Fall is right around the corner! After an especially hot summer, I’m more than ready to usher in spooky season. Even if you don’t celebrate Halloween, if your town is anything like ours you’ve been finding yourself starting to be surrounded by the symbols and decorations of the season. Almost no other Halloween symbol is as widely recognized as the Jack O’Lantern. Carving pumpkins is a lot of fun – but did you know that fresh (and plain canned) pumpkin can also be a beneficial addition to your dogs’ diet?
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Pumpkin for Pets!
It’s true! Pumpkins are high in fiber, making them a popular ‘go to’ home remedy for digestive issues such as diarrhea and constipation (Yes both!). It’s good for both herbivores, such as rabbits, and carnivores, such as dogs and cats. Many pets seem to enjoy the flavor of pureed pumpkin, and just a small amount mixed in with your pet’s regular food can be enough to help improve digestive upset.
Pumpkins are composed of about 90% water. Feeding an ill pet small amounts of pumpkin can be a great way to not only give them some much needed nutrients, but it can help prevent dehydration as well.
Nutrition of Pumpkins…
Speaking of nutrients – Pumpkins are a good source of beta-carotene, potassium, iron, and Vitamin A. These nutrients can help support general health, the immune system, and may even help to prevent some types of cancer! Natural oils present in pumpkins are thought to help support urinary health.
Fat Fighting Properties…
Obesity can be just as problematic for pets as it is for people. The high fiber content in pumpkins means that it produces a full feeling when consumed. If your dogs are on a diet, a small amounts of pumpkin mixed in with their regular food can help them feel full without consuming an excessive number of calories. Pumpkins can even be used to make healthy, home cooked pet treats.
Preparing Pumpkin for Dogs
Now that you know some of the benefits of pumpkin in your pet’s diet, you might be wondering how to prepare it. Fresh pumpkins can be cooked and pureed, or you can purchase canned 100% pumpkin puree. Remember that pumpkin pie filling is not the same as plain canned pumpkin! You’ll want to look for a brand that doesn’t have any added sugar, spices, preservatives, or other ingredients. Pumpkin pie filling may taste great in a pie, but the added ingredients can cause stomach upset in pets.
Comment below! Do you feed your pet pumpkin? What’s his/her favorite way to eat it? I always keep a few cans of pumpkin around at our house. It does seem to help when my dogs experience GI issues. Especially around the fall holidays, I like to make my boys homemade treats that contain pumpkin. It’s an easy, fun way to include them in our holiday celebrations while, at the same time, giving them something that’s potentially beneficial to their health!
15 Comments
When we have pumkin or other squashes, I do share with my dog. I don’t get it specially for her as she has enough fibre and vitamins overall.
I’m sure she appreciates you sharing every once in awhile! 🙂 My dogs have a health diet too, but my senior boy Kitsune has always had a really sensitive stomach, and a little bit of canned pumpkin mixed in with his regular food does seem to help him feel better faster when his tummy is off.
I give Layla the fruitables pumpkin in her food daily and she loves it, its really good for her plus it is has other vitamins in it also so it balances out her home cooked food.
Very cool! I think my boys tried a sample of the fruitables pumpkin once and liked it. I usually just use canned pure pumpkin, though, since it’s cheaper and easier for me to find locally.
I try our cats with pumpkins and they look as though I am feeding them toxic waste * sigh * Pumpkin seems such a healthy and safe thing for a dog to eat though, and I did not know it was helpful when a dog needs hydration!
PS LOVE the outtakes. They had me in fits of giggles!!!
Thanks! I’ve never tried feeding a cat pumpkin but yeah, I’d imagine they wouldn’t take to it as easily as dogs usually do. I’m glad you liked the outtakes! They were making me laugh too, so I just had to include them.
Pumpkin and squash is so good for dogs! I often use it in their homemade food. Also in their treats. I feel it’s one food that I eat that I can share with them!
Same. I have a really simple pumpkin treat recipe that I make over and over again because both my dogs really enjoy it, and I know the ingredients (pumpkin especially) are pretty good for them.
Our dogs love pumpkin! I make treats with it sometimes, but they also enjoy a dollop of it with their meals.
My Kitsune especially loves it, even plain. I’m going to make my boys some pumpkin treats for Halloween this week. 🙂 Thanks for your comment.
Pumpkin is a BIG hit in our house. We regularly make treats with pumpkin for both our dogs and our cats, plus we often put it on our dogs’ food. My girl suffers from IBD and including pumpkin in her diet helps us to manage it.
I’m glad it helps your girl! My Kitsune has a super sensitive stomach and pumpkin has always helped his tummy too.
I usually only give Bella pumpkin when she has stomach upset. I should give it, or any kind of winter squash, to her much more often, since it’s so good for her. And she loves it!
Kitsune does too! Lately I’ve been adding a bit to his meals because he’s been on a diet, and it seems to help him feel a bit fuller without being super full of extra calories.
[…] while I’m baking them because they smell so similar to (human) peanut butter cookies. Pumpkin has quite a few health benefits for dogs, including being high in fiber. It’s a common ‘go to’ ingredient for […]