Most dog owners know that their pets cannot eat raisins, grapes, garlic, chocolate and onions. These are poison to canines. I’ve been very careful not to give these to our dog, who recently turned 16. Occasionally, I’ve dropped a raisin on the floor.
In his younger days, he was much too quick for me. He’d eat it before I could get it away from him. Apparently, no harm was done from consuming just one raisin. But I wouldn’t want to make a habit of it, and I was always careful to keep raisins and other forbidden foods out of his reach.
Most dog owners know that raisins, chocolate and onions can’t go into your dog’s food bowl.
But there are a few other less well-known foods we need to watch out for as well.
Foods That Are Bad for Dogs
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Macadamia nuts, for instance, in large enough quantities, could even be fatal. This is something I learned about long after we brought our dog home from the shelter.
I’m horrified to think that one year we left a package of these nuts was left near our Christmas tree for a long time. According to WebMD, just six macadamia nuts are enough to make a dog sick, and consuming macadamia with chocolate could even be fatal.
Human Foods Toxic to Dogs
Then, there’s avocado. I wouldn’t have necessarily known about this forbidden food if I hadn’t researched it for this post. But I’m glad I know that this would also be bad for my dog.
Avocado is problematic on two counts. It contains a compound called persin, which may irritate a dog’s stomach. Although this isn’t one of the most deadly substances for a canine, and small quantities probably won’t do any lasting harm, the pit of the avocado is another matter.
Also, swallowing an avocado pit could lead to an intestinal obstruction, a potentially life threatening situation, according to the ASPCA. For this reason, dogs should also stay away from peaches and nectarines.
Food You Can’t Give Your Dog
There are other types of foods that are also bad for your pet. Although they may not kill a dog, they can cause intestinal distress. This may not be a complete list. There may be others. So discuss all feeding with your vet. He or she should have the last word on your pet’s diet. Also, I’m a dog Mom and not an animal healthcare expert. But I can share readily available information on foods that are bad for dogs. Here are more foods you need to watch out for:
- Bacon and other foods high in animal fat. Too much fat can upset the digestive system and cause pancreatitis.
- Too much salt
- Dairy products. Cows milk can cause intestinal distress in dogs.
- Sugar. It’s just a bad idea to give it to dogs.
- Xylitol. This artificial sweetener is very toxic to dogs, even in small amounts.
- Walnuts
- Coffee and anything that contains caffeine.
Foods That Will Hurt Your Dog
In addition to all of the above, we also avoid feeding our dog anything that contains genetically modified ingredients. That’s because researchers in France have discovered that rats fed genetically modified grain developed huge tumors. Although this isn’t proof that GMO’s will cause cancer in dogs, I don’t think there’s enough research to conclude that they won’t.
So GMO’s are off the table in our house. For our dog, and for the rest of us as well. Right now, we feed our dog organic people food and USDA-certified organic dog food. If you can’t find this locally, it can be ordered online.
