14 Vegan Dating Tips

Introduction

For anyone who knows me, they would be extremely confused why I wrote this blog post because I’ve never been on a romantic date before. The truth is even though the probability of me dating anyone anytime soon, let alone ever, is slim, the romance department is a pretty important topic to talk about, especially if your significant other is or may become vegan.

Since Valentine’s Day is on the 14th of February, here are 14 tips on how to keep your vegan sweetheart loving you forever.

1. Learn what veganism is and how it is different from being a vegetarian.
2. Date locations matter.
3. Only eat at vegan-friendly restaurants.
4. Before you get a pet together, make sure they consider it ethical to have a pet.
5. Buy them vegan stuff.
6. Get rid of the leather.
7. Get a consensus on if your current or future kids should be vegan or non-vegan.
8. Change your language to be more animal-friendly around your significant other.
9. Tell your family that your significant other is vegan, and it is upmost important to respect that.
10. Don’t give them a diamond engagement ring.
11. Spend some time researching veganism for your significant other’s sake.
12. Learn how to cook vegan meals.
13. Don’t treat your significant other differently due to their vegan lifestyle.
14. Become vegan.

1. Learn what veganism is and how it is different from being a vegetarian.

Many people believe veganism and being vegetarian are the same thing when they aren’t. The best way to explain it is all squares are rectangles, but not all rectangles are squares. In the same way, all vegans are vegetarians in the sense that they don’t eat meat, but most vegetarians will never be vegan and not eat eggs, dairy, and more, in addition to consuming no meat.

If you want a more thorough definition of veganism, here is what veganism is in a nutshell.

2. Date locations matter.

Depending on the vegan, you might have to be extremely particular on your date locations:

• Avoid the circus because circuses involve showing animals for entertainment.
• Do not go to zoos due to having caged animals everywhere.
• Never go to any aquariums because they have a bunch of marine life that got captured to be shown for profit.
• Rodeos involve torturing horses and cattle.
• If you go fishing, you have to harm the fish in some way to catch them, like convincing them with bait (worms) to eat a metal hook.
• I know there are plenty of hunters who are convinced that some forms of hunting are okay. Despite that, hunting is about the worst date idea ever to do with a vegan.
• Horseback riding is bad because this hobby uses horses for mere entertainment.
• Bullfighting slaughters many bulls.
• Greyhound racing mistreats greyhound dogs.
• Dog shows promote dog breeding and increase the number of dogs euthanized in animal shelters.
• County fairs showcase numerous animals for prizes.
• Many restaurants do not have any vegan food. When in doubt, avoid going to any Mexican, Japanese, Chinese, and brunch establishments. Instead, try Pita Pit to have some falafel and pitas, Olive Garden for some Italian, or Panera Bread for a café option.

Here are some food options from food chains from Cosmopolitan, and PETA has some resources on vegan-friendly restaurants and vegan-friendly chains.

3. Only eat at vegan-friendly restaurants.

My biggest turnoff when I’m out in public with others, is eating out because it’s challenging to find vegan food at most restaurants. I would be so offended if a guy would take me on a date to a very non-vegan establishment that I would find an excuse to leave and then ghost him.

To prevent heartbreak over this, please use the app Happy Cow to find a vegan-friendly restaurant near you.

4. Before you get a pet together, make sure they consider it ethical to have a pet.

This logic might sound silly at first because since pets aren’t food, why would my significant other be against having a pet?

The simple answer is in the vegan community, some people are against having pets. Simply put, a huge difference between vegans and non-vegans is their disbelief and belief in speciesism, human superiority over nonhumans. Most non-vegans believe mankind is better than any other species, so people have the right to take advantage of nonhumans for their own benefit, like for food, clothing, and entertainment. The majority of vegans believe that nonhumans and humans are equal, and that means they shouldn’t be a human’s property nor used for a human’s benefit.

5. Buy them vegan stuff.

If you want to get your significant other (SO) a Valentine’s Day chocolate box, check out No Whey! Chocolate. Don’t give them any stuffed animals because many vegans think they represent animal cruelty. If you’re getting them any processed food, don’t buy it unless it has a certified vegan logo, and only give vegans non-food items that have an official cruelty-free logo on them, in addition to being completely vegan.

