Foods that Can Cause Seizures in Dogs

I believe that commercial dog food is a culprit for many illnesses in a dog, and that it contributed to or may even have caused my dog's seizures. Cory, my dog had seizures and they gradually lowered in occurrences once I ceased feeding him kibble and canned dog food; then, five years ago, they stopped completely and I never once put him on any anti- epileptic medications, that is why I have come to this conclusion. But, did you know that there are other foods that can harm your dog?s health, even causing seizures? A few of these foods were shocking to me!

*Chocolate is an absolute no-no. Almost everyone knows that chocolate can cause seizures and even death in a dog. One day Cory got into Jayson?s stash of Halloween chocolate. Before my son caught him, he had eaten a lot. Cory was very happy to have been eating chocolate as was evidenced by how hard his tail was wagging. Immediately, Jayson called poison control and followed their instructions to pour hydrogen peroxide down Cory's throat, which in turn, induced vomiting. Lucky for us, I had a bottle of the stuff in the first aid cupboard! Jayson took Cory outside for this messy task. Cory is fortunate that my son caught him eating the chocolate in order to get it out of him in time. If you suspect your dog has consumed chocolate and you are not sure when it happened, call your veterinarian immediately. If you do indeed, catch your dog in the act of eating chocolate, you should use the Hydrogen Peroxide treatment. Dark chocolate is more dangerous than milk chocolate.

* Onions or Products Containing Onion Powder. Onions have disulfides and sulfoxides in them that can lead to the destruction of red blood cells, which makes dogs anemic.

* Raw Fish. Distinctly if you are located in the Pacific Northwest, you should know that, if eaten raw, salmon and other fish often carry a fluke and that fluke carries a bacteria that is known to cause seizures and even death in canines. Once you have cooked the fish first, the danger is eliminated, even though you need to be careful and make sure you remove all the bones before allowing your dog any of it. I am no scientist and don't have the specific formula, but I have heard it said that if you freeze the fish at a certain temperature, the extreme cold will kill off the fluke and destroy the bacteria, thus eliminating the problem, you'll have to do the research for length of time and the required temperature before you try this.

* Foods Containing Nutmeg Not that it ever occurred to me to sprinkle nutmeg on Cory?s chow, but apparently it can cause tremors, seizures and death. Be sure not to give your god pieces of a treat that might have nutmeg as an ingredient, and this one is easy to follow.

* Foods Containing Mushrooms There are mushrooms out there, especially the ones found in the wild, that contain toxins that have been shown to cause problems for canines. Because I have this knowledge, I know to keep Cory away from the mushrooms when we go on our walks. The "Leave It" command is among the first commands your dog should learn.

* Food Made for Cats Poor Cory, he loves to lick the plate clean after our kitty's done eating, and now that I found out about this one, he won't be able to anymore. Basically, cat food contains too much fat and protein for a dog's digestive needs. You might still let your dog eat the crumbs left over from your cat, but you should not replace your dog's food with cat food.

* Apple Seeds are specific no-no's. Apple seeds and other pits from fruit contain the poison cyanide, which can cause seizures.

* Raisins and Grapes When I first learned that grapes and raisins can cause kidney failure in dogs it was at the same time I was reading a training book for dogs that actually advocated giving raisins as treats! I called the person who wrote the training manual to discuss this and she dismissed my issues because she said she has fed her dogs raisins for as long as she has been training them. All I can say is be aware of the risks and do more research before giving grapes or raisins to your dog.

* Egg whites. feeding your dog the entire egg is not a problem, the issue comes with the splitting of the whites and the yolk, the whites of an egg contain a protein named avidin, and it actually depletes your dog's body of the essential B vitamins. The good news is that the yolk contains the antidote to this protein, and so serving the egg in its entirety is nothing to concern yourself over.