Do dogs instinctively avoid food that is bad for them? Or not?

[ChickensHaveNoEyebrows]

I'm just wondering, because Jasper is sat in front of me licking his chops while I snarfle a Snickers, and I'm fairly sure that chocolate is poisonous to dogs. Is this something I need to worry about then? Are there likely to be poisonous-but-tempting foods in the house which he will scoff given half a chance?

ralph will eat anything. he once, with the help of his brother, polished off a chocolate gateux. i was expecting two dead dogs. instead they just ended up very poorly and sorry for themselves for a day or two.

We have had sparkly poo from a tin of roses in this house!!

I'm afraid not. Chocolate is poisonous to dogs so please don't feed him any. You can get dog "choc" instead

No, they seem to want to eat anything. My terriers discovered a very full bag of Hershey's Kisses I had brought back for DD from the US last week and devoured the lot. Many piles of chocolate vomit later, they still stare when anyone eats chocolate. It would seem that Hershey's ain't too heavy on the cocoa...(more sugar I suspect). I too had expected much worse.

Chocolate is bad for dogs - in fact, veterinarians consider it poison. Chocolate contains theobromine, a central nervous system stimulant that may cause seizures, excessive urination (leading to dehydration), and heart damage.

The half-life of theobromine is approximately 17.5 hours. If your dogs ate the cookie several weeks ago, they have entirely eliminated the toxin from their bodies by now and should be fine. Be careful not to let them have more, though. Dogs can develop a craving for chocolate, just like humans.

The darker the chocolate, the more theobromine it contains. Milk chocolate is less toxic than dark chocolate, which is less toxic than baker's chocolate.

Symptoms of chocolate toxicity include vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, twitching, and seizing. This is considered a veterinary emergency requiring prompt, supportive care.

While sharing chocolate with your dog may seem fun and harmless in small quantities, the practice is best avoided. A better choice is to keep a small supply of treats on hand that are nutritionally formulated for dogs.

short list of what they cant eat

chocolate

raisens

grapes
avacados.

those are the main ones i recall

Grapes? Bugger, must remember that. I'm always throwing grapes out for the chickens.

Some dogs might, but mine will eat anything, we keep chocolate etc well out of reach. I believe onions can be dangerous for them as well (hard to imagine most dogs eating an onion, but you never know, best to keep all these things out of reach).

Most dogs, in my experience, will eat just about anything, regardless of it's likely effect on them. Mine once ate a load of tinsel . It lead to some very festive poos and nearly surgery.

its. Stupid iPad.

I remember my childhood dog shredding an entire bag of onions when she was a pup. She snaffled them off the veg rack and peeled them all. The stench was indescribable. I don't think she ate them, mind. She did eat an entire box of After Eight mints once, though, by delicately removing them from their paper sleeves with her teeth and then gulping them down. I don't remember her being ill, but I suppose cheap chocolate is probably less toxic? Right, while we're on the subject, are there any plants commonly found in the garden which are dangerous? Jasper seems to like dashing past things and giving them a cursory chew.

I once had a wheat intolerant Labrador who liked to sneak off in the park to snarf down abandoned donna kebabs .

There are lots of plants which are toxic to dogs - full list here.

interesting isn't it. What they will and won't eat. My dog will gorge herself on herbivore shit given half a chance (rabbit poo seemilngly the turd of choice, with sheep shit a close second), will roll in fox crap (but not eat it) and is absoluely repulsed by dog shit, especially her own (runs away fast from her own poo).

must be an instinctive thing somewhere deep in there amongst the 7 firing synapses

doesn't like strawberries either. slippery fuckers

I know a dog who eats her own poo.

Mine loves chicken shit. The runnier the better

My dog hasn't met anything he won't eat.
Except cockles. I'm still puzzled by this.

Coffee, on my 'Threads I'm On' page, your message ends at 'cock'. Which made me choke on my tea.

i had to come and see why coffees dog doesnt like cock!

I think a lot of how poisonous it is depends on the size of the dog. (I think the vet said this to DH yesterday.)

My dog loves all the things that are bad for him but is very fussy about everything else. My old dog would eat anything and everything except spinach.

oops...
thank me later for brightening up your Wednesday.
[things I do for all of you]

I would be puzzled by this.