Pizza has been a longstanding staple food enjoyed by many people around the world..
Brought to the United States by Italian immigrants in the late 19th century, pizza is now considered a traditional American food often made or ordered for dinner and is often the favorite holiday food.
And we all know that dogs love any human food, not knowing what is good and what is bad.
You’re probably wondering, well, can my canine companion enjoy this pizza with me?
But can dogs eat pizza too, or is pizza bad for dogs?
The answer is NO – It is not recommended to give your dog pizza..
While most dogs would enjoy a slice of pizza, this is simply not a good food option for them due to low nutritional value and side effects.
In this article, we’ll discuss more about what pizza is made of, whether dogs can ever eat pizza, what the benefits (if any) would be, and whether and why pizza is bad for dogs.
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What is pizza?
The pizza is cooked on flatbread topped with cheese and tomato sauce. It is often paired with dressings ranging from meats to vegetables, spices, and seasonings.
Pizza can be made fresh or stored frozen and sold whole or by the slice. It is one of the most popular forms of fast food in the United States.
Today, pizza is the most popular junk food in the United States (Powell et al. 2015).
Originating in the 10th century, today’s pizza has expanded into a variety of styles. Some of the most popular types of pizza in the United States are Chicago, Greek, and New York deep-dish styles.
If you don’t know what pizza is good, this is what pizza looks like:
Pizza consists mainly of cooked bread dough, sauce, and cheese in the form of a pie.
It is a very delicious food but not very nutritious. I mean
Add a variety of dressings and it can become an even less healthy option.
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Pizza for Dogs 101 Can dogs eat pizza?
Can dogs eat pizza at any time and is there a reason to give dogs pizza? No, dogs should never eat pizza..
There’s never a reason to feed your dog pizza other than to satisfy those pleading eyes, which would only make things worse.
Almost any dog would happily gobble down a slice of good pizza, but that doesn’t mean pizza is a good choice of food for them.
Some of the ingredients used in pizza may be good for the dog when given separately in fresh form.
However, most of the ingredients are not beneficial to your dog’s health and may actually be toxic to your dog.
Even potentially good ingredients are not suitable, as they are likely to be salty or have sauce on them.
Most pizzas will also use processed meat.
For example, I love pepperoni pizza and I’m sure my dog Bella would love it too.
But we previously investigated just how harmful processed meat is for dogs in our article on meat bologna.
In summary, studies have shown that processed meat causes cancer, obesity, and heart disease in both humans and animals (1, 2, 3, 4).
While giving your dog some pizza may not cause serious harm to your dog’s health, it can, at the very least, cause stomach aches and upset stomachs.
You can almost guarantee that it will ultimately ruin his digestive system.
Even feeding your dog homemade pizza is a bad idea.
And feeding your dog pizza on a regular basis leads to more serious health complications down the road.
There are no benefits of pizza for dogs
Can dogs get at least some of the benefits of pizza toppings?
The answer is no: none of the foods on a pizza are likely to be suitable for the dog.
There is little to no nutritional value in dog pizza, and some of the toppings included on the pizza or used to garnish the pizza are not dog-friendly toppings.
It doesn’t matter if it’s store bought pizza or homemade pizza, just don’t do it.
It’s best to stay away from pizza when looking for food for your dog.
Instead, choose a healthy treat that is not dangerous to dogs’ health and even provides health benefits and has a good nutritional profile.
Instead of pizza, try giving your dog plain peanut butter or canned pumpkin.
READ ALSO: Can dogs eat melon?
5 Possible Side Effects of Pizza for Dogs
1. Dogs are lactose intolerant.
Because cheese is a dairy product, and because most dogs are lactose intolerant and not designed to digest dairy, cheese pizza will make digestion problematic for canines.
Also, the varieties of cheese used on pizza are high in fat, which is unhealthy for dogs and difficult to digest.
2. The onions and garlic that are often used on pizza are dangerous to a dog’s health.
Two ingredients often used on pizza, garlic and onion, are known toxins to dogs.
Both foods are part of the allium family, contain thiosulfate and cause irreparable oxidative damage to red blood cells.
Studies have shown that it doesn’t take a significant amount of garlic or onion to produce harmful changes in a canine’s blood.
The symptoms of onion or garlic poisoning will not be evident until a few days after consumption, when the damage is already done.
Dogs can suffer from hemolytic anemia, a life-threatening condition. Other symptoms of anemia include:
- Weakness
- Lethargy
- abnormal or red colored urine
- vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Depression
- loss of appetite
- Dehydration
- Abdominal pain
- Jaundice
- Fast breathing
3. Tomato sauce is unhealthy because of its high sodium content.
Tomatoes themselves are not a harmful vegetable for a dog.
When dogs eat pizza sauce, significant amounts of salt, along with more sugar and spices, are added to the tomatoes to make the pizza sauce.
The high sodium content is not safe for dogs to ingest.
It can cause immediate gastrointestinal problems and other health problems, such as high blood pressure and heart disease.
Exposure to large amounts of sodium can even be life-threatening for a dog.
4. The heavy oils in pizza have an adverse impact on a dog’s body.
What pizza is not oily and greasy to some degree?
People might like the taste of it, but it can do a number on our digestive system.
Well, it does the same thing with a dog’s stomach. Oils mean excess fats, and dogs have a hard time digesting that much fat.
In the long run, a dog that eats pizza regularly is likely to gain weight and become obese, setting off a chain reaction of dangerous diseases like pancreatitis.
5. Pizza dough can lead to obesity over time.
Dogs that eat pizza may especially enjoy pizza crusts, which are not directly harmful.
However, the pizza crust is mostly sodium and carbohydrates and does not provide any nutritional value to a dog.
Over time, those scabs will build up and can result in obesity for your dog.
Dogs that are already obese or have a tendency to overeat can face serious health problems down the road.
And keep them away from raw pizza dough.
Raw dough, in any amount, is bad for dogs.
When dogs eat pizza dough, it’s a race against time; call your vet immediately.
The yeast in raw dough causes it to rise when eaten, which can be life-threatening and damage your digestive system.
Summary: Can dogs eat pizza?
The answer to this is very clear: no, dogs should never eat pizza, especially as a regular part of their diet.
There are too many potential dangers in both ingredients and toppings to justify giving your dog pizza and putting his health at risk.
Stay away from giving any type of fast food or junk food to your dog.
Instead, opt for safer and healthier options to treat your pet, like blueberries or bananas.
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