Can dogs eat tacos?
Yes, dogs can eat tacos, but I don’t recommend it. Tacos contain many ingredients that are toxic to dogs, especially onion and garlic. In addition, eating tacos can be bad for dogs as they have spices and seasoning, which can upset your dog’s stomach.
While tacos feeding tacos aren’t considered safe, homemade tacos are more likely to be a better option as you can modify them as per your dog’s dietary requirement.
Moreover, we will look into the ingredient of tacos and discuss what is actually toxic and whether you should feed tacos to your dogs or not.
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Table of Contents
Can Dogs Eat Tacos?
Not really!
Tacos aren’t appropriate for dogs, but a small bite won’t probably make your dog sick. Taco is Mexican fast food, and it isn’t suitable for dogs, mainly due to their high amount of fat, salt and spices.
Taco is fully loaded with vegetables including onion, avocado, tomatoes, jalapenos and garlic, but a dog’s stomach won’t be able to digest most of them, including additives. And some of them are toxic, especially raw onion and garlic powder.
In addition, the distinguish taste taco comes from its spices and seasoning like chili pepper, paprika, red pepper and chili powder, but most of them are bad for your dog and can damage their digestive system.
And the creaminess of tacos usually comes from cheese and sour cream, but as you know, dogs and dairy doesn’t go well together. Feeding tacos with cream or cheese in it can cause indigestion, vomiting, diarrhea and gas.
Moreover, tacos do not offer any health benefits to your dogs; instead, they will likely harm your dog. Thus, I don’t see any good reason to feed tacos to your dog; instead, opt for some real dog treat like chicken, fish, eggs and white rice.
Can Dogs Eat Taco Bell Meat?
Plain meats are always a healthier option for dogs, but are tacos bell meat is really safe for dogs?
Not really. According to mashed, taco bell has 88% grounded beef, and the rest 12% consist of other ingredients, including onion powder, chili pepper, sea salt and salt, tomato powder, and garlic powder.
But this 12% can be problematic for your dog’s digestive system if fed in a large amount. For example, onion and garlic powder both are from the allium family and highly toxic for dogs and can cause several health complications, including vomiting, diarrhea, drooling, nausea, abdominal pain, and anemia.
Dog’s digestive system isn’t designed to handle spicy food, which means chili pepper and other hot spices in a taco can cause upset stomach, vomiting, diarrhea, bloating, and stomach pain.
However, taco meat consists of a tiny amount of spices that probably won’t cause any immediate harm if fed moderately. However, it is still best to avoid feeding anything that has even one percent chance to cause harm to your dogs.
Will Taco Seasoning Hurt My Dog?
Definitely!
Apart from ground meat, cheese and vegetables, tacos contain a considerable amount of spices and seasonings.
The significant contribution to the taste of taco is the seasoning. Usually, tacos contain chili pepper, black pepper, paprika, salt, onions and garlic powder.
Tacos contain a considerable amount of salt, which is not ideal for your dogs; ingesting it in large amounts can lead to sodium poisoning, which may cause vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, excessive thirst, and even kidney damage.
Moreover, a dog’s digestive system isn’t designed to handle so many spices at once and feeding them tacos in a large amount regularly can potentially damage their digestive system.
Lastly, as a dog owner, you should know that onion and garlic is not something you should let your dog eat; they are incredibly toxic for dogs and can cause anemia, (a very critical condition).
What Happens If My Dog Eats A Taco?
Well, it depends on how much taco your dog has eaten. A tiny bite of taco won’t probably cause any harm, but feeding more often will certainly make your dog sick.
To understand what happens when your dog eats a large amount of taco bell, we must look into the ingredients.
Beef – plain beef is highly nutritious for dogs, but taco bell’s meat often contain a vast variety of spices and seasonings, which is not suitable for your dog; eating tacos regularly can cause stomach upset, burning sensation in the mouth, diarrhea, etc.
Salt – Taco is fast food and often contains a large amount of salt, but as you know, high sodium is extremely bad for dogs. They lead to sodium poisoning, resulting in vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, excessive thirst, dehydration, and kidney damage.
Jalapeno Peppers – Dogs shouldn’t eat spicy foods, and jalapeno isn’t good for your dog. Eating them can cause vomiting, stomach pain, bloating and other consciousness.
