Many cats enjoy ice cream. Why do they love it, and is it safe to feed them ice cream?
Why does a cat eat ice cream?
A cat owner might observe the following: a cat licking up ice cream drops that accidentally fall on the floor. Other cats might beg for your ice cream cone and tug at it with their paws. And if you give a cat a piece of ice cream, it will happily eat it.
Cats don't eat ice cream for the sugar: whiskered cats lack receptors for sweetness. They choose ice cream for the taste and smell of milk, which they've been familiar with since childhood.
How ice cream can harm a cat
If you're a cat owner, you know that your pet shouldn't eat sugar. Cats not only lack the receptors to recognize sweetness, but also the enzymes to metabolize sugar. Therefore, anything sweet is harmful to cats. A cat that can't taste sweets is completely indifferent to it, so it doesn't feel deprived or deprived without the various sweet treats its owners may "pamper" it with. But cats crave ice cream.
Giving in to your pet's desires and regularly treating them to ice cream can cause serious harm to your cat due to the sugar: it causes diabetes in cats, contributes to the development of kidney stones, and weakens the immune system. Adult cats also often struggle to digest lactose, which is found in milk: with age, the enzymes that break down this carbohydrate disappear. After a large serving of ice cream, your cat may experience a simple stomach upset.
What kind of ice cream can you give to your pet?
How do you refuse a cat who looks pitifully into your eyes or menacingly demands his ice cream? Every feline has its own tricks to influence its owner. It turns out that, despite the harmfulness of this product for a cat's health, it's okay to treat your cat with a small portion of ice cream. But it should be a really small portion, no more than two teaspoons. This treat can be enjoyed occasionally; under no circumstances should you feed your cat ice cream regularly.
Try making healthy ice cream for your pet—freeze plain yogurt, cream, or goat's milk without added sugar and treat your pet during hot weather. If your cat still prefers commercial ice cream, avoid giving them chocolate treats. Chocolate is dangerous for cats.
If your cat loves ice cream, you can occasionally indulge them with a small piece. However, it's still best to choose real cat treats, which are available at any pet store. This will help keep your cat healthy for years to come.
