Unconventional diets for dogs and cats – Vegetarian and vegan diets – nutritional adequacy

Unconventional diets for dogs and cats

• Linde, A. et al. (2024) Domestic dogs maintain clinical, nutritional, and hematological health outcomes when fed a commercial plant-based diet for a year. PLOS ONE, 19 (4), e0298942. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0298942
• Dodd, S.A. et al. (2021) A comparison of key essential nutrients in commercial plant-based pet foods sold in Canada to American and European canine and feline dietary recommendations. Animals, 11 (8), p. 2348. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082348
• Gray, C.M., Sellon, R.K. and Freeman, L.M. (2004) Nutritional adequacy of two vegan diets for cats. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 225 (11), pp. 1670-1675. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.2004.225.1670
• Zafalon, R.V.A. et al. (2020) Nutritional inadequacies in commercial vegan foods for dogs and cats. PLoS One, 15 (1), https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0227046
• Kanakubo, K., Fascetti, A.J. and Larsen, J.A. (2015) Assessment of protein and amino acid concentrations and labeling adequacy of commercial vegetarian diets formulated for dogs and cats. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 247 (4), pp. 385-392. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.247.4.385
• Knight, A. and Leitsberger, M. (2016) Vegetarian versus meat-based diets for companion animals. Animals, 6 (9), p. 57. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani6090057
• Fantinati, M. et al. (2021) Relationship between a plant‐based ‘vegan’pet food and clinical manifestation of multiple nutrient deficiencies in two cats. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition, 105 (6), pp. 1179-1191. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpn.13510
• Dominguez-Oliva, A.  et al. (2023) The impact of vegan diets on indicators of health in dogs and cats: A systematic review. Veterinary Sciences, 10 (1), no. 52. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci10010052  
• Vegetarian and vegan diets factsheet
• Fact Sheet: Are vegetarian diets for cats and dogs safe?