Sour Cream – Dogs and dairy products don’t mix well together. Dogs are lactose intolerant, which means feeding taco bell with sour cream can lead to indigestion, vomiting, bloating, and stomach pain.
Vegetables – Onion, tomatoes, lettuce, and beans are expected in a taco, but these are not suitable dogs, especially onion. Eating them can cause several health problems.
Sugar – Some taco often has sugar to neutralize the savory taste, but it’s not good for your dog’s health. Overeating sugar can lead to obesity, tooth decay, diabetes and other health complications.
Garlic Powder – similar to onions, garlic is from the same family and exclusively toxic for dogs. Although even a small amount of garlic can be poisoning when your dog ingests them, it can cause several health problems, including vomiting, drooling, stomach pain, lethargy and anemia.
Thus, if you suspect that your dog has eaten taco bell, seek medical advice and, if required, take your dog to a professional vet for examination.
Can Dogs Eat Mexican Tacos?
Mexican tacos usually contain meat, cheese, spices, sour cream, seasonings and vegetables, including onion, line, tomato and other veggies. And these aren’t suitable for your dog’s digestive system.
Whilst a tiny bite of Mexican tacos won’t probably cause harm to your dogs but avoid them in large quantity.
Onions are bad for dogs, but a small amount probably won’t make your dog sick, but your dog might experience vomiting and diarrhea.
Thus, if your dog has eaten a tiny bite of Mexican tacos, your pup should be fine but don’t encourage them.
Can Dogs Eat homemade Tacos?
Of course, homemade tacos are something that you can customize as per your dog’s dietary requirement. Use plain grounded beef with a hint of salt and oregano, but strictly no other added spices or fillings of sour cream, onions, tomato, jalapeño, or cheese.
Here’s a small dog-friendly taco recipe
For taco shell, you use flour, canola oil or coconut oil, baking soda and water. And for fillings, you can use lettuce, plain rice and grounded beef to make it more healthy and filling for your pup.
Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup ground meat
- ½ cup flour
- 1/3 cup water
- ½ tbsp oil
- 1/3 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 salt
- ½ cup lettuce
- ½ cup white rice
Directions For Taco Shell:
- Mix flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a mixing bowl
- Add water and oil mixing bowl and start kneading until the dough is soft.
- Flatten the dough with hand or roller equally in small size tortillas, rest for a while.
- Hot a frying pan and cook until golden brown from both side and then let them cool.
Direction:
- In a medium, pan add oil and ground beef
- Cook beef properly until soft in medium flame
- Keep stirring and once it’s cooked, let it cool
- Finely chop lettuce, then assemble the tacos by adding beef, lettuce, plain rice on the tortilla shells and sprinkle some salt and oregano.
- Dog-friendly tacos are ready to serve
Can Dogs Eat Plain Tacos?
Well, it depends on the ingredients of the tacos. For example, if the meat isn’t seasoned with spices or excessive salt, it can be given to dogs in moderation.
But not the whole tacos; try feeding only the meat as they won’t likely harm your dogs. Still, I recommend that you opt for something better, like a home-cooked fresh chicken with white rice or canned dog food that is easily available in most pet stores.
Can Dogs Eat Taco Shells?
Some taco shells are soft in texture, while others are hard. A small amount of taco shell won’t probably make your dog sick as they are made of flour unless your dog is allergic to wheat and other grains.
In addition, while you are good to feed the soft taco shell, don’t forget to check the ingredient list if the taco shell is bought. Some might contain spices and garlic powder to enhance the taste, which isn’t appropriate for a dog and should be strictly avoided.
But don’t try to feed your dog hard taco shells; they can potentially cause a choking hazard in dogs.
Thus, dogs can eat taco shell if it has no harmful ingredients or you have made them for your little pup.
Final Thoughts
Whilst a tiny amount of taco bell isn’t probably going to harm your dogs, I don’t recommend feeding it as they are associated with many short and long term health complications.
Moreover, tacos usually consist of various spices and seasonings, which can cause ingestion, vomiting, and diarrhea as a dog’s digestive system cannot handle them.
Instead, opt for something healthy and nutritious for your dogs, like unseasoned cooked meat rather than tacos. Thus, avoid feeding tacos to your dogs unless there is no other option left; ensure that you remove the breading of the tacos; it will make them less harmful.