Turkey stuffing, the RSPCA tell us, is toxic to cats and dogs. As Christmas has arrived, cat and dog caretakers who are unaware should be warned. Not that cats like turkey stuffing but if some of it is attached to pieces of turkey it may be ingested by a cat.
Angela Grigg of Putney Animal Hospital, London (a place I have walked past many times) said that there were 15 cases of dogs being poisoned by turkey mixed with turkey stuffing last year.
I had never heard of this before. A quarter of 867 people surveyed by the RSPCA didn’t realise either. I bet the figure is higher than that, actually.
It is the onions in stuffing that poisons dogs. It causes vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration as a result.
As for cats, I am not sure what it is in the stuffing that might hurt a cat. My immediate research indicates that in some (perhaps all) recipes turkey stuffing contains a large quantity of currants or raisins. Currants and raisins can be toxic to cats and dogs. They can cause kidney failure.
There may be high levels of salt and some alcohol in stuffing too. Both can harm cats and presumably dogs.
Also, if you buy pre-prepared turkey stuffing you don’t what is in it. There may be some chemicals that are also toxic.
My cat doesn’t like Turkey. He’s a chicken man. Anyway I don’t do Christmas!
See Toxic to cats for some more nasties.
A horror story. I shake my head in despair. On the day my dad died in his sleep I visited his room. He was hyperventilating and there were two people attending to him. He was clearly terrified but I believe he had asked the doctor to give him a fatal dose of morphine to end his life. And I believe that the doctor had agreed to do it. And therefore, he knew that he was going to die that night in his sleep. Realising this, his body automatically panicked. He couldn’t help himself. He looked at me and said with his eyes that everything was all right. He was asking me not to intervene through his expression. Those were the last moments of his long life.
Mom was seeing things, didn’t know who she was. All her organs were shutting down, hadn’t eaten in 3 days. It was like dominoes and she went fast. Totally freaked me out. The in home hospice did her dirty because it was Thanksgiving weekend. They had set nothing up to help her for end of life like they were suppose too. I had no one to help me help her and it’s why I had to move her to a facility. It was a absolute horror. I actually fired them just hours before mom died and hired a new hospice. 1 hour after signing the papers she passed. Two days ago I received a call asking about her hospice care because medicare is finding some hospice are a rip off. Three Rivers Hospice is lucky I’m not a crazy gun toting nut. 🙂
When they go into homes they die fast. I’ve seen it myself. I think they give up because they feel others have given up on them.