Can Cats Be Vegan and What To Do If You're Vegan and Have A Cat
Written By Rachel Thomas
If you're a massive cat lover, like me, then this is a question you have probably asked yourself since looking into veganism.
Cats are described to be obligate carnivores.
What does this mean?
Basically, the definition of an obligate carnivore is that they must eat meat; it is a biological necessity.
A quick fact: a few other mammals that are referred to as obligate carnivores are dolphins, seals, walruses and seals.
So as “obligate carnivores,” cats need:
Protein from meat or fish
Fatty acids
Minerals
Amino acids (from meat or fish)
Water
Vitamins
To answer the question, though:
Can cats be vegan?
To put it simply: yes, they can.
According to multiple experts, cats can survive on a plant based diet.
Professor Adrew Knight says that cats can live on plant-based cat foods, as long as their human companion is making sure that they’re getting the right amount of nutrition they need.
It is, however, very important that you do not feed your cat vegetables in the form of human food.
There are also crucial nutrients that a cat needs to stay healthy that they can only get through fortified foods.
Cats need a great amount of vitamin A, which they cannot produce themselves. In scientific terms, they cannot biosynthesize from carotene, like dogs and us humans do.
If cats don’t receive enough vitamin A, they may experience problems with bones, skin and intestinal system, as well as loss of hearing.
It can be an extra challenge transitioning cats onto a vegan diet because they simply cannot produce certain proteins themselves, such as taurine.
Instead they have to absorb it from their food, with particular rich sources being beef, chicken and fish.
Unfortunately, cats that are low on taurine are at risk of developing a probable fatal condition called dilated cardiomyopathy.
Dilated cardiomyopathy is where the heart’s ability to pump blood is lowered due to the heart’s main pumping chamber being enlarged and weakened.
Thankfully due to the advancement in animal nutrition, it is now totally possible to give your cat the vitamins and minerals they need whilst on a vegan diet.
Another good thing is that vegan cat food brands fortify their cat foods with taurine and other essential proteins!
If your cat is used to supermarket pet food, it may take time for them to adapt to their new diet.
To assist with the new adjustment, start by mixing the vegan food in with what you usually feed your cat and gradually change the meat proportion until there's none left.
According to Peta, cats tend to like nutritional yeast and melon pieces. But most cats apparently love mashed chickpeas and veggie burgers.
I’m starting to think I’m more like a cat than ever!
What safe veggies can you feed your cat then? Here’s a a few options:
Peas
Cucumber (if they’re not scared of its appearance)
Pumkin
Cooked carrots
Cooked broccoli
Cooked asparagus
Cooked green beans
Spinach
Only feed your cat spinach if your cat hasn’t had any urinary or kidney problems because spinach can cause crystals to form in the urinary tract.
Grains that are safe for your cat are:
Oatmeal - high in protein too!
Bread/breadcrumbs
Cooked corn
Mashed sweet potato
There are however, foods that you should keep away from your cat:
Garlic
Onions
Nuts
Chocolate
Grapes/Raisins
Coconut Milk
What to do if you’re vegan and have a cat:
It’s still clear that cats rely on humans to take care of them, so as your cat's human companion, it’s up to you to decide what is nutritionally best for them.
Cats are naturally carnivorous, there's no arguing with that.
So, if you choose to keep your cat on a meat diet, it’s not a bad thing!
You believe that the way to keeping your cat healthy and happy, is to feed him/her meat.
You’re still vegan if you do this!
There will always be people who agree or disagree but it’s your choice how you keep your cat at their healthiest.
