Are Christmas Trees Toxic to Dogs?

A beautifully decorated Christmas tree makes a beautiful centerpiece for your home come Christmas season. It adds color, warmth, and festive cheer. But in a home with dogs, a Christmas tree can add a few potential dangers, too.

Read on to learn about holiday pet safety, whether Christmas trees are safe for dogs, risks to be aware of, and all you need to know to keep your dog safe during the holiday season.

• What Dangers do Christmas Trees Pose to Pets?
• How To Dog-Proof Your Christmas Tree
• Other Poisonous Holiday Plants
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Final Notes

What Dangers do Christmas Trees Pose to Pets?

Planning on getting a Christmas tree this holiday season? Real or artificial, Christmas trees can pose a few real dangers to dogs. Let’s review the dangers to be aware of when it comes to dogs and Christmas trees.

Pine Needles

If you’re purchasing a real Christmas tree this holiday season, it’s important to make sure your dog doesn’t ingest its pine needles. For one, pine needles’ sharp tips can cause serious damage as they travel through a dog’s digestive tract. They’re also not digestible and can block the windpipe or the intestines, causing a veterinary emergency.

Another concern when it comes to pine needles? Their oils are mildly toxic to dogs. They can irritate the mouth and digestive tract, resulting in vomiting and diarrhea.¹

Vomiting after eating a few needles may be a sign your dog has ingested a mild toxin. Other signs your dog may have ingested pine needles include the following:¹

• Vomiting
• Drooling
• Trouble breathing
• Choking
• Irritation inside mouth

If you believe your dog may have ingested pine needles, talk to a vet as soon as possible.

Tree Preservatives & Water

Another concern when it comes to Christmas trees is the ingestion of potential chemicals and other preservatives. Trees are grown with pesticides and other chemicals that may be toxic to your dog. These chemicals may coat its leaves and branches or seep out into the water it sits in. If you add preservatives to your Christmas tree water, you should be aware of potential toxicity, too. Many of the chemicals added to preserve Christmas trees are toxic to dogs, and they may become poisoned if they drink the water under your tree.¹

Artificial Tree Branches

If you’ve opted for an artificial Christmas tree this year, your Christmas tree may still be unsafe for your dog. Artificial trees are made of plastic and other materials that can easily break, especially if your dog is a heavy chewer with a track record of destroying their toys.

Some artificial Christmas trees are also made with small parts that click together, which can be quite easy for a curious dog to remove. These too can be potential choking hazards or intestinal blockage risks for dogs. To ensure your pet's safety and prevent choking, all pet parents should know the Heimlich maneuver, which could be potentially life-saving if you can't make it to an emergency vet clinic in time.

Decorations

The decorations you add to your tree can also pose risks to your dog’s health. Christmas tree lights may be a source of danger for your dog. In addition to being potential choking hazards, Christmas tree lights can cause electrical burns or become fire hazards.¹ If you would like to add them to your tree, it’s important to use the right lights, like LED Christmas lights that don't get as hot.

Ornaments may also be dangerous to your dog. Glass or ceramic ornaments can easily fall and break, resulting in cuts on your dog's paws. To be safe, always secure your ornaments where your dog can't get to them, like high up on your tree. Remember, some might resemble their favorite fetch or chew toys, so you don't want them accidentally grabbing them from the tree and playing with them. Placing fragile ornaments towards the top of your tree can also prevent accidents caused by a wagging tail or otherwise rambunctious pup.

Another dangerous decoration to consider is flocking, which can be found on live and artificial Christmas trees. This decoration may seem pretty innocent, but flocked Christmas trees may not be safe for dogs. While flocking is made from low-toxicity substances, it can cause an upset stomach when consumed. Whether your dog licks your Christmas tree branches or flocking falls on your floor, there is a potential that your dog may consume it. To keep your dog safe, it’s best to avoid flocking altogether.

How to Dog-Proof Your Christmas Tree

Dog-proofing your Christmas tree is crucial for their health and safety during the holidays. Unfortunately, some dogs are more destructive than others and may chew on your tree, while others may be curious about what it is, whether real or plastic. Here are a few ways you can protect your dog from your tree this year:

1. Ensure your tree is sturdy: Christmas trees tend to tip over if you bump into them, so you should secure your tree to prevent your dog's wagging tail from pushing it over. In addition, since trees can fall if you put too many heavy ornaments on one side, securing it will prevent it from falling over on top of your dog while they're trying to take a nap.
2. Place decorations carefully: Always keep ornaments and lights out of your dog's reach by placing them higher up on the tree. Dogs sometimes chew cords, and ornaments look like tennis balls to them, so the best way to protect your pet and your tree is by ensuring your dog can't reach them.
3. Clean up pine needles: If you're using a live tree, the pine needles will fall throughout the day. However, you should never leave them on the floor because they can harm your dog. Since dogs may want to eat them because they smell nice, removing any pine needles that fall on the floor as soon as possible is always best.
4. Keep trees out of reach (when possible): Unfortunately, dogs will find a way to get to the Christmas tree if they want to. However, you can block your tree with baby gates to prevent your dog from knocking it over or eating anything off it. In addition, you should keep the water for live trees covered at all times so dogs can't drink it, especially if it contains additives or preservatives that can be toxic.
5. Use battery-powered lights: Battery-powered lights are a safer alternative because they'll have fewer cords for your dog to chew on. In addition, they won't run as warm, reducing the risk of an accidental fire. Of course, you should still keep the lights higher on the tree so your dog can't get to them.
6. Practice obedience training: The best way to prevent your dog from getting into trouble is to teach them how to listen to basic commands. Obedience training will ensure your dog knows to stay away from the Christmas tree even when you're not home. However, you should also take the proper precautions since even well-behaved dogs can engage in undesirable behavior. Therefore, you should keep a baby gate around the tree when you're not home to deter your dog from trying to eat anything off the tree.

