Spilling the Beans

It's a bit more complicated than that.

Dogs
Due to the function of the canine body, we include a good amount of vegetation in their food blends. These organic vegetables reflect the small amount of vegetables that canines would eat in their prey's stomachs and as predators on the plains. It also reflects the foraging dogs would do in between larger meals of grasses, tubers, berries and other fibrous vegetables. Dogs have a mix of sharp and masticate teeth which reflect their omnivorous diet. Further, dogs' guts have evolved for starch digestion and vitamin A and D absorption. Ever wondered why your pet eats grass? This is an echo of their evolutionary history, where they would eat vegetation to settle an upset tummy, find minerals missing from their diet - and sometimes just because they were bored!

Despite these feats in evolution, providing your dog with rich, high quality meat allows them to digest their food easier and makes the nutrients in our blends more bio-available.

Cats
Cats are a little different. These felines are considered ‘obligate carnivores’ because their gut cannot separate all of the important nutrients from plant-based foods like vitamin A. Cats also can’t transform the fats found in plants to the necessary fatty acids they need to maintain gut and heart health. This means that cats can't live off of vegetables alone — they would quickly become sick from lack of nutrients, digestion problems and weight loss. While the meat is the star of our House Lion Blend, and especially the sardines which provide amazing nutrients, our vegetables are chosen for a reason. The vegetables in our food blends are chosen to improve the enjoyment of our food, the bioavailability of the nutrients in the meat, for fibre to help with bowel movements and for other things such as teeth health and hydration. 

 As with the human vegan diet, it is important to ensure your pet is getting the necessary proteins, irons and fats needed to ensure their health. Missing out on important nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin B and D; amino acids from animal tissue, fatty acids and proteins like collagen, and iron compromise your pet’s heart and muscle health, digestive abilities, eyesight and brain health. Nearly every expert, whether they promote highly processed kibble or raw, natural food, all agree that a vegan diet is not effective or sustainable for your pet. That doesn't mean that vegetables (and even fruits such as berries, apples and bananas) don't have a place in their diet.

So, that's the beans on vegetables in your pet's food. They play a great role in keeping your pet happy, healthy and enjoying life, as companions to the delicious meat that drives our food blends. To read more about the ingredients in our food blends, find them in the shop tab!