Can Dogs Drink Goat’s Milk?

Goat’s milk is becoming a more popular milk drink for people and yes, pets too! The positive thing about goat’s milk compared to cow’s milk is that it is much more easily digested and less likely to cause allergic reactions. Read on to find out more about health benefits when dogs drink goat’s milk.

Goat’s milk is full of vitamins and minerals as well as enzymes, protein, electrolytes and fatty acids. Because the fat molecules in goat’s milk are one fifth the size of those found in cow’s milk, it is easily digestible even for dogs with digestive problems.  (It is in fact best to avoid feeding your dog cow’s milk altogether).

Health benefits.

Because goat’s milk is full of digestible probiotics, it can help with all manner of diseases. These include conditions such as, liver and kidney disease, diabetes, poor digestion and gastrointestinal disease.

Fermented goat’s milk is even more nutritional since the process of fermentation adds more probiotics. Research has found it to be beneficial in soothing irritable bowel, ulcers, arthritis and even more serious health conditions such as brain disorders.

It is important to check the quality of goat milk if you intend to purchase some for your dog, (or yourself!). Pasteurisation will lower the quality of the milk, as will goats that have been injected with antibiotics, or fed GMO foods.

Fermented goat’s milk needs to be from raw milk as the good bacteria thrives when it has not been damaged by the heating process.  Introducing raw fermented milk to your dog’s diet can provide powerful antioxidants, as well as probiotics and concentrated vitamins.

It is possible to find fermented goat’s milk in health food stores or on line.

Conclusion.

Goat’s milk definitely has a lot of health benefits for people and for dogs. However, in the case of dogs there is probably no need to feed it to an adult dog every day. However, as a complementary addition to a dog’s diet goat’s milk has some very clear health benefits.

Our guest dogs do need to bring their own food with them for all dog stays. However, we can cater for many different types of dog’s diet and will always follow this carefully. If your dog has a special diet, such as the BARF diet, please provide details to your carer when you meet them before a dog stay.