So What Exactly Is Wrong With Vegan Cat Food?

[sabrinah]

I feel like I've made my opinion abundantly clear on this thread already, but I'll say it again.

Humans can be incredibly healthy with no meat. It's quite easy since we didn't evolve to fill a meat-eating niche, but rather we foraged primarily and scavenged meat initially until the habitat and the tools made meat a good option. I don't eat meat myself because I don't like the treatment of the animals, it's effect on the environment, and animals needing to die for my survival. Humans don't absolutely have to have meat, many just like it. Would I try laboratory created meat? Maybe. Would I give it to my cat? Over my dead body.

Cats have to eat meat. They are carnivores and need to kill and eat other things to survive. End of story. I will not trade the suffering of chickens for the suffering of my cat. If I could I would raise chickens myself to use in her food because I would be able to ensure they have a good quality of life. I would also love it if I could raise mice for her and give her a very species appropriate diet while keeping the prey items happy and healthy. At the present time this is unrealistic, so commercial pet food and homemade food it is.

Stuff like pushing inappropriate diets for an obligate carnivore is why so many people hate vegans and vegetarians.

 

[Yanaka]

(1) From genetic testing, we know that domestic cats are descended from the Little African Wildcat.

(2) They eat rodents and birds. Not leaves and grass. They have as much chance to eat those foods as any animal in their habitat, like, say, marmots.

We've had thousands of years to figure that out. Cats chose to live around humans because human trash attracts rodents and birds. Dogs chose to live around humans because they like human trash . Cats have always hunted with very little scavenging (unless food is very scarce), dogs have always mainly scavenged and occasionally hunted. Similar beginnings, different diets. By their own choice.

This might be a brief and clear answer, but it's so sound and makes so much sense. Simple observation and knowledge just can't lie.

 

[mservant]

Drawing attention everyone's attention to points 1. and 2. of the Forum Rules here:

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Please be respectful and considerate of other members' views in your posts here, whether you agree with what is said or not.

 

[mskatz]

No, I don't believe that humans are necessarily meant to eat meat. I have no problem with people choosing to be vegans or vegetarians for themselves, but I personally do not choose that.

This is a separate issue from trying to convert an obligate carnivore into a vegan. You can make a choice for yourself but you have no right to make the choice for an entire species. If you have a problem with cats eating meat then get yourself a rabbit. And if you have a problem with animals being unnecessarily slaughtered then take it out on the human food industry instead of trying to "fix" nature.

It always baffles me how some vegans can profess so much "love" for animals yet they don't understand that many animals need to hunt and kill each other in a very bloody and gruesome way to survive. Animals are not fluffy stuffed animals that are around for your enjoyment and companionship. Animals don't live in your lovey dovey fluffy vegan imagined world. They have needs, and for cats one of those needs is eating some good juicy raw meat, not meat produced by cloned animals or any other lab-manufactured products. The issues of the animal slaughter industry are separate from the fact that cats are obligate carnivores. I am finished discussing this with you now.

First, I will continue to feed meat to my pets (so you can rest easy -- I am NOT putting my pets in danger) UNTIL someone proves to me otherwise; Second, wild life in the JUNGLE for animals & their relationship to one another is DIFFERENT than cats living with humans, which is WHAT this subject matter is all about -- in the human world, people are the BOSS as opposed to in the Jungle, where animals RULE -- you have a tendency to jump around mid argument making several points NOT specifying which point refers to what issue! -- Thank you for your advice -- I've read everything you posted - live and learn.

 

[duckpond]

First, I will continue to feed meat to my pets (so you can rest easy -- I am NOT putting my pets in danger) UNTIL someone proves to me otherwise; Second, wild life in the JUNGLE for animals & their relationship to one another is DIFFERENT than cats living with humans, which is WHAT this subject matter is all about -- in the human world, people are the BOSS as opposed to in the Jungle, where animals RULE -- you have a tendency to jump around mid argument making several points NOT specifying which point refers to what issue! -- Thank you for your advice -- I've read everything you posted - live and learn.

You are right, in our world humans are the "boss" Our pets must live with what we do to them. And with being the boss and controlling the lives of others comes great responsibility. It is our responsibility to learn what is appropriate for each pet under our control. Be it a Cat, dog, hamster, bird, horse, any animal.

All animals have species specific needs and as responsible pet parents, or owners if you will, we should always take the time and effort to provide them with as stress free home life as possible. Food is just one of the factors in this responsibility. Evolution does happen, and it allows animals to adapt to living easier along side us. But it happens very slowly, and for some species so slowly that it is not at all, for all practical purposes.

