Why dog should not eat onion? - (Mar/26/2006 )
I heard that dog cannot eat onion. If they eat it, they become very ill.
But why?
Onions and garlic are other dangerous food ingredients that cause sickness in dogs, cats and also livestock. Onions and garlic contain the toxic ingredient thiosulphate. Onions are more of a danger.
Pets affected by onion toxicity will develop haemolytic anaemia, where the pet’s red blood cells burst while circulating in its body.
At first, pets affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhoea. They will show no interest in food and will be dull and weak. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appears in an affected animal’s urine and it becomes breathless. The breathlessness occurs because the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number.
The poisoning occurs a few days after the pet has eaten the onion. All forms of onion can be a problem including dehydrated onions, raw onions, cooked onions and table scraps containing cooked onions and/or garlic. Left over pizza, Chinese dishes and commercial baby food containing onion, sometimes fed as a supplement to young pets, can cause illness.
Onion poisoning can occur with a single ingestion of large quantities or with repeated meals containing small amounts of onion. A single meal of 600 to 800 grams of raw onion can be dangerous whereas a ten-kilogram dog, fed 150 grams of onion for several days, is also likely to develop anaemia. The condition improves once the dog is prevented from eating any further onion
While garlic also contains the toxic ingredient thiosulphate, it seems that garlic is less toxic and large amounts would need to be eaten to cause illness.
Vetticus
Thank you vetticus3.
If garlic is also toxic to dog, then why are they added to the dog food!!
The quantity of onions required is high enough that dogs can generally tolerate small doses of onions without any problem and moderate amounts of onion without clinically apparent disease, even though there may be measurable changes on lab test results. Cats are probably a little more sensitive to onion toxicity than dogs are. I can't find an exact quantity of onions required to cause toxicity problems in dogs, but there are several case reports of onion toxicity and they involve whole onions or sizable portions of chopped onions (like a cup or more). I think that feeding dogs meat that has been cooked with onions is pretty safe but you might want to avoid giving them the broth from around something like pot-roast if there were a lot of onions used in the cooking, just to be safe.
Large amounts of garlic will produce similar toxicity problems in both dogs and cats. I think that the amount required is not likely to be eaten by a cat but there are probably a few dogs who
would lap up a container of spilled garlic.
I'm pretty sure that dogs like the smell of onions and garlic. It does improve the taste of their food.
Among common foods, the only other significant toxicity that I can think of are recent reports of
toxicity from eating grapes and raisins that have been reported in dogs.
Vetticus
ps. when i was small, i used to feed my cat swedish bitters 
. she didnt' like it, but i was convinced it was good for her.
toxicity from eating grapes and raisins that have been reported in dogs.
Grapes??
My dog and his girlfriend like seedless grapes so much.
Recently, there was a letter in the AVMA Journal from Dr. Gwaltney-Brant and others at the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center discussing grape and raisin poisoning in dogs. Apparently, grapes and raisins can be toxic to dogs when ingested in large quantities.
The grapes and raisins came from varied sources, including being eaten off the vine directly. The dogs exhibited gastrointestinal signs including vomiting and diarrhea and then signs of kidney failure with an onset of severe kidney signs starting about 24 hours after ingestion of the grapes or raisins. The amount of grapes eaten varied between 9oz. and 2 lbs., which worked out to be between 0.41 and 1.1 oz/kg of body weight. Two dogs died directly from the toxicity, three were euthanized due to poor response to treatment and five dogs lived. Due to the severity of the signs and the potential for death, the veterinarians at the poison control center advocate aggressive treatment for any dogs suggested of ingesting excessive amounts of grapes or raisins, including inducing vomiting, stomach lavage (stomach pumping) and administration of activated charcoal, followed by intravenous fluid therapy for at least 48 hours or as indicated based on the results of blood tests for kidney damage.
I have fed my friends dogs a few grapes every now and then for years*, so I don't think there is a need to panic if a dog eats three or four grapes but if the whole bunch is missing from the table one day, it would be good to think about watching for any signs of a toxic reaction.
Vetticus
* I'm a "cat person".... so maybe my actions are just the beginning of my dog genocide.
What you should never feed your cat or dog:
• Chocolate
• Onion/Gralic/Anthing in the onion family.
• Macadamia nuts
• Pear pips, the kernels of plums, peaches and apricots, apple core pips (contain
cyanogenic glycosides resulting in cyanide posioning)
• Potato peelings and green looking potatoes
• Rhubarb leaves
• Mouldy/spoiled foods
• Alcohol
• Yeast dough
• Coffee grounds, beans & tea (caffeine)
• Hops (used in home brewing)
• Tomato leaves & stems (green parts)
• Broccoli (in large amounts)
• Raisins and grapes
• Cigarettes, tobacco, cigars
• Some types of mushrooms
My dog eats a big bunch of grape without being ill, and he likes it very much.
He is a golden retriever.
You might want to have your vet check the doggie out.
Snopes has confirmed, in my mind at least, the grapes and raisins aren't too good for doggies.
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cl...&articleid=2409
Grapes/Raisins
Veterinary & Aquatic Services Department, Drs. Foster & Smith, Inc.
Toxin
Unknown if it is a mycotoxin (produced by a fungus), pesticide, heavy metal, or a yet-unidentified toxin.
Source
Grapes and raisins.
General Information
Many dogs like raisins and grapes. They should only be given in a very limited amount on an infrequent basis, and should not be left where a dog or cat can have access to them. The unknown toxin damages the kidneys.
Toxic Dose
One known amount is 1 ounce of fruit per 2.2 pounds of body weight.
Signs
Vomiting, diarrhea, lack of appetite, lethargy, or abdominal pain.
Immediate Action
Induce vomiting and seek veterinary attention.
Veterinary Care
General treatment: The induction of vomiting may be continued, gastric lavage is performed, and activated charcoal administered, if needed.
Supportive treatment:
The animal will be monitored and treated for kidney disease/failure with fluids, diet change, and medications.
Specific treatment:
Unavailable.
Prognosis
Variable
Perhaps because golden retrievers are quite big dogs, that the grapes aren't affecting him as much as it would a small dog. Or perhaps he has super powers.
Vetticus
Thank you vetticus3.