Happy Holidays!
The holidays are upon us! Thanksgiving always sets off the holiday season and is one of my favorite holidays because it’s all about family, friends and great food. Our Thanksgiving had all three! I spent a couple days baking and cooking and I made a new dessert – cranberry curd tart. It became one of my all-time favorite desserts and is now on permanent rotation.
The cranberry curd tart recipe calls for fresh cranberries and one of the fun parts of making this dessert is boiling the cranberries…. they pop when you boil them! My granddaughter got a kick out of that (and so did I). The other fun part was watching our dogs eat raw cranberries. Hannah wasn’t a huge fan of them but Mabel LOVED them. My granddaughter became a fan of raw cranberries because she could share them with the dogs; all three of my girls sat in the kitchen eating cranberries.
Our granddaughter has been raised with our dos and she remembers Lucy our diabetic dog. She learned as a baby that there were foods that are bad for dogs so she always asks if it’s okay to give the dogs something specific.
And I LOVE that our granddaughter just told me that she was at someone’s house and they gave a puppy a grape, she immediately stepped in and announced loudly that grapes are poisonous for dogs…my smart girl!
With the hustle and bustle of the holiday season it’s easy for us to get distracted which makes it easier for our trash pandas (said with love) to get into things they shouldn’t. I thought it would be a good idea to share a list of toxic flowers/plants along with foods that pose a health risk or toxicity for our pets.
Below is a chart of common flowers and plants we see during this holiday season.
| Plant | Toxicity |
|
Lily Plant Includes: Easter, Tiger, Asiatic, Daylily |
Cats: extremely toxic for cats and an emergency. Any part including the pollen is extremely toxic to cats and can be fatal. Contact your ER or vet immediately. Dogs: toxic for dogs, contact your ER or vet. |
| Lily-like Plants |
Cats and dogs: toxic due to calcium oxalates. Contact your ER or vet. |
| Mistletoe | Cats and dogs: toxic, contact your ER or vet. |
| Holly Plants | Cats and dogs: toxic, contact your ER or vet if your pet eats any part of Holly. |
| Poinsetta | Cats and dogs: mildly toxic, contact your ER or vet if your pet shows concerning symptoms. |
The following Facebook group is an excellent resource for identifying poisonous plants/flowers/mushrooms. While they are a Facebook group, Poison Control refers a lot of people to the group, vets use the group, they are worldwide and available 24/7. Make sure you follow their rules and pay attention to their posting instructions. You will need clear photos of the plant consumed (always take pics to share with your vet).
Poisons Help; Emergency Identification for Mushrooms & Plants: https://www.facebook.com/groups/144798092849300/
| Food | Toxicity |
| Alcohol | Toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Caffeine | Toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Chocolate | Toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. Chocolate toxicity calculator: https://www.merckvetmanual.com/multimedia/clinical-calculator/chocolate-toxicity-calculator |
| Corn Cobs | Can cause obstruciton. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Avocado Pits and Skin | Toxic for cats and dogs, pits can cause obstruction. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Grapes / Raisins / Currants | Toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Onions / Leeks | Toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Garlic | Large doses are toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Fatty Foods | Can cause pancreatitis, especially in dogs. Monitor for symptoms of pancreatitis and contact vet if needed. |
| Dough with Yeast | Can cause bloat. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Macadamia Nuts | Toxic for dogs. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Bones - Cooked | Can splinter and cause perforation. Please contact ER or vet. |
| Bones - Raw | Weight bearing bones can break teeth. |
| Xylitol | Extremely toxic for cats and dogs. Please contact ER or vet ASAP! |
Just a quick wrap-up: Keeping pets safe around the holidays means keeping an eye out for problem plants and foods. If you’re ever unsure of a plant your pet has been in contact with, that Facebook group I mentioned is awesome for fast help, and don’t hesitate to call your vet if you think your pet ate something bad.
I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!
Until next week stay comfy, don’t stress and you got this!
Michelle Miller-Matlock
AAHA Certified Diabetes Educator
Founder/Administrator of DDO: Diabetic Dog Owners University
Administrator of Diabetic Dog Owners on Facebook
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