Are green beans safe to feed your dog? What are the pros and cons? Everything you need to know before giving your dog green beans.
CAN DOGS EAT GREEN BEANS?
Despite the word “bean”, green beans are quite different than legumes like black beans but similar in the fact that they can also be a safe food to feed your dog.
Like many vegetables, dogs can eat and enjoy green beans as part of their diet.
In fact, if your pup needs to shed a few pounds, green beans can even be a great substitute for more calorie dense treats.
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Can dogs eat cauliflower?
Can dogs eat Brussels sprouts?
ARE GREEN BEANS SAFE FOR DOGS?
Pretty much all cooking methods of cooking green beans are safe for dogs to eat.
They can be steamed, boiled, microwaved, grilled, dehydrated, roasted and even canned so long as there are no additional unsafe preservatives or spices added.
As always, avoid any greens beans cooked with onions or garlic and it’s best to stay away from any recipes with excessive salt or oils. While neither are toxic, higher amounts can cause digestive upset and other unwanted side effects like diarrhea.
Frozen green beans and raw green beans are also fine to feed and sometimes even preferable for some dogs because of their extra crunch.
Lots of dogs love chewing on ice cubes (ours hears the ice maker and comes running!) so frozen green beans can be a fun swap for an ice cube on occasion.
ARE GREEN BEANS HEALTHY FOR DOGS?
Offering up high levels of vitamins A, C and K as well as fiber and folate, green beans are packed with nutrition that can benefit your dog.
While a healthy dog on a balanced diet doesn’t necessarily need this extra nutrition, it’s good to know that green beans can be a healthier snack if you run out of dog treats or prefer to “treat” your dog with more wholesome foods.
And for the 1/3 of dogs who are overweight (yes, that’s a sad statistic, isn’t it?) green beans can be a great tool for weight loss if used as a treat in place of commercially made dog treats.
These dehydrated green beans are a great idea for turning them into a crunchy snack for dogs. Similar to our suggestions for how to feed dogs eggplant, if you don’t have a dehydrator, roasting or air frying the beans is another great way to prepare them.
Be sure to not overdo it with the serving size.
Dogs should only eat up to 10% of their diet as “treats” outside their normal food. And yes, even healthier options like green beans are part of that small percentage.
IS THE GREEN BEAN DIET SAFE FOR DOGS?
It’s hard to believe, but fad diets exist in the canine world too. You may have heard about the “green bean diet” before as a way to help dogs lose weight.
The premise of this diet is to swap out 10% of a dog’s food with green beans and gradually work up to 50% until the dog has reached a normal weight at which point “regular” food is swapped back in slowly.
Just as almost all human fad diets have significant downsides and reduced long term success, so too does the canine green bean diet.
For one, it’s not really sustainable and isn’t a great solution for keeping excessive weight off.
Secondly, it can actually do some harm to your dog if not under strict veterinary guidance and monitoring to make sure your dog is getting all the protein, vitamins and minerals needed.
If your dog needs to lose significant weight it’s best to talk to your vet about the best approach instead of opting for extremes like the green bean diet. Feeding your dog a well-rounded, wholesome diet with quality ingredients is a much better approach. If you want to try a homemade spin to dog food, Pet Plate dog food can be a great option. Their Chompin’ Chicken recipe includes green beans as part of the ingredient list.