As we plan our menus for the upcoming holidays, we can think about what our dogs can contribute. Particularly considering how many of us simply can’t help ourselves when our dependable dogs give us the puppy-eyes while we indulge on our holiday bounty.
Although dogs don’t require anything more than balanced dog food, it can be alluring to give them a small portion of your dinner. Knowing how human food will effect your dog’s digestive system before they barge into the kitchen to get a mouthful is crucial to their long-term health.
You might be wondering if the mashed potatoes on the majority of holiday feast menus are suitable for your dog. Yes, mashed potatoes are generally safe for dogs. However, how you prepare the food is key to ensuring their safety. Before serving your dog a portion-sized serving of mashed potatoes, read our article Can Dogs Eat Potatoes to find out more about including potatoes in your dog’s diet.
Nutritional benefits of potatoes
The nutrients in potatoes boost the health of your dog. They offer a sufficient amount of vitamins B6, A, and C. They also contain anti-oxidants that can protect against the consequences of cognitive aging, strengthen your dog’s immunological and nervous systems, and combat cell oxidation.
Additionally, potatoes are a rich source of minerals like magnesium, potassium, iron, and calcium, which all support kidney function, heart health, bone and cell growth, and metabolism.
Another advantage of potatoes for health is fiber. Fiber-rich foods can keep the digestive system functioning properly.
Although giving potatoes to your dog has many advantages, there are some disadvantages as well.
The downside of potatoes
The high carbohydrate content of potatoes is one of its main disadvantages. Potatoes are high on the glycemic index and can trigger blood sugar surges that can be fatal for diabetic pets. In order to produce energy, carbohydrates transform into sugar in the digestive tract. Potatoes are harmful for dogs with diabetes to eat since they can’t process a lot of sugar or carbohydrates in their diets.
The Nightshade plant family includes potatoes, peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes. Because of the solanine found in the roots, potato skin, stems, and leaves, they are poisonous to both people and animals. The solanine content of potatoes is reduced after heating, making them safer for you and your dog to eat. Due to their high solanine content, raw potatoes should not be consumed by humans or given to dogs.
Higher solanine levels may be visible in the color of the potato’s skin. Intake of sunlight causes chlorophyll to be activated, giving potatoes their green color. Potatoes with green skin that have been peeled and cooked retain their solanine content. Avoid consuming potatoes with green skin whenever possible.
Toxic effects of solanine include:
- intestinal discomfort severe diarrhea and vomiting
- Continent pain
- Weakness
- Lethargy
- Confusion
After feeding your dog potatoes, if you observe any of these symptoms, contact or see your veterinarian right once.
White or sweet potatoes are frequently listed as a carbohydrate in dog food. For dogs with dietary sensitivities or allergies who need a diet with few ingredients, this is an excellent option. Dog food in a balanced diet has a lower carbohydrate content and more animal proteins than your dog requires.
Would it be okay to include mashed potatoes to your dog’s balanced diet if you were thinking about doing that?
Can you give your dog mashed potatoes?
If properly prepared, mashed potatoes can be a healthy treat for your dog. The best way to serve potatoes to your dog is roasted, boiled, or steam them without adding butter, gravy, fats, salts, or seasonings.
Garlic, onions, and chives are extremely toxic to dogs and can harm red blood cells, resulting in serious anemia, if they are added to the mash. Because the poisons are concentrated more, garlic and onion powder are even more dangerous. Visit our earlier articles to learn more about feeding dogs onions and garlic.
You can give your dog modest amounts of frozen, dehydrated, or instant mashed potatoes with no problems. The majority only contain potatoes, with later additions of milk, salt, butter, or water during the cooking process. Given that dogs dislike seasonings, giving them plain, unsalted potatoes is a wonderful gift that they will enjoy.
