WesternU College of Veterinary Medicine professors featured in documentary on vegan dog food

POMONA, Calif., Jan. 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A study led by two Western University of Health Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine professors demonstrated that dogs fed nutritionally-sound vegan diets maintain health outcomes as well as dogs fed meat. This study is now the subject of a documentary by Academy Award-winning director Louie Psihoyos, produced by the Oceanic Preservation Society (OPS) and streaming on Netflix Tudum. Stream here: Can Dogs Live on a Plant-Based Diet? You Are What You Eat Explores the Answer - Netflix Tudum

The short film, "Can Dogs Live on a Plant-based Diet?" explores the clinical study by WesternU College of Veterinary Medicine Associate Professor Annika Linde, DVM, PhD, MPH, and CVM Professor Tonatiuh Melgarejo, DVM, MS, PhD, presented at the 2023 Western Veterinary Conference and published in April 2024 in PLOS One. Domestic dogs maintain clinical, nutritional, and hematological health outcomes when fed a commercial plant-based diet for a year | PLOS ONE

The study examined the effects of a plant-based diet on 15 dogs over the course of one year. The dogs were given complete physical examinations, extensive blood and urine analyses, including nutritional and cardiac biomarkers – more than 3,000 parameters. Overweight or obese dogs lost weight, while the remainder maintained normal weight over the course of a year. No clinically significant changes occurred within blood and urine.

The documentary reveals some surprising results. Vitamin D is very important for bone metabolism and immunity. Seven of the 15 dogs entered the study with vitamin D insufficiency. At the end of the study, all 15 dogs were within normal limits for vitamin D.  

The documentary also delves into the potential environmental impacts of shifting dogs (and cats) to a plant-based diet. The amount of meat used to feed dogs and cats in the U.S. is equivalent to the meat consumption in Italy – 4.3 million tons, Dr. Melgarejo says in the film. If all dogs and cats in the U.S. had their own country, they would be the fifth largest meat-eating country in the world. An estimated 30% of the total carbon footprint for food production in the U.S. comes from dog and cat food, he said.

"To make matters worse, we are seeing dogs with similar health problems as people have on a diet that is heavy on animal products, like obesity and certain cancers," Melgarejo said. "Dogs and cats are not going to go away, and we need to provide a sustainable, healthier food, not only for the dogs, but for our planet."

About Western University of Health Sciences

Western University of Health Sciences (www.westernu.edu), located in Pomona, Calif. and Lebanon, Ore., is an independent nonprofit health professions university, conferring degrees in biotechnology and pharmaceutical sciences, dental medicine, medical sciences, nursing, optometry, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy,  physical therapy, physician assistant studies, podiatric medicine and veterinary medicine. WesternU is home to WesternU Health, where the best in collaborative health care services is offered.

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SOURCE Western University of Health Sciences