The gift tin is a genuine poisoning risk
Most nuts are merely too fatty for dogs, but macadamias are different: they contain something that specifically makes dogs ill, and they sit on the short list of common household foods vets treat as toxic to them. A gift tin left open on a coffee table is the classic route in, because the nuts are shelled, mild-tasting and exactly at nose height for a dog wandering past, and a dog can eat a surprising number before anyone notices the lid is off.
Start by securing what remains. Close the tin, move it out of reach, count what is left against what the tin held, and check whether shells, chocolate coatings or other gift foods were eaten too, since chocolate alongside macadamias raises the concern further. Then call.
Call promptly, even before signs appear
Phone your vet as soon as you find the raid, rather than waiting to see whether your dog is one of the unaffected ones. Give the team an honest count or estimate of missing nuts, your dog's weight, and the earliest time the tin could have been accessed. Smaller dogs and larger handfuls sit at the higher end of concern, but the vet should make that judgment with your numbers, not leave you guessing at home.
Do not try to make your dog vomit unless the vet instructs you, and do not offer fatty foods or home treatments to soak anything up. If the vet advises watching at home, set up a quiet, warm resting spot on one floor, because the signature effect of these nuts involves the hind legs and stairs become a fall risk for a wobbly dog.
The signs this particular poisoning produces
Macadamia illness usually declares itself within several hours of eating. The most distinctive sign is weakness in the back legs: a dog who struggles to stand, sways when walking, bunny-hops oddly or gives up on a favourite chair he normally launches into. Vomiting is common, and many dogs look generally miserable, reluctant to move and sore when their hindquarters are handled.
Tremors and shivering can follow, in some dogs linked to a raised body temperature, which is why a dog who feels hot, pants at rest and shakes needs to be spoken about with the vet immediately rather than tucked up and left. Most dogs recover with supportive care over a day or two, and that hopeful fact is a reason to involve the vet early, not a reason to skip the call.
Watching a wobbly dog safely at home
If home monitoring is the veterinary advice, think like a nurse for the day. Keep your dog on the ground floor, carry small dogs outside for toileting if legs are unreliable, and use a supportive sling or towel under the belly for larger dogs who still want to try. Offer small drinks of water regularly, keep food light until vomiting settles, and note times for vomiting, tremors and any improvement in standing, because that record helps the vet judge the trajectory if you call back.
Prevent a second helping with complete certainty this time: an ill dog who enjoyed the first raid may still return to an open tin. Move it into a closed cupboard, and check sofas and rugs for nuts cached or dropped during the theft.
Why coffee-table foods deserve a house rule
Gift foods arrive precisely when households are busiest and rules relax, and coffee tables collect the riskiest of them at dog height: nuts, chocolates, grapes and rich baked goods. A simple standing rule, nothing edible lives open on a low table, prevents most of these scares at once. For the scares that happen anyway, having your dog's weight and your vet's number already assembled in KinsLe Pet Passport turns a flustered discovery into a clear, prompt call with the facts the vet actually needs.