As more and more clients are exploring vegetarian life styles, the exploration of vegetarian recipes is becoming more common in both canine and feline guardians. While I’ve seen a few diets out there that can supply all of the nutrients a cat needs in vegetarian format, I certainly question the validity and safety of such diets, as cats are obligate carnivores, meaning that they require meat and certain animal derived amino acids like Taurine in their diets.
| True vegan recipes for cats are almost impossible to make even by researchers, as well as being extremely costly. While dogs are more omnivorous, it is possible for a vegetarian food to reasonably be used. Some excellent home made recipes can be found in the Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats by Richard Pitcairn, DVM, PhD. |  |
There are a few vegetarian commercially available pet foods for dogs such as PetGuard, which comes from a very reputable company. If clients insist on following homemade recipes found on the internet for vegetarian recipes, a board certified veterinary nutritionist should be consulted (i.e. www.balanceit.com) to ensure adequate level of nutrients.
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