Sausages are a fun creation. They are generally created from the leftovers of meat preparation, from the cuts and parts that are not used. Those parts are then ground up and sometimes mixed in with other ground meat.
Salt is added as a preservative, and then additional spices are added for flavoring. Vienna sausages are made of beef and pork that has been ground up and then salt added; there are some spices added, but they are minimal compared to other sausages and are usually eaten raw rather than cooked. All of this makes for a neat little treat or appetizer.
Can Dogs Have Vienna Sausages?
When it comes to sausages in general, they are usually a bad thing for a dog. While dogs can eat some things that a human cannot, they are still limited in what they can eat.
One of the things that they have an issue with are spices; spices cause indigestion in a dog; most sausages have far too many spices for dogs, especially the more flavorful ones. The good news is that one thing that Vienna sausages do not have going for them; while they do have some spices they do not usually have a lot of them, making them a relatively safe treat for dogs.
However, vienna sausages still have salt in them, which is used as a preservative. The fattiest part of the pig is used to create the meat used to make them; this shows in the liquid remaining when they are removed from the can. While this is okay in an occasional treat, this is not good in a food eaten on a daily basis.
If they are eaten on a regular basis, then they can create definite health risks for the dog: The fat can create obesity and heart disease while the salt can create increased sodium levels in the blood. As such, while it is a good snack, it is not something that should be eaten on a regular basis.
Are Vienna Sausages Good For Dogs?
All of this means that Vienna sausages are not good for dogs. The increased sodium can help increase heart problems in dogs, increasing the odds of a heart attack or stroke. The amount of fat in them creates a lot of other problems for dogs: Not only does it add to the heart problems by increasing the amount of plaque found within veins and arteries, but it can also add to the chances of obesity in the dog, as well as other dietary issues. Overall, Vienna sausages are not good for dogs.
Can Puppies Eat Vienna Sausages?
This also applies somewhat to puppies. Just like humans, puppies tend to acquire eating habits when they are young, and those habits stick with them as adults. This means that while their metabolisms may help them ignore some of the effects of eating Vienna sausages, they may not be able to fend off some of the problems associated with eating them, such as obesity.
This can lead to a number of problems when they mature, especially if they keep eating the sausages. As such, Vienna sausages should not be eaten by puppies on a regular basis.
Again, just like humans, they tend to learn habits when they are young. This means that they can learn to expect certain foods as treats and may not like them when they do not receive the expected treats; they may whine and howl until they get what they are expecting.
This can make it difficult for them to learn to expect a different treat, but their owner needs to wean them off the sausages just like they did their mother’s milk. Again, while the sausages make for a good treat every so often, they should not be eaten on a regular basis.
Can Dogs Eat Vienna Sausages?
Before we go on, it may be useful to look at what exactly a Vienna Sausage is. The Vienna sausage originated in Germany, where there initially called “wiener wurschten”, or “small sausage from Vienna”. Supposedly, a butcher moved from Vienna to Frankfurt and became famous for the sausage in question. When German immigrants came to America they brought the sausages with them. Eventually, the sausages would become smaller and would be shipped in cans.
What made them different than other sausages was that they were made from a mixture of beef and pork. Also, rather than being put into a smoker, they were smoked and then boiled or par-boiled before they were sold, making them nice little snacks without needing to be cooked.
While the casings were originally made from a sheep’s intestine. Today, the casings are usually synthetic, using materials such as cellulose and collagen, while the sausages can be made from chicken and turkey as well as beef and pork. They can also be shipped in sauces, such as chili or barbecue.
So, when it comes to the Vienna sausage, good for dogs they are not. Again, just like any other sausage, even including hot dogs, they are not good for dogs because of the sheer amount of fat and sodium in them. Because they are made and packed in salt, that can increase a dog’s sodium level.
Because they are made from the leftovers of the meat-packing process, they have more fat than most other meat products, making them good for increasing the odds of heart disease and obesity. Overall, Vienna sausage for dogs is not a good thing.
Are Vienna Sausages Bad For Dogs
Can I feed my dog Vienna sausage? As a snack every so often, there should be no risk from Vienna sausages. However, keep in mind the potential problems if you decide to feed them to your dog on a regular basis.
