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One Way NOT to Save Money During Hard Times

By Pat Racimora on August 27, 2009 at 9:01 AM in Current Affairs

webjedi

Most of us see companion animals as our kids, but with a lot more hair. And, as you have probably noticed, we here at No Quarter are animal lovers. And, as times get tougher, we often find ourselves getting more creative with taking care of needs. After all, “necessity is the mother of invention.”

I see friends making some amazing adjustments: growing food instead of a lawn, learning how to alter still-good but older clothing to fit today’s styles, cooking from scratch. But one saving tip I see is of great concern unless it is done thoughtfully.

Instead of throwing out leftovers, people may be giving them to their dogs and cats for dinner. That can be OK, but beware of some food items that you might not think would be a problem. After all, we humans like these foods (some of them are even good for us) and our dogs and cats are almost human, right?

I’ll get right to it. Everyone wants to make sure that their pets do NOT get fed (or are able to get hold of when you’re not looking) the following:

Avocado
Chocolate (all forms)
Coffee (all forms)
Fatty foods
Macadamia nuts
Moldy or spoiled foods
Onions, onion powder
Raisins and grapes
Salt
Raw meat
Yeast dough
Garlic
Products sweetened with xylitol (e.g., sugarless candy)
Alcoholic beverages

(From a list put out by the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control of food-based causes of death and illness in pets.)

So, when feeding what we like to the fuzzy ones you love, please be very careful. In our culture we use, for example, lots of onion and garlic (in solid or powder form) in many dishes that might be shared with a pet.

Unfortunately I have very recent first-hand knowledge of the ordeal that can result when one’s beloved non-human companion gets hold of a food that is good for us, but poison to them. While having dinner with friends last week, Jedi (pictured above) managed to get into the back of a cupboard and pull out a bag of onion powder. We came home to a house dusted in white. I knew onion powder was not good for dogs, but he seemed fine. So we took no action. (Here is where a little knowledge is a dangerous thing!) What we should have done was take him to the nearest animal emergency hospital and had his stomach pumped. Turns out it takes days for the toxin to destroy their red blood cells sufficiently to show any symptoms of a horrible type of anemia. Long story short: A hospital stay, a blood transfusion and over $2,000 later, Jedi is hopefully on the mend. It will be weeks before we know for sure.

One last word: Thanks to a tip from my friend, Dr. Ken Pope, a wonderful human being who devotes much of his life to caring for sick and abused animals, I called the ASPCA Poison Control Center. This is an amazing service! For a $60 fee you talk to a vet who is an expert in toxicology. And that’s not all. They tell you what to do and they will also prepare a report for your vet and FAX it as soon as you give your vet the case number and a special phone number. And that’s still not all! For the same $60, you can call again and again, and so can your vet. (I wish there was something like this for people!).

  • http://me414@wordpress.com Mary Ellen (Nunly)

    Thank you so much for this article! I stopped feeding my dog pet food after she became very ill ($500 in tests at the vet) after eating from a bad bag of dog food. I found out later that many dogs had been becoming ill from this food but there was no recall. That’s when I decided to look into what is safe to fee my dog and what isn’t. Your list is even more extensive than the one I had found. I knew about the raisins, grapes, chocolate, onion).

    Although the garlic is one thing I didn’t know, and if I recall, I even saw that a bag of dog food listed that as one of the ingredients. Thank you for clearing that up. I usually don’t put garlic in her food, but I have added some salt (a small amount). I’ll stop doing that.

    Since I’ve switched her to homemade dog meals, her weight has been much better (not as fat) and she coat shines like there’s no tomorrow.

    There are excellent dog food recipes on line, and the dog cookies I make her are good enough for a human to eat…(no sugar either!).