Other Poisonous Holiday Plants

Unfortunately, Christmas trees aren’t the only holiday plant that may put your dog’s health at risk. A number of popular holiday plants may also be dangerous to your dog. Poisonous plants you may encounter during the holidays include:

• Holly: Holly’s leaves and berries may be dangerous for your dog. Its spiked leaves can damage your dog’s mouth and digestive tract, while its berries contain theobromine, the same chemical that makes chocolate toxic for dogs.
• Mistletoe: Romantic for you, but not for your dog. Mistletoe contains a toxin called viscumin that can cause a host of intestinal and airway issues in addition to hallucinations.
• Amaryllis: A common Christmas bulb, amaryllis contains several different compounds that are poisonous to dogs throughout its stems, leaves, and flowers.
• Lilies: Depending on the variety of lily, its effects on dogs when ingested may range from drooling, vomiting, and diarrhea to acute kidney injury.

To keep your dog safe, it’s best to avoid bringing these plants into your home altogether. If you do need to introduce any of these plants into your home, keep them on a high shelf where you’re confident your dog can't reach them. It’s also a good idea to place a dish beneath them to capture any fallen leaves, berries, or pollen and prevent them from falling on the ground, where your dog can easily eat them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Christmas trees poisonous to dogs?

While Christmas trees aren’t technically poisonous to dogs, they can still pose serious health risks. Be aware of the following concerns when bringing a real Christmas tree into your home:

• Pine needles can irritate your dog’s mouth or block their intestines when ingested.
• Christmas trees may be grown with chemicals that can be toxic to dogs.
• Preservatives added to your Christmas tree water may be toxic to dogs.
• Artificial flocking can cause stomach upset if ingested.

While artificial Christmas trees aren’t poisonous to dogs, they may pose choking hazards and other risks.

Can you have a Christmas tree with a dog?

Yes, you can have either a live or artificial Christmas tree if you have a dog. However, you should take the proper precautions to ensure your dog won't try to eat anything off the tree or bump into it and cause it to fall. If you have a puppy, consider strategically placing baby gates throughout your home to control where they can spend time to keep them away from the tree. In addition, you can put a barrier between your tree and your dog.

What type of Christmas tree is best for dogs?

Generally speaking, artificial Christmas trees are safer for dogs as they don’t drop needles or put your dog at risk of ingesting harmful chemicals. That said, their branches may pose choking hazards for dogs that love to chew, and can cause intestinal blockages if ingested.

What can you put around your Christmas tree to keep dogs away?

To prevent your dog from nosing around your Christmas tree and potentially putting themself in harm’s way, consider one of these ideas:

• Keep your Christmas tree in a closed-off room and only give your dog access when supervised.
• Place a baby gate around your Christmas tree.
• Surround your tree with a ring of aluminum foil, which most dogs don’t like the texture of.
• Deter your dog with pet deterrent spray or a strong smell they dislike.

Which Christmas decorations are dangerous for dogs?

Unfortunately, many pet parents don't realize that the holidays can be dangerous for dogs. The following Christmas decorations are dangerous for dogs:

• Christmas trees
• Mistletoe
• Holly
• Poinsettias
• Lilies
• Amaryllis
• Tinsel
• Ornaments
• Candles
• Advent calendars
• Lights

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list of potentially dangerous decorations for dogs, so you should use your best judgment when decorating your home for the holidays. Additionally, you know your dog best, so if you know they have a habit of jumping on the tables, keep these potential dangers out of reach.

How do I train my dog to leave the Christmas tree alone?

Obedience training is the best way to help your dog understand desirable behaviors, such as leaving the Christmas tree alone. That said, obedience training is a time consuming process that may not be complete by the time Christmas comes around. Therefore, you should take proper precautions to ensure your dog understands that the tree is off-limits. A few tips to help you train your dog to stay away from the Christmas tree include:

• Crate training them
• Use verbal commands when they get too close to the tree, such as "No," or "Come."
• Distract them with toys and treats
• Continue redirecting them away from the tree and giving them treats when they ignore it

Final Notes

Are Christmas trees safe for dogs? It depends. In general, live and artificial Christmas trees are safe to have around dogs as long as their branches, needles, and decorations aren’t ingested. There’s no need to worry about physical contact; If your dog rubs up against the tree, they're unlikely to experience any side effects.

To keep your dog safe, consider switching to an artificial Christmas tree and placing your ornaments and other decorations strategically out of the way. If you have other concerns about your dog’s safety this Christmas season, our licensed veterinarians are here for you. Dutch members get unlimited access to licensed veterinarians. Join Dutch today for veterinary advice, holiday deals, and more.