Monday, March 08, 2010

Are Cats and Dogs......

Are cats and dogs meant to be vegetarian?
No they are not.
Am I a hypocrite for being a vegan and feeding my cats meat?
Yes!
I abhor the use of animals for food, yet to live my life without a pet would be to live life half dead.
The other night at the party once the food was served I was targeted once it was made apparent that I was one of two dreaded 'vegetarian' people, the usual attacks were directed our way. Those that eat meat were keen to tell us that we were abnormal, deficient in nutrients, and as always they added that they "love their meat" and that they can't live without it.
Well actually they could live without it, because that is how we were intended to be, vegetarian.
Our digestive system is not one designed for meat eating, nor do our bodies cope with animal proteins or fats clogging up our system.
We also lack teeth designed for attacking and killing our prey.
Those of us who are returning to a closer connection to the divine have made the transition to return to a diet given from mother earth herself, with no bloodshed involved.
Some like me have never enjoyed being forced to eat a meat based diet, to us it is not a fad or the hip thing to do, it is a moral issue for us, one that is ingrained within us.
Those that eat a diet of herbs, fruits, vegetables and grains are those who vibrate to a more loving and peaceful frequency, attuning themselves to a peaceful way of life, there are of course exceptions to the rule, Hitler being perhaps the most famous!
Anyway I digress, my other friend at the party has two dogs, which are vegetarian, which I personally do not agree with.
Okay, as I said, that makes me a hypocrite, I stand here before you fully aware of the contradiction in my beliefs. Yet, if dogs and cats were meant to partake in a diet of vegetables then they would not have teeth designed to rip apart flesh and chew on a bone would they?
No, they would not.
I personally feel it is cruel to take away their natural diet, it is one thing to choose your own dietary pathway in life, but to take away the rights of those that can not choose for themselves I feel is wrong.
Whilst this friend of mine was away on holiday last year the house sitter actually fed the dogs meat for three whole months, now that she is back the dogs have returned to a diet of cereal, lentils and vegetables, and I wonder what it is they feel about this.
Do they hunger for the taste of meat once again?
Do they drool as they sniff aromas of cooking meat filling the air as dinners are prepared in the neighbourhood at night?
The other thing that I struggled to come to turns with during this conversation was that I was made to feel less than "perfect" for buying and feeding meat to my cats, yet this friend who has begun to eat cheese, milk and eggs again was still on her moral high horse.
Does she not realise how many calves are slaughtered, usually moments after their birth so that she can have her dairy products?
Is she not aware of how the chickens suffer for the humble egg?
So although she was wishing to come across better than me, in fact, she is no different, she is still contributing to the atrocities in the animal kingdom.
I must add here though that her dogs are healthy, their coats shine, and are perhaps a little over weight, but the fact still remains they are being deprived of their natural diet.
I can not possibly consider expecting my cats to adapt to a meatless diet, therefore I am still contributing to the slaughter of those I adore.
Each time I purchase food for my beloved cats I am aware of this distressing fact, but to me the alternative is not a healthy one for them, it would a consciously selfish one for me.....

4 comments:

luksky said...

I agree that meat should not be a main source in our diets but I question that if we were meant to be soley vegetarians why we have the type teeth that we do.....this is only observation on my part and not judgement.

Gemel said...

But can you really see yourself killing something with your mouth? Ripping its throat out and then sitting down to eat it raw??? :-If so, perhaps you may have a point!

The Creek Cats said...

I am a vegetarian and get the same flack from family and friends. I'm the only vegetarian in the family and only one of two in my circle of friends. I am constantly hearing that I am devoid of nutrients and not healthy, which is not true.

Peaches said...

I eat a lot of vegetables…they’re so good for you. But, I feel just as bad about killing the plant as I do about killing the animal to eat. We do not eat non-living things. So, if helps me to be less wasteful. As Americans we waste so much food (life).