Fajita and tacos are incomplete without sour cream. But while you have this dairy product, “Can cats eat sour cream?”. This article will guide you all the way through to answer your question. We will discuss whether are there any benefits your cat can have from sour cream, why is sour cream bad for cats and much more.
Can cats eat sour cream?
Yes, cats can eat sour cream. It is not toxic or poisonous for cats. Your cat does have any danger from eating a sour cream. Though it is not harmful but it is not useful either. It is a dairy product. Not only milk but any daily product can not be good for your cat. If you still want to feed sour cream to your cat, make sure that it is in small amounts.
Like some people, cats are lactose intolerant too. Though they drink milk when they are kittens, with time, an enzyme known as lactase reduces with time and finally depletes the adult stage; when cats eat dairy products, it is dangerous that your cat will have digestive issues and problems.
Is sour cream beneficial for cats?
Here are some of the benefits of serving small amounts of sour cream to your cat:
Protein source:
As we know that our feline friends are carnivores, and they need proteins. Sour cream too have a little amounts of protein in it. Though this tiny amount of protein is not beneficial for your cat anyways. But your cat can taste and have some licks to satisfy its cravings.
Vitamins:
Sour cream is rich in vitamin A, and vitamin K. Vitamin A is important for better retinal heath. In contrast, vitamin K plays an important role in the blood clotting process in the body. Sour cream a riboflavin (Vitamin B-12), a type of vitamin necessary for nerve helath. It is also known as nerve tonic. It helps repair the nerve damage in the body.
It has also calcuium and phosphorus. Both these macrominerals are needed by your cat for strong bone and teeth health.
Why is sour cream bad for cats?
If eaten in small amounts, there are a lot of chances that sour cream won’t hurt your kitty’s health. But as excess of everything is bad, so is the case with sour cream. Cats eating excessive amounts of sour cream will cause many health concerns. Following are the bad effects of eating sour cream in excessive amounts:
Allergies:
Many cats are allergic to dairy products like milk, cheese, creams etc. In those cats there are more chances of emergence of health problems when they eat sour cream. Even if your cat is not allergic to dairy, it is lactose intolerant, and a lot of sour cream will create a diarrheal disaster.
That’s why limiting the amount of sour cream you feed your cat is essential. In case of an allergic cat, avoid feeding it sour cream.
High in fat:
Main ingredient in the sour cream is fat. This is present in rich amounts. Cats can handle only tiny amounts of fats. Their digestive system isn made in a way to digest less fat. High fat diets will lead to gastrointestinal disturbances. It will also cause hyperlipidemia, an increased amount of fat in the bloodstream.
Eating sour cream on regular basis can make your cat obese. It will be exposed to diabetes mellitus, arthritis, hip dysplasia, osteoarthritis other cardiovascular problems. Fat cats have bad heart heath and only a helathy heart is a guarantee towards a long lives.
High fat diets can also cause pancreatitis in cats. A very painful condition involving the inflammation of pencrease.
Xylitol:
Always read the ingredients carefully while feeding sour cream to your cat. Though sour creams don’t have sugar in them, but sometimes they have an artificial sweetener known as xylitol. This sweetner is highly toxic for your pet and it should not eat even a bit of it.
Always check additives, preservatives and spices added in the product before feeding it to your cat.
Others:
Excessive use of dairy products will cause the following symptoms:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Bloating
- Abdominal pain
- Excessive gas
How much sour cream your cat can have?
As sour cream is not toxic for cats, you can serve it to your cat in small amounts. But ensure you don’t exceed the moderate quantity as larger servings of sour cream can cause problems in your cat we discussed above.
If you have a kitty, half a teaspoon is enough for them once at a time. In the case of adult cats, you can feed a maximum of two teaspoons. Try to limit it to once a week. Daily usage of sour cream will make your cat gain weight and other harmful health consequences that are not good in your cat’s favor.
And do not forget to ask your vet before feeding anything to your cat. The veterinarian will guide you in a better way regarding how small amount you can give to your cat and whether it is even safe for cats to eat it.
Conclusion:
This article covered one of the critical questions regarding “Can cat eat sour cream?”. This article guided you all the way through to answer your question. We also discussed whether there are any benefits your cat can have from sour cream, why sour cream is bad for cats, and much more.
You can serve sour cream to your cat but in only small amounts. More significant amounts can harm your kitty’s health. Also, help them only once in a while. Even if your kitty doesn’t suffer health problems after a dairy product, you should still stick to the recommended amounts.
References:
https://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/endocrine/c_ct_hyperlipidemia
