Can cats eat peanut butter? Risks and safer options

Plain peanut butter is not toxic to cats, but it is not a good food for them either. It offers a cat nothing it needs, it is heavy in fat and often in salt and sugar, and its stickiness makes it a choking risk. A tiny lick of a plain, xylitol-free peanut butter is unlikely to harm a healthy cat. Anything more than that is best avoided.

Is peanut butter safe for cats?

It depends on the jar and on the cat. Peanuts themselves are not poisonous to cats. The trouble is everything else about the product, and the fact that some cats have health conditions that make even a small rich treat a bad idea.

Cats are obligate carnivores, built to get their nutrition from animal protein, and they do not taste sweetness. Peanut butter has nothing to offer them that a complete cat food does not already supply.

Why peanut butter is bad for cats

• Fat and calories. Peanut butter is one of the most calorie-dense foods in the kitchen. A cat needs very few calories in a day, so a lick that looks like nothing is a real addition.
• Salt. Most brands add it. Extra salt is a concern for cats with heart disease, high blood pressure or kidney disease.
• Sugar and other additives. Many jars contain added sugar, oils or flavorings. Chocolate and hazelnut spreads are a firm no, because chocolate is toxic to cats.
• Stickiness. Peanut butter clings to the roof of the mouth and the throat. A cat's mouth and airway are small, and a thick blob can cause gagging or choking. Crunchy peanut butter and whole peanuts add hard pieces to the problem.
• Stomach upset. Rich, unfamiliar food can cause vomiting or diarrhea.
• Allergy. It is uncommon, but cats can react to foods, including peanuts.

Check the label for xylitol

Some peanut butters, especially reduced-sugar, "no sugar added" and high-protein versions, are sweetened with xylitol. It may also be listed as birch sugar. Xylitol is a well-known poison for dogs, where it can cause a dangerous drop in blood sugar and liver damage.

Cats appear to be less sensitive than dogs, but the evidence is limited, so treat any product that contains xylitol as off limits. If your cat ate some, call your vet or an animal poison control line now. If you also have a dog, keep these products out of the house or well out of reach.

How much peanut butter can a cat have?

If you decide to allow it at all, keep it to a thin smear on a fingertip, once in a while, from a smooth peanut butter whose only ingredients are peanuts, with no xylitol, added sugar or salt. Spread it thin so it cannot form a lump, and stay with your cat while it eats.

Do not offer it from a spoon, and do not leave an open jar where a cat can reach it. Kittens should not have it.

Using peanut butter to hide a pill

Many people ask about peanut butter because they have an older cat on daily medicine and have heard it works for dogs. It is a poor choice for cats. Most cats will not eat it willingly, it is hard to swallow, and a daily helping of fat and salt is the last thing many senior cats need.

Better options to raise with your vet or pharmacist:

• A different form of the medicine. Many drugs can be prepared as a flavored liquid or a soft chew, and a few as a gel applied to the skin of the ear. Ask whether that is possible for your cat's prescription.
• Soft treats made for hiding pills. These are designed to be molded around a tablet and swallowed easily. Check the ingredients against your cat's diet.
• A small ball of your cat's own wet food. Give one plain ball, then the one with the pill, then another plain one.
• A pill-giving tool. A vet nurse or technician can show you how to use one, and how to hold your cat calmly.
• Food or water afterward. Some tablets can irritate the throat if they lodge on the way down. Ask your vet whether to follow the pill with a little food or water.

Before you crush a tablet, open a capsule or mix medicine into food, check with the vet. Some medicines are coated, some taste very bitter once broken, and some must be given with or without food. If you cannot get the medicine into your cat, say so. Missed doses matter, and there is usually another way.

Older cats who should not have peanut butter

• Cats with pancreatitis or a history of it. These cats are usually on a diet the vet has chosen, and fatty extras are best avoided. See pancreatitis in senior cats.
• Overweight cats. Extra weight makes arthritis, diabetes and many other conditions harder to manage. Our guide to weight management for senior pets explains how treats fit into a plan.
• Diabetic cats. Added sugar and unplanned calories work against a steady routine. Read more about diabetes in senior cats.
• Cats with kidney or heart disease. Salty extras are unhelpful, and these cats are often on a diet the vet has chosen.
• Cats with dental pain or trouble swallowing. Sticky food is harder for them to clear.
• Cats on a prescription or food-trial diet. Small extras can undo it.

Safer treats for cats

If you want to share something, a treat made for cats or a small piece of plain cooked meat or fish suits a cat far better. Plain cooked egg is another option for many cats; see can cats eat eggs. Keep all treats to a small part of the day's food. Our senior pet nutrition guide covers what an older cat's main diet should provide.

Call the vet today if

• Your cat is gagging, pawing at the mouth, drooling heavily or struggling to breathe after eating peanut butter. Breathing trouble is an emergency.
• The product contained xylitol or birch sugar, or chocolate. Call your vet or an animal poison control line now, and keep the jar.
• Your cat vomits repeatedly, or has diarrhea that lasts more than a day.
• You see facial swelling, hives or sudden intense itching.
• Your cat seems weak, wobbly, unusually sleepy or has a tremor or seizure.
• Your cat ate a large amount and now hides, hunches or will not eat.

This article is general educational information, not veterinary advice. Whether any human food is acceptable for your cat depends on its age, weight and health, and how to give a prescribed medicine is a question for the veterinarian who prescribed it. If your cat has eaten a product containing xylitol or is having trouble breathing, contact a vet immediately.