Sesame seeds are a great source of antioxidants, proteins and omega-6 fatty acids for humans, so you might wonder if this product can be beneficial for your dog too. While many people can immediately highlight numerous health benefits of sesame seeds that doesn’t mean they’ll be good for your pup as well. Let’s dig deeper.
So can dogs have sesame seeds?
There is no real concern if your canine pal steals out of your hands a few seeds or eats a sesame-sprinkled bun, but there’s a downside if we are talking about a larger portion.
The seeds aren’t a part of a dog’s natural diet. You don’t see coyotes or wolves (closest dog’s relatives) munching on it often. And if you ever encounter an omnivorous’s poo, you might have noticed undigested seeds in it. Your dog receives all required fats and proteins from their meat-based diet.
Are sesame seeds bad for dogs?
While researchers discovered that if dogs are eating sesame seeds, there is no immediate risk, they have also found that there is a minimal benefit. Many vitamins and minerals contained in sesame seeds are not digestible to dogs, so there are no health benefits of consuming it.
Sesame seeds won’t affect your pup’s health as long as he maintains a well-balanced diet. It’s okay to give them a treat with some seeds on top, but only on rare occasions. That way it will be fun and safe for the pet.
There are 52 calories in one tablespoon of sesame seeds. That’s a lot of calories, and you definitely can spoil your pup with something more delicious and nutritious instead. For instance Milk-Bone Soft & Chewy Beef. It’s just 24 calories per treat + more than 15 nutrients and vitamins essential for your pet’s health. Your pup will love it and love you too.
Keeping on speaking on the topic, It’s unlikely that you’ll include tahini or sesame oil to your dog’s menu. Though, if you decide that your dog can benefit from additional healthy fat in his or her diet, it’s better to go with more traditional options designed specifically for dogs such as fish or oil.
Sesame seeds and dogs. Summary
A sustainable dog diet already provides all the protein and healthy fats that your dog may require, eradicating the need for “human food.” The only exception might be human food as a casual treatment. Some “healthy” human nutrients sometimes are indigestible for dogs and can even interfere with their digestive system.
This is the case of sesame seeds, as they can mostly be metabolized by the dog’s system completely undigested within a couple of days. In the case of sesame, you risk put your pup’s digestion at risk without giving them any valuable nutrients. Instead, you can share many other nutritious and easy to digest types of food with your dog.
Tahini, a favorite Mediterranean seasoning or spread from the Middle East, has many ground-up seeds of sesame in it.
On the other hand, sesame seed oil can be the right way of adding some healthy fatty acids to your dog’s nutrition. If your veterinarian recommends adding more fats to pups’ diet, it can be sesame seeds oil. However, it would be much easier if you stick with more conventional and more beneficial for your pups’ oil variations, such as or coconut oil.
Credits: thanks for the cover photo to TheUjulala from Pixabay
