Can Cats Eat Potatoes? Stop, Ignorance Can Kill Your Cat!

Cats are one of the loveliest pets one can have! And it’s usually tough to resist giving your cat leftovers or pieces of food from your plate whenever it looks to you with those beautiful eyes. It is a common concern of pet parents that can it be harmful for cats to eat people’s foodstuff? One may ask, can cats eat potatoes, or can cats eat sweet potatoes? The exposure to the risks of human foodstuff has urged cat owners to inquire about the safety of food. After reading this article, you will know everything regarding feeding potatoes to cats, be it sweet potatoes or mashed potatoes.

Can Cats Eat Potatoes?

Potatoes seem to be the safest vegetable, and the overall impression is that they should be fine to feed to your cat. Although, it is essential to be aware of several specifics regarding how they’re with cats. Cats cannot eat everything humans can.

 A little research will let you know that responsible cat owners feel that people’s foods aren’t safe for cats. It is because dietary requirements of cats are very different from humans. Even if you see your cat enjoying eating something from your plate, this can have adverse effects on gastrointestinal tract.

Potatoes are classified as root vegetables. It is a number one world crop and ranked number four around the world. Potatoes are available in several types, such as purple, white, sweet, and gold. As a source of food, potatoes are packed with carbs; however, they do give a good amount of other nutrients including dietary fiber, pyridoxine, ascorbic acid and minerals like potassium and magnesium.

One cup of potatoes contains

• Ascorbic Acid – 17 mg
• Vitamin-B6 – 0.54 mg
• Fiber – 3.81 gr
• Potassium – 925 mg

However, similar to most carbohydrate-rich foods, it might be a little too simple to indulge in potatoes very much. Feeding potatoes in a vast amount can cause weight gain in cats. We must feed potatoes carefully to avoid health problems.

Cats can eat potatoes when given as a special treat. Several cat owners prefer to mix just a little potato within their regular food. It provides an additional boost to fiber as well as other nutrients.

Any potato you give to your cat before giving potato to your cat, make sure it is fresh, thoroughly cleaned, and cooked. It can be used in baked or boiled form. The cooking procedure eliminates particular nutrients naturally occurring in potatoes which are harmful to kittens and cats.

Just give your cat a small amount of potato whenever you feed it to your cat for the first time. And then wait to examine how it reacts to your treat. If it does not show different signs such as vomiting, bowel problems, or other signs of an upset gastrointestinal tract, you can give it to your cat at times.

Now you know that cats eat potatoes, if you are curious about sweet potatoes, keep on reading.

Can Cats Eat Sweet Potatoes?

Sweet potatoes include much more nutrition as compared to white potatoes. Primarily, they’re considered among the more healthy potato types that are good for humans. Sweet potatoes are usually improperly tolerated in cats. They cannot digest them appropriately. It is also identified that the sweet potato plant is considered a toxic plant to cats.

Will giving a little bit of sweet potato mix to your cat harm it? Not necessarily. However, if you opt to provide it like a snack, start with very little to see how it reacts towards the sweet potato. Again, wait for signs of digestive system upset, for example, nausea or diarrhea.

If you are anxious or the cat has a background of food sensitivities, forget about the sweet potatoes forever. There isn’t any actual advantage to your cat from eating sweet potatoes, and you’ll not be missing out on any essential nutritional requirements by excluding them from your cat’s diet plan.

Do Cats Need Potatoes? 

There’s nothing in potatoes that cats need. Cats need a good quality AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) authorized cat food that contains nutrients in the right proportion.

The Dangers of feeding Potatoes to Cats

Simple starchy potatoes might seem to be okay in general for your cat. However, there are particular conditions when you should keep the potatoes away from the cat diet.

• The cooking procedure (such as cooking or boiling) eliminates nutrients in potatoes in their raw form. One such compound, known as Glycoalkaloids Solanine is toxic for your cat. Therefore, your cat can get very ill if it eats an uncooked potato.
• Vegetables such as potatoes include solanine, a poisonous compound. 
• Raw potatoes may be hard. Raw potatoes can get stuck in your cat’s gastrointestinal system if they are not broken in to smaller pieces.  The cat might also choke on a raw potato because it is harder to swallow and chew than a baked/boiled potato.

Can Cats Eat Mashed Potatoes?

Unseasoned boiled/baked, mashed potatoes are entirely harmless for your cat to eat once in a blue moon. They are not something that can be given as a daily treat but a small amount given occasionally is harmless.

Don’t forget that potatoes’ starch is not easy for your cat to digest even if it is cooked. Minor licks occasionally are good.

When can Potatoes cause problems in Cats?

Firstly, avoid giving uncooked potatoes to your cats because they might be toxic, the same as human beings. If you want to feed your kitty a few potatoes, you will have to cook them appropriately and safely.

There are two solutions to cook potatoes for your cat correctly. Boiled potatoes appropriately cooked in plain water and left unseasoned may be peeled and chopped up in small pieces to give to your cat. Just be sure the potatoes have cooled off thoroughly.

If you’d like to go one step further, you may turn the boiled potatoes into mashed potatoes. Once again, be sure you do not add any other spices to the mashed potatoes, and do not add dairy like cheese or buttermilk in the mashed potatoes.

When Are Potatoes Bad For Cats?

Cats are obligate carnivores; therefore, making a cat’s diet plan having potatoes isn’t a nutritionally appropriate choice. Due to their athletic nature, cats should have more lean proteins in diet. Furthermore, there are several methods for cooking potatoes that make them inappropriate for cats to eat, such as roasting and deep frying with extra spices and herbs.

However, raw and uncooked potatoes become toxic to cats because of their solanine levels.

The primary problem with giving potatoes to cats is that they don’t provide sufficient beneficial nutrition for their diet rather toxic most of the times. Therefore while it is alright if the cat very occasionally snacks with an unseasoned, baked potato, generally, it is best to avoid the thought of feeding potatoes to your cats.

Now you have the answer to your question, “can cats eat potatoes?” and you also know can cats eat sweet potatoes or not. We hope this article will help you take better care of your lovely cat.