Cat owners often worry about their cats a lot, especially what they can and can’t eat.
While your cat is likely much more resilient than you think, double-checking you aren’t going to give them a funny tummy can also be worthwhile.
You may be at a barbecue with some curious cats who are hounding the grill master like dogs, you may want to throw them some scraps without fear of any funny tummies to clean up later on.
Moreover, you may have heard that hamburgers might actually be good for cats in specific situations.
We are here to set you at ease as well as provide information on these topics. Let’s explore them together!
What Is A Hamburger?
Obviously we know you know what a hamburger is, but we need to think about what a hamburger is to a cat.
In essence, a hamburger is usually ground cuts of beef.
So, there isn’t on paper anything that suggests a hamburger would be bad for your kitty.
Many cats eat beef in their regular diets.
In the wild a cat obviously wouldn’t be able to hunt bovine creatures like cows, but they will certainly eat their meat when it’s presented.
Most of your cat’s protein will usually come from chicken, fish, and turkey, but beef cat food isn’t uncommon.
How Does Cat Food Differ From Human Food?
Humans and cats require different vitamin and mineral combinations, as well as other things that make up a blanched diet such as grains and vegetables, in order to stay healthy.
In other words, cat food is more than simply chunks of meat, it is purposefully created with cats in mind and provides them with what they need to be healthy.
Cats that lack these nutrients will likely be much more unhappy.
Can Cats Eat Hamburgers?
The short answer is yes, of course they can. As obligate carnivores they will eat anything that is meat and carnivorous.
Although you should not be feeding your cat hamburgers every day.
Just as if we had a hamburger every day as our main sustenance then we would be pretty unhealthy too.
If you want to feed your cat some hamburger as a little treat, there is good merit to do this.
But you should consider a few things first.
Is the Hamburger Cooked?
If humans ate an uncooked hamburger, it probably wouldn’t feel too great. It’s the same for a cat.
Uncooked meat could potentially give them some foodborne illnesses as their guts are no longer used to eating raw meat as it would have been in the wild, cats obviously never used to cook their meat when they caught things in the wild.
Raw meat should always be treated carefully.
Don’t Feed Them Table Scraps
While humans and cats will eat meat quite happily, there are some things that humans can eat but cats aren’t – it’s important to remember our bodies respond much differently to food than cats.
This means that we shouldn’t feed them hamburgers straight from our plate.
This hamburger could be contaminated with a bunch of stuff that isn’t the best for cats.
Cats are particularly averse to alliums which is the plant genus for onions, garlic, anything onion-related.
In large doses this can be severe for a cat. Cat’s also don’t do well with mushrooms.
For the same reasons, it might not be clever to feed them frozen hamburgers or pre ground hamburgers that could include these potentially harmful ingredients.
No matter how clever your cat is, they will still accidentally eat dangerous things – just like us!
When To Feed Cat Hamburger
If you want to keep your cat included on BBQ day, consider making your cat its own burger.
While this sounds silly, this is probably the most sensible route to feeding your cat a hamburger.
If you are making your own hamburgers anyway, just cook a little meat ball for your own ball of fur and then make sure it is well cooked and not too much oil is used.
This means you can be assured that their food is uncontaminated but also makes sure your cat isn’t eating loads of the meat.
Your cat won’t stop themselves from eating and a human portion of hamburger is way too much for your cat.
These little treats keep them happy without feeding them something potentially harmful.
PRO TIP: If your cat has diarrhea and isn’t very well, a hamburger could be your saving grace.
Cats have very short intestines, they generally want to digest their food quickly and then poop it out.
If you give them a little cooked hamburger, and boost it up with some grains, it could help your cat feel better.
They will digest the meat and grains quickly and give your cat’s gut a bit of a rest.
A cat will definitely eat a hamburger, no matter where it has been, it is meat at the end of the day and as obligate carnivores they are pretty indiscriminate when it comes to eating meat.
While a cat can eat a hamburger this doesn’t mean they always should.
Cat’s need a balanced diet like humans, and a hamburger isn’t really that.
If you want to feed your cat a little hamburger treat then this is totally fine.
You should avoid contamination from alliums such as onion or garlic, especially when raw, and also be careful about mushrooms too.
These foods won’t agree with your cat’s stomach but, as we point out, they will eat it anyway.
This means cooking a hamburger that is specifically for your cat, and being sure not to contaminate it.
This also means not feeding your cat any scraps or leftovers as these could easily have the potentially dangerous ingredients within them.
A well done hamburger with the right ingredients could actually be really healthy for a cat, but that is only if you want to start making your own cat food.
At the end of the day your cat will eat any kind of meat, whether they should eat it is a totally different issue.