Thread: Bad dog foods

There are certain foods that you should not feed your dog under any occasion. While individual cases will vary based on breed, weight, and other factors - in general this list of foods applies to all dogs and should be carefully followed to avoid accidents.


Just because humans like it, doesn't mean dogs will

Foods that are perfectly suitable for human consumption, as well as other animals, may be toxic and even poisonous to your dog, posing a serious threat to it's health and well-being. Why? Because all animals have very different rates of metabolism. Metabolism is basically the process of breaking down food and turning it into energy.

Please note that while we're attempting to add every food we can find that is potentially unsafe for dogs, there are certain foods that we may miss, so don't consider a food safe to feed to our dog just because it's not on this list. Do your research if you are uncertain and let us know by adding a comment below with your new information so that we can keep this list updated.

List of foods not to feed your dog

Chihuahua with big boneHere's an alphabetized list of foods that are unsafe and unfit for canine consumption, many of which are toxic for dogs. We'll be updating it and adding foods as we learn more. The ones in red italics are especially dangerous and often poisonous for canines.

Alcohol - I'm sure you've heard of the birthday parties where the dog accidentally gets into some of the spilled keg beer, and then gets all silly to the amusement of the crowd. While it may be funny to you, it's not funny to your dog. Alcohol can cause not only intoxication, lack of coordination, poor breathing, and abnormal acidity, but potentially even coma and/or death.

Apple Seeds - Apple seeds are toxic to a dog as they contain "arsenic" which can accumulate in the pet's body when consumed over time. So, be sure to core and seed apples before you feed them to your dog.

Avocado - Avocados contain Persin, which can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and heart congestion.

Baby food - baby food by itself isn't terrible, just make sure it doesn't contain any onion powder. Baby food also doesn't contain all the nutrients a dog relies on for a healthy, well maintained diet.

Bones - the danger with bones isn't the nutritional content, nor is it necessarily the danger of chocking. Rather, you need to be careful with bones from meat sources such as chicken and fish because they can harm your dog's digestive tract when the bones splinter inside the body.

Candy and chewing gum - not only does candy contain sugar, but it often contains Xilotyl, which can lead to the over-release of insulin, kidney failure, and worse.

Cat food - not that they would want this anyways but cat food contains proteins and fats that are targeted at the diet of a cat, not a dog. The protein and fat levels in cat food are too high for your dog, and not healthy.

Chocolate - You've probably heard this before, but chocolate is a definite no no for your pup. And it's not just about caffeine, which is enough to harm your dog by itself, but theobromine and theophylline, which can be toxic, cause panting, vomiting, and diarrhea, and damage your dog's heart and nervous systems.

Citrus oil extracts - can cause vomiting.

Coffee - Not sure why you would give your dog coffee, but pretty much the same applies here as to chocolate. This is essentially poison for your dog if ingested.

Corn on the cob - this is a sure way to get your dog's intestine blocked. The corn is digested, but the cob gets lodged in the small intestine, and if it's not removed surgically, can prove fatal to your dog.

Fat trimmings - can cause pancreatitis.

Fish - the primary fish that you need to be careful about are salmon and trout. They contain a parasite that while not harmful to humans, even when fully cooked, will do a number on your poor pup.

Grapes and raisins - this is one that lots of dog owners are unaware of. Grapes contain a toxin that can cause severe liver damage and kidney failure. We've heard stories of dogs dying from only a handful of grapes so do not feed your pup this toxic food.

Hops - an ingredient in beer that can be toxic to your dog. The consumption of hops by your dog can cause panting, an increased heart rate, fever, seizures, and even death.

Human vitamins - some human vitamins are okay to use - the key is comparing the ingredients (all of them - active and inactive) to the vitamins your vet subscribes for your dog (often you can get the human equivalent for much less money). Make sure there's no iron - iron can damage the digestive system lining, and prove poisonous for the liver and kidneys.

Liver - avoid feeding too much liver to your dog. Liver contains quite a bit of Vitamin A, which can adversely affect your pup's muscles and bones.

Macadamia nuts - these contain a toxin that can inhibit locomotory activities, resulting in weakness, panting, swollen limbs, and tremors as well as possible damage to your dog's digestive, nervous, and muscle systems.

Marijuana - not that you would pass the bong to your dog, but if you do, you should know that it can adversely affect your pup's nervous system and heart rate, and induce vomiting.

