Can Cats Eat Hot Dogs? | Dog Product Picker

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Have you ever had some delicious hot dogs while your feline friend is sitting beside you and meowing for you to give them a bite of it? Well, even though pet owners love sharing our food with our obligate carnivores, especially if it is meat, we shouldn’t give them human food without proper research. The digestive systems of our furry friends are complicated as they can easily digest unprocessed meat, but when there are high levels of fat, the cat’s digestive system will start causing problems, so this is the main reason why your feline friend cannot eat hot dogs.

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Why Can’t My Cat Eat Hot Dogs?

Not all meats are destined to be eaten by your feline friends; there are conditions for the meat so that your cat’s digestive systems can digest the meat without any ingestion. However, for a few reasons, sausages or hot dogs do not come on the best meat level. The first reason is too much fat content. If you see wild meat, it is lean meat than sausages. Your feline friend does not need that fat content. It only needs protein, so they cannot eat a hot dog.

If your cat eats any type of hot dog on a regular basis, the cat’s bodies are sure to put on some extra weight, causing health issues, which we as cat owners do not want. Excessive weight gain can cause high blood pressure, heart diseases, diabetes, and the risk of various cancers in your feline fur babies.

Your cat’s diet needs to be balanced with plenty of water, protein, and a minimal amount of other types of healthy treats, contributing to the nutritional value of their diet. Hot dogs have too much salt that this excess salt causes them to have sodium-ion poisoning. Compared to humans, cats’ stomachs are not designed to digest sodium. Human bodies can handle large amounts of salts for a long time and will still not have sodium ion poisoning or digestive problems as human consumption and digestive system are different than cats.

However, giving your cat small amounts of sodium is not a good idea, and it can cause sodium poisoning to them, which will lead to symptoms like high body temperatures, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, high blood pressure and heart rate, anxiety, depression, stress, and occasional seizures and tremors. So, avoiding giving your feline friend foods that may cause food poisoning or have high sodium content is better.

For the preservations of hot dogs, sodium nitrates and sodium nitrites are used, then hot dogs have toppings with artificial sweeteners and additional flavorings that are all toxic to your cat. There is garlic powder, onion powder, and more ingredients sprinkled on a piece of hot dog, which makes it a bad kitties treat. To solve this issue of preservatives, now there are preservative-free hot dogs, so can you feed these to your cat?

Can I Feed My Cat Cooked Hot Dogs?

The short answer is no. You cannot feed your pets preservative-free hot dogs, the reason being that the hot dogs are processed food containing flavoring, high levels of sodium, and high amounts of fat. We cook meat to kill bacteria and parasites that may cause food poisoning as the heat breaks down the affiliate links and makes it easier to digest.

So, feeding your cat cooked meat is a safe option, and in the wild, cats eat fresh raw meat, which is also okay because their digestive systems are designed in such ways. However, when it comes to hot dogs, whether cooked or uncooked, hot dogs have many chemicals, preservatives, spices, salts, fats, etc., that make them harmful to cats even if they are completely cooked.

What To Do If My Cat Eats a Hot Dog

If your cat eats a hot dog, it is likely to get obese from consuming it regularly. If your cat has taken a single tiny piece of a hot dog or a bite of a hot dog, then there might be no issues, or maybe slight abdominal pain as the cat’s body is not designed to digest preservatives and other ingredients. Sausages can only be considered a healthy food if it is not highly processed, but since it is, there is no chance of giving them to your cat. If your cat starts choking after eating a single hot dog, immediately take precautionary steps for a choking hazard and take your feline friend to the vet.

What Foods Can I Feed My Cat?

If you want to give your cat some human foods, remember that cats are carnivores and love solid food containing protein like fresh raw meat, raw fish, raw eggs, dry cat food, chicken breasts, cooked meat, etc. Most of these juicy meats are great for your cat, but raw foods are not considered suitable treats for our feline friends. To give your cat good health, uncured hot dogs, cottage cheese, and other ingredients will provide them with essential nutrients.

Are All Hot Dogs Bad for Cats?

Cats are obligate carnivores, so giving your cat hot dogs might be a bad idea. Even though hot dogs are good food, the main issue with this food is the preparation process. When a single hot dog is prepared, small pieces from different meats, multiple food items, flavorings, and a small portion of binding agents, spices, etc., are added. Then the hot dogs are processed through the curing process, where the casing is filled, nitrates and nitrites are used to preserve, and smoke is added for flavor. And finally, the hot dogs are sent out and put in hot dog buns and served with some amazing sauces.

These steps are unsafe for cats and make hot dogs an unhealthy treat for your feline friend. So, what about some uncured hot dogs? Such type of hot dog is a better alternative to hazardous preservatives and can be given as an occasional treat. But this occasional hot dog still contains spices, flavorings, salt, and fat which are bad for your cat’s body. So, that being said, all of the hot dogs are bad for your cats.

Summary

Like you love your favorite toys, cats love their meat, but not all meats are good for your cat. It is a best practice to avoid highly processed meats like hot dogs if you want to save your pets from upset stomachs. Human foods like sausages are harmful to humans over time as they contain too much sodium and high levels of fat, so just imagine how they will affect your feline friend’s body. Avoid giving hot dogs to cats and save them from sodium ion poisoning.

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