Can Dogs Eat Playdough

Play-Doh is a kind of modeling clay made for kids to mold for their crafting interests. It is mainly made from water, salt and flour.

Despite these natural ingredients, Play-Doh can be harmful to dogs. If your dogs ate Play-Doh, you should observe their symptoms, induce vomiting and take them to the vet in case they ate too much of it.

Let’s take a more detailed look at this issue to find out exactly what you can do. Table of Contents [

Unfortunately, Play-Doh can be lethal to dogs if enough of a specific toxic ingredient is eaten with it. These would especially include large amounts of salt, and cream of tartar in homemade Play-Dohs. It is always worth contacting your local veterinary clinic for advice if you are unsure.

Playdough (Play-Doh)—What is It?

There are generally two types of Play-Doh—commercially-made and homemade. Both of versions of the clay-like substance are non-toxic and are made with flour, food coloring, salt, and water.

While Playdough is non-toxic, the problem for dogs is that this substance is high in salt. Salt poisoning can be deadly for dogs.

Not only that, but Play-Doh can also cause an intestinal blockage if enough of the dough is eaten. This is especially dangerous if the dog has eaten a large quantity of the Playdough.

Dogs And Play-Doh: What To Keep In Mind

Before we cover what you should do if you suspect your pet has eaten Play-Doh, here are some factors you should be aware of that’ll help you gauge the seriousness of the situation.

If you’re big on DIY projects – it’s likely you’ve heard of homemade or salt-dough. Parents of little ones prefer to have their tiny tots play with DIY kids’ clay because kids have a habit of sticking the stuff in their mouths. And, they’re right.

Homemade kids’ clay is actually safer for little ones to play with because it includes the following ingredients:

All the above ingredients are pretty harmless for humans – because our systems are pretty adept at flushing out salt, not to mention we’ve got a higher threshold for the stuff.

However, when it comes to doggos – salt can be a tricky ingredient. Too much salt in your pet’s diet can lead to diarrhea, vomiting, excessive urination, temperature, and seizures.

There’s also a very real danger of your doggo developing sodium ion poisoning if your canine’s intake of salt is too high.

On the other hand, store-bought Play-Doh includes ingredients like borax, kerosene, aluminum sulfate, etc. – apart from sodium chloride (salt). That means ingesting store-bought Play-Doh, even in small quantities, isn’t good for your doggo.

While ingesting store-bought Play-Doh is definitely fraught with more dangers, homemade clays can wreak havoc, too (depending on your pet’s size). That’s why it’s highly recommended that you get your fur baby to the vet asap if it’s ingested Play-Doh, regardless of the type.

You’re probably asking why your pet’s size is a factor if it ingests Play-Doh of some kind. That’s simple – the smaller your pupper’s size is, the more challenging it’ll be for your doggo to digest salt and flush it out of its system.

Larger breeds find it easier to handle salt because their systems are more adept at handling salt.

That doesn’t mean that larger doggos are entirely safe from the side effects of ingesting too much salt. They can still face troubles like vomiting, diarrhea, tremors, etc.

Conversely, even eating a modest portion of “play-doh” (be it homemade or store-bought) can be pretty dangerous for smaller breeds.

If your large-breed furball is in the prime of its life with little or no health concerns, eating a small amount of Play-Doh won’t likely affect its system too bad, apart from some minor symptoms like nausea or excessive thirst.

But little puppers and senior dogs with weak systems are at greater risk if they ingest kids’ modeling clays. That’s because their systems are somewhat compromised due to their age and may not be able to tolerate too much sodium.

Aside from all that, if your doggo has kidney problems or any other health condition that can affect the way its body flushes out sodium – don’t take any chances and drive your canine to the vet as soon as you can.

Shih Tzu who ate homemade playdough treated for salt poisoning by emergency vets

For many children, making ornaments out of salt dough will be a popular way to enjoy time at home during the coronavirus crisis.

But one family discovered to their horror that salt dough also poses a potentially deadly threat to dogs.

Tracy Fellows had to rush her dog Woofus to the vet after he took a fancy to some ornaments her daughter had made.

When she discovered the five-year-old Shih Tzu had been eating the salt dough, which is made from flour, salt and water, Tracy and her family checked online and were dismayed to discover how easily it can poison dogs.

Tracy called out-of-hours pet emergency service Vets Now in Gateshead who asked how much he had ingested.

The family calculated Woofus had eaten the equivalent of 70 grammes of salt — more than enough to kill a dog double his size.

Woofus was saved by emergency vets after swallowing poisonous salt dough Find an Emergency Vet

Find your nearest clinic for immediate treatment.

According to the makers of the most popular brand, Play-Doh, the exact ingredients are a secret.

But they say it is primarily a mixture of water, salt and flour. While non-toxic, non-irritating and non-allergenic, Play-Doh can be harmful to pets if ingested due to the high salt content.

Tracey said: “We were told to take him to the clinic in Gateshead immediately. By this time he was drinking copious amounts of water and urinating everywhere.

“The vet was obviously quite concerned because the salt dough was starting to affect his body.

“When I asked what the outcome could be, I was warned it could result in brain damage, multiple organ failures or even death, so I needed to get him there as quickly as possible.”

Tracy added: “Woofus started to shake slightly on my 12-year-old daughter’s knee as we drove to the vet — so I was trying to reassure her that although it was serious and we might lose him, it was not her fault.”

Thankfully, Gateshead is just a 20-minute drive from the family’s Sunderland home. Tracy was full of praise for the Vets Now staff who began treating Woofus as soon as he arrived.

He was given medication to make him vomit and then put on a drip and monitored closely through the night.

Vet Jacqueline Seymour said she was delighted Woofus had managed to battle through his ordeal without any lasting side-effects.

She said: “Given how much salt dough he’d eaten, Woofus has had a lucky escape.

“Too much salt is dangerous for dogs and sodium toxicosis, as it’s known, can occur when dogs ingest anything high in salt from home-made playdough to sea water.

“Tracy did the right thing by contacting us so quickly, and hopefully Woofus’s case will alert other families that salt dough ornaments can pose a serious risk.

“Dog owners should keep anything high in salt out of reach. Those worried their dog has been poisoned by salt should contact their vet or, out of hours, Vets Now straight away for advice and treatment.”

According to the makers of the most popular brand, Play-Doh, the exact ingredients are a secret.

But they say it is primarily a mixture of water, salt and flour. While non-toxic, non-irritating and non-allergenic, Play-Doh can be harmful to pets if ingested due to the high salt content.

Salt dough models similar to those Woofus swallowed

FAQ

Can dogs eat homemade playdough?

The most popular brand of commercial play dough, Hasbro Play-Doh, is nontoxic. Crayola Dough and RoseArt Fun Dough are nontoxic as well.

Can Play-Doh eat?

If you make homemade play dough, be sure to keep it away from your dog, and be sure to supervise your children when they are playing with it. Homemade play dough contains an excessive amount of sodium chloride (salt), which is toxic to dogs.

Is Clay toxic to dogs?

It should be made clear to a child using play dough that this is not food and should not be eaten. It could be a choking hazard if put in the mouth, but symptoms are unlikely if it is swallowed. If a large amount is ingested, a minor upset stomach or loose stool may occur.