Surely you have seen various videos circulating on the Internet showing cats tasting ice cream from their human friends. Within a few seconds, felines show the characteristic expression of what we call “frozen brain”.
Before you run off to try it yourself, you should ask yourself if you can give ice cream to cats. Although ice creams are irresistible to humans, they are harmful to cats. Keep reading this article on our site and discover why cats shouldn't eat ice cream
Can you give cats ice cream?
Eating a delicious ice cream and feeling that your “brain freezes” is not pleasant at all, and you know it. Watching videos of cats having the same reaction, you may wonder, what is going on? Do cats get brain freeze too? The truth is that yes, cats have a similar response because the same thing happens in their body as in ours when they eat something that is too cold very quickly. Now, what exactly is happening? Here we explain it to you!
When eating very cold food at high speed, the body is "taken by surprise", so the arteries dilate at high speed and affect the trigeminal nerve, called the fifth cranial nerve, which, Among other functions, it is responsible for carrying information about the stimuli received at the oral and mandibular level to the brain. The discomfort starts in the mouth, moving to the throat and all the nerves in the vicinity. This is what gives the sensation of a frozen brain, which in medicine is called sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia For this reason, and for other reasons such as the amount of sugar, it is not recommends giving ice cream to cats.
The result of sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia is not only a general confusion of the senses, but also acute pain and migraine. In conclusion, something not pleasant. The same thing happens to your cat, so this pain is the first reason why you should not give him ice cream.
Cats hate the cold
Anyone with a cat at home knows how much they enjoy spreading all their paws and lying on their belly up into the sun's rays. They love it and can spend hours in this position. In autumn and winter, and in the absence of sun, cats snuggle up in the warmest places in the house, near stoves, electrical appliances, or simply among the fluffiest and warmest blankets they can find.
This is because for felines the cold is really unpleasant Their body temperature is a little higher than ours (between 38 and 39 degrees Celsius), so they easily feel cold. So while eating ice cream is delicious to you, it's not exactly your cat's favorite thing to do!
Sugar problems?
Feline taste buds don't detect sweet and sugary flavors, so if you think giving ice cream your cat will think that is very rich, the truth is that you will not even be able to perceive its true flavor. The reasons why cats do not have a sense of sweets are not very clear, but it is believed that it may be a natural safety mechanism, since treats wreak havoc on the feline organism.
What happens when you give him something sweet? Well, you will have colic, gas and an upset stomach. It's even possible that eating ice cream can give your cat diarrhea, so sweets are off limits to your feline, and so is ice cream.
Lactose intolerance?
Caricatures have taken it upon themselves to introduce us to cats as lovers of milk. There are innumerable scenes of kittens stealing milk bottles, or anxiously waiting for their little plates to be filled with this food. However, the truth is that the milk we humans consume, which mostly comes from cows, contains too much fat for the feline stomach, so at Drinking it, they easily get indigestible and suffer from diarrhea and gas. If this discomfort is prolonged, the cat becomes dehydrated, seriously endangering its life. Of course, this situation does not happen in all felines, since those cats that have consumed milk since childhood and have continued to do so during adulthood may not develop lactose intolerance or show any type of negative sign. More information in our article "Can cats drink milk?".
Milk and dairy products are one of the main components with which ice cream is made, so this is another reason not to give ice cream to your cat, especially if it shows symptoms of intolerance.
And if it's chocolate?
Chocolate is the delight of the gods for most people, and it has even been seen that many cats like to steal a piece of something filled with chocolate. However, did you know that it is toxic to cats? That's how it is!
Chocolate contains theobromine, a compound found in cocoa shells that stimulates the nervous system similar to caffeine. The body of cats is unable to process this substance, so if you let it consume it frequently, little by little it accumulates in the body. The discomfort includes stomach problems such as diarrhea and colic, as well as vomiting and polydipsia. Prolonged and excessive consumption causes the death of the animal. Of course, in case of consuming a small dose of chocolate, the animal does not have to show signs of intoxication, the problem lies when the amount ingested is very large or, as we say, it is consumed frequently.
After seeing these 5 reasons, you already know that cats can't eat ice cream! But there are exceptions? Coming up next, we tell you.
And if it's natural, can cats eat ice cream?
If the ice cream is homemade and has been made with natural fruit, lactose-free milk and no sugar, it is possible that a cat can eat itNow, to prevent sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia from occurring, it will be essential to take the ice cream out of the freezer in advance and offer it to the animal much less cold. Likewise, it should be given as a prize or treat and, preferably, during the hottest seasons, since it can be another way to combat dehydration.
To find out which fruits can be used to make homemade ice cream for cats, we advise you to review the article on "Recommended fruits for cats".
