The number of pets, especially dogs is significantly increasing in Indian households. Having a pet dog is a common choice seen among the Gen Z population. With rise in pet parentship, the pet industry is going through a lot of changes. New varieties of products are being developed to cater to the demands. One such product that has recently become trendy is vegan dog food. Vegan Dog Food is a pet food, made exclusively from plant based ingredients, claiming to be at par with meat-based dog foods and fulfill all nutritional demands of a dog. Is the concept of vegan food worthy of attention, or just a propagated trend?
Let’s have a look !
Biology of domestic dogs
Biologically, dogs belong to the category of facultative carnivores. This means, a dog thrives on a meat-based diet, with the addition of a small amount of plant matter. Anatomically and metabolically, dogs are designed to consume animal meats. Vegan diets are completely contradictory to what a dog should ideally eat. Feeding a dog with vegan diet raises the doubt of nutritional imbalances and heath issues in long term henceforth.
Certified canine nutritionist Manssi Karambelkar, also an avid biohacking enthusiast, believes that both humans and animals benefit from returning to ancestral diets. She asserts that the closer modern diets mimic those from 400–5000 years ago—in terms of meal timings, portion sizes, ingredient quality, and selection—the healthier and more disease-resistant bodies become. Furthermore, she notes that there is no historical evidence of vegan diets for either dogs or humans, concluding that a species-appropriate diet is best defined by what animals have naturally consumed throughout their evolution.
“To me, species appropriate will ALWAYS be what animals ate as they evolved over millions of years”
Manssi Karambelkar, Canine nutritionist & Founder of Doggilicious
Why animal protein for dogs ?
Animals have a requirement of amino acids, not proteins. They need amino acids for growth, repair, enzyme activity, hormone production, immune system regulation, etc
Amino acids are the breakdown product of proteins. If the ultimate goal is amino acids, then why is the protein source important?
There are 10 essential amino acids a dog requires to be supplied to externally through diet. Plant sources are incomplete proteins. This means that they are generally low or lacking in one or more essential amino acids the dog needs.
In plant matter, the protein is often embedded within the cell walls, which are composed of complex carbs like pectin, cellulose and hemicellulose. The cell walls need to be broken down to access the protein inside. Dogs, being carnivores lack the enzymes needed to break down these carbohydrates, ultimately hindering the protein absorption from plant matter
Plant matter like pulses, legumes, etc are commonly highlighted as protein sources. However, these also contain significant amount of carbs as well (often more than protein)
For example, 100gms of soya (commonly used as vegan protein) has 50gms of protein and 33gms of carbohydrates. 100gms of Pearl millet has 11gms of protein and 61 gms of carbohydrates
Foods commonly shown and used as vegan proteins are inappropriate for dogs since those are high in carbs as shown above, and carbs are not healthy for dogs above a certain limit
Common nutritional imbalances associated with vegan dog foods
Due to physiology of dogs which classifies them as facultative carnivores, the adequacy of vegan diets in supplying essential nutrients is questionable
The most common nutrients which are generally found to be deficient in vegan diets are-
- Amino acids like lysine, methionine, cysteine and threonine
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin D
Although commercial vegan dog foods claim to be complete and balanced, the reality is something different
In a study of 2001, 12 commercial vegan dog and cat foods were analysed nutritionally. Only 2 out of 12 foods met the nutrient recommendation
In a study of 2020, 4 vegan pet foods (3 for dogs and 1 for cat) was analysed nutritionally. Each food had one or more nutrients below recommended levels. Excess amounts of copper, zinc and iron were found in the foods tested
Since vegan diet is contradictory to the natural feeding structure of dogs, keeping a dog on such diets over long term period has high potential of bringing detrimental health outcomes
Impact of high plant matter on the digestibility of other macronutrients
Plant matters come with fibres. When a diet is exclusively made from plant sources, the fibre content of the food increases. Although some amount of fibre is beneficial for microbiome health in dogs, too much will have negative impact
If a vegan dog food label shows 5% crude fibre”, the total fibre content can be 15% too, which is very high for dogs.
It is important to note that crude fiber % mentioned on dog food labels does not represent the total dietary fibre. It includes a certain portion of insoluble fibre content, and does not account for any soluble fibre content. So, if a vegan dog food label shows “5% crude fibre”, the total fibre content can be 15% too, which is very high for dogs.
High levels of soluble fibre reduces digestibility of protein, fat and energy. Too much insoluble fibre reduces dry and organic matter digestibility by accelerating passage rate of food matter
Negative correlation between plant protein and urine pH
- Due to having low amounts of acidifying amino acids, consumption of plant proteins lead to formation of alkaline urine in dogs
Dogs naturally have a mild acidic to neutral urine pH level - Alkaline urine can become caustic and cause urinary tract infections (UTls), promoting the formation of crystals and stones in bladder
- Long term dependency on plant proteins can negatively affect urinary health in dogs
Analysing studies claiming results in favour of vegan diets for dogs
A few studies have been conducted, which claim that vegan foods can be nutritionally at par with meat based foods for dogs. These are commonly used by vegan pet food companies to support their products. However, these studies have discrepancies which are often overlooked. Some of them are stated below-
- These studies are mostly owner reported, not well controlled
- The sample size is generally very low
- The duration of the studies are short
- Measurement of clinical health parameters is missing
- Most of the vegan diet used have a long list of supplemented synthetic amino acids, raising question about the amino acid adequacy from the vegan raw ingredients alone.
Sagar Badakere, a canine nutritionist and founder of Journey Canine Raw Food, believes that a diet requiring a lengthy list of synthetic supplements to be deemed nutritionally complete was never truly complete in the first place. He argues that genuine nutrition is obtained from whole, species-appropriate foods, rather than from lab-created additives meant to compensate for nutritional deficiencies.
“True nutrition comes from whole, species-appropriate foods, not from lab-made additives trying to fill the gaps.”
Sagar Badakere, Canine Nutritionist & Founder of Journey Canine Raw Food
Conclusion
Vegan diets are contradictory to the natural diet of dogs. Feeding long term vegan diet can impose health risks due to chronic nutritional imbalances. It is crucial for the pet parent to understand that each species of animal has unique dietary requirements. Veganism for dogs is a health gamble.
For more information contact
Prithwish Mukherjee, Clinical Canine Nutritionist
WhatsApp: 090077 23753
Email: mukherjeeprithwish1999@gmail.com
EDUPETIndia, #DogNutrition, #VeganDogFood, #PetHealth, #DogDiet, #CanineWellness, #DogFoodDebate, #PetOwners, #RawFeeding, #HealthyDogs
