Octopus isn’t a common household food, but if you have some in your home, you might be wondering if it’s a healthy option for your dog.
The truth is that while octopus is generally healthy and safe for dogs, it all comes down to how you prepare it and how much you’re giving them. It’s easy to overdo it, so keep reading and we’ll walk you through everything you need to know.
Can Dogs Eat Octopus?
Yes! If you feed your dog cooked, unseasoned octopus meat, you can feed it to them in moderation. Octopus is full of healthy fats, proteins, vitamins, and minerals that support various parts of your dog’s overall health.
However, feed your dog octopus in moderation as it doesn’t meet all their dietary needs on its own.
How Much Octopus Can You Feed Your Dog?
We recommend following the 90/10 rule when feeding your dog octopus. Treat octopus as a treat, and don’t let the total amount of treats your dog eats in a single day make up more than 10% of their diet. This means you’ll need to monitor how much food your dog eats on a normal day to decide how much octopus you can feed them.
Things to Know When Feeding Your Dog Octopus
If you’re feeding your dog octopus, it’s important you keep several factors in mind. First, you should only feed your dog cooked octopus. Otherwise, the octopus can have bacteria that can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, or other more serious infections.
Next, you should only feed your dog unseasoned octopus. So, if you’re cooking octopus for yourself and using seasonings, you shouldn’t give this to your pooch. That’s because while the octopus might be safe for your dog, the seasonings you’re using might not be.
Even small amounts of sodium or oils and spices can create adverse side effects for your dog if they eat it.
Other Healthy Treat Options for Your Dog
While you can certainly feed your dog some octopus, if you prepare it for them correctly, it’s far from your only option. Below, we’ve highlighted a few different healthy treat ideas you can feed your pup if you’re looking to mix things up.
Blueberries
Blueberries come packed with antioxidants that are great for your dog’s health. Blueberries have tons of vitamins C and K, and they have tons of fiber. You need to be careful with their sugar content, but overall, they’re an excellent option for your dog.
Carrots
Carrots are great for us, and they’re great for our dogs too! They have fiber and beta-carotene, which will both help with their digestion and can help them ward off certain diseases. If your dog eats carrots, you can happily feed them a few. Just ensure you cut up raw carrots into small bits so your dog doesn’t end up choking on the hard vegetable.
Apples
You’ll want to remove the core and seeds from the apple before feeding it to your dog, but from there it’s a great healthy snack that they’ll love. Apples have tons of fiber to help with their digestion, and they have vitamins A and C too.
Cantaloupe
With cantaloupe, you’ll need to remove the rind and the seeds, but many dogs love the taste of the sweet fruit. It has fiber, folate, niacin, potassium, vitamins, and beta-carotene, meaning it’s full of healthy nutrients. It’s full of natural sugars too though, so feed it to your dog in moderation.
Celery
If your dog prefers a crunchy treat, celery is a great choice. It’s a lot of water, but it also has tons of vitamins. Just keep in mind it doesn’t have many calories, so you don’t want your pup filling up too much on celery and skipping the other foods they need.
Final Thoughts
If you have some octopus you’re trying to get rid of, feeding it to your dog might be the perfect solution. Sure, it can be tempting to try and add a ton of seasonings to make it taste better for them, but it’s really not good for them, and they don’t really mind the bland taste. As long as it’s fresh, they should happily gobble it up!
Featured Image Credit: Squirrel_photos, Pixabay
