Doritos, the Tortilla chips, is one of our favorite snacks. We love to dip these chips in a dip of our choice and enjoy the dish with our loved ones. While you may enjoy Doritos to your heart’s content, can the same be said about your cats as well? Is Doritos safe for cats? Do these chips cause any serious health issues in felines? You can read the below sections to get answers to these questions.
The quick answer to this question is that though cats can eat Doritos in very small quantities occasionally, it is not recommended to feed your pets these chips. The flavors of Doritos can cause some health problems in cats, which we will explain in detail in the below paragraphs.
Do cats like the taste of Doritos?
Doritos come in different flavors. While the spices and aroma of some flavors may be too strong for cats, the animals may take an instant liking to cheese-flavored Doritos. If your cats love these cheese chips, you will also notice that they are more interested in licking them than eating them. While occasional licking of cheese flavors may not be too bad for cats, it is best to keep them away from Doritos as much as possible.
Cats are not interested in the chips, per se, because the chips are too hard and pointed for them. They are more interested in the flavors of the chips. Don’t be surprised if your cat starts to lick the empty cover of the chips packet, while it ignores the chips. More often than not, cats love to lick cheese-flavored chips packets, because they are very fond of this flavor. We can never really know if cats love or hate Doritos because it is purely the independent choice of the felines.
You can consider yourselves lucky if your cat doesn’t like the flavor of Doritos. Sometimes, tangy tomato and chili flavors can cause the cats to repel. So, if you want your cats to stay away from Doritos, you know what flavor to get!
Can Doritos kill cats?
One of the main questions that cat owners have is “can Doritos kill cats.” Well, the answer to this question is “No, in most cases.” As of now, there has been no case of death reported in cats due to the consumption of Doritos. However, that doesn’t mean that these chips are safe for cats.
As you know already, cats are carnivorous animals, whereas Doritos are mostly made from plant products like corn, vegetable oil, etc. Even for seasoning the chips, we use products like salt, cheese powder, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, milk powder, etc. All of these flavorings are not good for the digestive system of cats.
So, while Doritos may not kill cats, they can cause some health issues like digestive problems and obesity. When cats consume Doritos for a long time, they tend to get obese and lethargic.
Health issues that Doritos can cause cats
Digestive problems
The first and foremost health issue that cats experience if they consume too much Doritos is digestive ailments. The digestive system of cats is designed to handle only meat and meat-based products. It cannot handle any other plant-based foods or additional flavors. Doritos, especially, are heavily processed foods that can cause quite a lot of digestive issues for felines.
Excessive carbs lead to problems
Doritos are high in carb content. When cats eat too many carbs, it leads to weight gain and obesity. As cats put on a lot of weight, it starts impacting their movements. Their movements start to become wobbly. They begin to develop pain in the joints and knees. Obesity can also make their internal organs fail, in severe cases.
Lactose Intolerance Issues
Most of the cats are lactose intolerant today. This means that are not equipped to handle the lactose component in dairy products. Doritos, especially the cheese-flavored ones, contain a lot of cheese in them. Skim milk powder and cheese powder used in Doritos can cause quite a lot of issues in cats. When cats eat Doritos for a long time, they will experience stomach pain, diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, and lethargy.
Excessive salt content
Humans should fix a limit on the salt they consume per day. Excessive consumption of salt can lead to serious health issues. This rule should be even more strictly followed with cats. The daily salt consumption of cats is fixed at about 42mg. Anything more than this, regularly, can result in sodium poisoning in cats. A packet of Doritos, which contains about 12 chips, contains about 210mg of salt. Even if cats lick the chips, they ingest a lot of salt, which can lead to severe problems like seizures, failure of internal organs, tremors, and death, in some cases.
Toxic flavorings
The spices that you so commonly use for flavoring your food can be toxic for cats. Garlic and onion, especially, contain compounds that cause different types of anemia in cats. If they ingest a small quantity of these spices, occasionally, you have nothing to worry about. However, if they consume too much of these toxic spices, you have to observe them for symptoms like lethargy, digestive issues, stomach upsets, etc. You have to take your cat to the veterinarian immediately because these spices can impact the oxygen-carrying capacity of the cat’s blood cells.
Final Word
If your cat licks one or two Doritos occasionally, it is absolutely fine, and you don’t have to fret about it. However, even during those occasional times, ensure that your cat gets to lick only plain Doritos and not the ones flavored with garlic or onion powder. The cats are more fond of the flavors than the chips. Therefore, it would be good if you kept a watch over them.
Since Doritos are high in salt, carbs, toxic flavors, and lactose products, they are not good for cats in the long run. Overconsumption of Doritos can lead to severe lethargy and digestive issues in the felines, due to weight gain. So, keep your cats as far as possible from these chips to give them a healthy life.