Can Cats Eat Bread? Things You Need to Know

Despite what might seem strange, many cats genuinely enjoy the flavor of bread. You can find stories of bread bandits all over the internet, about cats that steal bread from counters or run after their owners when they hear the toaster pop. It’s a phenomenon that has puzzled cat owners everywhere, and nobody is sure why cats think bread tastes so good! If you are not sure about what can cats eat bread, then read this article.

Can cats eat bread? is undoubtedly on your mind if you’re a bread enthusiast. and, most all, “Is bread bad for cats?” Check out this post to get the answers to your questions regarding bread and cats!

Can Cats Eat Bread?

Although we can’t say, can cats eat bread? Since bread is largely made of carbohydrates, which cats don’t need, it is thought that bread provides nothing but empty calories to cats. Regarding health, baked bread is not harmful to your cat; however, it may not provide them with the necessary nutrients. In essence, bread is seen as a source of empty calories for cats. To give you an idea, one-fifth of the daily caloric requirements of an average cat may be found in a slice of white bread. Therefore, two slices of bread are way too much for your feline friend, even though it might barely satisfy your appetite.

If you must give your cat oral medication, bread can come in helpful. It might be possible to conceal a tablet within soft-baked bread or even apply a liquid medication onto it. But your cat might not be fooled by this ruse. According to the PennVet Ryan Veterinary Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania, many cats may avoid eating food that contains medication due to its harsh flavor. The hospital suggests that canned cat food could be a better option if your cat is a fan of bread, but you can still go that route.

What Type of Bread Can Cats Eat?

Cats can safely eat plain baked bread, but they should never have it flavored because some loaves contain ingredients like chocolate, garlic, or fruits that can be toxic to cats. Nor should the bread have any toppings; butter and peanut butter are heavy in calories and fat, and chocolate spread is poisonous to cats.

Effects of Bread on Cat Health

Although bread isn’t inherently bad for cats, it doesn’t provide them with any nutritional advantages. It is very filling, heavy in calories, poor in protein, and may cause your cat to run out of room for their full and balanced cat food. A single piece of white bread provides one-fifth of the daily calories your cat requires, but none of the essential nutrients!

On the other hand, raw bread is primarily harmful to cats. Because a cat’s stomach provides the ideal environment for the dough to expand and cause bloating and a bloated stomach, raw bread dough can be quite dangerous for our feline friends. Your cat may have severe discomfort as a result of this in most circumstances, but in rare instances, it may result in potentially fatal bloat. Because it creates ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide, the yeast that ferments the carbohydrates in bread dough is equally dangerous to your cat.

Can Bread Affect Cats?

Having established that cats may consume bread “in moderation,” the next point to be addressed is “Is bread dangerous for cats?” Cats are safer with some baked bread varieties than with others. Generally speaking, your cat will probably benefit more from baked bread that is simpler in texture.

As the World Small Animal Veterinary Association points out, bread is just one example of food that can be poisonous to animals even though it is acceptable for humans. Baked bread should be regarded as one of the poisonous foods for cats if it has flavors such as tomato, onion, or garlic. Additionally, unless you can verify that herbs and spices are healthy for cats, avoid using them. Before giving your cat any human food, it’s a good idea to speak with your veterinarian.

Ingredients in Bread

You may have noticed that “baked” bread is mentioned in this article. That is to say, bread dough, which contains active yeast, does present a serious risk to a cat’s health even though most baked bread is not considered a toxic diet for cats.

Can Cats Eat Bread? Effects of Yeast 

According to Preventive Vet, “The yeast contained in even a small amount of raw bread or pizza dough can quickly produce enough alcohol and carbon dioxide to cause serious problems for a cat.” Any type of yeast dough, not only bread dough, when left uncooked will expand inside your cat and cause severe bloating and a dilated stomach, just like it does on the counter. Surgery may be necessary in certain cases to remove the dough bulk.

Furthermore, your cat may become inebriated from consuming uncooked yeast. It’s known as alcohol toxicosis and is caused by “yeast fermentation products include ethanol, which is absorbed into the bloodstream, resulting in inebriation and metabolic acidosis (excessive amounts of acid that alter the chemicals in the blood),” according to the Merck Veterinary Manual. Due to the toxicity of ethanol, which can be lethal when consumed, alcohol is strictly forbidden for all animals.

Vomiting, diarrhea, and excessive gas or bloating are symptoms of yeast consumption. If you believe your cat has consumed raw yeast-containing dough, get in touch with your veterinarian or an urgent care facility straight away.

How Is Cat Nutrition Affected by Bread?

Because they are obligate carnivores, cats must consume meat to survive. Put differently, they must consume some meat. To maintain their health at its best, they require cat food that has been carefully crafted with ingredients that offer the correct ratio of energy, vitamins, minerals, meat-based protein, and amino acids.

So, before you give your cat bread, think about their general health as well as their nutritional needs. For instance, before giving your cat bread, find out from your veterinarian if they have feline diabetes. As per the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University, “Your veterinarian may suggest feeding your cat a food limited in carbohydrates, which has been shown to improve control of blood glucose levels.”

Generally speaking, even if your cat is healthy and has no medical conditions, you should still limit the snacks that they eat because giving them unfamiliar foods can upset their stomach. Furthermore, keep in mind that a cat’s diet shouldn’t often include bread. You can occasionally share these tiny, salty morsels.

Go for a Proper Checkup

When alcohol is consumed, it enters the bloodstream and can cause respiratory failure and convulsions. Get in touch with your veterinarian right away if you observe any of the previously mentioned symptoms in your cat.

Methods for Giving Bread to Cats

It’s generally preferable to completely avoid giving your cat bread and to stick to giving them treats that are designed with cats in mind. But, you can give your cat a modest piece of plain baked bread without any toppings if they truly do have a desire for bread.

It can be helpful to provide oral medication to cats who truly enjoy bread in certain situations. If your cat is a bread fiend, just cram the pill inside a tiny piece of bread, and they’ll gobble it up! Though every cat is different, not everyone can benefit from this approach. That clarifies the question, “Can cats eat bread?” Are you curious as to what other human foods your cat may consume? Go on to our post about cats and eggs. 

Bread Types and Their Impact on Cat Health

The “plainer” the bread, generally speaking, the more probable it is to be safe for your cat. Bread containing ingredients like sugar, spices, onions, or garlic should be avoided since they may even be harmful. These are different types of bread that will solve the ambiguity of whether can cats eat bread.

Bread with Bananas

Sharing banana bread with your cat is not a smart idea. Sugar and several additional spices in banana bread reduce the bread’s nutritional value and raise its potential for toxicity.

This is particularly true if the loaf was labeled as “sugar-free,” as it can have xylitol, which is extremely poisonous to cats. Make an emergency call to your veterinarian if your cat consumes any bread that contains xylitol.

Bread With Garlic

I apologize, Kitty, but garlic bread is immediately off-limits. Cats shouldn’t eat garlic, especially not in huge amounts. Although many cats enjoy licking the garlic butter off of toast, doing so could be harmful to them.

Keep the garlic bread away from your cats, and contact your veterinarian right immediately if you suspect they may have eaten some.

Can Cats Eat White Bread

White bread is one of the safer breads to feed your cat, even though some people find it boring. White bread has other elements that are unlikely to make your cat ill, but it is still very high in carbohydrates. Some even manage to conceal prescription drugs in a tiny slice of white bread for their loaf-loving felines.

Wheaten Bread

Another type of bread you can probably share with your cat from time to time is wheat bread since most types don’t have additional ingredients that could be dangerous for cats. But bear in mind that all breads are heavy in carbohydrates and are regarded as useless calories, so share them sparingly—and only sometimes.

Jackfruit Bread

Typically, pumpkin bread is made with a ton of sugar and spices. Cats can safely eat simple pumpkin on their own, but several of the ingredients in pumpkin bread have a higher potential for harm, including toxicity.

Bread from Hawaii

Hawaiian bread is a type of bread that has been enhanced with fruit or additional sugar. Avoiding it is advised as this may increase the likelihood that your cat will experience an upset stomach after consuming it.

 Can Cats Eat Cornmeal Bread

Cornbread is classified as a “safe” bread to feed since corn and corn meal are not poisonous to cats. It’s better to avoid this treat because it’s quite high in calories and carbs, but a tiny piece of cornbread won’t probably hurt your cat anyway.

Conclusion

Until your cat is on a carbohydrate-restricted diet, as we frequently observe in cats with pancreatitis or diabetes, there’s nothing to worry about if your cat has eaten a tiny bit of white or wheat bread. However, a healthy cat could find that a little stolen snack is enjoyable and has little negative repercussions. Get guidance from your veterinarian if your cat has consumed bread that contains sweets, spices, or garlic. You need to get medical attention right away if the bread includes xylitol or the dough is undercooked. I hope this article will help in giving you an answer to your question can cats eat bread?

FAQs