. If your dog eats too much cat food it can cause upset stomach’s, pancreatitis and obesity. It’s fair to say cat food is one of the foods dogs should not eat on a regular basis.
Grapes and Raisins
When it comes to Grapes, Raisins or sultanas this is a big NO-NO. They can cause major Kidney problems that will cause death, any small amount can make a dog sick. Symptoms can be your dog is constantly vomiting none stop, even more, your dog will seem depressed and sluggish. (Just not acting like itself)
Bones and Fat Trimming
Once you have finished your Sunday dinner meal you might feel like giving your dog fat trimmings from your meal or maybe a left-over bone. Although as many articles have mentioned, this is not healthy for your dog. This can cause pancreatitis.
Now it may seem natural to give a dog a bone, they can still choke on it. Bones can splinter and block your throat and cause cuts. Not forgetting this could cause death if they can’t breathe.
Tomato Leaves and Rhubarb
A lot of people grow tomatoes and rhubarb in their gardens, I know I do. These leaves can cause weakness, vomiting, lethargy, drooling, diarrhea, bloody urine and tremors.
Chocolate
Now, this may seem obvious, but it needs to be said, dogs should never eat chocolate! The actual problem is that chocolate is made from something called theobromine, it is in all kinds of chocolate like white, dark, milk or even unsweetened cooking chocolate. What chocolate causes is severe diarrhea and vomiting. This will further lead to tremors, seizures, heart problems and death.
Plums, Peaches and Persimmons
The problem dogs face with these fruits is with the seeds and pits. Seeds can cause problems with the dog’s intestines, especially smaller dogs, which can lead to blocking their intestines. This can also happen if the dog eats the pit from a plum or peach.
Peaches and plums also have cyanide, this can be found is a wide range of fruit that has seeds and pits. E.g. apples. Cyanide is a poison just not to dogs but humans too.
Tobacco
Tobacco like a few things I have mentioned, for obvious reasons should not be ingested or touched. It can be lethal to dogs, with symptoms including weakness, vomiting, tremors, and an abnormal heart rate. Tobacco poisoning will usually show within 1 hour of ingestion.
Raw fish and meat
Now you may think there is nothing wrong with raw fish or meat, but they still carry harmful bacteria like raw eggs. A human’s body has built an immune system to help fight off these things, but a dog hasn’t. A lot of fish species can also have a parasite that can cause “fish disease” or something called “salmon poisoning disease.”
It can be treatable but needs to be treated straight away! Some of the warning signs are fever, big lymph nodes, and vomiting. Always fully cook your fish and meat to kill the parasites and bacteria in them.
Salt
We would not recommend you sharing things that are salty, such as salted peanuts (for Obvious reasons), Chips and pretzels. If your dog eats to much salt, they will start to get really thirsty, which will mean a lot of trips to the garden for your little friend.
It could also cause further problems such as sodium ion poisoning. Symptoms of this will usually cause tremors, seizures, vomiting, depression, diarrhea and high temperature. This can also cause death.
Raw Eggs
A lot of people feed their dog a raw diet, but raw eggs are a no. People do feed their dog’s raw eggs but some of the biggest veterinary medical associations in the world agree that it’s not a good idea. The problem is raw egg can cause food poisoning from E.coli and Salmonella. Talk to your vet if you want to have a professional’s opinion.
Sugary Drinks and Foods
Too much sugar can cause problems just like it would with a human. It can cause your dog to have trouble with their teeth and cause your dog to be overweight. What you must always consider is that your dog is a fraction of your size, so they can only handle a fraction of what you may think. Too much sugar can cause your dog to have diabetes.
Yeast Dough
Before you bake bread, it will need to rise. Now if your dog eats bread before it has risen, this is what will happen inside your dog’s stomach. This will stretch your dog’s stomach and cause severe stomach pain, if not treated it can cause death. Another thing that can happen is the yeast will ferment and turn in to alcohol, which can cause your dog to have alcohol poisoning.
Caffeine – Tea, Coffee, Other Caffeine
Caffeine can cause some serious problems for your dog, if not fatal. If it’s not obvious you should keep your dog away from tea, coffee or even energy drinks especially. If your dog wants to be active or perky, give them a toy or take them for a walk. Caffeine can be found in pain killers and cold medicine. If you suspect that your dog has taken any Caffeine, please contact your vet straight away, as it can be fatal.
Your Medicine
This shouldn’t have to be said, but you should never give your medicine to your dog. Just like you should never give your children or even anyone your medicine that was given to you. You should always keep it out of reach, just like you usually would with children.
Dogs should never have any human medicine, prescribed or over the counter. Some medications that can be deadly to dogs is ibuprofen and acetaminophen. This includes any human vitamins, as they can cause serious harm to your dog.
Kitchen draws and pantries
Just like you would when you have kids, all draws that can be accessed by your dog should be locked. Some common things are baking soda, powder and herbs/spices, these are highly toxic to dogs. If a dog can get into your cupboards, they may see it as free for all on anything they can eat, this will more than likely cause serious health problems, if not death.
Onions and Garlic
When cooking you should keep onions and garlic away from your dog no matter what. It doesn’t matter if they’re dehydrated, raw or cooked. This is something that can cause severe poisoning. They will kill red blood cells, which will cause anemia.
This can even happen with onion powder, which can be found in some baby products. Now I don’t recommend it, but if they have ingested a little bit, then they should be ok. But if they have eaten a large amount (meaning anything other than a cut of, of an onion) can cause poising. You should be on the lookout of symptoms such as; breathing problems, vomiting, and weakness.
Lemons and Limes
The reason lemons and limes are toxic to your dog are, the skin of them contains a certain substance called psoralen. Psoralen can cause your dogs to have vomited and have diarrhea, this usually will be from the suffering from gastrointestinal symptoms. The more the dog has eaten the worse the symptoms will be, which can lead to further problems. Such as, difficulty walking, muscle tremors, liver failure or even death.
Avocado
Avocados are a lovely treat for a human, but are they ok for a dog? The simple answer is NO, avocados have something called Persin. It is fine for people that are not allergic to Persin. If you grow your avocados at home, it is best you fence of that area or try and stop your dog from going into that area.
If your dog ingests avocado’s there is a good chance it will cause vomiting and diarrhea. Persin is inside the avocado’s, starting with the seeds, bark, leaves and just generally the fruit. To be simple, everything about the avocado is not good for your dog. If your dog does eat an avocado it can get stuck in their intestines/stomach and cause an obstruction which could be serious if not fatal.
Chewing gum, Candy, Mouthwash and Human Toothpaste
All the above will more than likely have xylitol in it, which is a killer for dogs. I can’t understand why people would feed their dog chewing gum, this should be a biggie when it comes to foods not to feed your dogs.
But I thought I would state that this is defiantly a no, just like humans shouldn’t swallow their gum, dogs definitely shouldn’t be having any. A lot of candy will have sweeteners in it, which is xylitol. Mouthwash has multiple ingredients that are not safe for dogs, along with human toothpaste.
What to do if your dog manages to eat something they shouldn’t?
Sometimes your dog might find something they shouldn’t have, and they may eat or swallow it. You should always keep your vet’s number on speed dial along with, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center — (888) 426-4435–), Closest emergency clinic. If you are worried or think your dog has swallowed or eaten something toxic you must call one these numbers straight away.
Looking for foods your dog can eat? Please follow our link here. There is a lot of food that dogs can eat in portions, if you are not 100% certain, then people contact your local vet.
