18/12/2025
Good info as always from Mulberry…
🎄🐾 A Christmas message from Mulberry House Vets – to help keep your pets safe this festive season 🎄🐾
‘Tis the season for mince pies and chocolate boxes … but for our four-legged friends, many festive treats can spell danger. Here’s a handy guide to the Christmas foods never to share with your pets — and what to do if they get into something they shouldn’t.
🚫 Festive foods that can be toxic or dangerous;
🍫 Chocolate — contains theobromine (and caffeine), which pets metabolise very slowly. Can lead to vomiting, restlessness, heart problems, tremors or worse especially with dark or cooking chocolate.
🥧 🍇 Christmas pudding, mince pies, fruit cake, stollen and other desserts with dried fruit — items such as raisins, currants, sultanas (or grapes) can cause acute kidney failure in dogs and cats, even in small amounts.
🥜 Certain nuts (e.g. macadamia nuts) — can cause vomiting, weakness, tremors, elevated temperature and more in dogs.
🧅 🧄 Alliums (onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives) — often lurking in gravies, stuffing or other cooked dishes — are toxic and can damage red blood cells, causing anaemia.
🍷 Alcohol — even small amounts can be toxic, leading to lethargy, disorientation, changes in heart or breathing, and at worst, serious illness.
🦴 Cooked bones (turkey, chicken, goose etc.) and fatty/greasy leftovers — cooked bones can splinter and cause blockages or internal injury; fatty foods can trigger gastro-intestinal upset or even pancreatitis.
✅ Helpful tips to keep your pets safe;
Keep all chocolate, treats, dessert tins and food scraps well out of reach — and don't leave them under the tree!
Dispose of cooked bones and carcasses securely so pets cannot access them.
Double-check the ingredients of any treats before offering — especially nuts, dried fruits, or anything containing garlic/onions.
Always monitor pets closely if there’s any chance they ate something unsuitable — symptoms of poisoning (like vomiting, tremors, lethargy, drooling, rapid heart rate, difficulty breathing) may not show immediately.
⚠️ If you suspect your pet has eaten something harmful, you can call the Animal Poisons Line (run by the Veterinary Poisons Information Service – VPIS) immediately: 01202 509 000 (24-hour helpline in the UK)
Our team are here for you this festive period, don't hesitate to call us if your pet has eaten something they shouldn't have! 💜
