Posted by IsoM on February 21, 2003, at 1:45:27
In reply to Iso: I thought garlic was good for kitties... (nm), posted by kara lynne on February 20, 2003, at 23:20:40
Kara Lynne, many people assume that because something is good for people that it'll help pets too but it's not always true. Their body chemistry is different enough from ours that some foods can poison an animal that wouldn't hurt us.
Both onions & garlic both belong to the Allium family & contains an alkaloid compound that damages a cat's red blood cells. Onions contain more of it, & cats probably wouldn't get enough garlic in most foods to seriously harm them, but it's still not a good idea to do any damage to blood cells, even if it's a small amount. I'm not a big believer in small amounts of toxic substances to jump start the body's system. Look what the combined effects of so many environmental compounds can have on us nowadays. Why give your kitty something else that is toxic?
The alkaloid in onions and garlic can cause Heinz-body hemolytic anemia. The changes to the red blood cells are irreversible. Any animal’s body makes new red blood cells frequently, as their life span is measured in days so its effects aren’t long lasting if the resulting damage was minor. Sometimes sick cats are fed human baby food but many baby foods have small amounts of onion or garlic powder added. Not a good idea.
Here's a quote about the alkaloid substance:
"An alkaloid, N-propyl disulphide, present in both cultivated and wild onions, chives, and garlic, affects the enzyme, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, in red blood cells that interferes with the hexose monophosphate pathway. Oxidation of hemoglobin results because there is either insufficient phosphate dehydrogenase or glutathione to protect the red blood cells from oxidative injury. The resulting formation of Heinz bodies within erythrocytes is characteristic of onion poisoning. (...)"
Marielle Gomez-Kaifer, PhD, Department of Chemistry, University of MiamiWhat it basically means is that the compound found in garlic and onions destroys an enzyme in a chemical pathway that protects red blood cells from being oxidized. The red blood cells become rigid and rupture as they move through the blood stream. I guess it may sound a little complicated, but I don’t think even small amounts of either onions or garlic to be safe for cats or dogs. Whatever benefits in them are outweighed by the harm that can be done.
poster:IsoM
thread:201723
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20030215/msgs/202370.html