Jump to content

Feeding Dogs A Vegetarian Diet


huski
 Share

Recommended Posts

, got pancreatitis and died from it.

:) High fat then? Mine have never had a lot - I try not to let them get any - but there is always that period when they are puppies and before the training kicks in when they manage to get past my guard and snaffle a couple. Never had any side effect except bad breath and a gagging owner, but then I don't think my breed is particularly prone to pancreatitis, I've never heard of one with it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 218
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Maybe it had something to do with the vego diet? Weakened immune system?

Who knows....

Hmmm, a vegetarian dog probably doesn't have the same gut flora as a meat eating dog, then again, I've heard cat poo is bad for dogs, I know of one ate alot, got pancreatitis and died from it.

precisely what my vet said, Kirislin :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please explain to be the difference between a dogs GI tract and a humans. They are actually almost identical :o

Yes they are almost identical when compared with a herbivore, but humans are omniverous whereas a dog is first and foremost a carnivore. Although able to deal with small amounts of carbohydrate a dog's GI tract is designed to process flesh and bones. Starting from the head a dog has a long protruding jaw and large canines both of which are designed to grab and hold its prey, the jaw only moves up and down not side to side so dogs are unable to grind foods such as cereal grains or corn. The molars in a dog are used to crack and pulverise bone. Unlike us a dog's saliva contains no enzymes to break down starch, a dog's saliva acts solely as a lubricant to allow it to bolt down its food in large pieces as quickly as possible. The dog's stomach is relatively small because a carnivore eats a nutrient rich diet so only small amounts are required at each meal and their stomach acid is approximately three times stronger than hours having a PH of 1/2 compared to a human's 4/5 thus allowing the dog to to break down bone. The very strong acid also kills most bacteria. Their gut is comparatively much shorter than ours and food passes through much more quickly, this is another safeguard against bacterial infection. However the shorter gut also means that vegetable matter isn't well processed which is why cheap dry foods with lots of cereal fillers can cause digestive disturbances, humans with their much longer gut process carbohydrates much more efficiently.

For those of you who consider a vegetarian diet completely suitable for a dog tell me have any of you ever bred a litter from two medium sized vegetarian dogs, weaned the puppies straight onto a vegetarian diet and successfully raised them to adulthood?

Dogs saliva does contain amylase. The dogs intestine also contains enzymes which break down cellulose.

Both the human and dog stomach has an average pH of 2.

Both the human and dog stomach is relatively small.

Biologically, the dog is an omnivore. The dog has NO physiological obligate requirement for meat (unlike the cat). Every nutrient that dogs need can be obtained from plant sources, or they synthesise themselves.

Link to studies on this?

(yes we study nutrition in great depth at vet school -

There's something about your posts - this is the second one which has made me say "bullshit"

Exactly how many semesters and subjects did you complete on nutrition?

Not too many obviously.

And would you mind posting the correlation between the cat having diarrohea and length of intestine, or whatever the hell point you thought you were making?

Thanks.

The dogs intestine also contains enzymes which break down cellulose.

Back to the books, chickie, if you think the enzymes in the intestine wil break down sufficient cellulose to allow sufficient absorbtion to provide adequate nutrition.

That is the reason why people who feed BARF put the vegetable matter through a juicer or processor - TO BREAK DOWN THE CELLULOSE SO THE DOG CAN DIGEST IT.

Great post as always, Miranda :)

Edited by Jed
Link to comment
Share on other sites

hahaha, I just had to hunt Kibah away from a sunflower seedling. It's the first time I've ever grown one before so it's new to them but typically my inquisitive dogs will taste anything. I suspect its days are numbered now she's noticed it. Mine also eat several weeds, one is clivers and the other I call mustard, tastes similar to rocket, which they also love. I suppose what I am getting at is that I think it's perfectly natural for dogs to eat veggies/plants, just not solely.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suppose what I am getting at is that I think it's perfectly natural for dogs to eat veggies/plants, just not solely.

