{"id":30028,"date":"2018-08-28T18:18:37","date_gmt":"2018-08-28T18:18:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/?p=30028"},"modified":"2020-04-13T06:26:40","modified_gmt":"2020-04-13T06:26:40","slug":"can-cats-eat-nutella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/can-cats-eat-nutella\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Cats Eat Nutella?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Some people may not admit it, but who doesn&#8217;t like nutella? Once advertised as &#8220;part of a nutritious breakfast,&#8221; Nutella was forced to change it&#8217;s labeling in response to a lawsuit debunking these nutrition claims.<\/p>\n<p>Even if Nutella isn&#8217;t a health food, it remains as popular as ever. But, can cats eat nutella? Let\u2019s find out.<\/p>\n<p>In this article, we\u2019ll cover the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cats and Nutella &#8211; What You Need to Know<\/li>\n<li>Can Cats Eat Nutella?<\/li>\n<li>Can Kittens Eat Nutella?<\/li>\n<li>Benefits\/Negatives of Feeding Cats Nutella<\/li>\n<li>Alternatives to Nutella for Cats<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Cats and Nutella &#8211; What You Need to Know<\/h2>\n<p>Unless you just recently arrived on Earth, you probably know about the sweetened hazelnut cocoa spread that is Nutella.\u00a0With five main ingredients: sugar, palm oil, <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/can-cats-eat-nuts\/\">hazelnuts<\/a>, cocoa solids, and milk powder,\u00a0the popular &#8220;hazelnut cream&#8221; is sold throughout the world.<\/p>\n<p>Originally introduced by the Italian company Ferrero in 1965,\u00a0Nutella production consumes almost 25 percent of the global supply of hazelnuts.<\/p>\n<p>Nutella isn&#8217;t the only hazelnut creme on the market. The Spanish\u00a0<em>Nocilla<\/em>\u00a0and German <em>Nudossi<\/em> spreads are a couple of the better-known hazelnut competitors.<\/p>\n<p>We know how popular the confection is with people, but do cats enjoy eating Nutella? Based of the following video, that answer seems to be, &#8220;Yes!&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-content-asset videofit\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Cat Tussy eating Nutella.05.09.2013\" width=\"720\" height=\"405\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SSQMAU3UGBs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Even though this cat is clearly enjoying Nutella, that still doesn&#8217;t answer the question of whether or not cats should be eating it. After all, cats eat things they shouldn&#8217;t.<\/p>\n<h2>Can Cats Eat Nutella?<\/h2>\n<p>No. Nutella is not a good <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/best-wet-cat-food-for-urinary-health\/\" >food for cats<\/a> to eat. With high quantities of sugar and fat, Nutella doesn&#8217;t really have much in the way of healthy nutrition for your cat.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, one of Nutella&#8217;s main ingredients is cocoa, which contains the chemical compound theobromine. Best known as the culprit that makes chocolate poisonous to dogs, theobromine, which is also found in <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/can-cats-drink-tea\/\">tea<\/a>, is likewise toxic to cats.<\/p>\n<p>While Nutella doesn&#8217;t contain a large amount of theobromine in a typical serving, eating too much could be dangerous for your cat. Cats should just say &#8220;No!&#8221; to Nutella.<\/p>\n<h2>Can Kittens Eat Nutella?<\/h2>\n<p>Cats&#8217; <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/best-cat-food-for-cats-with-liver-problems\/\" >livers<\/a> lack many of the enzymes needed to break down toxic substances. Kittens, with their still-developing bodies, are even more sensitive to toxins.<\/p>\n<p>For this reason alone, you should never let your kitten eat Nutella. Even the small amount of theobromine in Nutella could still be too much for their system.<\/p>\n<p>You should also keep in mind that adding foods to your kitten&#8217;s diet which are high in fats and sugars keeps them from getting all the nutrition they need from their regular food.<\/p>\n<p>A high-quality, grain-free kitten food has all the nutrients a growing kitten needs.\u00a0So, it&#8217;s best to stick with something like <a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2BdcONW\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wellness kitten food<\/a> or else <a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2iVtO0L\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Taste of the Wild kitten food<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Benefits\/Negatives of Feeding Cats Nutella<\/h2>\n<p>As far as benefits go, unless your cat is starving on a desert island with nothing but hazelnut spread to eat, Nutella provides little in the way of good nutrition. Made up of 58% sugar and 10% fat, Nutella has few essential nutrients a cat needs to stay healthy.<\/p>\n<p>About the only good thing you could say about Nutella nutritionally is that a two-tablespoon serving does provide 2 grams of protein and small amounts of calcium and iron. However, this doesn&#8217;t make up for the fact that you&#8217;re also consuming\u00a0a whopping 200 calories and 11 grams of fat.<\/p>\n<p>While cats can enjoy a diet proportionately higher in fats than humans without any negative effects, that doesn&#8217;t mean it&#8217;s good for them. The main problem with cats eating a high-fat diet is they\u00a0could become overweight. This can range from many different foods, from <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/can-cats-eat-quinoa\/\">quinoa<\/a> to the sugar in Nutella.<\/p>\n<p>Even more concerning, a\u00a0two-tablespoon serving of Nutella contains 85.1 mg of theobromine.\u00a0As cats do not have <a href=\"http:\/\/jn.nutrition.org\/content\/136\/7\/1932S\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">taste receptors for sweetness<\/a>, you don\u2019t often hear about chocolate or Nutella poisoning in cats. This is because they have no interest in trying sweet foods.<\/p>\n<p>However, cats are also affected and may even be more sensitive to theobromine than dogs. Theobromine can impact a cat\u2019s body in several ways including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Increases heart rate<\/li>\n<li>Decreases blood pressure<\/li>\n<li>Increases loss of fluids because it&#8217;s a diuretic<\/li>\n<li>Stimulates the nervous system<\/li>\n<li>Relaxes smooth muscles<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While most cats won\u2019t be harmed by eating small amounts of Nutella, why risk your beloved pet\u2019s health by giving them something that contains chemicals known to be poisonous?<\/p>\n<h2>Alternatives to Nutella for Cats<\/h2>\n<p>In general, it&#8217;s best to stick with giving your feline companion a high-quality cat food like <a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2AOaKti\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Blue Wilderness<\/a> which is grain-free and is primarily made with meat.<\/p>\n<p>If you really want to give your cat a spreadable treat, <a href=\"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/can-cats-eat-peanut-butter\/\">peanut butter<\/a> is generally a much safer and healthier option.<\/p>\n<h4>So, can cats eat Nutella?<\/h4>\n<p>Now we know that cats really shouldn&#8217;t eat Nutella because it provides almost no nutrients and contains theobromine which can be toxic to cats. While small amounts probably won&#8217;t hurt them, why take a risk?<\/p>\n<p>If you really want to give your cat a sweet treat, try a natural,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2v5qVBp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">low-sugar peanut butter<\/a>. Even better would be a safe and healthy <a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2y4wwKR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sausage-flavored cat food<\/a> or\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/2xBMevH\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">treat.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>If the issue isn&#8217;t so much your feline companion&#8217;s cravings as it is your love of cats <em>and<\/em> Nutella, show-off your infatuation with this cool <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2MVc6uJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nutella Cat pillow case<\/a>. You&#8217;ll probably be the only person on your street with this.<\/p>\n<p><em>What did you think of this post? If you have any questions or would like to share a story about your cat and a healthy snack they really enjoy, please tell us in the comments below! We\u2019d love to hear from you.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Some people may not admit it, but who doesn&#8217;t like nutella? Once advertised as &#8220;part of a nutritious breakfast,&#8221; Nutella was forced to change it&#8217;s labeling in response to a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":30190,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":5,"label":"Nutrition"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Can-Cats-Eat-Nutella.png",800,578,false],"author_info":{"display_name":"Phil Ruth","author_link":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/author\/ruth_phil\/"},"comment_info":2,"category_info":[{"term_id":5,"name":"Nutrition","slug":"nutrition","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":108,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":5,"category_count":108,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Nutrition","category_nicename":"nutrition","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30028"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30028"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30028\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catkingpin.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}