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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteFor most dogs and cats, the safest holiday treat is the food they already eat. ASPCA guidance keeps pets on their usual diet through celebrations. Its one example of a people food a pet may receive is a small bite of fully cooked, boneless turkey, and even that comes with conditions. Almost everything else on a holiday table needs checking before a pet gets any of it.
The ASPCA’s holiday guidance has been consistent on this point. In a November 20, 2013 release, Dr. Tina Wismer, then medical director of the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, said: “We associate the holidays with happiness and joy, but pet owners need to be aware of customs that could pose dangers to their animals.” The ASPCA’s most-cited number for holiday food harm is also historical: the Animal Poison Control Center reported 17,000 cases of pet illness caused by human foods in 2009, according to a November 15, 2010 release. That figure is not a current annual rate, and the ASPCA has not published a comparable recent total in the pages reviewed for this article.
Keep the usual diet as the default
The ASPCA’s holiday safety tips recommend keeping a pet’s diet the same during holiday celebrations. Fatty, sweet, and spicy foods can cause problems, and turkey or chicken bones can be dangerous. A regular meal served on schedule protects a pet from almost every holiday-specific hazard, and it leaves less room for a guest to slip something across the table.
When a bite of turkey is acceptable
The ASPCA’s Thanksgiving safety tips say that any meat offered to a pet should be small, fully cooked, and boneless. Before you offer a piece, check the following:
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- The portion is a small bite, not a plate or a share of the carving.
- The meat is fully cooked, not rare or pink in the middle.
- There are no bones, skin pulled off a roast with fat attached, or pieces that could splinter.
- The meat has no added seasoning, gravy, or sauce, and you have checked the ingredients of any prepared or pre-seasoned turkey.
This condition applies only to plain turkey meat. It does not make gravy, stuffing, or leftover casseroles safe, and it is not a general permission to share holiday food. Individual animals differ in size, health, and history, so the ASPCA does not give a safe portion size. If you are unsure about a particular animal, ask your veterinarian before offering anything beyond the usual diet.
Foods to keep off the pet’s plate
The ASPCA’s people foods to avoid guidance groups common pantry and holiday foods into two kinds of concern: ingredients it lists as potentially toxic, and foods that cause digestive upset, excess weight-related risk, or physical injury. The table below uses the ASPCA’s own categories.
| Food | How the ASPCA classes it |
|---|---|
| Chocolate and caffeine | Potentially toxic |
| Grapes and raisins | Potentially toxic |
| Onion, garlic, and other alliums | Potentially toxic |
| Xylitol | Potentially toxic |
| Alcohol | Potentially toxic; exposure is an urgent situation |
| Macadamia nuts | Potentially toxic |
| Raw foods, including raw meat, eggs, and dough | Risk of illness |
| Bones, including poultry bones | Physical injury and blockage risk |
| Excessive fat | Digestive upset and pancreatitis risk |
| Excess salt | Digestive upset and excess-sodium risk |
| Dairy | Digestive upset |
The ASPCA’s category descriptions are summarized here. For a particular exposure, read the full entry on the ASPCA page linked above before deciding what to do.
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Dishes that hide the hazards
Most holiday problems come from dishes, not single ingredients. The following are the common cases.
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Gravy and bouillon
Gravy, broth, and bouillon are often high in sodium, and many also contain onion or garlic. Treat them as off limits for pets, even when they are made with turkey.
Stuffing and casseroles
Stuffing, dressing, and many casseroles include onion, garlic, butter, or cheese. These ingredients raise the same concerns as the foods in the table above.
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Desserts
Holiday desserts can contain chocolate, raisins, and xylitol, which is used in many sugar-free baked goods. Sweet foods in general are a poor choice for a pet’s regular intake.
Batter and dough
Raw yeast dough and raw eggs in batter are both listed by the ASPCA as hazards. A pet should not be allowed to lick a mixing bowl or sample dough before it is baked.
Bones and trimmings
Turkey and chicken bones are a physical hazard as well as a food concern. Skin, fat trimmings, and carcass scraps also belong in the trash, not in a pet’s bowl.
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Keep food and trash out of reach
Many pet exposures happen because food is left within reach, not because someone meant to share. Before guests arrive:
- Put the trash and any compost or food-scrap bin behind a secured lid or inside a closed cabinet.
- Clear counters and low tables of plates, serving dishes, and cooling pies.
- Ask guests to keep their own plates and bags out of reach, including coat pockets and handbags.
- Shut the pet in a separate room or crate during the meal if it tends to beg or grab.
If your pet may have eaten something toxic
The ASPCA’s guidance is to contact a veterinarian or ASPCA Poison Control promptly if a pet may have ingested a potentially toxic substance. Do not wait for symptoms to appear. The steps below cover what to do while you make that call.
- Call your veterinarian or ASPCA Poison Control right away. Find current contact details on the ASPCA website before the holiday, and save your veterinarian’s emergency number in your phone.
- Have the packaging or a sample of the food ready. Note what the pet ate, roughly how much, and when it happened.
- Tell the caller the pet’s species, age, approximate weight, and any known health conditions.
- Follow the professional’s instructions. This article does not cover home treatment, and you should not rely on it for emergency care.
Ways to include a pet in the meal
Pets do not need to share the table to feel included. The options below differ in how much they meet the basic tests for a safe treat: whether the food is the pet’s usual food, whether you know what is in it and how it was prepared, and whether it is free of bones, seasoning, and toxic ingredients.
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| Option | Uses the pet’s usual food | Ingredients and preparation known | Free of bones, seasoning, and toxic ingredients |
|---|---|---|---|
| A plate from the holiday table | No | Usually not | Usually not |
| A plain, boneless bite of fully cooked turkey set aside before seasoning | No | Yes, if you prepared it | Yes, if it has no seasoning or bones |
| A puzzle feeder with the pet’s usual dinner and a few suitable tidbits | Yes | Yes | Yes, if the tidbits meet the same tests |
The puzzle-feeder option is the one the ASPCA recommends. Its November 3, 2017 release, How to Have a Happy, Healthy and Humane Thanksgiving with Your Pets, suggests filling a puzzle toy with the pet’s usual dinner and a few suitable tidbits to keep the animal busy while people eat.
Using a puzzle feeder safely
- The toy is for enrichment, not safety. A puzzle toy does not make unsuitable human food safe to give.
- Fill it with the pet’s usual dinner, and reduce the meal portion if you add extra tidbits.
- Choose a toy sized for the animal, and supervise the first few uses to see whether the pet chews or swallows pieces.
- Check that every tidbit is one your veterinarian would accept for that individual pet.
The ASPCA pages address dogs and cats together and do not give separate portion sizes for either species. The same cautions apply to both unless your veterinarian advises otherwise.
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