Can a cat be vegetarian?

can a cat be a vegetarian? my cat only eats the natural vegetable type cat food and she will not get close to any sort of meat or tuna. she loves bananas and yogurt.

Cats are natural carnivores and are unlikely to willingly forego meat from their diet. Cats fed on vegetarian diets are likely to look elsewhere for their preferred meat diet, and many cats will hunt and kill small rodents and birds.

Cats require certain nutrients from meat that cannot be obtained in sufficient amounts from plant foods. These include taurine, arachidonic acid, vitamin A, and vitamin B12.

Taurine
Taurine is an amino acid essential for cats but not for other mammals. In the prolonged absence of taurine, a cat's retina slowly degenerates and the cat suffers eye problems and can become irreversibly blind. This condition is called central retinal degeneration (CRD). Cow's milk is a poor source of taurine and there is none in plant foods. The only rich source is meat.

Arachidonic acid
Cats need a dietary source of essential fatty acids which they can then convert into other essential substances. A dietary source of the essential fatty acid, arachidonic acid, is not needed by humans as they can synthesise it from linoleic acid present in vegetable fat. However, cats lack the necessary enzymes to synthesise arachidonic acid and so a dietary source is essential. Fatty tissues and milk contain almost none and only small amounts occur in eggs. Meat is the only major source. Arachidonic acid deficiency takes some time to develop but its effect on the cat is profound.

Vitamin A
Cats cannot utilise the provitamin A of vegetables and therefore require preformed vitamin A (retinol) which occurs only in animal foods. There are only small quantities of vitamin A in eggs and dairy produce. The richest source is liver.

Vitamin B12
Cat's cannot synthesise their own vitamin B12 and a dietary source is necessary. Vitamin B12 is present only in animal products.

Niacin
Unlike other mammals, cats cannot synthesise useful quantities of this vitamin from protein and therefore require a good dietary supply. Eggs and dairy produce are very poor sources and the niacin in cereals is largely unavailable to cats. A diet based on cereals, milk and eggs will always be deficient in niacin for cats. Meat is a rich source.

Thiamin
Cats are very susceptible to deficiency of this vitamin, which is rapidly destroyed by heat. Eggs and dairy produce are poor sources, wholemeal cereals and pulses are fair sources, meat is a good source.

Protein
Cat's require large amounts of protein in their diet and this can be a problem on a vegetarian diet. Over 25% of a cat's diet should be a protein.

While cats may enjoy certain plant foods, vegetarian diets high in fibre and polyunsaturated fatty acids may be detrimental to a cat's health. High fibre foods can fill the cat's digestive system without providing the necessary nutrients in sufficient concentrations. Excess polyunsaturated fatty acids in vegetable oils can lead to a vitamin E deficiency related illness.

If you do decide to give your cat a vegetarian diet, then a supplement is available. This is a powder which can be added to your cat's meals. If you do not feel it is appropriate to feed your cat a vegetarian diet, then you may find it preferable to use concentrated dry cat food rather than canned. Most major cat food manufacturers now produce concentrated dry foods which may be less offensive to handle for vegetarian cat owners as well as conferring health benefits for your cat in comparison with traditional canned food

I guess...lol

I think cats need animal protein. why dont you mix veges with the sstuff that she likes or if there are supplements, put it in her food.

If your cat gets hungry enough, veggie-only will be out the window.

You have a strange kitty. Nah, cats can be finicky and like weird things. They don't have to just like fish or meat. By 'vegetable type', do you mean 'dry food'? Dry food is good for them. It's a lot better than canned food or tuna.

But how did you know that she liked bananas & Yogurt? I'm sure she didn't just grab a banana, peel it herself and eat it or open the frig and take out some Yogurt & try it.

Did you feed those things to her? I'm not saying that those things are bad, necessarily, but you probably shouldn't use your kitty as a Guinea Pig.

The best thing for them is Meow Mix. They love it.

Remember the TV commercial?

Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow
Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow
Meow Meow Meow Meow Meow

Maybe. Humans do not have a natural affinity to meat, but must instead be conditioned to like it. That's why most people are disgusted by the thought of eating animals they're not used to eating.

...maybe it's teh same for cats?

cats can live off only dry food so yeah... I guess she could...

NO ABSOLUTELY NOT. Cats have to have meat in their diet, unlike dogs who can eat and all veggie meal, cats must have meat or they will go blind, suffer other debilitating conditions and ultimately die if fed on a vegetarian diet. Cats are obligate carnivores - meaning they must eat meat to survive!

Lol, my cat likes fruit too, and yogurt, strawberry is his favorite!!! BUUUT, he also looovvveeesss his meat, chicken, turkey, ham, etc. and his normal dry food. I guess he just likes everything...

they phsically CANNOT be vegetarians it would kill them they can't survive without meat