Can Dogs Eat Nuts?

Dog owners generally know what’s good and what’s not good for their dogs to eat. If they didn’t, then they should. As much as dogs might be willing to eat anything and everything you offer them, they might also be willing to ingest food items that might pose a risk to their health. Dogs rely on their human companions to be their advocate when it comes to their food and diet. Although it takes a little bit of research on our part to figure out which foods are good for our dogs, it’s worth the work to guarantee that our beloved pets are safe.

General rule

When it comes to eating all sorts of nuts, there’s really a variety on what dogs can ingest and what they absolutely cannot. As a general rule, you shouldn’t give your dogs anything that has its shell or any outer layer still on. The shells on nuts can severely damage a dog’s digestive tract by tearing tissue as it moves along. You’ll also have to keep an eye on several component levels such as fats, sodium, and sugar levels. An increased level of ingestion of any of these components will be unhealthy for your dogs and will also pose an overall increase in risk of dehydration, upset stomachs, and even getting poisoned.

What nuts can dogs eat?

There are a few that your dogs can enjoy when it comes to the nut family of foods. The safest one that your pets can enjoy would be sunflower seeds. They can enjoy any number of these as long as they’re shelled. They can also have peanuts, pistachios, cashews, and almonds but only in very small quantities. These are high in fat content, so only very few at a time can be had. These should also be shelled as well. Your dog can have peanut butter safely, as long as you only give it to them in small quantities. Creamy peanut butters are probably best, but make sure that the sodium content is low and that it does not contain xylitol. Remember also that some dogs may have peanut allergies, so keep an eye on them when you give them peanuts for the first time.

What nuts are bad for dogs?

There are a few nuts that are absolutely not recommended for dogs to eat. The first are walnuts. Walnuts are generally larger than other nuts and can pose a choking hazard to your dogs. They can also be difficult to digest and create a blockage in your dog’s bowels. The same thing is true for pecans. Their size can become a problem for dogs, especially since they tend not to chew their foods so well. Lastly, dogs should absolutely not have any macadamia nuts whatsoever. Macadamia nuts are highly toxic to dogs, so not even small quantities should be allowed. Macadamia nuts can cause short-term neurological problems for dogs including dizziness, tremors, and even paralysis. It’s best to just not give them to your dogs at all, especially since there are other nut options that are much safer—if your dog really has to have nuts.

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