Cake is a delectable dessert that is often part of birthday parties, weddings, and other family celebrations. This dessert’s sugary goodness makes it the perfect way to end an evening. It’s well known that cake is not the most nutritious of food options for people, but on occasion and in moderation, most people will partake of a slice or two. But can dogs eat cake?
If you've been wondering, “can I give my dog cake,” the answer is NO – you should not feed any type of cake to your dog. Due to many varieties of cake out there, and how many ingredients go into them, it's best to avoid feeding any cake to dogs because of potential toxic ingredients or other unhealthy foods that your dog would consume.
In this article, we'll take a closer look at cake, can dogs eat cake in small amounts or is cake bad for dogs at all times, and what else you should know.
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What is cake?
Cake is a type of sweet dessert that is usually baked. It includes ingredients typically associated with this kind of sweet treat, including sugar, eggs, flour, baking soda, and oil, margarine or butter.
This is what a cake may look like:
Often additional sweets are mixed into the cake batter or used to decorate the cake after it has baked. Icings, dried or fresh fruits, cocoa, chocolate, fruit preserves, and nuts are just a few examples of items that can be in or on cakes.
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Cake for Dogs 101
Can Dogs Eat Cake?
So can dogs eat cake at least in small amounts? Unsurprisingly, your dog should not eat cake. A bite or two on rare occasions is unlikely to harm your dog, but regardless, it isn’t a habit you want to create.
Additionally, some items baked into the cake or used to decorate the top of it may be toxic to canines, such as macadamia nuts or chocolate. Therefore it’s best to keep your dog clear of the cake celebrations during parties, especially if you don’t know all the ingredients in the cake.
There are no benefits of cake for dogs.
The minimal amount of fruit on a cake – fresh, candied, dried, or otherwise – does not constitute enough of an advantage to a canine’s body to justify the potential damage that can occur. In general, cake is not a healthy food choice due to its high sugar content, but feeding it regularly to your dog will result in serious health issues in the future.
Cake may also have some harmful and dangerous ingredients that can not only harm your dog, but potentially cause toxicosis and death. It's best to avoid feeding cake to dogs at all times and opt for healthier treat choices.
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5 Potential Side Effects of Cake in Dogs
1. The excess sugar content can result in weight gain and obesity.
Because of its ingredients, cake is loaded with sugar which is not healthy for your dog to eat. If you give your dog cake on a regular basis, over time your dog will gain weight and possibly become obese. Weight gain and obesity lead to other serious health complications such as arthritis, heart disease, and diabetes.
2. Too much cake has an adverse impact on canine dental health.
Even if you brush your dog’s teeth daily, consuming sugar-heavy items like cake can impact a dog’s oral health. Bad breath, bacterial infections, rotting teeth, and cavities are not only serious issues to contend with, but they can also encourage the development of further health concerns in your dog’s body.
Bacterial infections in the mouth can seep into the bloodstream and be spread throughout the body. From there, the infection can significantly damage the heart, brain, lungs, liver, and kidneys. In extreme cases, the infection can result in fatality.
3. Some cake ingredients and toppings are dangerous for dogs.
Ingredients that are often used in a variety of cakes can be toxic to dogs, even in small amounts. Here are some items to look out for in cake before you feed it to your dog:
- Chocolate
- Raisins
- Coffee
- Macadamia nuts
- Grapes
- Vanilla extract
- Nutmeg
- Candy
Due to these multiple inherent dangers within cake, it’s best not to make it a regular part of your dog’s diet.
4. Sugar-free cake is not a healthy solution.
Some dog owners might think that it’s acceptable to feed their dog a piece of sugar-free cake. After all, it doesn’t have the added sugars, right? True, but the replacement for sugar is a grave danger to dogs in and of itself.
Xylitol is a common sweetener used to replace sugar in a variety of foods. As a sugar alcohol and natural sugar substitute, xylitol has become more popular especially in low-calorie, sugar-free foods. Unfortunately, this sweetener is toxic to dogs, and it doesn’t take too much to cause serious medical issues.
Even a small amount of ingested xylitol can stimulate an insulin release in a dog, causing a rapid drop in blood sugar, or hypoglycemia. The result will be a dog who experiences a lack of coordination, weakness, coma, seizures, and in worst cases, death.
Summary
Can Dogs Eat Cake?
In conclusion, can dogs eat cake or is cake bad for dogs at all times? You already know that cake is not a nutritious or healthy food for anyone, and it is not a treat that you should be give to dogs.
An occasional bit of cake now and again will in all likelihood not harm a dog, however, because each dogs has different and individual sensitivities, it’s best not to take chances.
Avoid giving your dog any part of cake meant for humans. Instead, purchase or bake a dog-friendly cake with appropriate ingredients that are safe for your pup to eat.
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