Care to take with your pet during Easter. There are foods that they really cannot eat.
Veterinary advices to keep pets healthy this season... and beyond
In order for a safe Easter for everyone, including our pets, learn which foods should really be kept out of dogs’ and cats’ reach. This advice comes from the ZU veterinarian, Cláudia Domingues, which you should also share with your family and friends. Prevention is always better than cure and, thus, you can guarantee a healthy Easter experience without fears related to our four-legged friends.
Remember that as tempting and difficult as it may be to resist their begging and loving gazes, these are the forbidden foods:
1. Chocolate: Who never got chocolates for Easter? Especially during this time of the year, it is necessary to pay special attention so that they do not have access to any chocolate, as it is extremely toxic for them. Accidental chocolate ingestion can affect the animals’ heart, nervous and respiratory systems, causing vomiting, diarrhoea, restlessness and muscle tremors. In more extreme scenarios, it can lead to cardiac arrhythmias, seizures, kidney damage and even death.
2. Foods with Garlic and Onion: Some components, that are very well tolerated by the human body and that are part of all our meals, may not be advised for pets. It is the case of onion and garlic, so typical of our cuisine. Both can lead to severe gastrointestinal symptoms (vomiting and diarrhoea) and cause anaemia.
4. Grapes (including Raisins): Grapes contain a toxic substance that, when ingested, can cause kidney failure. After ingestion, various symptoms may appear, such as diarrhoea, vomiting, lethargy and kidney problems. Raisins, as they are dehydrated grapes, cause symptoms even more quickly, as they concentrate more of these toxins.
5. Macadamia Nuts: In general, nuts are not the best pet food. They have a high phosphorus content and usually also contain high levels of fats. Macadamia nuts, which are very common in cookies and candies, can cause vomiting, weakness, incoordination and hyperthermia in dogs.
6. Bones and fish bones: it is very common to give bones to dogs to gnaw on, although it is an inadvisable practice, but we need to be very careful about the type of bones we give them. In addition to being able to damage, and even break, their teeth, these can cause obstructions in the mouth or intestines, or even lead to intestinal perforation, if they are bones that break into splinters (like chicken bones, for example). Similar dangers can occur to cats in situations of ingestion of fish bones.Don't feed them leftovers: "Often our food is too salty and/or spicy and may not be well tolerated by our pets, as they are not used to it, and lead to vomiting and diarrhoea", warns ZU veterinarian, Cláudia Domingues.
In order for a safe Easter for everyone, including our pets, learn which foods should really be kept out of dogs’ and cats’ reach. This advice comes from the ZU veterinarian, Cláudia Domingues, which you should also share with your family and friends. Prevention is always better than cure and, thus, you can guarantee a healthy Easter experience without fears related to our four-legged friends.
Remember that as tempting and difficult as it may be to resist their begging and loving gazes, these are the forbidden foods:
1. Chocolate: Who never got chocolates for Easter? Especially during this time of the year, it is necessary to pay special attention so that they do not have access to any chocolate, as it is extremely toxic for them. Accidental chocolate ingestion can affect the animals’ heart, nervous and respiratory systems, causing vomiting, diarrhoea, restlessness and muscle tremors. In more extreme scenarios, it can lead to cardiac arrhythmias, seizures, kidney damage and even death.
2. Foods with Garlic and Onion: Some components, that are very well tolerated by the human body and that are part of all our meals, may not be advised for pets. It is the case of onion and garlic, so typical of our cuisine. Both can lead to severe gastrointestinal symptoms (vomiting and diarrhoea) and cause anaemia.
4. Grapes (including Raisins): Grapes contain a toxic substance that, when ingested, can cause kidney failure. After ingestion, various symptoms may appear, such as diarrhoea, vomiting, lethargy and kidney problems. Raisins, as they are dehydrated grapes, cause symptoms even more quickly, as they concentrate more of these toxins.
5. Macadamia Nuts: In general, nuts are not the best pet food. They have a high phosphorus content and usually also contain high levels of fats. Macadamia nuts, which are very common in cookies and candies, can cause vomiting, weakness, incoordination and hyperthermia in dogs.
6. Bones and fish bones: it is very common to give bones to dogs to gnaw on, although it is an inadvisable practice, but we need to be very careful about the type of bones we give them. In addition to being able to damage, and even break, their teeth, these can cause obstructions in the mouth or intestines, or even lead to intestinal perforation, if they are bones that break into splinters (like chicken bones, for example). Similar dangers can occur to cats in situations of ingestion of fish bones.Don't feed them leftovers: "Often our food is too salty and/or spicy and may not be well tolerated by our pets, as they are not used to it, and lead to vomiting and diarrhoea", warns ZU veterinarian, Cláudia Domingues.