As dog owners, we always want to ensure our fur family members are as healthy as possible. While it might be tempting to share certain foods for dogs that are less than ideal or even feed your pups scraps from the table, it’s important to know that some human foods can be harmful to dogs.
In fact, there are several common foods that can not only cause upset stomachs in dogs, but can also be toxic and even deadly.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at some of the bad foods that you should avoid giving to your dog.
As part of National Poison Prevention Week, here’s our list of bad foods for dogs:
Dog owners all have different rules as what to feed their best friends, but there are bad foods for dogs which can be extremely harmful.
It’s best always to check to see if a type of food is ok to feed to a dog before you give it to them.
Bad Foods for Dogs: Some common foods like chocolate, grapes, onions, and garlic can be harmful to dogs and should be avoided.
Here is a list of foods which dogs need to avoid:
- Alcohol
- Avocados
- Caffeine (incl. coffee and tea)
- Chocolate
- Dairy Products (incl. milk)
- Fat Trimmings
- Garlic
- Grapes
- Macadamia Nuts
- Nicotine (ok – not a food, but some humans do “consume” cigarettes)
- Onions
- Persimmons, Peaches, and Plums
- Raisins
- Salt
- Sugary Foods (incl. candy and gum)
- Yeast Dough
If you believe your dog has eaten any of these bad foods for dogs, call your vet or the Pet Poison Hotline immediately.
As owners, we might eat these foods and not give them to our dogs. However, it’s just as important to ensure you have stored these foods away properly.
Remember that dogs (even small ones) can jump on tables and counter tops.
Especially when you aren’t at home, they have to the opportunity to work on trying to jump up and get to those grapes or chocolate sitting on the counter or table top. Do yourself and your dog a favor by storing it in the refrigerator.
Note that dogs can also have other food allergies. I was very surprised to find out that my dog, a Havanese, has quite a lot of allergies. He’s allergic to grass (but he still tries to eat it). He also had a bad allergic reaction to corn.
To learn more about the ingredients in your dog food, check out our article on How to Read a Dog Food Label.
