Vets have warned against a disturbing trend that’s been circulating on TikTok, in which people feed hot sauce to their dogs to see their reaction.

TikTok users have posted videos of themselves dousing pieces of chicken with hot sauce as they reference the trend. Give your dog something with hot sauce and get their reaction one video’s caption said, as they showed themselves attempting to feed their dog.

TikToker are putting hot sauce on chicken and feeding it to their dogs

In one video, a dog is clearly in discomfort but continues to chew on the sauce-covered chicken leg due to its innate love for meat. Another video shows a dog taking a cautious lick before running away in panic as its owner laughs in the background.

The Blue Cross, one of the UK’s leading animal welfare charities, said it was horrified to see this latest social media trend.   Chili in hot sauce can cause pancreatitis inflammation in the pancreas in dogs, while other ingredients like onion and garlic are also toxic for canines.

While the intent is providing your pet with what they perceive as a tasty treat, this could cause them serious pain and discomfort. Spicy foods should never be fed to our pets as they can cause severe indigestion, vomiting and diarrhea. Some of the ingredients in sauces like this, onions and garlic for example, can also cause harm and should also never be fed to pets.

Alison Thomas, Head of Veterinary Services at the Blue Cross

A veterinary technician posted a TikTok video advising against the trend.

An RSPCA spokesperson also said slammed the very irresponsible trend, which could lead to gastrointestinal upsets, as well as pain and discomfort. Unfortunately, we are seeing more and more social media content that is celebrating animal suffering, even inadvertently, and we ask owners to always consider the impact on their pet.

A selfie or video clip is never worth causing an animal to suffer. Dogs are sentient beings who can find experiences like this very frightening. TikTok does not tolerate animal cruelty and that the platform is a space for positive and creative expression. We take action when issues are brought to our attention. We have banned videos of this nature and content depicting cruelty to animals will be removed. We will continue to monitor this situation for further developments and take action wherever necessary.

TikTok Spokesperson

TikTok videos were captioned: Give your dog something with hot sauce and get their reaction

Another user posted two videos to the site both taken down by the user on Wednesday afternoon to show how much their pet doesn’t care about hot sauce!

A vet in the US who posts to TikTok and Instagram under the username @vet_techs_pj as part of a duo, condemned the posts. His video posted to TikTok shows a dog in hospital with pancreatitis, whose owner ‘just kept giving him more and more hot sauce.  

You know that trend where you give your dog a piece of chicken with hot sauce on it just to see what their reaction is? Now he’s in the hospital with pancreatitis. They just kept giving him more and more because I guess his reaction was just so funny but now he’s in the hospital with pancreatitis so stop doing trends with pets!

Peter & Jaycee – @vet_techs_pj

Dr Mary Altomare, a vet at Mount Pleasant Animal Shelter in New Jersey, told that spicy food causes great discomfort to a dog’s body, including the oral cavity and esophagus the tube connecting the throat and the stomach. As it travels to their stomach, it can cause further upset such as heartburn and even ulcerations.

Once it passes through the stomach, pets are likely to experience intestinal cramping and diarrhea. Depending on how sensitive of a stomach your pet has, you may also see some vomiting and subsequent dehydration.

This is not the first time stupid and potentially lethal trends have spread like wildfire on the popular app, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. Last month, doctors warned people not to replicate the trend of covering one’s face and neck with hot wax before peeling it off when it dries.