Can dogs eat Cream of Mushroom Soup? No, dogs should not eat Cream of Mushroom Soup because it is high in salt, sugar, and fat. These three components can harm your canine friends’ health and lead to severe health problems. The Cream of Mushroom Soup also does not provide any health benefits to your pooch. Since it contains dairy, the Cream of Mushroom Soup can cause diarrhea and abdominal pain for dogs that are lactose-intolerant.
For lunch today, I decided to make creamy rich mushroom soup with a side of Chicken tenders and bruschetta toasts for my family. It was delicious. My two pups could smell the strong aroma of this creamy mushroom soup and came running over for some. Before I could give them any, my sister asked if it is safe for dogs to eat.
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Is Cream of Mushroom Soup bad for dogs?
Yes, the Cream of Mushroom Soup is bad for dogs. To understand why that is, we will take a look at the nutritional profile of a typical Cream of Mushroom Soup. Then, we will compare it to Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Cream of Mushroom Soup nutritional information
In order to understand why the Cream of Mushroom Soup is not healthy or safe for our furry friends, let’s take a look at the nutritional profile of a typical Cream of Mushroom Soup and the calories in Cream of Mushroom Soup:
Nutritional Profile of Cream of Mushroom Soup (Per 100 Grams)
| Name, Unit | Amount |
| Calories, cal | 65 |
| Sugar, g | 2.65 |
| Sodium, mg | 364 |
| Carbohydrate, g | 5.83 |
| Total Fat, g | 3.64 |
| Protein, g | 2.35 |
| Potassium, mg | 111 |
| Calcium, mg | 69 |
| Iron, mg | 0.09 |
| Magnesium, mg | 8 |
| Phosphorus, mg | 64 |
| Zinc, mg | 0.27 |
| Niacin, mg | 0.227 |
From this nutritional profile, we can see that every 100 grams of a typical Cream of Mushroom Soup have 364 milligrams of salt, 2.65 grams of sugar, and 3.64 grams of fat.
Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup Nutrition Facts (Per 100 Grams)
| Name, Unit | Amount |
| Calories, cal | 81 |
| Sugar, g | 0.4 |
| Sodium, mg | 697 |
| Carbohydrate, g | 6.6 |
| Total Fat, g | 5.5 |
| Protein, g | 1.3 |
| Potassium, mg | 67 |
| Calcium, mg | 8 |
| Iron, mg | 0.2 |
| Magnesium, mg | 3 |
| Phosphorus, mg | 19 |
| Zinc, mg | 0.1 |
| Niacin, mg | 0.4 |
From this nutritional profile, we can see that every 100 grams of Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup have 697 milligrams of salt, 0.4 grams of sugar, and 5.5 grams of fat.
The Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup also has a higher calorie count than a typical Cream of Mushroom Soup.
As you can see from the nutritional profile above, the unhealthy ingredients outweigh the beneficial vitamins and minerals. There’s a very small amount of protein, vitamins, and minerals.
Due to these reasons, the Cream of Mushroom Soup is not a healthy choice for your canine friends.
Your four-legged friends are better off receiving the minerals and vitamins from their regular healthy and well-balanced dog food diet.
It is important to point out that store-bought, name brand Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup has a higher salt and fat content than a typical Cream of Mushroom Soup.
So it’s best to avoid feeding your pooch both homemade and store-bought Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Handy Hint: If your canine friends are lactose-intolerant, we highly advise that you avoid feeding your pooch dairy products like Sour Cream, milk, or cheese.
Can dogs have Cream of Mushroom Soup?
Based on the information above, dogs should not have Cream of Mushroom Soup. Let’s go over each of the factors in detail:
Sodium content in Cream of Mushroom Soup
Salt is a crucial ingredient in a dog’s nutrition. However, a healthy amount of salt intake for dogs should be anywhere between 0.25g to 1.5g per 100g of food.
Dogs should receive their sodium intake from their regular healthy and well-balanced dog food.
Our canine companions only need a small amount of salt in their daily diet. Eating food with just the right amount of salt content can help with the following:
- Maintain healthy nervous system functions and musculoskeletal system.
- Keeps the cells hydrated and prevents swelling.
If we take a look at the typical Cream of Mushroom Soup and the Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup, they both have a high salt content that could cause sodium toxicity in dogs.
For instance:
- A typical Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 364mg of salt which translates to 0.364g of salt.
- The Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 697mg of salt which translates to 0.697g of salt.
This is the salt level on top of their regular salt intake from their regular dog food. If they ingest the Cream of Mushroom Soup, the salt level in their body can cause toxicity.
Regularly feeding your pooch Cream of Mushroom Soup can lead to a series of health problems including:
- Swelling in the body due to high sodium levels in your canine’s body.
- Dehydration.
- Complications of the cardiovascular system.
- Neurological issues.
- Gastrointestinal issues.
Depending on the size of your dog, a large amount of salt intake from the Cream of Mushroom Soup may lead to sodium poisoning.
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Canines that suffer from sodium poisoning may experience these symptoms:
- Swelling of the tongue.
- Loose stool.
- Diarrhea.
- Vomiting.
