People Foods that You Should NEVER Feed Your Dog

Photo Source:  FDA

Molly always enjoys her annual birthday celebration with her favorite treats, and Henry dons his designer raincoat and boots when he walks outside in the rain.  Both Molly and Henry have one thing in common.  They both have four legs and a tail.  While we often treat our dogs not merely as pets, but rather as an important family member, there are times when we have to remember, for their safety�s sake, that these family members aren�t human.   

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently releasedconsumer health information reminding dog owners that there are numerous human foods that your pooch cannot tolerate, and if consumed, may cause serious medical issues for your pet.  

While many dog owners know that giving Fido chocolate can causing poisoning, there other less know, but equally important edibles that shouldn�t be given to your dog.  Here are some foods that you should avoid giving to your dog: 

Grapes, Raisins, and Currents

While these naturally sweet gems from Mother Nature can be a sweet way to add good nutrition to yourdiet, these food can cause kidney failure in certain breeds of dogs, according to the FDA.  While the mechanism for the kidney failure is not known, it can occur if the grapes, raisins, and currents are consumed raw or even in cooked products, such as cookies, fruit cake, and snack bars.

Macadamia Nuts

Forget sharing your white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies with your four-legged best friend.  While these nuts are healthy for humans to enjoy, they can be toxic if consumed by your dog.  Similar to grapes, the mechanism for the toxicity is not known at the moment.

Onions, Garlic, and Chives

While these foods add flavor to any dish, they shouldn�t be in your dog�s dinner dish.  Onions, garlic and chives, even the dried powdered forms, contain compounds called organosulfoxides, which are converted to toxic sulfur compounds in dogs.  Cooking or processing these foods will not eliminate the toxins so forget about spooning salsa, chili, or dips containing these foods into your dog�s dinner.  

Xylitol

This lower calorie sugar substitute, which can be found in sugarless gum, candies, some peanut butters and diet cookies, can also be deadly to your dog.  While xylitol is safe for human consumption, it can stimulate the release of insulin, which causes a rapid drop in blood glucose levels in your dog.  Xylitol has also been associated with liver failure in dogs.  Keep the sugarless candies out of your dog�s reach.

Raw Meat

To avoid foodborne illness, better known as food poisoning, you should not eat uncooked or undercooked poultry and meat, and the same goes for your dog.  Bacteria, such as E. coli and Salmonella in raw meat and poultry can sicken the both of you.  You need to also make sure that you don�t accidentally cross-contaminate your dog�s foods with these raw foods.   For example, if you create hamburgers from raw ground beef or bread raw chicken, don�t dip into the treat jar without first washing your hands warns the FDA.   The pathogens on your dirty hands can contaminate the treat that is being gobbling by your dog.  It is a good habit to always wash your hands after touching raw meat and poultry.

When it comes to certain foods, dogs are not humans even if we love them as much.

Be well, Joan

Twitter:  @JoanSalgeBlake