Dangerous Household Items

1. Chocolate- Chocolate contains theobromine, a chemical stimulant that together with caffeine and theophylline, belongs to a group of methylxanthine alkaloids. Dogs cannot metabolize theobromine. If they eat chocolate, the theobromine can remain in their bloodstreams for up to 20 hours and the animal may experience an increased heart beat, hallucinations, severe diarrhea, epileptic seizures, heart attacks, internal bleeding, and eventually death.

2. Grapes and Raisins- Grapes and raisins can cause renal failure in dogs. Which in a nutshell is kidney failure. There is some skepticism regarding whether it is in fact fatal. As a ten pound dog may go into renal failure with one grape and another may be fine with a pound of grapes or raisins. Please I will literally beg you. Do not test this theory. Just trust me, avoid at all costs. 

3. Onions and Garlic- Onions and garlic contain thiosulfate, garlic contains less than onions. Thiosulfate causes anemia in cats and dogs. The levels are not lessened by cooking. There has been research to suggest puppies have died from baby food with onion powder in it. Occasional small ammounts is not usually a problem, but continous exposure to even minute ammounts can be a serious threat. (Consider this when feeding you pet leftovers!!!) I do not endorse human food for this breed ever, they tend to have food sensitivities and when free feeding human food it is near impossible to pinpoint the trigger food.

4. Macadamia Nuts- It is unknown what the mechanism in macadamia nuts is that affects dogs. But it can cause tremors, hyperthermia, and abdominal pain. Most dogs will recover from this with veterinarian  care and removing the point of exposure.

5. Beer-  The hops in beer is the culprit from your favorite brew. It can cause Malignant hypothermia in dogs, usually with fatal results. Certain breeds are especially sensitive to hop toxicity but hops should be avoided by all breeds. Even a small ammount can trigger a potentially deadly reaction.

6. Antifreeze- I realize this is obvious but when a dog ingests antifreeze i can guarantee it is not deliberate (Unless it is criminal activity). Antifreeze has a sweet flavour and it in itself is not toxic. But when it is metabolized in the liver it becomes a compound that causes kidney failure, seizures, and death. By the time symptoms present the kidneys are too damaged for the dog to survive so acting quickly in important.

7. Avocados- The leaves, pit, and stem contain Persin. The actual meat or green edible part is safe and found in common pet products like Avoderm and are wonderful for the bulldogs coat.

8. Apples and Apricot- The fruit itself is safe, the leaves and seeds are not.

9. Human Vitamins- Most human vitamins contain large ammounts of Iron, which is dangerous to our furry friends. Please only give your bulldog pet friendly vitamins. A favorite for us are the Multivit brand vitamins. 

Sources: ASPCA, Wikipedia, the Brain of Bron…