Pickles can be mouth-watering and tantalizing for human taste buds. Be it with a juicy beef burger or when you’re craving a satisfying crunch. But what about my furry friend? Can dogs eat pickles?
If you’re a dog owner who is looking for answers to whether the pickle your dog has ingested is safe for it, then read on.
Yes, dogs can eat pickles but in a moderate amount as vets don’t recommend it in large quantities or on regular basis.
Even though there is no definitive yes or no for an answer to the question “can dogs eat pickles?” or “pickle safe for my dog?” pickles are generally safe for your dog!
However, pickles come with their own set of pros and cons.
To ensure absolute safety for your dog, read this article. In this article, you will find out all about the relationship between dogs and pickles. You will find answers to questions such as “can dogs have pickles?” or “are pickles safe for dogs?”
Can Dogs Eat Pickles? 7 Commonly Asked Questions
Yes, dogs can eat pickles, but you must be careful with the number of pickles. It is recommended not to give pickles to your dog on a regular basis or in large quantities.
You must also make sure not to make your dog accustomed to eating pickles. If it becomes a habit, it will be agonizing and distressing saying no to those puppy eyes!
1) Are Pickles Safe For My Dog?
Too much of any food is unsafe for your pet. Just because dogs can eat pickles, does this mean pickles are safe for dogs? Likewise, cabbage isn’t deadly for your dog, in some cases, provides essential nutritional benefits, but too much can be worrisome.
A regular pickle contains approximately 283 milligrams of sodium. The daily recommended amount of sodium in your dog’s diet is only 100 milligrams! A full pickle is about three times the daily recommended intake.
It is imperative for you to check the ingredient list of the pickle before handing it to your dog. As a matter of fact, you must consult your veterinarian before feeding anything to your dog.
Pickles come in various flavors and seasonings. Some are acceptable while the others are downright intolerable for your dog.
So the question arises, what types of pickles are safe for my dog?
2) What Types of Pickles Are Safe For My Dog?
Pickles containing cucumbers, apple cider vinegar, and salt are safer for your dog than other pickles.
You may want to look out for pickles containing apple cider vinegar, low sodium, and sugar content. Apple cider vinegar is a healthier alternative to white vinegar.
Apple cider vinegar can:
- Cure your dog’s joint pain
- Ease an itchy skin
- Help stabilize blood sugar levels
3) Can My Dog Eat Fried Pickles?
Try to avoid feeding your dog fried pickles, but if your dog took a little bit in your absence, it is not a big deal.
4) Is it Safe to Give Diabetic Dogs Pickles?
Again, a minimal amount of pickles will not harm your dog. But, keep in mind not to give sweet and sour pickles to your diabetic dog in any case.
5) Is it Safe to Give Pickled Chips to Dogs?
It depends upon the flavor of the chips. If it does not have harmful ingredients such as salt, onions, garlic, or nutmeg, it is safe to give your dog one or two. Chips like Doritos, cheez-its, and Cheetos have such flavors, so need to be careful.
Keep in mind that processed foods are detrimental to your dog’s health, so it is best if you keep them away from your dog.
6) Can I Give My Dog Pink Pickles?
If the pickles have been prepared with garlic, you cannot give them to your dog. Apart from pink pickles made up of garlic, garlic bread is also not safe for your pooch.
But if it is safe from the harmful ingredients that your dog should not eat under any circumstance, pink pickles should be fine.
7) Are Dill Pickles Safe For My Dog?
Yes, but again, in small quantities and depending upon the ingredients used while preparing these pickles.
A minimal amount of dill pickle is enough to fulfill your dog’s daily sodium allowance.
The reason why some people might consider dill pickles or kosher dill pickles safe for consumption is because of the herb dill.
Dill contains antioxidants, vitamins, and magnesium. It helps freshen your dog’s breath and cure gastric issues.
Although dill contains a lot of nutritional benefits for your dog, dill pickles do not provide the same benefits. Dill pickles contain white vinegar and salt, which overrule the benefits of dill.
If you want to incorporate a healthy snack in your dog’s diet, add fresh dill alone in your dog’s food for a boost of vitamins.
Dill can also help improve digestion and calm your dog’s bowel movements. Dill contains kaempferol and vicenin. Both kaempferol and vicenin are anti-inflammatory and have proven to protect cells from damage.
Kosher dill pickles, on the other hand, are widely mistaken as a healthy alternative to regular pickles.
In reality, though, kosher dill pickles are prepared with garlic, vinegar, and saltwater, which is extremely injurious to your dog’s health.
So let’s take a look at what ingredients are unsafe for a dog’s consumption.
What Types of Pickles Are Unsafe For My Dog?
Pickles with garlic and onions are on the top list of unsafe pickles for your dogs.
It will help if you remove onions and garlic from your dog’s diet altogether. Onions and garlic in any form can cause anemia and poisoning.
Hot and spicy pickles are harmful to your dog’s digestive system. They contain chili which can cause irregular bowel movements and damage your dog’s stomach lining.
You may be wondering, what about sweet pickles? Can my dog eat sweet pickles?
Sweet pickles are high in sugar content. Food like skittles or in some cases whipped cream also contain high sugar content. Such foods shouldn’t be a part of your dog’s diet.
Processed foods often contain xylitol, an ingredient used for sweetening purposes.
Xylitol can be severely detrimental to your dog’s health. It can cause liver failure and cause blood sugar levels to decrease.
Sweet pickles also come in the form of candied pickles.
Candied pickles contain high amounts of sugar which can lead to diabetes and an increase in your dog’s weight.