One of the biggest problems is that the dog may suffer from hypernatremia or a higher than normal concentration of sodium in the blood. This can lead to a wide number of problems, such as increased thirst and consumption of water, which can lead to diarrhea. It can affect the regulation of blood pressure, blood volume, nerve signal transmission, and the balance of acidity/alkalinity in the body.
Hypernatremia can also lead to a number of different mental problems, such as coma and seizures, high water loss, high oral sodium intake, albeit rarely, and the need for intravenous fluid therapy.
The dog may also suffer from vomiting. Almost all of these symptoms can lead to an extended stay at the veterinarian’s, while others can lead to death. This alone answers the question of “Is Vienna Sausage good for dogs?”
Will Vienna Sausages Hurt Dogs?
If a dog eats Vienna sausages on a regular basis, it is likely to have to deal with obesity, or an accumulation of excess body fat, usually about 20% more than their ideal body weight based on breed and age.
Obesity can shorten a dog’s life by about six months to two years. It can also mean that the dog is much more vulnerable than normal to disease. Obesity can be the underlying cause for a wide variety of issues such as hyperthyroidism or Cushing’s disease, or overactive adrenal glands.
Obesity can also lead to diabetes mellitus, heart disease, hypertension, urinary bladder stones, and many types of cancer. This can also be the cause of anesthetic complications due to decreased heat tolerance.
Also, due to the increased weight of the canine, the dog can suffer from osteoarthritis and increased degeneration of joints. All of these problems can come from eating Vienna sausages on a regular basis. So while a dog can eat Vienna sausages every so often as a special treat, it does not mean that they can eat them on a regular basis.
Can My Dog Eat Vienna Sausage?
A Vienna sausage may not be as dangerous for a dog as a regular sausage, but it can still be dangerous over the long term due to the potential for increased sodium in their systems as well as obesity.
The good news is that the problem of indigestion issues is decreased compared to other sausages, but that is pretty much the only advantage over other sausages. For those looking at the vegan sausage, keep in mind that you would still need to deal with indigestion issues as well as possible soy allergies.
In Conclusion
Vienna sausages make a great little snack every so often for a dog, but there is a definite health risk if the dog eats them on a regular basis. While they are not as spicy as other sausages, they do contain a lot of salt that can possibly create a sodium problem if eaten regularly. Vienna sausages also tend to be a little fattier than other sausages; not only do tend to be made with a little more fat but they are also stored in it. As such, they may not cause as much indigestion as most sausages do thanks to their fewer spices, but they should increase the dog’s sodium and fat levels, possibly causing obesity.
FAQ
Generally speaking, sausages are not very good for dogs. The problem is that sausages use the fattiest portion of the meat, making sure that there is a lot of fat in the sausage; that fat is not healthy for anyone, much less a dog. Also, sausages are usually prepared with a lot of spices, such as pepper, salt, and a variety of other spices. This creates a one-two punch against dogs: The salt increases the amount of sodium that the dog receives from the food while dogs have a problem with spices in general.
Do not think that vegan sausages are any better. They tend to use the same spice mixes, and sometimes even more intense spice mixtures; after all, they do not have as much flavor coming from the original source as a meat-based sausage. This means that they are likely to have even more salt and spices than pork sausage. Also, the material that they are made of may pose its own problems, as they tend to use soy products in place of the meat and some dogs are allergic to soy.
As such, try to avoid feeding your dog sausage on a regular basis.
It depends on how regularly the dog eats sausages. The spices alone can cause indigestion and related issues; the canine digestive system just is not set up for spices like the human digestive system.
This means that even a dog that eats sausage on a regular basis is likely to have some sort of indigestion problem, which can lead to a wide variety of problems in and of itself, such as vomiting and diarrhea, as well hydration issues.
If a dog eats sausages on a regular basis, however, the dog is likely to have problems due to the increased sodium and fat in its diet, ranging from all sorts of chemical imbalance in its biochemistry that lead to a range of life-threatening conditions to joint problems. Worst of all, a dog’s life can be shortened due to all of the problems caused by the sausages. In short, while the dog can eat bites of sausage as a special snack every so often, eating it as a regular item is a bad idea.
