Can Dogs Eat Raw Broccoli?

The Short Answer is:

It is a rich source of vitamins and minerals, and it has a satisfying crunch. Broccoli raw is a good addition to your dog’s diet. Since it breaks up into bite-sized pieces, you don’t really need to be careful when cutting it up.

In this article you will know the answer to the query “Can Dogs Eat Raw Broccoli?“.

When you prepare your vegetables for the evening meal do you have two containers for any waste or offcuts that come up?

The compost bin is one and the dogs bowl is the other. 

For me raw broccoli is a great example of this.

In the end what do you do with that stalk and those few spare florets that always seem to be leftover?

Since the stalk is green the kids will just turn their noses up at it.

However your wife would roll her eyes and mutter “weirdo” under her breath if you tried to sneak it onto the table.

Therefore your dog gains from their loss.

Is that the case? Is raw broccoli nutritious for dogs and should they eat it.

Find out in the following paragraphs. 

What nutrients are in raw broccoli?

The nutrition label for raw broccoli can be found on the right.

Initially it is important to point out that broccoli is a toxin-free food.

This product does not contain anything that could harm your dog. 

There is a lot of fiber in broccoli-over 2.5% of it is fiber.

Broccolis vitamins and minerals supply the rest of its magic and power. 

Vitamin C vitamin K vitamin B6 vitamin A and vitamin B5 are all very high in this food. 

Among the “big hitters” in broccoli are phosphorous manganese and potassium. 

All of this sounds good but what does it mean for our dog?

Lets talk about fiber.

For a dogs digestive system fiber is incredibly important.

Some of the things it does are really important such as providing stool with good consistency as well as supporting a healthy intestine by killing any harmful bacteria.  

Due to the longer digestion time of high fiber foods dogs feel fuller after eating them. 

A dog can make its own vitamin C so vitamin C is an interesting vitamin to start with. 

However that does not mean a top-up wouldnot be helpful. 

In dogs vitamin C may protect their cells from damage caused by oxygen metabolism.

Diseases such as cancer and heart disease cause damage. 

Broccoli contains a staggering amount of vitamin K. 

It can provide 85% of a humans daily needs in one serving of 100g.

Where do dogs fit in?

Dogs produce some vitamin K in their intestines so they should not require any supplementation on a daily basis.

However the vitamin K in broccoli will not harm your dog in any way. 

Vitamin K boosters are recommended for dogs that have eaten a poisoned rat. 

Since the poison interferes with the way a dogs blood clots these dogs need a vitamin K supplement. 

B vitamins including B5 and B6 play a crucial role in the process of turning food into energy. 

As dogs require B vitamins in their diets broccoli provides vitamin B6 at the right concentration to meet their needs. Vitamin B5 is about half as much as they need.

As long as your dog is eating a well-balanced and complete diet this should not be an issue. 

The three biggest minerals in broccoli are potassium phosphorus and manganese.

In order to stay healthy dogs require a lot of potassium and phosphorus in their diet- far more than broccoli can provide.

Raw broccoli has about half the manganese that dogs need so it provides it in about half the concentration that is needed. 

Is cooked broccoli better for my dog?

Lightly steaming broccoli does not make much difference nutritionally.

There are very slight differences in calories fat dietary fibers and protein. 

You might be worried that eating raw broccoli will make the smell of your dogs farts worse but I do not think that is the case.

Strong odors are normally related to high fiber content and the content is almost identical between raw and cooked broccoli. 

Again examining the vitamins and minerals shows minimal changes except for vitamin C which loses about 10% of its potency after cooking.

The texture and taste of broccoli are changed when it is cooked.

It becomes softer and less bitter when cooked.

Although your dog might appreciate a decrease in bitterness I’m sure they will miss that crunch!

Should dogs eat raw broccoli stalks?

I give my dogs the stalk of broccoli whenever we have broccoli for dinner. It just takes a few minutes for them to happily munch away on it after I cut it in half.

This is a favorite “accidental” snack of both of them and they seem to like both the taste and the texture.

