Thanksgiving Table Scraps: What's Safe and What's Not

Thanksgiving concentrates several classic pet food hazards onto a single table, but it's not an all-or-nothing situation — some foods are genuinely fine to share in small amounts, while others deserve real caution.

Plain, unseasoned turkey meat (no skin, no bones, no gravy) is generally fine in small amounts for most dogs and cats, though the turkey skin specifically is often heavily seasoned and fatty, carrying pancreatitis risk covered elsewhere.

Turkey bones, especially cooked ones, are a genuine hazard — the splintering risk from cooked bones applies fully here, and the temptation to offer a bone as a special treat is exactly the scenario that leads to this common holiday emergency.

Stuffing typically contains onions and garlic, both toxic to dogs and cats, along with often being high in fat and seasoning — this dish is best avoided entirely rather than assumed safe in small amounts.

Gravy is generally high in fat and often contains onion or garlic as well, making it another dish worth skipping for pet sharing despite how tempting it might be to pour a little over their regular food.

Mashed potatoes, plain and without butter/gravy/seasoning added, are reasonably safe in small amounts, though the version actually served at most Thanksgiving tables usually includes butter, cream, and seasoning that shifts it toward the "skip it" category.

Plain green beans and plain pumpkin (not pie filling, which contains sugar and spices) are both reasonably safe, low-risk options if you want to include your pet in the meal without real risk.

Chocolate and other dessert items carry their own well-documented risks and are easy to overlook amid the main meal focus, but pie, especially chocolate-based desserts, deserves the same caution as any other time of year.

What to do: Stick to plain turkey meat, plain green beans, and plain pumpkin if you want to share, and keep stuffing, gravy, bones, and desserts entirely out of reach — briefing guests on this list before the meal helps avoid well-meaning scrap-sharing that creates a real problem.

For the specific bone-related risk this holiday commonly triggers, here's more detail.