Veterinary

Pet diet fads — what does real science say about it?

The New York Times posted an article about pet diet fads where humans are pushing food fads, like paleo, vegan, and gluten-free, onto their dogs and cats. These diet fads betray the pet owner’s lack of knowledge about the evolution and physiology of their pets, which can be dangerous.

I could argue all day with the devotees of these diet fads, but it’s frustrating. People who believe in their diets often act like religious zealots unwilling to discuss actual evidence supporting their nonsense. I mean gluten-free diets are just for people who have celiac disease, it’s not going to mean anything to those who lack that particular condition.

I’m going to focus on dogs and cats for this article because I’m just not an expert on avian dinosaur diets. I hope what you feed your favorite dinosaur, whether a parrot or parakeet, is appropriate. Since they prefer nuts, they’re already living with a paleo diet.

So, let’s talk about cat and dog diets. And why pet diet fads may be the worst thing for pets.

Do not feed your cat vegan food – they are obligate carnivores

While writing an article about dog food myths as the Skeptical Canine, I ran across something that flabbergasted me – vegan cat food. I was literally going to scream at my computer screen, then I decided I’d redirect my thoughts to a post about it.

Time for the Skeptical Feline.

The ridiculous thoughts about pet care have caused some pet owners are avoiding vaccines for their pets because they believe it may cause them to become autistic. Let me remind the world that there is no scientific evidence of any link between any vaccine and the autism spectrum disorder.

I’m troubled by well-meaning, but scientifically illiterate, individuals trying to anthropomorphize their pets by pushing their beliefs about their own health (almost always wrong) onto their pets. This vegan cat food trend is just plain wrong for the health of their cats.

Grain-free dog food is not good for your pet – Skeptical Canine speaks

Now, for something completely different, the Skeptical Raptor is giving way to the Skeptical Canine (not really) to discuss grain-free dog food fad. It is based on pseudoscience and harms our pet dogs. I wish humans would keep their nutrition nonsense away from their pets, as the new fad of giving cats only vegan food. So, this article is here to give you some science about dog food.

I have no idea where this grain-free dog food fad began, but we can assume it started like all other human food crazes with about 1% science and 99% myth, misinformation, pseudoscience, and outright lies from those who want to profit from it. Wait, that sounds like cancer cure and anti-vaccine scam artists.

Anyway, the Skeptical Canine is here to talk about grain-free dog food, and whether it’s healthy for dogs. Well, I hate giving away the plot, but no, it’s not. We’ll try to explain why.