We all love cheeseburgers. Crispy bun, lettuce, juicy burger, mouth-watering tomatoes, and a slice of melting cheese. What’s not to like? But before you spread the cheeseburger joy to your pup, read this!
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So can dogs eat cheeseburgers?
The dog must not eat cheeseburgers. So much so, you must not give your dog any kind of fast food. Cheese is high in fat content, and when combined with other ingredients in a cheeseburger, it can cause obesity in your dog.
Let’s talk about nutritional value. One cheeseburger from McDonald’s weighs 119g and has 313 calories, including 15.4g coming from proteins, 14g from fats (including 5.28g of saturated fats), and 33.1g of carbs (7.4g of it are sugars). It also high in Cholesterol (41.6mg) and Sodium (745mg). (While recommended daily intake of Sodium for an average-sized dog has to be up to 100mg). As you can see, this can hardly be called a perfect combination for your dog.
Dog eating cheeseburger: what are potentially dangerous ingredients?
A cheeseburger contains bready, cheese, and beef patty, which are the main ingredients. Other toppings and condiments on a cheeseburger are pickles, onions (huge NO-NO for dogs), ketchup, barbeque sauce, mustard, etc.
Since pickles are made by dunking small cucumbers in brine, vinegar, or other acidic solution, it is not useful for the digestive system of your dog. (And I have a separate article for you to learn more – jump to “Can dogs eat pickles?” to learn more)
Some of the onions’ compounds might damage the structure of red blood cells in dogs.
Mustard contains toxic compounds that can cause gastroenteritis, which is the inflammation of the intestinal tract and stomach.
Dog-friendly cheeseburger and how to make it?
If your dog loves to eat a cheeseburger, you can make one at home. To make dog-friendly cheeseburgers, you will need the following:
- one cup of shredded cheese (or maybe use cottage cheese, which is lower in lactose that won’t upset your dog’s intestine),
- six ounces of raw ground beef,
- four cups beef bone broth,
- a couple of buns if you want to more than one burger for your dog.
The first step is to brown the ground beef. Next, you need to drain the grease off it and let it cool down. Place a pinch of cheese in the ice cube trays. Next, top the cheese with a scoop of ground beef that you have browned. Next, you need to combine bone broth with cheese or top over it. Mix these ingredients and sandwich them in the bun. The dog-friendly cheeseburger is ready!
Dogs and Cheeseburgers. Conclusion
Cheeseburgers are delicious, and even dogs love them. However, they are not a healthy treat for your dog. You can still give it to your dog if you have it at home with cottage or shredded cheese that contains a low quantity of fats.
When your dog overeats of a cheeseburger or let’s say if he eats more than one burger at a time, it can cause serious health consequences. Some common diseases caused by consuming cheeseburgers are vomiting and diarrhea.
Cheeseburgers can also increase the risks of weight gain in your dog. Dogs can also become allergic to casein, which is one of the primary proteins found in milk, and in this case, low-lactose cheese would not help. Cheeseburgers are loaded with cholesterol and Sodium, which can lead to hypertension and heart diseases.
Lastly, you can make a simple cheeseburger for your dog with shredded cheese with no topping and condiments like mustard, onions, ketchup, pickles, and sausages, but then again, don’t allow your dog to eat more than a tiny size of cheeseburger at a time and better yet talk to your vet first before introducing it into your pup’s diet.
Thanks for the blog graphics: Canva.com