- Confusion.
- Lethargy.
- Loss of coordination.
- High blood pressure.
- Increased heart rate.
- Seizures.
- Coma.
Sometimes your pooch may not show signs of sodium poisoning until it is a bit too late. We highly recommend that you bring your four-legged friends to the vet immediately for a physical checkup if you suspect that they have eaten the Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Fun Fact: Alfredo is another dairy product that is loaded with butter, heavy cream, cheese, and salt. Check out Can Dogs Eat Alfredo to find out if Alfredo is safe for doggy consumption.
High-fat content in Cream of Mushroom Soup
When it comes to your furry friend’s daily calories, the general rule is that 10% should be from protein and 5.5% should be from fats.
Fat is crucial because it provides your furry family members with soft and healthy fur and skin. Not all fat is bad.
For instance, a certain type of fat like the Omega fatty acids helps to maintain proper brain and vision function.
However, too much fat from foods like Pork Rinds and the Cream of Mushroom Soup can negatively affect your pup’s health. You may not see the symptoms or signs from eating fatty food today, but it will show up in the near future.
The higher the fat content in the food your dog eats, the greater the chance that he or she will gain weight.
Eating food with high-fat content can lead to the following short term symptoms:
- Pressure on the joints and organs from the excess fat.
- Hindering mobility.
- Difficulty breathing.
Over the long run, your pooch may suffer from these health problems:
- Heart disease.
- Obesity.
- Diabetes.
When we take a look at the sugar and carbohydrates in both Cream of Mushroom Soups, we see that:
Carbohydrates
- A typical Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 5.83g of carbohydrates.
- The Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 6.6g of carbohydrates.
Sugar
- A typical Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 2.65g of sugar.
- The Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup contains 0.4g of sugar.
Both the carbohydrates and sugar get stored as fat in your dog’s body and there’s a high carbohydrate and sugar content in this soup.
Regularly eating Cream Of Mushroom Soup can lead to cardiovascular disease and canine obesity.
Additionally, regularly eating Cream of Mushroom Soup can lead to acute pancreatitis, in which your dog’s pancreas becomes irritated and inflamed. Signs of pancreatitis include:
- Stomach pain.
- Vomiting.
- Fever.
- Lethargy.
If you suspect that your pooch has pancreatitis, contact your vet right away. Immediate attention and treatments are crucial as acute pancreatitis can be lethal and fatal.
Your vet may prescribe IV fluids, anti-inflammatory medications, and painkillers so your pup can recover.
Cream of Mushroom Soup can negatively affect dogs that are lactose-intolerant
As the name suggests, the Cream of Mushroom Soup contains cream, which means this soup is a dairy product.
Most dogs are lactose-intolerant, which means they lack the lactase enzyme that is responsible for breaking down the sugar lactose found in the Cream of Mushroom Soup.
The lactose sugar then passes right through their digestive system and absorbs water. This causes stomach pain, stomach issues, and diarrhea.
If your pups are lactose-intolerant or you know that they are, you can expect to see runny and loose stools within 12 hours of eating Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Signs and symptoms of eating dairy products like Cream of Mushroom Soup can lead to the following:
- Flatulence. Your pooch may start to fart or pass gas very frequently.
- Bloating. When the Cream of Mushroom Soup hits your dog’s gastrointestinal tract, it can cause gas buildup. This can be very uncomfortable and painful for your pooch.
- Vomiting. Dogs can get queasy or dizzy from eating dairy products and may start to drool excessively. These are signs that they may vomit very soon.
- Loss of appetite. Since dogs will generally eat anything and everything you give them, when this eating behavior changes, you’ll notice it right away. A dog that isn’t feeling well may lose their appetite.
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As you can see, it’s not fun when canines that are lactose-intolerant consume dairy products like Cream of Mushroom Soup.
A good rule of thumb is that even if a particular food isn’t exactly toxic to your pups, it doesn’t mean that they should have it.
The mess caused by eating dairy products can lead to an unexpected high emergency vet bill or a nasty mess that you’ll have to clean up.
If you know your four-legged friends are lactose-intolerant, opt for non-dairy cream or avoid feeding your pooch Cream of Mushroom Soup completely.
Food Allergy to the Ingredients in Cream of Mushroom Soup
In addition to being lactose-intolerant, some dogs may be allergic to the ingredients used in the Cream of Mushroom Soup. As the name of this dish suggests, the main ingredient is mushroom.
While the mushrooms you buy at your local grocery store are generally safe for dogs to consume, each individual dog may react differently to different types of foods.
In general, mushrooms that are store-bought are safe for doggy consumption, while wild mushrooms are known to be toxic.
So it’s best to keep wild mushrooms away from your pooch at all times. Be sure to only feed your furry friends plain mushrooms with no added seasoning.
A good rule of thumb is to always give just a little bit of the food to your pooch if they’ve never had it before. After giving it to them, see how they react. If they react to the food, then they may be allergic to it as your dog’s cell may try to attack it.
Here are some signs of food allergy:
- Hives.
- Swollen eyelids, lips, and face.
- Itchy skin.
- Bloating.
- Diarrhea.
