As humans, we love to start our mornings off with a nice cup of coffee. You may be wondering, is it okay to give me pet some coffee to drink too?
The answer is NO! Pets do not need a cup of coffee to start their day. In fact, coffee is actually toxic to dogs and you should not give your pets anything with caffeine in it.
Dogs are energetic enough as it is, I repeat, you should not be giving your pets any coffee. If you try to give your dog or cat coffee you will be more harmful than good because the caffeine in the coffee is toxic to them and can make your pet sick.
While coffee has documented health benefits for humans, it can be deadly for your pet dog or cat depending on how much they consume at one time.
Why you should not give your pet cat or dog coffee
You should not give your dog or cat coffee because there is caffeine inside your coffee. This is because dogs and cats are much more sensitive to the effects of caffeine than people.
This is especially true if your dog or cat is on the smaller side.
They need much less caffeine to be affected by the chemical. There are many effects of caffeine that can cause issues in pets when ingested. Here are some symptoms to keep an eye out for.
- Vomiting
- Abnormal heart rhythm
- Seizures
- Tremors
- Hyperactivity
- Elevated heart rate
Caffeine also takes much longer to exit a pet’s system because it cannot easily detoxify its body. The effects of caffeine can last for up to six hours.
The most serious consequence of having coffee for pets is an erratic heartbeat, so if your pet has consumed coffee grounds or drank coffee you should feel their heartbeat right away.
“Cats and dogs should not ingest any caffeine”
Dr. Elisa Mazzaferro, adjunct associate clinical professor of emergency-critical care at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York.
It can take up to 30 minutes to 1 hour to see the effects of caffeine. This is because it may take a while for the caffeine to reach peak concentrations in your pet’s bloodstream. So if you see your pet doing fine after consuming some coffee you should still be concerned. You need to keep an eye on your pet for at least an hour afterwards to make sure they are safe.
Can a dog eat coffee beans or coffee grounds?
Most cups of coffee contain less than a lethal amount of caffeine even for the smallest of dogs. What you should look out for is if your pet gets into your coffee grounds.
Unused coffee grounds will have more caffeine than a cup of coffee or spent grounds. There is a much higher concentration of caffeine in the coffee grounds and there is a higher chance of a negative reaction happening if your pet gets into your coffee grounds.
Coffee is not good for your dog or cat, even in small doses. The same goes for coffee beans or coffee grounds. You should never give coffee beans or grounds to dogs as snacks because he may one day get into your coffee grounds and consume them thinking they are snacks.
According to Provet, caffeine is lethal to dogs at concentrations of 150 milligrams per kilogram. There is only about 100 mg of caffeine in an 8-ounce cup of coffee, however, there is 8mg of caffeine for each 1g of dry coffee. That means 20g-40g of dry coffee is enough to kill a small pet.
To put it into perspective 20g-40g of coffee is around the amount of coffee grounds / coffee beans needed to brew 1 cup of coffee.
| Dog Breed | Average Male Weight | Lethal Amount | Average Female Weight | Lethal Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Staffordshire Terrier | 25kg – 30kg | 562.5g | 22kg – 27kg | 506.25g |
| Australian Shepherd | 25kg – 29kg | 543.75g | 18kg – 25kg | 468.75g |
| Australian Cattle Dog | 15kg – 28kg | 525g | 15kg – 22kg | 412.5g |
| Basset Hound | 23kg – 29kg | 543.75g | 20kg – 27kg | 506.25g |
| Beagle | 13kg – 16kg | 300g | 11kg – 13kg | 243.75g |
| Border Collie | 19kg – 24kg | 450g | 18kg – 22kg | 412.5g |
| Border Terrier | 5.9kg – 7.1kg | 133.125g | 5.1kg – 6.4kg | 120g |
| Boston Terrier | 6kg – 11kg | 206.25g | 4.5kg – 9kg | 168.75g |
| Boxer | 30kg – 32kg | 600g | 25kg – 27kg | 506.25g |
| Bulldog- British | 24kg – 25kg | 468.75g | 22kg – 23kg | 431.25g |
| Bulldog- French | 12kg – 15kg | 281.25g | 10kg – 11kg | 206.25g |