Milk and dairy products - while small doses aren't going to kill your dog, you could get some smelly farts and some nasty cases of diarrhea. Why? Dogs are lactose intolerant (as are an increasing number of humans today), and don't have enough of the lactase enzyme to properly digest dairy foods. If you really need to give them dairy, look into lactose-free dairy products.

Mushrooms - Just as the wrong mushroom can be fatal to humans, the same applies to dogs. Don't mess with them.

Onions, garlic, and chives - no matter what form they're in (dry, raw, cooked, powder, within other foods), onions and garlic (especially onions) are some of the absolute worst foods you could possibly give your pup (it's poisonous for dogs, and its even worse for cats). They contain disulfides and sulfoxides (thiosulphate), both of which can cause anemia and damage red blood cells.

Persimmons, peaches, and plums - if you live in an area that is home to persimmon, peach, or plum trees, look out. Persimmon seeds and peach and plum pits can cause intestinal obstruction and enteritis. You'll want to make sure there aren't any wild persimmon or other fruit trees that produce seeds growing in your backyard. If you notice your dog pooping all over the place, and see a bunch of seeds or pits in their waste, you'll need to break out the saw and chop down some trees.

Potato, rhubarb, and tomato leaves - these contain oxalates, which can adversely affect the digestive, nervous, and urinary systems.

Raw eggs - the most obvious problem here is salmonella. But raw eggs also contain the Avidin enzyme, which inhibits the absorption of vitamin B (Biotin). Your dog uses vitamin B to keep a healthy coat and skin.

Raw fish - another vitamin B (Thiamine) deficiency can result from the regular consumption of raw fish. Loss of appetite will be common, followed by seizures, and in rare instances, death.

Salt - just like salt isn't the healthiest thing for humans, it's even less healthy for dogs. Too much of it can lead to an imbalance in electrolyte levels, dehydration and potentially diarrhea.

String - while not a food itself, foods can often contain or be similar to string (ie. meat you've wrapped for the oven). If your dog were to eat a string, it could get stuck in their digestive tract and cause complications.

Sugar - this applies to any food containing sugar. Make sure you check the ingredient label for human foods - corn syrup (which is a less expensive form of sugar or glucose) is found in just about everything these days. Too much sugar for your pup can lead to dental issues, obesity, and even diabetes.

Tobacco - a major toxic hazard for dogs (and humans). The effects nicotine has on dogs are far worse than on humans. Nicotine can damage your pup's digestive and nervous systems, increase their heart rate, make them pass out, and ultimately result in death.

Yeast - just like yeast rises in bread, it will also expand and rise within your pup's tummy. Make sure they don't get any. While mild cases will cause gas, lots of farting, and discomfort - too much of it could rupture their stomach and intestines.
Keep these out of your dog's reach as well

Fashion-Hound with dog foodWhile these don't fall in a particular category above, you'll want to avoid them as well:

Old food - you don't like old and moldy food, so what makes you think your dog will? The bacteria in spoiled food contains all sorts of toxins that can be damaging to your dog's health. Feed them the freshest and best, dog-approved food only!

Leftovers - I know it's difficult to keep your dog from feasting on your dinner left overs after they've had to sit there and watch you eat it all in front of them. But the fact is that if you feed them leftovers regularly they won't be getting a proper diet. If you do give them table scraps, make sure to take out any bones and trim down the fat.

Check the ingredients - Bottom line is be sure to know what's in the food your giving your dog. The items from the list above should definitely not be on there. You'd be surprised at how many foods contain sugar and caffeine, that you wouldn't expect to without first checking the ingredient list.

Human snacks - chips can contain garlic and onion powder, cookies may contain raisins, chocolate or macadamia nuts, etc. Bottom line - there's a reason there's food and treats made especially for dogs.

1080

"Bottom line - there's a reason there's food and treats made especially for dogs"

And thats what I do for a living.I work at Farm Meats ,come see me you'll find me in our Factory shop / Pack n Dispatch .
All 100% natural product .

good deals for the boys

While pork that is cooked very well done is not lethal to dogs, it is best to avoid pork, especially bacon, ham, pork chops and pork roast which have a heavy amount of fat in it. Pork is very rich and contains a thick fat that is undigestible to dogs. It irritates their stomach and can cause them to become very ill. (High fat content food causes pancreatitis and pork and turkey skin is the leading cause) Some dogs are more tolerant to very well cooked pork, but in my view, there are plenty of other meats out there to sample from, so why mess with pork

my dogs get these

fat trimmings
milk
raw fish
leftovers

Originally Posted by upnorth uplander

my dogs get these

fat trimmings
milk
raw fish
leftovers

Z -you might consider changing that then -for your dogs sake

Fat trimmings - can cause pancreatitis.