    • makeji

      There is nothing wrong with giving dogs or cats raw meat. In fact, there are a number of raw food diets available for pets. The digestive tracts of dogs and cats is shorter than that of humans and does not allow salmonella or other bacteria a long enought time to settle in. Dogs are very comfortable eating rotten food in the wild and while disgusting to most of us – doesn’t seem to bother them esthetically or from a digestive basis. Cats prefer fresh meat. Outdoor cats kill and eat birds, rodents and bugs and thrive because they get the benefit of fresh meat, plus what ever their prey has eaten.

      Garlic can be given safely, however, not raw garlic, but garlic oil is as effective an antibiotic for dogs and cats as it is for human.

      The other items listed, however, on on the money.

      • lorac

        Dogs are omnivores like we are, so they don’t have to have meat. But definitely give cats meat (even if in cans) because they’re true carnivores. Their digestive tracts are relatively shorter than ours or dogs, so that the meat doesn’t rot in their guts and sicken them!

  • ladydawnelle

    Sorry

    my dog gets store brand dog food and I sometimes give here some small bites of left over pizza

    she’s fine (yes that’s confirmed by her VET)

    • ladydawnelle

      her not here

  • HARP

    Do not buy dog food that contains ANY grains. It is only used for filler and will cause skin conditions in your little treasure.

    • reddragon22

      Best cat and dog food is from Flint River Valley Ranch. Human-grade, baked so at to lose less nutrition. They drop ship right to your house. 9-lb bag of cat food feeds three cats for a month and costs about $25.

      http://www.flintriver.com/

  • Tammy

    Thanks for the info.
    I just disagree about the raw meat since I have my dog on a raw meat diet combined with a food called Sojo.

    She never gets sick, all of her allergies went away(years ago) and she’s 12 years old and acts like a puppy. Several of my neighbors have switched their dogs to this diet and have had equally excellent results. Obviously, it’s up the owner to decide what’s best for their dog.

    I do avoid all of the other things you listed, and it’s a good reminder. Thank you!

    • jwrjr

      I thought it a bit odd that animals which are carnivores in the wild should not be fed raw meat.

    • Pat Racimora

      Hi Tammy,

      I know that dogs can eat raw meat and be OK, and the BARF (yes that’s not a typo) diet is heavy in raw foods and based on the notion that this is what dogs would have in the wild.

      BUT, here’s what I get from the professionals. Dogs have been our companions now for over 3,000 years. They have been eating our food. Raw meat has too much protein and can lead over the longer haul to other problems.

      Again, this is not my specialty, but I was forced to learn a lot quickly in the last week.

    • MG-PUMA

      Agree with Tammy re the raw meat diet for animals – the only thing you have to watch for is worms and other parasites.

      Puma-purrr….:)

      MG-PUMA

  • Liz

    Great Advice!! Anything to help our furry friends is awesome. One question – I’ve asked about garlic and it’s actually very beneficial to dogs. It’s good for their blood and is a natural way to help fight fleas. I’ve actually triple checked the garlic thing because I want to avoid pesticide use on my dogs for fleas and try to go with natural methods.

    • Pat Racimora

      Oh no–Liz. PLEASE be careful with garlic. It’s not as bad as onions and onion powder for cats and dogs, but in excess it will lead to the same anemia that plagues Jedi now. A little as a flavor enhancer probably is OK, but this can be cumulative I understand, and the pet will get a diagnosis of anemia and no one will be able to figure out exactly why. And here’s the real problem–no one is quite sure where that tipping point is in individual cats and dogs.

      Here are a couple of sites.

      http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1+1418&aid=2414

      http://www.vetinfo.com/dtoxin.html

  • Patience

    Sorry about your adorable pup Pat — I hope he’ll be okay. And thanks for the info.

  • Scranton4Hillary

    My Westie has horrible skin problems–enviornmental allergies. He’s now taking ATOPICA 50mg every other day and has shown great improvement. I try to feed Bailey dog food with as little grains as possible. Not always easy to do. He loves Cooper cheese and I do toss him a few small pieces now and then. Thanks for posting the list of foods not to feed your dog.
    My VET has a list hanging on the wall in the waiting room.