Please be aware that adding dairy items like milk or sour cream may cause stomach upset or diarrhea in some dogs who are lactose intolerant. Having said that, as long as the mashed potatoes don’t have any onion or garlic seasoning, a modest amount of dairy-free mashed potatoes won’t harm them. Your dog won’t be harmed by very little amounts of salt, pepper, or butter, but it pays to be careful.
Which dogs should not eat mashed potatoes?
When a dog has diabetes, cancer, or is obese, carbohydrates can lead to major issues. Dogs with certain health problems shouldn’t eat potatoes in any manner since carbohydrates turn to sugar.
Is there a link between eating potatoes and Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)?
You may be aware of the connection between eating potatoes and DCM in dogs. Numerous research carried out by veterinary specialists linked canine consumption of legumes—not potatoes—to DCM. Read our complete article Can Dogs Eat Potatoes for a more thorough examination of that topic. But this is the gist of it.
The condition known as dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) causes the heart to grow, which hinders the heart’s capacity to efficiently pump blood throughout the body of a dog. A sudden heart attack and severe congestive heart failure may result from this.
Numerous studies have shown that 93% of dogs with DCM were found to be consuming meals containing peas or lentils (legumes) as the main ingredient. There were significantly fewer dogs with DCM who consumed diets with potatoes or sweet potatoes.
The last word on mashed potatoes for dogs
Remember the daily dietary calorie intake limit when you see your dog begging for a nibble of your food to stay healthy and prevent obesity. 90% of your dog’s daily caloric intake should come from the conventional dog food diet. The final 10% could come from goodies. Vegetables, store-bought goodies, and food scraps all fall under this category. Treat consumption that exceeds 10% of your dog’s daily calorie intake can result in weight gain.
When the dish in question is your family’s mashed potato recipe, make your dog’s potato portion entirely plain. Your dog will be just as content eating a small quantity of this delicious delicacy without all the extra ingredients, additives, and fats that people love to include.
By omitting additional human food items from mashed potatoes, you can reduce your risk of stomach distress, salt poisoning, and the painful and fatal pancreatitis it can induce.
You can confidently give your furry child plain, unseasoned vegetables and meat morsels while they are hovering nearby and waiting for a morsel of deliciousness. By doing this, you can be sure that your dog will have a wonderful holiday season.
If my dog eats mashed potatoes, what happens?
The primary issue with mashed potatoes and the reason they are “bad for dogs” is that they are extremely starchy and high in calories and carbohydrates. In other words, it’s simple for your dog to overeat, and all those extra carbs will rapidly mount up and cause your dog to gain weight. Dog obesity is a major issue that increases your dog’s risk of developing other severe diseases like diabetes or cancer.
All the other additives that are often not beneficial for dogs are another major issue with mashed potatoes.
There may be worse things they could eat if you make the mash at home yourself and keep it simple. Your dog can have potato mash that has just contained a small amount of butter and a splash of milk without any problems.
Even better, you could use some potatoes and water to make your own pup-safe mash for your dog. Dogs don’t require or care about spices and herbs to flavor their food, so while this meal of plain potatoes may look uninteresting to humans, your dog will still find it to be a great treat because it is completely safe and easy to digest.
However, some dogs are lactose intolerant; as a result, if you make yourself some mash with a lot of milk, cream, and butter in it, your dog may experience stomach pain, gas, and diarrhea if they eat it.
Similar to how too much butter or salt in your mash will cause your dog some issues. The mash will become greasy if there is a lot of butter added, which may disturb a dog’s delicate stomach. Small doses of salt are acceptable, but excessive amounts might dehydrate you and even poison your dog. Always keep your dog’s meal as simple as you can, without any additional flavours, spices, or fats.
However, as long as your mashed potatoes are fairly simple, your dog may consume a small amount. It will still be high in calories and carbohydrates, which might lead to weight gain if your dog consumes too much of it without getting enough exercise.
A small amount of mash shouldn’t be too harmful as a treat, but it’s also not good either if your dog consumes a nutritious diet and gets lots of exercise.
