What Foods Are Harmful to Dogs?
One of the biggest mistakes a dog owner can make is feeding a dog table scraps. Many foods cause negative and even deadly reactions in dogs, even though they may be perfectly fine for a human. Pay attention to the foods that dogs ingest, and, when buying less costly dog food, make sure the following items are absent from the list of ingredients. Dangers can range from diarrhea to death.
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Caffeine
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It has almost become a household saying: "Never feed a dog chocolate." Chocolate contains caffeine, which effects the heart and nervous system of a dog. This same reasoning means that coffee, coffee beans, tea, tea bags, soda and all other items containing caffeine are unsafe for a dog.
Alcoholic Beverages
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Though sometimes seen in movies, pranking a dog to drink alcohol can cause the dog to become intoxicated, but even worse, the dog can enter a coma or die. Seeing a dog stumble around from intoxication isn't funny once the dog has been seriously harmed.
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Avocado
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This key ingredient in guacamole causes difficulty breathing, inflammation in the chest and sometimes pancreatitis when ingested by dogs.
Grapes
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These tasty, healthy human treats cause kidney failure in dogs. A single serving of raisins can kill a dog. Just a few grapes or raisins can permanently harm your dog.
Dairy Products
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Dogs and cats are lactose-intolerant. Some may argue that they drink milk as puppies and kitties, but that's different than the cow's milk humans most often drink. Though not deadly, milk causes diarrhea in dogs, which can be a hassle to clean up and isn't fun for the dog, either.
Salt
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In large quantities, salt can cause kidney failure in dogs. Bloat, a disease caused by drinking too much water, can be caused in large breeds that eat too much salt. Bloat must be dealt with by a veterinarian immediately or it could be fatal for the dog.
Bacon
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Though bacon-flavored strips may be your dog's favorite treat, real bacon should never be fed to a dog. Due to high amounts of salt, dogs can get bloat from this by drinking too much water. The high fat and salt mixture can cause pancreatitis in the dog.
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