Hi, I am hoping to politely contest part of your third point—I believe it contains a factually incorrect claim.
’And i would just like to say that herbivores themselves eat small amounts of meat from time to time, and so if herbivores, which evolved to get the absolute most out of plants, need to eat meat sometimes, what will that say about transitioning carnivores to meat?
You are correct that some larger herbivores do sometimes eat smaller animals, but this occurs rarely and to my knowledge only in an opportunistic fashion. However a) this is not a common behaviour and b) it is in no shape or form essential for a herbivore’s well-being.
Herbivores have evolved an amazing digestive tract to acquire all their needs from plant matter. Opportunistic carnivorous behaviour is simply an advantageous behaviour for getting a bit of extra protein and nutrients, not a requirement for a healthy life. For instance, a wild ruminant may acquire a small, but useful survival advantage by munching on some ground laying bird’s eggs or even their live chicks when the ruminant happens to encounter them. But as I’ve mentioned this is not essential, nor particularly common. The ruminant can acquire all their nutritional needs through plant matter—their specialised anatomy, bacteria in their digestive tracts and well evolved metabolic pathways enabling them to do so.
Your claim applies even less so for herbivorous pets because humans can (and should!) ensure their pet’s diet contains everything they need for good wellbeing. Although, sadly I accept that many pet owners fail to do this.
Hi, I am hoping to politely contest part of your third point—I believe it contains a factually incorrect claim.
You are correct that some larger herbivores do sometimes eat smaller animals, but this occurs rarely and to my knowledge only in an opportunistic fashion. However a) this is not a common behaviour and b) it is in no shape or form essential for a herbivore’s well-being.
Herbivores have evolved an amazing digestive tract to acquire all their needs from plant matter. Opportunistic carnivorous behaviour is simply an advantageous behaviour for getting a bit of extra protein and nutrients, not a requirement for a healthy life. For instance, a wild ruminant may acquire a small, but useful survival advantage by munching on some ground laying bird’s eggs or even their live chicks when the ruminant happens to encounter them. But as I’ve mentioned this is not essential, nor particularly common. The ruminant can acquire all their nutritional needs through plant matter—their specialised anatomy, bacteria in their digestive tracts and well evolved metabolic pathways enabling them to do so.
Your claim applies even less so for herbivorous pets because humans can (and should!) ensure their pet’s diet contains everything they need for good wellbeing. Although, sadly I accept that many pet owners fail to do this.