Can Dogs Drink Tea? (Pro’s, Con’s, Warnings!)

If you’ve sat there with your beloved pooch having a cup of tea and the question can dogs drink tea has run across your mind then let me say this...

Well generally speaking, you should just give your dog water to drink as it is the only thing that will keep them fully hydrated.

Though on the odd occasion you can treat them to other drinks and that can include certain types of tea.

But before you start giving them their own morning brew definitely read the rest of the post as there are occasions where it's dangerous for them...

What will happen if my dog drinks a large amount of caffeinated tea?

If you think about how humans can get hyped and jittery drinking caffeinated drinks then think about what it must do for dogs who are half the size of us.

Dogs are not able to tolerate it as we can so it’s probably for the best that we keep them away from the good stuff.

Here are a few symptoms of what to look for if your dog has had too much caffeine:

• They can be a lot more hyperactive than normal. If you have a dog that is already very excitable as a standard then look to see if they can sit still for a short period without looking to get up and move around.
  
  
• Dogs will get very restless if they’re over-caffeinated, maybe they’ll walk to and from a room or constantly be readjusting themselves in their basket. 
  
  
• Dogs can be prone to vomiting if they’ve drunk caffeinated tea. This can be useful as it’ll get rid of some of the toxins from their body. They may also need to urinate a lot more or even get diarrhea. 
  
  
• Like humans, dogs can get an elevated heart rate. However, if there is continuous high consumption of caffeine, it could lead to long term effects like a heart attack or a stroke.
  
  
• If you’re an avid tea or coffee drinker then you’ll know what it feels like to be jittery after having too much. This is the same with dogs. They’ll often get tremors and will shake as if they’re too cold.
  
  
• Dogs may also start to pant heavily if they have high levels of caffeine in their body, this is because their body temperature has risen and they are trying to cool themselves down. 
  
  
• The serious symptoms would be a seizure, your dog collapsing or your dog passing away but we hope it doesn’t get to that point for you to realize.

When You Definitely Shouldn't Give Your Dog Tea

Avoid giving your dog tea that has milk in it as it is high in fat and sugar and could cause your dog to have an allergic reaction.

In general, giving your dog a little taster of your tea every so often won’t harm them and also won’t cause any detrimental long term health problems.

However, you should avoid giving your dog any tea that contains caffeine.

Your dog would have to drink a few cups of caffeinated tea for it to reach a dangerous level though, so don’t worry if you’ve given them a sip in the past. 

What should I do if my dog has drunk tea and is showing some of these symptoms?

Symptoms like the ones above can often start to show as early as 30 minutes after drinking the caffeinated tea.

If your dog is showing any of these symptoms or you’ve seen them help themselves to your big cup of tea, then you should take them to a vet straight away.

The vet may try to induce vomiting so they eradicate the toxins from the body, or they may even give your dog activated charcoal to absorb it all before it seeps into their bloodstream.

Extreme cases may require medical treatment to help your dog ride out the symptoms. 

Can my dog drink green tea?

It’s common knowledge that green tea is hugely beneficial for humans and the same standard for our canine companions.

Green tea contains lots of antioxidants that have anti-inflammatory properties and can also boost their immune systems.

There are also some scientific findings that green tea can help reduce the risk or even cure some cancers in dogs. One benefit for us as owners is that drinking green tea can give your dog fresher breath. 

If you do want to give your dog some green tea to drink, then make sure it is decaffeinated beforehand.

You’ll also want to make sure that the tea is a cool enough temperature for your dog to drink, otherwise, they could burn themselves.

Whilst green tea can have some good benefits for your dog, you should avoid giving them too much green tea or even replacing their daily water bowl with green tea.

Don’t give them a big bowl of green tea on an empty stomach. Over consuming green tea can lead to stomach upsets and bad bloating for them.

What other teas can be dog drink?

If your dog has got the taste for different teas, then you could always give them a little bit of chamomile tea.

Chamomile tea has calming properties that can ease any anxiety that your dog may have and it can also help soothe an upset stomach if they've eaten something they shouldn't have such as spicy human food for example. 

If you do want to give your dog a small bowl of decaffeinated tea now and again make sure that it has been cooled for 15 minutes before serving it to them and also remember to take the teabag out, otherwise they could choke on it. 

So there you have it, yes dogs can drink tea, but only certain types of tea. It should be given in moderation alongside a healthy canine diet or to support any illnesses your dog may have.

If you’re a passionate tea drinker, you may now want to think twice about leaving the dregs in your mug around for your dog to finish off.