Raw Honey Benefits for Dogs

The next time you see a bee buzzing about your flowers, give him a nod of thanks for the honey he provides. You may enjoy a spoonful of honey in your tea, but consider sharing your raw honey with your dog. Raw honey offers him an array of benefits: It’s an infection fighter, calms indigestion, heals ulcers and treats mild burns.

Sweet Helper

Your dog probably won’t resist taking her medicine if that medicine is raw honey. Raw honey, which is simply honey that hasn’t been filtered or heated, is a naturally sweet treat, with a taste most dogs are happy to lick right off the spoon. Raw honey offers a host of benefits. The pollen in raw honey — particularly honey local to your area — helps your dog adjust to local allergens, meaning a milder reaction to seasonal allergies. The enzyme glucose oxidase in honey produces hydrogen peroxide, to help kill bad bacteria, adding to honey’s other antibacterial properties. Raw honey also can soothe a sore throat, promote a healthy digestive tract and improve blood circulation. It also can be used externally to heal the skin, treating infection, swelling, pain and inflammation.

Honey Cautions

If your dog is healthy and not overweight, feel free to offer him a tablespoon of raw honey. However, if he has diabetes, discuss honey as a supplement with your vet as its high sugar content can affect insulin levels. An overweight dog may want to enjoy less honey or cut back on his food intake slightly to avoid adding more to his bulk. Puppies shouldn’t eat raw honey because it can be contaminated with a botulism-related toxin, which isn’t a worry for adult pets who have developed immune systems to defend against such possible contaminants.

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