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Can Dogs Eat Pepitas? (All You Need to Know)

Are you thinking of changing your dog’s diet? Therefore, are you wondering whether or not dogs can eat pepitas? Are you also wondering what kinds of health benefits your dog can get from the consumption of pepitas?

Can dogs eat pepitas?

Dogs can eat pepitas and these pepitas also seem to help your dog in fighting so many severe diseases as pepitas are filled with much-needed iron, magnesium, phosphorus, antioxidants, fatty acids, anti-inflammatory agents, zinc, potassium, and many more healthy agents.

Pepitas are without a doubt really beneficial for your dogs however it is better to know whether raw and roasted pepitas can be eaten by your dog or not which can help you to mold your decisions accordingly.

Raw Pepitas: 

Your dog can definitely eat raw pepitas which won’t result in any negative consequences rather it will not only help to fight inflammation in your dog but will also help to develop your dog’s bone health and nervous system.

In addition, the benefits of the consumption of raw pepitas don’t end there rather it also helps to give your dogs a better aging process and also helps to prevent any possible eye problems.

Roasted Pepitas:

One of the very delicious snacks for your dogs is roasted pepitas which dogs can eat as it is or can enjoy when it is included with other foods in their diet.

Accordingly, through this consumption of roasted pepitas, your dog will gain the much-needed antioxidants, anti-inflammatory agents, healthy fats, and fatty acids which will help to promote good health for your dogs.

Are pepitas bad for dogs? 

Pepitas are considered a superfood which is why pepitas are not definitely bad for your dogs rather it brings out many positive outcomes when it is consumed by your dog.

Accordingly, antioxidants which are present in pepitas are really important in ensuring a proper digestive system and good urinary health for your dogs.

Additionally, these antioxidants and fatty acids of pepitas also help to prevent any type of urinary tract infections in your dog.

In addition, the high levels of potassium, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, healthy fats, and so on are really good for your dog to not only promote proper cardiovascular health but also to ensure the overall well-being of your dog.

4 reasons why dogs can eat pepitas

Several different health benefits can be derived from the consumption of pepitas by your dog, therefore, being knowledgeable about the proper advantages can help you to eradicate any confusion.

Eradicate Parasites:

Pepitas are regarded as a superfood which is really beneficial for your dogs and pepitas are also induced with cucurbitacin which is an amino acid known for its ability to deworm.

In addition, these amino acids eliminate any kind of potential worms like roundworms or tapeworms from the intestine of your dogs.

Anti-inflammatory Agents:

Pepitas are also filled with anti-inflammatory properties which help your dog to find relief from arthritis due to the omega-3 fatty acids. In addition, it is actually omega-3 that also helps to develop the cognitive performance in your dog.

Accordingly, these omega-3 fatty acids fight inflammation and help to fight any possible diseases, and also seem to help with kidney stones by preventing kidney stones from forming.

Better Urinary health:

Pepitas are also known for their antioxidants which help to protect against any possible cell damage and also help to ensure your dog has better urinary health by preventing any signs of urinary tract infections.

In addition, the natural oils that are present in the pepitas are also responsible for providing better unary health.

Necessary Antioxidants:

Another reason why dogs can eat pepitas is due to the high level of vitamins and antioxidants that are present in pepitas.

Accordingly, these antioxidants that are present in pepitas help to provide better eye health. In addition, these antioxidants and vitamins also help to fight inflammation and inflammation-related diseases in your dog.

Moreover, pepitas are also filled with several minerals such as zinc, magnesium, and vitamins. In addition, vitamin C which is found in pepitas is very much crucial in ensuring better bone structure and joint mobility for your dog.

What happens if a dog eats pepitas?

Pepitas are filled with so many nutrients, minerals, and vitamins therefore when a dog eats pepitas, it will only result in positive consequences.

Accordingly, pepitas are filled with high levels of potassium which helps with dogs’ muscles and high levels of zinc are responsible for managing hormones and ensuring a proper immune system.

In addition, pepitas are rich in antioxidants and fatty acids which really help with dogs’ urinary health and remove any kind of kidney stones or prevent them from ever forming.

Additionally, these antioxidants that are present in pepitas also help to ensure not only healthy urinary health but also assist in removing any kind of unary tract infections.

Another reason why pepitas are really good for dogs is due to the healthy fats that are present in pepitas which don’t lead to bad cholesterol.

Moreover, these pepitas also have the potential to eradicate any kind of parasites that might be living inside of your dog, therefore, ensuring a proper digestive system for your dogs.

What is the difference between pumpkin seeds and pepitas? 

Pepitas or pumpkin seeds are sometimes used interchangeably and they are basically the same with minor differences between them.

In addition, both pepitas and pumpkin seeds have the same health benefits which include tryptophan, fiber, magnesium, and so on.

Moreover, when it comes to pepitas, the word pepitas itself means “little seed of squash” which basically means pepitas are the seeds of pumpkin without the casing on it.

Furthermore, in terms of flavor, pepitas have a sweetness to them and they are smoother and also have a more fibrous texture than pumpkin seeds.

On the other hand, the pumpkin seeds are those seeds that still have the casing or teardrop-shaped shells around them.

In addition, in terms of size, pumpkin seeds are a bit larger than pepitas. Accordingly, you can get the pepitas just by peeling the protective shell around the pumpkin seeds. 

However, people tend to eat pumpkin seeds as it is as they don’t want to go for the trouble of peeling the casings of pumpkin seeds as the seeds themselves are delicious enough.

What is healthier pepitas or pumpkin seeds for dogs? 

Both pepitas and pumpkin seeds are healthy for your dogs as both of them come from the pumpkin itself which is why they have similar health benefits and nutritions embedded within them.

Accordingly, both pepitas and pumpkin seeds have the same level of phosphorus, iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, and so on.

In addition, they are also filled with antioxidants, fatty acids, and anti-inflammatory agents in the same amount which is why you can literally use them interchangeably.

However, if you want to put more fiber in your dog’s diet, then it is better to use pepitas which are more fibrous in nature.

How to prepare pepitas for your dog?

It is no surprise that pepitas can result in several positive health benefits for your dog however, knowing the proper ways of giving pepitas to your dog will not only lead to enhanced health benefits rather it will also lead to proper decision making.

Find the Best Pumpkin:

The first step in preparing pepitas for your dog is related to finding organic pumpkin so that it doesn’t have a severe amount of pesticides or chemicals attached to its skin.

Wash the Pumpkin:

In this next step, you now need to wash your pumpkin thoroughly so that all the pesticides or chemicals are eradicated by the washing process.

Cut the Pumpkin:

You now need to cut the pumpkin and carve all the seeds out of the pumpkin. After that, you need to rinse the seeds and leave them to dry.

Accordingly, after the seeds have been dried up, you now need to deshell the pumpkin seeds to get the pepitas out of the casing or you can simply use store-bought pepitas if you don’t have enough time to go through the process of deshelling.

Roast the Pepitas:

In this step, you now need to preheat your oven at about 150 degrees Celsius and then you need to put the tray where you have spread the pepitas for 10 to 15 minutes in the oven.

Grind the Pepitas:

You can include roasted pepitas in your dog’s diet or you can go for an additional step which is to grind the roasted pepitas to make powdered pepitas and then you can add that powder to your dog’s regular food diet to give a proper boost of nutrients.

Final Thoughts

To sum up, nothing can be the effectiveness that can be derived from the consumption of pepitas by your dog. Therefore, your dog can definitely eat pepitas due to its thousands of health benefits related to ensuring a good digestive system, sound cardiovascular health, urinary health, and so on.