Raise your hand if you have ever eaten a good hot dog cooked directly on the fire! Good, indeed very good. The spicy and smoky flavor, when burst in your mouth it feels just amazing. But is it the same for your pet? Can cats eat hot dogs too?
The answer is a dry No! Hyper-caloric, poorly digestible, and decidedly unhealthy- hot dogs are certainly not friends of your cat’s health. And, no matter how appetizing, they should be banned from the diet of cats.
Here are some facts and information on why your cat shouldn’t have hot dogs. And given the quantity of salts, preservatives, and aromas, it is better to avoid gorging yourself too.
Can Cats Eat Hot Dogs: A Common Dilemma
The combination of hotdog cats: Unfortunately, many owners still candidly ask if it is okay to give the hot dogs to their cat. Usually, the answer is “NO,” given with a look that launches flames, and that should dissuade from any disputes. Never provide your cat with hot dogs.
But someone is convinced that since the grandfather has always given the cat hot dogs, then it will certainly do him good. Grandfather’s dog probably died young, suffering from various diseases and never cured.
For example, if the mechanic tells me not to put diesel in the petrol car, I listen to him. He is the expert, and I don’t want to say, “But my grandfather used to put it.” It doesn’t make any sense. Just like when we say, do not feed your cat hot dog.
DO NOT Give Hot Dogs to Cats
In reality, it would be: do not give hot dogs, sausages, and salamis to cats. Basically, if those who deal with cats tell you this, I would say that there would be no need for further discussions.
But personal opinion based on nothing can only be diminished by scientific and documented studies. So, here are some valid reasons not to feed cats with hot dogs.
If you still haven’t figured it out, cats and humans’ gastrointestinal tract is not the same. It has evolved differently. This means that the stomach and intestines of cats are not structured to digest human foods. This is truer, especially for seasoned and spiced food like hot dogs.
Now, I’m not a cooking expert, but the hot dog includes:
- Lean parts (and so far so good)
- Fatty parts like bacon (bad here)
- Salt (we should know that in dogs and cats, foods should not be given salty; and the hot dog is a salt concentrate)
These are the basic ingredients, and then depending on the type of hot dog, you can add:
- Wine (sometimes wine is used in making the sauce. Do you think cats should drink wine?)
- Spices such as pepper, chili, coriander, fennel, nutmeg (again: it seems to you that pepper and chili pepper is contemplated in the diet of dogs and cats)
Apart from the meat’s lean parts, all the others are ingredients that cats shouldn’t see from a distance. Basically, cat eating hotdog is a disaster.
What Happens If I Give The Hot Dog To The Cat?
If you feed the hot dog to the cat, you simply make them sick. It is equivalent to saying that you give him poison. You satisfy yourself, not thinking about the good of the pet.
Most likely, the cat will develop forms of:
- Maldigestion and Malabsorption,
- Pancreatic and liver problems,
- Kidney damage,
- Diarrhea,
- Vomiting overtime …
It is not uncommon to see acute pancreatitis or severe liver poisoning develop even after a single administration.
All this means voluntarily making your pet sick, causing him suffering that could have been avoided. You will also be subjecting him to examinations and long therapies and still running the risk of dying. Then don’t complain to the vet if he can’t cure the dog’s diarrhea when you keep giving him a hot dog. Who’s to blame?
A tip: Eat the hot dog yourself, give the right foods to the cat, and you will save money and health.
Sodium: The Enemy of Your Pets Health
In fact, cured meats, but also sausages and hot dogs, and all similar foods, are not recommended by veterinarians. They are rich in salt and sodium.
Excess salt can be very harmful to your cat’s body. This mineral in inadequate amounts can unbalance electrolytes and cause cells to not function normally.
So they’re not good even in small quantities. It would be better to give our cat some meat treats – always in small quantities – of known origin. Even eating raw hot dogs can make them sick. It can contain parasites.
Trichinellosis, for example, is a parasitic disease caused by the consumption of raw or undercooked meat. It comes from animals infected with the larvae of a species of worm called Trichinella. This can be spread from animals, including domestic cats, to humans.
How Many Hot Dogs Did Big Cat Eat To Get Sick: Can A Cat Get Sick From Eating Hot Dog Once?
Normally when a cat eats hot dogs once in a while, they are very happy to eat them. And probably nothing bad happens to them. But it can also happen that your cat eats hot dogs or any other sausage once and becomes ill. That is vomiting or diarrhea. This could be for two reasons:
- That your cat is allergic to a component of that hot dog. For example, a cat can be allergic to pork. Hot dogs that are made with pork will cause the symptoms mentioned and even itchy skin. In that case, you should definitely remove these hot dogs from your pet’s diet.
