What Not to Feed Your Cat during the Holiday Season

As the holiday season approaches, there’ll be lots of opportunities to gather with friends and family and eat the most delicious food. If you own a cat, they might even want to get in on the action.

While there’s no harm in handing them a treat or two during the festivities, there are certain types of food you should keep away from them at all costs.

Everyone knows cats are curious little creatures. Even if you try to bribe them with treats from the pet store, they’re probably going to dip their noses in some delicious-smelling dishes anyway. Some of the food you should keep away from your cat are:

Seasoned Turkey

Turkey is a staple in every American household during many holiday celebrations, and nothing beats some well-seasoned turkey. Unfortunately, all the spices that go into making this delicious dish could be harmful to your cat and disrupt its digestive system. That’s why it’s essential to keep your cat away from any turkey dishes you serve during parties.

Turkey Grease

No matter how much your cat might want it, it’s crucial to keep turkey grease away from your pet. Despite its appetizing taste, ingesting turkey grease could cause your cat to experience diarrhea, vomiting, or pancreatic inflammation.

Garlic and Onions

Garlic and onions are a big no-no for cats. If any of your dishes contain these two ingredients, make sure your cat can’t get to them. Unlike humans, cats can’t digest these kinds of food, and they’re more likely to cause an upset stomach. Onions are even known to cause anemia in felines if they ingest them regularly.

Raisin or Grapes

Cats are known carnivores, but they may be curious about a raisin or two. They might even accidentally ingest grapes, which would be incredibly bad for them because they can lead your pet to face acute kidney failure. If any of your dishes contain raisins or grapes, cover them so curious felines can’t get their hands on them.

Alcohol

Similar to humans, alcohol can have significant effects on cats. They can certainly get drunk if they drink enough alcohol. While it may seem funny to other people to see a cat walking wonkily, nobody’s going to be laughing if your pet’s had too much to drink and ends up suffering from alcohol poisoning and liver failure. As a responsible pet owner, you have to guarantee cats don’t have access to alcohol by any means.

Chicken Bones

Chicken bones might seem harmless, but it’s crucial not to feed your cats any. Remind your guests not to either because they can get stuck in your cat’s digestive tract and cause potentially fatal damages.

Chocolate

Chocolate is as harmful to cats as it is to dogs. It’s delicious for humans, but it’s certainly not meant to be a treat for your cat. Theobromine in chocolate is a potent stimulant that causes cardiovascular complications. It can even affect your cat’s nervous system.

Final Thoughts

It’s important to keep these kinds of food away from your cat because the effects are extremely harmful, if not deadly. To ensure your cat can’t get to any of the dishes you serve during holiday parties, remind your guests not to feed your cats any leftovers. Clean up dirty dishes and spills immediately, and, if possible, keep your cat in a separate area away from the festivities. You can even keep them preoccupied with some treats you buy specifically from a pet store so that they won’t go looking for food from other people.

If you have kids during a party that wants to feed your cat, only give them food you buy from your local pet store, so you don’t introduce your cat to foreign food that could disrupt their digestive system. You can also show your young guests how to play with your pet to keep everyone’s attention away from the food.

Wags to Wiskers is a pet store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We serve holistic pet foods for dogs, cats, and other pets. Send us an email for more information!