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Hot dogs and sausages for babies

How to serve it at 6, 9 and 12 months.

The AAP says to avoid hot dogs under 1 year, and says later they are served only if chopped into tiny pieces. The CDC's choking list names hot dogs, meat sticks and sausages. A choking hazard on both lists. Not a major allergen.

Checked October 29, 2026.

How to serve hot dogs at 6, 9 and 12 months

Serving hot dogs, following the CDC and AAP texture and choking guidance
AgeHow to serve it
About 6 monthsNot served.
About 9 monthsNot served.
About 12 monthsOnly chopped into tiny pieces; the CDC also advises limiting high-sodium processed meats for young children.

Every baby is different. Start the same way for every food: your baby sits up, you are right there, and the pieces match what they can do.

Is hot dogs a choking hazard?

It is named on both the CDC's choking list and the AAP's choking page. The AAP says to cut food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch, to have children sit while they eat, and to watch every meal.

Hold off before 12 months.

Is hot dogs an allergen?

It is not one of the nine major food allergens the FDA names.

Even so, try one new single-ingredient food at a time, so you can tell what a food does (CDC).

Where this comes from

Named by: CDC: Choking Hazards; AAP: Choking Prevention; AAP: starting solid foods (finger foods). The serving steps follow the CDC's texture advice and the AAP's finger-food and choking pages.

Call your pediatrician if…

Your pediatrician knows your child. Call them if you have a worry about a food, a reaction or choking. The AAP and the CDC have more:

Peabody editors write these pages from the sources below. We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice for your child.

Sources