A 2022 University of Winchester study, surveying over 2,500 dogs, found nutritionally sound vegan diets linked to fewer vet visits and better guardian-reported health outcomes than conventional diets. And for some pet parents, what’s in the dog bowl is becoming an extension of what’s on their own plate. Plant-based pet food is slowly finding its way into homes, and the shift is showing up among pet parents for different reasons: ethical choices, personal dietary habits, or simply curiosity about alternatives to conventional pet food.
When five-year-old Rocky, novelist Arya Rajam’s indie, began struggling with weak joints, Arya took the advice of Hetal Sheth, founder of the plant-based pet brand Curry & Pepper, and began cutting his chicken by 10 grams at a time, folding in vegetables, dal and a taurine-fortified meal balancer. As the chicken came down, she noticed his joints growing stronger and his energy climbing, until eventually she cut it out completely. “His joint weakness completely vanished,” she smiles. Now seven, Rocky is, in Arya’s words, “about twice as energetic.”
Rocky’s diet is now a home-cooked mix of four vegetables, dal, soy, and either millets or rice, alongside a meal balancer and an omega-3 supplement. “If someone gives their dog rice and vegetables but doesn’t provide enough protein or the necessary nutrients, the dog can develop deficiencies,” she warns. The transition, she stresses, has to be slow and gradual.
Bangalore-based project manager Darshana Bhattacharya has been doing the same with her three dogs. Her Labrador Lobo, five, and Ludo and Lado, four-year-old terrier mixes, have been vegan for three years, transitioned gradually over three months. Their daily bowl mixes boiled tofu or soya chunks, pulses and vegetables like pumpkin and sweet potato with rice, coconut oil, turmeric and black pepper, alongside flaxseed oil and joint support supplements. “They are as fit and active as before,” she beams.
Malini Iyer, a graphic designer with 10 rescued pets, made the switch for ethical reasons too. “The suffering, exploitation and murder of innocent and sentient farm animals was the reason for us going vegan,” she tells us, of moving her pets to home-cooked and commercial plant-based food. “Their energy and digestion improved; their coats became much shinier and fuller,” she smiled.
Their experiences aren’t merely anecdotal. A 2022 University of Winchester study, surveying over 2,500 dogs, found nutritionally sound vegan diets linked to fewer vet visits and better guardian-reported health outcomes than conventional diets.
Email: anoushkakundu@newindianexpress.com
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