Best Canned Pumpkin For Dogs

Last Updated: May 15, 2023 @ 11:02 am.

Canned Pumpkin and Your Dog: Tips & Tricks

Let’s talk canned pumpkin and dogs!

If your dog has tummy troubles, you may have read that pumpkin is a popular natural remedy. 

It’s so popular that the American Kennel Club recently covered the trend, explaining why pumpkin can help:

“Pumpkin is a fiber-rich food that also contains important vitamins and minerals, such as vitamins A, E, and C, and potassium and iron. Plain, canned pumpkin is available year-round and can be a great addition to your canine first aid kit.”

So how does pumpkin actually help a dog or cat with tummy trouble? 

“Pumpkin can ease digestion in several ways. The soluble fiber content in pumpkin adds bulk to your dog’s stool by absorbing water, and fiber fermentation produces beneficial fatty acids that supply energy to cells, stimulate intestinal sodium and water absorption, and lower the pH level of the large intestines.”

If you want to try pumpkin with your dog, here are some tips and tricks:

• Pumpkin puree either comes in cans (liquid) or in powdered form. There are pros and cons to each, as we’ll discuss below. Powdered pumpkin is easier to travel with . . . plus there is less waste from half-eaten cans.

• Pumpkin puree has different moisture contents. This varies by brands—some are wetter, some dryer. We think the more moist pumpkin puree is best for dogs who typically eat wet dog food . . . it mixes well. By contrast, dogs who eat dry dog food may prefer the firmer/thicker texture of other brands.

• Always talk to your vet first before trying a natural remedy like pumpkin puree. For mild tummy trouble, pumpkin puree may a good solution . . . but always ask first!

How we tested

To test pumpkin for dogs, we turned to our expert canine tester:

Yes, that is our three-year-old cockapoo—or as known by her official title, Vice President of Canine Product Testing.

Of course, we also surveyed our parent readers for their experiences with pumpkin and dogs. We got their insights as to which brands worked well. 

After all that research, here are top picks:

Best Powdered Pumpkin: Native Pet Organic Pumpkin for Dogs

Canned pumpkin puree is great for its wide availability and general affordability.

But there are a couple of drawbacks to canned pumpkin: first, it can be wasteful. If you have a small dog, a large can of pumpkin puree might be overkill. Yes, you can refrigerate leftovers, but most folks just throw away the excess.

Powdered pumpkin allows you to prepare just the amount you need–great for smaller dogs.

Another drawback: travel. It is easier to travel with powdered pumpkin (just add water to make puree) than the canned variety.

For the best powdered canned pumpkin, our canine testers liked Native Pet Organic Pumpkin for Dogs. 

We liked this pumpkin’s simple three ingredients (pumpkin, pumpkin seeds and apple). Yes, it is more pricey than canned pumpkin, but there is less waste. And the can is shelf-stable for two years  . . . so you can keep this in your canine first aid kit without much worry.

What’s not to like? Well, some readers with dogs who are picky eaters didn’t cotton to the taste. And some cats weren’t wild about this either. And some critics would prefer pure pumpkin (that is, without the added ingredients like apples).

Best For Dry Dog Food: Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin

If your dog eats dry dog food, we’d suggest canned pumpkin that is thicker/firmer in texture. 

In that category, this canned pumpkin got an enthusiastic thumbs up from both our Vice President of Canine Food Testing and our readers in general: Libby’s 100% pure pumpkin.

Unlike other brands that have a higher moisture content, Libby’s is thicker . . . and that works well with dry food. Or just straight from the can. 

Best For Wet Dog Food: Farmer’s Market Organic Pumpkin Puree

All canned pumpkin is the same, right? Not so, based on our testing.

While the ingredients are often the same (that is, pumpkin puree), there is one major difference: moisture content.

In our testing, we discovered that some canned pumpkin is more liquid and others are firmer/thicker in texture.

After some trial and error, we think that the best bet for wet dog food would be a canned puree with a higher moisture content. After trying several brands, we think Farmer’s Market Organic Pumpkin Puree is the best bet in that category.

This USDA organic pumpkin puree has no GMO’s and comes in a BPA-free can. And yes, for whatever reason, it has more moisture than others . . . and that makes mixing it into wet dog food easier, in our opinion.

Why Trust Us

We’ve been rating and reviewing products for the home and families since 1994. We do extensive research, evaluating products with an eye toward quality, ease of use and affordability. When we purchase a product for hands-on testing, we do so with our own money.

Here’s another key point: we don’t take money from the brands we review. No free samples, no sponsors, no “partnerships.” Our work is 100% reader-supported!

About the Authors: Denise & Alan Fields

Denise & Alan Fields have made a career out of chronicling life’s milestones: getting married, buying a home and raising kids.

As best-selling authors, the Fields have written a series of best-selling consumer guides, including Baby Bargains (over two million copies in print).
With detailed reviews and recommendations of cribs, strollers and car seats, Baby Bargains has helped multiple generations of parents pick out the best gear for baby since 1994

Inside, Baby Bargains, you’ll find:

• CHEAT SHEETS for your baby registry―create a baby registry in minutes with our good, better, best ideas.

• SEVEN THINGS no one tells you about baby gear, from nursery furniture to feeding baby.

• Dozens of SAFETY TIPS to keep baby safe and affordably
baby proof your home.

