Pet Poisoning 101: Foods, Plants, And Meds That Harm

What Are The Signs Of Poisoning From Household Products?  

Household comfort can hide real danger for dogs and cats, and the biggest risks are often the ones we overlook. We sat down with Dr. Mike LoSasso, Chief of Staff at Frisco Emergency Pet Care, to break down the pet toxins most likely to strike at home and what fast, effective response looks like. From raw yeast dough that ferments into alcohol to dark chocolate with concentrated stimulants, we unpack how dose, body weight, and product type determine risk—and why timing is everything.

We look closely at lily toxicity in cats, where even a light dusting of pollen can damage the kidneys, and we explain how early fluids can be lifesaving. For dogs, grapes and raisins pose a similar kidney threat, but outcomes improve when owners witness ingestion and seek decontamination quickly. We also spotlight xylitol, the sugar-free sweetener that can crash a dog’s blood sugar and, at higher levels, harm the liver. Since xylitol content varies widely across chewing gum and “sugar-free” products, we share when to call poison control and why bringing the packaging speeds accurate treatment.

Medications deserve a special warning: dropped human pills, weekly pill organizers, and highly palatable pet meds can all trigger overdoses. We talk about NSAIDs like carprofen—safe at prescribed doses but harmful in large amounts—and why human medications often require toxicologist guidance. You’ll learn symptom timelines, from rapid THC effects to delayed NSAID complications, and get practical prevention tips: secure storage, countersurfing awareness, and the habit that helps ER teams most—always bring the product packaging.

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To learn more about Frisco Emergency Pet Care visit:
https://www.FriscoEmergencyPetCare.com
Frisco Emergency Pet Care 
11201 Preston Road 
Frisco, Texas 75033 
469-287-6767 

Transcript

Welcome And Episode Focus

SPEAKER_01 0:03

Welcome to the Frisco Emergency Pet Care Podcast, your trusted source for expert insight into emergency veterinary medicine. Hosted by Dr. Mike Lasasso, Chief of Staff at Frisco Emergency Pet Care, this podcast brings you essential information to help protect the health and safety of your dogs and cats. Serving North Dallas with 24-7 emergency and critical care, the team at Frisco Emergency Pet Care is here when every second counts. Now, let's begin.

Everyday Household Toxins Overview

SPEAKER_00 0:40

From pantry staples to common plants, everyday items can become dangerous quickly. Here's how to spot trouble early. Welcome everyone. I'm Julie Schwenzer, co-host and producer in the studio with Dr. Mike Lasasso, Chief of Staff at Frisco Emergency Pet Care. Dr. Lasasso, it's always great to be with you, and we have another important conversation today.

SPEAKER_02 1:03

Sure, great to be with you too, Julie. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 1:05

Thank you. So to get us started,

Raw Yeast Dough And Alcohol Risk

SPEAKER_00 1:07

Dr. Lasasso, can you please explain what are the signs of poisoning in pets from household products, including some common foods?

SPEAKER_02 1:16

Well, I mean, that's just that's a super challenging question because it really depends on what the intoxicant is. And a lot of times we don't have necessarily a clinical sign right off the bat, but there are so many things in our homes that we may or may not realize are truly toxic until we've got a problem. Or several hours later we get we we notice something or say, oh, I remember something was supposed to be toxic, and then they and then they end up googling things, which is pretty common, and they say, Oh no, my you know, my my dog ate um yeast dough that hasn't yet risen. Um I didn't realize that was going to be a problem. Well, if you take take yeasted raw yeast dough that has not been baked yet, and dogs like it, you know, the taller dogs will countersurf and steal that right off the top of the counter while it's proofing or whatever. Um that that yeast gets very active at normal body temperature. So we have a tremendous problem not only with with gas production and having this this large mass in the in the stomach, but as you probably know, yeast, part of what yeast does when it when it comes in contact with carbohydrates is it creates a lot of alcohol. I mean, this is how beer is made. So we actually can end up with alcohol poisoning in some of these dogs if they take in enough uh raw yeast,

