Can Cats Be Vegan?

A couple of months ago, while we were minding our own business, a furry little someone wandered out of the wilderness and showed up on our doorstep… literally.

Scrawny, scruffy, cute beyond belief, yearning for affection, and obviously fighting for her survival, this little kitten was lucky to have found us before she died of starvation.

Our New Zealand center is surrounded by Department of Conservation land, and just down the road is a picnic spot that the locals call “The Reserve.” The Reserve is well-known for being a spot where unwanted cats, dogs, puppies and kittens are dropped off and left to fend for themselves, and this is not the first time a furry friend has arrived at our haven on his or her last legs.

Our only permanent nonhuman resident of Shangri-La wandered in out of the bush 12 years ago, a dog called Kisses who had clearly been abandoned and was suffering from the results of horrific physical abuse. After over a decade of rehabilitation, she still has her quirks, but Kisses is an example of how love can heal the wounds caused by even extreme abuse. She used to cower in the corner when a person simply approached, apparently in anticipation of the violent blows she was sure would follow. To this day, she still barks like crazy at tall men in hoods, especially if they’re carrying something that looks in any way threatening.

But this little kitten had not been physically abused – just left to starve like a piece of living garbage. It never ceases to amaze us how people can be so cruel and heartless toward living beings who have so much love to give, if we are only willing to show them our kindness. But then again, in a world where the majority of people think nothing of sinking their teeth into the limbs of a lamb or the ribs of a piglet, we shouldn’t be surprised.

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Read more: Animal Rights, Cats, Diet & Nutrition, Pet Health, Pets

Angel Flinn

Angel Flinn is Director of Outreach for Gentle World – a non-profit educational organization whose core purpose is to help build a more peaceful society, by educating the public about the reasons for being vegan, the benefits of vegan living, and how to go about making the transition.

also by Angel Flinn

Mel M.

8:26AM PST on Mar 8, 2012

One of my cats is a vegan cat. I don't know why, he doesn't like meat.

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Donald W.

12:25PM PST on Jan 5, 2012

Cats must have meat. They get all the nutrients they need in order to be healthy. Please, don't be blinded by your beliefs and force them on another being.

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Mrs M.

9:30AM PST on Jan 1, 2012

Cat need meat.

I hope this cat is okay now ???

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Chelsea M.

9:19AM PST on Jan 1, 2012

I'm not sure how I feel about the idea of feeding cats a vegan diet. I'll have to read more about it.

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Diane L.

12:55AM PDT on Oct 11, 2011

They don't give cats "vasectomies", they neuter them, and yeah, Colleen, they COULD "screw" all they wanted, but when that's done with a cat, or dog, or horse, the testicles are removed and therefore, no hormones remain which gives the male cat any desire to "screw". They don't think about it, period. Male dogs will still "hump", but it's a dominance thing, not sexual at all. Even female dogs will "hump" another dog and I've seen my own 10-yr-old SPAYED female GSD hump a foster I took in, purely to show dominance.

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colleen p.

12:28PM PDT on Oct 10, 2011

buuttt eeffffffffffffff u give heeem a viacectomy, he can screw all he wants, feel manly and alive but not make babies!. the same with Tomcats and Dogs. it's barbarism I tells ya!

cool. maybe someone will ask to publish animal dignity journals to this site. there is a link to a website from there to legalize humanimal marraiges. "it's not right people cannot marry their animal compainions!!!" they all cry.

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Diane L.

4:29AM PDT on Oct 10, 2011

HA, HA, Colleen, I realize that was said "tongue-in-cheek". The only way to render a stallion incapable of breeding without removing his testicles is to keep him away from females (mares). I have a 17-yr-old stallion, remember? He's on another side of a 4-strand, highly electrofied fence from his Mother and a rescued TB mare, and it's not ideal, but he deals with it. He's pretty "laid back". Trust me, if that fence wasn't there, he'd be trying! I know he's frustrated sometimes, since his "sniffer" still works great. He knows when one of the mares is in "heat" and I hear him "talking" on the other side of the fence.

Cats, dogs and horses are far more stable and comfortable when not thinking entirely about reacting to instinct when it comes to reproduction. It's hormonal and can't be addressed by only "training". I've had horses for over 40 years, my stallion for 17 years, and while he's somewhat trustworthy, he would still do whatever it took to get to a mare if he could. Don't tell me a male dog or cat would not "want to", just because you told him it wasn't a good idea!

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colleen p.

4:09AM PDT on Oct 10, 2011

no,no. there are people who do the "kind" de sexing. it is wrong to mutilate males and females, and rob them of hormones and urges. http://www.animaldignity.org/animals/main_xx.php

gelding a horse is one of the cruleist things to do. it robs him of his "heart, soul, essence". it's better to render him unable to breed, but allow him to keep his testicles.

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Diane L.

12:17AM PDT on Oct 10, 2011

Colleen, actually the procedure done to render a cat unable to reproduce is spaying them and they remove all the reproductive organs, so it would be akin to giving a woman a "hysterectomy", not tying her tubes. Also, I did have a horse that ate meat a few times, LOL! My daughter once went outside with a bowl of Franco American Spaghetti & Meatballs and her horse wanted some and she stuck the bowl out and he ate the entire thing, but tried to spit the meatballs out. It was hysterical to watch!

Grainne, you're missing the point that cats digestive systems don't change simply because they've become domesticated. If one was fed a vegan diet (by you) and you died and the cat ended up in a shelter or ran off, then what? By your reasoning, if you took in an African Lion, simply because you had it in a cage in your house, it should be able to survive on carrots and celery, since it didn't NEED to hunt anymore, right?

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colleen p.

2:58PM PDT on Oct 9, 2011

it's not natural to walk a dog on a leash either. maybe we should let our dogs play and pack all day and come home at night. if they feel like it. don't forget to not de-sex them. or if you do, get their tubes tied.