They aren’t just good for carving jack-o’-lanterns or baking into autumnal holiday pies for your human friends. Packed with dietary fiber, potassium, and plenty of other goodies, pumpkins are a super food that can benefit your dog’s health (and waistline) all year long.
The Stats:
A cup of plain pumpkin only contains about 80 calories — but that comes with a whopping 10 grams of dietary fiber. That’s about 1.25 grams of fiber per ounce of pumpkin! A serving of this size also contains 2 grams of important protein, a mere 1 gram of fat, and just 5 mg of sodium.
The Benefits:
1. Pumpkin’s large amounts of dietary fiber and its high moisture content can aid with digestion, prevent constipation, and relieve diarrhea. The high moisture content in particular can be hugely helpful for dogs eating a dry food diet, as they get little to no water from their food.
2. Fiber acts as a probiotic promoting the growth and supporting the activity of helpful bacteria in your dog’s digestive tract. Probiotics also help keep potentially harmful bacteria in check, doing double duty.
3. Natural oils in both pumpkin and pumpkin seeds are rich in phytoestrogens, plant compounds which mirror the effects of estrogen hormones in the body. These phytoestrogens can lower dogs’ blood pressure and support heart health.
4. Like other fresh orange veggies, pumpkin is rich in beta-carotene and other antioxidants which may reduce your dog’s risk for cancer. Additionally, they can promote healthy vision — talk about a superfood.
5. Pumpkin is also stacked with vitamin A, which also helps with dogs’ eyesight, but is an equally important nutrient for healthy skin, joints and bones.
How to Feed It:
Pumpkin can be incorporated into your dog’s diet in a variety of ways. If your dog is suffering from diarrhea or constipation, try stirring a tablespoon or two of canned pumpkin into his normal food once a day to relieve symptoms.
Our Recommendations: Fruitables holistic pumpkin and sweet potato supplements are rich in dietary fiber, antioxidants, Vitamins A, C and E and provide a flavor pets love. These supplements are fortified with fruit and vegetable fiber, soothing herbs, and vitamins to naturally suport food transition, digestive issues, and weight loss. Supports healthy G.I. tract function (for loose stool or constipation Helps soothe upset stomachs, great fruit and veggie supplement for raw food diets, a perfect nutritional boost for daily meals. Our Super Blend recipe contains Pumpkin and a mix of nutrient dense fruit and vegetables that creates the perfect balance of insoluble fiber to promote a health G.I. tract. This blend also contains the herbal ingredients ginger and spearmint to soothe tummies, and selected B vitamins to support nutrient absorption. Artificial ingredients, dairy free, vegan, wheat free, yeast free, and low Sodium
Credits: thefarmersdog.com/Fruitables