Dog Alcohol Toxicity Calculator
Dog got into beer, wine, spirits, hand sanitizer or raw bread dough? Enter their weight and the amount to see the ethanol dose, the risk level, and what to do.
Enter your dog's weight and how much they had to see the risk.
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 · US (fee may apply)
- Pet Poison Helpline: (855) 764-7661 · US/Canada (fee may apply)
This is an estimate to help you decide whether to call, not a diagnosis. When the amount is uncertain or your pet is small, young or unwell, treat it as more serious and pick up the phone.
Estimate only — not veterinary advice. Every animal is different; for a medication dose, a possible poisoning, or any emergency, call your veterinarian or an animal poison control line right away.
How the ethanol dose is worked out
What matters is the amount of ethanol(pure alcohol) per kilogram of body weight. The calculator multiplies the amount you enter by a typical ethanol content for that source — a can of beer, a glass of wine and a shot of spirits each hold a similar amount of alcohol, while hand sanitizer is far more concentrated — then divides by your dog's weight to map it to a risk level.
What to do right now
Alcohol hits fast, so don't wait for symptoms. Note the source and a best guess of the amount, run the numbers, and call your vet or a poison line (ASPCA 888-426-4435, Pet Poison Helpline 855-764-7661). For raw dough, or for a small dog and anything stronger than a sip of beer, treat it as urgent and get advice straight away.
Frequently asked questions
- How much alcohol is toxic to a dog?
- Dogs are much more sensitive than people. Signs of intoxication can start around 0.5 grams of ethanol per kg of body weight, become serious near 3 g/kg, and are potentially fatal past roughly 5–8 g/kg. A few laps of beer is usually mild for a big dog, but spirits, sanitizer or raw dough can reach the danger zone fast. The calculator estimates the dose.
- What are the hidden sources of alcohol?
- Beyond drinks: raw bread or pizza dough (the yeast ferments into alcohol), hand sanitizer, mouthwash, some cleaning products, rum cake and other boozy desserts, and even vanilla and other flavor extracts. Fermenting fruit and unbaked dough are easy to overlook.
- Why is raw bread dough especially dangerous?
- Two reasons at once. The warm stomach lets the yeast keep fermenting, producing alcohol — and the dough expands, which can bloat and twist the stomach (a surgical emergency). So raw dough is a 'call the vet now' situation regardless of the alcohol number.
- What are the symptoms of alcohol poisoning in dogs?
- Wobbliness and disorientation, vomiting and drooling, then a dangerously low body temperature, low blood sugar, slowed breathing and, in severe cases, collapse and coma. Signs come on within 30–60 minutes. Don't wait — call your vet or a poison line.
Sources
These are the references behind this calculator. Where a source gives a range we take the midpoint and round toward caution, and where we go beyond what a source states — an extra safety margin, or a rule of thumb rather than a clinical threshold — the page says so in the text above.
- Alcohol — Pet Poison Helpline
- People foods to avoid feeding your pets — ASPCA
- Animal Poison Control Center — ASPCA