6 foods you should avoid feeding your pets

Pets can come across and get into different things in your home, so here’s some foods you need to make sure they do not eat or drink.

Alcohol: Beverages and food products containing alcohol can cause vomiting, diarrhea, decreased coordination, difficulty breathing, coma and even death.

Avocados: Avocados are popular if you are getting together with friends and family, but they are dangerous for pets, mostly birds, rabbits and horses. The biggest concern is for cardiovascular damage and death in birds.

Chocolate, coffee and caffeine: These products all contain substances called Methylxanthines. When pets eat chocolate it can cause vomiting and diarrhea, an abnormal heart rhythm, seizures and could be fatal. Darker chocolate is more dangerous than milk chocolate.

Grapes and raisins: Do not feed your pet grapes and raisins. These fruits have a substance that can cause kidney failure.

Milk and dairy: Milk and dairy are bad for your pet because they do not possess significant amounts of lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose in milk. Milk and other dairy-based products cause diarrhea or other digestive problems.

Nuts: Nuts, including almonds, pecans and walnuts contain high amounts of oils and fats. The fats can cause vomiting and diarrhea and potentially pancreatitis in pets.

The ASPCA website has a full list of people foods that you should avoid feeding your pets.


About the Authors:

RJ Marquez is the traffic anchor/reporter for KSAT’s Good Morning San Antonio. He also fills in as a news anchor and has covered stories from breaking news and Fiesta to Spurs championships and high school sports. RJ started at KSAT in 2010. He is proud to serve our viewers and be a part of the culture and community that makes San Antonio great.

Rick Medina is a Video News Editor at KSAT. A graduate of the University of Texas' prestigious Radio-Television-Film program, he has been in the news business for more than 20 years. Rick is also a documentary filmmaker, helming the award-winning film festival favorites, “The Opossum Begins” and “Amigoland.” He is originally from Brownsville.