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Are you a dog owner? If you are, you will know how dogs have an insatiable appetite, and rarely do they discriminate about what they are going to eat. You must keep an eye on everything: socks, the trash can, the neighbor’s cat; the list is endless. 

Family mealtimes can make you feel you are under siege as your furry friend tries to get a sniff of your food, and you may be tempted to let him have the leftovers. There are lots of foods that you can feed your dog. However, not all human food is good for dogs. 

Hidden ingredients that may harm your dog

Sometimes it is not clear cut what is in human food. Unless you make a meal from scratch, there are probably hidden ingredients in the products that you have bought. You may not realize the food that you are scraping into your dog’s bowl can poison them. 

If you have concerns that your dog has eaten any of the following ingredients, you must seek advice. A vet such as veterinarianoverlandparkks.com should be your first port of call; they have a walk-in clinic so you can get your dog the attention they need.

Xylitol

Xylitol is widely used as an alternative to sugar and can be found in baked products and some diet foods. While it’s a healthy sugar substitute for humans, for dogs, it can be fatal. Xylitol can trigger a blood sugar to drop and liver failure within a few days. 

Salad

Dogs love eating lettuce. It gives them a healthy boost of vitamins A, K, and C and is an excellent source of fiber. However, problems often arise because the salads humans eat are usually more than lettuce alone. 

• Dressings

Do you know what is in the salad dressing? For example, garlic is one ingredient that is highly dangerous for dogs. If you have made your own salad dressing, you will know precisely what is in your recipe, but if it is shop-bought, you may be surprised at what is in it.

• Salad toppings

Who wants only lettuce in a salad? No one. Salads are such a popular food because they are so adaptable – you can add almost anything to them to make them taste great. However, while your taste buds are enjoying the tang of onion or the mellow flavor of avocado, for dogs, they can play havoc with their digestive systems. 

Note: Onion in any form is bad for dogs, so that means no tomato sauces, pizzas, or Chinese food.

Salt

Salt is one ingredient that humans love to use with food. For thousands of years it has been used to preserve food and to enhance flavors, which is why salt can be found in most foods that we consume. However, salty foods can be fatal for dogs. Snacks such as pretzels and chips have a high salt content even for humans, and so you can imagine what they can do to dogs – vomiting, diarrhea, temperatures, and seizures.

If you are unsure whether a food is bad for your dog, don’t give it to them. Sure, they’ll pester you, but to be on the safe side, you have to say no. The risk of harm is just too high.

Photo by Daria Shevtsova from Pexels