Yogurt seems like a delicious but healthy snack, especially fruit yogurt like strawberry yogurt. You’re eating something sweet, but yet healthy. So if it’s that healthy, can dogs eat strawberry yogurt? Can it be a treat for your canine?
Well, even though strawberry yogurt and sweet yogurts, in general, seem like a healthy snack, they aren’t really. Yes, you read that right!
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In this article, we’re going to explain why strawberry yogurt is definitely not healthy for you (nor your dog!).
We’re also going to explain why you should definitely not give your dog any yogurt (vanilla yogurt included).
Can dogs eat strawberry yogurt?
My dog loves it when I give him a bite of whatever I am eating. However, I am aware that he can’t eat everything I’m eating. Many human foods are actually dangerous or even toxic for dogs.
Foods that are a no-brainer for us could potentially kill our dog!
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One of those dangerous foods is fruit yogurts! Believe it or not. So the answer to the question can dogs eat strawberry yogurt is definitely a no. I am going to explain why this is exactly.
Can dogs eat strawberries?
But, what’s the issue with strawberry yogurt? Is it the strawberries? Can dogs eat strawberries?
No, the strawberries are not the issue. This summer fruit is safe for your canine to consume. In fact strawberries are packed with powerful nutrients that support your dog’s health!
Strawberries contain vitamin C, fiber, protein, and healthy fats. Besides this, they contain vitamin B9, also known as folic acid, magnesium, manganese, potassium, and a lot of antioxidants!
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It’s scientifically proven that all these vitamins and minerals that can be found in strawberries can actually help slow down the aging process of your dog, boost the immune system, and even promote weight maintenance!
The issue with strawberry yogurt
So, if strawberries are so healthy, then what’s the issue with strawberry yogurt? Is the yogurt the issue?
Well, the yogurt alone is not the issue. Dogs that are not lactose intolerant can consume plain yogurt or greek yogurt.
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The issue is that strawberry yogurt is not made only out of strawberries and yogurt. In most cases, the second ingredient on the ingredient list will be sugar.
Store-bought strawberry yogurt is full of sugar. We’ve talked about why sugar is bad in the “Can dogs have jello: Safe or toxic?” article. But let’s revise.
Why sugar is bad
Basically, too much sugar over an extended period of time can lead to serious health issues and problems for your canine companion. Diabetes, obesity, and tooth decay are just a few of them.
Besides these most common problems, your dog’s digestion can suffer too because of sugar. You see, all the sugar your dog consumes upsets the balance of bacteria needed to digest food, which can lead to diarrhea and vomiting.
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Also, too much sugar can cause inflammation which can then cause serious conditions in your dog like arthritis, dermatitis, and pancreatitis.
And lastly, all that refined sugar that can be found in human food isn’t healthy for us either, but for dogs, it just means more empty calories they don’t need anyway. Too many excess calories lead to weight gain.
If it’s not sugar it’s xylitol
If you’re now thinking “I always get sugar-free yogurt”, that’s even worse! If the fruit yogurt you get is sugar-free, chances are it contains a sweetener called xylitol. Which is way worse for your canine than sugar! In fact, it’s actually toxic.
Xylitol when ingested by animals gets absorbed rapidly, and triggers an extremely high release of insulin from the pancreas. As a result, this causes a sudden drop in blood sugar, also known as hypoglycemia.
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All of this can happen in as little as ten minutes and in worst-case scenarios can even be life-threatening.
There are other symptoms of xylitol poisoning too. Some of which include:
- diarrhea
- black or tarry stool
- seizures
- trembling
- vomiting
- acute collapse
- walking as if drunk
- lethargy or weakness
- jaundice
Conclusion
In conclusion, can dogs eat strawberry yogurt? Technically they can, but they definitely should not! One or two spoons of strawberry yogurt won’t kill your dog, however, it’s also not completely safe for them either.
So if you want your dog to have some strawberry yogurt, you might want to mix your own. Simply combine strawberries and some plain or greek yogurt and let your dog enjoy it!
You can without any worry let your dog enjoy plain and greek yogurt because they don’t contain any sugar or sweetener.