Mary Allen
Does your dog love pickles? Then we have good news because dogs are allowed to eat cucumbers.
You should only be careful with cucumbers from your garden.
Your dog can eat green cucumbers
Cucumbers are very popular with us, especially as a salad or as a side dish in cold dishes.
Cucumbers contain almost no calories. That is why vegetables are one of the healthy slimmers.
But what is positive and healthy for us humans does not have to be for our four-legged friends. That’s why dog owners keep asking themselves the question: Can my dog eat cucumbers?
Cucumber for dogs at a glance
The most important facts on this page are summarized at a glance:
- Basically, cucumber is harmless for dogs and even suitable as a light food.
- However, cucumbers from your garden can lead to poisoning.
- The reason is cucurbitacins, which occur as toxic bitter substances in pumpkin plants.
- As long as you use commercially available cucumber seeds, the risk of poisoning is low.
Cucumber as a light food
Dogs are generally allowed to eat cucumbers. Cucumbers can be ideal, especially for animals that drink little. They contain more water than any other vegetable. Cucumbers are therefore particularly suitable as an ideal refreshment on hot summer days.
Cucumbers can be added to the feed in small pieces, grated, or pureed.
Cucumbers can also be a good addition to bland foods. Mixed with rice, quark, and some chicken, it makes an optimal diet food.
However, you should peel the cucumber for this. Most of the healthy ingredients are contained in the peel. On a bland diet, however, the peel of a cucumber is too difficult to digest.
Cucumbers are mostly made up of water
Cucumbers belong to the gourd family. In our latitudes, the cucumber and pickling cucumber is well known:
- Cucumber
- Pickled cucumbers, gherkin
Cucumbers contain around 95 percent water. They contain vitamins from the B group, and vitamins C and E. There are also plenty of minerals in the cucumber. These include calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus.
Cucumbers also have special enzymes that can break down proteins. This promotes digestion. These enzymes also kill and cleanse unwanted bacteria in the gut.
Pickles from the jar
Many dogs love cucumbers. Some even love to eat the pickled variety.
With pickled cucumbers, you should always make sure that your dog does not get too much of it. Because vinegar, garlic, and mustard seeds are not tolerated by the dog in large quantities and are even poisonous.
Cucumbers are available in supermarkets all year round. You can easily grow cucumbers yourself in your garden.
Be careful with cucumbers from your garden
However, those who grow their cucumbers in the garden should be very careful.
Since the cucumber belongs to the cucurbit family, it can contain cucurbitacins. These are toxic bitter substances.
The bitter substances were bred away from commercially available cucumbers. As a rule, there are no longer any cucurbitacins there.
However, if you grow cucumbers, pumpkins, and zucchini in your garden, you should make sure to use new seeds from the trade every year.
If you keep sowing seeds from your home-grown plants, the original properties may eventually return. Then the vegetables can contain bitter substances again.
Very rarely, this can also be the case with purchased vegetables.
Are cucumbers harmful to dogs?
The cucumber is extremely popular with us humans and can be found in salads, dressings, or dips. It is also often eaten as a snack between meals. Since cucumbers consist of 95% water, they are very suitable as a refreshment not only for you but also for your dog, especially in summer.
How many cucumbers can a dog eat?
This is especially true if you mixed the cucumber in with the feed. This is usually eaten so quickly that the dog does not even notice the bitter substances. For this reason, you should only give your dog a piece of the cucumber if you have tasted the vegetable first.
Why can’t dogs eat cucumbers?
Cucurbitacins are dangerous substances in cucumbers. These are bitter substances that are mainly found in pumpkin plants. They cause a bitter taste in cucumbers, zucchini, or squashes. Cucurbitacins are toxic and can lead to poisoning in dogs as well as in humans.
Can dogs be allergic to cucumber?
Dogs rarely have an allergy to cucumbers. However, it may be that your four-legged friend does not tolerate the cucumber peel, as it is somewhat difficult to digest. In this case, however, your animal does not have to do without the delicious and juicy snack, but you have to peel the cucumber in advance.
Are carrots good for dogs?
Carrots: are well tolerated by most dogs and can be fed raw, grated, boiled, or steamed. They provide the dog with a large portion of beta-carotene, which has a positive effect on the health of the eyesight, skin, and hair.
Can a dog eat peppers?
In small quantities, well-ripened (i.e. red) and cooked, paprika is well tolerated and can enrich your four-legged friend’s diet. Otherwise, you can simply use carrots, cucumber, boiled(!) potatoes, and many other types of vegetables.
Are potatoes bad for dogs?
Boiled potatoes are harmless and even very healthy for your furry friend. Raw potatoes, on the other hand, must not be fed.
Which is better for the dog rice or potatoes?
Nevertheless, carbohydrates should not be completely dispensed with in dog nutrition! Rice, potatoes, and sweet potatoes are healthy and easily digestible sources of carbohydrates. First of all, it can be said that rice is not harmful to dogs, quite the opposite!