5 Festive Foods Your Dog Shouldn’t Eat.
At Christmas, many of us look forward to yummy treats and lots of them! During the festive period, food is often available all day long – from stocking fillers, to evening buffet banquets. However, many of these foods are highly toxic to dogs. In this article, we look at 5 foods that dogs shouldn’t eat.
The festive holiday period isn’t just for people. So many households nowadays include their pets in family celebrations. It is perhaps the one and only time of year where it is acceptable for us to eat one’s own body weight in food in a single day! We like to treat ourselves and our pets at Christmas, but it’s important to know what’s good – or bad – for our pet’s health.
Read on to discover 5 foods that dogs must NEVER eat at any time. If you have visitors coming to stay who may not realise which foods dogs should, and shouldn’t have, you could even print this out and stick it on the fridge.
× PLEASE DON’T FEED THE DOG(S) ANY OF THESE FOODS ×
1. CHOCOLATE.
Chocolate contains theobromine, which is highly toxic to dogs, (and cats). Eating chocolate can have a fatal effect on their hearts and kidneys. It’s important to keep chocolates, selection boxes, chocolate drinks etc. well out of a dog’s reach.
2. COOKED BONES.
Although cooked bones are not toxic, they can be highly dangerous. Cooked bones splinter into small shards. These knife like bone shreds can become lodged in the dog’s, mouth, throat, or digestive tract. Keep cooked meat containing bones well out of a dog’s reach.
3. MINCE PIES, CHRISTMAS PUDDING, CAKE OR ANYTHING CONTAINING RAISONS.
We cover mince pies in a separate Holidays4Dogs article here.
Mince pies and fruit cakes are often left on low side tables, where dogs can reach them. However, anything containing fruit can cause serious health issues in dogs. Never be tempted to give your dog foods containing fruit.
4. ONIONS, GARLIC, LEEKS, CHIVES.
All these foods can cause red blood cell damage in dogs. These are often the ingredients in other food items as well, such as gravy, stuffing and bread sauce.
5. ALCOHOL.
Dogs should never consume alcohol. This can cause all sorts of serious health conditions in dogs, including damage to the central nervous system. Make sure glasses containing are not left on the floor. Mulled wine and cream liqueurs should be delights reserved for humans only.
This list is not exhaustive because there are variations of foods which will contain some of these ingredients and are NOT good for dogs.
Trifle, for instance, may contain alcohol. Fatty foods, like sausages and roast potatoes are also not good for dogs to eat. Nuts and avocados can also be very bad if dogs consume them.
If you are unsure about what is safe for your dog to eat, give him a dog treat instead. There are lots of festive treats available made especially for the dogs, or you could have a go at making your own.
For tips on dog friendly Christmas dinners follow the link to our other Holidays4Dogs article. For information on whether dogs can eat mushrooms, apples or goat’s milk click the links.
