Meatless meals for pets?

Ethical beliefs are a common reason people adopt a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle and eliminate contact with animal products fed to their own dogs or cats. There are also certain diseases, including urinary stones, hepatic encephalopathy, and food allergies, that may benefit from a vegetarian prescription diet. However, there is concern about the health and safety of some of these vegetarian and vegan diets, especially for cats. Cats are obligate carnivores and require animal fats and protein in their diet to receive essential nutrients to thrive. Due to their anatomic, physiologic, biochemical, metabolic, and enzymatic make-up, dogs and cats are not well adapted to an all-plant based diet.

Since some essential nutrients are limited in plant material, the risk of nutritional deficiencies increases when animal tissues are eliminated from the diet. One very important nutrient in cats is taurine. Taurine is important for multiple organ functions and a deficiency can cause blindness, heart disease, poor growth, neurologic dysfunction, and an inefficient immune system. Plant material does not contain ample niacin which can cause weight loss, weakness, decreased appetite, oral ulcers, and diarrhea when deficient. It is also important for both dogs and cats to acquire multiple vitamins, such as Vitamins A and D, from their diet. Vitamin A deficiencies can also cause blindness, skin lesions, and secondary infections. Low levels of Vitamin D can cause defective bone formation in growing animals as well as lameness. Moreover, cats are constantly breaking down protein for energy and have very high total protein requirements. These are only a few examples of essential nutrients required by dogs and cats. Therefore, in order for a vegetarian or vegan diet to be considered balanced and nutritious, many nutrients that are normally found in animal protein need to be added to the diet.

Another concern when considering any commercial diet is whether or not the food actually contains all of the nutrients claimed on the label. A recent study evaluated 24 commercially available vegetarian dog and cat food to determine if labeling requirements were met and if the diets contained the minimum required amount of protein and essential amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein (Kanakuba, et al). Shockingly, only 8 diets met all labelling requirements and actually contained the minimum amount of protein and essential amino acids required by dogs and cats. Of the diets examined, 3 were therapeutic diets that required a prescription from a veterinarian to obtain. All three of these diets met labeling and nutrient requirements. A similar study evaluated two commercially available vegan diets for cats for nutritional adequacy. Unfortunately, both diets were deficient in multiple essential nutrients and could not be recommended as the sole source of nutrition for cats.

Based on these studies we know that deciding to feed your dog or cat a vegetarian or vegan diet comes with a set of precautions that must be considered. Despite these precautions, feeding a balanced vegetarian or vegan diet to our furry companions is not impossible. One thing to consider is using a diet formulated by a large, reputable pet food company or a therapeutic diet prescribed by your veterinarian. While some people may want to shy away from these big name companies, it is important to remember that they have the resources to conduct adequate quality assurance tests to make sure their diets contain the necessary nutrients for dogs and cats. Also, based on the studies mentioned before we know that at least the therapeutic diets are more likely to actually contain the nutrients claimed by their label. It seems that if you truly wish to feed these diets to your pet then consulting with your veterinarian is the safest option. If you don’t like the idea of using a diet formulated by a larger pet food company then another option is to home cook your pet’s diet. Your veterinarian can refer you to a board certified pet nutritionist that can formulate a complete and balanced vegetarian or vegan diet that still meets the nutritional requirements for your pet.

At the end of the day the most important thing is keeping our pets healthy and happy. There are certainly cons to feeding a vegetarian or vegan diet, however if this lifestyle is chosen for your pet or they have concurrent diseases that would benefit from these diets, then consulting with a veterinarian is the safest way to ensure you keep your best furry friend healthy.