Top products from r/AskVegans

We found 24 product mentions on r/AskVegans. We ranked the 18 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.

Next page

Top comments that mention products on r/AskVegans:

u/HealthyPetsAndPlanet · 1 pointr/AskVegans

Vegan cat kibble can (and is) acidified.

Can cats be vegan?


  • Arguments for trialing vegan food with cats.

    Yes. Cats require many nutrients that typically come from meat. In regular kibble, many of these nutrients are stripped away during processing and added back in from synthetic sources. These same sources are used to fulfill missing nutrients in vegan diets. Studies and anecdotal evidence support vegan diets as a healthy diet for cats.

    Vegan dog and cat food has the same amount of carbs, protein, and fat.

    There is one point of concern though. Vegan diets are typically more alkaline/basic (high pH) than meat based diets. Basic diets can cause FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease), especially in male cats. To combat this their food must be acidified.

    Most vegan and non-vegan cat kibble is acidified to prevent this condition. It's still a good idea to monitor your cat as it transitions foods to ensure its best health. On his website, Dr Andrew Knight says

    > Based on his experiences with thousands of vegan cats Gillen (2003) states that 85-90% of vegetarian cats do not require attention to dietary content; however, for the remaining 10-15%, urinary pH and dietary magnesium concentrations (see following) require monitoring

    The most relevant research has this to say on the matter

    > The normal pH of a cat’s urine is 5.5–7, and the normal range for a dog’s urine is pH 5–7 [85]. A pH > 7 indicates alkalinity. A variety of dietary products (e.g., “Vegeyeast” from Harbingers of a New Age—see [26]) and additives can correct alkalinization, should it occur. Asparagus, peas, brown rice, oats, lentils, corn, brussel sprouts and yeast may be included in feline and canine diets, and are all urinary acidifiers [27]. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is also a urinary acidifier. The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Small Animal Formulary [86] recommends a dosage of 50–80 mg/kg every 24 h for cats and dogs. And for more serious cases, the amino acids methionine and cysteine may be used [13]. The BSAVA Small Animal Formulary [86] recommends a dosage of 200 mg/cat every 8 h. More detailed advice about urinary alkalinisation and corrective strategies is available via www.vegepets.info, or within veterinary medical texts.

    > Increased urinary acidity, decreased urinary magnesium and increased water consumption all help to keep the urinary pH within a healthy acidic range, and help to prevent the formation of struvite crystals. However, acidifying nutrients, agents, or products should be used carefully, as excessive levels can lead to metabolic acidosis. Increased urinary acidity may also promote higher urinary excretion of calcium and lower excretion of magnesium, and magnesium is a natural inhibitor to the formation of urinary stones associated with calcium [87].

  • source

    > "Urinary pH is the most important factor in determining the SAP [struvite activity product, which can lead to FLUTD]. Acidification of urine causes deprotonation of phosphates and increases the total proportion of urine phosphate existing as trivalent anions, reducing the SAP.6 Urinary pH and SAP have been reduced with both dietary modification and administration of urinary acidifiers.7 The solubility of struvite is maximized when the urinary pH is <6.4 ... acidification of the urine to <6.29 may increase the risk of calcium oxalate urolith formation...[Urinary acidifiers] should be considered only when the urine pH is >6.5 with ad libitum feeding conditions...A general recommendation for prevention of urolithiasis is to increase water consumption...Diets with reduced magnesium that maintain a urine pH between 6 and 6.3 are recommended despite lack of evidence of efficacy...Monitoring urine pH is recommended to assess dietary compliance and efficacy. Values between 6.0 and 6.5 may reduce the incidence of calcium oxalate and struvite crystal formation. "

  • source

    So what should you do?

  • Always soak a cat's food in water for at least 30 minutes before feeding
  • Buy vegan cat foods that have been acidified to lower pH. pH 6.3-6.4 is optimal, though exact pH will not likely be advertised. You can check for acidifiers by looking in the ingredient list for sodium bisulfate, dl-methionine, ammonium chloride, Vitamin C and the others discussed in the above study. These are already commonly added to regular pet foods.
  • Check your cat's urine pH 1-2 weeks after switching to vegan and then twice a year. pH > 7 is a problem.
  • For cats the target food pH is 6.3-6.5. Urine should be 6.0-6.5. Below or above this range is unhealthy. Acidifiers are only needed if the urine is above 6.5.
  • If your cat appears to be in pain when using the litter box, immediately contact your vet. FLUTD is a serious condition that can lead to death.
  • If you make your own food, which is not recommended, it is extremely important to check pH after it is thoroughly blended and mixed, and that the pH is 6.3-6.5. The author of Obligate Carnivore recommends taking these steps in the following order
  1. For minor cases, enzyme supplements which include methionine, vitamin C, and/or cranberry extract will be sufficient. These limit both urinary alkalinisation and inflammation. They also aid digestion, and can result in increased vitality.
  2. For moderate cases, Gillen states that Vegecat pH, with added sodium bisulfate, may be sufficient.
  3. For severe cases Gillen recommends methionine pills. Severe cases also require a visit to the vet and possibly removing them from a vegan diet. Gillen estimates 85-90% of cats will never experience even a minor case.
u/opentheuniverse · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

Love and Lemons by Jeanine Donofrio

She has 2, but her first book (linked above) is my favorite cookbook by far! Her blog is great as well.

u/jessegrass · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

Plants taste better, I'm completely in love with their restaurant (Acorn in Bath, England) and the recipes are all from their menu. Literally the best food I've ever had in my life, and everyone I'm close to is an amazing chef

u/Phaymous · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

The Happy Pear

They have a few books, this is the one I own, the recipes are simple and delicious. The girlfriend and I love it.

u/scissorrunner · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

I found basically these (https://www.amazon.com/Sekero-rice-cake-Korean-Ovaletts/dp/B001AD8C2O ) rice cakes/medallions at an Asian grocery store the other day. My boyfriend and I think they would make amazing scallops with the right marinade. The texture is what we remember to be similar!

u/Atramentous · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

Power Plates is far better than any other vegan cookbook I own.

u/vegan_dan · 2 pointsr/AskVegans

Sorry for the late answer.