If you consider that each floret has a “stalk” it isnot that surprising that eating the stalk is nearly as nutritious as eating the florets. 

There is less vitamin A in the stalk than in the florets but it contains more vitamin C.

The raw broccoli stalks contain no vitamin E while raw broccoli contains some. 

A dogs body needs vitamin E because it fights so-called free radicals and boosts the immune system.  

Should dogs eat broccoli leaves?

Not only have I never bought broccoli with leaves still on it but I have never eaten any either.

To say nothing of preparing them for my dog!

In any case if you purchase broccoli regularly and some leaves come with it please do not throw them away.

You can feed them to your dog.

They are packed with vitamin A and have an extremely high vitamin A value that I have not found anywhere else.

With 100 grams of these leaves a person would get three times the amount of vitamin A he or she needs every day and a dog would get thirty-two times more. 

Vitamin A is essential in keeping your dogs eyesight in top condition.

They will be able to see rabbits from a few miles away with that much vitamin A!

Despite being high in vitamin C they pale insignificance when compared with vitamin A!

Can dogs eat raw broccoli and carrots?

It is a good idea to feed your dogs raw vegetables in various combinations. 

Different tastes and textures are provided to your pets and they get a variety of vitamins and minerals. 

Combining broccoli and carrots would give a great boost to vitamin A (carrots are high in this vitamin) and vitamin C (broccoli is high in this vitamin). 

Considering how rich carrots are in vitamin A I wouldnot recommend feeding them together with broccoli leaves otherwise your dog may burst from all the vitamin A it consumed.

Of course I’m just joking.

It is impossible for your dog to overdose or become poisoned by consuming too many vitamins from vegetables.

Basically I’m saying that you might want to serve two raw vegetables together to maximize their vitamin and mineral content.  

How much raw broccoli should I feed my dog?

In this case there are no hard and fast rules.

When preparing raw broccoli for ourselves many of us feed our dogs at the same time.

The amount they get would thus be limited anyway. 

As such some people might consider any raw vegetable to be a dog treat and would recommend that you do not feed your dog more than 10% of the total amount of their diet.

However most of us would never come close to that amount.

Nevertheless as we have already discussed we should be aiming for variety in the vegetables that we add to our dogs diet.

Although broccoli is a great vegetable it is only one of many.

Another benefit of vegetables is that we can use them as healthy waste buckets for our dogs. 

As we discussed in this article broccoli leaves and stalks are particularly nutrient-dense.

We tend to discard most of the time.

Our dogs diet can be easily supplemented with nutritious waste parts of various vegetables.

Or indeed our own- but that is another story.

Cauliflower leaves are one such example. 

What raw vegetables should I not feed my dog?

There is a vegetable dog blacklist even though it is very short.

Vegetables on this list should not be served near your dog or their food bowl because there is a potential for poisoning.

Asparagus onions garlic and tomatoes are blacklisted vegetables.

Can dogs eat raw broccoli?

We will be providing simple and positive advice in this section.

It is a rich source of vitamins and minerals and it has a satisfying crunch. Broccoli raw is a good addition to your dogs diet.

Since it breaks up into bite-sized pieces you do not really need to be careful when cutting it up.

In addition when your dog learns that he is eating the same things as you he will feel even more like a family member. 

Amanda (Author)

With over a decade of experience, Amanda is a distinguished dog trainer. Her expertise in canine behavior has transformed countless lives, fostering harmonious human-canine connections. Through compassionate and personalized approaches, she empowers owners to understand and connect with their furry companions, creating a legacy of joyful tails and transformed lives.

Osvaldo Maciel (Content Reviewer)

Osvaldo Maciel, a stalwart in the field with 14 years of experience, is a revered dog trainer. His journey is defined by a profound understanding of canine behavior, shaping unbreakable human-canine bonds. Osvaldo guides owners to connect with their beloved pets, leaving an indelible mark of happiness and transformation. His legacy shines through the countless lives he has touched.