Raisins and Other Things My Client's Dog Shouldn't Eat

Don't you just hate it when you almost kill other people's pets? There I was, munching on an oatmeal raisin cookie at my client/friend's house, when Ben, her black standard poodle, came nuzzling up to me. It was clear that Ben has a sweet tooth. He persisted, so I broke off a small piece and dropped it to the floor. I was bound to accidentally drop some anyway. Rule #1, it's always good to ask first. (The owner, not the dog.) Lynette (Ben's owner) looked alarmed -- "Did you give him a raisin?" Me -- "No." Then, re-thinking the cookie -- "Um, maybe?" "Dogs can't have raisins!" she said. Uh-oh. The upshot is that Ben is either clever or he detests raisins because he ate the cookie and left the offending raisin. But that led us to discuss whether raisin toxicity is an urban legend or truly a danger to dogs.

And that's why I love the Internet. Here's a great site:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1661&articleid=1030

It has 28 different foods that dogs shouldn't eat, many of which your own dog has probably eaten. They range from the obvious -- alcoholic beverages which may cause "intoxication, coma and death" to the exotic -- persimmon seeds which may cause "bowel obstruction." Sure enough, grapes and raisins are listed, but the dog has to ingest more than an ounce per 2.2 pounds of body weight to do any damage. Some of the better no-no's include:

• Cat food (you know the cat made the copywriter list this)
• Large amounts of liver (does anyone want to eat that???)
• Moldy or spoiled food or garbage (you know the raccoons made the copywriter list that)
• String (why this is listed under food is beyond me but I suspect the cat again)

And that leads me to Rule #2. Before you get a pet, check this list for your favorite foods. Because if you like to smoke tobacco while munching on yeast dough, you may want to re-think the decision to get a Lab.