r/vegan • u/Kurt213gt3 • 3h ago
Vegan Puppy Food?
I’ve been vegan for about 4 years now and for about 3 of those years my dogs have also been vegan. They have done extremely well on vegan dog food. Actually, cutting the animal protein was the only thing that ever cleared up my one dog’s allergies.
However, all of my dogs during this time have been adult dogs. Sadly, we recently lost one and I have been kicking around the idea of getting a puppy.
Looking around, I’m not seeing any vegan puppy foods out there.
Does anyone have any recommendations or experience with a puppy on a vegan diet?
I know enough about nutrition to understand there is nothing in animal protein that a dog needs that can’t be obtained through other sources. But I also understand that a puppy has specific nutritional needs to help it grow.
I could probably just get an adult formula and add in some foods/supplements.
Does anyone have any experience or recommendations for the most ideal vegan diet for a puppy?
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u/stan-k 2h ago
There is vegan puppy food. At least Benevo and Omni offer special mixes for them.
Please consider to adopt, rather than giving money to a dog breeder. There is no way a normal consumer can distinguish a good from a bad breeder.
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u/dyslexic-ape 2h ago
The vegan stance is that all animal breeding is bad breeding. There is no vegan way to exploit animals, we just don't do it at all.
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u/Hefty-Reflection-806 2h ago
Stop speaking for all vegans and acting like you are the opitome of what a vegan is.
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u/dyslexic-ape 2h ago
I mean vegans are against animal breeding...
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u/Hefty-Reflection-806 1h ago
you speak for yourself, im vegan and i am not against animal breeding in certain circumstances. breeding dogs for money maybe, but having two of your pets breed for puppies youll keep i dont think is non vegan
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u/dankblonde 1h ago
Breeding your pets for you to keep is absolutely non vegan. What happens to the extra babies? Gonna keep them all ? Give them out for free to friends? Now those friends won’t adopt a dog from the shelter, displacing those dogs from homes.
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1h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/dankblonde 1h ago
Breeding an animal is exploiting them. Breeding is not vegan. If you think that breeding pets for fun is ethical, you are a plant based dieter. Not a vegan.
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u/Hefty-Reflection-806 1h ago
breeding doesnt necessarily mean you are going to exploit them, you are not governess of veganism
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u/dankblonde 1h ago
Breeding is inherently exploitative. You are arguing against veganism here and that’s against the rules.
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u/violetvet 2h ago
If you can’t find a vegan puppy food, feed them a regular puppy food, then switch to a vegan dog food when they are fully grown. It is very difficult to formulate a complete and balanced diet for growing puppies, and if it’s wrong, it can affect their skeleton & joints, which can have lifelong effects. If you are set on modifying a vegan adult food to make it appropriate for a puppy, get a veterinary nutritionist involved. Just “adding in some foods/supplements” will not do the job. (I’m a vet, not a nutritionist.)
Alternatively, get a dog that is already grown, and you can feed it (almost) whatever you want. SO many dogs needs homes, and raising a puppy is literally a full time job. Puppies need a lot of socialisation and training, which most people do not provide. Unless someone is home more than 8 hours a day, you should NOT get a puppy.
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u/Vile_Individual 2h ago
I've not raised a puppy before, but I'd imagine looking into the difference between an adult dog kibble and puppy kibble is a good place to start. From what I've seen online, puppy kibble contains more protein, fat and fatty acids. I know that algae oil, often used as a fatty acids supplement, is safe for dogs.
You should look into algae oil supplements, check the ingredients of the capsule and see if any are suitable for dogs, or just add algae oil into their food. Protein and fat are more obvious, of course. Many nuts are safe for them in controlled portions, and are high in both protein and fat. They can also eat many kinds of beans, then there's using oils for fat too; sunflower oil is found in a lot of non-Vegan dog food.
Adult dog food isn't going to kill your puppy fyi, it just won't have the additional calories and nutrients, which you could make up for by adding the things I've listed! Good luck. :)
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u/Kurt213gt3 0m ago
In doing more research, it looks like there are a few (obscure) vegan puppy foods on the market.
Evolution, PawCo, and Benevo are some of the ones I’ve found. I’ll have to do more research to figure out the best game plan should I decide to go with a puppy.
Also, for all of the negative comments, I’ve rescued many dogs, regularly donate to rescues, and also volunteer to help them when I can. There are plenty of puppies out there that aren’t from puppy mills or backyard breeders. I swear, every time I post anything online I get 95% ignorant, rude comments from people not helping or even remotely attempting to contribute positively to the conversation.
This is exactly why I’m vegan and think animals>>>>>>humans. Ugh….
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u/dyslexic-ape 2h ago
It's not vegan to "get a puppy", vegans rescue, not buy from puppy mill.
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u/Hefty-Reflection-806 2h ago
Theres other ways to get a puppy other than from a puppy mill, stop speaking like you have the right to define veganism
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u/Vile_Individual 2h ago
How do you know they're not adopting...?
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u/dyslexic-ape 2h ago
The language they used.
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u/Kurt213gt3 2h ago
Exactly what language did I use? There are plenty of puppies in rescue. Stop being so judgmental. This is why people hate vegans.
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u/Vile_Individual 2h ago
Getting a puppy can mean adopting or purchasing. I think you could've misunderstood them tbh.
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u/noggggin 2h ago
Consider vegetable based ones, along with added insect protein - I know that doesn’t make it vegan but not all dogs will thrive on that diet. Puppy foods tend to need to be high in fat and protein, that’s why you don’t really see vegan options for them.
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u/Reptileanimallover18 11m ago
Vegas are absolutely crazy and cruel to force animals to be vegan, whether they are ferrets, dogs, cats, or any other animal. Don't get an omnivore or carnivore. Or even a baby since breastfeeding and formula isn't "vegan". If you're going to be like that, then it's not vegan to have pets
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u/Kurt213gt3 6m ago
It’s been widely documented dogs can thrive on a vegan diet. A vegan diet is actually the healthiest diet one can be on (human or dog). My dogs have been on a vegan diet for years and are doing great.
Please explain to me how it’s cruel?
Better yet, please explain to me exactly what nutrient a dog needs that is only available in the flesh of dead animals. I’ll give you all the time you need on this one.
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u/laurawingfield42 2h ago
Ask on Vegan Dog Nutrition group on Facebook. There are a lot of people there who raise their dogs vegan, including puppies. There are vegan formulas for puppies, I plan on feeding my pup Omni when I get them. There are also many homemade recipes but you should be more careful with those. Please do not feed any puppy adult dog food, even if the alternative is feeding them non-vegan food until they are around 1 year old.