Vets' urgent warning for owners after they were 'inundated' with sick pets after Easter - and it's not just because of chocolate treats

While most owners are aware feeding chocolate to their pets at Easter is bad for them, vets have now also urged people not to give their animals grapes and sultanas, after clinicians treated more than 20 pets who ate the treats over the Easter long weekend. 

The vets warned that some pets can have difficulty digesting grapes or sultanas found, for example, in hot cross buns. 

Vets treated 21 animals this Easter at several Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH)  centres across Australia after they ate small amounts of the fruits. 

The specialist centres also treated 77 other animals who required urgent care. 

Tim Hopkins, who is a vet at a SASH centre in Adelaide, said just because some dogs might not react badly to eating grapes, it doesn't mean the fruit is safe to consume.  

'If you're from a family that you've been lucky enough to never see the effects of grape toxicity then you could be perpetuating that idea that it's safe, but it's not for all dogs,' Mr Hopkins told Yahoo. 

He said the fruit can damage vital organs which in some cases cannot be cured. 

'Those dogs that are affected can suffer kidney injuries which can be irreversible,' he said. 'We don't know why some dogs are susceptible and others are not.'

Grapes and sultanas are among several foods, including chocolate, that should not be given to dogs. 

Chocolate is very toxic for the animals as the sweet treats contain the chemicals theobromine and caffeine, which cannot be processed by dogs as easily as humans. 

Dogs can can suffer several symptoms including vomiting, diarrhea, and even seizures after eating the treat. 

Some dogs however, are unaffected by the food item and don't suffer the adverse health affects. 

Mr Hopkins said that while the number of cases involving dogs fed chocolate have reduced, sometimes dogs manage to eat the food without owners being aware. 

'With the chocolates, I think it's mostly about unguarded chocolates or a particularly ingenious dog,' Mr Hopkins said. 

Vets have urged people not to give their pets harmful food items and recommend hiding edibles like chocolate away from dogs, so that they don't mistakenly eat them.