Absolutely no-kill: Maintaining a vegan sanctuary
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A vegan diet for rescued companions is realistic. As Home At Last grows in its number of residents and human caretakers, feeding should become easier. Theoretically, this diffuses arguments from larger rescue groups that vegetarian feeding is impractical. It can work for dogs and cats if enough people are involved. (Going a step further, imagine how demand, price and availability of donated food would be impacted if all sanctuaries went vegetarian!) Let there be no mistake, though -- cats require extra effort. Our cat rescue has been slowed by a lack of volunteers willing to make food. The system works, but the system takes work.

Hopefully, more veterinarians will rethink the baseless rejection of vegetarian diets for cats and dogs. Beth Johnson, D.V.M., recently remarked, "The Home At Last dogs and cats appear in excellent physical condition. The dogs are enthusiastic with vibrant coats and show no evidence of nutritional deficiencies. The cats, who are kept indoors, also appear very healthy without any evidence of nutritional deficiency."

However, re-homing our vegetarian dogs and cats presents a dilemma. Adopters are given food samples and encouraged to keep the dogs on vegetarian diets, but very few have. Although home visits are standard, there is no effective way to monitor and enforce a vegetarian requirement. This is a paradox. We will continue to find adoptive homes, but the thought of one of our healthy vegan alums scarfing slaughterhouse (reject) food is disturbing. Our goal is to seek adopters sympathetic to vegetarianism for companions, requiring a national adoption program currently in development.

As support allows, we will increase our numbers. To remain viable, however, strict limits must be followed. Slow growth is critical to success, and we will not change our stance on rescuing one animal at another's expense. This ethical choice is, to us, what clearly defines a "no-kill." The longer we stay on course, the more difficult it will be to refute the plan's salubrious benefits. All Home At Last animals come from difficult situations, and many will remain at the sanctuary for the rest of their lives, creating a tremendous opportunity to prove the effectiveness of long-term vegetarianism for dogs and cats.

Home At Last is committed to saving animals and encouraging others to help improve the lives of all animals, including those "invisible" ones at factory farms, feedlots and slaughterhouses. When a workable alternative exists, shouldn't we all choose the humane path?
Stan Petrey is co-founder and executive director of Home At Last.

Reprinted by permission, THE ANIMALS AGENDA,
1301 S. Bayliss St., Suite 325, Baltimore, MD 21224