PET POISON TIP: NO CATS & DOGS UNDER THE MISTLETOE, PLEASE!

While it may be nice to run into your sweetie under the mistletoe, this traditional holiday plant can be potentially toxic to our animal companions.

Found throughout the United States, American mistletoe is actually a parasitic plant that lives off a variety of different tree species. If ingested in large enough quantities, mistletoe can potentially produce gastrointestinal irritation, excessive thirst and urination, a drop in blood pressure and heart rate, seizures, coma and even death in pets.

According to our experts at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (APCC), however, most animal ingestions involve small quantities—not more than the amount found in a sprig or two—and typically result in mild stomach upset that resolves with little or no treatment.
Remember, if you suspect that your pet has ingested a potentially toxic substance, contact your local veterinarian or APCC at (888) 426-4435. For more pet poison prevention tips, visit ASPCA.org.

Chocolate Toxicity in Dogs

Contributed by Deb:

Since this info is all over the web, and comes from a book, I consider it public domain. So I will post it here without any concerns:

Chocolate - active ingredient = theobromine: The half life in the dog is 17.5 hours

The Toxic dose in the dog is 100-150 mg/kg.A kilogram (kg) = 2.2 lbs. A milligram(mg) = 1/1000 of a gram

So for a 50 pound dog, a toxic dose would be roughly 2.2 grams (2200 mg) of pure chocolate.

However the concentration of theobromine varies with the formulation of the chocolate so: Milk chocolate has 44mg/oz (154mg/100gm) :toxic dose for 50 lb dog - 50 oz of milk chocolate.

Semisweet chocolate has 150 mg/oz (528mg/100gm) :toxic dose for 50 lb dog - 15 oz of semisweet chocolate

Baking chocolate 390mg/oz (1365 mg/100gm):toxic dose for 50 lb dog - 5 oz of baking chocolate

Thus a dog eating one oz of baking chocolate would have to eat almost 3 oz of semisweet or 10 oz of milk chocolate to get the same dose of theobromine.

The theobromine in candies consisting of chocolate that is coated over some other substance - as in filled candies and chocolate coated dried fruits, etc. will be more dilute than that in pure chocolate bars and solid chocolate candies.

Obviously the chocolate in milk chocolate is quite dilute and this is why many dogs can eat a piece here and there and seem not to show toxic effects, how many dogs would get ahold of 50 oz at a time? This is not true of the more concentrated forms however.

Dr Sue Bank's experience was that she had two dogs, a 95 pound one and a 60 pound one. They got ahold of 2 one pound bags of Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate pieces (a bag each). The 95 pound dog survived but the 60 pound dog ingested a toxic dose.

The problem with feeding a dog milk chocolate as a treat is that it develops a liking for chocolate and since dogs do not seem to be as sensitive to bitter tastes as humans - it may then eat the more concentrated, and thus quite toxic, baker's chocolate if it gets a chance or it will consume a toxic amount of milk or semi-sweet chocolate if it can get into a improperly stored supply.

Treatment which is best administered by someone with medical training follows the same strategy as treatment for caffeine overdose: Support Respiration Support cardiovascular function, control arrhythmia's, control electrolytes and acid-base balance. Control CNS excitation. Emesis Gastric lavage Cathartic Activated charcoal.

Administration of an activated charcoal slurry is a major component of the treatment and needs to be administered by a veterinarian - it is not a home treatment. From Kirk and Bistner's Handbook of Veterinary Procedures and Emergency Treatment 6th edition. ************ *********

Onion Poisoning

Onions cause sickness in dogs, cats and also livestock. Onions contain the toxic ingredient thiosulphate.

Pets affected by onion toxicity will develop haemolytic anaemia, where the pet’s red blood cells burst while circulating in its body.

