There are many people who choose to live a vegetarian lifestyle. A vegetarian diet is a very healthy one for humans- however a lot of people try to take this one stage further by encouraging their pets to become vegetarian too. However, vegetarian cat food is not an ideal diet for your cat. Although humans themselves may have the choice of turning vegetarian, it does not give them the right to turn their cats vegetarian. Unlike humans, cats are not natural vegetarians; therefore depriving them of meat is actually harmful to their health. Some effects of a non-meat diet include urine acidity problems and general weakness.

Cats are born meat eaters so it is absolutely vital you do not feed your cat solely vegetarian food. That sort of diet is best left for your guinea pigs! Cats are carnivores and therefore require the nutrients which are found in meat sources- all vets advise against vegetarian cat diets. The reason for this is because cats are what is known as obligate carnivores, which means that their digestive cannot break down the cell walls in vegetable foods to release the nutrients. Meat proteins are highly digestible for them, and their digestive systems are designed for food to pass through their system quickly. They need the high quality proteins supplied by meat in order for their bodies to function. Vegetable products, on the other hand, are digested much more slowly and contain far fewer higher quality proteins. Cats also require certain nutrients, such as vitamin A, vitamin B12, arachidonic acid and taurine.

Instead of vegetarian cat food, feed your cat regular meat and dry food as well as raw meat. This insures he receives optimal nutrition – something that would be lacking with a vegetarian diet.

Premium cat foods are often preferred over grocery store brands. They generally are more expensive but contain higher quality ingredients. If you can afford it, go for premium foods.

If you are health conscious for your cat, there is a line of healthy cat foods such as that offered by Dr Foster and Dr Smith. These foods contain fruits and vegetables (catering to the vegetarian owners) but also contain the much needed real meat and protein as well as brown rice and barley to make up the whole grain portion of the diet. This really is gourmet food for your cat.

Gourmet cat food does cost quite a lot more, so it is up to you if you think it is worth it (ask your vet if you are unsure).

One thing is for sure – vegetarian cat food should not be a staple diet for your cat if you want him to live life to his maximum potential.