St. Patrick's Day is March 17. This means that people all over the world take to the streets and local public houses to celebrate Ireland's rich cultural heritage. Rivers are tinted green, festivities abound and everyone prepares or orders this traditional Irish meal of corned beef and cabbage. Frequently served with onions, potatoes and carrots, those who don't like alcoholic beverages will certainly enjoy this Emerald Island favourite.
Before you make a hem and eagle, you are right, corned beef and cabbage are not at all a common Irish staple, and never have been. A long time ago, bacon and cabbage may have been eaten semi-regularly by rural Irish, but only because cows were mostly used as dairy animals and pork was easier to find. In any case, at least in America, the preparation of corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day is certainly a tradition. The question is whether, wherever you are, you can share part of this feast with your cats.
[caption id="attachment_64" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Homemade Corned Beef and Cabbage with Potatoes and Carrots. Photography by Brent Hofacker / Shutterstock.[/caption]1. Can cats eat bacon?
Let's start at the beginning, with the original bacon pairing. Regardless of its thickness, a typical piece of bacon is salted or treated with large amounts of salt, and often contains more than a small amount of fat. Since cats are proportionally smaller than humans, the fat content of bacon alone makes a standard piece of bacon bad for cats.
Too much fat can cause digestive problems in cats, and too much salt can lead to dehydration. If you think you need to share bacon with your cat and kitten friends, make sure it is a food specifically designed for cats; many are bacon-flavoured and have neither the sodium nor the fat content of the bacon people eat.
2. Can cats eat corned beef?
Corned beef has an even higher salt content than bacon. Some corned-beef recipes require the meat to be cured in rock salt, assorted spices and saltpetre for at least 10 days. During the curing process, sodium naturally seeps into every part of the meat. As with bacon, the salt content of corned beef can cause damage to a cat's kidneys if enough is ingested.
Because cats are proportionally much smaller than humans, it takes much less sodium to cause a toxic reaction. This applies to the corned beef you prepare at home or buy from the caterer. You have to be more careful with corned-beef in cans or tins, which will likely contain a host of other chemicals and preservatives that cats are better off with.
3. Can cats eat cabbage?
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Can cats eat any human foods to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Photography by Viacheslav Zhukovskiy / Shutterstock.[/caption]As Catster has already said several times, cats are obligatory carnivores. Most of their nutritional needs are met through the consumption and processing of meat-based proteins. We also know from looking at a standard bag or can of store-bought cat food that vegetable matter makes up at least part of what they eat, in a form they can easily digest.
That said, if they do eat some, a little cabbage every now and then is not a major hazard to your cats. Raw cabbage contains an anion known as thiocyanate, which can affect thyroid function, but it is very unlikely that cats will ever deign to eat enough raw cabbage to harm them. The worst you can expect from a cat eating cabbage is an increase in gas.
4. Can cats eat carrots?
Carrots are perfectly acceptable for cats. Some sources recommend cooking or boiling them before offering them to your cats, on the assumption that raw carrots may be too difficult for cats to digest. However, a cat's digestive system is not structured to process nutrients from plant matter or vegetables. Even if your cat eats pieces of cut or cooked carrots, there is virtually no nutritional benefit.
5. Can cats eat potatoes?
Raw or unripe potatoes are potentially toxic to cats. They are, like tomatoes and eggplants, members of the nightshade family. Their skin, as well as the vines on which they grow, contain a defense toxin called solanine, which can be toxic to cats. Cooked, boiled or mashed without any toppings or spices, a small portion of potato should not cause any real problems, digestive or otherwise, to a cat.
6. Can cats eat onions?
As far as cats are concerned, after the salt in bacon and corned beef, onions are by far the most dangerous component of corned beef and cabbage meal. Onions, garlic and other plants in the family damage a cat's red blood cells, limiting their ability to transport oxygen efficiently.
Happy St. Patrick's Day to you and your cats!
Even in isolation, the ingredients most frequently used in a St. Patrick's Day corned beef and cabbage feast offer no real benefit to your cats. As delicious as the meal may be for humans, when it is served to your family and friends, your cat is better off with its usual kibble or canned cat food. If your cat is determined to take part in the festivities, don't hesitate to add a few drops of food coloring to dye its bowl green!
Vignette: Photograph by Viacheslav Zhukovskiy / Shutterstock.
About the author :
Melvin Peña was trained as a scholar and teacher of 18th century British literature before putting his research and writing skills to work for puppies and kittens. He enjoys art, hiking and concerts, as well as dazzling crowds with opera karaoke performances. He has a 16 year old cat named Quacko, and his online life is
