URGENT/ Grapes and Raisins are toxic to dogs

I felt I had to share this with everyone since it happened to us the other night. I was washing grapes and started to toss a few to our dog, Sage, who loved them. After sharing 11 or so grapes, I remembered seeing an e-mail a while back that warned that grapes are toxic to dogs. I immediately went to the internet to check and sure enough, they can cause kidney failure and sometimes death. Since it was almost 11PM, I called the ASPCA Poison Control Hotline at 888-426-4435, and was connected with a Vet who told me that I needed to make her vomit immediately to get them from her system. I was told to use hydrogen peroxide and the dose for Sage was 3 tablespoons for a 50lb dog. I used a turkey baster to administer it and then had to run her around to get it working. It didn't work the first time and they said to dose her again, which I did, and then run her around for 10 minutes. We were successful and she vomited all of the grapes (that was a real fun time. Fishing around white foamy dog vomit to count the grapes.) But all were expelled. We still had to watch her and take her to the Vet's today for baseline bloodwork.

Since she didn't show any signs of the poisoning, which are spontaneous vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, depression and anorexia, she should be alright. Usually sings of kidney failure occurs within the first 48 hours, but luckily our Sage friend seems fine. The reason she may have dodged this bullet was because I realized right away that we needed to attend to her and the grapes were only in her system for about an hour.

Apparently, there isn't enough study done at this time to say how many grapes a dog can tolerate. Some may become ill with just 1 grape (even in a large dog) and other dogs can consume a whole bunch and be fine. Raisins are more toxic than grapes.

I'm copying an article below that cover this and lists all other poisonous items, some of which I was surprised to find, such as turkey. Anyway, it's just a word to the wise to keep Man and Woman's best friends in the best of health.

Kim

Read this article for full information:
Magoo was a big, playful Labrador retriever who often got himself into sticky situations..."
So begins a story in the latest report from the ASPCA on foods that may be toxic to dogs. It turns out that Magoo got into the pantry and snagged himself about a pound of raisins. He ate the whole thing, of course.

The ASPCA never mentions Magoo's fate. But they do tell us that as little as a handful of raisins can impair a dogs health and has been fatal for some. Ditto for the grape.
Who Knew?
Growing up, I regarded our family dogs as "the first cycle of the dishwasher". They were good about waiting their turn for whatever we left on our plates, and we weren't too concerned about offering them "people food". It never crossed our minds that our dogs health could be affected by a few measly table scraps. What was safe for us, we figured, was safe for our pets.

What's more, whenever I ate grapes, I liked to give one or two to our German Shepherd "Tiffany". The grapes always popped out of her mouth when she tried to bite into them and Tiffany, ever the good sport, refused to give up until she'd squashed each one into submission. It guaranteed at least 60 seconds of harmless fun.

Tiffany was also fond of chewing gum (she chewed it -- wrapper and all -- but didn't swallow it!) We had the sugarless kind, which is often sweetened these days with xylitol.
Little did I know that I might have been poisoning our family pet! (More on xylitol below).
Why are grapes harmful?
As far as grapes and raisins go, no one is sure why they're harmful. It's been confirmed that even grapes grown without fertilizers or pesticides can be toxic to dogs. But not to every dog, and not every time. It's also not known whether small amounts eaten over a long time period could have a cumulative effect.
What we do know is that the end result in nearly all reported cases of grape or raisin toxicity is acute kidney failure. (The term "acute" means that the condition is severe and comes on quickly.) The dog ultimately can't produce urine, which means they can't filter toxins out of their systems -- a process essential to life.

During the twelve-month period in which the effects of grapes were studied, the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center handled 140 cases involving one or more dogs. Over a third of the dogs developed symptoms ranging from vomiting to kidney failure, and seven dogs died. The ASPCA based their study on reported cases, so naturally there may be cases where a dogs health is entirely unaffected by eating grapes. But until they know all the facts, the Society advises against feeding pets grapes or raisins in any amount.
An ounce of prevention
So, your dog just scored himself a big box of raisins. What's a pet owner to do?

