Chicken eggs

Conditions and restrictions

Cook both white and yolk fully, remove the shell, let it cool and offer a small piece without salt, oil, milk or seasoning. All treats combined should provide less than 10% of daily calories. Ask your vet first if your pet is on a therapeutic or elimination diet; avoid egg if it has caused a known reaction.

Benefits

A source of protein. With a complete diet, egg is an optional treat.

Risks

• A large portion adds excess calories and displaces balanced food.
• An individual food reaction may cause vomiting, diarrhoea or itching.

Already eaten — what now?

A healthy pet that ate a small piece of plain cooked egg usually only needs monitoring. Check for onion, garlic or shell. Contact a vet for vomiting, diarrhoea or itching; repeated vomiting, facial swelling, breathing difficulty or marked weakness need urgent care. Do not induce vomiting yourself.

Conditions and restrictions

Do not feed raw or undercooked eggs, including soft-boiled eggs, raw white or raw yolk. Cook both parts fully for a treat. Do not use an egg showing signs of spoilage.

Benefits

Egg contains protein, but it does not need to be raw to provide it.

Risks

• Raw egg may carry Salmonella and other bacteria that can harm pets and people.
• Regular feeding of raw white can interfere with biotin absorption because the protein avidin binds it. A single ingestion does not mean a deficiency has already developed.

Already eaten — what now?

Remove leftovers and wash your hands, the bowl and contaminated surfaces. Note the amount and time, and monitor appetite, activity and stools. Call a vet for vomiting, diarrhoea, lethargy or refusal to eat; repeated vomiting, bloody stools or marked weakness need urgent assessment. For a puppy, kitten or frail pet, discuss the exposure with a vet without waiting for symptoms. Do not induce vomiting yourself.

Conditions and restrictions

This variant covers fully cooked fried or scrambled eggs or omelettes with oil, salt or milk, but no onion or garlic. Do not offer them deliberately: set aside plain egg before adding other ingredients. Check any dish with unknown ingredients first.

Benefits

Egg provides protein; oil, salt and dairy additions do not make it a necessary part of the diet.

Risks

• Added fat and a large portion increase calorie intake and can cause digestive upset.
• Milk can cause diarrhoea in lactose-intolerant pets; very salty food needs a separate assessment of the salt amount.

Already eaten — what now?

Check the recipe and amount eaten. Monitor after a small bite without dangerous additions. Call a vet if a large amount was eaten, the dish was very salty or your pet has a therapeutic diet. Vomiting, abdominal pain, lethargy or refusal to eat need veterinary advice; repeated vomiting or marked weakness need urgent care. Do not induce vomiting yourself.

Conditions and restrictions

Remove the shell before offering egg. Do not add homemade powder by eye to complete food. If eggshell is part of a veterinary nutritionist’s recipe, follow the specified preparation and amount; this card does not prescribe a calcium dose.

Benefits

Eggshell contains calcium, but the amount in the diet must be calculated.

Risks

• Uncalculated calcium supplementation can upset mineral balance, particularly during growth.
• Raw shell may carry bacteria; large sharp pieces may injure the mouth or interfere with swallowing.

Already eaten — what now?

Remove the remaining shell. Monitor a symptom-free pet after a tiny crumb; contact a vet after a substantial amount or large pieces. Coughing, drooling, painful swallowing, vomiting or blood need assessment, and breathing difficulty needs immediate care. Do not induce vomiting or try to push pieces down with food.

Conditions and restrictions

Do not feed egg with onion, spring onion, garlic, leek, shallot, chives or their powders. Cooking does not remove the danger of these ingredients.

Benefits

This dish is unsuitable as a treat.

Already eaten — what now?

Contact a vet immediately, even if your pet still seems well. Give the ingredients, estimated amount, time and your pet’s weight; keep the packaging or recipe. Seek urgent care for pale gums, weakness, fast or difficult breathing, or dark urine. Do not induce vomiting or give home “antidotes”.