It’s almost Thanksgiving Day. We all enjoy the companionship of family and friends and a great dinner, but so does your pal. Be careful with what you feed your dog on Turkey Day.
Put the trash away where your dog cannot reach it. The leftover turkey sitting on the carving table, or left in an available trash container, is a feast for your dog. Turkey bones may splinter and lodge in a dog’s mouth, throat or esophagus or lodge in the GI tract. Anything used to tie up or wrap the turkey — such as strings or bags and packaging — may also cause an intestinal blockage that can become life-threatening.
High fat foods, such as turkey skin, are not well tolerated in dogs. They may get a gastrointestinal upset or even pancreatitis that can also be a life-threatening disease.
All those great chocolates around the house will be toxic to Bowser if given in sufficient quantities. Small dogs do not need to eat much chocolate to run into trouble. Dog-proof your chocolate.
Macadamia nuts can cause weakness, depression, vomiting, tremors, hyperthermia and paralysis. Grapes and raisins in small number can cause kidney failure in dogs.
Onion and garlic also can be harmful to dogs and cats. Ingestion of onion/garlic powders or raw or cooked bulbs can cause damage to red blood cells, which could result in anemia. Garlic is approximately 1 to 5 times more potent than onion, and concentrated powdered forms (e.g., garlic powder, onion soup mix, etc.) are more potent than the raw vegetable.
Xylitol, a commonly used sweetener, is extremely toxic to dogs. Sugar-free gum has xylitol as does sugar-free candy, breath mints, baked goods, peanut butter, cough syrup, children’s chewable vitamins, mouthwash and toothpaste, to list a few.
Even small amounts of xylitol can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), seizures, liver failure or even death in dogs. Xylitol is estimated to be 100 times as toxic as chocolate to dogs. Dogs love to chew ABC gum.
Ingestion of raw yeast dough can be life threatening to dogs. Moisture from stomach juices combined with the dog’s body heat enables replication of the yeast and development of a rising ball of dough in the stomach, which can cause painful gas and dangerous bloating. Signs seen with bread dough ingestion include severe abdominal pain, bloating, vomiting, lack of coordination and depression.
We all know smoking is bad for us, but nicotine in low doses can be fatal for our dogs. Nicotine may cause coma and death. Nicotine patches, lozenges, nasal sprays, gums, inhalers, e-cigarette cartridges, cigarettes, cigars and cigarette butts are sources of concentrated potentially deadly nicotine.
Some festive plants and flowers may be toxic, such as amaryllis, hydrangeas, lilies, Sweet William, some ferns, Sago palms, baby’s breath and more. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has lists of toxic plants and flowers on its website. If you believe your pet has eaten something, call the ASPCA Poison Control Hotline at 888.426.4435 and go to the pet ER immediately. Signs of a problem may be depression, pain, sudden changes in behavior, vomiting, diarrhea and shivering.
Pine needles, pine cones and other holiday decorations, if eaten, could potentially cause intestinal blockages or perforation.
Sometimes all the new people visiting can cause a mild mannered dog or cat to become nervous. Unknowing guests may leave the door open or the gate and your pal is on the move.
So have a great Thanksgiving holiday, and make sure your dog and cat does, too.
— Dr. Bonnie Franklin is a veterinarian who grew up in Santa Barbara and owns Your Pals Pet Hospital in Goleta. She earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from a joint program of Washington State University and Oregon State University, a master’s degree in wildlife biology from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, and does consulting work with the U.S. Forest Service. Click here to contact her, and click here for previous columns. The opinions expressed are her own.