Co-author Denise Fields is one half of the team that wrote the beloved baby care series, Baby 411.

Covering pregnancy, baby and toddler years, the Baby 411 series is both fun to read and informative—the inside scoop on your child’s growth, development and health.

Think of it as the ultimate FAQ for new parents:

• Sleep. The best way to get your baby to sleep through the night.

• First aid—when to worry, when not to . . . and what to do when baby gets sick. No-nonsense, down-to-earth advice you can trust.

• Fussy baby 411. Is it colic? Acid reflux? Or something else? Discover  the secrets to soothing a fussy baby.

• Detailed nutrition info with a step-by-step guide for successful breastfeeding, introducing solid food and the ‘‘new and improved’’ formulas. Plus: simple steps to avoid food allergies!

Denise Fields

Raised in Loveland, Colorado, Denise Fields caught the writing bug early in life. She won awards for her essays at the tender age of 12, all while tending her family’s pet donkey at a farm in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains.

Fields received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado before co-founding a publishing company in Austin, Texas in 1988.

As the co-author of 23 books, Fields has written extensively on consumer topics, including real estate, parenting and children’s products.

A frequent guest on television, radio and online, Fields has been cited as an expert source by the New York Times, who hailed her Baby Bargains book as “the Bible of baby gear.”

Fields also has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and on TV shows like Good Morning America and the NBC Today Show.

Alan Fields

Alan Fields grew up in Dallas, Texas before attending the University of Colorado and receiving a Bachelor of Science degree.

Fields worked both in newspapers and radio before launching a career as a book author.

Together with Denise, Fields moved to Austin, Texas where Fields received a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Colorado.

Fields co-founded Windsor Peak Press, a boutique publishing company now based in Boulder, CO.

As a consumer advocate and money-saving expert, Fields has been quoted in the Washington Post, New York Times and even People Magazine.

Denise & Alan Fields talking money-saving tips with Katie Couric.

How We Come Up With Recommendations

Let’s talk about how we pick products to recommend.

In a world full of influencers paid to shill a product, you deserve unbiased recommendations based on solid research and testing.

That’s why we are here.

Here’s three reasons why folks trust our recommendations and advice when it comes to selecting products for your home and family:

1. Experience.
2. Independence.
3. Expert.

Experience

We have been researching, reviewing and rating products for families and the home since 1994. (Yes, that long!). This is what we do—we obsess about gear so you don’t have to.

We have many fine competitors online but we challenge you to find one who has as much experience in the family category as Baby Bargains. Go ahead, we’ll wait right here.

We do hands-on research.

What does that mean?

How we research varies by the product category. For some products used in a home, we purchase them with our own money (no freebies) and test them in-house.

Example: for a review on the best vanilla bean paste (part of our series on baking products), we compare the thickness of several brands in our test kitchen:

For other recommendations, we tap our vast readership (our books have 3 million copies in print) for their feedback. We look for real-world product reports from our readers to narrow down the vast field of choices in many categories.

To keep things fair, we also do blind taste tests when it comes to items like food. We’ll gather a panel of ramen enthusiasts, for example, and then have them chow down on mystery bowls to see which scores best.

To get insights beyond our own testing and reader feedback, we interview industry experts to get the inside scoop on what separates a quality product from an inferior choice.

Finally, we regularly meet one on one with gear companies and even tour manufacturing facilities. On a recent trip to a Ohio, we visited the factory that makes mattresses we review to watch the manufacturing process:

The result of all this effort: you get the most reliable gear reviews you can find, online or off.

We aim to give you additional insight beyond what you can find yourself via online descriptions and reviews.

How do we get to do this? That brings us to reason number 2 . . .

Independence

Let’s do something you won’t hear from our competitors: we’re going to tell you exactly how we make money.

We make a living from sales of our print books and affiliate commissions. What does that mean? When you purchase a recommended product that is linked in an article, we may get a small commission.

Do you see anything missing? That’s right—we do NOT take money from the brands we review. No cash, no free samples, no gift baskets. When we fly to see a manufacturer’s factory, we pay ALL of our travel expenses. The result: we tell you how it really is.

Let’s talk about a dirty secret of influencers who “review” gear. Many take free product to give away in contests. Others accept samples in exchange for a review. Some insist on cash.

That compromises independence, in our opinion.

To keep it real, we insist on being independent from the brands we review.

Expert

Want to see something really scary? Take a look at this:

Yes, that my friends, is a luggage scale. It strikes fear and terror in the hearts of a certain group of people—baby stroller makers.

Why?

That’s because stroller makes often brag about how little their strollers weigh, knowing that’s a key feature consumers look for. Lightweight strollers are preferred over those that weigh more than 25 lbs.

So here’s our secret sauce: we carry a portable luggage scale with us when we evaluate new strollers. And wouldn’t you know it? The ACTUAL weight of strollers is often more than what marketers state. Surprised?

It’s that little bit of fact checking that separates Baby Bargains from other gear review sources. Most simply take the maker’s word on a stroller’s weight. We verify.

We take that same approach to all the products we review, aiming to produce thorough research that goes deeper than our competitors.

So there you have it—who we are, how we got here and how we come up with our recommendations. As always, we value your feedback, so drop us a line via our web page or social media channels. Thanks in advance for your support.