Foods That Dogs Should Never Eat

Two foods not good for your dog

I started wondering which foods that we have in our house might be dangerous for our dogs to eat. We don’t feed them human food, but if I get distracted, they occasionally lick a plate clean before I realize what they are up to.

Unfortunately, there does not seem to be a comprehensive list of foods that make dogs sick online that does not require me to click through a long series of photos. So I compiled everything into a single bulleted list that is easier to read. If you want to know why these things are bad for dogs to eat, you’ll have to do some online searching. Check out this neat info graphic.

List of foods that can be dangerous to dogs

• Alcoholic beverages
• Avocados
• Bones from meat or fish
• Caffeine (sodas, tea, coffee, etc.)
• Chives
• Chocolate (even white and baking chocolate)
• Citrus or citrus oil
• Currants
• Fruits with lots of small seeds or pits in them – the seeds and pits are the problem!
• Garlic
• Grapes (and raisins!)
• Macadamia nuts
• Milk and milk-products
• Mushrooms
• Onions (NOTE: some baby food contains onion powder, which is also hazardous to your dog’s health)
• Products that include xylitol (gum, candy, toothpaste, etc.)
• Raisins
• Raw meat, fish, or eggs
• Rhubarb
• Tomatoes
• Walnuts

Some of the things on this list were a surprise to me. We cook with a lot of garlic, fresh garden tomatoes in the Summer, and avocados are frequently in our kitchen. Since the dogs are ALWAYS scouring the kitchen floor for anything that might have fallen (you’d think we never feed these dogs!), I’ll have to be even more careful about picking up anything that falls by the wayside.

Other common sense recommendations are:

• don’t give your pet lots of salty or sugary foods as this can cause all sorts of health problems.;
• don’t feed your dog dough before it is cooked, as it may continue to rise in his stomach;
• don’t feed your dog spoiled or rotting food, as this can make him ill.
• Also a dog that eats animal fat in large quantities may get pancreatitis.
• One that eats lots of liver may get Vitamin A toxicity.
• And definitely keep medicines and cleaners out of the reach of your dog as well as the trash in your house. Dogs will get into your trash and may swallow something harmful.

ASPCA Poison Control Center

If your dog eats something you aren’t sure about or starts to show symptoms of being sick after eating something – give your vet a call or call the ASPCA animal poison control center at 1-888-426-4435.

If you know of anything that needs to be added to this list, please leave a comment.