Keep Your Dog Safe This Thanksgiving

This is a personal story about the dangers of feeding dogs your Thanksgiving turkey, chicken or ham scraps.

About a week or so before our Canadian Thanksgiving, we had a chicken for supper.

After we divided up the scraps – mostly fat and skin (no bones) and gave it to our 2 dogs, thinking that they were getting a treat.

The next day, my older dog, Maggie got very bad gas.

I didn't think too much of it at the time. 

But the next day she had developed diarrhea. I still thought that it would pass.

But the next day she was throwing up her water, acting lethargic and I got my first clue that something was seriously wrong.

I gave her the morning to see if anything was going to get better, but it became obvious that it wasn't, so I called the vet.

They could take her at 6:00.

So we went and I got a real shocker.

Maggie had pancreatitis.

I had no idea but in hindsight, of course, I could see it.

We tried to save her.

She spent the week at the vet, and some days seemed to be showing improvement.

I got a strong urge to visit her every day after the first day she was there.

I'm glad that I did because she died there.

MISTAKES ALONG THE WAY

Although I've been around dogs and cats all my life (I grew up with 2 family dogs and 7 – 9 cats, my mom always took in the strays) I had no idea the dangers of feeding fat to them.

We raise our own chickens so for awhile we were having roast chicken about once a week.

Each time the dogs got the scraps.

I think that this was the foundation of the problem.

It probably built over time.

The saving grace was that we feed most of the table scraps to the chickens (seems ironic), so she didn't get many in between. 

I knew that Maggie couldn't handle as much as our younger dog Snoopy so I always gave her less.

But the last day I sent my husband down with it not even thinking to tell him not to give her too much.

I had always been under the belief that a dog's system could handle anything because they had a digestive system that could handle dead things found here and there. I figured roast chicken scraps were a luxury.

WRONG.

It appears that fat strains the pancreas and over time can wear it down.

As a dog ages, if it is overweight and not very active the chances of it causing a problem increase.

Maggie had always had an incredible spirit.

She would bolt out the door and run like the wind.

But after a few rounds with the dog catcher, I was trying harder to keep her tied on her run.

We took her for a walks but not every day. 

After awhile I noticed that she hadn't been even trying to get out. 

I thought that it was a good thing.

Thinking back, I think that she had been sick for awhile but I thought that she had slowed down partly because she was getting older.

She had been at the vet for her check up last year, she was overweight but no matter what she did, her weight did not fluctuate so I didn't worry too much, I thought it was just the way she was.

IF YOUR DOG

Is getting older.

Is overweight.

Doesn't get out much.

Seems sensitive to kitchen scraps – especially fatty types.

Be especially aware not to feed them your table scraps.

The vet told me that Thanksgiving is an especially busy time for them for exactly this reason.

IF YOU WANT YOUR DOG TO STAY HEALTHY WELL INTO OLD AGE

Be aware of anything that doesn't look quite right.

If he seems sensitive to a food, or seems to be in discomfort (pancreatitis is extremely painful), it may mean that there is a problem. 

Don't feed him/her table scraps.

You may not see a problem over night, but over time, you might.

Ask yourself if it's really worth taking the chance and ruining your pet's health?

A FEW MORE SURPRISES

There are a few other things on the list of what not to feed your dog that surprised me.

• Chocolate.

• Onions

• Garlic

• Grapes and Raisins

• Ham (maybe because of the high fat content? Sausage, eggs – anything similar probably counts)

To many of us, our pets are part of our family.

Maggie certainly was.

It seems so empty here without her. 

MAGGIE DIED PRIMARILY FROM MY IGNORANCE 

I had heard not to feed dogs table scraps and ignored the advice.

I thought that 'sometimes' was ok. I never realized the risks. 

Don't let this happen to you and your dog. 

Don't ignore what you've learned here today and enjoy the years that you have left with your dogs.

And have a Happy Thanksgiving.

All of you.