Fish - the primary fish that you need to be careful about are salmon and trout. They contain a parasite that while not harmful to humans, even when fully cooked, will do a number on your poor pup.

Dogs are lactose intolerant (as are an increasing number of humans today), and don't have enough of the lactase enzyme to properly digest dairy foods. If you really need to give them dairy, look into lactose-free dairy products.

Ooo this is a fun game. Here are the ones my dog gets:

Apple Seeds - not too often (I usually core the apple and put something more fun inside like peanut butter and his dry dog food breakfast.) I eat apples whole and have heard that only something like 100 apple's worth of seed in one go would really be damaging either to human or dog.

Avocado - dog doesn't get this but also I have been told by the vet that it's just the stone that would be damaging. I don't really need to worry about this as I don't think I'll ever be wealthy enough to purchase avacados for myself regularly let along give any to the dog!!!

Bones - pretty much everything. We don't buy whole chicken so no bird bones. Usually the bones he gets are raw but the cooked chops (after I've had a go on them) go out on the lawn for him, same as anything that's been in the crock pot usually.

Fat trimmings - he'll get these too if he's lucky (I like it too much!)

Liver - and hearts, courtesey of any bunnies I get.

Onions, garlic, and chives - I only just found out about this one. From time to time my boy eats the 'grass' here in small quantities. It is infact 'Onion Weed' so I guess that's the same? I discourage him from eating it but haven't had any problems so far.

Raw eggs - I found this a shock to see on your list! As recommended by the vet, for nearly a year my boy had a raw egg fresh from under the chook every morning for his breakfast. Had had an exceptional coat over that year and was also eating half a skinned rabbit every second day too. So there's the bones, fat, liver and heart ticked off again!

Salt - have you ever eaten dog food or treats? (Not for a whole meal, but tasted them) Most are super salty!

Leftovers - this is rare as I usually eat everything...but he'll occationally get the boring carb stuff if I'm too full. So rice, potato, vege.

Also I used to be worried about dogs stuffing their faces and inhailing food. With a bit of reasearch I found that it's all good! They have a great stomach and can handle it. Think of the wild dog eating his dinner. They don't wait for anything, it's straight into it. Because I have proofed the behaviour and found that he is not food posessive (taking the food bowl away to swap for another bowl or approaching him while eating to provide more in the bowl) I'm happy for him to scoff down his meals. Usually he's out on the lawn with his hunk of dog roll and chips away at it at his own pace.

cheers for the list El B, I am sure many people (and vets and scientists) will all have different opinions on these sorts of 'rules' though!!

Originally Posted by el borracho

Z -you might consider changing that then -for your dogs sake

Fat trimmings - can cause pancreatitis.

Fish - the primary fish that you need to be careful about are salmon and trout. They contain a parasite that while not harmful to humans, even when fully cooked, will do a number on your poor pup.

Dogs are lactose intolerant (as are an increasing number of humans today), and don't have enough of the lactase enzyme to properly digest dairy foods. If you really need to give them dairy, look into lactose-free dairy products.

El B , i have not had a dog live under 12 yrs yet on the diet they are given, except for 1 that got run over

there we go a dog run over -probably high on table scraps and delirious on fat off cuts while dehydrated and crazed from shitting himself all week

Originally Posted by el borracho

there we go a dog run over -probably high on table scraps and delirious on fat off cuts while dehydrated and crazed from shitting himself all week

Haha

Last year the grapes on our new vine disappeared just as they came ripe as did a number of tomatoes. I originally thought rats but the work was too tidy.
Spotted Cruze wandering up to the plants then delicately plucking off one grape at a time
For a dog that scoffs his bowl in 30secs it was so funny.

In season he eats whatever fruit is going.

El B I bet that list came from California USA or some other US state full of raging liberals. If we cut thu the BS then you are probably down to chocolate and onion. Who the hell feeds thier dog Avocado FFS.............

I got some people here at work to run tests on chocolate and determine the toxicity level for dogs. Its sitting around 1.2 kg for an average dog ~25kg, variables include the mix of chocolate and some breeds etc but it shows it does take quite a lot of chocolate to get to a toxicity level dangerous for the dog. I'm not saying go and feed your dog chocolate, it will still mess with it a bit but its not the straight out poison people make it out to be

Baking chocolate and dark chocolate is what's really dangerous.

It does not take much to kill a dog.