Is it possible for a dog with a vegetarian diet to be healthy?

I am a vegetarian and I'm curious: is it possible for my dog to be a vegetarian as well? He does not prefer meat over vegetables and vice versa. He is an Eskimo-Yellow Lab mix.Is it possible for a dog with a vegetarian diet to be healthy?
NO, Dogs are CARNIVORES, their bodies are designed to process and digest meat.



Look at their their teeth (notice they DO NOT have flat back molars and aren't capable of grinding down plant matter, instead they swallow it in large chunks and it usually passes through them partially or hardly digested).



The have shortened intestines as it takes a fraction of the time to digest meat as it does to digest plant matter. (another reason plant matter comes out only partially digested).



They DO NOT have the enzymes necessary to properly and healthily digest plant matter.



Plant matter DOES NOT have enough protein in it to sustain the dog and it is also lacking some of the nutrients and vitamins that dogs require.



Because they cannot and do not properly digest plant matter their bodies do NOT absorb the required nutrients and vitamins from it.



I completely respect your decision to eat vegetarian food, but you do not have the right to impose your dietary values on your dog. He NEEDS meet in his diet, no ifs, ands or butts about it.



Hope this helps
No, dogs are predominantly meat eaters and need to have a lot of protein (etc) in their diets, which a vegetrian diet could not supply.....its kinda like putting a herbivore....like a horse on an all meat diet....it just wont work because they are not built to handle this kind of food



:)Is it possible for a dog with a vegetarian diet to be healthy?
NO dogs need meat!! They are not rabbits that can live on veggies alone.
There is a lot of debate on this issue. I think that a lot of it is based more on opinions than biology. Yes, it is possible to feed a dog vegetarian. There are dogs that can't handle protein and need a special diet and they can do fine with planning.



I do not think that it is something that should be attempted with a dog that handles meat just fine. They may have some veggies, but I think calling them an omnivore is a bit of a stretch. They are not obligate carnivores so they do not only need meat, but I think it is foolish to eliminate it unless the dogs health requires it.Is it possible for a dog with a vegetarian diet to be healthy?
No. Dogs are strict carnivores for the most part. They need the essentials that meat provides them. In the wild, dogs will rarely eat any sort of plant.
No - dogs need meat, plain and simple.



You may choose to eat a vegetarian diet, but a dog cannot stay healthy on it- please do not try. If that is a problem, you could consider getting a pet that is an herbivore.
No that would be a lacking of protein in their diet, meat is the main thing they need in their diet, to live healthy.
No dogs are meat eaters and do not digest vegetables very well so get little nutrition from them.
Dogs are carnivores. If you can't handle that, don't own a carnivorous pet.
NO!!! Please don't do this to your dog! You will make your dog really sick! Dogs are carnivores they are supposed to eat meat.
No! dogs are omnivores, they need a good balance of all foods especially meat, please do not press your bad habits on an animal
Perhaps, but only with very carefully planned meals and a lot of research. Dogs eat meat by nature and require different amounts of proteins than humans do. I am a vegetarian as well, but I feed my dog the RAW Diet, which is composed of raw meat.



I chose to be a vegetarian because I love animals, and I鈥檓 sure you do, too. And it is because I love animals and my dog so much that I would never try to feed him a diet that could result in later health risks and is not suitable for his stomach and appetite.


There's a chapter in Give You Dog a Bone by Billinghurst - Feeding Your Dog Vegetarian Style. You might be interested in reading it, I'm sure you could check it out of the library.