Personal experiences?

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Permalink Reply by pradtf on June 18, 2012 at 13:51

our dogs and cats have always been vegan since 1999.

there were no difficulties getting them to change from what they were used to (at the spca).

we mostly all prefer the hoana (http://www.vegepet.com/), though the ami is very nice too - and they enjoy both.

(we don't go to vets other than spay/neuter. they don't get sick.

the past experiences we've had with vets over the years have not been favorable due to a surprising lack of ability of most 'medical' people that we have encountered, to observe and reason intelligently. understandably, we don't go to doctors either.)

you can read about some of our family here:

the rikster
the pig dog
oh-ohs

and this is about our rabbits:

The Way of the Rabbit

in friendship,

prad

Permalink Reply by Herbivore Lion on June 19, 2012 at 21:12

Hi Athena. I've never had dogs so can't give any personal advice on that but there are many who can. I've had three cats and experimented with diets that included fish, lacto/ovo products and vegan foods both prepacked and homemade. For anyone starting cats on a vegan diet I absolutely recommend Ami Cat as the first port of call. Get the small 400g bag to begin with to be on the safe side, but I've never known any cat not to like it. This stuff is more expensive than regular cat food but your cat will be more healthy and expensive trips to the vet will be unlikely. Some vegan cat owners feed their pets exclusively on Ami Cat, maybe adding things like sweetcorn or broccoli occasionally which cats are broadly known to like. 

Permalink Reply by Athena on June 20, 2012 at 1:40

@Pradtf, thank you so much for your response as well for your wonderful stories (I still have to read about the oh-ohs and the rabbits though). You've got a terrific family. :)

@ Herbivore Lion, thank you as well for your response. Were the cats that weren't fed vegan around at the time before you were vegan (or knew that cats can be fed vegan and thrive)? For the one(s) that were/are fed vegan, what was the transition like, how long did it take, and what sorts of methods did you use?

Permalink Reply by Herbivore Lion on June 22, 2012 at 15:26

Hi Athena, sorry I took a while to get back. I’m actually a bit of a middleweight in terms of first hand experience on this issue. At the moment I don’t have any cats though am looking at trying to adopt again. My experiences involved me living with non-vegans who were not opposed to me feeding the cats vegan food but at the same time they would feed the cats non-vegan food so having control over everything the cats ate was not possible.

I really wanted to at least break away from factory farming so fed the cats for quite a while on just fish which they really liked and they never left any food on the plates as they did with standard cat food. For two whole months they ate virtually nothing but pilchards (with some sweetcorn) but then suddenly they wouldn’t touch them anymore. I’m not sure why but I still carried on using other fish like tuna which they never grew sick of.

Ami Cat they really liked but it was a little costly and not so easy to get hold of. These cats were quite elderly when I started and I’m certain the change in diet extended their lives as they had more energy and seemed more satisfied.

One very significant thing I noticed is that the frustrating thing of having cats howling for food then you serve it to them and they don’t eat it didn’t seem to happen anymore except with the sudden refusal of pilchards.

I guess they finally got the food they had been howling for, for so long. After all standard pet food is truly disgusting on all levels and one hidden horror of it is that companies like Proctor and Gamble which own big pet food names like Iams carry out brutal tests on cats and dogs for the sake of their pet foods in the belief it will give them a marketing edge.

People who oppose vegan pet food saying it is cruelty to cats and dogs and then feed their pets stuff like Iams are unknowingly hypocritical because they are supporting vivisection of canines and felines.

 

Permalink Reply by pradtf on June 22, 2012 at 16:50

i don't think canned fish is a good idea, hl.

toxicity:

In China, Farming Fish in Toxic Waters

Farmed Salmon More Toxic Than Wild Salmon, Study Finds

Toxins in Fish

deficient:

Canned Tuna is among the most popular food stuff to feed to companion cats, because cats are very fond of it. It is not uncommon for cats, that regularly receive tuna, to refuse all other foods. Cats displaying this addiction-like behaviour are often referred to by Veterinarians as “tuna junkies”. Feeding a mainstay of canned tuna is long known to cause diseases of dietary origin. ...

Canned fish- tuna or other, packed in water or oil – is not a complete diet for cats. Although it is high in protein, it does not supply the cat with sufficient amounts of certain amino acids, mainly taurine, to maintain health. Most canned fish does not provide the cat with enough Calcium to balance Phosphorus either, resulting in bone disease due to a deficiency of this mineral in the diet. Many essential vitamins are not provided in sufficient amounts through a diet of canned fish, such as vitamin A and most B vitamins, like Thiamin, Riboflavin. Pantothenic Acid, Folic Acid, and Vitamin B-12. Last but not least, most canned fish is high in sodium, possibly providing the cat with too much of this mineral.

http://rawmeatcatfood.com/2010/08/16/fish/

let's just stick to properly supplemented veg here in this group.

in friendship,

prad