Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Dangerous Canine Treats

By Owen Jones


Every dog likes to be given a tasty tidbit as a treat and every dog-owner likes to give them. But do you know whether the dog treats that you are giving are healthy or dangerous for your pet, because there are both sorts on the market. In fact, there are hundreds of types of dog treats of all sizes, shapes and colours.

No matter what you feed your dog, it is worth checking whether he has eaten it all and if not why not. There could be a number of factors, but every dog owner ought to know how much their dog usually eats and what he especially likes. Not eating usually is often a sign that your dog is ill or going to become ill. Some foods can cause this sign though as well.

Treats that are made to scrub your dog's teeth often come in the shape of a bone, not that that is significant to the dog, He knows it is not a bone certain enough. But most dogs do like them. A difficult can happen if your dog has powerful jaws and attempts to consume big chunks in one go.

These large, slightly soggy chunks can become wedged in the throat or intestines resulting in blockages. Often these blockages will dissolve away over a couple of hours, but if they are causing breathing problems or discomfort, you may need to take your dog to a vet.

Rawhide chews also fall into this category although they come with concerns of their own as well. Rawhide chews are good for scraping plaque and tartar off your dog's teeth that would otherwise lead to bacteria, bad teeth and bad breath, but they can also become stuck in the animal's throat or intestines, so attempt to buy treats that your dog cannot swallow but has to chew on.

Rawhide is an animal by-product, so it has to be preserved to prevent it going rancid. Attempt to find out what that preservative is and find out whether it is perilous or not. It has been reported that some countries have been using arsenic to conserve their chews, this is obviously not a good idea and is one of the most dangerous dog treats.

Chocolate is poisonous to dogs. Not a lot of adults and very few kids are aware of this, because you frequently see individuals giving their dog a square of chocolate. The reason these dogs do not die a horrible death is that most of the chocolate that we can buy these days does not contain much chocolate. It is chocolate-flavoured paste. Look on the list of ingredients on the wrapper of your next bar of chocolate to verify what I mean.

However, different countries have different regulations concerning what can be called chocolate. The European Union is pretty good, America not so decent and Thailand is atrocious. Normally, bakers' chocolate is the most powerful, which makes a chocolate covered chocolate cake the most dangerous for dogs - exactly the type of thing they can steal from the picnic blanket.

Vomitting, uneven heartbeat, 'craziness', hyperactivity, a visit to the vets for a stomach pump or death are usually the result.

Dogs love bones and they are healthy for them as well (which makes you wonder why so many dog chews are purchased). However, not all bones are healthy for dogs. Cats grind everything up small, which is why they can be safely given fish, chicken and turkey bones. However dogs tend to wolf things down, so never give these bones to your dog.

Fish bones are fine and sharp and can stick in the throat or gut as with humans needing surgery, but chicken and turkey bones splinter into these fine slithers too when crunched. Do not give them to a dog as a treat.




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