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Author
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Topic: cats and vegetarianism
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Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted April 27, 2014 06:43 PM
  
Does anyone know how to turn a cat into a vegetarian?IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted April 28, 2014 12:23 AM
Doesn't sound like a good idea to me. Some people say you can but they can only point to testimonials which should be suspect. OTOH given the limited funding available to scientists it's entirely possible that the reason the scientific community generally promote the idea that cats are obligated to be carnivores is because they haven't actually looked into beyond superficially. Still, I do trust the scientific community on this more than the testimonials. Perhaps this is a good balance, however:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/veggie-cat-food/ quote:
The vegetarian pet debate is a contentious one among vegetarian pet owners and veterinarians and is one not likely to go away anytime soon. The best approach may well be to give some of the non-meat supplements and/or foods a try. If your cat won’t eat them, or does not do well on them—take kitty to a veterinarian for a check-up to see—you can always go back to what you were feeding her before.
I'm pretty sure I recall hearing a local news report of a woman charged with animal cruelty for forcing a vegan diet on her cat, which caused a slow, excruciating death for her cat. I have no sympathy for her. Yet it's possible (at least in theory) that if approached carefully and intelligently (not to be confused with "dogmatically" or "gullible") that it might be done. I personally wouldn't mess with it, but if you're determined then I hope you at least get a veterinarian to help you and make sure your cat isn't getting sick from it (meaning regular checkups with the vet aware of the diet). IP: Logged |
libraschoice77
Knowflake Posts: 1740
From: A Danielle Steele Novel
Registered: Aug 2010
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posted April 28, 2014 11:08 AM
I don't think its a good idea either, cats are carnivores by nature, and they could end up with malnutrition problems like Pixie posted above. We have twin cats, and my husband an I talked about giving them vegetables with their regular cat food, just to help boost them with their health. But we would not risk their health taking away all meat from their diet.IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted April 28, 2014 01:57 PM
Dogs yes, cats no.IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted April 28, 2014 05:44 PM
Thank you all for the advice.IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted April 29, 2014 09:47 AM
Dogs are omnivores.IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted April 30, 2014 05:15 PM
By he way, lions are carnivores as well, of course, and there is a true story about a lioness who was vegetarian. She turned to be a celebrity. Her story appears in the book "vegetarian cats and dogs", which appears in the internet. But i think it would take time to turn a regular cat into a vegetarian, as it is unhealthy for a human being to become vegetarian all at once. I mean, if a lioness can...IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted May 01, 2014 01:57 PM
Wow!IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted May 02, 2014 12:59 PM
Yes, if a lion can do it...IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted May 02, 2014 06:53 PM
I just looked up this "celebrity" lion and didn't find the sources that credible. I did find an Amazon book that shared more which included that this lion, unlike other lions, was allergic to meat and blood, and if that's the case then assuming this lion could survive a vegetarian diet doesn't mean other lions can. (I'd also be curious about the health implications, like if internal organs slowly died.)We have a few human anomalies as well but humans who imitate them can easily come to harm (or conversely what's absolutely necessary for the human diet can be deadly toxin to the person born with a rare disorder). I've also read how some humans do better with a vegetarian diet if they're of a certain blood type or genetic disposition while others would wither under such a diet. I imagine that's true of about any species as well. IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted May 02, 2014 09:24 PM
I'm a vegan and blood type O. Blood type O are considered very poorly adjusted to vegetarian diet, but i am well with it. And concerning the lioness, there are pictures of her with other animals and it warms the heart. I didn't know about the illness. I believe that one day, even if not yet today, the evolution will reach a step when animals won't devour one another anymore. But that is just me being optimistic. IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted May 02, 2014 09:36 PM
I recall hearing of a lion raised with a dog and they were close for years. They were sleeping next to each other when the lion woke up and killed and ate the dog. The only explanation given was apparently the "lion suddenly remembered he was a lion." IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted May 03, 2014 01:27 PM
 IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted May 03, 2014 04:07 PM
There were times when men ate men. Still, today most of us are past that.IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted May 03, 2014 08:08 PM
Men ate men for religious reasons, not because they were biologically required to. And now they'll still do so out of sheer desperation. That has nothing to do with meat eating in general or lions as it's a choice. Saying you'll eat beef but not pork (many refrain from pork for religious reasons but some because they believe pigs are more sentient than we give them credit for) isn't a step to becoming a pure vegetarian.And I've known people who suffered under a vegetarian diet even when they were careful so I know not everyone is capable of it. Furthermore, people in the Arctic seem to do well physically with diets such as by the Inuit, so I'm not inclined to believe a lot of the fuzzy feel good statements made by vegetarians (that and other reasons). It seems to me that you're trying to convince yourself to do something you actually know is wrong. And if your beliefs are more important than the welfare of your cat so that you're determined to make your cat a vegetarian then at least work with a vet (who will likely say something along these lines--and note the pdf link on why cats require meat in their diet). Otherwise, I hope you're busted when your cat's internal organs fail and get to try practicing your vegetarian lifestyle from behind bars while serving time for animal cruelty. IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted May 03, 2014 08:49 PM