Yes. I think there are a few circumstances in which caring for a pet would be morally permissible. The first is if you are already caring for a pet. The second is if you'd like to adopt a rescued pet. The third is if you'd like to rescue an animal yourself who would not be able to survive and thrive in the wild.

The problem with pets is that the majority of them aren't derived from the process of natural selection. I'm talking about cats and dogs who were selectively bred by humans for thousands of years. And for the past few centuries, this has been done for extremely selfish reasons rather than out of necessity for farm labor or otherwise. The result is billions of animals unfit for survival suffering from conditions like arthritis, slipped discs, back problems, and animals like bulldogs so hideously bred they've developed characteristic collapsed faces and contorted bones which restrict their breathing and ability to give birth naturally. All of these conditions which predispose them to pain and suffering and eventual early death were inflicted on them by humans driven by greed. This is in no way helped by the puppy mill and other animal mill epidemics which have resulted in hundreds of millions of feral cats and dogs in the U.S. alone suffering profusely from preventable disease and being exposed to the elements. They are left to die on the streets as they're in no way capable of surviving in urban environments or the wild. Most of them die within two years of becoming feral. And this is not to even mention the living hell holes which are puppy mills themselves, teeming with disease and blood, urine, fecal matter, pus, saliva, and other bodily fluids covering every surface. Most animals are forced in cages smaller than an average desk cabinet frequently with their deceased brethren alongside them. This is not much different from factory farms. Many of these operations are also small scale and outside where animals are exposed to the elements day and night and to predators who roam the area killing the "products" (cats and dogs) and even scavenging on deceased corpses left to rot nearby. To eliminate your individual contribution to this problem please avoid buying ANY animals from places that sell animals as pets and to go even further avoid supporting these corporations at all by refusing to purchase anything from them until they stop selling animals.

If you are interested in caring for an animal, please adopt from shelters who will usually pay for vaccinations and please, PLEASE spray and neuter your pet. As much as we love them, one modern day cat or dog in good care means several others homeless and suffering, and we should be doing everything we can to slow the growth of their population instead of contributing to this man-made epidemic. Nature did not intend for these animals to exist in the first place.

For diet, dogs can survive and thrive on an entirely plant based diet and there should be no reason not to feed them a nutritionally adequate one. Of course this doesn't mean they'll be just fine on potatoes and rice, there needs to be other foods in their diet. This page contains some good information about plant based diets for dogs:

https://v-dog.com/blogs/v-dog-blog/plant-based-diet-versus-meat-based-diet-for-your-dog-which-is-best

Unfortunately, cats are obligate carnivores meaning that they need animal flesh in their diet. And if feeding your cat animal flesh feels wrong, it should. Cats in the wild hunt and get all the nutrition that they need on their own. House cats can't do this reliably, and who other to blame than humans for interfering with natural processes. So what should you do? Based off of the limited research available on this topic probably due to big pet food corporations meddling and withholding information, I've concluded it's best to feed cats a mixed diet of vegan cat foods with either organ flesh or low-cost cat food like friskies which often source their animal flesh from the four D's - dead, dying, diseased, or disabled factory farmed animals which usually aren't sold for humans to consume. This will reduce your contribution to animal agriculture as much as possible while still maintaining a healthy diet for your house cat.

For more information, the video below is pretty right on the money concerning cat diets. (PS, it's made by a YouTuber called "Unnatural Vegan." I do not recommend checking out the rest of her content as she is known to mislead viewers and present inaccurate information, but she does make an occasional good video like the one I've cited below)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQXzcPt3CT4

And for your second question, I personally think it's best we focus on the immediate issues at hand affecting humans, animals and the environment before we start worrying about "resurrecting" animals driven to extinction by using genetic engineering, a crude process which has proved to fail often and cause immeasurable suffering to animal subjects. Just look at all the animals we've cloned in the past, they're too weak to survive, suffer from severe medical ailments and die quickly. There is no reason to do this when there should be bigger priorities, like the species we are driving to extinction right now and how animal agriculture industries are the largest contributor to species extinction and loss in biodiversity.

​

**EDIT**

There are now AAFCO certified vegan cat foods. (Cheap too, about 19 cents per ounce) There has been some reports of deficiencies caused by cats eating pretty much any vegan cat food, but that is not uncommon among non-vegan cats food either. I think to be on the safe side it might be better to mix vegan and non-vegan food 50/50 and observe your cat for any health changes. But most people who feed their cat just Ami's say they're just fine. In conclusion, take this advice however you wish. Good luck.

https://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Diet-Gourmet-Entree-Moist/dp/B0002SW0EY