What Should I Do if My Dog Ate a Nut?

Dogs have a real talent for eating things that they should not. Some nuts are among them. If your dog eats a macadamia, pistachio, walnut, hickory nut or pecan, you need to be concerned, but panicking will not help solve the problem. You'll need to take several steps to help your dog recover from this misfortune.

  1. Asses the Damage

    • The first thing you need to do when you suspect your dog has eaten a nut is to take away the source where he got the nut from. Once the rest of your nuts are secure, determine exactly the type of nut that your dog consumed and look it up online to see whether the nut itself is poisonous to dogs. Not all nuts are toxic. Macadamias, pistachios, walnuts, hickory nuts and pecans all do contain toxins that may cause problems for your dog.

    Size Matters

    • Even when nuts are not toxic, they pose risks to your dog. Smaller dogs may be more at risk for problems resulting to consuming a single nut than larger dogs. This occurs due to the amount of toxin being absorbed into a relatively small amount of dog. A relatively small nut will have less of an adverse impact on a 100-pound dog's internal systems than the same nut will have on a 5-pound dog. Smaller dogs also face more risk because of the chance of a gastrointestinal blockage occurring. The internal components of a small dog are simply smaller and tighter than those of a large dog.

    Call Your Veterinarian

    • Call your veterinarian and tell him exactly the type of nut your dog ate, how much of the nut the dog ate and how long ago you believe your dog consumed the nut. Your veterinarian will be able to determine the exact risk the nut poses to your specific dog. Your veterinarian will decide whether or not your dog needs to come into the office.

    The Worst Case Scenario

    • Its quite possible that your dog will be fine after eating a nut, but that will not always be the case for every dog. Your dog may get an upset stomach as a result of eating nuts, which can cause him to exhibit symptoms such as vomiting, loss of appetite or diarrhea. Your dog also risks developing a gastrointestinal obstruction which will have to be surgically corrected by your veterinarian. In severe cases where your dog has consumed a high amount of nuts pancreatitis, seizures and neurological problems may occur. Your veterinarian will have to treat severe symptoms as they occur and to the best of his abilities. In some cases, where multiple nuts were ingested, your dog may die.