Every loving pet owner wants to make sure their cat or dog is healthy on a consistent basis. One of the most important contributors to pet health is their diet. However, there are many human foods that you should always avoid letting your pet consume. Some of those foods have high levels of pet toxicity, while others can easily contribute to canine and feline diabetes, allergies, and obesity. Here are five foods you should never feed your cat or dog:
1. Garlic and Onions
Onions and garlic are highly toxic to dogs and cats in several ways. The reasons why are that garlic and onions contain a toxic substance that can cause severe issues with your pet’s red blood cells, possibly leading to life-threatening conditions like anemia. Moreover, your pet can show signs of typical gastrointestinal distress such as vomiting and diarrhea if they eat those. It is easy to unknowingly give your pet these toxic ingredients contained within other human foods, so you should keep all foods containing them away from your dog or cat.
2. Raw eggs, and raw meat and bones
Much like humans risk major salmonella poisoning by consuming raw eggs and raw meat and bones, these uncooked items also pose a risk for pets. Dogs and cats do not have superior immune abilities to fight off harmful bacteria that can be carried for long periods of time by raw meat and eggs, so make sure to thoroughly cook them before feeding your pet.
3. Chocolate
Chocolate contains a substance that is highly toxic for pets called theobromine. If consumed in high enough quantities, it causes severe issues such as pancreatitis, seizures, and other gastrointestinal problems. While poisoning is not often fatal for pets, the illness is very severe and can cause long-term health damage in cats and dogs. Be sure to keep access to your candy closet closed off for your pet, as otherwise, it could be easy for them to break in and consume poisonous doses.
4. Caffeine
Dogs and cats are much more sensitive to caffeine than humans. It can be highly toxic to pets, even in small doses. For small dogs and cats, only one small pill can be enough to fatally poison them. If your pet consumes it, they could become very hyperactive and suffer from a significantly increased heart rate. Moreover, if untreated, it can lead to life-threatening cardiac issues. Additionally, poisoning can wreak havoc on a dog’s or cat’s GI tract, so it is imperative to keep toxins like coffee and soda away from your pet.
5. Grapes and raisins
Grapes and raisins contain the substance tartaric acid, which leads to severe symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, and kidney failure, especially in dogs. It was a mystery for researchers for decades as to why grapes are so toxic for dogs and cats, but recent studies have pinpointed tartaric acid as the culprit. While eating grapes, it is easy to accidentally drop them on the floor if you are not paying attention, and your pet can inadvertently poison themselves by eating them. Be sure to keep grapes as far away as possible from your pet to avoid the aforementioned life-threatening symptoms of poisoning.