- If you have given him too many hot dogs or sausage products in a day, it can lead to indigestion. Also, it can make them sick with symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting.
If you want to reward your cat with a hot dog, it is important that you choose the healthier ones. They should not have spices and are made with turkey or chicken meat. It is advisable to avoid pork, as it has a lot of fat.
Can Cats Eat Beef? Raw or Cooked?
To answer the first question, it’s true, cats can eat beef, and beef is even necessary for their proper development. However, there are risks in eating raw beef for a cat. I will explain everything to you.
As said before, the cat is a carnivorous animal. Its diet is therefore distributed as follows:
- 60 to 80% raw meat (beef, mutton);
- 10% vegetables and fruits;
- Between 15 and 20% other (lamb, duck, or rabbit meat; fish and viscera such as heart, liver, kidneys)
An optimal diet should include, within these different foods, 26% protein, and 40% fat.
Benefits of beef
As your cat is carnivorous, its diet will consist of 60 to 80% raw meat as we said. Beef will provide your cat with proteins and vitamins. First of all, beef is rich in protein like taurine. The latter is essential for the development of the muscles, brain, and retina of your cat.
In addition, beef contains vitamin B, which helps strengthen your cat’s immune system. Indeed, vitamin B1, or thiamine, plays an essential role in the mechanism of the cat’s nervous system. This vitamin is, therefore, important for producing the energy necessary for your cat’s cells.
However, avoid giving your cat raw, improperly prepared beef to avoid certain health problems.
How much beef should you feed your cat?
It is recommended that your cat eat constantly fresh, cooked beef in small pieces. To feed your cat meat, you need to take its weight into account. So, for the amount of beef to feed your pet, 100 grams will be enough. Of course, you have to think of beef as additional food and not a complete meal.
If you want to feed your pet raw beef, you need to add other nutrients to it. Thus, marinate the beef with vegetable oil and rosemary for 10 to 15 minutes.
What if my cat ate too much beef?
If you mainly feed your pet raw beef, it could be exposed to bacteria like salmonella or E.coli.
If, after eating raw beef, your cat shows coordination problems, is inexhaustible, or repeatedly meows, consult your veterinarian. This will allow you to diagnose your cat’s disease and will treat him afterward.
Some More Dangerous Foods for Cats: 8 Foods to Avoid
It is very important to pay close attention and avoid these 9 foods ending up between their paws.
- Ribs and other bones
Certain types of bones can be very dangerous for animals. In fact, splintering the bone tissue can puncture the digestive tract or get stuck in the trachea. Better to avoid.
- Chicken wings
Although tasty and tender, chicken wings are absolutely forbidden. In fact, chicken bones are extremely tender, and chipping can cause intestinal obstructions, or worse, suffocation.
- Corn on the cob
As a food, it is neither toxic nor not recommended. But its particular shape (which is what attracts dogs the most) could be dangerous and cause choking.
- Onion
Onion, as well as shallot and garlic, should not be fed to pets. However, the danger arises in the case of ingestion of large quantities. Its chemical composition is toxic, especially for cats. Symptoms of intoxication are weakness, reluctance to move, loss of appetite, dark-colored urine.
- Guacamole
The seeds, leaves, and bark of the avocado plant are the basic ingredient in the guacamole recipe. It contains a fatty acid called persin, which has been known to be toxic to many animals for years.
In addition to the risk of poisoning, the substance can involve breathing difficulties, congestion, cardiac arrest. Dogs and cats are not at risk of death, but violent digestive stresses should be avoided.
- Chips and pretzels
Just like humans, salt is enemy number one for the heart and arteries. As for cats and dogs, consuming sodium-laden foods can cause vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty urinating, fever. In the most serious cases, it can give rise to a real poisoning and even cause death.
- Chocolate
Ingesting chocolate and xylitol- based sweeteners can be fatal for cats. The intoxication caused by these substances manifests itself through disorientation, convulsions, and liver failure.
- Beer and alcohol
That cats and dogs tend to lick everything they find around is a well-known fact. But watch out for glasses of beer left unattended and spirits in general: for dogs and cats, alcohol is poison.
Conclusion
So, can cats eat hot? No, they cannot. Therefore, we should always consult our vet to make sure that our cat receives the right amount of nutrients of the correct type. In addition, we check the ingredients contained in the food we give them. Let’s make sure that the recipe for the food we use has been tested for quality and nutrition. It doesn’t matter how cute (and convincing) our cat is or how eagerly the cat looking at hot dogs. Let’s make sure we don’t go overboard by giving them plenty of human treats.