Chocolate Types And Real Danger Levels

SPEAKER_02 2:45

though. We commonly talk about things like chocolate. Now, for the most part, I personally think that chocolate toxicity is a little overblown. We see a ton of it in emergency hospitals. Chocolate season starts on October 31st and ends sometime after Easter because we've got we've got Halloween, we've got Christmas, we've got Valentine's Day, we've got Easter. All of these we tend to celebrate with chocolate and with sweets. Um, the toxicity of chocolate is tied directly to how much caffeine and stimulant is in that particular product. So the darker, the more bitter it is, the more caffeine there is. White chocolate, completely harmless. My wife will tell you white chocolate's not even chocolate. Milk chocolate has very little caffeine, so we get people that panic because their Labrador ate two Hershey's kisses, and it's not worth an emergency visit. But especially the smaller the dog, because we're talking about a pound for pound kind of problem, and the the darker and typically more expensive the chocolate is that 72%, that 84% cacao definitely can cause some problems in dogs. So it's worth either calling your emergency hospital, calling the pet poison helpline, uh, or the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Animal, the the ASBCA also has a uh a toxicology line that can really can really

Lily Toxicity In Cats

SPEAKER_02 4:12

help. Lilies, a very common, very common flower we have. Who would know, unless you know, that every single part of the lily plant is super toxic to cats specifically and will actually cause kidney failure. Um, cats like to jump up on tables, they end up with the pollen, is really where we see the big problem because those those stamens on the on the lily as they as they mature will start to drop that that uh that orange-brown pollen, and cats walk through it and then they lick it right off of their feet, and they ingest really, really potent uh nephrotoxins. So, I mean it it can be treated, especially if we get to it early. We put those guys on fluids to protect the kidney for a couple of

Grapes And Raisins In Dogs

SPEAKER_02 5:00

days. We end up having to do the same thing with grape toxicity in dogs, not in cats. So grapes and raisins contain uh a substance that is also nephrotoxic or damaging to the kidneys, and the the treatment is the same. We put them on fluids for a couple of days, but that depends. For people that see the ingestion happening, um, you know, the dog eats a box of raisins because that's what your toddler really loves, and he just dumped it out on the floor, um, or they get into actual

Xylitol: Sweetener With Severe Risks

SPEAKER_02 5:37

grapes. Then if you see that happen and we can induce vomiting and we can decontaminate the dog, well, then you don't really have a major exposure. So it does vary. Another common problem that we have that people don't realize is a problem is xylitol. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol, so in people, this is a fantastic substance. It is a thousand times sweeter than sugar, but it's not sugar, it's not a carbohydrate, so it doesn't have any, it has a zero glycemic index in humans, which means there's no insulin release. So for diabetics, for anybody that just wants something sweet without having the calories of sugar, it makes sense. The problem with xylitol is that the dog pancreas thinks it's a sugar and thinks it's a lot of sugar because it's so sweet. And so the dog pancreas will actually release a tremendous amount of insulin to combat the xylitol, but there's a problem there because the blood sugar is not high. And so when you have normal blood sugar and a ton of insulin, you end up with very, very low blood sugars. And some of those dogs actually having seizures because their blood sugar is so low and their brain's really unhappy about that low blood sugar. The other problem that we see occasionally with xylitol that seems to be dose-dependent, is liver damage, potentially even liver failure. So xylitol is a big deal. The most offensive thing that I've found so far in in my practice has been these, I don't chew gum, so I don't know much about it, but these little um kind of cylinders of uh chewable tablets, um, and often icebreakers, uh, but those tend to to contain a tremendous amount of xylitol in every single piece. So we have to, we actually have to call poison control every time we have a xylitol um intoxication, or we think we do, because nobody will list, none of these manufacturers list actually how much xylitol is in their proprietary formulas. And some of these things contain a tremendous amount, and some of them don't contain enough to be really be concerned about. So it's it's a bit of a challenge.

SPEAKER_00 7:56

And you mentioned also another great point, too, about um dogs potentially like overdosing because they get into some other medicine that tastes really good, or they see you know, mom and dad's whatever container of medicine. Okay, that looks tasty.

