What's In Your Pet's Bowl?

[orlok]

Gave our two (4 month old) kittens some biscuits today, provided by the vet. Gave them both diarrhea...

[vivaldirules]

Some people feed their dogs crazy stuff.

[kindlekitten]

interesting article at CNN about vegan dogs. I think this is just plain wrong. HOWEVER!!! I do believe that American pet food companies are singlehandedly responsible for killing more pets than all humane societies combined. the absolute CRAP that goes into most of the food is criminal! commercially prepared pet food really wasn't available until after WWII. before that the dogs ate what we ate, and personally I think that is the way it is supposed to be. supposedly the book "Inside of a Dog" has details about this and also claims that the majority of Europeans do not feed their animals commercial kibbles and such. I don't know, I haven't read it, but it would be interesting to know what everyone has to say about this

[natasha_fawn]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

interesting article at CNN about vegan dogs. I think this is just plain wrong. HOWEVER!!! I do believe that American pet food companies are singlehandedly responsible for killing more pets than all humane societies combined. the absolute CRAP that goes into most of the food is criminal! commercially prepared pet food really wasn't available until after WWII. before that the dogs ate what we ate, and personally I think that is the way it is supposed to be. supposedly the book "Inside of a Dog" has details about this and also claims that the majority of Europeans do not feed their animals commercial kibbles and such. I don't know, I haven't read it, but it would be interesting to know what everyone has to say about this

That article wasn't what I was expecting. My opinion is that dogs should not be fed vegan diets except in the case of allergies that preclude food from animal sources. They can live healthfully on that kind of diet if necessary, though, since they are nearly omnivorous. I think the first person in that article and her vet should have worked to add animal proteins back into the dog's diet until they narrowed down what it was allergic to. But since the owner seems to be careful about the diet, as long as the dog is thriving and the owner is open to adding animal protein again if something goes wrong it's not so bad. Cats should never be fed a vegan or vegetarian diet unless an individual has severe allergies or intolerances to meat and dairy, since they're obligate carnivores.

I agree with you, KK, that most pet foods are crap. The corn and wheat used as fillers are the culprits for most pet food allergies, cats in particular don't get any nutritional benefit from them at all. And ingredient quality is not what it should be. If someone is going to feed kibble (which I do), it should be a high quality kibble, grain-free for cats and low grain or grain-free for dogs, with human quality ingredients and few preservatives. The type of kibble should be varied, too, none of this feeding only one thing ever for the animal's entire adult life that the companies try to sell us on. And cats should ideally be supplemented with wet food, since they tend to not adequately hydrate themselves.

As far as eating what we eat, that's probably not such a good idea for the standard American diet. Our cat eats better than I do! If someone is eating a variety of un- or lightly processed foods, then perhaps, and I think it's a better idea for dogs than for cats. I would worry about my pet getting the right variety of nutrients in any case, which is different for dogs and cats and humans. I'm not convinced that pets were much healthier before the advent of kibble, I would bet that the health problems were just different. (But I haven't done a lot of research on pre-WWII pet health.)

You really got me going, heh.

[kindlekitten]

I have done a bit of research on it and used to battle with my vet on a regular basis. periodically I take my dog off of commercial food completely and feed her a combination of ground meat (it is a mixture of beef, pork, chicken and lamb that I get from my vet), brown rice, green beans, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes and olive oil. she thrives on it. when I make it I usually make 100 pounds at a time and freeze it. I have been learning how to can and would like to get to the point where I can put up large batches by canning it. I don't eat pre-processed food and make probably 95% of my stuff from scratch so would not worry about feeding my dog from the table.

[Freeshadow]

anifit dogfood for the jack russel

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Freeshadow

anifit dogfood for the jack russel

huh??

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

ProPlan canned foods for adult cats for Chloe. Although I think we'll have to stop feeding her the cans that include rice... she has trouble digesting it with chicken.

[The Terminator]

The only type of food my cat will eat......catfood I'm not sure why but he won't eat any fresh or cooked meat,salmon or any kind of vegetables

[SolRaven]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

interesting article at CNN about vegan dogs. I think this is just plain wrong. HOWEVER!!! I do believe that American pet food companies are singlehandedly responsible for killing more pets than all humane societies combined. the absolute CRAP that goes into most of the food is criminal! commercially prepared pet food really wasn't available until after WWII. before that the dogs ate what we ate, and personally I think that is the way it is supposed to be. supposedly the book "Inside of a Dog" has details about this and also claims that the majority of Europeans do not feed their animals commercial kibbles and such. I don't know, I haven't read it, but it would be interesting to know what everyone has to say about this

That's the stupidest thing I've ever seen. There's a reason why dogs don't have flat teeth. I stayed at a vegetarians's house over the summer and felt malnourished by the time I left. I felt lethargic and just plain horrible.

[Mortis]

Cats and dogs are carnivores and should be fed as such. I am about to say things that vegans may not like, but tough. By forcing your cat or dogs to eat a vegan diet you are not only endangering your pets life and their quality of life, but I personally think you are misguided and really ought to look into what a carnivore eats. I have had cats and dogs all my life and I have never had any that would eat carrots, peas and corn unless it was mixed in with meat.

Sorry, this whole vegan pet thing is stupid, I would laugh about it if it wasn't so serious for the lives of millions of pets.

[obs20]

Maybe my dog knows something meat sauce with spaghetti is her favorite. She'll be 14 next month.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Mortis

Cats and dogs are carnivores and should be fed as such. I am about to say things that vegans may not like, but tough. By forcing your cat or dogs to eat a vegan diet you are not only endangering your pets life and their quality of life, but I personally think you are misguided and really ought to look into what a carnivore eats. I have had cats and dogs all my life and I have never had any that would eat carrots, peas and corn unless it was mixed in with meat.

Sorry, this whole vegan pet thing is stupid, I would laugh about it if it wasn't so serious for the lives of millions of pets.

I would never consider trying to feed my animals a vegan let alone vegetarian diet, but I have to say I use carrots as training treats with the dog, and she is an out and out tomato thief. she will steal them out of unattended bags, and pick them from plants

[obs20]

Our vet once said tomatoes were good for a dogs urinary tract. My dog is a tomato thief also.

[Mortis]

Wow, Max wouldn't eat tomatoes, but I had to hide the fresh corn, he would grab the whole ear and go pull it apart, he only ate the corn, never the husk or the cob, he also loved popcorn, couldn't let him in the room if we were eating it, he would sit at your feet and whine while looking so pathetic that Cruella de Vil would eventually give in to him. He was a great mooch! I also couldn't leave a glass of coke where he could get it, he would drink it.

I never tried carrots, he might have liked them. He wasn't a big dog treat fan, he needed a lot of love to get him to do what you wanted all the time.