CAN DOGS EAT POTATOES? BENEFITS AND CAUTIONS

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Last Updated on June 26, 2023 by Thee Puppypreneur

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CAN DOGS EAT POTATOES

Can dogs have potatoes? Yes, dogs can eat potatoes. Potatoes are part of the nightshade or Solanaceae family like the tomato. You don’t want to feed your dog raw or green potatoes and I will touch more on that below.

There are some that say you should feed only the cooked, inside flesh of potatoes to your dog and then there are others that suggest feeding the whole cooked, potato with the skin as it is more nutritious.

Half the fiber comes from the potatoes skin.¹ In fact, the skin actually contains insoluble fiber which helps bulk up your furbabies stool.

NUTRITION FACTS ABOUT POTATOES FOR DOGS

Below are nutrition facts potatoes with and without the skin. It should also be noted that boiling a potato actually removes approximately 50% of the potassium.²

As you can see when you remove the skin from the potato there is also less iron, manganese and copper. So if you are doing homecooked meals you should take that into account.

The information below is for 100 grams of potatoes, raw³ and 100 grams of raw, russet potatoes without the skin.⁴

CAUTION TO FEEDING POTATOES FOR DOGS

Potatoes contain solanine which is a glycoalkaloid that has been found to be toxic in humans and pets.⁵ ⁶

Solanine is found in the skin of potatoes and especially in potatoes where the skin is green. Raw or green potatoes will contain more amounts of solanine and this is toxic and has been found to damage cell membranes and intestinal permeability.⁷

Symptoms of solanine poisoning can include vomiting, diarrhea and cardiotoxic effects just to name a few.⁸ ⁹ There have also been links to dogs eating grain-free foods such as peas, lentils and potatoes in connection with dilated cardiomyopathy which is a heart condition.¹⁰

CAN SOLANINE BE REMOVED THROUGH COOKING

I have heard that some of the solanine can be removed as waste in the water through boiling¹¹ but there are conflicting statements to this. It is also said that it can only be removed through frying¹² It also can’t be removed through any other cooking methods such as heating to high temperatures.¹³

Now just a fun fact, not all potatoes contain solanine as the sweet potato belongs to the morning glory family or Convolvulaceae family and doesn’t have the toxic solanine in it.