Pretzels are one of the top snacks of all time. And since they generally come with salt toppings you may ask yourself “can cats eat pretzels”? Let’s find out.
Pretzels are made using flour, yeast, salt, sugar, water and butter although there are some other recipes with a few additional or different ingredients, too. When you inspect the ingredients one by one you may think that they are very harmful to your cat but actually the answer to the question “can cats eat pretzels” is “yes, they can” but there are a few things you need to know before feeding pretzels to your kitty.
Can cats eat pretzels?
Although the ingredients of pretzels don’t look favorable for feline health, they are not really harmful in short term as long as they are given in moderation. However if there are additional ingredients in pretzels such as chocolate, garlic or onions, you should avoid feeding even a small amount of pretzels to your cat.
You may get worried over the salt topping on pretzels which is indeed worrying at first glance but the truth is the amount of salt on pretzels is too low to cause any immediate harm. Actually there are a lot of long-term studies such as the research by the University of Toulouse in France or the multinational research by the institutions in U.K. and France showing that higher amounts of salt intake could not be associated with any adverse affects on kidneys or hearts of healthy cats.
But how about the other ingredients such as flour or yeast? These ingredients do not pose any immediate threat to your little friend once they are baked but we can not say that they are healthy food for cats either because cats are obligate carnivores which means that their main source of nutrition is other animals. Cats need animal protein to lead a healthy life. So these ingredients are not really needed by cats.
Most cats are lactose intolerant after their kittenhood so butter might not be what you want to give your cat in high amounts however the amount of butter in pretzels is not even close to the amount that can cause diarrhea or other gastro-intestinal issues in cats.
Can I give pretzels to my cat?
As explained above, pretzels do not pose an immediate threat to your cat although the amount of pretzels you feed to your little friend is what matters here. Since pretzels do not really include all or even the main nutrients cats need, they can only be occasional treats. It is important to state that they are not really healthy treats for cats.
So if your cat likes pretzels, you may give them one or two small pieces of pretzels every once in a while but pretzels can not replace the cat food. In this sense goldfish crackers and pretzels are similar.
What are the risks of pretzels to cats?
Not all pretzels are consumable by cats. If the pretzels include toxic substances for cats such as onion, garlic or chocolate, please do not give even a very small piece of pretzels to your cat because you may not always know the amount or the intensity of the toxic substance.
Even if you are sure about the contents, why would you want to poison your cat by giving it small amounts of toxic substances?
Can Cats Eat Pretzels – Conclusion
After all these information, let’s ask one more time. Can cats eat pretzels? Yes, they can in moderate amounts. Although pretzels are not healthy snacks for cats, they can not immediately harm your kitty as long as there is no other health condition that can be triggered by pretzels such as allergies or an already existing kidney or heart issue.
Keep in mind that pretzels hold very little nutritional value that your cat can benefit from. If your cat snatches a small piece of pretzels that accidentally falls to the ground, do not be alarmed immediately but observe your cat for any unusual behavior because you may not know if your cat has any allergies to any of the ingredients.
If you notice any unusual behaviors, please consult your veterinarian and ac in accordance with the veterinarian’s suggestions.