| Bull mastiff | 50kg – 59kg | 1106.25g | 41kg – 50kg | 937.5g |
| Bull Terrier | 23kg – 32kg | 600g | 18kg – 23kg | 431.25g |
| Cavalier King Charles Spaniel | 5kg – 9kg | 168.75g | 5kg – 8kg | 150g |
| Chihuahua | 1.5kg – 3kg | 56.25g | 1.5kg – 3kg | 56.25g |
| Cocker Spaniel | 13kg – 16kg | 300g | 12kg – 15kg | 281.25g |
| Daschund-miniature | 4kg – 5kg | 93.75g | 4kg – 5kg | 93.75g |
| Daschund-standard | 7kg – 14kg | 262.5g | 7kg – 14kg | 262.5g |
| Doberman Pinscher | 34kg – 41kg | 768.75g | 29.5kg – 36kg | 675g |
| English Springer Spaniel | 20kg – 25kg | 468.75 | 18kg – 23kg | 431.25g |
| Fox Terrier (smooth) | 7.25kg – 8.25kg | 154.6875g | 6.75kg – 7.75kg | 145.3125g |
| German Shepherd | 34kg – 38.5kg | 721.875g | 27kg – 32kg | 600g |
| German Shorthaired Pointer | 25kg – 32kg | 600g | 20kg – 27kg | 506.25g |
| Golden Retriever | 31.7kg – 36.3kg | 680.625g | 27.2kg – 31.7kg | 594.375g |
| Great Dane | 54kg – 91kg | 1706.25g | 45kg – 59kg | 1106.25g |
| Jack Russel Terrier | 6kg – 8kg | 150g | 5kg – 7kg | 131.25g |
| Kelpie | 20.5kg – 25kg | 468.75g | 14kg – 21kg | 393.75g |
| Labrador Retriever | 29kg – 36kg | 675g | 25kg – 31kg | 581.25g |
| Lhasa Apso | 7kg | 131.25g | 6kg – 7kg | 131.25g |
| Maltese Terrier | 2kg – 4kg | 75g | 2kg – 4kg | 75g |
| Newfoundland | 64kg – 69kg | 1293.75 | 50kg – 54kg | 1012.5g |
| Norfolk Terrier | 5kg – 6kg | 112.5g | 5kg – 6kg | 112.5g |
| Poodle- toy | 3.5kg – 5.5kg | 103.125g | 3.5kg – 5.5kg | 103.125g |
| Poodle- miniature | 7kg – 8kg | 150g | 5.5kg – 7kg | 131.25g |
| Poodle- standard | 20kg – 32kg | 600g | 20kg – 27kg | 506.25g |
| Pug | 6kg – 9kg | 168.75g | 6kg – 8kg | 150g |
| Rottweiler | 45.5kg – 54.5kg | 1021.875g | 36kg – 41kg | 768.75g |
| Schnauzer- miniature | 5kg – 8.2kg | 153.75g | 4.5kg – 6.8kg | 127.5 |
| Schnauzer- Standard | 16kg – 23kg | 431.25g | 14kg – 20kg | 375g |
| Shetland Sheepdog | 8kg – 12.3kg | 230.625g | 6.4kg – 10.3kg | 193.125g |
| Shih Tzu | 4.5kg – 8.1kg | 151.875g | 4kg – 7.2kg | 135g |
| Siberian Husky | 20kg – 27kg | 506.25g | 16kg – 23kg | 431.25g |
| Staffordshire Bull Terrier | 13kg – 17kg | 318.75g | 11kg – 15.5kg | 290.625g |
| West Highland Terrier | 8kg – 9kg | 168.75g | 7kg – 8kg | 150g |
| Whippet | 10kg – 13kg | 243.75g | 8kg – 11kg | 206.25g |
| Yorkshire Terrier | 3kg | 56.25g | 3kg | 56.25g |
This table shows the average weight of each breed of dog for male and female and how much coffee it would need to be consumed to be lethal. This table accruately shows that it would be the smaller to medium sized dogs that would be in the most danger because they would only need to consume a small amount of coffee to get sick.
What to do if your pet has coffee
As with all cases of poisoning the best way to treat it is early intervention.
If your dog has signs of caffeine posioning should not panic just keep an eye on your pet and make sure they don’t develop any of the more serious symptoms of caffeine poisoning listed above.
You will need to keep an eye on your pet for one or two hours after they ingest the caffeine to monitor their heart rate and make sure they don’t have serious poisoning.
If they show signs of serious caffeine poisoning, especially signs of severly increased heart rate you will need to rush them to an emergency vetinarian. There are no home remedies for caffeine poisoning.
Call your veternarian or a Pet Poison Helpline. There is a 24/7 animal poison control center reachable at 1-800-213-6680 that you can call if your pet has consumed caffeine.
Here are somethings a vet will try to help your pet:
- Make your pet vomit to prevent more caffeine from being digested and circulated throughout the bloodstream
- Give your pet anti-seizure medication
- Prescribe medication to reduce blood pressure
If it has been several hours since your pet has consumed caffeine you should be good, just keep an eye out for the rest of the day to make sure your pet does not develop any other complications.
Conclusion
Coffee is great for humans, but can be extremely toxic for pets. Make sure you do not let your pets around any of your fresh or used coffee grounds and, please do not give them any coffee!
Coffee is healthy for humans, and as much as you would want to share the benefits with your pet, it is not good for them.