Can Dogs Eat Greek Yogurt? A Vet’s Opinion
Yogurt is made by heating the milk and causing the milk proteins to curdle. This results in yogurt being formed. This process is achieved with the help of bacteria and heat. Yoghurt has a distinct sour taste. Yogurt can be eaten on its own as well as other food items. Greek yogurt is the same as yogurt, but the liquid is because part of the yogurt is strained and removed. Resulting in a thicker consistency; however, it tastes the same as regular yogurt. Greek yogurt is considered healthier than normal yogurt, but can you feed Greek Yoghurt to your dog?
Yes, Greek yogurt is excellent for dogs, for reasons we shall talk about below. Greek yogurt should definitely make a part of your dog’s daily diet plan. Since the whey is strained out, Greek yogurt is thicker, which is why your dog might like it a lot more than regular yogurt. Yogurt is packed with protein, calcium, and probiotics, Greek yogurt is not only safe but highly beneficial for dogs.
Let’s dive in:
Benefits Of Greek Yogurt For Dogs
The immune system of dogs is susceptible, and a good chunk of their immune system resides in the gut of your dog. Hence, a healthy gut will mean a better immune response and a healthy dog. If you give your dog a lot of human foods, which are highly processed, you will be compromising their immune system and will open them up to diseases and cell oxidation and weaken their ability to protect themselves from diseases. Greek yogurt also contains a lot of probiotics which is again very helpful for your dog. Probiotics, when ingested, will live in your dog’s gut and help maintain its immune system and work alongside it to destroy any threat in the form of harmful bacteria. Moreover, they will help in weight loss, improved digestion, strengthening of the immune system, healthy skin, shiny coat, and reduced risk of diseases and cancers! Greek yogurt is a rich source of calcium, which your dog will need to build strong bones and teeth. Moreover, calcium helps with heart diseases as well as strengthens the nervous system as well.
Greek Yoghurt has a lot of protein in it, which is vital for the growth and maintenance of all the cells in the body. Protein synthesis is essential for all the tissues in the body. The amino acids which are received from the Greek yogurt after the protein is broken down are necessary to build hair, skin, tendons, and cartilage. Moreover, protein helps your dog’s metabolism to work faster, which helps in weight loss. Probiotics are known to help fight infections caused by yeast, such as hot spots and itchy areas. Probiotics are abundant in yogurt!
How To Safely Give Greek Yogurt To Dogs
You should give your dog yogurt if they are not lactose intolerant. That being said, you should give them yogurt according to the size and weight of your dog. If you have a small dog, one teaspoon daily would be enough. For medium-sized dogs, it would be two teaspoons daily. And for large breeds, three teaspoons daily are recommended. Of course, these are just estimates. It would be best if you talked to your dog’s vet to come up with a food plan for them, which includes Greek yogurt.
Make sure that the yogurt you give your dog does not account for more than 10 percent of the total calories he eats in a day. You could turn yogurt time into snack time by making the yogurt more appealing with your dog’s favorite berries and fruits added to it. You should also make sure to give them plain Greek yogurt, which is free of preservatives and other things which can upset your dog’s stomach. You should also freeze ice cubes of plain Greek yogurt with fruits and berries to serve as a treat for a hot summer day; trust us that your dog will love it! Moreover, if you think that plain Greek yogurt is too sour for your dog, you can blend in fruits and berries to a smoothy like consistency, which would be easier for your dog to eat as well, as compared to solid food pieces and the berries and fruits will help negate the distinct sour taste of the yogurt.
Will Greek Yogurt Make A Dog Sick?
It would be best if you always read the labels of the brands you buy things from. Greek yogurts should be bought from reputable brands for your dogs that do not add any preservatives or other additives. Some brands of Greek yogurts contain artificial sweeteners like xylitol. Xylitol is toxic to dogs and can cause liver failure and seizures in severe cases.
Moreover, flavored yogurt is also not recommended as the excess sugar can cause obesity and other health risks for your dogs. We want to repeat that it’s vital to look at the labels before purchasing food for your dogs. Added sugar and fats will not help your pet in any way and will cause only trouble. Fats are very harmful and may cause a series of diseases, ranging from an upset stomach to pancreatitis. There is no harm in giving your dog plain Greek yogurt. However, you should make sure that your dog is not lactose intolerant. Most dogs are lactose intolerant after puppyhood, so that yogurt will do them more harm than good.
Vet’s Summary
Greek yogurt is the same as yogurt, but the liquid is because part of the yogurt is strained and removed. Resulting in a thicker consistency, however, it tastes the same as regular yogurt. Greek yogurt has a lot of benefits. It contains proteins and calcium, which are essential for protein synthesis and muscle building. Calcium is vital to ensure healthy bones, and if your dog’s bones aren’t healthy, they are more prone to being broken, which can result in a whole dimension of issues. Moreover, the proteins in Greek yogurt are necessary to build hair, skin, tendons, and cartilage. They also help your dog’s metabolism to work faster, which helps in weight loss. You should give your dog yogurt if they are not lactose intolerant. That being said, you should give them yogurt according to the size and weight of your dog. The most important thing to consider is that you should also ensure to give your dog plain Greek yogurt, which is free of preservatives and other things which can upset their stomach. You should go for Greek yogurts, which are free of artificial sweeteners like xylitol, excess fats, and sugars, as all of these things are very bad for the health of your dog. Apart from the probiotics in yogurt, you should give your dog probiotic supplements as well. Probiotics are basically the good bacteria that reside in the gut of your dog. These bacteria play an essential role in the digestion and absorption of medicines and help protect the gut lining! Hence, make sure to incorporate probiotics into your dog’s diet.
Videos To Watch
If you are wondering what related foods are good to give your dog, watch this:
And if you want to know what a dog can NOT eat, watch this: