Train the Dog Blog

Dogs have a different metabolism than humans, and cannot eat everything a person can eat. For the safety of your dog, you need to make sure they never consume any of the following:

1. Certain bones: A lot of people believe it is ok for dogs to eat bones, but the reality is some bones can be extremely dangerous, causing obstruction or laceration to their digestive system.

Chicken bones and fish bones should never be fed to a dog. Even the famous green dental bones and rawhide bones have caused internal injury to dogs. When it comes to bones, your safest bet is to find thick bones that are unlikely to splinter. There isn\’t a specific type of bone I can recommend, because all bones can be dangerous and there simple isn\’t one single bone out there that is guaranteed to be safe, but basically, the thicker the bone, the better.

2. Mushrooms: They may be yummy, but they can contain toxins that cause shock and possibly death in dogs.

3. Raw fish: While raw fish may not kill your dog in small amounts, it can cause a vitamin B deficiency when fed regularly, which will cause seizures, and possibly even death.

4. Anything containing caffeine (chocolate, coffee, etc.): Affects your dog\’s heart and nervous system, and can be deadly.

5. Alcohol: Getting your dog drunk is not going to be funny when they end up dying from it. Dogs can get alcohol poisoning very easily. Remember, their body size is much smaller than yours. Even large dogs are smaller than people (usually). Plus, a person can (typically) know when they\’ve had too many drinks. A dog can\’t. Dogs have a tendency to get into people\’s drinks during parties. During parties, make sure to keep your dog somewhere they won\’t have any chances of accidentally drinking alcoholic beverages.

6. Human medications: Sometimes your vet will tell you it\’s ok to give certain human prescriptions to your dog. Never assume it is ok to give them anything without asking your vet first. And, never give a different amount than the vet prescribes. Remember, your dog\’s body weight is much lower than your dogs. That tiny pill can cause huge harm.

7. Macadamia nuts: It is not known what exactly is it in Macadamia nuts that is toxic. They cause locomotory problems in dogs, sometimes even when they\’ve only ingested a few.

A dog\’s body is sensitive to different things than a human body is and in many cases dogs are poisoned by an owner that does not know they are harming their dog. Hundreds of thousands of dogs are accidentally poisoned each year, and not just by these 7 substances. These are only 7 of the many things that may poison your dog.

Owners giving their dog something they shouldn\’t have are not the only reason dogs are poisoned. Dogs also get into things they shouldn\’t, accidentally poisoning themselves. Be sure to keep any poisonous foods out of your dog\’s reach and learn what foods are ok and what foods are not ok to give your dog.

Visit my website for more tips and tricks! I cover everything from paper training your dog to solving dog chewing problems at DogBehaviorExpert.com

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