Oatmeal has lots of health benefits, but can huskies eat oatmeal safely?
Huskies can eat oatmeal, but it’s important to prepare it correctly so it doesn’t cause them any issues. Unprocessed, unflavored organic oats should be used and cooked with water instead of milk, with no additional flavorings added.
If you want to learn more about feeding oatmeal to your husky, keep reading to learn everything there is to know.
Contents
Why Huskies Can Eat Oatmeal In Moderation
Huskies can eat oatmeal in moderation, assuming it has been prepared correctly (more on this shortly).
Oatmeal is very healthy and packed full of nutrients. It is a particularly good source of carbohydrates and soluble fiber, which can help to sustain a husky’s naturally high energy level.
How To Prepare Oatmeal Properly
When preparing oatmeal for your husky, you should always use water instead of milk and plain oats rather than any flavored oats.
Huskies are lactose intolerant like most dogs, so milk can cause issues with their stomach.
Additional flavorings added to oats, like golden syrup, sugar, or cinnamon, can also harm your husky, so it is best to use plain oats. Certain sweeteners like xylitol are also found in some flavored oats, which are toxic to huskies.
Don’t add anything else apart from oats and water; ideally, use organic oats that haven’t been processed.
Apart from that, make sure you cook them normally by heating them for a few minutes and then let them cool down before feeding them to your husky.
What About Uncooked Oats?
Uncooked oats should be avoided because they can be challenging for your husky to digest.
It’s much better to cook them as you would for yourself rather than adding them directly to their food to avoid digestion problems, which can lead to bloating. Just make sure not to add anything else to them, and always use water.
Nutritional Benefits Of Oatmeal For Huskies
Here’s a quick overview of the nutritional benefits of oatmeal for huskies specifically:
- High In Fiber, which aids with digestion.
- Vitamin B, which aids in coat health, is especially important for huskies who have a thick double coat to maintain.
- Linoleic Acid, a type of omega-6 fatty acid, is essential for skin health, which is ideal for huskies as they can be prone to dry skin.
- 158 calories per cooked cup
Oatmeal is a very healthy food; there is no denying that.
It does have some drawbacks for huskies, though. One of these is that it is pretty high in calories, which means you can’t feed a lot to your husky.
What Nutrients Does It Lack?
Protein should make up a significant part of your husky’s diet, and while oatmeal does have a moderate amount of protein, it isn’t as high in protein as regular dog food.
One cup of cooked oatmeal has around 6g of protein, but as we will see in the next section, this isn’t much protein when you consider how much oatmeal your husky should actually be eating.
How Much Oatmeal Should Your Husky Eat?
It’s generally advised to give your dog one tablespoon of cooked oatmeal per 20 lbs of body weight each day, which works out as 2 to 3 tablespoons of cooked oatmeal for your husky, depending on their size.
This might not seem like much, but don’t forget that oatmeal is high in calories.
You should start with one tablespoon per day if you want to introduce it to your husky’s diet, however. The high fiber content can lead to stomach problems if you start feeding them lots of oatmeal all of a sudden, so keep this in mind.
What Happens If Your Husky Eats Too Much Oatmeal?
If your husky eats too much oatmeal, the consequences depend on how often this occurs.
If it’s a one-off occasion and they manage to steal your breakfast, there’s little chance of any serious issues. If you feed your husky too much oatmeal regularly, it can have a more severe impact.
Short Term
In the short term, it’s very likely that your husky will suffer from some stomach issues like bloating and diarrhea.
After a day or two, your husky will recover, though, and it won’t have a lasting impact on their health if it is a one-off occasion.
This is assuming that the oatmeal is plain. If your husky eats your oatmeal without you realizing, not only would they be eating too much, but it’s likely that the oatmeal was prepared with milk and contains flavorings.
In this case, closely monitor your husky and contact your veterinarian if they show any signs of discomfort.
Long Term
If you feed your husky more than the recommended amount of oatmeal every day consistently, it can lead to weight gain and nutrient imbalances in their diet, especially for protein.
Oatmeal is relatively high in calories, so weight gain would be expected if you feed them excessively.
The majority of your husky’s diet should come from high-quality dog food that is nutritionally designed for them (high in protein & fatty acids), so there would also likely be a nutrient imbalance as well.
If you want to give your husky treats, make sure they don’t exceed 10% of their daily total calories, and opt to use dog treats instead that are better in terms of nutrition.
You can find our recommendations for husky dog treats here.
Is Oatmeal Used In Any Dog Foods?
Oatmeal is a common ingredient in many dog foods, and it’s usually recommended for dogs that have a sensitivity to wheat or grains.
It’s commonly added to dog food to boost the carbohydrate and fiber content and the benefits of vitamin B and fatty acids that it provides.
In Summary
Hopefully, this guide has cleared up any doubts you had about feeding your husky oatmeal.
Oatmeal can be a great snack for your husky as long as it is prepared properly, doesn’t contain any flavorings or sweeteners, and is fed in moderation. Remember to start with small amounts, as the high fiber content can lead to stomach issues if you feed them too much too soon.
Check out some of our other recent articles on different foods huskies can and cannot eat below: