There are many questions we ask ourselves regarding the nutrition of our furry ones, above all because the thing that is most important to us is their well-being. One of the things we ask ourselves most often is whether dogs can eat brown rice in addition to other grains on the market.
Probably the question arises, more generally, about the cereals that our four-legged friends can take and how these can be integrated fairly into the dog’s diet. Let’s find out together, in this article, how to better organize the diet of our best friends.
Why Dogs Can Eat Brown Rice
Rice is one of the most consumed cereals in the world, not only by humans but also by animals. In particular, it is the most used cereal in Fido’s diet. Rice is gluten-free, rich in B vitamins, manganese, iron, and phosphorus.
Brown rice, which is what we are interested in, contains greater quantities of fiber as the bran, which gives the particular brownish color to the rice grain, has not been removed.
The advice is to always opt for quality brown rice that contains less starch. Among these, the most famous is certainly the basmati brown rice.
Speaking of cereals, we also recommend two other species to include in your puppy’s diet and they are barley and quinoa respectively.
Barley is a cereal of ancient origins, one of the first consumed by man and still very much appreciated today. What makes it special is the fact that it is very rich in minerals such as potassium, calcium, and iron, but above all it has a low glycemic index and, consequently, does not raise blood sugar levels too much. Barley can also be used to prepare delicious, trustworthy dishes.
Quinoa is a rather harmless cereal for our four-legged puppy. All thanks to the fact that it is an annual herbaceous plant like spinach and beetroot and therefore, not being a derived grass, it is completely gluten-free. This, translated, means that it is an easily digestible food for both humans and dogs. Quinoa is particularly suitable for dogs with intolerances or those who do not digest grains.
White rice and brown rice: here are the differences
Now that we have discovered that dogs can eat brown rice, let’s find out together what are the differences of the rice on the market so that we can make a more informed choice for the nutrition and well-being of our four-legged animal.
White rice has a much higher glycemic index than brown rice and can cause an increase in blood sugar levels, which in turn can create quite important consequences in the dog’s body. For this reason, before giving rice to the dog, it is important to know if the subject is diabetic.
Brown rice, on the other hand, certainly contains more nutrients than processed rice but can be difficult for a dog to digest. Brown rice, in fact, is always not recommended for people with gastrointestinal problems.
However, in general, compared to what we have said, the conclusion is that you can still give some white or brown rice if necessary, but it should not be a daily habit. The advice is always to contact your trusted veterinarian so as to be able to organize a diet suitable for the needs of the individual dog.
Consequences of the abuse of rice
As we have specified several times, even if brown rice is one of the cereals to be given to the dog, it is important that your puppy does not abuse it. Dogs can eat brown rice but in moderation. After all, we know well the way of doing our beloved furry ones and we know that they really know how to be greedy, so our job is to carefully dose their meals and to help create a healthy, delicious and varied diet.
Even if overtime dogs have become accustomed to a different and domestic diet, we must not forget that by their origin they are carnivorous animals and therefore could have difficulty digesting carbohydrates.
Rice, as we have seen, is a food that we find very often in the diets of dogs and not only, it is also contained in commercial dishes for fido, such as meat and in general the single food. As we have seen, however, it does not always benefit the health of our furry puppy as it is often contaminated and low-quality rice that is used to market dog food that can contribute to the gastrointestinal problems of weaker puppies.
However, there are many people who use rice in their diet as they have intestinal problems. In the larger one, it is the white rice that is brought into the fido bowl.
This belief that rice is good for animals, which is not entirely wrong, is due to the fact that in human nutrition, rice is used just when there are intestinal problems or you want to stay light. But the main difference between us and our puppies is that for us this is an easy food to digest.
Dogs can eat brown rice – here’s how
Having established that we can safely include rice in the dog’s diet, as well as other cereals mentioned in the article, now we need to understand how to feed it so that our puppy has a delicious and healthy dish.
Even if the dog is a carnivore, carbohydrates are still an important part of the dog’s diet, as are animal and vegetable proteins. As always, for all preparations, it is the dressing that makes the real difference.
Our advice is to give your dog rice through a domestic preparation, abandoning, at least for the moment, the industrial pet food that could contain a raw material of poor quality.
To prepare brown rice at home, and give it to your puppy, the advice is to boil it in water and without condiments or spices. Therefore, remember to include it in the trust diet in small doses.
