10/10/2026
Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to gather with loved ones, share gratitude, and enjoy a feast. But every year around the holidays, our veterinary team sees an influx of emergency visits for preventable issues—from swallowed turkey bones to toxic food ingestion.
To help ensure your holiday stays joyful and emergency-free, we have put together a list of Thanksgiving hazards for pets and how to prevent them.
1. Cooked & Raw Turkey Bones
Never feed turkey bones to your pets. Whether cooked or raw, bird bones splinter easily when chewed, leading to mouth injuries, severe choking hazards, or life-threatening intestinal punctures and blockages.
✨Immediately place carcass remnants and bones in a secure, latched trash container or outdoor bin to ensure they are unable to access garbage.
2. Stuffing (Onions, Garlic, & Herbs)
Traditional stuffing recipes often rely heavily on onions, garlic, leeks, or chives. These ingredients contain compounds that damage red blood cells in both dogs and cats, which can cause severe gastrointestinal distress.
✨Inform holiday guests upfront that table scraps are strictly off-limits.
3. Fatty Foods, Skin, & Gravy
Rich, high-fat items like buttered mashed potatoes, turkey skin, and heavy gravies are major triggers for pancreatitis—a painful and severe inflammation of the pancreas. Symptoms include persistent vomiting, acute abdominal pain, diarrhea, and lethargy.
✨Keep your pet on their regular daily diet. If you want to include them, offer a pet friendly bone or treat. Lick mats and kong toys are great to keep them busy!
4. Desserts & Sweet Treats
Many festive treats contain ingredients that are highly toxic to animals:
- Xylitol / Birch Sugar: An artificial sweetener found in sugar-free baked goods and candy that causes a sudden, severe drop in blood sugar and rapid liver failure.
- Raisins & Grapes: Commonly used in holiday baking, these can trigger sudden kidney failure.
- Chocolate & Macadamia Nuts: Can cause severe neurological issues, elevated heart rates, and digestive illness.
✨Store all desserts high up on secure counters and clear dessert plates immediately after serving.
5. Unattended Counter Leftovers
Pets are opportunistic eaters with incredible noses. Unattended platters on counters or low tables invite "counter-surfing," which often results in accidental ingestion of foil, plastic wrap, or toxic foods. Specially with trash bins or unattended garbage.
✨Pack up leftovers into sealed container units right after the meal and secure kitchen trash cans behind closed cabinet doors.
6. Alcoholic & Caffeinated Beverages
Cocktails, w**e, b**r, and coffee left on coffee tables or within nose-reach pose significant risks. Pets process alcohol and caffeine much slower than humans; exposure can cause severe vomiting, breathing difficulties, tremors, or disorientation.
✨Keep all beverage glasses off low tables and floor level, and remind guests to watch where they place their drinks.
7. Doorway Traffic & Escapes
With guests arriving and departing, front doors are opened repeatedly, creating easy escape routes for startled or curious pets.
✨Set up a cozy "safe room" equipped with your pet’s bed, fresh water, and favorite toys during peak arrival and departure hours. Using baby gates near entryways adds an extra layer of protection.
8. Toxic Holiday Plants & Decor
Popular seasonal floral arrangements containing lilies, amaryllis, or poinsettias can cause severe toxicity if ingested (lilies are exceptionally toxic to cats). Additionally, decorative ribbons, tw**e, and small table ornaments are frequent causes of foreign body obstructions particularly common to cats.
✨Keep floral arrangements out of reach, pick up fallen leaves promptly, and avoid using loose ribbon on low decorations.
9. Hot Cooking Surfaces & Open Flames
Stovetops, hot roasting pans, and decorative candles present immediate burn risks to curious snouts and wagging tails.
✨Keep pets out of the kitchen entirely while cooking or baking. Swap traditional flame candles for battery-operated LED alternatives.
10. Holiday Stress & Disrupted Routines
Loud conversations, unfamiliar faces, and altered schedules can significantly elevate stress levels in pets, leading to unexpected hiding, anxiety, or defensive behaviors.
✨Maintain your pet's normal feeding and exercise schedule as closely as possible. Watch for subtle stress signals like excessive panting, pacing, or lip-licking, and give them a quiet space to rest undisturbed.
Have a question about holiday safety or need to stock up on routine medications before the long weekend? Give our clinic team a call—we're always here to help keep your pets healthy and happy!
If your pet has ingested a hazardous item - contact us during regular business hours or your nearest emergency clinic.
