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Last Updated on June 26, 2023 by Thee Puppypreneur
CAN DOGS EAT AVOCADOS
Can dogs have avocados? Hmm? Yes and No is my answer. I have mixed reviews about avocados. Yes, they are nutritious and there are many health benefits, but this is a question that receives mixed emotions. When it is answered just like “should you feed your dog garlic”? Which I do occasionally do for a variety of health benefits.
CAN DOGS EAT GARLIC? DISCOVER THE BENEFITS TOPICALLY AND INTERNALLY
Now, back to the avocado craze and can dogs eat avocados. Avocados contain Persin and Persin can be found in the fruit and the leaves of the plant.1Some food toxic for pets (sciendo.com)
“Raw avocado has greater concentrations of Persin, and that the peel and pulp are the most concentrated.”2PERSIN – A PHYTOCHEMICAL IN AVOCADO FRUIT: ITS ROLE AS A NUTRACEUTICAL OR PLANT TOXIN IN NUTRITION – UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS (usda.gov)
Persin has been attributed to the toxic effects that the avocado can have on animals.3Kovalkovičová, N., Sutiaková, I., Pistl, J., & Sutiak, V. (2009). Some food toxic for pets. Interdisciplinary toxicology, 2(3), 169–176. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10102-009-0012-4
What about avocado oil? Well, avocado oil is made by pressing the flesh just like in making guacamole and then separating and extracting the oil.4How Is Avocado Oil Made? – California Avocados 5How To Make Avocado Oil (Extra Virgin – Cold Process) – Alphafoodie This is considered processed and a by-product of processing avocado oil is actually avocado meal.6Dainton, A. N., He, F., Bingham, T. W., Sarlah, D., Detweiler, K. B., Mangian, H. J., & de Godoy, M. (2022). Nutritional and physico-chemical implications of avocado meal as a novel dietary fiber source in an extruded canine diet. Journal of animal science, 100(2), skac026. https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skac026
IS AVOCADO TOXIC TO DOGS
There actually is one report I could find on avocado poisoning in dogs. The comparison is made that the dogs exhibited some of the same symptoms that sheep and horses get when they have avocado poisoning and the dogs already had pre-existing conditions prior to being evaluated and a love of eating avocados.7Buoro, I. B., Nyamwange, S. B., Chai, D., & Munyua, S. M. (1994). Putative avocado toxicity in two dogs. The Onderstepoort journal of veterinary research, 61(1), 107–109. Putative avocado toxicity in two dogs – PubMed (nih.gov)
One has to wonder if the pre-existing conditions were due to the fact that they had a love of always eating avocados in the first place and were now just finally starting to exhibit symptoms from the “pre-existing conditions”?
Now at the risk of sounding slightly unbiased there was a very, very recent study done Feb. 2022 on the effects of avocado for dogs (avocado meal to be exact) in the canine diet.8Dainton, A. N., He, F., Bingham, T. W., Sarlah, D., Detweiler, K. B., Mangian, H. J., & de Godoy, M. (2022). Nutritional and physico-chemical implications of avocado meal as a novel dietary fiber source in an extruded canine diet. Journal of animal science, 100(2), skac026. https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skac026 (6)
They compared the effects of different dietary fibers against 9 beagles for 14 days. Needless to say, there were
“no health adverse effects observed” 9Dainton, A. N., He, F., Bingham, T. W., Sarlah, D., Detweiler, K. B., Mangian, H. J., & de Godoy, M. (2022). Nutritional and physico-chemical implications of avocado meal as a novel dietary fiber source in an extruded canine diet. Journal of animal science, 100(2), skac026. https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skac026
from feeding avocado meal. Keep in mind this was only 14 days though.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF AVOCADO POISONING IN DOGS
“Avocados will trigger fluid accumulation in the lungs and chest, leading to difficulty breathing and death due to oxygen deprivation. Fluid accumulation can also occur in the heart, pancreas and abdomen”10Kovalkovičová, N., Sutiaková, I., Pistl, J., & Sutiak, V. (2009). Some food toxic for pets. Interdisciplinary toxicology, 2(3), 169–176. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10102-009-0012-4
Signs of avocado poisoning in dogs are;11PERSIN – A PHYTOCHEMICAL IN AVOCADO FRUIT: ITS ROLE AS A NUTRACEUTICAL OR PLANT TOXIN IN NUTRITION – UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS (usda.gov) 12Some food toxic for pets (sciendo.com) 13Kovalkovičová, N., Sutiaková, I., Pistl, J., & Sutiak, V. (2009). Some food toxic for pets. Interdisciplinary toxicology, 2(3), 169–176. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10102-009-0012-4
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Labored breathing
- Decreased appetite
- Lethargy
- Congestion in the lungs
- Cardiomyopathy
- Nephrosis
- Eventual death
HOW IS AVOCADO POISONING TREATED IN DOGS
Treatment would depend on the diagnosis. Did your dog swallow an avocado pit? Or has your dog been eating avocados for years and now has suddenly accumulated fluid in their lungs or has cardiomyopathy which is a disease of the heart muscle.
Depending on the diagnosis if it is obstruction due to ingesting the avocado pit then surgery might be recommended. If it is a fluid in the lungs or cardiomyopathy then diuretics might be prescribed or heart medications.
This one is tough to answer because there aren’t many cases or reports of avocado poisoning but that doesn’t mean that there is no risk. Avocados are also high in fat and could cause pancreatitis.
It really depends on the amount fed, the type of avocado, how often you feed avocado, what part of the avocado was ingested, whether the avocado is raw or processed as raw fruit contains more Persin, whether or not your dog can tolerate the avocado in the first place and if there are any underlying health conditions.
TO FEED OR NOT TO FEED AVOCADO TO DOGS
Whatever your choice for feeding avocado to dogs is just know that there are foods on the market that contain avocado for dogs like this one
or this grain free option
As for me I prefer to stick with avocado for dogs as a toy like these cute squeak toys
Pet Supplies : Fringe Studio Squeaker Pet Toy Set, Set of 3, Avocado (289434) : Amazon.com
Better yet, when its nice and hot outside there is this nice teething toy that is shaped like an avocado that comes in a 2 pack and the seller says is made of TPR natural rubber.
You can put this in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes or an hour to get nice and cold and the back side is nice and spikey to massage the gums of your furbaby
