really enjoy having some saltine crackers with my tea or coffee, like everyone else, and my dog really loves to follow with his eyes the cracker from the pack to my mouth, and then, he looks at me with the sad puppy-dog eyes to emotionally blackmail me into giving him some. But is that a good idea? Can dogs eat saltine crackers?
Can Dogs Eat Saltine Crackers
Before you fell into a “Cute-Puppy-Eyes” trap, take a second, and think should you give your dog a cracker. As a dog owner, you must make it a rule to look up human food before feeding them to your dog. After all, you may not even know what’s toxic and unhealthy to your doggy!
In this article, I will answer the question, “Can dogs eat saltine crackers?” and provide as many details as possible to give you a clear picture of it.
Let’s go!
Saltine Crackers and Dogs: Can they mix together?
Saltine crackers are something that we humans enjoy—especially with some cheese and other flavors. Usually, we eat crackers during TV shows, movies, and football matches.
But, keep in mind that you shouldn’t feed your doggy friend with the crackers.
I’ll explain to you why.
First off, when given in limited or small quantities, saltine crackers shouldn’t really do any harm to your doggy friend’s health.
So, if your dog steals you a cracker, and runs away with it – you don’t need to panic at all.
But, we don’t recommend feeding your dog during normal meals since the large quantities of crackers could have a negative impact on your doggy’s health.
That’s because saltine crackers have a high sodium content which isn’t good for a doggy’s health at all. So be careful, and try to keep your dog away from eating salty foods.
Sodium and Dogs: What’s the Problem?
Humans love salt and life without it would be a disaster. That’s why most human food has a lot of salt in it.
But, before reading this article, did you know that too much salt is rather harmful to dogs? The thing is that a dog’s recommended daily intake of salt is much lower than that of an average human’s and such of that – they can’t eat it in larger quantities.
And if you’re feeding your dog with some dog food, the dog’s sodium needs are already met by it.
This means that your dog is getting excess sodium from the saltine cracker – which he shouldn’t.
Some breeds of dogs have a problem with salt, called hypernatremia. This appearance is when the amount of salt in their blood is too high for normal functioning.
What are the effects of eating too much sodium:
It can make your dog thirsty—very, very thirsty and your dog may even need to pee more than usual. It can cause sodium ion poisoning which can be fatal – but don’t panic, just avoid giving them too much salt, and your puppy will continue to be in perfect shape.
So, you know what they say about prevention vs. cure, right?
The former is always better.
Alternatives to Saltine Crackers For Dogs
Did you know that there are crackers for dogs on the market?
Three Dog Bakery Classic Cremes Baked Dog Treats, Golden With Vanilla Filling, 13 Oz
If your dog is giving you those puppy dog eyes and guilting you into feeding him some delicious saltine crackers, you shouldn’t jump into that trap – as said at the beginning of this article.
Instead, you should simply give your canine friend some alternatives made for dogs or dog biscuits. It contains everything that your puppy needs, and trust me, your dog would appreciate that more.
Because my dog sure does!
So, let’s jump to the conclusion: Can Dogs Eat Saltine Cracker?
Even though small amounts of saltine crackers won’t necessarily hurt your dog, we won’t recommend that you feed them to your dog – stolen crackers while you are not watching from your puppy would be forgiven!
That’s because they have too much sodium in them, as discussed above, which can cause your dog to have certain unpleasant complications and even develop conditions such as sodium ion poisoning and could harm their health seriously.
So, it’s better to keep your pooch away from this stuff.
Store it somewhere where your dog doesn’t have access and you don’t have to worry.
After all, prevention is always better than a cure, and following this motto, your dog can live a long and happy life!
Hungry for some more food related articles? Here are just some of them:
- Is cilantro bad for dogs? Here’s what we know
- Can dogs have vanilla? Here’s the truth
- Is almond butter safe for dogs?
- Can dogs eat coconut? Is it really safe?
- Is celery good for dogs? Here’s the truth
- Are Chicken Feet Safe For Dogs?
- Can dogs eat figs? A sweet fruit, but are they safe?