In recent years, the avocado fruit has seen a spike in popularity all over the United States of America. With 1.73 billion tons of the fruit being imported in the US alone every year, it should not come off as a surprise to hear that it can now be found in millions of homes.
This popularity stems from not only its pleasant taste and variety of ways it can be served but also its many health benefits. Such benefits include having more than 20 kinds of vitamins and minerals in it as well as having only small amounts of sugars and fat.
However, while millions of Americans now enjoy this fruity treat, it should not be reserved for humans alone. Pets, specifically cats are shown to enjoy this fruit just as much as us. It is important to consider this and the many other benefits that come from giving these fruits to them the next time we get this exotic fruit.
Can Cats Eat Avocado?
Yes, avocado is just as safe for your cats to eat as it is for humans. While some websites make it seem like feeding pets avocados will cause them lots of harm or even kill them, many of these websites are exaggerated at best.
There do not appear to be any sort of chemicals in the avocado meat that make it poisonous or particularly dangerous to cats. Its meat and grease in particular are parts of the avocado that cats are shown to be fond of.
Is Avocado Good for Cats?
Yes, avocado is not just edible for cats, but actually very beneficial for them. When it comes to these fruits, cats are able to get a multitude of health benefits from eating them much like humans. If you are thinking of adding a bit of avocado into their diet, then fear not because you would actually be doing them a lot of good in doing so.
Benefits of Avocado for Cats
As we have stated earlier, adding avocado to your cat’s diet carries a lot of positives that can benefit them and improve their health. Aside from adding normal nutrients cats need, it can even add new ones to their body. Now we must run down some of these benefits.
-Vitamin B5. Vitamin B5 otherwise known as pantothenic acid is considered one of the B vitamins found in avocado. Like in humans, cats need these vitamins to stay in good health. This is because Vitamin B5 is what they need to help synthesize and metabolize things such as carbs, fats, and protein. Avocados can actually have as much as 10% of the Recommended Daily Intake for cats.
-Protein. Avocados normally contain about 18 amino acids in them that are absorbed by you and your pets when you eat it. Of these 18, about half of them are protein, and not just regular protein, this is almost pure protein. This would be a huge help in your cat’s muscle development, organ function, and immune system, ensure that your pet cats remain strong and healthy.
-Healthy Fats. Contrary to popular belief, dietary fats do have a role to play in our daily nutrition and do offer some benefits to both humans and cats. These healthy fats can serve as an anti-inflammatory in our body and promote healthy heart function. In this regard, avocados are a gold mine of healthy fats.
Is Avocado Bad For Cats?
While they are not bad per se, it is still important to know that you cannot simply put a piece of avocado in front of the cat and expect them to have no problems with it. There are still some pitfalls that we need to look out for in feeding our cats avocados.
While we said that avocado is safe and healthy for your cat, it does not mean we can give it to them without worry. There are some things and parts of the avocado that we should be wary of when giving it to them.
Concerns about Cats Eating Avocado
Unlike humans, cats cannot always tell what is safe and what is dangerous with their food, especially unfamiliar foods like avocados. Because of that, it falls to us to be informed and knows that there are some things we need to look out for when feeing these fruits to our cats.
In this section, we will break down some of the problems that can come from feeding your cat avocado incorrectly.
-Avocado Pits. The avocado pit is the big seed found in the middle of the fruit. This piece is one that is often discarded instead of being eaten by humans. While there is nothing poisonous about it to cats, it is still not recommended to give it to them as due to its hardness and size, it can be a major choking hazard and cause blockage in their bodies.
-The Avocado skin. Like the avocado pit, the skin is not normally something that is consumed by humans or cats. Instead, it is also just thrown away in favor of better choices of the fruit. Similar to the seed, this is something that you should not feed to your cat both because of the choking hazards, but this one also has the risk of causing digestion problems to your cat.
-Overfeeding. Too much of a good thing is always dangerous, the same can be said with food. While avocados are normally harmless, feeding them to your cat in large amounts can be very dangerous. It is in these amounts that actually make it toxic to your cat and it is here where issues such as having a hard time eating or breathing can appear.
-Persin. This is an issue found mostly in one variety of avocado, that being the Guatemalan Avocado. In this type, there are high concentrations of persin found in the fruit which is quite toxic to your cat which can get them seriously sick. However, high concentrations of persin can be found in the leaves, stem, and peels of avocado so it is best to just avoid feeding any of these parts altogether.
-Guacamole. One of the most popular dishes made from avocado is guacamole. This is a very popular Mexican dish that is often served as a dip for things like chips. Although delicious, it is something that can be very bad for cats and should never be given to them. This is because it often contains ingredients that are harmful to cats such as garlic and onions which your cats cannot eat.
How can I feed my cat avocado?
Now that you know what to avoid, next, you need to know just how to feed it to your cat safely. The best way to feed avocados to your cat is to slice it into small pieces first after you’ve removed the pit, leaves, and skin.
Once you have sliced them into bite-sized pieces, you can either feed it directly to your cat as a treat or mix it into their food. This is best done slowly and in small amounts especially if this is their first time as they should not get too used to eating it.
How many avocados can a cat eat daily?
One thing that was said about feeding your cat’s avocados is that it should not normally be given any avocado in large amounts. If they are given too much, that is when it can truly become dangerous since the toxins in the fruit will become dangerous in large doses.
When feeding avocados to your cat, it is best to give it a small serving. Usually, a few slices would be more than enough for them. Alternatively, you can also use a spoon to scrape off some avocado. A few spoonfuls would also suffice.
Can avocado kill cats?
As stated earlier, there are some risks in feeding your cat avocado and it is important that you know it when giving it to them. This can come from which parts you give it. As said, things like the seed, leaves, or stem can be very dangerous if you give it to them both as a choking hazard and due to bad chemicals in them.
Aside from that, overfeeding them is also a risk because you can greatly increase the bad chemicals in them. There are also certain types of avocado that can be dangerous if fed to them or if served with other ingredients.
Can kittens have avocado?
While not particularly poisonous even for kittens it is still not advisable to give avocado to them. This is because their immune is not yet fully developed so they still might not be able to digest it properly. Additionally, the risks of choking are much greater with them since their teeth are not yet developed.
Conclusion
In the end, we can see that there are many benefits of feeding your cat avocados. Not only does it improve their health, but it is a good treat to give them from time to time. It just important that you take some precautions when feeding it to them to keep them happy and well.
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