Can you feed a cat or dog a vegetarian/vegan diet?

Answer 1

Dogs do not need meat.

At present, there is some debate as to whether domestic dogs should be classified as omnivores or carnivores, by diet. The classification in the Order Carnivora does not necessarily mean that a dog's diet must be restricted to meat; unlike an obligate carnivore, such as the cat family with its shorter small intestine, a dog is dependent on neither meat-specific protein nor a very high level of protein in order to fulfill its basic dietary requirements.

Cats need meat.

Cats are obligate carnivores, and cannot live on an unsupplemented vegetarian diet because they cannot synthesize several required nutrients which are absent or rare in plant food.

Answer 2

Both animals can be fed a vegetarian diet, although neither is a vegan by nature -- dogs are omnivores, and cats are carnivores. While both dogs and cats belong to the class carnivora, this doesn't mean a lot, so does the panda bear which is near vegan.
By nature cats and dogs wouldn't eat anything like what is commonly found in a can of pet food either. Special diets must be provided for cats, as they require an amino acid called taurine -- found in the muscles of animals.
Synthetic taurine has been developed, and is used in commercial (non vegetarian) cat foods. Vegetarian cats should be fed it as a supplement. Taurine deficiency can result in blindness and even death. Cats also require pre-formed vitamin A and arachidonic acid.
All known vegan cat foods contain these essential ingredients and the companies listed below provide them in their cat foods. Ask your vet about changing your pet's diet if concerned.
Not only is it POSSIBLE to feed most cats and dogs a non-meat diet, it is also DESIRABLE. Buying "normal" pet food is supporting the same meat industry with its attendant cruelty, exploitation, waste, and environmental damage that veganism is so opposed to.

Answer 3

Oh boy! Another thumbs down question for me!!

YES! YOU CAN FEED BOTH A VEGAN DIET!! Dogs are omnivores (even in the wild). While cats are carnivorous by nature, humans have made vegan food products for cats that will allow them to not only live a decent life but thrive! Search the resolved questions here for links to the companies that make such foods for cats.

Rant Mode:ON

With the spread of CWD,BSE and other prions; plus the threat cats face from bird flu these vegan foods may be the future hope of cat lovers to prevent illness or death in their cats. Look up the US and UK governmental 'action plans' to prevent pandemic bird flu and notice that both call for the capture and killing of all pets!

Rant Mode:OFF

Simply stated; Yes, It is possible to feed a dog/cat a vegan diet if proper precautions are followed!

Answer 4

Dogs and cats can live on vegetarian diet whole their life.My whole family in India is pure vegetarian and feed dogs same food they eat.If human can eat meat like animals,they can be vegetarians like human too.

Answer 5

I wouldn't suggest making your OWN vegetarian petfood unless you are WELL versed in pet nutrition and only under the guidance of a professional pet nutritionist. However, there are a FEW brands of prepared vegetarian pet food. Wysong is the only one that I personally know of which is considered a "complete" (aka for long-term feeding) diet and it might be hard to find. They sell it at Walkers Healthy Pet by me... but that's a privately owned store with 3 local sites... not nationwide by any means. You could probably get it online though.

I do however feel that a vegetarian diet is not the healthiest option for dogs and cats (especially cats). Wild cats eat almost exlusively animal protein (birds, mice, etc). You don't see them eating vegetables or grains hardly at all (with the exception of injesting grass to aid in digestion). Dogs (wolves, coyotes) eat more berries, etc. but it's still a small part of their natural diet. The store I mentioned is owned/run by a pet nutritionist who only stocks foods of human quality ingredients and free of chemicals, etc. But even he doesn't recommend a vegetarian diet for dogs and cats.

Answer 6

you can - however, bear in mind, cats and dogs are carnivores. in the wild, they hunt and kill their own food. this is the way their bodies are designed.

the choice to be a vegetarian/vegan is a human choice and should not be imposed on animals that are not created as such by nature. while cats & dogs will occaisionally eat some grasses or veggies to clear out their systems, their systems are not meant to run properly on veggie diets.

Answer 7

Dogs have been domesticated for much longer than cats, so a dog can handle less meat in its diet than a cat. Domestic dogs are actually considered to be omnivores, they have been around humans long enough, they have evolved to eat what we do.

I don't believe a cat would be very healthy on a vegan diet, I have heard that feeding cats veg/carb diet can actually kill them.

I would not advise it.

Answer 8

Yes, there are places online that sell vegan cat and dog food. The food has all the nutrients needed to keep them healthy in it. It's kind of weird to think of them not eating meat because that's what they do in the wild but eating dry fish flavored food out of a bag isn't natural either.

Answer 9

only if you add some sort of high protein component to the mix. Cats and dogs require plenty of protein to be healthy. Many commercial pet foods contain mostly vegetable products. Why would you want to feed them as a vegan? Especially if you are risking their health.

Answer 10

No, dogs are omnivores, for all you laymen, that means they eat just about anything. cats on the other hand are devout carnivores, they need meat. or at least meat products