Can Dogs Eat Spinach? What You Need to Know About This Leafy Green
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Dogs can eat spinach as an occasional snack, but our pups should only consume the nutritious vegetable in small amounts to stay healthy. While spinach is full of vitamins, it also contains elements—sodium, oxalates—that can cause health problems.
You don't want any alarming side effects, so be sure to talk with your veterinarian before your dogs eat spinach in their regular diet. It can definitely serve as a healthy snack, helping digestion and hemoglobin production. And if your dog snags a leaf or two off your plate, he'll probably be fine.
Here's what else you need to know about spinach for dogs, straight from veterinarians who know best.
Can Dogs Have Spinach Safely?
Yes. In general, you can feed spinach to your healthy adult dog every so often, according to Michelle Lugones, DVM, at the Best Friends Animal Society. However, puppies should avoid spinach because their kidneys are not fully developed.
Lugones says there is an additional caveat to spinach as a snack: While it is filled with fiber, vitamins, and minerals, there can be side effects for doggos.
"Spinach contains high levels of oxalates, which are acids that can cause bladder crystals and stones. Spinach is also high in sodium, which can be problematic, especially in dogs with cardiac and kidney disease," she explains.
Plus, while fiber is generally considered a great benefit of spinach, it could create gastrointestinal upset if your pup has a sensitive stomach.
That's why spinach, like any snack or treat, should not exceed 10 percent of a dog's daily diet. Otherwise, it can lead to imbalances, Lugones explains. To be on the safest side, she recommends consulting with your family veterinarian or a board-certified veterinary nutritionist to make sure it's a wise treat choice for your specific pup and his unique digestive system.
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Is Spinach Good for Dogs?
Even with those risks in mind, this leafy green can still be good for dogs because it includes fibers, vitamin K, and iron. But it's best to take it slow when introducing anything new to your dog's plate.
Lugones explains that while spinach has fibers that may help with digestion, they aren't broken down in the intestines because they fall under the "insoluble" category.
"Instead, they draw water to them, which may help to promote normal movement of stool," she says. "However, depending on how the spinach is prepared and how much a dog eats, spinach can also cause gastrointestinal upset." Pay attention to your doggo's outdoor business to see how he responds to this leafy green.
Additionally, spinach contains vitamin K, an essential part of clotting blood.
"Clotting factors are special proteins made in the liver that require vitamin K to function properly. Without it, a dog can develop serious clotting disorders which can lead to hemorrhaging," Lugones says.
This makes spinach an ideal treat if you know your pup or his breed has a history of this type of condition. While rare, it's probably something you'll learn about if your dog has surgery.
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Last but not least, Lugones says there are high iron levels in spinach. Iron is a component of hemoglobin, which is required to make red blood cells. So it's very important.
"We need red blood cells because they carry oxygen throughout the body. Without enough iron, the body may not be able to make enough hemoglobin which can lead to anemia," she says. So if your pup struggles to regulate his iron levels, spinach could be a game changer.
As always, consult your vet before giving your dog a handful of spinach with a meal.
Can Dogs Eat Cooked Spinach?
While excessive spinach consumption is not recommended, if you decide to feed your dog some spinach, cooked spinach is better than raw, says Darcia Kostiuk, DVM, a senior veterinarian for Champion Petfoods. Why? For two reasons:
Cooking the spinach destroys the oxalates that can cause kidney problems in some dogs.
Cooked spinach also makes the nutrients—iron, vitamin K—more digestible.
Steaming without any added spices or ingredients is the best and safest way to serve spinach to your dog. They don't need salt—or the toxic garlic and onion—so plain as can be is best.
