Onion Toxicity in Dogs

All dog owners must be aware of the fact that there are many foods which are harmful to dogs and onions are one of them. Feeding a dog onions can be toxic to the animal and it may fall seriously ill. As a responsible pet owner, you must keep your dog away from such toxic foods. It’s not only raw onion which is harmful for dogs, even the cooked onions are bad for dogs. The toxic effect of onions is the same whether the product is raw, cooked, or dehydrated.

Onions are known to contain a substance called thiosulfate which is poisonous to dogs. This is because dogs do not have the enzyme which is required to digest thiosulfate. Apart from thiosulfate, onions also contain organosulfur, which causes poisoning in dogs.

The active ingredient in onions is allyl propyl disulfide, a potent oxidizing agent to the hemoglobin and the red cell wall. It is this primary ingredient of onion oil that causes damage to red blood corpuscles, or RBCs. So, allowing your dog to feed on onions can lead to the development of a condition termed as Heinz body anemia. Allyl propyl disulfide causes an irreversible breakdown of hemoglobin and causes permanent damage to the RBCs. Anemia and oxygen deprivation begin to set in when an adequate amount of red blood corpuscles are destroyed. In addition garlic contains thiosulfate, although the amounts are lower. Consuming large amounts garlic is also known to cause similar toxicity problems in dogs.

The common symptoms of food poisoning to look for in dogs are:

• Skin rash
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Lethargy
• Lack of appetite
• Drooling
• Hallucination causing over-reaction to light or sound
• Seizure
• Liver or kidney problems
• Pale or bluish gums
• Bloody urine.

The symptoms depend on the amount of onions consumed, the size of the dog, and the period for which the onions have been consumed. You must immediately take your dog to a vet to start the treatment as early as possible in order to prevent further complications. Some types of poisoning can cause heart failure in dogs or even death, if immediate treatment is not given.

The different dog health problems that occur due to onion ingestion are:

• Liver damage
• Allergic reactions
• Difficulty in breathing
• Weakness
• Discolored urine
• Anemia
• Dermatitis.

Treatment of Onion Toxicity

• The treatment for onion toxicity can either be a regular treatment or long treatment. If the ingestion of onions was not too long ago, decontamination and providing intravenous fluids can be the most effective treatment. In case of skin infection, the dog must be bathed and dried. If the anemia is severe, there may even be a need for blood transfusion. If dogs show signs of poisoning or allergic reactions, activated charcoal is used.
• In order to prevent onion poisoning in dog, you must check the ingredients in any formulated or processed before giving it to your dog. You must ensure that no food provided to your dog has onions or large quantities of garlic in any form in it.