    • ~~JustMe~~

      I had a westie and the vet told me to give him a vit “A” capsule for his skin.It worked well you may want to check this with your vet.

      I love me a westie so cute. Sadly lost him in the food scare.

      • Portia Elizabeth

        So sorry you lost your baby! Terriers are such wonderful, happy guys. They only see joy. (I have a cairn terrier whe shares his life and joy with me.)

        • http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

          I’m sorry to hear abt your loss, too, Just Me – my heart goes out to you.

          Pat, thank you so much for this informative article. I hope your little guy has a full recovery as quickly as possible(and could he BE any cuter??).

    • miriam

      I raised Westies for a number of years, so I’m aware of their susceptability to dry skin problems. My dogs responded beautifully to a daily half teaspoon of olive oil in their kibble. You might try it.

  • Sassy

    Thanks so much for the timely info…I will pass it along to our doggie pals.
    I hope everything goes well with yours!

  • Ginger

    What a cutie-pie you have there! I sure hope he recovers back to his sweet self.

  • Linda Anselmi

    Thank you Tricia I am so glad you wrote about this.

    I too had a recent garlic episode with one of my dogs, fortunately she was already suffering from a stomach up set and she managed to expel everything – from both ends. We just had the expense of some test to confirm she was okay. I’m not sure all vets are aware of what garlic does. Since there is not an immediate noticeable reaction with the anemia.

    And yes, dogs can ingest small amounts and be okay. There are dog foods and even dog treats with garlic in them. But I am not about to trust dog food companies to ensure they don’t put in too much. And in our current cooking style there is tons of garlic in everything. I know because I have a very dear friend who is highly allergic. And has been hospitalized for it several times. And half the time the doctors don’t believe her. This last time they managed to serve her chicken broth with garlic in it in the hospital, and got to see her get violently sick 4-6 hours after ingesting it.

  • lorac

    Pat, by any chance are you talking about Ken Pope the psychologist? I’ve read a lot of his articles. That’s pretty cool if you know him.

    • Pat Racimora

      Yes, lorac, he is an outstanding scholar as well as an angel to animals that would have no one else to care for them. He gives of his time and treasure to help those who are in the greatest of need. I have had the honor of knowing him for many years.

      • lorac

        Well, I’m sure he feels the same honor knowing a philosopher, humanitarian, and artist as yourself! :)

        • Pat Racimora

          How very kind! Thank you lorac.

  • ~~JustMe~~

    Hope Jedi makes a full recovery Pat. There is nothing worse than our furry family unable to explain how they feel.
    I will be keeping this info close at hand.

    Thank you!

  • Karma

    Thanks for writing this up Pat. I saw your post on the other thread and was shocked onion powder or garlic was so toxic.

    I am so sorry that Jedi and your family had to experience such a thing. Truly the only small positive in it all is sharing that info with the rest of us.

    Thanks again.

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  • Diana

    The problem we’re having around here is an awful lot of people are vacating their homes and not taking their pets with them. I have inherited now 3 cats to add to my own 2. I also inherited a small mixed breed dog. There are 2 Doberman that are running the neighborhood we can’t catch that go through the trash. We had two pit bulls left behind that weren’t friendly, so we couldn’t capture and find them homes. In the next city the pack of wild dogs is growing and animal groups are going out with 50 pound bags of dog food to feed them. Trying to make some of them friendly enough to find homes for, but the mistrust is there.

    To top it all off someone stole my male Yorkie when I let him out to go to the bathroom. He just came back home Friday, a month later. Very skinny and his long fur needs to be shaved. He was also attacked by something or someone, it looks like someone stabbed him twice in the top of his head, then left him for dead, but he made it back home. We missed each other.

    Thank you for the reminder.

    • Pat Racimora

      Diana, thanks for exposing this serious problem of abandoning pets as well. Those who take them in are Saints in my book!