At first, pets affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhoea. They will show no interest in food and will be dull and weak. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appears in an affected animal’s urine and it becomes breathless. The breathlessness occurs because the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number.
The poisoning occurs a few days after the pet has eaten the onion. All forms of onion can be a problem including dehydrated onions, raw onions, cooked onions and table scraps containing cooked onions and/or garlic. Left over pizza, Chinese dishes and commercial baby food containing onion, sometimes fed as a supplement to young pets, can cause illness.

Onion poisoning can occur with a single ingestion of large quantities or with repeated meals containing small amounts of onion. A single meal of 600 to 800 grams of raw onion can be dangerous whereas a ten-kilogram dog, fed 150 grams of onion for several days, is also likely to develop anaemia. The condition improves once the dog is prevented from eating any further onion

While garlic also contains the toxic ingredient thiosulphate, it seems that garlic is less toxic and large amounts would need to be eaten to cause illness.

Grapes and raisons can cause fatal kidney failure in some dogs.

Grapes and raisons can cause fatal kidney failure in some dogs. For some unknown reason, there are dogs that grapes and raisons seem to have no ill effect on while others become very ill after eating only a couple. Although the exact toxin is unknown to date, the first symptom of illness from grapes and raisons is vomiting, followed by fatal kidney failure.

The Danger of Macadamia Nuts for Dogs

Macadamia nuts are another concern. A paper written by Dr. Ross McKenzie, a Veterinary Pathologist with the Department of Primary Industries, points to the danger of raw and roasted macadamia nuts for pets.

The toxic compound is unknown but the affect of macadamia nuts is to cause locomotory difficulties. Dogs develop a tremor of the skeletal muscles, and weakness or paralysis of the hindquarters. Affected dogs are often unable to rise and are distressed, usually panting. Some affected dogs have swollen limbs and show pain when the limbs are manipulated.

Dogs have been affected by eating as few as six macadamia kernels (nuts without the shell) while others had eaten approximately forty kernels. Some dogs had also been given macadamia butter.

Luckily, the muscle weakness, while painful, seems to be of short duration and all dogs recovered from the toxicity. All dogs were taken to their veterinary surgeon.

Pets owners should not assume that human food is always safe for pets. When it comes to chocolate, onions, garlic and macadamia nuts, such foods should be given in only small quantities, or not at all. Be sure that your pets can’t get into your stash of chocolates, that food scraps are disposed of carefully to prevent onion and garlic toxicity and that your dog is prevented from picking up macadamia nuts if you have a tree in your garden.

Food that are Potentially Dangerous to Dogs

There are some foodstuffs that humans relish which cause illness and death if eaten by pets.
Chocolate, macadamia nuts and onions are good examples. Each of these foods contains chemicals which rarely cause problems for humans, but for dogs, these same chemicals can be deadly.

• Chocolate toxicity
• Onion poisoning
• The danger of macadamia nuts
• Pear pips, the kernels of plums, peaches and apricots, apple core pips (contain cyanogenic glycosides resulting in cyanide posioning)
• Potato peelings and green looking potatoes
• Rhubarb leaves
• Mouldy/spoiled foods
• Alcohol - serious intoxications have occurred when dogs have been given alcohol to drink as a "joke". Also, dogs seem to be attracted to alcoholic drinks, so drinks should not be left unattended.
• Yeast bread dough - yeast from homemade bread produce alcohol-ingestion of raw yeast dough can result in serious alcohol intoxication. Additionally, there is a risk of bloat and gastrointestinal obstruction from the dough as it rises in the stomach.
• Coffee grounds, beans & tea - caffeine is a no-no for dogs, as it acts as a stimulant and can cause severe heart acceleration and seizures
• Hops (used in home brewing)
  Tomato leaves & stems (green parts): a Nightshade plant, tomatoes contain trace elements of nicotine, mostly concentrated in the leaves and stems
• Cooked Bones - bones become brittle in the cooking process and splinter when broken. These splinters have sharp edges that can rupture/puncture the stomach lining. Amongst the most dangerous cooked bones are ham bones, pork chop, chicken and turkey legs
• Raisins and grapes
• Cigarettes, tobacco, cigars