Many people wonder if our dogs are vegan too. The answer is yes. We understand that many vegans don't agree with having pets and advocate for total animal liberation. We agree to a certain extent. As a family we decided as long as there are animals in the shelters that need loving homes and would otherwise be euthanized, we would do what we can to help those animals. We hope for a future where animals are no longer bred for human use. That being said....
Meet our two furry vegan companions, Yeti and Mango. We adopted Yeti from a shelter when he was just a puppy. He is 6 years old and has been on a plant-based diet since we adopted him. Mango has been with us since December and was also adopted from our local shelter. He was about a year and a half old when we got him and quickly adapted to his new diet. Both dogs are in perfect health, full of energy, and love their vegan dog food.
Contrary to popular belief, dogs can thrive on a plant-based diet. Unlike their wolven ancestors, dogs have been scientifically classified as omnivores. Having evolved alongside humans, dogs have developed gut enzymes that allow them to digest all sorts of foods. Dogs require good quality protein and that does not mean it has to come from meat. The most common food allergens in dogs are beef, dairy, chicken products, and wheat. Plant-based diets for dogs are anti-inflammatory, hypoallergenic, and easy to digest.
The meat used for dog food comes from slaughterhouse waste and byproducts and we all know how horrible those animals are treated. Many conventional pet foods are tested on animals and have been recalled for various contamination reasons including E Coli and Salmonella. We have had a few friends lose some of their companions due to contaminated food. With this knowledge, it was an easy decision for us to make to feed our dogs vegan food.
You may be wondering what brand of vegan dog food we feed our dogs. There are two brands we go back and forth with, Wild Earth and V-Dog. It’s hard to say which one is better since we aren't the ones eating it. Wild Earth is slightly more expensive but some argue it has better ingredients. Our dogs did fine eating just V-Dog food for years and now we switch between the two brands to offer them variety. You can't go wrong with either brand.