The first line of defense, if the grapes or raisins were eaten recently, is to induce vomiting and administer activated charcoal (it absorbs toxins in the GI tract). Vomiting is also the first sign that your dog is in trouble, so skip right to the activated charcoal if vomiting has already occurred. (In a pinch you can make your own activated charcoal by charring a piece of toast until it's blackened and crumbles easily.) Then call your vet right away.

Can't reach the vet? Call ASPCA Poison Control: 888-426-4435

The vet will keep your dog on intravenous fluids for at least 48 hours and monitor blood chemistry daily. Normal blood work after 3 days usually means your dog is in the clear.

Keeping a watchful eye out, of course, is the best way to keep your pet out of trouble. Like children, dogs (and other pets) have a knack for getting into mischief when we're not looking.

It's Not Just the Grapes...

There are other foods your dog should be kept away from, and some of them may surprise you.
Here are some other foods that can put a dogs health in harms way:

Chocolate
Who can resist chocolate? Like it your not, your dog.
Chocolate is made with cocoa beans and cocoa beans contain a chemical called Theobromine, which is toxic to dogs. So on Valentine's Day, you're actually being kind to your best buddy if you eat all the chocolates yourself!
Read my special report on chocolate at http://www.great-dog-gift.com/chocolate to learn more, and see how different types of chocolate have varying effects on dogs health.

Cocoa Mulch
Cocoa bean shells are a by-product of chocolate production (which is how mulch made it into the "foods" category) and are popular as mulch for landscaping. Homeowners like the attractive color and scent, and the fact that the mulch breaks down into an organic fertilizer. However, some dogs like to eat it and it contains Theobromine.

Fatty foods
Fatty foods are hard for a dog to digest and can can overtax the pancreas, leading to pancreatitis. This can threaten your dogs health and is potentially fatal.

Nuts
Macadamia nuts should be avoided. In fact most nuts are not good for a dogs health since their high phosporus content is said to lead to bladder stones.

Mulch
Mulch isn't food, but there's one type tempting enough for dogs to eat. Some dogs are attracted to cocoa mulch, and will eat it in varying quantities. The coca bean shells can contain from 0.2% to 3% theobromine (the toxin ) as compared to 1-4% in unprocessed beans.

Onions
Onions, especially raw onions, have been shown to trigger hemolytic anemia in dogs. (Stephen J Ettinger, D.V.M and Edward C. Fieldman, D.V.M. 's book: Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine vol. 2 pg 1884.) Stay away from onion powder too.

Potatoes
Potato poisonings among people and dogs are rare but have occurred. The toxin, solanine, is poorly absorbed and is only found in green sprouts (these occur in tubers exposed to sunlight) and green potato skins. This explains why incidents seldom occur. Note that cooked, mashed potatoes are fine for a dogs health, actually quite nutritious and digestible.

Artificial Sweeteners
Xylitol is used as a sweetener in many products, especially sugarless gum and candies. Ingesting large amounts of products sweetened with xylitol may cause a sudden drop in blood sugar in dogs, resulting depression, loss of coordination, and seizures. According to Dr. Eric K. Dunayer, a consulting veterinarian in clinical toxicology for the poison control center, "These signs can develop quite rapidly, at times less than 30 minutes after ingestion of the product" states Dr. Dunayer, "...therefore, it is important that pet owners seek veterinary treatment immediately."

Turkey
Turkey skin is currently thought to cause acute pancreatis in dogs, partly due to it's high fat content.

Other foods listed by the ASPCA as harmful:
Alcoholic beverages
Avocado (the only "fatty" member of the vegetable family)
Coffee (all forms of coffee)
Moldy or spoiled foods
Salt
Yeast dough
Garlic

The Bottom Line

Thanks to a more educated public, fewer fatalities from foods like chocolate are being reported these days. But it's important to keep up with what's currently known about foods and their effects on dogs health. Grapes and cocoa mulch, for example, were only discovered very recently to have harmful effects.