Vegetarian dogs
Can dogs be vegetarian? Judging from the fact that in England more
than 50,000 best man's friends are fed on the vegan product Happidog
Supermeal, the answer should be 'yes'. Among them, are many dogs of
celebrities.
Everyone knows that Paul and the late Linda McCartney's dogs were
vegetarian. And what about the pop singer Howard Jones, who says: "I
spoke to my vet before I put my dog Benny on a non-meat diet and we
worked out his meals together. Benny was seven then, and he's
certainly as fit as any other dog".
Script-writer Carla Lane, who dreamed up British TV's The Liver Birds,
Solo, Butterflies and Bread, is another case. A vegetarian for 40
years, she said: "I've always had vegetarian wolfhounds. My previous
wolfhound Egor lived on a vegetarian diet from the age of five
onwards. The vet advised the diet after he had a haemorrhage and a
stomach complaint. "Wolfhounds normally live for six to nine years,
but Egor lived a very long and full life and was healthy right to the
end. His eyesight and teeth were perfect. For two years he lived with
a rather racy heartbeat, which is all the more reason why it was
exceptional that he should have lasted. He loved being a vegetarian
dog. He never showed any interest in bones at all".
Not everyone agrees, though. Desmond Morris, the animal behaviour
expert, is opposed: "It's not only wrong; it's cruel and stupid too.
Dogs are natural carnivores, and to deny them meat and substitute
vegetables means that they lack a vital part of their diet". His
opinion is shared by many.
Yet, to base the argument purely on the concept of "carnivore", both
in the sense of belonging to this order of mammals and of meat eater,
does not help because this concept, taken as an absolute barrier
beyond which it's impossible to go, does not mean much. The
Encyclopaedia Britannica, for example, explains: "Although the word
"carnivores" means meat eaters, the diet of these animals ranges from
an exclusively meat-eating one to an almost totally vegetarian one.
Some Ursidae (bears), Procyonidae (racoons) and Canidae (dogs) depend
very much on vegetation, and the giant panda lives almost entirely on
bamboo sprouts". For jackals, close relatives of our Fidos, fruits
form an important part of their diet; coyotes, wolves and foxes
consume great amounts of fruits and berries even in times of the year
when it's not difficult to find something to eat, which indicates a
genuine predilection for these foods.
The idea that domestic dogs are perfectly healthy on a vegetarian diet
is now, anyway, the most commonly accepted by vets and pet experts.
The RSPCA is fully in favour. Its chief veterinary officer agrees that
it is quite possible to feed a dog on a vegetarian diet: "However, you
do have to be careful to get the right balance of protein, vitamins
and minerals. If you are proposing to turn a dog from a meat and
biscuit diet to a vegetarian one, it is best to consult your own vet
and to introduce the change gradually".
Neil Wolff, American vet and Chairman of the Association of
Veterinarians for Animal Rights, says: "Dogs and cats on vegetarian
(or close to vegetarian) diets often do better in terms of coat
condition, kidneys, liver and heart. With geriatric animals we often
supplement with additional vitamins, amino acids, anti-oxidants or
herbs".
The UK Vegetarian Society has received so many requests of advice on
dogs' menus, that it has published an information sheet on the
subject. A typical day should be divided into two meals: breakfast
(morning or midday) and dinner (afternoon or evening). For breakfast,
dogs should be given wholegrain cereals (for example muesli) with
milk, adding, if necessary and according to taste, honey or dried
powdered yeast. For dinner, pulses like baked beans or cooked lentils,
or textured vegetable protein, or nutmeat, or else, for
lacto-vegetarians, eggs or cheese, adding to the whole lot raw or
cooked vegetables. The guidelines remind owners that dogs need some
hard foods to chew to exercise their gums and jaws: suitable for this
purpose are raw whole carrots, cabbage stumps and apples, and hard
wholemeal dog biscuits.
Dr. Alan Long, of the Vegetarian Society, warns: "You must know your
dog and what he likes to eat and follow his liking. A dog does not
have a vast stomach area for fibrous foods, so watch he doesn't get
fat. Try him with vegetables, wholewheat bread or toast, and make sure
he has oil in his diet for a shiny coat and keep him fit by giving him
lots of walks. "It's easier to start a puppy off. At eight weeks old
introduce sloppy baby foods, cereals, gruel and mixed savouries. You
can then introduce eggs, milk and cheese, remembering a puppy needs
more food in proportion to its weight than a dog".
There are cases in which a vegetarian diet is recommended by the vets
themselves. Skin allergies and digestive problems are often caused by
meat. The ingredients used in the preparation of some dog foods are
slaughterhouse by-products unsuitable for human consumption, such as
diseased or damaged parts of the slaughtered animal, chicken feathers,
horse hair and other refuse. Recent research has shown that the
consumption of great quantities of these impurities contribute to
gastro-intestinal and allergic diseases. Some skin disorders, such as
itch and loss of hair, have been effectively cured simply by improving
the animal's nutrition. The American product Nature's Recipe, for
instance, has been formulated just for dogs with skin disorders. It
contains soya flour, rice flour, potatoes, carrots, salt, spices, with
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