By nature, cats are carnivores. The implication of this is that they most likely will not do well with a vegan or vegetarian diet. So, if you have a cat that is considered an addition to your family, this cat should not be converted to a vegan just because it is now treated as a part of your family.
Cats are not just carnivores. They are animals that enjoy hunting for their meals. So, trying to feed them with a vegan diet will go against their instincts. Although they might not refuse whatever you give to them, they might not fare well when fed with a vegan diet.
source:www.plantbasednews.org
After hunting for their meals, cats do not just eat a part of it and leave the other part to waste. They feed on the entire meal. They do this because they need an enormous amount of energy for their daily activities. Although your cat might be a little different from its ancestors that lived in the wild, it has to have a carnivore lifestyle to stay healthy. Although if given vegetables only, cats will not refuse, their body system was designed to function best when they feed on meat.
Cats adapt very quickly to whatever meals they are given when what they need to feed on is not available. If plant-derived foods are all that is available, cats will feed on it for as long as possible. But the fact that a cat can adapt to a plant-derived meal in the absence of animal-derived meals does not mean everything is perfect. When cats feed on plant-derived meals, they are unable to access the right amino acids that they need for the proper building of their muscles.
source:catadvice101.blogspot.com
Lots of studies have been carried out on the effect of feeding cats with vegetarian diets. While all these studies have had some form of results, not all these results are much defined. In the presence of undefined results, it is evident that it will be near impossible for a cat to have a balanced cat life if it feeds on just plan-derived foods. If a cat must feed on only plant-derived foods, some synthetic amino acids have to be added to its meals so that its nutritional needs can be met. In addition to the difficulty which will be associated with carrying out its daily activities, cats that have to feed on only plant-derived meals might suffer from some health conditions. Some of these health conditions include diarrhea, heart disease, eye disease, urinary tract disease, etc.
If you are bent on feeding your cat with a vegan diet, then you should be ready to spend some money. Although spending extra money to feed a cat is bad enough, even worse is the fact that you will find it challenging to know if your cat is getting the right nutrient. Although you might not be able to tell exactly how your cat is faring, you can have an idea of how it is pulling through by monitoring its urine. For more information, visit this website.