      • Diana

        Pat, I just saw the LA shelter doing the adopt a pet on the news. She said they’ve had to euthanize a record number of animals for May, June, and July this year. I believe she said it was over 150,000 a month for all three months. They even tried an adopt one pet get another one for free. It’s heartbreaking. I have no idea how many they’ve had to kill in my city, I’m almost afraid to look at the data.

    • http://me414@wordpress.com Mary Ellen (Nunly)

      It could be that someone stole your dog to be used as “bait” for a dog fighting ring. They usually take small dogs. Could be your dog was lucky enough to get away and those “stab” marks could have been bite marks. Even though my dog is larger, I keep my gate locked. She’s too big to lift over the fence, and she barks like hell if anyone she doesn’t know comes around.

      I’m so glad you got your dog back!

    • Portia Elizabeth

      Diana — I’m so glad your Yorkie made it home! Who knows what traumas that poor baby suffered, but thank goodness he’s safe now. And bless you for taking in strays. With so many losing their homes now I’m afraid the shelters will be over-run with homeless pets. It’s gratifying to know that your neighbors are trying to help.

    • Ferd Berfle

      We also inherited a dog when we purchased our home. The former owner left her in a cold, unheated garage during the negotiations (about 20 deg F). When we took possession, we also took the dog, who was in desperate need of grooming and attention. She is a great dog who loves to “smile”. Shame on the former owner and anyone else who would do such a thing to an innocent animal. I have zero tolerance for those who abuse animals.

  • http://me414@wordpress.com Mary Ellen (Nunly)

    I’m sorry, that last comment of mine was meant in reply to Diana’s comment above.

    • Diana

      Thank you all very much. I never thought I’d see him again, but there he was one morning trying to jump into the front windows. He’d have never made it, he’s so tiny. But, bless his heart he was trying and wouldn’t quit barking to get my attention even though he was injured.

  • Peggy Sue

    Thanks for the article, Pat. I never knew onion powder was that toxic to pups. Not that I leave it laying around, but with critters you never know what they can get into. In fact, one of my Berners [as a pup] managed to grab my purse off the kitchen counter and ate the leather shoulder strap [a triple-twisted piece of leather], about 18 inches long. I don’t know how she got it down but it took a stomach pump to bring it up.

    Hope your pup is doing well. What a cutie!

    Btw, I called the National Poison Center when one of my collies swallowed a bar of flea soap. This was years ago, but they were very helpful and calmed me down from a near panic attack. Once I got Misty to upchuck the soap she was fine [though she was blowing bubbles for awhile].

    Never a dull moment with kids or dogs!

  • Portia Elizabeth

    Pat — thank you so much for sharing Jedi’s story and for the list. I thought I knew most of the potential dangers, but I certainly never thought of salt! Jedi looks and sounds like a treasure, so I know you would’ve done anything for him. I’d rather do without than deny my fursons what they need. Some might say, “It’s just a pet”, but my guys are family. Unlike my son, who only seems to call when he needs something, my fursons give me their attention every day.

  • Kelly

    You need to see this ! And now very inportant that you do.

    http://mobsrus.ning.com/forum/topics/glenn-beckplease-watch

    and this

    Jennifer Rubin Reports with Michael Steele: Don’t Believe The Hype, The Public Option isn’t Dead

    http://www.pjtv.com/v/2348

    MSNBC & The Great Liberal Narrative: The Truth About The Tyranny of Political Correctness

    http://www.pjtv.com/v/2343

    And this This is a wooper “A MUST SEE ” oH HOW msnbc STILL CONTINUE PLAYING THEIR NASTY GAMES TO HOLD THE AFRICAN AMERICAN at bay with them. Now watch as we all saw how MSNBC-NBC -played their game during the election but, wait they really went to far and you will see..just watch. This African American is sueing MSNBC for what they had done. People are jumping democrat-msnbc-obama ship at a fast rate.But, at that tea party there wer many Africvan Americas who are standing with “We The People ” to fight against the health bill and gun rights.MSNBC will play anything as the race game by useing the African Americans in their agenda.but many have now awoke and will not be held at bay with the wrong msnbc did-the wrong with what Obama lied and lied now they see he is nothing more the a Liar- The wrong MSNBC did in playing a race against the other. we stand no more. it’s we the people who will stand together MSNBC NBC MSN AND FIGHT YOUR LIES. We are free and our freedom is not your to take from any of “we The People” It’s not your choice to take over our health providers or insurance to throw us into the government control pile… NO THANKS !
    VOTE ALL THE BUMS OUT SHUT MSNBC DOWN !

