Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site nbires.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!harpo!seismo!ut-sally!nbires!winograd From: winograd@nbires.UUCP (Steve Winograd) Newsgroups: net.veg Subject: Vegetarian Cat Food ?? Message-ID: <285@nbires.UUCP> Date: Thu, 23-Feb-84 18:57:03 EST Article-I.D.: nbires.285 Posted: Thu Feb 23 18:57:03 1984 Date-Received: Sun, 26-Feb-84 01:23:31 EST Organization: NBI, Boulder Lines: 24 I am investigating a vegetarian diet for my cats and would like comments on two areas of concern: 1. Practical -- Is there any commercially available cat food with no meat? Does anyone have experience in making home-made vegetarian cat food? Can cats thrive on such food? 2. Philosophical -- I don't believe in killing animals for food for humans and I feel bad about the fact that someone kills animals for my cats' food. It seems to me that meat is, alas, the natural food for cats. Nature has equipped them for hunting (acute sense of smell, great sensitivity to noises made by prey, stealth, speed) and killing (sharp front claws to catch prey, strong legs and rear claws to rip them open, specialized teeth for tearing them up, etc). These physical traits are accompanied by a powerful hunting instinct (most of their play is really hunting behavior). Is it reasonable to consider a meatless diet for such creatures? On the other hand, their natural prey is small rodents and birds, not the meat byproducts, liver and animal fat in most commercial cat food (ever seen a cat kill a cow?). Steve Winograd {allegra|ucbvax}!nbires!winograd