Why Cats Can’t Be Vegetarians

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Your cat needs a meat-based diet to stay healthy.

Many people who choose to be vegetarians do so for ethical reasons. But while a vegetarian diet may be a good choice for us (I’m a vegetarian myself), it’s unhealthy and dangerous for our cats. Those who force their cats to eat without meat put their personal beliefs before the physiological needs and well-being of their animals. It may sound crude, but it is my duty as a veterinarian to discourage cat owners from feeding plant-based diets to carnivorous animals that need meat to survive and thrive.

Cats are not only carnivores, they are hypercarnivores

Also called obligate or true carnivores, all felines, whether wild or domestic, small or large, must eat meat to survive. They can eat small amounts of plant-based foods, but meat should be the main ingredient in their diet. True carnivores are simply not designed by Mother Nature to digest plant matter.

Cats must eat meat and animal offal to meet their nutritional needs, and plant proteins (grains and vegetables) are no substitute. Your cat lacks the specific enzymes needed to use plant protein as effectively as animal protein.

Proteins derived from animal tissues contain a complete amino acid profile. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. Vegetable proteins do not contain all the amino acids essential to the health of an obligate carnivore. Humans, who are omnivores, have the physiological ability to break down plant proteins into the missing pieces needed for a complete amino acid profile. Obligate carnivores do not.

Cats need meat, and lots of it

Cats also need a lot more protein in their diet than other animals. Kittens need one and a half times more protein than puppies, and adult cats need two to three times the amount that adult dogs need. The reason? While other species of mammals use most of the protein they consume for body growth and maintenance, cats use it for this purpose. more as a source of energy.

When other species don’t get enough protein in their diets, their bodies make adjustments to conserve amino acids to manage the deficit. But your cat’s body must continue to use protein even when it’s lacking in its diet, which is why protein malnutrition is common in sick, injured, and anorexic cats.

In addition to their increased need for protein, cats have a higher need for certain amino acids naturally found in animal tissues, including taurine. Taurine is found in the muscle meat of animals, particularly in the heart and liver, and a deficiency leads to serious health problems in cats, including cardiovascular disease and blindness.

Cats have vitamin needs that a vegetarian diet cannot provide.

  • Felines have a special need for vitamin A, which is only naturally available in animal tissues. They lack the intestinal enzymes needed to convert plant beta-carotene into the active form of vitamin A, which is essential for vision, bone and muscle growth, reproduction, and healthy epithelial tissues.
  • Cats also need five times more dietary thiamine (vitamin B1) than dogs. Thiamine deficiency can lead to poor coat quality, loss of appetite, hunched posture, neurological problems including seizures, and even death. Since vitamin B1 is not stable in commercial pet foods and levels drop dramatically the longer the food is stored, many cats may be deficient in thiamine unless they eat real food. freshly prepared or given a quality supplement.
  • Cats must consume vitamin D in their diet because they cannot synthesize it through their skin. The liver and fatty tissues of prey animals are rich in vitamin D.
  • Kittens should also get arachidonic acid, an omega 6 fatty acid, in their diet.

Offer your cat a variety of meats, but avoid most fish

My recommendation is to feed your cat a fresh, meat-based diet that is nutritionally balanced and appropriate for its species. Feed her a variety of meats like chicken, beef, rabbit, and lamb from high-quality, rotating sources to reduce the risk of food intolerances.

I don’t recommend a fish protein only diet. Today, most seafood is heavily contaminated with toxic metals, industrial chemicals and pesticides. Additionally, the fishmeal found in most commercial pet foods contains ethoxyquin, a potentially deadly preservative, as well as mycotoxins.

Too much fish in your cat’s diet can also create thiamine and vitamin E deficiencies over time, as well as health problems associated with too much dietary iodine and magnesium.

That said, it is true that fish is an excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids, which cats need to stay healthy. I therefore recommend water-packed sardines, or wild salmon, and/or supplementing their diet with krill oil.

Your cat also needs a high-moisture diet

Another distinctive biological characteristic of cats is their need to get most of their water intake from the food they eat, as they are not as sensitive as other animals to feelings of thirst or dehydration.

Unlike dogs, who frequently drink from their water bowl, cats fed dry food don’t have to seek out another source of water to make up the difference between what their body needs and what their diet gives them. brought.

This can lead to chronic mild dehydration, a condition that will eventually lead to disease, especially of the lower urinary tract and kidneys.

In short, your cat cannot be a vegetarian. He needs a fresh, whole meat diet to stay healthy.



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