    MSNBC & The Great Liberal Narrative: The Truth About The Tyranny of Political Correctness

    http://www.pjtv.com/v/2343

  • Scout

    There is such a service for humans. It’s called The Poison Control Center, and it is one of the greatest unsung success stories of public health.

    There are local numbers listed in the first pages of phone books, but you can call any number from any place and you will be connected to a toxicologist.

    And it doesn’t cost sixty dollars. It’s free!

    As a doc, I call them occasionally. They were the only ones who could help me when a patient got stung by a catfish, an incredibly rare event in my area–even Fish and Game recommended the PCC.

    • Pat Racimora

      Thanks Scout. I have never had occasion to use such a service but I am glad it is there. I HAVE seen it in our phone directory, now that I think of it.

  • Boxer Mum 06

    I’m not sure if anyone else received the email that was going viral a while back about the cocoa mulch thing and that it is toxic to dogs and cats.

    I did some searching to see if there is any truth to it and apparently there is, I’ve attached a link below with more details.

    http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/cocoamulch.asp

  • Don X

    Talk about turning a negative into a positive! Your sad experience with Jedi could have been kept to yourself. Instead, you have shared it with a broad audience that may help a lot of people avoid some terrible mistakes. Thanks for your proactive stance and attempt to educate dog owners about food hazards for dogs. This is Doggie 101 for dog lovers.

  • Say What?

    Thanks for educating us dog owners. I hope Jedi is romping around soon.

  • http://noquarter foxyladi14

    thanks for all the wonderful information.

  • Typewriterstreaming

    This is excellent. Thanks so much, very, very appreciated.

  • http://! stodgie

    right now with one of my pets i am shoveling pills and eyes drops to the point she doesn’t much life me right now. herpes infection in the respiratory area and affecting the eyes. throw in the fact she has asthma.

    what do you do when a pet is ill? well you do the best you can. fortuanately i can afford a good vet but i feel for those who love their pets and are having a hard time.

    i hold my ire for those who take a pet and then treat it like refuse. they are the ones who leave them on the side of a busy freeway or even worse.

    pets are work and be prepared to spend money if you need to do so. those are the facts and face them before bringing an animal who depends on your good will into your home please. they are a gift and show love even when we don’t deserve it.

    • Clara

      Excellent points, Stodgie. Many don’t even consider the long term cost of having a pet and being financially able to take care of it properly.

      One Sunday morning as I was coaching my oldest Golden, Rusty, to swim his laps in an indoor heated pool for dogs, the topic of what we dog owners spend on our pets came up. The owner of the facility gave me the figure of $60 thousand over the dog’s lifetime. That is unconfirmed by me, but having 3 Goldens in the household over the last 13 years makes a believer out of me!

  • Susan

    Please add onions to the list. Also, you can add cooked rice to your dogs diet daily or a few times a week to help save on cost. It’s good for them and they love it.

    • Tricia Spiegel

      Onions are on the list, Susan. Stuck in the middle there.

      Yes, there are many table scraps that are OK. My vet gives her own dogs leftover veggies (if not cooked with onion or garlic), chicken, fish, and rice along with dry food for dinner.

      My dogs LOVE squash (steamed). They will do tricks for it.

  • Margaret

    I love all you No Quarter animal lovers! Whether I am employed, underemployed, or unemployed, my cats get Wellness cat food. Good stuff, and wasn’t part of that recall awhile back.

  • Margaret

    Hope your baby dog will be just fine!

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