When it comes to a list of human foods you should not feed your pets nor allow them to accidentally get into, we all know chocolate is the most notorious; it doesn’t stop there by any means. Let’s take a look at other fatal foods, plants, and household items that can be deadly for your pets. Make sure even when putting the remnants of these in your trash that your four-legged babies cannot gain access to them.
The following foods may be dangerous to your pet:
· Alcoholic beverages
· Apple seeds
· Apricot pits
· Avocados
· Baby food (can contain onion powder)
· Bones from fish, poultry, or other meat sources (can splinter and rupture their organs on the interior or cause obstruction or laceration of the digestive system)
· Canned tuna (large amounts can cause malnutrition since it lacks proper levels of vitamins and minerals. It can also lead to thiamine deficiency.)
· Cherry pits
· Candy (particularly chocolate, which is toxic to dogs, cats and ferrets, and any candy)
· Coffee (grounds, beans, chocolate-covered espresso beans)
· Fat trimmings
· Garlic and garlic powder
· Grapes, raisins and currants (As few as seven grapes can be fatal to a dog)
· Hops (used in home beer brewing)
· Macadamia nuts
· Marijuana or remnants – cooking or otherwise
· Milk or other dairy products (some adult cats and dogs may develop diarrhea if given large amounts of dairy products)
· Moldy foods
· Mushrooms and mushroom plants
· Mustard seeds
· Onions and onion powder
· Persimmons
· Potato leaves and stems (green parts)
· Raw eggs
· Raw meat
· Rhubarb leaves
· Salt
· Sugary foods
· Table scraps (Table scraps are not nutritionally balanced. They should never be more than 10% of the diet. Fat should be trimmed from meat; bones should not be fed.)
· Tea (caffeine) and tea bags
· Tobacco
· Walnuts
· Xylitol
· Yeast dough
Of course, keep your household cleaners and products safely locked away or out of reach. Here are a few, in particular, to keep away from your pets:
· Antifreeze
· Liquid potpourri
· Polyurethane glue
· Pennies
· Pine-oil cleaners
· String
A recent list of the top pet-poisoning claims in, according to VPI, a pet health insurance company comprises:
· Raisins/Grapes
· Mushrooms
· Marijuana
· Lily flowers
· Walnuts
· Onion
· Sago Palm
· Macadamia nuts
· Azalea flowers
· Hydrangea flowers
For poison-related emergencies, call the Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435. If in doubt, take your pet to your emergency veterinarian clinic immediately!
For pet-sitting with a personal touch, contact Dee Hopkins at 517.546.0439 and visit http://www.ddspetpatrol.com.
Written by Dee Hopkins in collaboration with Ginger Sprinkle @ nine dots branding & marketing company (ginger@ninedotsbranding.com).
