Real Dogs Don't Eat Salad

Is a vegetarian diet good for your pet?

By Lucia Raatma

From Reader's Digest

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More and more people are switching to a vegetarian diet, and wonder if it's good for their pets, too. Some manufacturers claim that their no-meat foods provide all the nutrients animals need, but many doctors disagree.

"It is possible to formulate vegetarian diets that are safe for dogs. But cats are trickier," says University of Pennsylvania veterinarian Kathryn E. Michel. "Cats are strictly meat-eating animals. They need taurine, an amino acid found only in meat." Absence of taurine can lead to blindness and even death.

And dogs need vitamin D, which may be hard to maintain without meat or dairy. Dogs can handle a vegetarian diet, but consult your vet before going meatless. An unbalanced diet can lead to nutritional deficiencies, says vet Andrea Fascetti of the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

From Reader's Digest - April 2006

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