Look, if your beliefs are more important than the welfare of your cat so that you're determined to make your cat a vegetarian then at least work with a vet (who will likely say something along these lines--and note the pdf link on why cats require meat in their diet). Otherwise, I hope you're busted when your cat's internal organs fail and get to try practicing your vegetarian lifestyle from behind bars while serving time for animal cruelty. [/B][/QUOTE]I don't understand where all this anger and heat come from. I was merely asking a question. If i knew what was best i wouldn't have bothered doing that. If you have something against vegetarianism in general, why take it out on me? And perhaps you'll say: I have nothing against vegetarianism, just against cat's abusers. Fine. So don't assume i am a cat abuser before you go on and attack me.I didn't say what will be my strategy, have i? I just commented about how i WANT things to be, and how i believe this state of affairs will occur one day. Even people should be careful when turning vegetarians. Linda wrote about how to gradually become a vegetarian. She didn't wrote about the animals and how to turn them vegetarian, though she had two vegetarian dogs. I wouldn't know how to gradually turn a dog vegetarian, in a way that would be healthy for him \ her, and i know even less about cats. Since i know Linda advocated vegeterianism and this is the forum for animal lovers, i thought someone here perhaps knows something on the subject. I surely didn't expect this hostility. IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted May 03, 2014 08:55 PM
I've got nothing against vegetarianism, but some of the things you were saying sounded as if you were saying "okay it's not a good idea" and then coming up with things to say that suggested you were secretly thinking maybe it is a good idea after all even though it doesn't seem to be. I was especially confused by the "men don't eat men" anymore as if that was the least bit relevant and couldn't figure out how your mind was working.The ONLY thing that would make me angry is if you chose to inflict suffering on an innocent life form because you wanted to believe something so hard you pretended it was true. People do that, both to pets and to children, and I don't react well to that (especially when they avoid doctors and vets knowing their practices will be frowned on, but they do it anyway). And whenever I hear of another person busted for it (and I do vaguely recall hearing on the news of a woman who was arrested for cruelty after her cat died a slow death from being forced to live on a vegetarian diet causing one or more internal organs to fail and build up toxins and suffering until the cat died) then I get angry. Glad to know you're not going to do that. IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted May 04, 2014 05:45 PM
quote:
Originally posted by PixieJane:
I've got nothing against vegetarianism, but some of the things you were saying sounded as if you were saying "okay it's not a good idea" and then coming up with things to say that suggested you were secretly thinking maybe it is a good idea after all even though it doesn't seem to be. I was especially confused by the "men don't eat men" anymore as if that was the least bit relevant and couldn't figure out how your mind was working.The ONLY thing that would make me angry is if you chose to inflict suffering on an innocent life form because you wanted to believe something so hard you pretended it was true. People do that, both to pets and to children, and I don't react well to that (especially when they avoid doctors and vets knowing their practices will be frowned on, but they do it anyway). And whenever I hear of another person busted for it (and I do vaguely recall hearing on the news of a woman who was arrested for cruelty after her cat died a slow death from being forced to live on a vegetarian diet causing one or more internal organs to fail and build up toxins and suffering until the cat died) then I get angry. Glad to know you're not going to do that.
I am not going to prevent an animal i am taking care of the nourishment he \ she needs. And i was not secretly saying it is a good idea. I openly stated it can be a wonderful world where creatures don't need to devour one another. Feeding one creature the flesh of another creature is not an ideal, and i hope you can understand my sentiments, even if you don't share them. And i also questioned the blood type theory, according to my own experience. IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted May 05, 2014 02:07 PM
 IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted June 16, 2014 02:11 PM
Cats love fish.IP: Logged |
Randall
Webmaster Posts: 45637
From: Saturn next to Charmainec
Registered: Apr 2009
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posted September 19, 2014 12:41 PM
And chicken!IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted October 02, 2014 11:55 PM
Too bad. Fish and chickens love cats.IP: Logged |
Ayelet
Knowflake Posts: 457
From:
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted October 04, 2014 08:25 PM
I know that this is the situation right now, but i hope one day the world will change and all animals will stop devouring each other. Linda wrote in "Star Signs" that we humans are responsible for animals acting that way, as they are merely imitating us. So i guess it's up to us to make a difference. So i hope we will change enough so there will be an end to suffering.IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted October 04, 2014 08:49 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Ayelet:
we humans are responsible for animals acting that way, as they are merely imitating us
What a bizarre idea. I wonder where Linda got that one from. Closest I can think of is what a few fundies saying that because Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit that all the other animals changed with humanity so I suppose there are new agers with a similar idea, probably that our vibrations got so low that we created the material plane and sucked in all the beasties with us. IP: Logged |
PixieJane
Moderator Posts: 5352
From: CA
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted October 04, 2014 08:53 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Randall:
Cats love fish.
That entire depends on the circumstances. This cat seems to experience second thoughts on what he thinks of fish, or perhaps wondering how he tastes to fish rather than how fish tastes to him...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=168HoM1dKqk IP: Logged |
Lindaland
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