Vegan cats and their food. - WELL PUT!

[Guest guest]

Thank you Dave, for this beautiful, elegant, well-thought out email.

 

This topic did come up on the list before, and I expressed my opinions then,

and have tried to refrain from doing so again, but your email is too good to

ignore.

 

Like David says, Cats, from their whiskers to the tip of their tails, are 100%

carnivores. Their ancestors survived on raw meat ALONE, no supplements. This is

in STRIKING opppositiong to dogs, who are OMNIVORES, and therefore better

adapted to respond well to a vegan diet.

 

Even with regular pet foods, cats experience many " people " diseases like

diabetes, which one can be dure no wild cat ever sufferred from. This is due to

the high content of stratch in their AAFCO approved food.

 

Furthermore, yes, cats can survive on vegan food. But are they happy with it?

WE could survive on rice and beans and nothing else, and live well. But what

about that joy factor, that cake, a fruit salad, or whatever you may fancy...

Can you imagine forgoing all food goodies forever? Yes, you will live, and if

you're hungry enough, you will eat whatever is served to you. But this is not

just about survival, it is also about quality of life.

 

Once in a while, I commit an evil crime, I buy some free range organic pastrame

or a similar meat (yes yes, I know all the free range stuff, but it's still

somewhat better than factory). Pay the premium price, and bring it home to my

cats. They are literally out of their mind with joy, and purr just from the

smell. Do I have a right to deny them that joy just because we are a society

that lost touch with moral values?

 

Yes, if I let them go hungry for two days, in the end they will eat whatever

they are served (I tried). But when it's food they like, they truly enjoy it.

They don't just eat it because they are hungry.

 

On a final note, yes I know there are cats out there who do well on a vegan

diet. But there are also people out there who live to 90, even though they eat

red meat and smoked all their lives. There is the genetic factor, and maybe a

vegan diet is suitable only for the strongest of cats. A cat can live to 20

years in good conditions. Anyone ever known a cat to live to 20 on a vegan

diet? (The highest I heard so far was in the 13 years range).

 

So, for their joy, and for their health, I will keep giving my cats meat based

diets. And for my conscience, I try to make that meat the least evil possible

(like eagle pack, who gets their chicken from the amish), and willingly pay the

premium price for that.

 

Tal

 

 

 

--- Dave Goggin <dave65536 wrote:

 

> Hi Melissa and friends,

>

> It's interesting that this subject should come up now and I am glad to see it

> discussed here. I myself am considering adopting a cat. In doing my due

> dilligence, I found many articles promoting vegan cats well as some

> recommending against it and much rumor and conflicting information. My

> findings, and some philosophical considerations are described below.

>

> Cats are finding themselves the preferred companion animal in the modern

> world because of their intelligence, good looks, laid-back attitude, low

> maintenance (they can even learn to use a toilet!), and when lovingly raised

> as kittens and kept well-entertained, a friendly and empathetic personality.

> We find they are in many ways like ourselves, individualistic and preferring

> to be treated as equals.

>

> But they are carnivores which makes them, on the face of it, unlikely members

> of vegetarian households. But unlike carnivorous snakes for example, which

> most vegetarians would eschew as pets, cats, perhaps because of their

> endearing qualities and 6000 year connection with humankind are not so easy

> to do without.

>

> Happily for all involved, modern science and chemical engineering may hold

> the key. Mr. Borg is correct to point out that cats need a source of taurine

> in their diet and will suffer terrible afflictions if it's not there. But

> having a vegan cat is much more than simply serving up a garden salad

> peppered with taurine powder. The nutritional needs of cats are quite complex

> owing to their need for a number of materials that most other animals

> (including people) can synthesize from plant matter. Besides taurine they

> need dietary arachadonic acid, preformed vitamin A, vitamin D, and several

> others. And their needs for protein, fats, and carbohydrates are quite

> different from our own. A number of vegan cat foods have been developed that

> follow a standard called the Association of American Feed Control Officials

> (AAFCO) nutrition profile, which non-veg catfoods also strive to conform to.

>

>

> And anecdotal evidence seems positive.

>

> But before everyone starts meowing with delight, keep in mind it isn't quite

> a done deal yet.

>

> One web page in particular caught my attention, by a cat vet who is also a

> former animal rights activist. The good doctor mentions a number of issues

> including the possibility that the nutritional guidelines for cat food are

> somewhat outdated, the increased risk of diabetes from high-carb (i.e.

> relative to what cats naturally eat) diets, the cat's digestive anatomy being

> less effective than ours at absorbing nutrients from plant matter, issues

> with soy, and perhaps there are micronutrients in meat that are needed for a

> long and healthy life that aren't yet in the standard. We should not be too

> quick to dismiss such concerns I think.

>

> Cats, from their sharp teeth to the tip of their furry tail, and everything

> in between, are fine-tuned to the carnivourous lifestyle. In switching them

> to 100% vegan diets, we are declaring our intention to impose, unilaterally

> and by fiat, a drastic new world order upon cat-kind, their own biology and

> 40 million years of evolution notwithstanding. This is a thing not to be

> taken lightly. Yet the circumstances and morality of the situation would seem

> to force the issue. It is not tenable for vegetarians to subsidize the

> farming and slaughter of numerous cows, pigs etc to provide food for one cat,

> no matter how cute or endearing. It also seems unlikely that vegetarians, to

> say nothing of the larger population, would happily abstain from keeping

> cats, if for no other reason than that so many are living in shelters and in

> need of a good home. Finally, the other possible solutions to the dilemma,

> namely (a) the wholesale genetic modification of the cat species to make it

> herbivorous or (b) the laboratory production of cell-cultured meat on an

> industrial scale, while not being IMHO ethically problematic, are not yet

> within the realm of practical application.

>

> I do not question the ethical sincerity and dietetic expertise of the various

> manufacturers of vegan cat foods. Still, it has taken quite a long time to

> figure out what nutrients humans need to live long and healthy lives free of

> disease-- and we're already herbivores by nature. So until science

> determines beyond a reasonable doubt the exact right formula of proteins,

> enzymes, vitamins, micronutrients, etc for cats, folks who decide to have

> their cats go vegan will have to accept the possibility that their cats may

> not be as healthy (or happy... they are being asked to eat what must taste

> and smell a bit weird to them) as they could be if eating an ideal meat-based

> diet. (there are high quality 'all organic, free range' cat foods out there,

> of course carrying a premium price as well.)

>

> I can tell you the whole food issue has certainly forestalled my adopting a

> cat and I don't yet have what I feel to be " the right answer. " I'm curious

> to hear others' opinions!

>

> One thing which everyone seems agreed on is that vegan cats should be closely

> monitored by the vet for proper biochemistry and health. If trouble does

> crop up it will provide much needed data points to fine tune the cat

> nutrition guidelines, while a consistently clean bill of health will lend

> credence to the whole vegan cat endeavor. A close working relationship

> between vegan cat guardians and their vets will also go a long way toward

> dispelling the popular stereotype of vegan cat guardians as irresponsible

> kooks bent on an unnatural and cruel ideology.

>

> By the way, I agree with Mr. Borg that turning your cats loose to hunt

> outside for 'supplements' is a bad idea. Better to teach a cat to walk on a

> harness and thereby enjoy some quality time in the outdoors in a safe manner,

> to keep it from getting bored indoors.

>

> Thanks,

> DG

>

>

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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