No one regimens of food, shelter and care will work for all different species. Study and learn about the ones you are in control of, and tailor your care of that animal to what they need. It may not always be what we want to do, but if we cannot put the needs of the animal above our own notions of how they should live, then we might need to reconsider the pets we have. There are pets for large space, small spaces, indoors, outdoors, calm, active, carnivores, vegans, so many options. Research before bringing a pet into your life, then bring in the one that best works with your lifestyle, and that you can care for in a species appropriate manner. These are just my thoughts. It never hurts to research, or discuss, new thoughts and possibilities, but i know with my pets i would not act upon this research unless it was well founded and proven.

 

[Sammiches]

I'm no expert but eating meat = bad is just a human morality thing. Morality is a human construct. If you're forcing your cat to eat a vegan diet, you're essentially stripping them of their nature because of your selfish act. It's fine if you decide for yourself that you want to be vegan, that's harming nobody. If you force strip nature from another living being against their will, I have to say that is just cruel. Remember eating meat isn't inherently evil, just when humans mass produce animals and grow them in inhumane ways to make money is.

 

[mskatz]

You are right, in our world humans are the "boss" Our pets must live with what we do to them. And with being the boss and controlling the lives of others comes great responsibility. It is our responsibility to learn what is appropriate for each pet under our control. Be it a Cat, dog, hamster, bird, horse, any animal.

All animals have species specific needs and as responsible pet parents, or owners if you will, we should always take the time and effort to provide them with as stress free home life as possible. Food is just one of the factors in this responsibility. Evolution does happen, and it allows animals to adapt to living easier along side us. But it happens very slowly, and for some species so slowly that it is not at all, for all practical purposes.

No one regimens of food, shelter and care will work for all different species. Study and learn about the ones you are in control of, and tailor your care of that animal to what they need. It may not always be what we want to do, but if we cannot put the needs of the animal above our own notions of how they should live, then we might need to reconsider the pets we have. There are pets for large space, small spaces, indoors, outdoors, calm, active, carnivores, vegans, so many options. Research before bringing a pet into your life, then bring in the one that best works with your lifestyle, and that you can care for in a species appropriate manner. These are just my thoughts. It never hurts to research, or discuss, new thoughts and possibilities, but i know with my pets i would not act upon this research unless it was well founded and proven.

We're right back where we started -- I am still feeding my cats animal products. So, we can all relax. On to a related topic : By the way, are YOU researching whether anyone out there has cats who are on a Vegan diet? -- I will do so -- I'll do research -- whatever I may find, I'll share with you.

 

[duckpond]

We're right back where we started -- I am still feeding my cats animal products. So, we can all relax. On to a related topic : By the way, are YOU researching whether anyone out there has cats who are on a Vegan diet? -- I will do so -- I'll do research -- whatever I may find, I'll share with you.

I am not actively researching it. I have done some light research, and did not see anything that made me want to look into it more, honestly.

I myself lean more toward vegetarian, for myself, but not something i really care to explore with my cats. If it interest you then continue with your research, and do share, its interesting to read. Just not something i have the time or much inclination for. But im always open to reading links.

 

[EmmiTemmi]

Found this study today when I was browsing scholarly articles for something else, and thought of this thread. Link:

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It's a JAVMA article discussing the nutrient composition of two vegan cat foods (1 canned, and 1 that needs to be mixed with flour, oil, and tomato paste) being marketed as meeting AAFCO guidelines. Spoiler, neither diet met AAFCO minimums in everything tested. Both were severely taurine deficient, one had almost no calcium, and one had selenium over 62X the AAFCO minimum.

To be fair, the study didn't have any replicates, and they didn't test for every single nutrient AAFCO lists, but it gave a pretty good idea of vegan cat food in regards to their nutritional completeness and adequacy for cats.

Edit: Link didn't appear to work on my end, here's another try
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[Blakeney Green]

The whole vegan cat food thing confuses me, because the argument in favor of it seems to boil down to "I am entitled to a cat whether or not I am willing and able to provide species-appropriate care, because it's just an animal and thus it is my property."

There is no argument in favor of it based on the good of the cat. The sole motivation is the human getting the pet they want, even if it's at the cat's expense.

That seems incredibly inconsistent to me. If you value animals that much, then value them enough to recognize that their needs deserve to be met, and either figure out a way to feed the cat a species-appropriate diet, or else compromise on your own wants and get a different pet that better fits your lifestyle.

You (general you, not any specific poster) are not entitled to a cat unless you can and will care for it. Period. Any "Yes but..." in response to that frankly just seems really human-centric and dismissive of animal welfare.