Treating Pets Safely At Christmas

Festivities around Christmas often include edible treats. We’re told that Christmas is a time for indulgence and there is a great range of delicious, comforting and seasonal food and drink on offer. Our pets are a part of the family, so it’s not unusual for us to want to share these indulgences and festivities with them. Pets aren’t humans, however, so what do we need to bear in mind to treat them safely over this Christmas period?

Toxic Foods

We already know that there are human foods which aren’t safe for dogs and cats, but what about Christmas foods specifically? Are there any festive foods which we need to keep well out of the way of pets to avoid veterinary visits over the festive period?

Raisins and Sultanas
There are lots of festive favourites which include raisins and sultanas. From mince pies to Christmas pudding and many others. Raisins contain a compound, which is so far unidentified, which is linked to sudden kidney failure in dogs and cats. It’s important to keep any foods containing raisins or grapes out of reach.

Macadamia Nuts
Think anything from a mixed nut selection to deserts, stuffing or nut roast. Macadamia nuts are toxic for dogs.

Chocolate
Chocolate is in abundance during the festive period. From advent calendars and traditional boxes of chocolates to share, to yule log and other desserts. Chocolate contains Theobromine which is toxic to cats and dogs. Theobromine causes reactions from stomach upset to heart arrythmia and can even be fatal. Dark chocolate, cocoa powder, cocoa butter and cocoa beans have the highest concentration of Theobromine, with milk chocolate, white chocolate and chocolate flavoured treats containing lower amounts.

Alcohol
Alcohol is a poisonous substance for dogs and cats, so please do not be tempted to share any alcohol with your pets this Christmas. A fatal quantity of alcohol for the size of our pets is only a very small amount and alcohol poisoning results in breathing difficulties, seizures, tremors and even death.

Onion
Remember to keep that onion gravy or sage and onion stuffing out of your pet’s bowl. Onions, and the onion family, which include leeks and garlic, cause anaemia and even kidney damage in dogs and cats.

Sweeteners
Whether sweeteners for your tea, or sugar free foods, sweeteners like Xylitol are toxic for cats and dogs. They can cause symptoms from lethargy and sickness to seizures and liver failure.

Rich and Problematic Foods

Other foods which should be fed with caution.

Roast Meat and Vegetables
Roasting in oils and fats increases the fat content of foods, so that foods which are ordinarily fine to feed your pets, such as meat, become very rich and high in fat. If you’re planning to share any roast meat with your pets I recommend feeding only a small amount. Rich foods such as this can upset your pet’s digestion, potentially causing diarrhoea, flatulence and sickness. If your pet is susceptible to pancreatitis, roasted meat and vegetables should be avoided.

Bones
Cooked bones should never be fed to pets. Cooking bones makes them brittle and likely to splinter. Splintered bones can puncture your pet’s digestive tract causing internal, potentially life threatening injuries.
Raw bones should be fed with caution. Bones should be an appropriate size for your pet to avoid the possibility of them being swallowed, and always under supervision. Broken teeth are always a risk when feeding raw bones.

Healthy Options

Especially over the festive period when routines are all up in the air enrichment solutions can be great to keep your pets occupied and calm. Lickimats, Kongs and other enrichment toys and food ideas are suitable for dogs and cats. Using these means that your pet has an interesting treat or activity too, prepared for them, meaning that there is less temptation to share unhealthy human treats with them.

Overfeeding

Be aware that even large dogs are often much smaller than humans, and so supplementary treats and titbits can have a large impact on a pet’s daily nutrition. Especially for smaller pets, it is very easy to overfeed them, leading to obesity. Treats should only make up 10% of your pet’s daily energy intake.

Digestive upsets

Digestive upset can be caused by changes to your pet’s diet. Feeding human foods or treats which they aren’t usually fed, especially when these are high in fat, can lead to diarrhoea, flatulence, sickness or other symptoms. The microbiome population changes to suit the foods which your pet eats, but this is not a quick transition. Gradual changes in diet give the microbiome time to adjust to new foods.

Digestive Support

Supporting your pet’s digestion has many benefits which I have spoken about in previous articles. During times of stress and changing diet especially, digestive supplements can support the gut and microbiome health. This support can improve the robustness of the digestion, and microbiome. Due to the direct links between the gut and other areas of the body, supporting gut health also helps to improve health more generally, including relieving stress and anxiety, and reducing itchy skin, as examples. Digestive supports are also beneficial during recovery from digestive upset. Fibres help to settle upset digestion. Probiotics and prebiotics support the population of beneficial gut bacteria, helping to build a strong and diverse microbiome population. Yeasts can strengthen the immune system. Each component of a digestive supplement, such as Max Gut Health, work together to boost digestive health generally, but at times when the digestive system may face greater challenges, they can support the recovery of the microbiome from gut dysbiosis and a return to settled digestion.

Summary

This Christmas period please be mindful of potential dangers and foods which should not be shared with your pets. Sharing too much human food is likely to upset your pet’s digestion, but digestive support supplements can go some way to alleviating this and strengthening their microbiome health.