All of us probably know that chocolate is dangerous for dogs. However, did you know that you can poison your furry friend even with nuts, for example?
A lot of foods from everyday life is dangerous for dogs. In some of these, you would never guess, that you could harm your dog with them. Here is a list of some of them:
chocolate
Chocolate may be toxic for dogs. It contains caffeine and theobromine, which is slowly excreted from the organism and it can poison your dog. Apart from this, it also contains a great amount of fats, which can harm the pancreas that isn’t capable of producing enough enzymes to digest them. The theobromine affects mainly the regulation of heart rhythm and it can even cause death. It also increases the amount of calcium within the heart cells, which causes the heart contraction to intensify. The most dangerous one is bitter chocolate, especially the ones with high percentages, and baking chocolate. That’s the reason why you should pick special chocolate goodies for your pets. But it is not as dramatic with chocolate, as you may have heard. As I wrote earlier, one dog from my pack is irredeemable and an exceptionally innovative thief, so I never manage to hide everything away from him. Once, he stole and ate a whole bar of chocolate, but thank God, nothing happened to him.
coffee
Same as chocolate, it contains caffeine. High concentration of caffeine blocks adenosine receptors and this leads to disruptions of the hearth rhythm. Caffeine increases the amount of calcium in the heart muscle and this can cause spasms.
potatoes
Potatoes are indigestible only raw with peel, due to the solanine content. Still, they are not very suitable for cooking in a greater amount either, since dogs badly digest potato starch and a larger amount would cause bowel issues for them. Some pet foods contain potatoes, which does not matter, since they are well processed in the form of an extrusion. Since extrusion, apart from other things, radically lowers the content of anti-nutritional substances and natural toxins, such as in the case of pet foods from the Brit Care Grain-free series. Such potato then can on the contrary be a way to quality nutrition.
pears and apples
They are not poisonous for dogs, but same as with tomatoes, they don’t belong to their natural diet. Upon administration of a greater amount or upon administration of unripe fruit, health issues may occur, since unripe fruit contains acids that irritate the stomach. Ripe fruit contains greater amount of simple sugars, which ferment in the stomach, and this leads to diarrhoea and bloating. And same as with the potatoes: it depends on the amount, source and processing… Fructo-oligosaccharides administered in the right manner, lead to greater digestibility of the pet food and they lower the amount of excrements. The dream of every dog owner :-)
avocado
It belongs to most poisonous fruits for dogs. It contains persin, which damages lungs, heart and other tissues.
garlic and onion
Due to sulphur compounds that affect the red blood cells and damage the haemoglobin in them that is necessary for the oxygen transfer, they are very toxic for dogs. Symptoms of poisoning may appear within 24 hours or within several days, when the blood cells start to fall part.
nuts and almonds
Macadamia nuts are poisonous for dogs. Almonds contain cyanides, which prevent the cells from using oxygen. Therefore, the poisoning is caused by internal suffocation. It is generally not recommended for the dog to consume dry fruits, due to several reasons:
1) possibility of an allergy
2) high fat content is dangerous for the pancreas – inflammation of the pancreas, diarrhoea and digestive issues
3) due to bad storage, it happens sometimes, that they catch a mould, which can poison the dog with its toxins
4) salted dry fruits – high salt content may disrupt mineral balance of the organism and it leads to salt poisoning. Nuts and almonds don’t fall within natural dog diet, therefore, they don’t need them.
nutmeg
Causes tremor, spasms and death.
mushrooms
Cause spasms and bloating.
cooked chicken bones
Cooked bones are fragile and they are easy to break off. To the contrary, raw bones can be digested by dogs, it is the cooked ones that are dangerous. Certainly don’t feed the dog with chicken bones cooked in any way, which break and which can damage the stomach or the intestines.
salty food
Salty food might be tasteful for dogs, but its regular income at an excessive level is a direct cause of diseases of the cardiovascular system, it increases blood pressure, loads the kidneys, liver, damages the bones and joints. However, this doesn’t mean, that the dog should not get salt at all. Without it, it could not absorb mineral substances the right way, however, it is also important for the remaining good functioning of the organism. But granules, comparing to human food, contain the right and healthy salt ratio.
dairy products with a high amount of fat
Cause flatulency and inflammation of the pancreas.
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