Homebrewers, proceed with caution—your pup can’t handle hops. The next time your brew dog joins you in the garage, be sure to keep hops and yeast well out of his/her reach.
“For many years, dogs accompanied their owners to work at Northern Brewer and freely roamed our offices,” says a post on the Northern Brewer website. “So when we heard about a customer’s scary experience after their dog consumed hops, we were shaken and wanted to help. For wider education on the issue, we would like echo a very serious warning about dogs and hops.”
That serious warning is this: Ingesting hops can be highly toxic for dogs, and even deadly. Although the mechanism of toxicity is unknown, most studies suggest it’s related to the essential oils and resins found in hops. “In some studies, it is reported that hop pellets are slightly less harmful than whole hops ingestion, but all can be fatal,” says Niki Purcell, a Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT) in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.