Should I give my kitty gingerbread? Can cats eat gingerbread? What will happen if I give my cat a bite of it? These are all very reasonable questions, especially during the festive holiday season.
You might be tempted to give your feline friend a tiny bite of your favorite sweet snacks, but as you probably already know, this is not advised.
While giving your cat a small piece of gingerbread will not cause any serious troubles for your cat, it is still not the healthiest or the safest cat treat out there.
Cats are known for having a very specific diet and not being able to digest everything you give them. As a result, you must be cautious about what you feed your cat.
Can Cats Eat Gingerbread?
Gingerbread is definitely not on the forbidden food list, but it is also not on the “healthy-cat-treats” list either.
If you’re debating whether to give your furry friend some of this treat or not, opt for not!
A bite of gingerbread is most likely not going to cause your cat any gastrointestinal issues, but eating more than a nibble could make your pet sick.
Why Is Gingerbread Not The Best Cat-Treat Option Out There?
Gingerbread treats can come in many forms, such as ginger snaps,gingerbread cookies, or used to make a gingerbread house.
Each form of gingerbread has one thing in common – they have the same (relatively unhealthy) ingredient list!
What Are The Ingredients Of Gingerbread?
| Ingredient | Should cats have it? |
|---|---|
| Flour | It’s okay for cats to have it from time to time |
| Eggs | It’s okay for cats to have eggs |
| Butter | No, it can cause vomiting and diarrhea in cats |
| Sugar | Cats should not have a lot of carbohydrates, even though it’s not toxic for them |
| Vanilla extract | Absolutely not, it can cause alcohol poisoning |
| Ginger | In small amounts, it’s even healthy, but in large amounts, it can cause gastrointestinal upset |
| Cinnamon | Not good if taken in high amounts |
| Cloves | Not good if taken in high amounts due to the presence of eugenols |
| Nutmeg | Not good if taken in high amounts due to the presence of myristicin |
| Artificial sweeteners | Usually safe, except for xylitol which is potentially toxic |
As you can see, gingerbread does not usually contain any substance in quantities that is extremely toxic for a cat, but rather a range of ingredients that, if taken in large amounts, can have negative side-effects,
You’ve probably also noticed there aren’t any healthy ingredients, right?
Gingerbread is not bad for a cat if eaten very rarely and in small quantities, but it’s still not the best cat treat option.
What About Ginger – Ginger Is Healthy?!
You might know someone that takes ginger root or ginger extract as a dietary supplement. Ginger is quite healthy for people. How about felines?
There has been anecdotal evidence of ginger helping with a cat’s motion sickness, indigestion, or nausea.
ASPCA lists ginger as a safe plant for cats. However, the effects of ginger on cats are still being investigated. Although there are many known benefits of ginger, it does not mean you should incorporate it into your cat’s diet.
Eating a large amount of ginger can lead to lowered blood pressure and heart rate, an upset stomach, and other issues with the cat’s digestive system.
Therefore, in order to avoid any of the negative side-effects, I recommend not giving your cat any ginger or ginger-containing human foods or ginger ale. Stick to the good old-fashioned cat food. Your pet’s health is your number one priority, after all!
What Can Happen If Your Cat Eats More Gingerbread Than Recommended?
If your kitty eats a lot of gingerbread (maybe your cat’s quick paws took some gingerbread when you weren’t looking!), you might be wondering what the potential consequences are.
If your cat eats a lot of gingerbread, it may experience the following side-effects:
• Bloating
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Disorientation
Your cat will be alright if they only ate a small piece of gingerbread. Keep an eye on them if you suspect they ate more than this.
Cat owners – it’s important to notice any potential stomach upset symptoms (if any are present) on time, so you can treat them as soon as you notice them.
The Final Verdict
Personally, I will not be giving my cat gingerbread (or any other human holiday treats) this holiday season. I recommend you find some cat-friendly treats to spoil your cat over the festive time.
Even though a bite of gingerbread will probably do them no harm, it’s still not worth the risk of a stomach ache. There are lots of different tasty and healthy cat treat options available out there!
Quick And Easy: Make Your Cat A Healthy Cat Treat
If you’ve decided not to give your kitty gingerbread in any form, you might be on a look-out for a healthy cat treat recipe. Don’t worry – I got you covered!
This is my go-to recipe any time I want to make something special for my kitty. It’s nice to take some time to do something nice for your pet, and it’s super fun as well!
What You’ll Need
🐾 Tuna
Use any tuna you usually give your kitty. Make sure to drain any oil. One can will be enough for two cat treats.
🐾 Shrimp
You will need cooked shrimp, not raw. Do not use shrimp shells (peel them off!).
🐾 A tiny bit of cheddar cheese
By tiny bit I really mean a tiny bit, not even 1/4 of a tablespoon. Make sure the cheese is shredded.
🐾 Flour
You can use any type of all-purpose flour. 2 tablespoons are needed.
🐾 One egg white
🐾 Cooking spray
🐾 Two muffin tin cups (or muffin pan)
Steps To Follow
1. Set the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Lightly spray the tin cups with the cooking spray.
3. Mix tuna, egg white, shredded cheddar cheese, and flour until they’re evenly distributed.
4. Put the mixture into the muffin cups. You should get 2 filled muffin cups.
5. Bake for 15 minutes.
6. Let the “cat muffins” cool down for a bit, then take them out of the muffin tins.
7. Put a shrimp or two on top of the muffin.
8. Give it to your cat and watch them enjoy it (cats looove fish!).
In Conclusion
I know sharing is caring but, in this case, it’s best to skip the sharing. Gingerbread is not a healthy cat treat, and cats cannot taste it as humans do (remember – cats can’t taste sweet!).
Although having a small bite of gingerbread will do cats no harm, it really is unnecessary to give this human treat to them.
Now that you got your answer to Can cats eat gingerbread, maybe you would like to check out some other similar articles and learn something new about what you can and cannot feed your pet cat!
Related Content:
Can Cats Eat Cake? Finding The Right Treats For Your Kitty
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