Now that I have your attention I thought it'd be a good topic to discuss common household and environmental poisons to dogs and cats :) Many people are aware of things like chocolate and anti-freeze but I'd like to go a step further and mention a few lesser known toxins. First off, a lot of dogs are like living vacuum cleaners and will happily "help" you around the house by cleaning with their mouths. This is why it's so important to know what they can or cannot "clean" by ingestion.
Chocolate: Most everyone know this one is bad for dogs. The biggest reason it tends to be "poisonous" to dogs is that they ingest A LOT of it. Most of the time they won't stop like a reasonable human, they could easily scarf down a Costco size box of Hershey's kisses. Theobromine (along with caffeine) is the main toxic component of chocolate. Baker's chocolate has the highest amount and is therefore the most toxic. A sweet milk chocolate (Hershey's Kiss) would have the least amount. It also depends on the size of the dog, but if your 70 pound Labrador eats a few Hershey's kisses he or she will be fine. Your 22 lb dog that eats 20 ounces of milk chocolate or just over 2 ounces of baking chocolate would be ingesting a toxic dose. If your dog ingests any amount of any chocolate please give us a call.
Raisins/Grapes: Raisins are bad for both dogs and cats. Resist the urge to ever use either as a treat. They taste delicious, but they can put our pets into kidney failure. No one really knows why they can be toxic to dogs and cats. In fact, some dogs can have a bag full of grapes and be fine. Others can eat 5 and go into renal failure. So it seems that it is animal specific, wish we had a better explanation.
Lilies: This one is for cats and includes any lilies from the genera
Lilium and
Hemerocallis. Easter lilies are a big one during spring time especially for indoor cats. Cats can go into sudden kidney failure by messing around with these flowers. Ingestion of only a few leaves has resulted in death. They are found in MANY normal floral bouquets, so if you have any around the house make sure they are far from where your cats can get to.
Gum (with xylitol sweetener): Xylitol is a sugar alcohol used in many different gums. It causes a drop in blood sugar in dogs and sometimes liver damage. This can lead to tremors, weakness, seizures and in severe cases death. Xylitol toxicity is dose dependent and it's often very difficult to tell how much xylitol is in any given piece of gum. For some reason, a lot of dogs love gum. My dog Fuji loves fresh breath and has been to the clinic several times for ingesting my gum packs (wrapper and all). It's not fun, so best to keep gum away from dogs or purchase gum that does not have xylitol as an ingredient.
Over the counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: Drugs such as aspirin, acetaminophen (not an NSAID), ibuprofen, naproxen, etc. To include topical creams that contain NSAIDs that your pet could lick off of you. This applies for both dogs and cats as they are not small humans. Metabolism is different and therefore human products can be dangerous. Yes, there are certain ones that MAY be used in dogs and cats, but there are safer pain medications specifically formulated for dogs and cats available at any veterinary clinic. Cats in particular are VERY sensitive to all NSAIDS. Their kidneys have a tendency to suffer damage quite easily, which is why drug companies have come out with specific NSAIDS approved for cats. Even those are not labeled for long term usage. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) can kill a cat, don't use it.
Hops: Yep, the bitter stuff in beer. Most people won't have a big issue with this one unless you're a home brewer or use it in gardening. It affects some dogs more than others. Dogs suffer from what is called "malignant hyperthermia". They get really hot, pant, shake, become agitated and in severe cases can die. Chances are no beer is going to contain enough hops to do anything but I would still say no to giving big ol' Brutus a couple of pints of Dead Guy Ale mainly because there's the whole "alcohol toxicity" part of it.
Onions: Yes, unfortunately onions, or even onion powder can be toxic to dogs. The toxic dose is unclear but any onion product should simply be avoided. It has been shown to cause hemolytic anemia in dogs, which means their red blood cells rupture due to toxicity. This can lead to death. Onion powder may even be worse on a weight basis because it can contain much more actual onion than one might think.
This is just a short list of common household items that sometimes we as pet guardians don't think about. When in doubt about anything, don't hesitate to give us a call. Happy June!
-Dr. C
