@plantladylin -- I know you're as careful as you can be with your dog enjoying the plants as munchies. There have been a few documented cases of dogs (smaller than yours though) getting so sick and ended up dying before the owner's realized it had been chewing over a period of time on a small palm. Unfortunately, a great number of plants we grow here in Florida are toxic to pets; not all fatal of course, but can make them pretty sick. Perhaps if you were to sprinkle some cayenne powder around the rim of your pots it might discourage him. If he's such a chewer; I'd make sure you don't have this "palm" in your yard.
Here's what I found:
The ornamental Sago palms (which are really not palms at all) that many people use in landscaping and as indoor plants can also cause the death of your beloved pet. The Sago Palm, also known as Coontie Palm, Cardboard Palm, Cycad or Zamia, is in the family Cycadaceae, which showed up on our planet before the dinosaurs. They contain a very potent toxin called CYCASIN. Two other toxins occur in the plant but cycasin is found in the highest concentration and is thought to be responsible for the life-threatening clinical signs and death. These ornamental plants, once found primarily in Florida, California and Texas, are now being sold as indoor decorations all over the United States. Thus the number of Sago Palm poisoning cases has increased nationwide over the past few years. Unfortunately these plants are not sold with warning labels so buyers often don’t know that they can be deadly if ingested. Many dogs, cats, horses, and a plethora of other animals find Sago Palms delicious. The entire plant is toxic but the seeds of the plant have the highest concentration of toxin and are, unlike the spiked fronds, easy to ingest. In fact, some veterinarians think that dogs are particularly drawn to these deadly treats.
The poison in these plants is so toxic that dogs have died after ingesting a single seed. Once a pet has ingested and absorbed the toxin, death can occur in just a few hours. If you think that your pet has eaten ANY part of a Sago Palm, no matter what quantity, you need to seek emergency treatment immediately. This toxin can quickly take the life of your beloved pet.
