Oats are a great source of nutrition for people. Most people enjoy having oatmeal for breakfast. But can cats have oatmeal?
The short answer is Yes, cats can eat oatmeal, but it is not considered a nutritious treat for them.
Oatmeal is safe for your cat in small amounts. However, if you’re wondering about giving oatmeal to them as a daily treat, there are a few things to consider.
In the following, we will tell you more details about the nutritional benefit and also the negative effect of giving your cats oatmeal.
Can Cats Eat Oatmeal?
The answer is Yes! It is safe for cats to have oatmeal. It is a type of human food that is safe for cats. Oatmeal is not toxic to your cat in moderate amounts.
If you prefer to feed them, we recommend you provide them with cooked or uncooked water which is better than milk since oats with milk are almost guaranteed to hurt your cat’s stomach, so avoiding milk oats for your cat is good for them.
However, don’t feed them as full meals since cats are obligate carnivores. Their primary diet is meat, so it is ok to give them in title quantities.
Nutritional Benefit of Oats for Cats
Oats contain a lot of fiber and vitamins including vitamins B, and E, iron, selenium, and antioxidants. They play an important role in improving their health. A lot of antioxidants like linoleic acid can help your cat’s liver, fur, and skin.
However, cats process carbs differently from us. They require a higher amount of protein to support their life. If you provide oatmeal in high amounts it is not beneficial for your cat’s health.
While oats don’t provide your cat with a lot of protein, they can still offer some of the other advantages we’ve already mentioned above.
Negative Effects of Giving Cats Oats
Oatmeal is not toxic to cats both raw and cooked. However, oats contain a lot of fiber. It can cause a digestive issue in your cat’s stomach if they eat too many oats because they don’t have a digestive system capable of handling that fiber.
As a result, your cat might be leading to discomforts such as diarrhea or vomiting. Therefore, if you prefer to feed oatmeal to your cat, it should be a small amount, especially for raw oatmeal.
Can Cats Drink Oat Milk?
Yes, Cats can drink oat milk. Some cats might like it but you should avoid giving your cat whole cow’s milk because they are high in fat and sugar content.
Even cats can eat oat milk, but it is not really a good thing to provide them as many cats are lactose intolerant. It can be the case with your cat’s stomach and diarrhea, especially for kittens.
However, if you prefer to feed oat milk, we recommend organic milk with a 1% fat content is perfect.
Can Cats Eat Oat Bars
Cats can eat oat bars but you should not provide them. Oat bars include multiple kinds of sugar that may cause stomach issues both for cats and dogs.
Oat bars do not provide any benefit for your cat, but they are also bad for your cat’s health, especially type oat bars that are made with chocolate.
In fact, you should not provide oats bars to your small friend even if it is not toxic to them in small amounts but much of it can be the problem. Keep things like that away from your cat, it is the best way to keep them safe.
Is It Good For Cats To Eat Oatmeal Every Day?
Absolutely No, oatmeal is not good for cats to eat every day. Cats are obligate carnivores.
They need to eat nutrients from animal sources to support their life. It is best for cats to eat food that is high in protein like meat.
However, if you want to give oatmeal to your cat every day, it should be a small amount on their diet.
You should not be offering oatmeal instead of their food. Oatmeal does not provide the protein that your cat needs.
Is Rice or Oats Better for Cats?
Cats can eat rice in little amounts. It’s perfectly safe for your cat. In Asian countries, there are many cat owners who feed their cats rice.
However, if we compare rice and oats, which one is better for cats? We recommend that you choose oats.
Oats might be better than rice because these smaller ones are easier for your cat to digest and they also provide more nutritional value than rice.
But please note that rice or oats are not part of the natural cats’ diet, so it might not be a good idea to give your cat grains too regularly.
Finally Thought:
Can cats eat oats? Yes, oats are okay for cats to eat. If you provide your cat with oats, you should mix it with water rather than milk since most cats are lactose intolerant so they should avoid milk on their diet.
However, you shouldn’t give your cat oats as a complete diet even though oats are not toxic to your cat but it does not mean they are good for your cat to eat every day.
Cooking oats for a few minutes before combining them with wet food in small amounts is recommended.
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