CAN MASHED POTATO MAKE DOGS SICK?
Much mashed potato can make your dog ill, as it can with most foods. Anything consumed in excess might upset a dog’s stomach and result in vomiting and diarrhea. Additionally, the dish’s abundance of dairy, oil, or salt may upset their stomachs and result in illness. However, if eaten in strict moderation, simple mash shouldn’t be harmful.
You shouldn’t feed Fido any mash that has additional ingredients like garlic, chives, or onions because they are all harmful to dogs and can lead to disease and anemia.
Why shouldn’t dogs be allowed to eat potatoes?
Never feed a raw potato to your dog. The nightshade family of vegetables, which also includes tomatoes, includes white potatoes. Similar to tomatoes, raw potatoes have solanine, which can be poisonous to some dogs. However, a potato’s solanine content drops as it is cooked.
If you do give your dog potatoes, make sure they are roasted or boiled without any additional ingredients. Dogs should not eat potatoes that have been fried in oil, such as french fries or potato chips, or that have had butter or salt added. Because they can induce blood sugar surges, potatoes shouldn’t be fed to your dog if he has diabetes.
If you choose to give your dog baked or boiled potatoes, you should do so sparingly because a dog’s body is intended to obtain the majority of its nutrition from animal protein. Too many carbohydrates can lead to obesity or other health issues in dogs.
Why are mashed potatoes and ham off limits to dogs?
Ham and other pork products can make you sick and make you throw up and have diarrhea. Additionally high in fat, pork can cause obesity in animals. A small dog or cat’s diet can contain a very big number of calories from even a modest amount of ham.
How come dogs can’t eat pork?
Due to the presence of the parasite trichinella spiralis larvae, which can result in the parasitic sickness known as trichinosis, eating raw or undercooked pork is unsafe for both people and dogs. When a dog consumes the muscles of an animal that has trichinella parasites, it may contract the infection, which is spread by hog flesh. Humans are more frequently affected than dogs by this. Dogs infected with Trichinella spiralis only display mild signs of illness:
When do dogs become poisoned from potatoes?
In addition to minerals like magnesium, iron, calcium, and potassium, potatoes also include vitamins A, B6, and C. Given that these nutrients are advantageous for both humans and dogs, giving them to your pet isn’t necessarily a terrible idea. But potatoes also provide a lot of carbs, which might be problematic for animals with diabetes or obesity. So while puppies can eat potatoes, their diets shouldn’t consist solely of them.
The quantity is another problem. As with many meals, your dog may experience negative health effects if they consume too many potatoes. If you choose to give your dog potatoes, make sure to do so sparingly because dogs’ bodies are made to obtain the majority of their nutrition from animal protein. Start with a tiny amount to make sure they can stomach it without any issues. According to the 10% rule, which suggests that treats should make up no more than 10% of your pet’s daily calories, you can generally give them potatoes as a treat.
Avoid potatoes entirely if your dog has diabetes as they may result in blood sugar increases.
Can dogs eat eggs?
Eggs are a fantastic source of nutrition for your canine buddy and are completely safe for dogs. They benefit your dog both internally and externally because they are rich in protein, fatty acids, vitamins, and fatty acids.
Keep in mind that a chicken’s eggs are only as good as the fowl that produced them. Try to give your dog eggs that were produced by chickens that were given a free-range organic diet. It would be best if you could obtain them from a reliable source. Similar to humans, chickens are only as healthy as the food they consume, and healthier chickens produce eggs that are higher in nutrients.
Consult your veterinarian before giving eggs to your dog. Check first because certain dogs with medical issues shouldn’t consume eggs. Speaking to your veterinarian about the proper amount of eggs to give your cherished dog is a wise decision because eating too many eggs may also result in health issues like obesity.
Eggs are a fantastic occasional treat but shouldn’t be the main diet for your dog.