I agree, Micha and Daisy love fruit and vegies. They'll eat apples, pear, lettuce, carrot, any of the root vegies etc and I ensure that raw pureed vegies is part of their diet. Just not the entire part :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Incidentally, Cavalier, are you aware the Veterinary Registration Board can have you charged under state laws for impersonating a veterinay surgeon? I believe the penalties are more than just a little fine - there may be a suspended sentence, but it is a criminal offence, and carries a criminal record, as impersonating a doctor does. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Incidentally, Cavalier, are you aware the Veterinary Registration Board can have you charged under state laws for impersonating a veterinay surgeon? I believe the penalties are more than just a little fine - there may be a suspended sentence, but it is a criminal offence, and carries a criminal record, as impersonating a doctor does. :o

Wow!

Surely Cavalier wouldn't be doing that! :)

What Vet Clinic are you with, Cavalier?

ETA: Who is/was KYLA ??

Edited by Erny
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Incidentally, Cavalier, are you aware the Veterinary Registration Board can have you charged under state laws for impersonating a veterinay surgeon? I believe the penalties are more than just a little fine - there may be a suspended sentence, but it is a criminal offence, and carries a criminal record, as impersonating a doctor does. :D

:):o

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I understand that Cavalier is "only" using a screen name here, but that is quite a serious allegation to throw around on the basis of such little evidence.

Who knows - maybe Im not a vet, maybe Im an Astronaut? Nobody has to justify themselves to anybody on a public forum, thats half the fun :)

Anyway - you cannot be charged with impersonating a vet on a public forum. You have to actually advertise you are a vet and diagnose/treat animals conditions to have committed that type of offence.

On the topic of cellulose. Both dogs and humans, when fed a diet high in plant materials, can have bacteria in their large intestines which secrete enzymes which break down cellulose. This is a process which happens over time. The body has an amazing ability to adapt to different diets and extract what nutrients it can out of many sources. Of course the ability of a dog or a human to break down cellulose is nothing compared to that of a ruminant or horse, however it is something that occurs nonetheless.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thriving on a diet does not mean that its ideal..

I could thrive on eating only cabbage and fish, but it doesn't mean that its ideal for me..It might keep me alive and I might look okay, but internally my body would most likely be working alot less effectively than it would if i increased my food choices.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I understand that Cavalier is "only" using a screen name here, but that is quite a serious allegation to throw around on the basis of such little evidence.

No one is alleging anything, Aidan. I was illuminating a fact. :)

Cavalier

Anyway - you cannot be charged with impersonating a vet on a public forum. You have to actually advertise you are a vet and diagnose/treat animals conditions to have committed that type of offence.

Uh huh

On the topic of cellulose. Both dogs and humans, when fed a diet high in plant materials, can have bacteria in their large intestines which secrete enzymes which break down cellulose. This is a process which happens over time. The body has an amazing ability to adapt to different diets and extract what nutrients it can out of many sources. Of course the ability of a dog or a human to break down cellulose is nothing compared to that of a ruminant or horse, however it is something that occurs nonetheless.

Digestion takes place in dogs mostly in the intestine, and the matter to be digested passes through too quickly for cellulose to be digested when fed in it's normal state. Which is why cows have 4 stomachs, so they can digest and redigest cellulose, but you know that already.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's something about your posts - this is the second one which has made me say "bullshit"

There are a few things that don't quite add up for me, it's just a vibe I'm getting.

23 January 2006

I am a final year vet student and will be a fully registered vet in less that 10 months

25th September 2009

In all my years being a vet (and injecting around 20 dogs a day with dectomax)

7th October 2009

No Im not a repro specialist, but have been a vet for a long time and work in a very busy practice

Three years isn't that long, lovey.

29th September 2009

We see about 5 cases of Parvo a week

31st October 2009

The risk of Parvo infection where I live is HUGE. I personally treat 10-15 cases a week.

Within one month your Parvo cases have jumped from 5 per week, to 10-15 cases per week.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share


×
×
  • Create New...