Naan bread is an oven-baked flatbread that originated out of the middle east and Asia. It’s now pretty popular all over the world as a side appetizer, something to eat with dips and spreads, and as a lunch or breakfast. Phew!
But if you’re enjoying naan bread, you may be wondering if your cat can eat it too. Can cats eat naan bread?
Plain naan bread is pretty safe for cats to eat, or at least no more dangerous than any other bread product. However, this assumes plain naan bread – seasoned naan bread can be more problematic, especially if it has been seasoned with garlic.
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Do Cats Like Naan Bread?
Cats that go after bread products are more likely to enjoy eating naan bread compared to cats who completely ignore grains. Some cats probably will enjoy naan bread and others won’t care. The occasional time we have had naan bread around, the cats haven’t bothered with it, but that’s just our cats.
There must be something to cats enjoying naan bread as according to a study conducted by Iams pet food, the top treat was naan bread from humans to their pets. Who’d have thought it? We can take this with a bit of a grain of salt (ha), considering that the study was done by a pet food store, but still.
The reason why many cats like pita bread is because of the yeast. Cats like the flavor of yeast and as such it’s often used in cat foods, treats, and medications for cats. I do know that when I bake bread, even if the cats won’t bother with it, they do tend to pay a bit more attention to what I’m doing!
Even kittens can eat a small amount of naan bread (a much smaller amount than adult cats mind you), but only if they are eating solid foods.
Do Cats Hate Naan Bread?
Again, this will depend on the cat. My cats have shown no interest in naan bread (or any bread for that matter), but others enjoy it. And it’s likely that cats won’t hate naan bread so much as be disinterested in it.
If your cat is completely disinterested in naan bread, don’t worry about it. Naan bread is not something that cats need to stay healthy and in fact, shouldn’t eat very much of it anyway, so if your cat isn’t interested, that’s one less thing to chase it away from!
Can Naan Bread Kill My Cat?
Naan bread is an oven-baked flatbread that is made primarily with flour, yeast, salt, and water. They can then be brushed with water or with things like butter.
None of these things are particularly harmful to cats, though they aren’t really good for cats either. (Butter can be a problem though since cats are lactose intolerant and butter can make cats feel ill).
The rest of those ingredients don’t cause problems for cats, assuming the naan is properly cooked (raw bread dough can cause serious stomach issues for cats and requires a visit to the vet to deal with).
Naan bread is mostly high in carbohydrates. The issue here for cats is that carbohydrates aren’t needed in high quantities for cats, and they get the small amount they need from their usual food, so naan bread is mostly just junk food.
One of the problems that can come out of letting cats eat naan bread is if it isn’t plain. Naan bread is often cooked with things like rosewater, nigella seeds, raisins, and spices.
These things can cause some serious problems for cats, ranging from simple stomach problems like vomiting and diarrhea to serious adverse reactions leading to amenia (garlic and onions) or kidney damage (raisins).
Naan bread is also served with things like dips or wrapped around meat and cheese or vegetables which can also cause problems for cats such as excessive salt, spices, and choking hazards. So, it really matters what type of naan your cat is begging for.
Plain naan won’t kill your cat, but eating too much even of this can lead to obesity which has its own health issues including:
- Joint problems
- Heart problems
- Diabetes
And of course, these things will decrease your cat’s quality of life and may even cut their life short.
So, naan bread in very small amounts once in a while and served absolutely plain, probably won’t kill your cat. But it’s definitely not something you want to let your cat have too often and it should not be infused with anything else, particularly things like garlic, onions, or raisins.
How Much Naan Bread is Safe to Feed My Cat?
Naan bread has about 185 calories and 26g of carbs. Cats only require a couple of hundred calories per day to stay healthy and only 3% of that should come from carbs (in other words, around 6-8 calories). This means that a cat should only have about one-tenth of a serving (if that) and it should only be served to cats once in a great while.
If you’re going to let your cat have naan bead, make sure it is broken up into bite-size pieces and that you only let them have a small amount once in a while. It should never be used to replace meals and honestly, there are far better snacks for cats.
Remember that cats cannot really manage carbohydrates, being as they are obligate carnivores, and they don’t need much to stay healthy. Naan bread will likely overload their system and lead to them feeling bloated, vomiting, have digestive issues, and weight gain.
Conclusion
Plain naan bread isn’t really dangerous for cats, but it’s not really good for them either. And naan bread that is made with other things gets progressively worse for cats, all the way up to being dangerous in the case of garlic, onions, or raisins.
But even plain naan bread isn’t really good for cats since they aren’t built to handle carbohydrates and they don’t need to eat them. All in all, naan bread is probably best eaten by humans while cats enjoy their own treats.
Does your cat love naan bread?
Pam is a self-confessed cat lover and has experience of working with cats and owning cats for as long as she can remember. This website is where she gets to share her knowledge and interact with other cat lovers.