Unsafe
16 entries · show all
- Bacon and cured porkUnsafeAvoid bacon and other cured meats. The combination of very high fat and very high salt is a common trigger for pancreatitis.
- Cakes, pancakes and biscuitsUnsafeAvoid sweet baked goods. Beyond the sugar and fat, they are a common delivery route for chocolate, raisins, macadamias, nutmeg and xylitol.
- Cooked bonesUnsafeNever give cooked bones of any kind. Cooking makes bone brittle, so it splinters into sharp fragments that can pierce the gut.
- Corn on the cobUnsafeNever let a dog have the cob. Corn kernels are harmless, but the cob is one of the most common causes of emergency intestinal surgery in dogs.
- Crisps, chips and salty snacksUnsafeAvoid salty snacks. They are high in salt and fat and most are seasoned with onion or garlic powder.
- Fat trimmings and fatty leftoversUnsafeAvoid fatty scraps. A sudden high-fat meal is the classic trigger for pancreatitis, which is painful, expensive to treat and sometimes fatal.
- Ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise and vinegarUnsafeAvoid condiments. They are salty, often contain onion and garlic powder, and mustard seeds specifically cause vomiting.
- Melatonin gummies and supplementsUnsafeMelatonin itself is sometimes prescribed for dogs, but gummy versions are frequently sweetened with xylitol — which makes them dangerous.
- Nutella and chocolate hazelnut spreadUnsafeNever feed it — but the danger is the fat, not the chocolate. At ~7.4% cocoa the theobromine is low; at 30% fat and 56% sugar a stolen jar is a genuine pancreatitis risk.
- PizzaUnsafeDo not share pizza. Nearly every pizza contains garlic and onion in the sauce, on top of a lot of fat and salt.
- Raw fishUnsafeDo not feed raw salmon or trout, particularly in the Pacific Northwest — they can carry a parasite that causes a fatal illness in dogs. Cooked fish is fine.
- Sausages, hot dogs and processed meatUnsafeAvoid processed meats. They are high in salt and fat, usually contain onion or garlic powder, and often carry nitrites and other additives.
- Spicy foodUnsafeDo not feed spicy food. Capsaicin irritates a dog's mouth and gut, and dogs get no enjoyment from heat the way people do.
- Sugar and sweetsUnsafeSugar is not toxic, but there is no good reason to feed it — and sweets are the single most common way dogs are exposed to xylitol and chocolate.
- Tums and human antacidsUnsafeDo not give human antacids without veterinary advice. Pepto-Bismol contains an aspirin-like compound, and some antacids are xylitol-sweetened.
- White chocolateUnsafeNever feed it, but it is not the poisoning risk dark chocolate is — white chocolate contains almost no theobromine. The real problems are fat, sugar and, in sugar-free versions, xylitol.