Vegan Pups
Many people are surprised to hear that dogs can actually be vegan and can be healthy vegans at that (cats cannot). There was a recent story in March on CNN where six veterinarians agreed that the nutritional requirements of dogs can be adequately met with a vegan diet. Veterinarian Michael Fox, former president of the U.S. Humane Society and author of “Dog Mind, Dog Body” is a lacto-ovo vegetarian who feeds his dogs an omnivorous diet. Fox says the best approach for dogs — and humans — is a varied diet from organic ingredients. He says some adult dogs do adapt and even thrive on well-balanced vegan diets, but contends that dogs do best with a variety of foods that include some animals fats and protein.
Celebrities such as Woody Harrelson, Ellen Degeneres, Russell Simmons and Alicia Silverstone (who discusses her dogs’ vegan diet in her book, “The Kind Diet”) have long been touting the health benefits of a vegan diet, along with Colin Campbell and Caldwell Esselstyn, two doctors who are the subjects of an upcoming documentary extolling the benefits of the plant-based diet.
Many folks have embraced the idea of a vegan diet for their dogs and they say they have living and breathing proof that it works.
