'VEGETARIAN DOGS'????

[emderpenguin]

huh?

Anyone else puzzled by this idea? I was looking at the Wafcol site, following another post about if the low-fat food was any good and found the following:

Unlike cats, dogs are not true carnivores. They are omnivores and could quite happily live as a vegetarian. Dogs have the ability to utilise vegetables, and convert the vegetable protein into usable compounds. Vegetables provide the essential vitamins and minerals that meat alone cannot supply. If you ensure your dog is eating a well-balanced complete food then there really is no problem with a vegetarian diet. The Wafcol Vegetarian is approved by the Vegetarian Society and is based on vegetable and cereal proteins. It excludes all meat and meat by-products without compromising the quality of the product and provides the dog with the full range of essential vitamins and minerals for an active and healthy life.

puzzled, I popped this into google and it came up with a number of sites about it.

It just seems quite odd to me!

[hollyd443]

I know of a dog that was fed veggie from the word go and he lived til the grand old age of 18!!! Does seem strange though doesn't it?!

[LurcherGirl]

I have a dog that has been vegan (not just vegetarian) for almost three years now. His diet is however not due to any of my convictions, but due to an allergy he has against animal protein!

I have to say that he has never been healthier and fitter, he is doing very well on his diet (Benevo, which is a dry food, with Missing Link Vegetarian supplement and cold pressed nut oil for omega 3 and 6). He doesn't have to lose out on any treats as there are lots of vegan treats available these days. For training, I get vegan sausages, vegan chicken style treats, vegan cheese etc. which he all loves!

So although I wouldn't chose to feed a dog on a vegetarian/vegan diet just for the sake of it, I can honestly say that if done correctly, they can be just as healthy and fit!

Here's our vegan dog Flash:

With his TTouch practitioner Jacqui to show you how shiny his fur is


On holiday in action

[Annette]

He is stunning!

I can fully understand, of course, why you are doing that diet with him.

I would be interested to know whether you would ever consider such a radical diet if it wasn't medically necessary? Just asking as you have proof there that dogs can thrive on such a diet.

Personally I wouldn't, but then I am not veggie or vegan myself. I feel it is wrong to inflict our dietary choices on another species however. And I know of several vegetarians on here who not only feed normal dog food to their dogs, but even feed raw! I consider them to be truly heroes!

[LurcherGirl]

I would be interested to know whether you would ever consider such a radical diet if it wasn't medically necessary?

No, I wouldn't. Our other three dogs are fed on a meat based diet! But I have to admit, health wise, Flash has had the least health problems last year out of the four... In fact, he hasn't had any at all where all of the other three have!

Although I wouldn't chose to feed a dog like this without a medical reason, I am certainly not prepared to put people down that do... considering how well Flash is doing on it!

Vera

[sportsmonki]

Vera, Flash is stunning!     Although I'd heard of dogs on vegan diets I've never knowingly seen one before.  Is it very difficult to ensure his diet is adequate?  (I'm not thinking of making my dogs go vegan...just interested).

[LurcherGirl]

Vera, Flash is stunning!     Although I'd heard of dogs on vegan diets I've never knowingly seen one before.  Is it very difficult to ensure his diet is adequate?  (I'm not thinking of making my dogs go vegan...just interested).

It is not overly difficult as there are some fairly good vegetarian/vegan dry foods available, but of course some thought has to go into it.

Flash is on Benevo Organic as the complete dry food. He also gets a supplement called Missing Link Vegetarian which I feel is essential. (When I didn't give it to him for a couple of weeks because I had run out, you could see his coat getting duller and less muscle tone). He also gets additional cold pressed nut oil to give him some extra omega 3 and 6. Of course all his treats are vegan, they can quite easily be purchased and are usually wheat/soya or rice based! He loves them and because I store his vegan chews together with the normal chews like pigs ears etc, they smell the same for him too, so he doesn't feel left out at all.
Of course, he also gets some fresh food like vegetables, fruit, rice etc.

Vera

[6thSense]

I know about T-touch so I know it's not true, but it looks like Jacqui is strangling him in the first picture.  Lovely boy though. 

[sportsmonki]

I find it really interesting how you manage Flash's diet...thanks Vera    Sounds like the Missing Link Vegetarian is really important.

[GothPuppy]

Very good that you can feed flash so well, look how shiny he is heheh. I'm a veggie myself (have been for 5yrs) but that's a choice and I think its daft to impose it on animals. I personally don't have any issues with people eating animals I just don't like how they're kept (battery hens, viel etc)  and as I can't be 100% certain they've been treated fairly and had a nice normal life outside then I'm not comfortable with eating it.  (/end mini-splurgh )