Yes, your furry companion can consume pumpkins too. In addition to its high amounts of fiber, it is also high in calcium, water, iron, and antioxidants that are safe and good for your pets to consume. If you still haven’t tried feeding a pumpkin to your pet, reading this article will get your interest. So let’s discuss the benefits pumpkin has to offer for pets.
Why You Must Feed Pumpkin to Your Pet
Pumpkin might be a superfood for canines, and frequently including it in their diet has good health benefits. Below are five reasons to feed pumpkins to your dog.
1. Supports urinary health
Pumpkin flesh and seeds contain necessary oils that promote urinary health. Dogs with issues in their urinary health can see immediate improvements after the pumpkin is added to their diet.
2. Helps control and repel parasites
While most of this proof is anecdotal, routinely including pumpkin in your dog’s diet can help eradicate parasites inhabiting and pestering your poor pup’s gut. Parasites like hookworms, whipworms, and tapeworms can considerably affect your dog’s digestive system and trigger undesirable symptoms like a shabby coat, weight loss, dry skin, and nutrient deficiency.
Pumpkin contains a high amount of amino acid cucurbitacin, which is poisonous to dog intestinal parasites and has been thoroughly used to expel worms living in animals. However, including pumpkin in your pet’s diet doesn’t automatically mean you’ll stop their parasite preventive medications. Therefore, maintaining up-to-date vaccinations and medications for preventing parasites in your dog is still advised even when adding pumpkins to their diet.
3. Tastes delicious
Like how many people relish pumpkin’s creamy and natural flavor, dogs do too. Anyone who has tried feeding their dog healthy yet tasty foods can significantly appreciate and gain from this. While most dogs would nibble on a plain cooked pumpkin, it will become a much better and yummy treat when added with a pinch of honey or cinnamon.
Apart from pumpkin, you can still search for healthy and pet-friendly veggies to feed your four-legged buddy. However, never forget to maintain their dental health. Be proactive in taking them to pet dentists for oral care and teeth cleaning, and know if your pet dog needs to have dental surgery for their aching teeth to alleviate their pain. You may click here to read more about the services most pet dentists usually offer.
4. Good for the eyes
Vitamin A is important for our eye health and is also the same for dogs. Vitamin A can keep your eyes healthy and slow the development of eye degeneration and blindness. Moreover, the said nutrient is also fat-soluble, so making a pumpkin puree for your furry companion and adding a little healthy oil will make it more nutritious.
Pumpkin is an excellent way to maintain your pet’s eye health. Furthermore, this will help you in the long term and save you the trouble of taking your pet to animal surgeons for ocular surgery when your furry buddy develops eye conditions. Some of the surgical procedures commonly done to pets are spaying, neutering, soft tissue, fracture repair, and orthopedic surgery.
5. Packs great nutrition
While the nutritional information of one cup of cooked pumpkin is low in calories, it is rich in important minerals and vitamins. It is rich in vitamin A (beta-carotene), which is effective for maintaining eyesight and preventing infections and illness.
Furthermore, it has a lot of potassium to help control blood pressure and improve metabolism and muscle health. It also has small amounts of healthy nutrients like Phosphorus, Vitamin C, Magnesium, Iron, and Folate.