Nutmeg is also one of the ingredients found in sweet pickles. It contains a component called myristicin. If a dog eats too much of anything containing myristicin, your dog’s health can be in grave danger.
A few symptoms of ingesting high amounts of myristicin include:
- Hallucinations
- Elevated blood pressure
- Pain in the abdomen
- A dry mouth.
What Makes Pickles Harmful to Dogs?
When your dog eats too much of it, that is when pickles are harmful.
Pickles contain a high percentage of salt since they are typically fermented in vinegar and salty water.
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) created a list of unsafe foods for your dog’s consumption. Salt and salty snacks were amongst the most toxic foods for dogs on that list. Thereby, you must also avoid feeding sausages, as a snack to your dog due to the presence of fat and additives
High amounts of sodium in your dog’s food can lead to
- Vomiting
- Depression
- Diarrhea
- Elevated body temperature
- Tremors
- Seizures.
Pickles with onion and garlic seasonings are particularly harmful to your dog. Garlic and onions can damage the red blood cells of your dog and lead to anemia.
What To Do If Your Dog Eats A Pickle?
Firstly, check the amount of pickle your dog has consumed. If it is a small amount, you can relax, this will not cause any harm to your furry friend. However, if it is a large amount, look out for any symptoms of diarrhea, tremors, or vomiting.
Secondly, check the ingredient list of the pickle your pet ate. Does it contain any of the ingredients that are detrimental to your puppy’s health? If not, observe your dog for the next two days and look out for any irregular actions.
If your dog ate large amounts of pickles containing harmful ingredients, immediately contact your veterinarian.
Can Dogs Have Pickle Juice?
Absolutely not! Pickle juice contains excessive amounts of salt and white vinegar. Researches suggest white vinegar can be particularly harmful to your dog. It can also lead to a pH imbalance in your dog’s body.
Pickle juice is a recipe for disaster. It has no nutritional benefits; rather, it can be extremely harmful to your dog. Can dogs eat pickles? Yes, once in a while, but pickle juice is demonic!
You must be particularly wary of providing your dehydrated dog pickle juice.
Some people may recommend giving pickle juice to your dehydrated dog. But it should never even get close to your dog.
Pickle juice can make your dehydrated dog’s condition worse. It contains a high amount of sodium and other harmful preservatives.
In case your dog is dehydrated, you must urgently get in touch with your veterinarian. Make sure not to
You must always consult your veterinarian before feeding anything to your dog.
How do I Know If My Dog Is Allergic To Pickles?
If you notice any of the following signs in your dog, your dog may be allergic to its food:
- lacking Energy.
- Symptoms of Vomiting & Diarrhea.
- Excessive Scratching Due To Itchy Skin.
Can Pickles Make My Dog Sick?
It depends upon the amount of pickle and the ingredients used in the preparation.
Your dog will not get sick if the pickle it ate is a thin slice of pickle.
But you must give particular attention to the amount and ingredient list of the pickle.
Your dog is likely to get sick if it ate a whole pickle. If the ingredients contained nutmeg, high amounts of salt, onions, and/or garlic.
Can My Pregnant Dog Eat Pickles?
Yes, but again, only rarely and given in minimal amounts. Moreover, do remember to keep pickles far from your dog’s reach.
Can Pickles Get Rid of Bad Breath in Dogs?
Only dill pickles can help resolve the bad breath issue in your dog, that too if it is given in a limited quantity.
However, it is advisable to include dill in other more healthy foods for your dog instead of risking your dog’s health with a sodium overdose.
You can use dill alone as a breath freshener for your dog by making a dill seed tea or with other foods.
You can effectively get rid of your dog’s bad breath by regularly brushing their teeth and adding foods such as apples to their diet.
Alternatives To Pickles For Dogs
Mentioned below are foods that are a healthy alternative to pickles for dogs.
- Cucumbers: If you want your dog to enjoy a satisfying crunch while reaping the benefits of a nutritional snack, add cucumbers to your dog’s diet. Cucumbers contain low amounts of sodium and high water content which is perfect for keeping your dog hydrated. Although, for precautionary measures, you should cut the cucumber up into small digestible pieces to prevent your dog from choking on it. Keep in mind not to feed excessive amounts of cucumber at once which can result in gastric issues in your dog.
- Carrots: Carrots act as crunchy and packed with nutritious snacks. You can also boil the carrots for your puppies. You may want to give carrots as a treat to that good boy!
- Zucchini: If you are looking for ways to make your dog lose weight, plain and uncooked zucchini is the answer! Not only does it provide nutrients, but zucchini is also good for your dog’s digestive system.
- Apples: Apples are a healthy addition to your dog’s diet. They contain malic acid, which is a fantastic way to clean your dog’s teeth and freshen their breath. Although, make sure not to give your dog too many apple seeds before giving them to your dog.
- Raw pineapples in small amounts are suitable for your pup. Although, make sure to avoid canned pineapples at all costs due to the high sugar content in them.
Conclusion:
To conclude, can dogs eat pickles? Yes, they can. But it’s best to avoid feeding your dog pickles.
Should I worry if my dog ate pickles? So long as the quantity is small and the ingredients are not harmful to your dog, you should not worry.
As mentioned above, you must not give pickled onions or garlic to your dog. You must avoid nutmeg, high amounts of sodium, and sugar from your dog’s diet at all costs!
Are pickles good for dogs? Pickles are not bad for your dog, but they do not have any great health benefits. There are many other alternatives that are better and come with lesser risks. Hence, it’s better to stick to safe alternatives.
It is always a good idea to keep in constant contact with your veterinarian. If you notice anything unusual with your dog, consult your veterinarian immediately. They will be able to best advise you about the next steps to take.