Get some inspiration on what to get your significant other from Emma Watson. Even though she does not consume a vegan diet, she tends to buy vegan fashion items and beauty products.

6. Get rid of the leather.

When I say you should toss your leather, I mean try your ultimate best to get more sustainable and vegan alternatives to your stuff, in addition to your food. The next time you buy clothes or furniture, get some with vegan leather. Other things to cut out include fur and wool items and anything containing down.

7. Get a consensus on if your current or future kids should be vegan or non-vegan.

One of the biggest conversations you are bound to have with your vegan significant other prior to marriage is if your future or current children will be raised vegan or not.

If you are unwilling to have some sort of agreement or consensus on them becoming vegan, your relationship will not last long-term.

8. Change your language to be more animal-friendly around your significant other.

One of the biggest things that surprised me after I became vegan in 2017 was how much our language emphasized cruelty towards animals. Here are a few of many negative expressions towards animals.

• You’re dead meat.
• Don’t badger me.
• Who let the cat out of the bag?
• You’re such a chicken.
• Stop pigging out.
• It’s raining cats and dogs.

Additionally, there are many questions you should never ask your vegan significant other because they’re offensive. Here are 10 of these rude questions.

9. Tell your family that your significant other is vegan, and it is upmost important to respect that.

If you are serious about possibly marrying your significant other someday, you’ll have to introduce them to the people in your life, no matter if they are actual family members, friends, or even a landlord. Since most people aren’t vegetarian or vegan, saying someone is vegan is a little hard to grasp, and that is why this news should be told beforehand.

Speaking from experience, I’ve been vegan for almost 3 years, and some of my family and friends still say offensive comments to me about it. Some examples include a few feel like I’m going through a phase and will convert back to eating meat again, and my immediate family is excited to see if I would eat a hamburger if I got amnesia.

If you tell loved ones about your significant other’s veganism and its importance to them, they are less likely to say anything negative to your significant other because of their veganism.

10. Don’t give them a diamond engagement ring.

The diamond industry promotes slavery. Blood diamonds weren’t made up to spice up the 2006 movie Blood Diamond. Conflict diamonds are real.

Instead, consider buying from jewelry brands that fight against human trafficking. If you still want a diamond ring, make sure it’s not a conflict or blood diamond.

11. Spend some time researching veganism for your significant other’s sake.

Veganism is a touchy-feely subject, and if you mess up by telling someone that your significant other is practically vegetarian in front of them, expect a breakup to occur within 24 hours of saying that ignorant comment.

Here’s a list of other things you need to know about veganism, besides that it’s different from being a vegetarian.

• What food isn’t vegan?
• What food is vegan?
• Where do vegans get their protein and calcium from, instead of meat and milk?
• Why is your significant other vegan?
• How long has your significant other been vegan?
• Why do many vegans eat meat alternatives or substitutes, instead of the real deal?

Before you dive into all of this lengthy research, be confident in the differences between veganism and vegetarianism, as well as how veganism differs from a plant-based diet.

12. Learn how to cook vegan meals.

It’s one thing to know which foods are vegan and non-vegan. It’s another thing to cook vegan food. Lucky for you, I made this vegan Pinterest board filled with 1,o00s of tasty vegan recipes. Pick a recipe or two from there, and start cooking! 👩🏻‍🍳

13. Don’t treat your significant other differently due to their vegan lifestyle.

Most of the time, whenever I tell someone I’m vegan, tension ensues. It’s not as bad as how people react to me having autism because I haven’t come across people who belittle my intelligence due my veganism, like what I’ve dealt with a lot after I tell people I’m autistic. Rather, a bunch of anger and uncalled questions come into play. Please treat vegans like everyone else.

14. Become vegan.

The biggest thing you could do to accommodate for your vegan significant other is to become vegan. This action shows you’re pretty serious about being with them.

Conclusion

Don't hold your breath for the zero people taking notes here because they want to be my valentine. I plan on celebrating Valentine’s Day after work with my cats, and nobody will mess with my plans!

If you have any cute nonhuman valentines in your life, tag Mischievous Monsters (@mischievousmonsters) in the comments of a cute pet post on Instagram.

Stay tuned for the next blog post, which will be about making every holiday as vegan-friendly as possible.