Can Cats Eat Bread?

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Cats are not humans. As a result, cats can eat foods that humans can’t eat. Similarly, cats can’t eat foods that humans can eat. Due to this, it can be a very bad idea to feed certain human foods to our feline companions, meaning that it is wise to check whether that will be fine or not beforehand. In fact, interested individuals might want to consult a veterinarian on the matter because different cats can react in very different ways to the same food.

Can Cats Eat Bread?

Some people might wonder whether cats can eat bread or not. After all, bread is one of the most common human foods. Something that has been true ever since the bulk of our species started farming in prehistoric times rather than continue as hunter-gatherers. Regardless, if people are curious, they should know that cats should be able to eat bread without issue. Still, that isn’t the same as saying that cats should be eating bread for every single meal. Instead, bread should be an occasional treat and nothing but an occasional treat. Primarily, this is because it represents empty calories. Moreover, it should be remembered that bread represents a lot of empty calories. For context, a single slice of white bread makes up a very small portion of the calories that an average human is supposed to consume on a daily basis. Meanwhile, the same amount makes up something like a fifth of the calories that an average cat is supposed to consume on a daily basis. Thanks to that, too much bread will make for an overweight cat, which will increase their chances of getting a wide range of serious medical problems in much the same way that being overweight impacts human health.

Besides this, there are a number of important points that interested individuals need to keep in mind. For example, bread comes in a wide range of forms, meaning that there are some kinds of bread that can cause serious harm to cats. Generally speaking, plainer kinds of bread should be safer. Unfortunately, if a cat eats bread that was either made using something problematic or flavored using something problematic, that cat will suffer because of it. Similarly, just because cats can eat bread, that doesn’t mean that cats can eat bread dough. Instead, bread dough is extremely dangerous to cats for a couple of reasons. One, bread dough will expand because of the yeast. If the cat is lucky, that means just gastrointestinal issues. If the cat is unlucky, well, suffice to say that there have been cases of a blockage needing to be cleared out via surgery. Two, that same yeast can produce ethanol, which can be absorbed into the cat’s bloodstream. Something that can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, and even worse consequences. Combined, this means that interested individuals should contact either a veterinarian or an emergency clinic without delay if they believe that their cat has consumed bread dough containing yeast because it is better to be safe than to be sorry. On top of this, it should be remembered that cats can develop allergies to wheat as well as substances found in wheat. Due to this, even though most cats should be able to eat bread without issue, not every single cat out there will be capable of doing the same. Once again, consulting a veterinarian is a good way for interested individuals to figure out more about what their cat can and can’t do.

Why Do Some Cats Seek Out Bread Anyways?

It is interesting to note that some cats seem to have an unusual fondness for bread. If people are curious, they should be able to find plenty of stories with minimal effort. Unfortunately, it isn’t clear why these cats might be drawn to bread, though that has never prevented people from speculating on the matter. For example, a lot of people think that cats enjoy the taste of yeast, with the result that they will seek out foods containing yeast. There isn’t a lot of evidence for this claim, but the claim is nonetheless popular enough for yeast to see use as flavoring as well as nutritional additives in cat products. Be warned that this yeast is not the same kind of yeast that sees use in bread dough. This yeast is deactivated, meaning that it has either been killed or otherwise rendered inactive. In contrast, the yeast that sees use in bread dough is active because otherwise it wouldn’t be capable of doing its job of making the bread dough expand. Interested individuals should be careful about confusing one for the other because as mentioned earlier, active yeast can be dangerous for cats.

Moving on, it is possible that cats are seeking out bread because they are carving some kind of nutrient that they aren’t getting in their normal diet. Essentially, the idea is that the cats are missing a nutrient that is necessary for their well-being. Thanks to that, they are going out of their way to seek it out, particularly if they are either on a limited diet or were once stray cats with unreliable access to food. Unfortunately, this isn’t something that most interested individuals can diagnose on their own. As such, if they are concerned, they should be contacting a veterinarian for an expert’s opinion on what is going on. Besides this, there is also the possibility that the cats are just being opportunistic. After all, most food tends to be stored in either fridges or other storage spaces. Cats can be quite clever. However, they aren’t very well-suited for getting into those spaces so long as the latter have been properly secured, meaning that they don’t have much chance of getting at the contents under most circumstances. Meanwhile, bread is often left on countertops for one reason or another. As a result, the cats might have gone for the bread for an opportunistic snack rather than because they have a particular craving for the food.