SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - Many of you are preparing for Super Bowl gatherings this weekend. So we thought we’d tackle this viewer question about pets; “I know onions can cause issues for pets. I was wondering, are dried onions in table scraps also harmful for pets?”

All parts of the onion can be toxic to dogs, whether cooked or raw. Shallots and garlic are bad for them too. Heath Wiseman with the Springfield Veterinary Center tells us a dog or cat will show these symptoms after contact with an onion; vomiting, diarrhea, and signs of fatigue. Later, you might see pale gums, pale mucous membranes, labored breathing, and depression. But, it’s a matter of how much they consume that makes all the difference.

“It’s sort of dose-dependent,” explained Wiseman. “If there was just a sprinkle of garlic salt over the top of the meat. I mean, odds are it’s probably not going to cause a problem. But if you put a bunch of garlic or a bunch of onion in with your ground beef, yeah, it can. It could potentially be toxic for them. So no, if you know you put garlic or onion in that mixture of meat, zero of it is the best plan.”

Here are some basic guidelines for when you should consider emergency care if your pet has one to two teaspoons of fresh minced garlic that would be regarded as toxic. It would be a quarter to a half of a teaspoon if it’s powdered or granulated garlic. For the onion, fresh onion is about a third of a cup of chopped onion. And about a teaspoon of onion powder would be considered toxic.

Returning to the viewer’s question, “I know onions can cause issues for pets. I was wondering, are dried onions in table scraps also harmful for pets?” The answer is YES. Zero is the best plan.

Call the emergency clinic immediately if your pet overate or shows symptoms. And they’ll explain how to make your pet vomit, so they don’t get sick.

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