Ask your vet if there’s anything that you can do. In most cases, your vet may ask you to bring your pooch in so they can perform a complete checkup.
He or she may prescribe skin ointments or anti-inflammatory medications to help the symptoms that your pooch is experiencing.
Handy Hint: Maintaining a well-balanced diet is very important for a healthy and happy dog. For this reason, it’s best to avoid feeding your pup any food or candy such as Starburst, which contains artificial sweeteners like xylitol. Xylitol is extremely toxic to dogs.
Ingredients in Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup
Before feeding your canine friends any human food, we highly recommend that you take a look at the ingredients first.
If we take a look at the Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup, we can fully understand why it’s best to keep this Cream of Mushroom Soup away from our furry family members.
Here are the ingredients in Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup:
- Water.
- Mushrooms.
- Canola or soybean oil.
- Wheat flour.
- Cream.
- Cornstarch.
- Salt.
- Modified milk ingredients.
- Soy protein isolate.
- Monosodium glutamate.
- Tomato paste.
- Spice extract.
- Barley yeast extract.
- Dehydrated garlic.
So, Is Cream of Mushroom okay for dogs?
No, Cream of Mushroom is not okay for dogs. Cream of Mushroom contains a high amount of salt and too much salt can cause sodium poisoning in dogs. Also, Cream of Mushroom uses heavy cream. Heavy cream is a dairy product and most adult dogs are lactose-intolerant.
This means that most dogs do not have enough lactase enzyme to break down the sugar in heavy cream called lactose. As a result, your precious pup may vomit or have diarrhea.
To make matters worse, heavy cream contains about 37% fat so it is a high-fat product. It’s best to avoid feeding your dogs high-fat food like Cream of Mushroom.
When shouldn’t you feed Cream Of Mushroom Soup to your dog?
It’s best to avoid feeding your furry friends Cream Of Mushroom Soup if they have internal organ problems or in their senior years since their bodies may not be able to properly and efficiently process the high salt level.
What if my dog accidentally ate Cream of Mushroom Soup?
It happens. Dogs may accidentally slurp up the Cream of Mushroom Soup you left on the table or a little bit of it from the bowl. If this happens, make sure to keep them hydrated.
Provide a bowl of fresh cool water so they’re able to drink as much water as they can. This will remove the excess salt from their body.
READ ALSO: How Long Can A Dog Go Without Water?
If they’re not getting the cues to drink water, you can get creative and add ice cubes into their bowl of water. This will spark their interest in drinking more water.
Another great way to get your K9 friends to drink more water is by investing in a water fountain for dogs.
A water fountain for our furry friends is a game-changer for keeping them hydrated! It offers a perpetual flow of clean, filtered water, and the motion also taps into our dogs’ natural preference for moving water, making them more inclined to drink up.
Say goodbye to stale, ignored water bowls and say hello to a dog water fountain. You’ll notice your pup drinking more water, which is essential for their digestion, kidney function, and overall well-being.
Be sure to contact your vet right away if you suspect that your canine friends have slurped the Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Your vet may also provide you with instructions that you can perform at home, but most likely he or she will ask that you bring your dogs in for a checkup.
Canine-friendly and safe Cream of Mushroom Soup alternatives
Instead of feeding your pooch Cream of Mushroom Soup, opt for healthier vegetable and fruit options like Brussel Sprouts, pumpkins, blueberries, and apples.
Whenever my family and I have Cream of Mushroom Soup, we feel bad for not feeding it to our two furry family members.
But this is the right thing to do. Since we feel terrible for not sharing, we provide them with dog-friendly creamy treats like this one.
My two pups absolutely love these and devour them in minutes.
So, can dogs eat Cream of Mushroom Soup?
To avoid a series of health problems like weight gain, diabetes, pancreatitis, food allergy, sodium poisoning, it’s best to keep the Cream of Mushroom Soup away from your pooch.
Whether you’re making the Cream of Mushroom Soup at home or buying them from the store, both are harmful to your pooch due to the high salt, sugar, and fat content.
For the reasons listed above, your dogs should not have Cream of Mushroom Soup. A little slurp of it occasionally is fine if they are not allergic to the Cream of Mushroom Soup or can tolerate the cream in this soup.
As the article mentions, the Cream of Mushroom Soup is made for human consumption and it does not provide dogs with any nutritional benefits. It’s best for dogs to stick to their regular healthy dog food diet.
Each slurp of this soup only adds to your pup’s daily salt, sugar, and fat intake. Avoid this soup at all costs and opt for healthier options.
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The information, including but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material contained on this website are for informational purposes only. No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional veterinary advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your veterinarian or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding dietary needs.
Resources:
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/1103708/nutrients
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cream_of_mushroom_soup
https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/growing-fruits-and-vegetables-for-your-dog
With over five years of specialized experience as an animal writer, my expertise lies in dog nutrition, health, behavior, grooming, and training. I am dedicated to delivering helpful and informative content that caters to the well-being of our furry friends. My primary goal is to empower pet owners with knowledge and ensure our canine companions thrive in health and happiness. In my free time, I love volunteering at local dog rescue centers.
