Thanksgiving Foods You Can't Share With Your Cat (plus some you can 😺)

If your cat has ever parked themselves at your feet on Thanksgiving and stared at you like you’re holding the secrets of the universe (or at least the turkey), you’re in good company. Our cats are family, and sharing a little of what we’re eating feels like the most natural way to show them love. 

Some holiday foods are perfectly fine in small bites. Others, including a few that might surprise you, can make your cat sick. Here’s what to keep on your plate this year, so you and your favorite whiskered companion can both enjoy the day.

Onions and garlic: the biggest hidden hazard

Onions, garlic, leeks, chives, scallions, and shallots all belong to the allium family. They damage a cat's red blood cells and can lead to anemia. Cats are even more sensitive to them than dogs. Raw, cooked, powdered, and dried all count, and symptoms like weakness, pale gums, or loss of appetite may not show up for a few days.

The tricky part is they hide in so many dishes: 

• Stuffing or dressing. Onions and celery are the backbone of most recipes, cornbread and packaged included.

• Gravy. Often built on pan drippings and broths that contain onion and garlic. 

• Green bean casserole. That crispy fried-onion topping is the whole point.

• The turkey itself. Rubs, injected marinades, and the onions tucked inside the cavity all season the meat.

• Collard greens. Onions and garlic are in almost every pot.

• Lasagna. Is there a pasta sauce that doesn’t have onions and garlic?

• Arroz con gandules. Built on sofrito, which starts with onion and garlic.

Onion and garlic powder deserve special mention: they're more concentrated than the fresh versions, and they hide in seasoning blends, gravy mixes, broths, and many store-bought sides.

Turkey trouble

Plain turkey meat in small amounts (more on that below) isn’t the problem. It's everything around the meat that causes problems.

• Cooked bones. Cooking makes bones brittle, so they splinter. Sharp pieces can cause choking or severe injury to the mouth, throat, or gut.

• Skin, fat, and drippings. Rich, salty, and usually seasoned with onion and garlic. A fatty meal can cause vomiting and diarrhea. 

• Raw or undercooked turkey. It can carry Salmonella, which can make your cat sick and spread to people. 

Too rich, too salty, too creamy

These usually won’t poison your cat, but they’re a reliable recipe for an upset stomach, and in some cats, very fatty foods can trigger pancreatitis. 

• Macaroni and cheese. Lots of cheese, butter, and milk are too much for a cat’s tummy.

• Candied yams and sweet potato pie. Sugar, butter, and nutmeg. Marshmallow toppings add more sugar.

• Dairy desserts and drinks. Most adult cats are lactose intolerant, so skip the whipped cream, flan, and eggnog.

• Tamales. The masa is rich with lard and the fillings are often seasoned with garlic and onion. 

• Ham. Very salty, and glazes add extra sugar.

• Rich casseroles and pie filling. Butter, sugar, and spices are hard on a small digestive system.

Baking and other ingredient dangers

Desserts, drinks, and rising dough bring their own set of dangers. A few of these are true toxins, so even a small taste can be serious. 

• Raw yeast dough. It keeps rising in a warm stomach and gives off alcohol as it ferments. That's painful bloating plus alcohol poisoning. 

• Alcohol. Wine, beer, spiked eggnog, coquito, and rum-soaked desserts. Cats are tiny, and it doesn't take much to make one seriously ill.

• Chocolate. Contains theobromine and caffeine, which cats can't process well. Dark and baking chocolate are the most dangerous.

• Nutmeg. Found in pumpkin pie, sweet potato dishes, and eggnog. A lick of pie is unlikely to cause harm, but there's no reason to share.

• Grapes and raisins. They can show up in stuffing, salads, kugel, and cranberry relish. They're well known to cause sudden kidney failure in dogs, and vets strongly recommend keeping them away from cats too. There’s no known safe amount, so keep them all off their plate.

If a dish isn't on this list, ask yourself whether it contains onion, garlic, alcohol, chocolate, raisins, bones, or a lot of fat, salt, or dairy. If the answer is yes, keep it on your plate and off theirs.

Thanksgiving foods your cat CAN eat

Your cat doesn't have to sit out the holiday entirely. A few safe ways to share the holiday feast with your feline companion.

• Plain turkey. A small piece of cooked white meat with no skin, seasoning, gravy, or bones. Turkey is a great treat for cats, just not a replacement for their regular food.

• Plain pumpkin. A teaspoon of plain canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling, which has sugar and spices.

• Plain sweet potato. A tiny amount, cooked and peeled, before the butter, sugar, spices, or marshmallows go on.

• Plain corn. A few cooked kernels off the cob, without butter or salt.

Vets recommend keeping treats to about 10% of a cat’s daily calories, which works out to roughly 24 calories for an average 10-pound cat. That goes fast, so a few thumbnail-sized bites are plenty. And if your cat has a medical condition or a special diet, check with your vet first. 

Honestly, the best gift might be a quiet room away from the chaos, with food, water, a litter box, a cozy spot to sleep, and something good to scratch.

Watch the trash

Trussing string, foil, and oven bags aren’t food, but they smell exactly like turkey, which makes them irresistible to cats. String is especially dangerous. It can bunch up the intestines and often requires emergency surgery. Many cat owners have no idea how dangerous it can be — I’ve been a cat mom for more than 25 years and only recently learned of the medical emergencies caused by swallowed string. 

• Clean up fast. Bag up string, netting, foil, and oven bags as soon as the turkey comes out. Consider taking the trash out before dinner, or securing it somewhere your cat can’t get to.

• Check the table. Ribbon on centerpieces or napkin rings can be just as tempting, and just as dangerous. 

• Watch for warning signs. Symptoms can take a few days to show up and include vomiting, not eating, hiding, low energy, or a sore belly.  

If you see a string hanging from your cat’s mouth or rear end, DON’T PULL IT. Call your vet right away. Pulling can tighten it and cause more damage. Keep your cat calm and try to stop them from pulling at it themselves.

Want to learn more? VCA Animal Hospitals explains how string injuries happen and how vets treat them. 

If your cat gets into something

Don't wait for symptoms. Call your vet or an emergency animal hospital right away, or contact a pet poison hotline. Both of these are open 24/7 and charge a consultation fee:

• ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435

• Pet Poison Helpline: (855) 764-7661

It helps to know what your cat ate, roughly how much, and when.

Your cat will probably still give you the stare. Now you’ll know which bites are worth sharing.