Caught Between Love and a Pet: My Girlfriend Wants Me to Give Up My Cat

When the man in today’s story met his fiancée, he was drawn to her strong commitment to veganism and animal rights. Her unwavering dedication to a cruelty-free lifestyle was both admirable and inspiring. However, this commitment has now led to an unexpected and heartbreaking conflict.

He shared his experience online:

“I’ve been dating my girlfriend for seven months. She’s amazing, and we’re really compatible in many ways. She’s a passionate vegan and made it clear from the start that any potential partner should share her cruelty-free values. As a pescatarian, I found it easy to switch to a fully plant-based diet. My girlfriend was proud of me for embracing a cruelty-free lifestyle, and everything seemed great. We even became known as ‘the vegan couple’ on our college campus.”

Then there’s my cat Mittens… I’ve had her for three years, and I absolutely adore her. She’s a sweet and affectionate cat. However, my girlfriend has always been somewhat uneasy around her, which she attributed to not being familiar with cats. We eventually reached an unspoken understanding to spend most of our time at her place rather than mine, so the topic of Mittens rarely came up.

Recently, as my girlfriend and I have been spending more time together, we’ve started discussing taking our relationship to the next level. We’ve been seriously considering either buying a new apartment together or having one of us move in with the other.

However, after much discussion and planning, my girlfriend sat me down and dropped a bombshell. She told me that she couldn’t see a future with me in the next phase of our relationship unless I was willing to give up Mittens. She argued that owning a cat is unethical for vegans because cats kill mice and eat meat, and she believes that having a pet goes against vegan principles.

I was stunned. I told her that I wasn’t willing to give up Mittens. I explained that cats are obligate carnivores and need to eat meat, so I try to minimize harm by purchasing reputable cat food brands. Many vegans own cats and share this perspective. My girlfriend became angry and asked, “How much flesh does your cat eat? How many animals died to produce all that food? Are you okay with that being human flesh?”

It goes without saying that I will not get rid of my cat. However, it breaks my heart to think that an otherwise wonderful relationship might end over ideological differences. I struggle to understand my girlfriend’s perspective, especially since many vegans own cats. Granted, cat ownership can be a contentious topic within vegan circles, and I probably wouldn’t have adopted a cat if I’d been vegan back then, but now that I have Mittens, she needs to eat. I’ve considered vegan cat food, but Mittens has stomach issues, and my vet strongly advises against it.