Food Safety for Animals During the Holidays
The end-of year holidays are a time for family, friends, and food. But it’s important to remember that some food is unsafe for animal family members. In fact, many holiday staples can be toxic to animals. Keep reading to learn about food safety for animals!
Keep your animal family member safe from harmful foods such as:
- Fatty foods – Turkey skin, gravy, ham, bacon, and other greasy foods can cause pancreatitis, a serious inflammation of a vital organ, the pancreas.
- Cooked bones – Cooked turkey bones can splinter and cause serious injury if ingested.
- Onions, Garlic, Chives – These ingredients damage red blood cells in dogs and cats and cause illness and anemia.
- Desserts – Some may contain toxic ingredients such as chocolate, raisins, and xylitol (a sweetener found in sugar-free gum and candy).
- Macadamia nuts – If ingested, animal family members can have muscle weakness, vomiting, diarrhea, and high fever.
We understand that your dog and cat are family! These are some foods that are safe to share with them:
- Food Toxicity & Safety
- Cooked, boneless turkey meat (no skin or bones)
- Chicken or turkey broth
- Plain white rice
- Sweet potatoes (without butter or brown sugar)
- Green beans (without salt or butter)
- Apples (cored and sliced)
- Bananas (sliced)
By following these tips about food safety for animals, you can help to ensure that your animal family member has a safe and healthy holiday!
