Reddit mentions: The best pet food & nutrition books
We found 6 Reddit comments discussing the best pet food & nutrition books. We ran sentiment analysis on each of these comments to determine how redditors feel about different products. We found 1 product and ranked them based on the amount of positive reactions they received. Here are the top 20.
1. Obligate Carnivore: Cats, Dogs, and What it Really Means to be Vegan
- Used Book in Good Condition
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Number of items | 1 |
Weight | 0.35 pounds |
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Vegan cat kibble can (and is) acidified.
Can cats be vegan?
Yes. Cats require many nutrients that typically come from meat. In regular kibble, many of these nutrients are stripped away during processing and added back in from synthetic sources. These same sources are used to fulfill missing nutrients in vegan diets. Studies and anecdotal evidence support vegan diets as a healthy diet for cats.
Vegan dog and cat food has the same amount of carbs, protein, and fat.
There is one point of concern though. Vegan diets are typically more alkaline/basic (high pH) than meat based diets. Basic diets can cause FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease), especially in male cats. To combat this their food must be acidified.
Most vegan and non-vegan cat kibble is acidified to prevent this condition. It's still a good idea to monitor your cat as it transitions foods to ensure its best health. On his website, Dr Andrew Knight says
> Based on his experiences with thousands of vegan cats Gillen (2003) states that 85-90% of vegetarian cats do not require attention to dietary content; however, for the remaining 10-15%, urinary pH and dietary magnesium concentrations (see following) require monitoring
The most relevant research has this to say on the matter
> The normal pH of a cat’s urine is 5.5–7, and the normal range for a dog’s urine is pH 5–7 [85]. A pH > 7 indicates alkalinity. A variety of dietary products (e.g., “Vegeyeast” from Harbingers of a New Age—see [26]) and additives can correct alkalinization, should it occur. Asparagus, peas, brown rice, oats, lentils, corn, brussel sprouts and yeast may be included in feline and canine diets, and are all urinary acidifiers [27]. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is also a urinary acidifier. The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Small Animal Formulary [86] recommends a dosage of 50–80 mg/kg every 24 h for cats and dogs. And for more serious cases, the amino acids methionine and cysteine may be used [13]. The BSAVA Small Animal Formulary [86] recommends a dosage of 200 mg/cat every 8 h. More detailed advice about urinary alkalinisation and corrective strategies is available via www.vegepets.info, or within veterinary medical texts.
> Increased urinary acidity, decreased urinary magnesium and increased water consumption all help to keep the urinary pH within a healthy acidic range, and help to prevent the formation of struvite crystals. However, acidifying nutrients, agents, or products should be used carefully, as excessive levels can lead to metabolic acidosis. Increased urinary acidity may also promote higher urinary excretion of calcium and lower excretion of magnesium, and magnesium is a natural inhibitor to the formation of urinary stones associated with calcium [87].
> "Urinary pH is the most important factor in determining the SAP [struvite activity product, which can lead to FLUTD]. Acidification of urine causes deprotonation of phosphates and increases the total proportion of urine phosphate existing as trivalent anions, reducing the SAP.6 Urinary pH and SAP have been reduced with both dietary modification and administration of urinary acidifiers.7 The solubility of struvite is maximized when the urinary pH is <6.4 ... acidification of the urine to <6.29 may increase the risk of calcium oxalate urolith formation...[Urinary acidifiers] should be considered only when the urine pH is >6.5 with ad libitum feeding conditions...A general recommendation for prevention of urolithiasis is to increase water consumption...Diets with reduced magnesium that maintain a urine pH between 6 and 6.3 are recommended despite lack of evidence of efficacy...Monitoring urine pH is recommended to assess dietary compliance and efficacy. Values between 6.0 and 6.5 may reduce the incidence of calcium oxalate and struvite crystal formation. "
So what should you do?
Wowowow. I can't believe what I'm hearing! I wouldn't be surprised to hear that vegans were aware that cats could be vegan and yet chose to still feed them meat food for fear of the complications some vegan cats experience, but it sounds like neither of you are aware of the alternative and even buy into the "obligate carnivore" thing.
Jed Gillan who originally started vegancats.com (which has since been sold) wrote a book aptly titled Obligate Carnivore in which he argues that cats can be fed vegan diets if the humans put in a little extra effort. Female cats have an easier time being vegan than male cats (I can explain if anyone wishes), but for both you'd want to monitor their urine pH for a while after switching to a vegan diet because the main complication is that if their urine isn't acidic enough they can develop crystals in their bladders which may block them from urinating and can kill them rather quickly if it's not caught... but all this really means for the human is they need to add taurine and arachidonic acid to the food to make it acidic and monitor the pH. I know several people who have had vegan cats for the cats' lifetimes with no problems. It's entirely possible; meat isn't necessary.
Really I don't see the difference in argument between cats and humans. Humans did evolve as omnivores, yes, but we also can't deny that we evolved eating some meat--the amount being contested. Still, that's why vegans today need to make sure to take a b12 supplement and, really, often other supplements like zinc, taurine, carnitine... The point being that we realize we're not getting these things from a vegan diet because a vegan diet isn't quite exactly what we evolved eating--so we add in some chemicals to complete it. Same for cats... everything we all eat is just chemicals, and cats can get the same chemicals they get from meat from other non-meat sources, too. Pangea and Vegan Essentials even sell pre-made vegan cat food if you don't feel like putting it all together yourself.