Many people are vegetarians, either for health or philosophical reasons. Some pet owners even extend their dietary philosophies to their felines, although cats are known carnivores. But can cats ever really be vegetarians?

When Lorelei Wakefield was a veterinary student at the University of Pennsylvania, she cared for two kittens. Because she was a vegetarian, she didn't want them eating meat either. Wakefield spent three hours a week cooking vegetarian kibble, adding a supplement to compensate for missing nutrients. "They seemed to thrive," she says, but when the kittens were 6 months old, she switched them to a standard commercial diet.

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