My dogs LOVE carrots! These days, if I buy carrots, it’s almost always to give them to Kitsune and Fenrir as snacks. No big surprise here, I suppose, but Kitsune especially loves them. That isn’t saying much. Kitsune especially loves most foods! Picky Mr. Fenrir likes carrots too, although he makes more of a mess eating them – always on my rugs, of course.
Are Carrots Safe to Feed Dogs?
Yup! If they weren’t, I think Kitsune would be dead by now. If your dog is diabetic or requires a special diet, keep in mind that carrots are high in natural sugars.
Many owners, myself included, feed carrots raw. That’s actually not the best way to feed them if you are feeding carrots strictly for their health benefits. Dogs aren’t able to fully digest raw carrots – meaning that most of the awesome nutrients pass right through your dog if you are only feeding carrots raw. To break down the carrots’ cell walls, and make their nutrients more available for your dog to absorb, you can purée or cook carrots before offering them to Fido.
What are the Benefits of Feeding Dogs Carrots?
For me, one of the major benefits of feeding Kitsune carrots is that he loves them so much! Raw carrots, although perhaps not the best supplement nutritionally for reasons stated above, may help to keep your dog’s teeth clean. They shouldn’t replace proper dental care by any means, but, like chewing on bones, may help to remove plaque from your dog’s teeth.
Like in humans, carrots can help support your dog’s eye health. This is because they are packed full of beta-carotene as well as vitamin A. Besides eye health, vitamin A can help build a strong immune system, and support healthy skin and fur. Carrots also contain vitamins A, C, D, E, K, B1, and B6.
Cooked or raw, carrots are low in calories. This makes them, in moderation, great snacks for dogs who are watching their weight.
If you are unsure about whether a certain food is ok for your particular dog, make sure to ask your vet! As always, treat foods should be fed to dogs in moderation.
12 Comments
My dogs both love carrots. I usually serve them raw, though. Guess I’ll have to try that puree!
To be honest I normally serve them raw too! It’s much less work, and the dogs, Kitsune especially, enjoy them raw. But they do get more nutrients from them if you puree or cook them.
Joining from AtoZ
My beagle LOVES carrots… only problem is that I then find carrot pieces everywhere!
Oh welll
We have that problem too. Especially since Kitsune likes to eat them in our bed. I don’t mind too much though…as far as messes go carrot pieces are pretty tame lol.
you are hitting on all of my faves! I LOVE carrots! Barks and licks and love, Dakota DakotasDen
Kit does too!
Came over from the A to Z challenge 🙂
Our corgi loves carrots, either raw or cooked. He is so funny in that he has this little crate that he has outgrown (it was supposed to be for his toys but when he was a puppy he took it over to lay in), so whenever he gets a treat like a carrot or some other food, he goes running right into that crate to eat it. If he likes the food, there won’t be a mess, but if he doesn’t like something then there will be leftovers all over the crate and underneath it.
Good luck with the rest of the challenge 🙂
betty
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Aw your corgi sounds adorable! My dogs both have crates, they like to eat in their crates if I give them anything extra special. I feel like it’s because I have two dogs, and they know the best way to keep their treats away from their ‘brother’ is to eat it in their crates. I’ll go check out your challenge posts too! 🙂 Thanks for your comment.
I think the only way my parents dogs ever had carrots was by accident 😊.
We don’t have dogs, but I feel your pain about messy eaters, one of our kitties can’t seem to eat anything without dropping it all over the place😆.
Best wishes,
Tasha
Tasha’s Thinkings: YouTube – What They Don’t Tell You (and free fiction)
Aw lol Yeah my dogs can be such messy eaters sometimes. It’s a pain to clean up after them, but it makes me laugh at the same time.
All my dogs previous to my current one loved carrots. I’d toss a carrot (baby ones) to the dogs whenever I had the bag out. This one won’t even try.
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Aw you have a picky one! My Fenrir used to be super picky. He’s 6 now and I have noticed he’s gotten less picky over time. The baby carrots are the ones my dogs like too.