Each year thousands of pets are inadvertently poisoned in their own home, some with fatal results.  As a general rule dogs and cats should not be fed human food, even as a treat.

Hopefully, most owners know that all forms of chocolate are toxic to dogs.  The darker the chocolate, the more dangerous it is.  Even white chocolate is a problem.  The same chemical found in chocolate, methylxanthines is also found in coffee and caffeine.  While these types of beverages are probably less attractive to pets, I have seen some dogs and cats take generous laps of a cola soda.

Keep your pets away from grapes, raisins and macadamia nuts.  While you may not directly feed that to them, the raisins and macadamia nuts often end up in cookies, which can get fed as treats.  Do not give the pet milk with the cookies or otherwise!  It can be hard to digest and result in diarrhea.

Xylitol is used as a sweetener in many products such as gum, candy, baked goods and toothpaste.  It can cause insulin release in pets, which leads to liver failure.  Signs of such toxicosis include vomiting, lethargy and loss of coordination.  Eventually, the poisoning will result in recumbancy and seizures.  Liver failure generally occurs within several days.

While onions, garlic, chives and avocado may be good for humans they are not for pets.  More obviously, do not feed raw or undercooked meat, eggs and bones to your dogs and cats.  They can contain Salmonella and E. coli bacteria and, again, the bones can cause choking. If you are baking keep them away from the unbaked dough, which may contain yeast.  The yeast in uncooked dough can cause the stomach or intestines to rupture.  Finally, alcohol can be fatal to pets.  Do not tempt them with it.

Without listing all other types of poisonous products that your pets can ingest, I caution the pet owner to keep their counters clear of both human and animal medications, especially the chewable variety.  It is amazing the number of human and veterinary medicine bottles I have seen become very expensive chew toys (not because the medicine is gone, but because of the vet bill).

Cleaners, insecticides, rodenticides, chemicals and fertilizers should be stored in cabinets and closets where pets and small children cannot get to them.  Keep the pets off the lawn after it has been fertilized or treated for bugs until the product has been watered in and broken down.

The common household and garden plants to keep the pets away from are lilies (They are especially toxic to cats even in small amounts.), schefflera, sago palm, azaleas, oleander, amaryllis, chrysanthemums, English ivy, peace lilies and pothos, among others.

If you think your pet has ingested something poisonous, act promptly but calmly.  Definitely do not “wait and see” if the pet will get better.  Sometimes the pet will appear normal for several hours or days.  Instead, try to determine what the pet has eaten.  Then call your veterinarian and see if they recommend that you induce vomiting.  Finally, bring your pet, the package showing the contents of the product and any vomited waste to your veterinarian’s office immediately thereafter.

I recommend that you keep a poison first aid kit containing a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, 3% concentration, to induce vomiting if recommended, plus a turkey baster or other large syringe to administer the hydrogen peroxide.  Also, include saline eye solution and artificial tear gel to flush and lubricate eyes.  Finally, have some Dawn dishwashing liquid for bathing after skin contamination.

You can learn more about this topic and the other products, plants and foods that are harmful to your pets by going to the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center.