What's in honey?
Honey is a syrupy substance made by bees and consisting of:
- mainly fast sugars. Honey is in fact made up of almost 80% simple carbohydrates and more precisely fructose, glucose, m altose, sucrose and m altotriose,
- about 17% water,
- from 1% minerals,
- and about 2% other compounds including water-soluble vitamins, enzymes, proteins, trace elements and flavonoids.
Can you give honey to a dog?
In dogs, honey is widely used by naturopaths for its healing and antiseptic properties for external use for healing wounds. All you have to do is spread a thin layer of thyme, lavender or manuka honey on a dog's wound before covering it with sterile gauze and a bandage to speed up the healing of the wound. The advantage of this natural remedy is that it can be licked off by the animal without being toxic to it!
Warning!
“Food” honey is not for use on all types of wounds. At home, reserve its use for non-infected superficial wounds. Deeper and/or infected wounds always need to be treated by a veterinarian. The latter can also use honey but a special honey itself sterilized for this particular use. Note that this medical device is available over the counter for safe use on any type of wound.
But can you feed honey to a dog? Well, yes, but in very limited quantities because of its richness in simple sugars which the dog absolutely does not need in his current diet and which he even has trouble digesting well when his diet is too rich in them. Honey can then be used in dogs as a "superfood" or a natural food supplement for its benefits and therapeutic virtues rather than as a food strictly speaking. It thus finds its place among the other hive products used in apitherapy.
Warning!
Of course, these tips are only valid for he althy dogs: the administration of honey to a dog suffering from diabetes mellitus is totally prohibited.
What are the benefits of honey for dogs?
Honey to fight occasional constipation in dogs
Due to its high fructose content, honey is a mild and natural laxative that can be used in dogs with occasional and moderate constipation to promote the return of good intestinal transit without irritating the intestines of the animal. It is then enough to dilute half a teaspoon of acacia honey in lukewarm spring water before administering this beverage to the dog.
Honey to relieve the dog's immune system
Thanks to its antibacterial potential, oral honey can be used to relieve the immune system of a sick dog. For example, a few grams of fir honey can be used to help a dog suffering from a respiratory infection and heather honey can help dogs with cystitis, colitis or prostatitis. Note that honey only serves here as a dietary supplement, only providing a “natural boost” to a treatment prescribed by a veterinarian.
Honey to help administer natural remedies
With its sweet taste that dogs generally like, honey can be used as a vehicle for the administration of certain essential oils orally or to reduce the bitterness of certain medicinal plant extracts.
Honey to replenish the sporting dog's energy reserves
Rich in simple sugars, honey can also be used to make a snack for an athletic dog after significant physical effort (a hunting session, a sled race, etc.). All you have to do is mix 0.5g of honey per kg of body weight with 1g/kg of very cooked rice to concoct a snack that will quickly replenish the energy reserves of an athletic dog while waiting for its next meal.
How much honey to give a dog?
Except for athletic dogs, the amount of honey to be distributed daily to your animal should generally not exceed a teaspoon of honey or half a teaspoon in dogs under 10kg in order not to not provide too many simple sugars in the food ration.
For your dog, preferably choose “organic” honey, unheated, recent and stored away from light and heat in order to preserve all its benefits.