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Can Cats Eat Apples

Reviewed by Petco’s Animal Care, Education and Compliance (ACE) Team

The short answer is, yes, cats can eat apples. It is considered safe and unlikely to cause problems for your cat. The more important question is should cats eat apples? That question has a much different answer. As always, consult your veterinarian before adding new foods to your cat’s diet to ensure it’s an appropriate snack for your pet.  

Apples are a wonderful fruit for humans, but are they really appropriate for cats to eat? Cats are natural meat-eaters. Their digestive system is not accustomed to fruits like apples. While apples are generally safe to feed your cat, it’s important to moderate how often and how much apple you let your cat eat. Apples also contain sugar and carbohydrates, which can be especially unhealthy for cats with health issues, such as heart disease, liver problems or diabetes.    

Luckily, you most likely won’t struggle to avoid feeding your cat apple either—cats are also notoriously finicky eaters. There’s a good chance that your pet will have no desire to take a single bite of apple, no matter how appealing you might otherwise make it.       

Can cats eat applesauce?

Yes, cats can eat applesauce. However, applesauce does not provide cats with much nutrition, and it’s important that the applesauce does not contain any harmful additives like added sugars or cinnamon. Consult your vet before adding new foods to your pet’s diet. And remember to keep treats and snacks to under 10% of your cat’s daily caloric intake.

Are There Health Benefits of Apples for Cats?  

Apples are “safe” for cats to eat in that a healthy adult cat is unlikely to have any serious negative effects from eating a small amount of apple. That being said, it’s still quite possible that the apples will not agree with your cat’s digestive system. They may experience vomiting, diarrhea or constipation. If these symptoms emerge, discontinue feeding your cat apple immediately. If the symptoms don’t go away or become more severe, call your veterinarian right away.   

The majority of your cat’s calories should come from foods specially formulated to give them the nutrients they need. Providing your cat with high-quality cat food is the best way to ensure they are eating a healthy diet and getting all their nutrients.  

For this reason, feeding your cat apples has almost no health benefits. There can be some minor short-term side effects and larger long-term side effects if you continue to feed your cat apples. The short-term side effects will most likely be caused by gastrointestinal distress and result in diarrhea, constipation and vomiting.      

The long-term effects would be similar to eating many other types of high carbs, high sugar foods that the feline digestive system is not accustomed to. These foods can lead to weight gain, lack of proper nutrition, diabetes and issues with their heart and liver.   

This can all be a bigger concern for cats with any pre-existing health conditions such as diabetes. Diabetes in cats makes them especially susceptible to the negative consequences of excessive sugar or carbohydrate intake. In these situations, it’s best not to let your cat have apples at all.      

Lastly, each cat is different, and what their digestive system can tolerate might vary from cat to cat. Perhaps one cat can eat apples just fine, but another cat may develop digestive discomfort right away.     

For all these reasons, allowing your cat to eat apples at all is of questionable benefit and should probably best be avoided.   

How to Feed Apples to Your Cat  

If you do feel the need to let your cat eat apples, moderation is also key. Too much apple could cause them to have an upset stomach. Try sprinkling a few small apple pieces on top of their regular meal to introduce the fruit. Smaller pieces are more manageable for your pet to eat and will help avoid choking.     

Since it is not part of their normal food, apples should be considered a treat. As such, treats should never exceed 10% of your cat’s daily caloric intake. Ask your veterinarian or consult an online tool to estimate the healthy caloric intake for your cat and calculate what amount of apples would equal less than 10% of that number. It won’t be very much. Be sure to keep in mind any other treats you may intend to give your cat on a day-to-day basis too.   

Start with only a very small amount of apple and monitor your pet closely to ensure that there aren’t any problems. If your cat shows signs of gastrointestinal distress such as vomiting or diarrhea, discontinue feeding them apples and monitor them closely to ensure that their condition doesn’t worsen. Call your veterinarian if you suspect there are more serious problems.   

Also, be sure to remove all seeds, leaves and stems from any bits of apple before letting your cat eat it. Apple seeds contain cyanide, which is a potentially deadly poison for a cat if ingested in large enough quantities.     

Apple seeds only contain a small amount of cyanide, but it is still vital that you do not allow your cat to eat any.  

FAQs About Feeding Your Cat Apples   

Yes, cats can eat apples, but it’s not recommended for them. Essentially, apples are not toxic to cats, but they have no health benefits either. In fact, the high sugar and carb content of most fruits are not recommended for cats at all.  

Cats don’t actually need to eat fruit at all for their health. In fact, in many regards, fruit is unhealthy for cats and should not be given to them at all. Fruit contains sugars and carbohydrates that the cat digestive system is not set up to absorb.  

That being said, if you do want to feed your cat fruit, the best fruits for them include apples, bananas, blueberries, strawberries and seedless apples. In all cases, be sure to cut the fruit into small enough pieces for your cat to easily chew, and also consult your veterinarian before adding new foods to your cat's diet.  

Sugar is not recommended for cats at all. Their digestive system is not adapted to sugar, which can lead to gastrointestinal problems in the short term, and obesity and diabetes for your cat in the long term.  

Sugar can be especially dangerous for an obese cat or cat with diabetes. For this reason, it’s best to avoid letting your cat have sugar at all.  

Cats technically don’t need fiber in their diet. They are natural carnivores, and all the nutrients they need can best be found and delivered through animal products for your cat.  

Some pet parents believe that feeding your cat occasional fiber in the form of fruit can be helpful for their digestion. There might be some benefit, but generally speaking, cats are healthiest when they are kept to a diet of high-quality cat food that is specially formulated for their nutritional needs.  

If you do feel like your cat could use more fiber in their diet, use it sparingly and consult your veterinarian to ensure it’s the right fit for your cat. There are also cat vitamins and supplements available that can be better options for your cat’s health than feeding them fruit.  

Some cat owners believe that applesauce can be a healthy way to provide your cat with extra fiber, but this is generally not a good idea. Apple sauce is not recommended for cats. While it might seem that applesauce is simply pureed apple and thus fine for cats to eat, that’s not really the case.  

Many varieties of applesauce contain additional flavors, sugars and other preservatives. If you want to make your own applesauce from pureed apples, that would be a healthier choice. You can also read the label to ensure there are no additional ingredients in the applesauce you feed to your cat. Generally speaking, though, there are minimal health benefits of applesauce for cats.  

Some vegetables are good for cats and can be a healthier source of fiber for your cat if you deem that necessary.  

Some safe vegetables to offer your cat are chopped carrots, peas, frozen corn, broccoli florets, green beans, zucchini, lettuce, spinach, winter squash and pumpkin. The best way to prepare these items would be to steam them for your cat. The produce should be cooked to help break down the plant cell walls, but it’s important to cook them without any additional salt or oils as those extra ingredients can be harmful to your cat.   

No, apple seeds are potentially toxic to cats, along with the stems and leaves of an apple tree. These all contain trace amounts of cyanide. Your cat would have to eat quite a lot of seeds to potentially poison themselves, but it’s still not a risk worth taking.  

Kittens and apples look very cute right next to each other, but generally speaking, apples are not a good treat for kittens. Proper nutrition is especially important for kittens, so it’s important for them to stick with mothers’ milk and specially formulated food specifically for kittens.  

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Reviewed by Petco’s Animal Care, Education and Compliance (ACE) Team

Petco’s ACE team is a passionate group of experienced pet care experts dedicated to supporting the overall health & wellness of pets. The ACE team works to develop animal care operations and standards across the organization and promote proper animal care and education for Pet Care Center partners and pet parents, while also ensuring regulatory compliance.