Guest Article – Danger! Some Food Isn’t For Dogs!

Today’s article was sent in to me by Hayley – an 11 year old in th 5^th grade.  Hayley has written a great piece to remind us of the danger of some everyday foods to our dogs. Especially important as we celebrate this weekend – keep that party food away from your pets. Thanks Hayley and keep up the great writing!

DANGER! Some Food Isn’t For Dogs!

Not all human foods are that great for dogs. Be careful not to feed your dogs the following foods:

Alcohol: Dogs absorb alcohol extremely quickly. Dogs can have seizures, have kidney damage, or maybe even die.

Chocolate: Chocolate contains theobromine as well as caffeine and both are highly toxic for dogs. The darker that the chocolate is, the worse it is for your dog but baking chocolate is the worst.

Coffee: Coffee also contains caffeine which again is highly toxic to dogs. Even if its decaf still don’t give them that, regular coffee, or any type of coffee or coffee bean candy.

Onions: Onions may taste yummy to us but are very treacherous to dogs. Raw and cooked onions can cause hemolytic anemia, the destruction of red blood cells. This is a serious condition- it can even cause death.

Garlic: This one can be confusing because as you know its often used in commercial dog foods. A little garlic is ok but a lot is not. If your dog consumes garlic in large amounts it can cause a serious condition called hemolytic anemia.

Grapes and Raisins: These simple, delicious snacks may sound healthy to us, but not to dogs! Expert veterinarians aren’t exactly sure why, but raisins and grapes can cause kidney failure in dogs.

Macadamia Nuts: Not that anyone would want to release these precious Hawaiian delicacies from their grasp but macadamia nuts are toxic to dogs so be careful!