SPEAKER_02 8:13

One of one of the most challenging things we see overall

Human And Pet Medications Overdoses

SPEAKER_02 8:16

is when they get into human medications, right? And you would think, how would how would that even happen? It happens all the time. And the toxicologist will tell you that human medications is probably their most common concern because people, especially as I mean, we're taking more of a medications ourselves, and when you're dealing with um, especially with elderly parents that live with you, or if you're lucky enough to be, you know, in the older generation and you're taking a bunch of meds, or people are taking Alzheimer's medications and they're putting them in a cup, and you drop that cup, or that for whatever reason, dogs will eat almost anything. Um and the the challenge for me is that I don't know anything about the meds that you're on, even if I know what they are and you can identify them. I still have to call the toxicologist because we don't use a lot, we don't use Alzheimer's meds in dogs. So I have to find out, you know, what are the side effects? What do I need to be concerned about? So that's a challenge. What we were talking about in that previous podcast is a is an unexpected downside to making dog medications super palatable. Because if I can, if we can make that that pill taste good, it makes it easier for the pet parent to give. So that amoxicillin 2 is easier if it's highly palatable than trying to shove something down their throat, right? If they'll take it as a treat, life is so much easier. And I get it. And when we're talking about things like carprofen, some of the NSAIDs that we give long term to arthritic dogs, these older labradors or any other breed that have got some arthritis challenges, carprofen can be really, really helpful and really make an impact on their daily lives. But because it is a a drug that we give for potentially for years, we tend to sell it in bulk because it makes sense economically. So you buy a bottle of 180 super appetizing Remadill tablets, and yeah, your dog can smell it. And if it's out on the out on the counter, I have seen dogs tear open their own prescription bottles to get to the medications they just love because it tastes like candy to them. And now we have a relative overdose. Carprofen's very safe at the dose you're supposed to get. If you're supposed to take one tablet, one tablet is great. Taking 180 of anything, if you're a human being, don't take 180 ibuprofen. You're gonna have a kidney issue, you're gonna have stomach ulceration,

Onset Of Symptoms And Timing

SPEAKER_02 10:56

you're gonna have these things that we see. So, yeah, lots of things that we have can be poisonous.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

And how quickly do symptoms typically appear and how different it is depending on like the you know what they actually ingested?

SPEAKER_02 11:11

Sure, and it's it's a good question because every poison is different, right? So in the dogs like the um like the pot dog I saw last night, um, that that got into um got into gummies, I think, and we see a lot of THC intoxications as well, even in Texas where it's not legal. Um you know that we see we see those changes within about 20 minutes. These these dogs are a little ataxic, they stumble a little bit, they act, well, honestly, they act like they're a little high because they are. Uh they're dribbling urine. We see that right away. The problem with something like a a carprofen or a rimidil ingestion is they might have some stomach upset, but it's gonna take a couple of days for those signs to actually show up. And by the time signs show up, our hands are really tied as far as treatment and improving outcomes. The sooner we can get to an intoxication, the better.

SPEAKER_00 12:10

Always and Dr. Lasasso, last

Candy Wrappers And Practical Advice

SPEAKER_00 12:22

question for you. How much do pet owners need to worry about if the packaging or the foil around the chocolates ingested, or you know, is that something that maybe can just be passed on, or is that something that could actually damage organs or other body parts?

SPEAKER_02 12:37

Usually the packaging is is one of my least concerns. Um, you know, the dog that gets into the to the bowl of the Halloween candy is gonna have some really colorful bowel movements in the backyard. Um, but that rarely, I mean, if you if you got into a tremendous number of them and you ended up with a mass, theoretically it could cause a problem. Um, we're more concerned about the GI upset. Um, and most of the Halloween candy, fortunately, is melt chocolate. So that the chances of actually having clinical signs and heart changes um with that kind of intoxication are pretty low.

SPEAKER_00 13:12

Oh, that that's a good point, too. I'm not going to be expecting any sugar-free candy with xylitol in the Halloween bowls, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_02 13:20

Not that often. Most of the Halloween stuff has definitely got uh definitely got sugar in it. But uh, you know, as we become more health conscious, we we eat more sugar-free. And xylitol, xylitol is present in almost everything that says sugar-free on the packaging.

How To Get Help And Closing

SPEAKER_02 13:34

You know, so if you've got any kind of question as to what your dog got into, um calling the pet poison numbers is super helpful. And if you if you can bring the packaging in, if you do come into the emergency hospital, for goodness sakes, please bring the packaging. That is super helpful to us, just looking at ingredients. Um, and it can certainly help with uh with the toxicologists so they actually know what they got into.

SPEAKER_00 14:01

Those are great tips. Thank you again, doctor. We always appreciate you keeping us informed and also prepared.

SPEAKER_01 14:10

Thank you, thank you for listening to the Frisco Emergency Pet Care Podcast. To learn more, visit FriscoPetER.com. Call 469-287-6767. Or stop by 11201 Preston Road, Frisco, Texas, 75033. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Frisco Emergency Pet Care is always here when your pet needs us most. Until next time, take care of your pets, and they'll take care of you.