My pet ate Thanksgiving food…What should I be worried about?
My Pet Ate is a monthly feature that centers around the not-so-savory eats pets can snarf up in the blink of an eye that can put their health at risk. If your pet ingested a substance and you’re unsure if it’s toxic, call your veterinarian or an organization like the Pet Poison Helpline immediately to get your questions answered.
Picture this: It’s Thanksgiving. The house is filled with people who are full from finishing an immaculate spread of holiday favorites: turkey, stuffing, cranberry jelly… You get the idea. As everyone is fighting that late afternoon nap, a loud noise comes from the kitchen. As you run in, you see your dog scarfing down as much as possible from the floor, while your cat snags something in its mouth and runs off.
While the above scenario seems like something out of a holiday movie, it happens every year. Organizations like the Pet Poison Helpline receive calls around Thanksgiving asking what from that holiday spread is safe and what’s not. Communicating with clients about what dinner table risks their pets might face is an easy way to help avoid frantic pet parent phone calls in the middle of your own Thanksgiving.
The main meal
While many pet owners might be keeping an eye on the table and making sure their pets aren’t fed turkey bones (and rightfully so, as ingesting them can cause an array of issues like esophagus, stomach, and/or intestinal tract damage), Renee Schmid, DVM, DABT, DABVT warns there are other things on the Thanksgiving table to look out for that might not be as obvious of a hazard.
“The biggest [risk] is going to be for onions and garlic. So, stuffing or anything else that maybe contains onion and garlic in there,” Schmid said. “These are certainly a concern in our dogs and cats and they’re very sensitive to ingesting onion and garlic.”
As the Director of Veterinary Medicine and Senior Veterinary Toxicologist for the Pet Poison Helpline, Schmid notes that these are calls they get every year around this time. Schmid says garlic and onions can cause red blood cell damage, which can cause anemia.
However, not all feast foods are dangerous. For instance, whether you’re deep frying a turkey or cooking up a honey-baked ham, there is no harm in feeding your pet a little bit of the meat—but it’s important to make sure it’s just the actual meat.
“If you’re going to give them some of the turkey, make sure it doesn’t have the skin on it,” Schmid adds. The leftover grease and skin can cause additional issues in pets and can cause pancreatitis to develop, which of course, can be a very life-threatening illness.
Another thing to keep an eye out for is rising bread dough.
“When they are yeast-containing, bread, bread dough, [or] dinner rolls, those, unfortunately, are very toxic to dogs and cats,” Schmid notes.
When a pet ingests that dough, the fermentation can occur in the animal’s stomach. That can cause the stomach to fill with gas and become “very distended” as Schmid adds. “That fermentation, it produces ethanol, and so these guys can even have alcohol poisoning because of the rising bread dough.”
Desserts
Hopefully, you’re not using onion or garlic in your desserts, but one ingredient you should keep in mind is Xylitol. Again, just as pet owners should be on the lookout around Halloween, remembering that the sugar substitute Xylitol can cause liver failure in dogs is important, as some may opt for alternatives to sugar in their desserts.
The post (or pre) meal drink
If you’re celebrating the holidays with alcohol, it’s important to be sure your pets don’t get into it. Schmid says that keeping glasses where they are just out of reach of your pets is a smart practice.
“A lot of people may think it’s funny to see their pet stumbling around, but unfortunately, they don’t recognize the low blood sugar that can have some life-threatening effects from that as well,” she added. “Alcohol poisoning is something that is very common to see in an animal that, even if they ingest just a few laps.”
While there are plenty of things on the table that might not cause serious health issues, Schmid does add that of course, too much of anything, and eating it fast, can cause stomach upsets in pets. And while we’re at it, that might be good advice for all of us who will be enjoying a big meal this holiday season as well.
Our “My Pet Ate” series is done in collaboration with the Pet Poison Helpline. You can learn more about the services they offer on their website or by calling (855) 764-7661.
Photo credit: © JasonOndreicka + iStock via Getty Images
Disclaimer: The views expressed, and topics discussed, in any NEWStat column or article are intended to inform, educate, or entertain, and do not represent an official position by the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) or its Board of Directors.